**Chapter 107: The Journey to the Empire (Part 1)**
It’s July again!
In the Northern Region of Silgaya, the scenery is breathtaking—mountains and waters harmoniously blended, wildflowers blooming and wilting like a soap opera, mist floating around the verdant fields, and in the distance, a shimmering pond dances in the light. Closer in, the majestic dark green mountains rise and fall like an overgrown roller coaster, lush trees snuggled up to a bright blue sky, with clouds drifting like whimsical cotton candy. Somewhere above the roaring waterfall, a flock of migratory birds flies by, while wisps of smoke lazily curl up from the end of this fairy-tale vista.
This is a bit of wilderness not far from the Emerald City, and down at the foot of the mountains, the smoke hints at a quaint little town.
The town is called Taan Town, a recently sprouted settlement.
Once upon a time, it was pretty much the middle of nowhere, home to just a handful of households. But, since the calamity of the demons wreaked havoc in Woodward Forest last year, many residents sought safety. Thanks to the Holy Church organizing a mass relocation, about five hundred people decided to plant their roots here.
After that, the town was firmly under the control of the Holy Church. Those armored warriors strutted in like they owned the place, bolstering the population with their manpower. They built more houses, expanded the fences, dug wells, and within just a few months, they nearly quadrupled Taan Town in size.
Of course, the original townsfolk were seriously grouchy about it. They had been living here peacefully for generations, surviving off the land, and didn’t want any nosy outsiders crashing their party. The mayor was reluctant to relinquish control, but the church’s warriors were tough cookies. Few dared to stand up to them. Plus, when it came to construction, they prioritized recruiting locals for labor—and paid them handsomely! They even introduced the finest agricultural and livestock systems from the Emerald City. So, slowly but surely, the townsfolk warmed up to the changes.
Now, Taan Town is a mixed bag of people: knights, clergy, recent residents from the borders of Woodward Forest (who make up the majority), refugees from the Southern Region, merchants and laborers from Emerald City, passersby, and a few shady characters looking to stir trouble. You name it, Taan Town’s got it.
Two days ago, my buddy the Sword Demon and I arrived here.
Since I had company, I couldn’t just fly over—duh! That would be way too conspicuous! So our progress slowed to a crawl. Thankfully, Sword Demon Miss is a sprinter, and once we hit the Northern Region, transportation got a lot easier. There were plenty of war chariots for rent in many towns, and we actually had some cash, so we strolled along, stopped for views, and occasionally bought food for hungry families or refugees. Not too shabby for a journey!
The Northern Region isn’t like the Southern Region; here, the chances of bumping into Church Knights have significantly skyrocketed. They’re everywhere—decked out in armor, a veritable metallic forest! Must be mostly from the Second Knights Order or something. We frequently encountered Church supply convoys, and inspection was a whole lot stricter. We usually had to sneak into towns because if we didn’t rip off our masks, no one would let us in!
But if we did take off our masks, that could spell even bigger trouble.
So even lodging became a major hassle. Many nights, we’d just find some lonely nook with no one around to crash in, waiting for daytime to stock up on supplies. Guess who took on that task? Yep, Sword Demon Miss! She could take off her mask without raising eyebrows, while I, sporting my black hair and eyes, stood out like a sore thumb.
Sometimes I think, man, thank goodness I’ve got a maid!
She’s really a woman of few words and simple thoughts. The only time she perks up is when the topic flicks to swordplay or weapons. Otherwise, she mostly keeps quiet. Pretty much anything I ask her to do, she jumps at it—be it grunt work or heavy lifting, no complaints, no unnecessary questions. Her expectations from life? Super low—just give her a sword and some hardtack, and she’s good to go.
She perfectly aligns with my definition of an ultimate tool!
And after spending a month together, I found myself surprisingly dependent on her.
Deep down, I know…
This girl is having a rough time.
She once worked for the church without complaint, just hoping to get some salary for her sick mother’s treatment. I have no clue if she had a “direct superior” per se. She probably took orders straight from Angel, that bottomless pit of a guy wouldn’t pass up someone like Sword Demon for his shady errands—like hunting down a rogue knight or whatever. Why they defected? Sword Demon wouldn’t even bother to inquire!
Now that the church has drained her usefulness, they’re planning to off her. She narrowly escaped, only to discover they didn’t spare her mother either.
She must have a ton of hatred inside, but seeking revenge seems like a mountain too high to climb. No matter how skilled she is, taking on the entire Church as a lone wolf? Not a chance. She knows that. So when she crossed paths with me, maybe she thought our fates mirrored each other. After hearing a bit about me, she decided I was the good guy, and I’m stronger. Partnering up was way better than facing the Church solo.
And maybe, she just wanted a companion… two lonely souls looking for a bit of reliance…
But my initial thought was simply, “You’re not going anywhere!”
In any case…
Here we are, stuck together.
Over the last month, we’ve slowly built some trust… I hate to admit it, but despite that oddball’s quirks, she’s reliable when it counts. If I lost her, there’d be a ton of things I wouldn’t be comfortable handling myself.
In the future…
Wouldn’t it be great if I had more folks like her around?
So for the past couple of days, I can’t help but entertain this thought: what if I just start an organization? Something with a badass name that sticks in everyone’s mind, but what exactly would we do? Mostly, it’d be about getting me to do all sorts of stuff, I suppose. The members wouldn’t need to be many, just a couple of reliable and capable peeps I could trust, like Carlos, Rect, and maybe Viki… Um, Viki might be a stretch, though.
Whenever I reach this point in my thoughts, I can’t help but worry.
How’s Carlos doing… and Viki…
I’ll probably see Viki soon.
July rolls around again…
Two years ago, about this time, back in the Royal City, Viki and I had an unforgettable yet awkward “Valentine’s Day.” I cooked for her, she tricked me into drinking, and I ended up drunk. She said she’d escort me back to my dorm, but somehow we ended up at my doorstep, and she wanted to devour me…
Those “fireworks” that night? Truly spectacular.
And now, I’m about to see her again…
Plus, she might meet my parents before I do…
What am I going to do then?
Should I burst into tears?
Or should I grin like an idiot?
I’m feeling a bit lost.
After spinning in circles trying to figure it out, I decided to switch gears and stop worrying about those thoughts, or dig deeper into them. I swear, I’m getting annoyed with these trivial matters… uh, not annoyed per se, but a tiny bit perplexed, maybe?
In the Silence Fortress, upon witnessing that hellish scene, I could sense the anger swelling within me; even Sword Demon caught onto that vibe…
Then we stumbled into a little chapel, fumbling through the darkness, and my mind began to whirl with even more random thoughts. I had some… cough, anxious feelings. Even bugs made me twitchy. I’ve encountered all sorts of critters in the desert without a hitch, but back then? I barely paid attention. No impressions mean I wasn’t really fazed.
So, I suddenly realized the other day that recently… emotions belonging to normal humans are slowly but surely bubbling back up inside me.
It feels like things are subtly but steadily returning to life…
I don’t know.
Emotions?
In reality, figuring those out is probably the hardest task of all!
But at least, when I saw Tilya, and she said those things I wanted to hear… I distinctly felt my emotions wavering.
But what kind of wavering, I couldn’t quite put my finger on.
In any case, we finally reached our next destination.
We’ve been here for two days, and in those two days, we’ve done one thing: search for Grandma Claire and some nameless villagers like Ryan.
Rect told me they had been relocated here.
Of course, this was mostly Sword Demon’s doing while I quietly waited outside town for updates. Don’t let her quiet demeanor fool you! When it comes down to business, she’s all about getting things done efficiently. Just give her the order, and she’ll pull it off to the best of her abilities. No convoluted thoughts! When questioning folks, she keeps it short and sweet, drilling straight to the point. The ones questioned usually didn’t even know why they were so intimidated by a little shortie’s aura and intense gaze, so they spill their guts. If they refuse? Well, let’s just say she’s got a method for that: a slap!
“SMACK!”—and the target’s left dazed. Followed by a kick or two—her kicks are heavy! She hasn’t met anyone who could endure two kicks without telling the truth. Then she’d bolt before anyone could pin her down.
All this took less than a day to find out.
Turns out, Grandma Claire and the others are no longer around…
They left a few days ago with Ryan’s family, while a bunch of other villagers are still here. A few whose names I remember, but I didn’t meet up with them—let Sword Demon handle that.
After chatting with them, I learned that the ones who took Grandma Claire were Barry and Rect…
Can’t believe they beat me to the punch!
