Three years later…

  The atmosphere of the night was suffocating, draped in the heavy silence of a dimly lit corridor within a certain ancient castle.

  “You damn goddess! If I ever see you again, I’ll freaking kill you!”

  ‘Creezos Teeps’—or simply ‘Creed’—a black-haired toddler barely two years old, was sprinting with all the strength his tiny legs could muster. Hot on his heels were men clad in shinobi attire, relentless in their pursuit.

  This little boy was, of course, the reincarnated ‘Tris.’ Since his rebirth, he had been the target of one assassination attempt after another, but today was undoubtedly the most dire situation he had faced yet.

  Meanwhile, let’s shift the perspective briefly to the Goddess Luna…

  “A-choo!”

  Luna, who was busy preparing a meal in her pristine white kitchen, couldn’t stop sneezing. It felt as though someone was gossiping about her. Actually, calling it ‘gossip’ was an understatement; it was more like a blood-curdling curse of vengeance directed straight at her.

  Back to the two-year-old child…

  “Stop those intruders at all costs!”

  The shouts of dozens of beautiful young maids— Creed’s personal nannies—echoed through the halls as they rushed to intercept the ninjas with drawn daggers. Their delicate, doll-like faces were now masked with cold-blooded ferocity. Beneath their lifted skirts, their fair thighs were rippling with honed muscle. Despite their lovely appearances, these women were elite specialists in magic and the art of assassination.

  “This is bad! Two of them got through!” a maid with long, flowing red hair cried out in shock. Her flame-colored eyes flickered with panic as she saw two ninjas among the hundreds manage to somersault past their defensive line. “Young Master, run faster!”

  ‘I’m running as fast as I can, dammit! My legs are short! Have some sympathy!’ Creed cursed inwardly, his short, stubby little legs pumping like tiny pistons as he scrambled away.

  “Young Master, this way!”

  At a three-way junction, ‘Elian Callis’—a handsome golden-haired knight with features as divine as a god—sprinted in from the right. In one fluid motion, he scooped Creed up with his right arm, tucking him securely against his chest. His piercing brown eyes swept over the pursuing ninjas with lethal intent as he swung his ornate knight’s sword with his left hand.

  Squelch! The blade severed the first ninja’s neck, pinning him against the wall like a chicken on a chopping block. Thwack! Without missing a beat, he lunged forward, piercing the second ninja’s heart through the left side of his chest.

  ‘Phew, I’m alive,’ Creed thought, looking up at Elian. This silver-armored knight was not only extraordinarily skilled but also the most loyal servant of the Teeps family.

  Having dealt with the immediate pursuers, Elian turned and sprinted toward the Lady’s chambers to return the child to his mother’s embrace.

  “Creed! My baby!” ‘Deliana Teeps,’ a stunning woman with long golden hair, cried out the moment she saw the knight carrying her son toward her. Her dark eyes gazed at her precious heart with desperate longing.

  With the child secured, the Lady and her loyal retainers fought their way through the swarm of ninjas, breaking out of the castle.

  At the rear exit, the path led to the city’s main road, which connected to the residential districts. Because of the sheer kindness of Lord Teeps—who had ruled with such benevolence that his people loved and revered him above all else—countless commoners who knew how to fight had taken up arms to assist the knights in their struggle against the assassins.

  Near the carriages, Deliana scanned the thousands of people locked in combat, searching for a specific face. “Where is Lord Ramias?”

  “I am here… Deli.” A deep, charismatic voice resonated from behind.

  ‘Ramierus Teeps.’ The handsome Lord possessed a face that exuded warmth. His short black hair and well-groomed beard only added to his rugged, noble charm.

  “Ramias!” Deliana looked up at her husband, who sat atop his steed in silver knight’s armor, her face etched with worry.

  “Our allies have responded. We will be fine,” Ramierus said, his voice firm yet laced with tenderness.

  “Mmhmm,” Deliana smiled and nodded before quickly boarding the carriage. With that, the entire convoy began its frantic exodus.

  Lord Teeps ruled the wealthiest territory in the Kingdom of Fautia. Lords from many other provinces had long desired to install their own representatives to seize this wealth. However, due to Ramierus's administrative brilliance and the undying loyalty of his people, replacing him was no simple task. This led them to a cowardly plot: poisoning Lady Teeps to ensure she could never bear an heir, intending for the lineage to die out.

  But when young Creezos Teeps was born, everything changed. Their patient waiting turned into desperate slander. False charges of treason were manufactured with ease. Lords from various territories immediately dispatched their forces to hunt down the Teeps family, hoping for the grand reward promised by the Kingdom’s declaration of their "betrayal."

  ***

  Outside the City…

  The Teeps army, ten thousand knights strong, galloped along a treacherous mountain path. To their left was a steep, jagged cliff; to their right, a chasm so deep the bottom was invisible. This route was known as the Path of Death. It was said that of all those who had ever fallen into the abyss below, not a single soul had ever returned.

  SKREE-AWWW!!! The shriek of wyverns tore through the air.

  Hundreds of winged beasts—the size of horses, resembling dragons but without forelimbs—were closing in on the convoy.

  “They sent the Heroes already?” Lord Teeps looked up at the leading wyvern. Atop its back stood a young man in crimson knight’s armor, leveling a spear toward them.

  Bwa-la-paaa! The war horn of the knight convoy blasted.

  Voom! Voom! Voom! Over a thousand knights in light armor released their right hands from their reins, chanting incantations as white light erupted from their palms.

  VOOM!!! The entire convoy was suddenly enveloped in a brilliant, blinding white radiance.

  CLANG! The spear hurled toward them was deflected as if hitting an invisible wall.

  “What the hell was that?” ‘Kirk,’ the knight in crimson armor, turned to ask the female ninja riding the wyvern beside him.

  “The Ancient Mantra of the Teeps family,” ‘Natsuki,’ a short-red-haired woman in a skin-tight ninja suit, replied. “It can reflect any attack. Its strength depends on the number of casters.”

  “Where are they heading?” Kirk demanded.

  “Who knows? But legends say that when the Teeps are in peril, they flee to the Cave of Death and vanish without a trace. If they do not wish to be found, no one will ever see them again,” Natsuki answered.

  “Then what’s the plan?”

  “I can steal anything… remember?” Natsuki smirked mischievously. “Distract the father for me.”

  As she spoke, a whirlwind swirled around Natsuki’s wyvern before it vanished into thin air, completely invisible.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  “Focus all attacks on the vanguard!” Kirk bellowed to the ninjas behind him.

  WHOOSH! The ninjas atop their wyverns raised their left hands, aiming at the convoy.

  BOOM! CRACKLE! SWISH! Thunderbolts, fireballs, and ice arrows—a barrage of long-range magic—rained down upon the front of the line where Lord Teeps led the charge.

  “Since we’re at it, let’s test that ancient armor of yours!”

  Kirk raised his right hand. FLARE! A spear of crimson fire manifested in his grip, flames dancing at its tip, before he hurled it like a lightning bolt toward the lead knights.

  BANG! BANG! BANG! The magical projectiles were deflected effortlessly—even the Hero’s flame spear failed to pierce the shroud.

  While the chaos unfolded at the front, Natsuki was prowling the middle of the convoy, where dozens of identical carriages were lined up.

  “Full of busty maids, huh? So the rumors about Teeps City having the most beautiful women are true,” Natsuki muttered. She glided beside the convoy under her cloak of invisibility, peering into each carriage. Though the windows were shut tight and reinforced with concealment magic, they were useless against her 'Insight' skill.

  “Found our little boy.”

  Natsuki’s lips curled into a predatory grin as the two-year-old came into view. She steered her wyvern toward the carriage on the far right and extended her left hand. “Theft!”

  POP! The child vanished instantly from Deliana’s arms.

  “CREED!!!” Lady Teeps shrieked her son’s name, desperately trying to claw open the window, but she was held back by the maids for her own safety.

  ‘Wait, what the hell is happening?’ Creed blinked in shock, realizing he was now being held by a red-haired woman in a ninja suit.

  “Hello there, little boy,” Natsuki greeted him with a cruel, twisted smile.

  ‘Aw, crap. With that Japanese face, she’s definitely a Hero,’ Creed thought, his mind racing in panic.

  “YOUNG MASTER!” Elian roared. He urged his horse to leap out from the convoy. “Forgive me, Guia!”

  With those words, he stood upon the horse's back and kicked off with legs wreathed in lightning, propelling himself toward the ninja. The poor horse, Guia, plummeted into the abyss below.

  “Bold… but futile!” Natsuki laughed at the knight’s bravado. She shifted the child to her right hand and thrust her left hand toward the incoming knight.

  ‘Go blind, you bitch!’ Creed thought, thrusting his index fingers directly into Natsuki’s eyes.

  “AHHH! YOU LITTLE BRAT!” Natsuki screamed in agony, involuntarily loosening her grip on Creed.

  Elian, seeing the opening, caught the boy with his left arm. With his right, he unsheathed his knight’s sword and slashed at the shimmering silhouette before him, his eyes glowing with the intensity of his lightning magic.

  SKREE-AWWW! The wyvern shrieked as its underbelly was ripped open, its innards spilling out. Both Natsuki and Elian went into a freefall, plunging into the darkness of the ravine together.

  ***

  At the Bottom of the Abyss…

  THUD! Elian used gravity-negating magic to slow their descent, landing softly on the grassy floor.

  “Give me the child!” Natsuki, who had crashed down after them, snarled. She lunged forward, her katana whistling toward the knight.

  “You shall not lay a finger on my Young Master!” Elian shoved Creed away, sliding him gently across the grass to keep him out of the crossfire.

  CLANG! Elian gripped his sword with both hands, parrying the katana.

  SWISH! Natsuki leaped back to reset her stance. “Tsk. Of all the elements, I had to run into the one I’m weak against.”

  She cursed, glaring at the knight whose body was now coursing with electricity—a lightning-element reinforcement spell that granted him superhuman strength and speed. As a fire-element user, she was at a disadvantage. But that didn't deter her. “A mere knight dares to challenge a Hero?”

  WHOOSH! Her katana ignited into a pillar of flame as she lunged with blistering speed.

  CRACKLE! Elian coated his blade in lightning, meeting the flaming strike head-on.

  CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! The two blades clashed in a frantic dance of sparks.

  ‘This is freaking cheating,’ Creed thought, watching the ninja move just as fast as Elian, even though she wasn't even using a speed reinforcement skill.

  “Is that all the speed you have?” Natsuki taunted, effortlessly weaving through Elian’s strikes.

  CLINK! Finding an opening, she flicked her katana, disarming the knight. She raised her blade high, preparing to cleave him in two.

  GRAB! Elian caught the blade with his bare palms just before it could split his skull.

  “Hold on tight!” Natsuki hissed, a sadistic grin spreading across her face.

  FLARE!!! The katana erupted in intense fire, searing Elian’s hands until his steel gauntlets glowed a dull red. Yet, Elian refused to let go. He knew that if he released the blade now, he was a dead man.

  ‘Damn it, my knight is in trouble!’ Creed looked around frantically for a way to help. Suddenly, he felt a familiar presence. ‘The Guardian Spirit of the City.’

  Creed stared at the pair of glowing red eyes watching him from the shadows. A mass of black smoke, vaguely humanoid, drifted around Elian and the ninja, who seemed oblivious to its presence. It looked at Creed again, as if signaling its desire to fight.

  ‘You want to fight?’ Creed communicated through telepathy.

  Voom… The spirit nodded.

  ‘I need a vessel for you to possess,’ Creed thought, scanning the area. ‘A spirit is only as strong as the ruler was good… and my father was the best. But my current body can’t handle your power. What can I use?’ His small eyes darted around until they landed on a horse lying on the ground, breathing raggedly. It was Guia. ‘Found it!’

  The toddler ran to the dying horse, knelt, and pressed his palms together, preparing to manifest the art he had mastered in his past life.

  “Om…” Creed began to whisper, the voice of a child carrying an eerie, ancient weight.

  “Neela-Assa Mahaphalang Atipatto, Naka Matcha Samagatang Sampunyatang, A-Hang At-cha-wa-to Itthi Wikuppato, Na-Mo-Put-Ta-Ya Ya-Tha-Put-Mo-Na!”

  FUMMM!!! The mass of black smoke surged into the horse’s body.

  “NEIGHHH!” The dying horse let out a piercing cry. Creed didn't stop, his palms remained pressed together as he looped the mantra over and over.

  “NEIGHHH!!!”

  The horse thrashed, its hooves kicking the dirt. POP! POP! POP! Its dark brown fur began to fall away, replaced by thick, shimmering scales—the iridescent scales of a fish. SHINK! Its tail elongated into that of a serpent, sprouting sharp, intimidating fins.

  STOMP! The horse hauled itself up, its transformation complete.

  ‘Let’s see what you can do, Guia.’ Creed thought, gazing at the black steed now armored in fish-like scales.

  CHOMP! Guia grabbed Creed by the collar of his shirt and tossed him onto its back with a swift flick of its head.

  “You’re quite resilient,” Natsuki sneered at Elian. She was enjoying the sight of the knight enduring her flames, but the smell of burning flesh told her he wouldn't last much longer.

  CLATTER! CLATTER! CLATTER! The sound of galloping hooves approached at high speed. As Guia neared the enemy—STOMP!—it slammed its front hooves into the ground for stability and swung its massive rear in a sharp, drifting arc.

  “What?!” Natsuki turned, her eyes widening in confusion as the black horse’s rear swung toward her.

  “Ever heard of a Drift-Headbutt-Kick? Well, now you have,” Creed smirked.

  THWACK!!! At the perfect moment, Guia’s two rear hooves delivered a devastating double-kick directly into the ninja’s eyes.

  Fleeew… THUD! Natsuki was sent flying through the air in a graceful arc before crashing onto the ground, tumbling like a ragdoll for several meters.

  “AAAGGHHH!” Natsuki’s screams tore through the night. Both of her eyes were now completely blinded. “YOU BASTARD!”

  In a fit of blind rage, she thrust her right hand out, firing a chaotic barrage of fireballs in every direction.

  “Get on!” Creed’s cute, high-pitched voice called out.

  Elian, whose hands were now horribly blistered and raw, wasted no time jumping onto the horse’s back. Together, they galloped away.

  “What on earth…?”

  Kirk maneuvered his wyvern to dodge the fireballs erupting from below. He stared down in disbelief as a bizarre, black, scale-covered horse came charging back up from the depths of the abyss. But before he could process the sight…

  WHUMP!!! WHUMP!!! WHUMP!!! The sound of massive wings beating the air brought a gale-force wind. A gargantuan shadow draped over the forest, turning the darkness into an absolute void.

  “Lord Burnshaw…”

  Kirk looked up at a dragon so immense it dwarfed any he had ever seen. Its body was large enough to blot out the moon entirely; a single one of its claws was twice the size of a human.

  FWA-SHHH!!! A torrent of flame erupted from the dragon’s maw. The ground in front of the Teeps convoy melted into molten lava in an instant. The sheer heat radiating from the flames choked the air, making it impossible for the ninjas to continue their pursuit. Some even tumbled from their wyverns, gasping for breath.

  “That damn Lord!”

  Kirk cursed, struggling to breathe as he was forced to change his flight path, leaving the giant dragon to follow the convoy alone.

  “Hmm… they crossed the lava as if it were nothing.”

  ‘Lord Marcus Burnshaw’—a man with short red hair in crimson armor, featuring a dragon-claw birthmark beneath his left eye—stared as the knight convoy galloped across the molten floor without hesitation. Upon closer inspection, he noticed the horses' hooves weren't even touching the lava directly.

  “Now then… what should I do next?”

  two chapters per week while balancing writing with a full-time job.