Stark

"You must be Stark."

Ignoring Lorenzo's strange "disturbing the peace" theory, Frieren asked Stark directly.

Yes, that's right.

Stark slung his battle axe back over his shoulder, his gaze shifting back and forth between the three men.

Are you adventurers from out of town? What do you need me for?

"It was Eisen who sent us to find you."

"Frieren said."

"Master?"

Upon hearing Eisen's name, Stark was visibly taken aback.

"He wouldn't want you to take me back, would he?"

He quickly realized another serious problem, so he took a step back, looking exactly like a troubled teenager who had run away from home after arguing with his parents and then suddenly ran into one of his parents' acquaintances in another city.

"No."

Frieren shook her head.

"We need a soldier to go to the Northern Plateau with us, Eisen recommended you."

"Did your mentor recommend me?"

Stark pointed to himself, his face filled with disbelief.

From the beginning of his spiritual practice, his master rarely praised himself.

No matter what kind of training he completed, the final evaluation he usually received was just "still far from good enough." If his master talked about him to others, he would most likely say that the good-for-nothing disciple was cowardly and afraid of trouble, and only knew how to run away when faced with danger.

How could I possibly recommend myself to others like this? Especially to such a dangerous place as the Northern Plateau.

"You guys wouldn't have conspired with my master to trick me into going back, would you?"

Stark clutched his battle axe tightly, staring at Frieren with a look of suspicion.

Anyway, he didn't know how to get to the Northern Plateau. Maybe after he agreed, these people would use the excuse of leading the way to confuse him and then secretly bring him back to the forest where his master lived.

By the time he finally realized something was wrong, it was already too late.

Of course, this is only looking at the bright side.

What if these people weren't sent by the master at all?

Stark had heard from travelers passing through the village that some people outside would specifically abduct young people living alone. They would first pretend to be trustworthy travel companions, and then take them to a pre-arranged shady shop halfway through the journey.

A bowl of wine laced with a sleeping potion and a room locked from the outside...

No, he's still a minor and shouldn't be drinking. But anyway, when he wakes up in two days, he might already be sold off like a char siu bun.

"Wait, you wouldn't happen to be Frieren, would you?"

Stark stared at the elf in front of him for a long time, and the more he looked, the more familiar it seemed.

Long white hair, pointed ears, and... a short stature.

She was almost identical to the elven True Magic in that hero's party.

"That's right, now you know we weren't lying to you, right?"

Frieren nodded, seemingly quite confident in her reputation.

"That's even more suspicious, isn't it? Everyone knows your master is your teammate."

Stark couldn't help but say to Frieren.

If the master really wanted to take him back, then asking his former companions for help would be the most appropriate thing to do.

Besides, Frieren is a True Magic. Perhaps if she casts a strange True Magic when he's not paying attention, he'll be tied up and thrown at his master's doorstep when he opens his eyes again.

"You should all leave. I'm not going back, and I certainly won't go to any Northern Plateau with you."

After he finished speaking, he turned around and walked back to the cliff, as if preparing to continue his cultivation. However, judging from his slightly stiff back, he was clearly not as calm as he appeared.

He ran away on his own.

Before he became a true warrior, he had no idea what expression he should wear when he stood before his master again.

However, Stark quickly realized something else and turned back to speak to Frieren.

"But if you really are Frieren... then that's perfect too."

The young man, who had been wary just moments before, suddenly became serious.

"Could you help us defeat that Red Mirror Dragon?"

"Red Mirror Dragon?"

Fern paused for a moment.

"But the villagers say you scared it away just by your imposing manner."

"That's all rumors they spread themselves."

Stark's voice lowered.

"I didn't scare it away at all."

"When the Red Mirror Dragon appeared near the village that day, I did stand in front of it, but that was entirely because I was so terrified that I couldn't even move my legs."

He looked down at his palms.

Even though three years have passed, the scene from that day remains incredibly vivid.

Its enormous body blotted out the sky, and its scorching heat assaulted the senses. Just being stared at by those eyes made one feel as if their body no longer belonged to them.

Forget about wielding a battle axe, he couldn't even run away at that time.

"In the end, for some reason, the Red Mirror Dragon didn't attack me but retreated back into the mountains on its own."

"The villagers thought I had scared it away, and from then on they regarded me as the hero who protected the village."

Stark gave a self-deprecating laugh.

"It could attack the village again at any time, but everyone still believes they'll be safe as long as I stay here."

That's why I can't leave.

Even though he knew he wasn't the hero the villagers called him, he could only swing his battle axe every day and pretend he had everything under control.

He couldn't let anyone see his fear, at least not until real danger struck.

"Since you are True Magic who once defeated the Demon King, you should be able to defeat it, right?"

Stark looked at Frieren again, hesitated for a moment, and then lowered his head.

Please.

"Please help me kill that Red Mirror Dragon."

We can't help you anymore.

Before Fern could speak, Frieren interjected.

"The three of us are all True Magic, and dragons have a high resistance to True Magic."

Completely ignoring the fact that Lord Lorenzo killed so many Windwing Dragons, he's blatantly lying.

Fern thought to herself, but she probably already understood what Lady Frieren meant.

"But didn't you defeat the Demon King?"

Stark clearly hadn't expected to be rejected.

"That's assuming we have warriors as our vanguard. You can also join us as our vanguard; that way, we might be able to put up a fight against that dragon."

"No, no, no!"

Stark finally realized what was happening and quickly waved his hand.

"I can't do that! That's Red Mirror Dragon! If its claws touch me even once, I'll be turned into mincemeat!"

We'll be staying here for a few days. Take your time to think it over.

Frieren didn't say anything more to Stark, and simply turned and left with Fern and Lorenzo.

"Lady Frieren, is he really reliable?"

After walking a distance, Fern couldn't help but ask Frieren.

From the moment they met, Stark had been suspicious of them, and when he heard about the plan to hunt down the Red Mirror Dragon, he almost shook his head so hard it left a blur.

While he is indeed very strong, it's hard to feel at ease having someone like that at the front of the group.

"Reliable."

Frieren answered without the slightest hesitation.

"Because it was Lord Eisen who recommended him?"

"This is only part of it."

Frieren turned around and looked at the huge crack left by the battle axe on the cliff.

"The Red Mirror Dragon didn't retreat without a reason. Dragons possess instincts far more acute than ordinary monsters. Even though Stark himself was paralyzed with fear, the Red Mirror Dragon still sensed a life-threatening power emanating from him, which is why it retreated back into the mountains on its own initiative."

"So, he really does possess the ability to kill the Red Mirror Dragon?"

Fern said, somewhat surprised.

Frieren nodded.

"He just doesn't know it yet."