The Old Man and the Little Girl

Looking back to a month earlier.

Somewhere in the woods near Gostan City.

Solitar sat on a fallen tree trunk, leisurely swinging her little feet.

She was waiting for someone.

No, actually, she was waiting for a great demon.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

Before long, a series of heavy footsteps sounded through the woods.

Rivalei's tall, burly figure slowly emerged. Seeing Solitar sitting on the tree trunk, he cheerfully raised a hand in greeting. "Hello, little Sol."

At the sound of Rivalei's voice, Solitar smiled happily and spoke in a lighthearted tone. "Ah, you're here. Grausam and I have been waiting for you for ages."

As soon as she finished speaking, a gray figure suddenly appeared in the shadows of the bushes beside them.

The gray figure wore a hood and was completely wrapped in a robe, making it impossible to see their face.

Rivalei glanced at the figure, then simply found a large rock and sat down.

He let out a relaxed sigh and said to Solitar and the gray figure, "You two youngsters are always ordering this old man around. Tell me, where do you need me to charge into battle this time?"

Though he complained, there wasn't the slightest hint of reluctance in his voice. If anything, he sounded a little excited.

At that, Solitar looked at the gray figure.

They made no sound, only giving a slight nod.

Solitar then explained to Rivalei on their behalf. "Grausam says that before Schlacht the Omniscient died, he foresaw several pivotal events in the future. One of them is happening now."

"Schlacht believed someone would obtain something incredibly valuable here. It would put the Demon Race in a difficult position in the future, so he hoped we'd come here to intercept them."

At this, Rivalei grew interested. His mouth split into a grin, revealing sharp teeth, and he licked one of his fangs with a hint of excitement.

"So there's going to be a good fight here? That's wonderful."

"Who is this person? Is it the strongest human warrior, Eisen?"

He had long yearned to meet this famed human warrior. In his hazy memories, he even wondered if he had fought Eisen before. Otherwise, why did his blood boil and his body tremble with excitement whenever he thought of that name?

It had been far too long since he'd encountered a worthy opponent.

Even the famous Warrior Village had turned out to be all reputation and no substance.

The battle that had just ended recently had been so dull that even thinking about it bored him.

Seeing the madness in Rivalei's eyes, Solitar knew exactly what this bloodthirsty war god was thinking.

"The future is hazy. We can't determine who the other person really is."

"Oh? Interesting... Then how are we going to intercept the enemy?"

At this, Solitar hopped down from the tree trunk, clasped her hands behind her back, and slowly paced a few steps.

"Grausam and I have already looked into that. There are two ruins around here that seem worth investigating. One is an unexplored dungeon inside Gostan City, and the other is in the eastern part of the Neck Mountains. It may have something to do with dwarves."

"I think there's a good chance that one of these two places holds the 'valuable item.'"

As she spoke, she glanced at the gray figure in the shade. They said nothing, but nodded in agreement.

So she continued, "Then all we have to do is get to the 'valuable item' before that mysterious person and take it."

Hearing this, Rivalei's excitement dimmed a little.

He had been looking forward to sweating it out on the battlefield. If they were only here to take some "valuable item," that would be terribly boring.

"All right. You young people always like making complicated plans."

"An old man like me keeps things simple. I just want a good, satisfying fight."

With that, he stood up and headed deeper into the woods.

Solitar called after him, reminding him that they each had to handle one location and then meet back here when they were done. He didn't respond, merely raising a hand and waving it carelessly.

After Rivalei left, Solitar walked up to the gray figure. With her hands behind her back, she leaned forward slightly and studied them in the shadows.

But they were wrapped up far too thoroughly. She couldn't see a thing.

She could only shake her head helplessly.

"I clearly remember we met not long ago. Why can't I remember where it was all of a sudden? Did you take some of my memories again?"

The gray figure said nothing in response to Solitar's question.

Solitar smiled, her tone light and a little teasing.

"You change your appearance and your build, disappearing from human sight time and time again. You always manage to escape safely in any situation and go on living in peace."

"What will you change into this time? Do you really need to be so mysterious?"

The gray figure ignored her teasing and vanished in a flash.

Solitar shrugged, kept her hands behind her back, and walked lightly toward the edge of the woods.

She came to the edge of a cliff and looked down at the magnificent city of Gostan City before her. A fun plan had taken shape in her mind.

One month later.

The present.

In the woods in the eastern part of the Neck Mountains.

Rivalei had chosen a group of merchants for breakfast.

Eight people, some plump and some lean—a balanced meal, just the way he liked it.

Then he performed a very thorough pre-meal ritual and enjoyed the meal to his heart's content.

Of course, cleaning up afterward was the part he hated most, so he casually abandoned the annoying carriages and set about his work for the day—

Following the map Solitar had given him, he continued searching for the legendary ruins.

"Something to do with dwarves?"

It was at least a little interesting amid all the boredom.

Though he couldn't have a real fight, getting a glimpse of the "Steel Civilization" that had once dominated the human world would still make the trip worthwhile.

As he walked, he suddenly sensed a Mana Detection spell coming from behind him.

Oh?

A powerful mage had appeared nearby.

Thinking this, he rolled his wrists and bared his teeth in a silent grin. Now things were getting interesting.

Hmm, there's a warrior too... How weak.

No, wait. Why are they getting stronger again?

Hmm?

Now they're weaker again...

How interesting.

With that thought, he glanced back and confirmed that they were heading toward him. Then he flew behind some distant rocks and concealed his entire presence.

He didn't want to scare away these "opponents" who had finally stumbled into his path.

He was going to have a nice long play with them...