An invitation from Valha. When considering the meaning of the word invitation, it seemed like a positive thing, but there was Valha in front of the word, and that was a different story.


    There were two cases where the Valha Empire sent an invitation. It either had the pure meaning of inviting a guest and turning back when Roman declined, or it had impure intentions.


    Roman Dmitry read the invitation.


    [Roman Dmitry. I would like to invite you as the representative warrior for the festival honoring the souls of warriors. The deadline is 100 days from now, and if you do not arrive in Valha on the day before that, we will consider you to have declined this invitation.]


    Every year, the Valha Empire held a festival to honor the souls of warriors who died on the battlefield. On that day, the entire Valha would be enveloped in a festive atmosphere, and it was a unique tradition in Valha to select the representative warrior and see blood.


    They believed in the superstition that the fiercer the battle, the happier the souls of the dead would be. It was a fun event. The problem was that he was confirmed to be the representative for this year.


    Chris said,


    “This time, the representative warrior of Valha is Barbossa, who is called the Twelve Swords of the Continent. For the murder of Count Denver, they would use this to disy their revenge publicly.”


    The Twelve Swords of the Continent. He was a 6-star swordsman and ranked 6th in Valha. He was a monster who ranked 11th on the continent, and Barbossa was the representative of the Valha Empire.


    It was a time when the intentions of Kronos and Valha were clearly divided. Both empires equally desired revenge for one thing, but Kronos openly announced the assassination. They were the type who didn’t care about any means to get their ends.


    If that was what Kronos did, then the Valha Empire chose an absurdly straightforward way to attack. If he epted the invitation, then Roman would face Barbossa. As a result, he would die, and it would end there. However, if he won, they would forget the grudge they had against him.


    Of course, not a single person who responded to Valha’s invitation survived. The representative warriors sent by Valha were renowned on the continent, and Valha was now colored in festive air as they would make their opponents fall to their swords.


    Their intention was clear. Valha wanted someone to take responsibility for Count Denver’s death, and that only meant one thing—a death sentence. The moment he responded, he would die.


    Even Chris, who trusted Roman, was worried about this.


    “It is an invitation you don’t have to ept. Unlike two years ago, there are now many people who look at the Lord. Run away from this danger. We cannot take a risk as we did with the assassin guild.”


    Chris’s words could be understood. However, Roman couldn’t ept the situation, so he said,


    “An invitation is literally an invitation. As you said, there is no problem with refusing this invitation, but the Valha Empire values the honor of its warriors. They will think that my refusal is their victory, and they will use that to discredit my honor. The Valha Empire is a fox wearing the mask of a warrior. If I ept this invitation, I will face death, and if I don’t, I will receive an equal kickback. With a perfect n, they sent me this invitation.”


    The choice fell on Roman Dmitry. For safety reasons, it would have been right for him to refuse, but it wasn’t the best.


    “Chris. I must make those who follow me believe in me. In the future, in order to deal with enemies that everyone thinks cannot be handled normally, I have to ensure them that I can win. And if I don’t respond to the invitation they sent, what do you think people will think of me? A single refusal that is considered a natural choice to avoid danger will cause a crack in people’s faith, and that will be the start of them breaking away. Valha wants Dmitry to split apart.”


    During the past wars, Dmitry always won. At first, it was because of Roman and his skills alone, but as time went on, his own men’s skills shone. Their driving force was their trust. With a strong conviction that they could defeat any enemy if they just followed Roman Dmitry, they didn’t care about their own lives. Even if they died, they were assured that he would mourn and treat their family right, which felt more than they could ask for.


    Roman Dmitry was the God of Dmitry. In the future, they knew that not betraying his trust was an important factor. Roman said,


    “100 dayster, I will ept the invitation. Chris. Just as you have your role, so do I.”


    At that moment, Chris was speechless. He knew he would never be able to live like Roman Dmitry.


    Around that time, a rumor spread among the assassination guilds.


    “Ecorche was responsible for Roman Dmitry’s assassination, and they were massacred.”


    The rumors began with Dante. Dante told those around him what he had seen and heard, and those rumors began to spread like wildfire.


    “The Sword of Ecorche. When Dante met Cort after such a long time, he was shocked. Why do you think so? The well-known assassins on the Smander Continent had been defeated and went through terrifying torture, and it is said that the people of Dmitry killed all the assassins. Cort died just like that. Dmitry brutally poisoned and released him, and Cort fell while coughing up blood. In addition, as everyone knows, Roman Dmitry crossed the border and also attacked the base of the assassin guild, as if it wasn’t just enough to kill those who attempted to assassinate him.”


    It was a clear testimony, and the people who heard Dante’s words talked about what happened at that time. The downfall of an assassin guild—there was no one who hadn’t heard of it.


    When people greeted the morning, they were horrified at Bracan’s head hanging on the street. It was beyondmon sense. Ecorche’s failed attempt was something that could be admired and also forgotten, but taking revenge by crossing the border was hard to forget.


    Moreover, Emperor Kronos announced the assassination. If there had been a problem in the Kronos Empire’snd, he wouldn’t have been able to return alive, yet Roman took his revenge. It sent everyone a clear message, and the people from assassin guilds trembled with fear.


    “Roman Dmitry has always been consistent with his actions. When the Barco family fell, people thought that their defeat in the war was what brought them to their end, but those who knew Roman Dmitry knew that he was the one who took down Barco. That is how cruel the man is. Just like how Ecorche vanished overnight. If we n to take anymission to assassinate Roman Dmitry or his people, we need to remember that we might be in danger.”


    The price of the assassination—Roman Dmitry clearly disyed it. Rather than spouting nonsense or making threats, he crossed the border and showed his intentions. As a result, those who showed interest in the assassination business turned their heads. If they seeded in what Emperor Kronos wanted, they would gain wealth and honor, but they would also have to face extinction.


    Thanks to that, the number of requests for assassinations in the northeastern area significantly decreased. They were worried that they might pay the price for hurting people who were rted to Dmitry.


    Roman Dmitry was right. Just one step imprinted fear in people’s hearts more clearly than a hundred words.


    The downfall of the Ecorche guild—some were shocked, and some were surprised about it. If some felt fear, then Kevin, who was following Roman Dmitry, felt helpless.


    ‘…How long will I have to do nothing but just stand aside when the Lord is in danger?’


    Today, he wanted to follow Roman. He wanted to help him since this task was dangerous, but Roman didn’t want anyone to go with him. Roman Dmitry didn’t even give them the full reason. When asked just to do their part, Kevin and the others couldn’t even say anything.


    Everyone knew it—the fact that if they followed Roman Dmitry, they would be more of a hindrance than a help. So they suppressed their sincerity. They could only watch Roman Dmitry leave.


    ‘People say our growth was abnormally fast. However, with that alone, I cannot exist as a person suitable to follow the path my Lord would take. The Kronos Empire and the Valha Empire. I need to be stronger to deal with those who have been eating this continent.’


    He went to the training ground every day. When the sun went down, he was eager to train until he was exhausted, but he knew that it would be impossible for him to grow beyondmon sense just through training.


    He needed a new method. How would he ept Roman Dmitry’s teachings, practice his martial arts, and develop higher growth?


    All of a sudden, he remembered what Felix had said a while ago.


    “This time, we have developed a magic circle that increases the concentration of mana in a certain area. It is not perfect yet, but it is sure to be helpful in many ways once we manage to rule out the errors. It doesn’t just increase the power of magic when used, but it can also be used for ‘training needs’ for aura swordsmen by using auras at an unusual concentration. Theoretically, aura swordsmen can increase the amount of mana they receive into their bodies and amplify their aura.”


    It was a conversation he had with Chris. Felix was continuously conducting many experiments for the sake of Dmitry, and one of them seeded in developing a magic circle.


    Actually, it was something he had been researching since his stay in Frank, but he finally seeded in pursuing it.


    However, it was still unfinished. They said it would take half a year to make sure it would work and be safe, but Kevin didn’t have the time. So he looked for Felix. In order to be stronger, he was willing to do anything.


    Even if he would be degraded as a test subject by the magic circle, Kevin needed a way to have noticeable results.


    However, there were already other guests—Henderson, McBurney, and the others. Among those who followed Roman Dmitry, those who werecking a little were there before him. In the wake of Ecorche’s case, they also had the same thought as Kevin.


    Felix said,


    “…Seriously, such reckless people. As you were told, this is something that hasn’t been confirmed yet, and your safety is at risk. It only has a one-in-a-million chance of sess. Why would you use this for training when it could fail?”


    “Mr. Felix. Don’t you know why we came here? The only important thing for us is to be able to help our Lord at all costs. This level isn’t enough. No matter how much we grow, the enemy we will have to deal with is the empire, which has been built up from hundreds of years of training.”


    It was Henderson.


    Felix could understand. He also felt helpless, so he looked at everyone and nodded.


    “I understand. But keep this in mind, safety is my priority. Wouldn’t it be embarrassing to greet our Lord with crippled limbs when he returns? The Phoenix Magic Tower received so much help and money from the Lord, so I can never deliver bad news to him.”


    They also knew it. They couldn’t expect any major changes here. But still, they chose to move forward.


    The night after, at the iron mines in Dmitry, a sudden ident urred when a new site was being dug up.


    <em>Kwang!</em>


    <em>Rumble!</em>


    “The path is copsing!”


    “Avoid it!”


    The tunnel copsed. The entire ce had been thoroughly checked to see if the ground was solid, but the ident was very sudden.


    Everyone quickly evacuated. In the past, these mines had imed the lives of many, but with the newly installed devices, the people could be protected.


    [Air Shield]


    <em>Wheik—</em>


    The wind rose. An intangible barrier formed, preventing things from copsing from above. Thanks to that, the people were able to secure time to escape.


    After a long time had passed and the ground had stabilized, Morkan, who checked the tunnel, noticed something.


    “… What the?”


    Deep underground, a hole was drilled, and at the bottom, an underground passage was formed, which seemed to have been made by human hands.