Preparations (3)
“Buy some dried fruits~ They’re delicious and perfect for travel!”
“The carriage to the Capital is about to depart! Hurry, there aren’t many seats left!”
“Oh my, this is too expensive, can you lower the price a bit?”
Heinz was walking in the middle of the city.
He had handed over control of the barrier set up in the Forest of Monsters to Hans and was now out to handle other matters.
Even if he used all the materials obtained from the Buncheon Society and the ones Harley brought, there would be no problems with future material procurement.
Hans couldn’t go out carelessly, but he had countless Undead at his disposal.
‘As long as the Fragment of the Undead King isn’t directly exposed, it should be fine. No matter how powerful the Holy Maiden is, it’s unreasonable to monitor the entire continent and identify each Undead.’
The fragment’s characteristics were too clear to hide easily, but for the Undead under his command, simple Black Magic concealment was sufficient.
The reason Heinz made a detour to this place was that some faces suddenly came to mind.
The Talia Kingdom located in the western continent, specifically, Rapella City.
It was the city where he had parted ways with the siblings he met in Azhantu.
‘Has it really been about seven months since we parted? Time flows differently here, so it feels like that already.’
Three days on Earth equated to a month here.
Of course, his clone, Heinrich, had been training continuously in Auterica, so he felt the passage of time.
He was engrossed in repetitive training within the Church, so it wasn’t very noticeable.
‘Indeed, I can occasionally see Vampires here. They don’t seem to be as rampant as in Azhantu, but they’re keeping a low profile.’
With his transcendent synesthesia and “Insight,” he sensed the Vampires hiding throughout the city.
However, Heinz didn’t pay them any mind and walked confidently.
No one left could see through his “Concealment.”
Unless they were Purebloods.
“Ha ha ha~”
“Rafi! Don’t run like that, it’s dangerous!”
While walking around, observing the surroundings, a small girl suddenly popped out from around the corner as the grocery store the siblings used was getting closer.
“…Ugh?”
Heinz, who had already sensed her approach, naturally dodged to the side, but the surprised girl stumbled in an attempt to stop.
“Wha—?”
“Rafi!”
In a situation where she could have hurt herself badly from the momentum of running, Heinz caught her gently before she hit the ground.
Tap—
He softly set her down.
“…Huh?”
The movement was so natural that the girl blinked in surprise as if nothing had happened.
“Rafi! I told you to be careful because it’s dangerous!”
A boy who had hurriedly run up scrutinized the girl, expressing concern for any injuries.
Once he confirmed she was unharmed, he sighed in relief.
“Ah! Thank you! Thanks to you, Rafi wasn’t hurt. Now, Rafi, you should say thank you!”
“…Sniff.”
At the boy’s prompt, the girl, appearing to be around four years old, timidly glanced around and bobbed her head down.
Then she hid behind the boy, peeking out.
“I’m sorry. She’s a bit shy. Thank you again for your help.”
The boy bowed deeply to express his gratitude again.
It was a relief to see they had been doing well.
“It’s fine, Aaron. It looks like you’ve been okay.”
“…Uh, do I know you…?”
“……”
Just as he was about to feel a bit hurt that he might have been forgotten, he suddenly realized his face had changed from the initial encounter.
Due to “Hybrid Evolution,” his skeleton had changed, and with Trueblood, he had grown. He had even altered his face to eliminate any connection to his original self.
“Um… I’m Heinz. My face has changed a bit due to various circumstances since I last saw you.”
He should have reshaped his face back before arriving.
But now it was too late to say that, so he had to go with this.
“…Really, Uncle?”
“Yeah.”
“……”
Surely it was hard to believe.
As he contemplated what to do next…
Hug—
“Uncle—!”
Aaron threw himself at Heinz, on the verge of tears.
‘He believes me faster than I expected.’
Heinz gently patted Aaron’s back.
After the brief reunion ended, Aaron, holding the hand of Rafi, the grocery store’s only daughter, led the way.
“If you tell my sister you’re here, she’ll be surprised! She’s been waiting for you, Uncle, and if she realizes she didn’t recognize your face when she saw you, it’ll be funny!”
Hmph, hmp—♪
Aaron chimed excitedly, and Rafi followed, swinging their hands.
It seemed he had bonded quite well during the child-rearing responsibilities before parting.
Upon reaching the grocery store, Diana was already looking over at them while arranging items on the counter.
“Big sister! Guess who I…”
“Uncle—!”
Whoosh—
Before Aaron could finish, Diana dashed over and jumped into Heinz’s arms.
With her face buried into his chest, she resembled Aaron perfectly.
“…How did you recognize me right away?”
Aside from recognizing him immediately.
As Heinz sensed a presence coming from within the shop, he quickly pulled his hood down.
“Diana! What’s going on… Huh?”
“Hello! Mr. Bolt. It’s been a while. I’m Heinz.”
He naturally greeted Bolt, who stepped out in surprise, calming Diana.
Then, while moving the kids away, he sneaked in a question he had been curious about.
“Well, I don’t smell blood like before. But… I can still smell you, uncle, and I’m not sure how to explain it. I just knew.”
It was shocking that Diana could recognize Heinz right away.
It meant she saw through his “Concealment.”
‘Not smelling blood means I managed to hide being a Vampire well. I did focus on concealing that aspect.’
However, the fact that she had somewhat pierced through Heinz’s improved “Concealment” showed she had a remarkable ability.
If nurtured properly, she could become an exceptional talent.
“We’re all doing well. In the morning, I go to the tutorial center with Aaron to learn reading and math, and in the afternoons, I help with the store. I know they say I don’t have to, but I want to help somehow.”
Diana seemed to spend her free time reading books at the tutorial center once every two or three days.
Fortunately, their uncle was keeping his promises, it seemed.
“I just dropped by while passing through, but I’m glad to see you’re doing well.”
“Hehe, it’s all thanks to you, uncle. How have you been doing?”
Diana didn’t mention anything about his altered appearance.
Since Heinz knew she was a Vampire, she probably didn’t think much of such change.
“Well… it’s been fine, I guess.”
He had gained various outcomes during this time.
His goals had also become clearer.
After spending the day treating the three kids, including Rafi, to something delicious and sharing their time together, Heinz provided some financial support to Bolt, the siblings’ uncle.
And thus came the moment of parting again.
“Be careful on your way, uncle—!”
“Come back again!”
“Bye-bye~♪”
Maybe it was because it was their second farewell, but this time the kids waved sturdily without tears.
‘Should I take a peek into the situation for a bit?’
Leaving the city behind, Heinz moved towards his original destination.
Heinz was exceedingly busy raising heterosis on Earth, but thanks to the time difference with this world, he could spare a moment.
Collecting information on the side wouldn’t take up too much time.
The reason he was doing all this.
Even while training in the shrine to become a Knight, Heinrich had managed to build relationships with many people.
Among them were numerous participants from the Undead King Subjugation Team, allowing him to learn in detail about the events of their expedition.
Conflicts with the Black Mage group, clashes with high-ranking officials who seemed to be manipulating Vampires.
Combining that information with his experience from the day he first arrived in Talia and met a female Trueblood near the capital…
‘The influence of the Brokoslac Clan reaches deep into the Talia Kingdom.’
They had gotten involved in politics to wield such influence from behind a nation.
The Vampire group that was the origin of Heinz II’s power: the Brokoslac Clan.
‘An immensely useful card. It couldn’t get any better.’
And so, he had come back here in person before engulfing them properly—at the capital Talia, where the main base of the Brokoslac Clan was likely located.
*
“Oh? That suits you well!”
“Ha ha, really? It’s fascinating. Armor perfectly tailored to my physique.”
“The artisans in our shrine are said to be the best in the continent. Modifying existing armor to fit a body isn’t a big deal.”
Heinrich was now wearing the Knight armor he received immediately after his appointment.
A smooth armor that shone with a blend of white and silver.
The inner surface was densely engraved with prayers related to defense and resilience.
“But what about your weapon? Usually, by the time you become a Knight, you’d know what weapon suits you best. But you received your appointment so quickly, you might not know yet?”
“Yes, for now, I’m using a sword and shield as a base and steadily training with other weapons as well…”
Heinrich’s main skill, “Paladin Combat Technique,” was an actual martial art designed for chaotic battlefields.
Starting from unarmed techniques to Comprehensive Weapon Techniques that allowed him to use any weapon he picked up in combat.
Once he decided on a weapon that suited him, he would then learn related advanced weapon techniques. However, Heinrich was still undecided on which weapon he would primarily use since he had grown so quickly.
Given that there were many retired Knights at the Rosellia Shrine, there was also an environment where he could learn all kinds of weapon techniques from those serving as martial arts instructors.
This meant he could get training whenever he wanted.
“Or you could join a Paladin Order that primarily uses your desired weapon and train with the seniors there. If you’re lucky, you might also receive guidance from the captain. Speaking of which, have you decided where to join? How about the Silverwing Paladin Order I’m part of?”
The Silverwing Paladin Order had participated in the Undead King Subjugation Team from the Talia Kingdom.
This senior was the youngest Knight who had returned from there.
He had been offering advice and looking out for him, but Heinrich wasn’t inclined to bind himself to an order, which would limit his freedom.
“I’d rather travel the continent helping those in need and share the teachings of the Holy God with them.”
“Hm, you want to become a Free Knight?”
He nodded his head, wearing a vague expression.
“Well, it is a good thing to spread the teachings of the Holy God. Though it’s hard and dangerous, it isn’t especially recommended. You’ll easily become targets for heretics.”
“That’s true. But I’m not giving up on it.”
“Being a Free Knight means you need to meet certain criteria. Given your current level, it might be tough.”
Heinrich, newly appointed as a Knight, had a long way to go before reaching that goal.
With his growth pace, he could reach it soon enough, though.
“Back to the topic of weapons. You need to decide on your primary weapon to learn advanced weapon techniques. For now, you’ll temporarily belong to several Paladin Orders for training, so take your time to think it over.”
As he said, Heinrich would need to temporarily affiliate with several orders to learn the ropes.
Given that the Rosellia Shrine had numerous Paladin Orders, the missions they typically undertook varied widely.
There were Paladin Orders dedicated to subjugating Black Mages or Demon followers, hunting dangerous Monsters, or guarding specific regions and factors.
Naturally, the first unit Heinrich was dispatched to was the one with the most basic duties.
“This is the most crucial task we’ve been assigned! Of course, there are plenty of strong individuals here, but that doesn’t mean we can lower our guard. It’s our duty to be vigilant and prevent any potential incidents!”
His first training spot was with the Sky Shield Paladin Order, responsible for outer defenses at the Rosellia Shrine.
The senior Knight guiding him incessantly emphasized the importance of their posted responsibilities.
“This is the Rosellia Shrine, the heart of the Church! Naturally, the heretics will use all means to tarnish the reputation of the Church. If we let our guards down even a little, they will swarm in like vultures! We can’t afford to lower our vigilance for a second!”
But thankfully, there were no incidents during Heinrich’s stay.
Next, he joined the Sun Wolf Paladin Order, tasked with guarding the surrounding sacred land, but it was equally uneventful.
In fact, as one of the continent’s foremost powers, being in the heart of the Holy Church would typically mean no incidents should occur under normal circumstances.
After several months of learning duties and training, however…
During that time, he became familiar with the blessing he received during his appointment, “Blessing: Leap.”
A wonderful blessing that allowed him to jump across space freely within a predetermined daily limit.
He could either cover the maximum distance in one go or split it up as needed.
While there was a cooldown for consecutive uses, it would certainly be of great assistance as a trump card when needed.
Though the distance he could travel daily was still relatively small, it was gradually increasing through training.
Eventually, he might even be able to leap across the continent.
Another significant change was the shift in his thoughts about his primary weapon.
‘With “Mugol” and the growth acceleration and correction effects, do I really need to limit myself to just one weapon?’
Of course, focusing on one would yield greater results.
However, asking Heinrich to choose just one suitable weapon left him pondering.
It felt genuinely as if any choice would be on the same level.
Whether it was due to the influence of “Mugol” or just naturally, he found it hard to say.
‘Instead, I should just learn everything. I’ll focus primarily on the sword and shield, as those are commonly used. Knowing it all will definitely serve me down the line.’
Since he had “Super Recovery,” reducing his sleep and leisure time would simply resolve the issue.
He had trained in swordsmanship in the Sky Shield Paladin Order and spear techniques in the Sun Wolf Paladin Order.
“Wow, I never expected you’d master it so quickly. I’ve heard many rumors, but it truly lives up to its name.”
“Hm… With this level, I shouldn’t die easily out there. Now that you’ve got the basics down, don’t become too complacent.”
After constantly seeking out martial arts instructors whenever possible and gaining experience from the places he stayed afterward, he had learned various weapon techniques such as bludgeoning and great sword techniques.
As a result…
《The individual has gained enlightenment through repeated training. Skill “Comprehensive Weapon Technique” acquired.》
After months of reducing sleep and focusing on training,
‘Now I feel like I understand how to handle weapons.’
Aside from “Paladin Combat Technique,” his comprehension of weapons themselves surged.
No matter what weapon he held, he would be able to use it more skillfully and efficiently.
‘Moreover, it’s a versatile skill with high potential for development. As I grow stronger, it’ll grow with me. This will also become useful for other avatars in the future.’
Currently, Heinrich was the only avatar wielding weapons, but there was no guarantee it would remain that way.
When that time came, he would prove that the knowledge gained in this superb training environment was no trivial opportunity.
