Chapter 272 (Patreon)

A few minutes earlier.

Kana had not even bothered to draw the curved sword resting quietly against her hips.

The weapon remained sheathed from beginning to end, untouched and almost forgotten, as though the battle unfolding before them had never once required its presence. Instead, she relied entirely on her bow, her movements calm, and almost eerily efficient as she drew, aimed, and released each arrow with practiced precision.

There was no wasted motion.

Each arrow left the string with a sharp, clean sound, cutting through the thick fog like a whisper sharpened into something lethal. And each time, the result was the same.

They slipped past the creatures’ defenses with unnatural accuracy, piercing through toughened flesh and finding vital points as if Kana could already see where the monsters would move before they even decided to do so.

One creature fell.

Then another followed shortly after.

Then a third collapsed into the dirt without ever reaching her.

By the time the others fully engaged the enemy, Kana had already eliminated three of the beasts without advancing more than a few steps from her original position.

The rest of the battle unfolded quickly.

Almost too quickly.

Suri moved like a puppeteer hidden behind an invisible curtain, her illusions weaving like lightning across the battlefield. She spammed her [Lightning Bolt] though most of it didn’t really find the target.

She needs to work on her accuracy. Kana thought.

Boris, on the other hand, was the complete opposite.

He met the monsters head-on.

His spear carved through the air with brute force, each strike heavy enough to shatter bone and send vibrations through the ground beneath their feet. There was nothing subtle about his fighting style, yet it worked with terrifying effectiveness.

He changed? Kana observed. His fighting style was more offensive than before.

Thorne though seemed to know what was about to happen as she silently observed beside Kana and Suri.

Adam joined them as well, gripping his axe tightly as he stepped into the fray. Though not as overwhelming as the others, he held his ground, supporting their advance and striking whenever an opening revealed itself.

The creatures, despite their earlier presence and threat, began to fall one after another.

Their bodies collapsed into the dirt, their growls fading into silence as the fog slowly began to thin around the battlefield.

The entire encounter…

Had ended far faster than it should have.

A strange quiet settled over the road.

Adam exhaled deeply, rolling his shoulders as the tension left his body. He raised his arms slightly and inspected his forearms under the dim light, turning them this way and that as he examined the faint marks left behind.

“Can’t believe these things managed to get through my [Mighty Toughness],” Adam muttered, his voice carrying a mixture of disbelief and mild annoyance.

The scratches lining his skin were shallow.

Barely more than thin lines etched across the surface.

Yet their presence alone seemed to bother him more than the pain itself.

Kana narrowed her eyes slightly as she glanced in his direction.

His skill…

It was likely one of the skills Adam had upgraded. She hadn’t taken the time to ask about his skills before, but now she quietly stored the information away for later.

Across the battlefield, she spotted the two from the holy kingdom.

Hen was supporting Joan as they slowly made their way toward the group. Joan’s posture remained upright, but there was no mistaking the fatigue lingering in her movements. Her grip on her weapon had loosened, and each step she took seemed just slightly heavier than the last.

Then suddenly—

A brilliant golden light erupted around her body.

The glow was intense, almost blinding, pushing back the remaining fog as if the night itself had been forced to retreat before it.

Kana watched carefully. Within moments, Joan’s breathing relaxed. The tension in her shoulders eased. The exhaustion that had weighed her down seemed to dissolve completely under the influence of some sort of holy energy coursing through her body.

Her strength returned. Her body recovered. Yet not everything was restored.

The scratches carved into her armor remained clearly visible and the wear along the edge of her greatsword had not disappeared.

Hen stepped forward and crouched beside one of the fallen creatures, his attention completely toward the corpse as he began inspecting it closely. His eyes traced the structure of its limbs, the length of its claws, the density of its hide.

“Most likely a one-sided fight,” Hen said quietly, almost to himself.

Then his gaze lifted toward Kana and the others.

“You were serious back at the inn,” he added, his tone carrying a hint of realization.

Kana folded her arms loosely and ignored his remarks.

“I don’t recognize these monsters,” she admitted, her voice calm but thoughtful as she surveyed the scattered bodies lying across the road. “But based on how they moved and coordinated earlier, they’re probably hunting in packs.”

Her eyes narrowed slightly as she considered the implications.

“We’ll report this to the guild,” she continued. “And if attacks continue even after this…”

She paused briefly.

“…then that only means one thing.”

Her gaze hardened.

“There’s more than one pack.”

Hen nodded slowly, his expression turning more serious as he absorbed her words.

“They might be a newly emerged species,” he said.

Then, without warning, a small blade of light flickered into existence beside him.

It hovered silently for a brief moment—

Before slicing cleanly through the neck of one of the fallen creatures. The head separated from the body in a single smooth motion. Hen stood up and glanced at it briefly.

“I’ll take this,” he said calmly. “It will make identification easier once we report this to the guild.”

Joan, however, remained silent.

She glanced once toward Kana and the others, her expression difficult to read. The earlier arrogance was gone.

What remained was something quieter. Something more uncertain. Without saying a word, she turned and began walking back toward the wagon.

The rest of the group followed soon after, climbing back inside as the night slowly settled around them once more.

Kana stayed behind.

Only for a moment.

Her gaze swept across the battlefield one final time, taking in the fallen creatures, the marks left behind by the fight, the lingering traces of something that didn’t quite belong in this world.

Then—

One of the larger corpses vanished. Stored away within her [Inventory].

Kana exhaled softly and muttered under her breath, her voice barely louder than the fading wind—

“Roy is definitely going to love this.”

…..

The rest of their journey toward the capital city passed without incident, unfolding in a quiet stretch of days that felt almost strangely peaceful after the chaos of their first night on the road.

The wagon rolled steadily across long roads and open fields, its wheels creaking softly in a familiar rhythm that gradually became background noise. No more creatures emerged from the fog. No ambushes interrupted their path. Even the nights, once tense and watchful, became calm enough that the group could finally allow themselves to rest without gripping their weapons.

Hen, however, had changed.

Before, he had spoken to them with the casual authority of someone who believed himself more experienced, more knowledgeable, perhaps even more capable. But after witnessing the battle, after seeing what Kana and the others could do with such effortless confidence…

That tone had shifted. Now, he spoke to them with a different kind of care.

He still preached, of course. That part of him had not changed.

From time to time, he would pull out his book and begin speaking about the teachings of their god, his voice calm and unwavering as he shared passages and interpretations with the same steady conviction as before.

But there was a difference.

He no longer spoke down to them. Instead, he spoke as though addressing equals… or at the very least, individuals worthy of being heard.

Suri remained the only one who appeared fully attentive during those moments, nodding occasionally and reacting at just the right times as though she were deeply invested in every word.

Kana, however, narrowed her eyes more than once.

There’s no way she’s actually listening…

She had seen Suri fall asleep in far more interesting situations.

The journey itself took exactly a week. The delay from their encounter with the monsters during the first night had slowed them slightly, but after that, the road offered no further obstacles. Day after day passed in steady motion, the landscape gradually shifting as they drew closer to the capital.

And eventually—

They arrived.

The wagon rolled to a stop before the grand gates of the academy.

Joan and Hen were the first to react.

The moment the wagon halted, they stepped down eagerly, their boots touching solid ground as their eyes immediately began scanning their surroundings with visible curiosity.

Before them stood the academy.

Its gates were wide open. Students moved in and out freely, filling the entrance with constant motion and chatter. Many of them were not wearing the academy uniform, their varied clothing marking them as newcomers or visitors preparing for the upcoming assessments.

Stalls lined both sides of the entrance, forming a lively corridor of activity. Vendors called out to passing students, offering food, trinkets, supplies, and all sorts of small necessities for those arriving from distant regions.

The atmosphere was vibrant. Busy and alive.

Hen crossed his arms as he observed the scene, a small smile forming on his face.

“Not bad,” he said, nodding slightly in approval.

Joan, standing beside him, tilted her head as she examined the same view.

“It feels a bit gloomy to me,” she muttered under her breath.

Kana, who had just stepped down from the wagon, caught that comment.

She glanced briefly at Joan, then looked toward the academy once more.

Gloomy… She could already imagine what Joan was comparing it to.

The academy of the Holy Kingdom was likely filled with white stone buildings, polished floors, and an atmosphere closer to a grand cathedral than a place of learning.

Compared to that… This place probably did seem darker.

Suri stretched her arms high above her head, letting out a satisfied groan.

“Finally,” she said, her voice full of relief. “I get to sleep in an actual bed again after all that traveling.”

Adam climbed down from the coachman’s seat, brushing dust from his clothes.

“I’ll return this and come back later,” he said, gesturing toward the wagon. 

Kana nodded.

Joan turned her attention back toward the group and stepped closer to Kana, her expression shifting into something more focused.

“I heard there’s someone here,” Joan said, lowering her voice slightly, “someone who managed to defeat one of the top students from the empire.”

Her eyes sharpened with interest.

“Can you introduce me to that person?”

For a brief moment—

There was silence.

Then suddenly—

Suri burst into laughter. Boris followed immediately after, clutching his stomach as he struggled to contain himself. The laughter came out loud and unrestrained, drawing a few curious glances from nearby students.

Suri inhaled deeply, trying to steady herself.

Then she pointed directly at Kana.

“You’re already talking to her,” Suri said, barely holding back another wave of laughter.

Joan froze.

Her eyes slowly widened as the realization settled in.

She turned her head toward Kana once more, this time truly looking at her.

And for the first time since they met—

Joan had no words.

Post note:

The rumour had its own different names but most of them... Kana was just a student.Hope you enjoy the chap! 🙂

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