Chapter 776: The Demon Is Already Among Them (Patreon)

“My apologies for arriving late”

The voice cut through the ballroom chatter like a polite knife. One conversation died, then another. Heads turned across the ballroom.

It was him.

The mysterious man. The city’s true savior. Not Baron Edrien with his starched pride and hollow speeches, but the masked stranger wrapped in a cloak far too strange to be made of ordinary cloth.

“L-Lord Moon... you actually came,” the baron said, hurrying over.

Truthfully, no one had been sure he would. Days earlier, a letter had simply appeared at the door of the baron’s manor. The sender had identified himself as Lord Moon. No one had seen who left it. No one could explain how anyone had entered the estate grounds undetected. Still, the letter was real. And now, so was he.

The baron wasn’t the only one to approach. Other prominent figures in the city surrounded Lord Moon almost immediately, wearing tense smiles and poorly concealed curiosity, eager not to let such a rare opportunity slip away. They asked who he was, where he came from, what he had done. Someone even asked what it would cost to have him protect the city permanently.

“Is it true you’re a noble from Rosemark?” one guest asked.

“Rosemark?” Lord Moon gave a low laugh. “No. I’m not part of this kingdom’s nobility.”

“Then which kingdom are you from?”

“A distant and modest one.”

“Duskridge?”

“I’d rather not say. I’m not here in any official capacity.” He inclined his head slightly. “But when I saw what was happening here, I couldn’t simply turn my back on you.”

The questions kept coming.

Maeve watched in silence, as serious as ever. She had no doubt this was the same man. The cloak was identical. So was the way he carried himself. There was a confidence to him that didn’t feel like an act.

Then another figure approached.

“Good evening, Mr. Baumann,” Lord Moon greeted him.

The effect was immediate. Nearby conversations fell quiet, and several faces turned toward the young merchant.

“Looks like you were invited to this party too,” Lord Moon continued.

“You know him?” someone asked.

“Mr. Baumann is a good friend. I’ve known his family for a long time.” Lord Moon said. “I hear he’s even considering opening a branch here in the city.”

Maeve’s mouth fell open.

“I told you, Maeve. They were two different people,” Dorothea whispered as she passed behind her, stealing hors d’oeuvres from the table.

While Lord Moon held the attention of the most important guests, Baumann soon found himself surrounded by everyone else. Sometime later, he slipped away and headed toward the appetizer table, where Maeve and John were standing.

“You’re Maeve, right?” he asked.

“I am,” she replied in her usual serious tone.

“And you must be John.”

“That’s me.”

“I heard about what you two did in the battle.” Baumann picked up an appetizer, though his attention remained on them. “I plan to travel to other cities throughout the kingdom. Does your group take contracts? It’d be useful to travel with people who know the land.”

“Hmm...” John considered it for a moment. “We do, but we’re expensive.”

“That won’t be a problem.”

“We’re currently contracted to Baron Edrien,” Maeve said. “But perhaps another time.”

“I’d bet he’d let at least one of you come with me. Especially if it meant escorting a future business partner.”

He smiled.

“I suppose he might...” Maeve said.

She studied Baumann for another moment, then glanced back toward Lord Moon. Different posture. Different voice. Different mannerisms. Even the way they held their hands was different. There was no doubt left. They really were two different people.

“I should get going,” Baumann said with a slight bow. “It was a pleasure meeting you both.”

***

The next morning, the mysterious Lord Moon was nowhere to be found. Luke, on the other hand, was laughing to himself in the castle laboratory.

“The golem skill has never been this useful.”

Too bad the joke was only funny to him. Worse, he could never share it with any of the people he’d fooled.

The simple performance had taken a surprising amount of work. First, he’d had to ask the villagers to build a luxurious carriage. Then he’d handed over gold and jewels to decorate the thing, helping by transmuting some of the fittings himself. All of that just so he could arrive as Lord Moon and fool an entire ballroom full of nobles, merchants, and opportunists.

At the center of his laboratory stood a massive tree. Luke tended to it personally, its roots spreading beneath the castle floor like ancient veins. What had started as a personal project had become something far more powerful thanks to the skill he’d chosen at level 110 of [Sentinel Botanist].

[Arboreal Watchers of Mother Freya (Epic)]: Once a [Tree of Mother Freya] takes root within a territory, its power begins to permeate the surrounding land, spreading through roots, natural mana, and connected plant life. Ordinary trees touched by this influence can become Arboreal Watchers, lesser extensions of the central tree that silently observe the territory. They do not possess the same strength, awareness, or authority as a Tree of Mother Freya, but they can sense movement, notice changes in the environment, detect unfamiliar presences, and transmit those impressions through the living network. Alone, each watcher is only an echo of Freya’s influence; together, they turn the territory into a watchful organism that observes, remembers, and responds as a single natural will.

Just by standing near the tree, Luke could receive information from every other one connected to it. The only real limitation was mana. The trees needed regular infusions of his mana to grow and stay alive. Without it, they would eventually revert to ordinary trees, which meant he couldn’t simply scatter them across the world and expect them to keep spying for him forever.

His presence sustained them. That, too, was tied to [Botanical Bond of Mother Freya]. Inside the Kingdom Core’s territory, though, one of its skills, [Verdant Domain], mostly solved that problem. Luke and the Core were connected, allowing the skill to draw on his mana along with what the Core absorbed from the atmosphere and distribute both throughout the territory. Which meant the trees within its area of influence didn’t need his individual attention.

Luke left the laboratory and headed for his bedroom. He opened the door.

Charlie was naked.

“I’m getting dressed!” she shouted, jumping in surprise.

Luke immediately closed the door.

“Sorry.”

He stood outside for a second, then frowned.

Wait. Why am I apologizing and leaving? She’s my girlfriend.

The door opened. Charlie stood there wrapped in a towel, giving him a look. “That doesn’t mean you get to see me naked all the time."

“Why not?”

“Because it should be a special occasion. Otherwise you’ll get tired of it.”

“I’d never get tired of seeing you, Charlie.”

Later, Luke headed to Nara’s colony.

“And how long will you be gone?” the giant spider asked.

“I don’t know. A few days. Don’t worry about food, though. If I’m not here to bring it, Norn will.”

Nara stared at him for a few seconds.

“Hmm... I’ll take your word for it. You’ve kept your end of our agreement so far.” She shifted one of her legs thoughtfully. “Your spirit friend came to speak with me as well.”

Around her, the spiderlings bared their fangs at Luke. Small, numerous, and dangerous enough to make any normal person seriously reconsider their life choices.

“You’re free to roam anywhere in the territory up to my castle. That area is safe,” Luke explained. “As for the forest beyond here and the mountains, I can’t guarantee anything. That’s still outside my territory.”

He introduced the goblin quintet to Nara. All five of them were still afraid of the spiders, especially Nara herself, who didn’t have to put in any effort whatsoever to look terrifying.

“W-we’re citizens of the same kingdom,” Pip said, trying to sound confident and failing miserably.

“A pleasure,” Nara replied. “These are my 113 children.”

Pip stared at the sea of spiderlings.

“All of them?”

“Yes.”

He swallowed. “Wonderful.”

“T-that’s a lot of babies,” Mina said.

“You think so?” Nara sounded almost sad. “It doesn’t feel like many to me. My dream was to have a thousand little ones. Such a shame... I’ll never have that many.”

A thousand? Fuck.

If all 113 of them ever grew to Nara’s size, they’d already be a massive problem. A thousand of those things would basically be a catastrophe with too many legs.

“A thousand... that is a good number,” Luke said. “Could you actually have that many?”

“I’m still quite fertile,” Nara said.

"Hear that, Luke? She’s very fertile."

Shut up.

Luke left with the goblins.

“Those mountains belong to the rat tribe,” Pip said as they walked. “My father said he met their king when he was younger.”

Eventually, once the [Core]’s territory reached that far, Luke would have to head into the mountains and speak with that king. Another tribe. Another possible alliance.

He led the goblins to the area they wanted to explore. By the time he returned to the village, the ringing of hammers reached him before the buildings came into view. Joseph was working as a blacksmith alongside several others. When they spotted Luke, they paused long enough to greet him before getting back to work.

“Lady Angie says I’m getting pretty good,” Joseph said proudly.

He was working beside his nephew. Several swords rested on a nearby table. Neither man had made them. Luke had taken them from bandits and orcs, and now they served as study material. One of the best ways for the blacksmiths to learn was by taking apart, comparing, and drawing inspiration from weapons that had already tasted real blood.

A few weeks ago, the village hadn’t even had a proper blacksmith. Now Joseph was studying captured weapons and preparing to work with materials from another city. Slowly but surely, Luke’s little kingdom was becoming something real. Not just a castle and a Core. A kingdom.

“There are excellent materials in Veyra,” Luke said. “When we go there, I’d like you to come with us, Joseph.”

The man immediately lit up.

For that, though, Luke would need more mounts. Horses weren’t enough. Too slow. He needed scaled striders, animals suited for pulling wagons over long distances. A good strider could reach Nyvma in only a few hours.

Before heading back to the Underworld to continue his expedition, Luke stopped by the Core. He placed a hand on it and checked the new skills it had unlocked.

***

Garen Voss walked beside King Solren through the training grounds near the palace in Solvar. Knights trained in the distance, their swords clashing in hard, steady rhythms while commanders shouted orders and squires rushed back and forth. The sound had always been familiar to Garen. Today, though, it carried a different weight.

As they walked, Garen once again told the king about the man who had saved them during the attack. Now that he knew the stranger didn’t officially serve any kingdom, he was trying to convince Solren that recruiting him would be a smart move.

“I’m not questioning your judgment, Sir Garen,” King Solren said. “But under better circumstances, with your full war gear and no soldiers to protect, I’m certain you could have made a difference as well.”

Solvar was a nation proud of its people, the Pride of the Lion, as they were known. They trusted their own warriors, their own walls, their own blood. Foreigners, especially those serving in the military, were regarded with suspicion.

“I saw him leap from an incredible height,” Garen insisted. “I only want what’s best for Solvar, Your Majesty. We should at least try to recruit these Lost Foreigners. Rosemark is gathering every Lost Foreigner they can find and bringing them into their ranks.”

“Solvar has good warriors. True knights.” The king kept his eyes on the soldiers training in the distance. “Men and women who don’t fight because someone pays them, but because they love their homeland.”

Garen wanted to argue, but he knew the king. Solren was proud. Perhaps he even agreed. But admitting it would mean admitting that Solvar’s own warriors weren’t enough.

“That man fought without asking for anything in return,” Garen said. “He saved me and the other soldiers from an ambush. There was something strange about his presence. Under different circumstances, I would’ve liked to test myself against him. My sword against his axe. Just a friendly bout.”

Garen was only a commander. His father had been the general in the family, until the Empire killed him ten years ago.

“There was a time when such things were possible,” Solren said, looking toward the sky. “Times of peace, when a child could play with a sword and dream of becoming a knight, and it all seemed almost heroic. Noble, in the truest sense of the word.”

His gaze drifted toward the knights training in the distance.

“But now...”

Now, war stood at their doorstep, and neighboring kingdoms that might once have been allies were beginning to look like traitors to the continent itself.

“It is only right that we recognize someone who aided one of our soldiers,” the king said after a few moments. “Solvar is proud, but we also know when humility is called for. You have my permission to reward this man, Sir Garen.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“You’ve always had a good eye, Sir Garen.”

They stopped beside a fountain. At its center stood a statue of the former queen. The king’s gaze lingered on her face. For just a moment, his expression softened.

Then he looked away.

“I remember the first time you saw my son wield a sword,” Solren said. “You told me he was an uncut gem. All he needed was polishing.”

Garen laughed, though guilt weighed behind the smile. He had lied to the king that day. The prince wasn’t actually that talented.

“But the most important judgment, Sir Garen, has nothing to do with who wields a sword better or who can leap the highest.” The king’s voice grew quieter, firmer. “What matters is what lies in a person’s heart. Kindness. Strength of will.”

Solren glanced toward the training knights. “A sword means nothing without the will of the one who wields it.”

The king started walking again.

“You’d make a fine poet, Your Majesty,” Garen said.

“A shame I had to take over the family business,” Solren replied.

For a moment, he smiled. Then his expression grew serious again.

“We live in difficult times. I can barely remember the last time I laughed. Thank you for that, Sir Garen. It’s hard to watch the Empire creep deeper into our lands with each passing year.”

“Things are worse than usual,” Garen said. “But Solvar will stand, Your Majesty. Just as it always has. Through crisis after crisis. We are Solvar, after all.”

“And now we have those orcs on the coast to deal with.” The king let out a weary sigh. “At this point, I’m almost afraid to ask what comes next.”

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