Hero of Darkness

Under a clear bright sky and breezy weather, a pleasant scenery of blossoming flowers and lush green trees soothed the souls of everyone who stood in this surrounding. It was the time of spring... The season of Rejuvenation & Rebirth. Anyone who passed through this wide and open valley would feel their bodies and mind cleansed of all the negativity in their lives. 

Crung! Crung! Thud! 

Over 30 carriages made to carry 20 people at once and hundreds of people walking slowly passed through these paved roads as the sound of monster steeds which looked a lot like a mix of various dinosaur species with agile builds pulled these carriages. These carriages were no different than buses on earth, just without an engine pulling them. While the heavy cargos were carried by the giant and bulky tamed beasts with a body resembling gigantic rhinos. 

The children belonging to different species playing together, their small shenanigans brightened up the mood of this caravan. 

More than a hundred guards were divided and spread around as small groups in different directions to protect these travelers. 

Amongst these multiple carriages, few were far luxurious and very comfortable compared to the others. In one of the slow-paced carriages, sat a man on the seat at the edge which was close to the exit. 

A bunch of children ran behind this slow carriage and spoke to the young man clad in black coat and adventurer's gear. 

"Brother Kahn, brother Kahn! You said you would teach me to fight with a sword today when we stop for a rest in the evening. Don't forget your promise." spoke a young and frail demonkin child amongst the group of children who appeared to be around 7-8 years old. 

"Hmph! You wish. Big brother Kahn promised to play Princess & Knight with us already." said a young foxkin girl with yellow ears as her fluffy tail wriggled in excitement. There was another faction of small & cute girls walking behind these boys. As if these two were different political factions disagreeing with each other. 

"Yeah, yeah. I'll play around with you guys. But don't run like this. You'll fall on the road this way." replied the handsome and elegant-looking man. 

"Oye, kids! Don't disturb boss Kahn. Go play around somewhere else." a guard wearing light armor and a crossbow interjected. His scolding scattered the children while most of them showed him their tongue in retort. 

"Let them be, they're just small kids. Who will play around if not for them." spoke Kahn. 

"Okay, sir. And if you need anything, just tell me and I'll arrange for it." spoke the male elven guard. 

Kahn nodded back and gazed around the surrounding forested area of this alley and he breathed in the fresh air. 

It had been more than two weeks since Kahn & Albestros left the Flavot city and departed for the capital as part of the next chapter in their respective lives. 

The reason why everyone was showing their respect towards Kahn was because in the past two weeks since they started their journey for the capital.. Where most of the travelers were going for important tasks and some to make a living; their caravan had been attacked five times. Three of which were the sudden ambushes from bandit groups and two times were from ferocious monster hordes. 

It was one thing if all the guards were situated at a set location together, but because of their distributed setup to provide protection from all sides, even the hundred guards in charge of defending against such ambushes were not able to respond to the onslaught swiftly and effectively. 

At the end of the day, it was a very cheap caravan made only for a poor class of people who couldn't afford high traveling fares. Even the guards were not that well geared and each had only common rank equipment and weapons. 

But during all those incidents, Kahn suddenly emerged as a Grandmaster rank fighter and single-handedly took down these attackers and monsters alike. 

Forget fighting back, none of these people and beasts could even get their faces out of the ground under Kahn's War Dominance aura. 

His senses were already twice more effective and had the range of 4 kilometers ever since he broke through to Semi-Saint Rank. So he was alerted of the enemies even before they attacked the caravan. 

He deliberately let out his aura and let everyone feel the pressure to establish his strength during these fights. 

So when his might was revealed, everyone not only saw him as their savior but also a true powerhouse. Hence the respect and special treatment he was receiving from time to time. 

But rather than acting aloof and some top figure, Kahn mixed in with the other passengers like a normal man who was one of them and not someone with a high standing or a huge background. This left a very favorable impression of him on all the travelers. 

At this moment, Kahn spoke with Albestros who was sitting on the opposite side of the carriage seats. 

"So who's your connection in the capital? We will at least have a place to stay for a while, right? Because I don't want to stay in those inns like a drifter." spoke Kahn. 

Not that he didn't have enough money, it was just that he was subliminally brainwashing Albestros into thinking that they were together in form of friendship or companionship. 

Kahn had few plans for this Grandmaster rank Blacksmith and wanted to gain many things from him after they reached the capital. And what better way to do it than making the person next to him think that now their fates were tied together? 

"Don't worry about it, kid. I have a good friend in the capital who's also a very influential figure. He will definitely help us out until we get ourselves properly settled there and decide what to do next." spoke Albestros. 

"Good then. I have no clue what will become of us. There isn't even a demand for Adventurers in the capital. Only guards & mercenaries.. The ones I have no intention of working as." spoke Kahn as he sighed. 

He was currently only good at fighting. He hadn't raised his skills and knowledge in magic more than the bare minimum. In front of a true mage like Solomon, Kahn was a toddler when it came to their magic spells and mastery. He barely managed to survive from all those elemental mage spells and destructive attacks. 

So he indeed put learning and becoming more proficient in magic on his priority list. And there was also the Dimensional Law ability which he had to master. 

What he learned from reading many books is that compared to other professions, Magicians required the highest amount of resources and practice to improve their skills. Plus there were also Magic Formations, Artifacts and Magic spell scrolls that came under this study. 

So what he wanted to do first was set himself up properly there first and have a lifestyle where he won't have to worry about income and people looking over his shoulder so he could invest all of his time in studying magic and understand the Dimensional Law Divine Ability which was in his opinion an extremely terrifying ability which was essential to save his life in the future if he met someone he could not fight against. 

While Kahn was lost in his thoughts, suddenly his ears picked up a sound of a skirmish. 

He quickly jumped out of the carriage and took a look around. Using Hunter's Intent, he searched for the source of the battle. 

"Everyone, be alert!" shouted Kahn and broke the peaceful and tranquil atmosphere. 

He went to the leader of the guards who stood in a group. 

"Sir Kahn, what happened?" asked the leader. 

"There are hundreds of people fighting in the north-west from our location just 4 kilometers away. You can't see it because of the valley and these trees. Get all these people together and put up a defensive formation. Women & Children in the innermost part. 

I'll go and check around what's it about. Whether we might come in danger because of them or not." explained Kahn as he summoned Lucifer out of his space ring and dashed in the direction of the battle. 

If it was someone else, even the guards would have neglected their command but since it was him who saved their lives so many times already and they acknowledged his strength, the leader ordered everyone to gather around and get inside a defensive formation. 

Kahn on the other end dashed within the treelines and reached towards the source of the sound of people fighting. 

After finally reaching close to the battlefield, he quickly used Concealment skill and hid amongst the thick bushes. 

The scene before him was something he wasn't unfamiliar with. 

Clang! Shrill! Bang! 

More than 200 people were fighting against each other. One side had white and golden patterned armors and the other one was clad in black clothes and armors like pieces on a chessboard. Blood and detached limbs with cut down entrails filled the battleground. 

Kahn didn't bother caring about helping either side because the more dead bodies, the more things he could loot and more subordinates he could create. 

But when he saw the Sigil on the banners of the defending side.. He instantly remembered what this Sigil represented. 

After he took a long deep breath, Kahn spoke... 

"Ah shit, here we go again."