Monarch of Death

During the journey, they split up and moved in different directions: east, west, south, and north.

They made sure to conspicuously wear priestly robes, a mage’s robe, and a knight’s armor.

After moving for about half a day away from Derat City, they changed their route.

At the prearranged meeting point, they regrouped and brought out the clothing they had prepared.

“Alright, let’s disguise ourselves.”

Alius exchanged his priestly robes for a traveler’s outfit. He also altered the priest’s staff by attaching some shabby carvings to make it look ordinary.

For Karnak and Riltein, it was easy. All they had to do was take off their mage robes and hide their wands.

Varos and Serati, however, were a bit more challenging.

In Varos’s case, even without his armor, his large, muscular build was unmistakable. Since there was no way to reduce his size, he covered his entire body with a loose-fitting coat and disguised himself as a laborer by carrying a backpack large enough for a grown man.

Serati’s issue was that she was simply too beautiful.

While it wasn’t uncommon for women to be among travelers, a beauty of her caliber was another story. Her appearance alone would draw attention.

However, disguising herself to look ordinary was also risky.

Simply the fact that she was in disguise could arouse suspicion.

Especially since the city they were heading to, Trist City, was a den of criminals, the chances of her disguise being noticed were high.

Alius had anticipated this as well.

“If it’s going to look suspicious anyway, we should just give them a reason to be suspicious from the start.”

Thus, Serati applied light makeup, wore elegant gloves, but donned shabby women’s travel clothes, creating an awkward appearance.

She looked exactly like a typical noblewoman trying to hide her identity while traveling in secret.

“Oh, I’ve never put something like this on my face before…”

Serati kept touching her cheeks, uncomfortable with the makeup, making Riltein smile softly.

“Indeed, this way, even if we’re suspected, it won’t cause any real problems.”

To someone unaware, they would just look like an ordinary group of travelers; to someone experienced, they would appear to be a group disguising themselves to protect a noblewoman with a story.

Either way, they would be able to keep their true identities hidden.

After completing their disguises, Karnak’s group set off on the path leading northwest, where Trist City was located.

As they walked along the mountain path, Varos grumbled.

“Traveling on foot will take quite a bit of time.”

Apologetically, Alius responded.

“I’m sorry. If we travel on horseback, it would inevitably attract attention.”

Horses were expensive, so just riding one would attract attention. Since they were disguised as ordinary travelers, they had no choice but to endure the hardships of traveling like ordinary people.

Surprisingly, Karnak didn’t seem to mind.

“I don’t think this is so bad.”

In his previous life, he was the type who would avoid physical exertion at all costs. To the point where he would even say something like this:

— “No matter how much I exercise, I just don’t sweat!”

How inactive had he been to actually believe that?

To the old Karnak, his body was just an annoying obstacle, a trivial curse that hindered his mental activities. That’s why he had no hesitation in turning himself into an undead.

But now, things were different.

— “Oh! My precious body! I need to take care of it and nurture it.”

Through consistent exercise, he regained his health, and as he got healthier, his condition improved as well. He even discovered the joy of eating after working up a sweat.

Even while traveling, he made sure to enjoy good food.

“Alright, let’s eat!”

When lunchtime arrived, Karnak promptly reminded the group.

They sat under a tree near the road, taking out their food supplies.

For most travelers, a meal would typically consist of dried fruits, biscuits, jerky, and the like… but…

“A sandwich with tongue terrine and capers!”

“Roasted pigeon with arugula purée and fried acacia flowers!”

“Steamed freshwater crayfish flavored with white wine and pepper!”

What emerged from Varos’s backpack were delicacies from high-end restaurants in Derat City.

Each dish was something with neither the preservation nor portability needed for a journey. These were certainly not items one would expect to see on the side of a road.

Alius, flabbergasted, muttered under his breath.

“…Anyone would think you just packed a lunch.”

“You need to eat well to stay strong!”

“…Did you really just pack lunch?”

“Yes?”

Not believing it, Alius peered into the backpack and found it was indeed stuffed full of nothing but packaged foods. The enormous backpack, large enough to fit a grown man inside, was packed with food.

“Where are your spare clothes?”

“I’ll just wash what I’m wearing!”

“And if they get worn out?”

“I’ll sew them up!”

“What about armor or weapons…?”

“I’m wearing them under the coat! I just won’t take it off!”

“But isn’t it exhausting to wear that kind of outfit?”

“Eating delicious food gives me strength!”

“…”

Alius fell silent.

Something seemed off, but Varos’s logic(?) was so consistent that he couldn’t argue against it.

Serati was equally dumbfounded.

“We have at least three or four more days of travel ahead. Won’t the food spoil?”

Varos had prepared for that as well.

“The young master cast preservation magic on all the food in advance!”

Riltein was shocked and asked, “You cast preservation magic on all this food, one by one?”

Preservation magic was a 3rd-circle spell, something he could also use. Despite that, they had still packed preserved food because…

“My goodness, that must have taken an entire day!”

Preservation magic wasn’t an instant spell; it required a long casting time.

For a 6th-circle mage to preserve a single portion of food for three days, they would need to cast the spell for an entire hour. This was why preserved food remained useful despite the existence of preservation magic.

‘It’s impressive, but did he really need to go that far?’

Karnak replied confidently.

“Isn’t it worth the effort to enjoy good food?”

“Ah, yes…”

In truth, it didn’t take Karnak nearly as long as it normally would.

‘I’m just low on mana right now, but my computational ability hasn’t changed.’

Although his current mana allowed him to use only up to 4th-circle spells, his mastery had already surpassed even that of a great mage. A spell that would take Riltein all day to cast, Karnak could complete in under ten minutes.

Thanks to this, the atmosphere was quite cheerful.

Karnak and Varos weren’t the type to selfishly keep delicious food to themselves.

“Would you like to join us?”

“Thank you!”

There’s no one in the world who would refuse good food.

Serati, delighted by Varos’s offer, gladly accepted the sandwich. As a result, the initial distance between them narrowed significantly.

As she nibbled on the sandwich, Serati took the opportunity to observe her new companions closely.

At first glance, they didn’t seem particularly special.

A lord and his accompanying knight—a common enough combination.

Their abilities were decent for their age, both as a warrior and a mage, but compared to Serati, who was an Aura user, they seemed ordinary.

‘And yet, they supposedly captured necromancers so easily?’

Since they had been in such a rush, they hadn’t had a proper spar, leaving her curious about their true strength.

Just how skilled were they?

‘So far, they just seem like people obsessed with food…’

Aside from mealtime, the journey was uneventful.

Disguised as merchants, Karnak’s group continued to head northwest, following the Yustilia Road.

After four days, they finally arrived at Trist City.

* * *

Throughout the journey, Karnak had been thinking.

‘The City of Sin, huh? That’s quite a grand name.’

He was familiar with the slums of cities. In his previous life, both Karnak and Varos had often lived in the back alleys.

Having experienced the major cities across the continent, a place like this being labeled the “City of Sin” didn’t leave much of an impression on him.

After all, every part of the world had its lawless corners, and places with terrible security were common enough. He thought it was much ado about nothing.

‘It’s just another place where people live, no matter what they call it.’

…or so he thought, but Trist City was different from the start.

The basic structure of the city was impressive.

It had originally been the western front of the Kingdom of Ustil, so sturdy stone buildings were scattered everywhere, and the streets were fairly well-paved with stone.

But everything was half-collapsed.

The inhabitants were living among these ruins, patching things up with planks and logs as best they could.

It was too intact to be called ruins, yet too desolate to be considered a proper city.

There were far too many people for it to be abandoned, but the atmosphere was too grim to call it lively.

“This city… it certainly leaves an impression.”

“There’s a reason they call it the City of Sin.”

As they continued walking, they came upon a market.

The market, too, consisted of half-ruined buildings haphazardly patched up, with stalls and tents set up all around. Karnak chuckled, feeling a sense of déjà vu.

‘This place feels exactly like the black markets in the Empire.’

The only difference was that it wasn’t yet dark.

Since it was evening, many women were out shopping, carrying their baskets around. Seeing this, Serati murmured.

“They say it’s a lawless zone, but it seems they maintain some level of order.”

Alius chuckled.

“The security here is… self-managed.”

“What?”

Serati blinked in confusion, trying to understand what he meant.

Just then, a boy dressed in rags suddenly snatched a basket from an elderly woman walking by.

“Hey!”

He swiftly dashed forward, cutting the basket’s strap with a knife and grabbing it as he ran like the wind—his skill was remarkable!

Riltein and Serati, shocked, muttered to themselves.

“A pickpocket?”

“With so many people around?”

Meanwhile, Karnak and Varos were unfazed.

‘Security here is non-existent…’

‘What does it matter how many people there are?’

As expected, the passersby didn’t react at all to the theft happening right beside them. They merely watched with idle curiosity.

However, what happened next even surprised Karnak and Varos.

“Oh my!”

The woman who had been robbed didn’t seem flustered at all.

Calmly, she pulled out a menacing dagger from her coat and threw it!

Whoosh!

Thud!

The dagger struck the boy’s thigh with perfect accuracy. Blood splattered as he let out a scream.

“Aaagh!”

The woman didn’t even hurry.

Leisurely, she walked over to the fallen boy, retrieved her basket, and inspected it.

“Ah, I’ll have to fix this handle,” she muttered casually, as if it was nothing. Then she calmly pulled the dagger out of the boy’s thigh. Even as blood splattered, she didn’t so much as blink.

After that, she simply continued on her way.

She didn’t get angry, nor did she curse. It was as if nothing had happened.

“Aagh… Aah…”

As the boy groaned in pain, passersby threw remarks at him as they walked by.

“Tut-tut, and you tried pickpocketing with that level of skill?”

“You should go back to begging.”

Even though a child lay bleeding on the ground, no one seemed inclined to help.

Karnak’s group, who had been watching, was left speechless.

“What the hell is this?”

“What’s with the atmosphere in this place?”

Serati, on the other hand, was nervously looking back at Alius.

‘What should we do, Alius? If we leave him like this…’

Whether by coincidence or the woman’s precise aim, the dagger had avoided the boy’s arteries. For now, his life didn’t seem to be in immediate danger.

But could they really just stand by and do nothing? Especially since Alius was a priest.

Alius merely shrugged.

‘Didn’t I tell you? The security here is self-managed.’

Sure enough, three children came rushing out from a nearby alley.

They were all dressed in shabby clothing and approached the fallen boy as if this was routine. They quickly stopped the bleeding and wrapped the wound with a bandage.

Their comments during this were something else entirely.

“See, Kain, I told you pickpocketing was dangerous!”

“Let’s just stick to selling ourselves honestly.”

The children, supporting the boy’s limbs, quickly disappeared back into the alley.

All of this took place in just a few minutes.

What remained were the merchants and passersby, who resumed their activities as if nothing had happened.

“Come, come! Fresh Latier meat for sale!”

“We’ve got fresh turnips in today!”

Looking at the pool of red blood on the ground, Riltein sighed.

“My goodness, so that’s why the roads are stained brown…”

He’d been walking over it without a second thought, but now he felt utterly uneasy.

Karnak and Varos, too, wore expressions of deep impression.

“Well, it’s definitely a place where people live, but…”

“The type of people living here are… quite different.”

The woman wasn’t particularly skilled. Compared to those who had formally trained in martial arts, she was certainly amateurish.

However, the basic common sense here was entirely different, not just for the woman, but for the entire city.

“There’s no need to give any special warnings,” Alius said, breaking the silence.

“You’ve seen it for yourselves, this is Trist City.”

Karnak’s group was undoubtedly strong.

If it came to a direct confrontation, Serati alone could probably take down dozens of ordinary bandits with ease.

“But in this place, it’s hard to expect anyone to be polite enough to face you head-on.”