When I first arrived at the village, it was horrible.
They are refugees. They're people who lost their homes. People who suffered under the regime of the cruel tyrant. They lost their family members to the war, and they are only seeking peace.
When I first arrived, the village was being watched over by Frisena's soldiers. There's people from the earth nation bringing in food and supplies, to keep the refugees fed despite the cold weather of the north. However, even with the help from the outside, the refugees are still suffering.
They are certainly traumatized. The suffering they lived during the dark days of the dark republic continued even today. It will take a long time for them to forget about it and move on.
Frisena sent me to this village to look for a potential ally that Zero has. It is highly possible that Zero had underlings when he was running the dark republic, and it is possible that those underlings survived and escaped alongside the refugees.
So, I am here to investigate, to find those rats hiding among the refugees. However, what I found was something so much more than that.
Originally, I was starting out as one of the people serving meals to the refugees. I was the one pouring soup into the bowls during breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I was acting as if I came from the earth nation to help the refugees, and no one actually recognized me based on how I looked.
However, one managed to recognize my face.
"Oh? If it isn't the prince."
On the cold morning, one week after I began serving meals to the refugees. A tall woman who looked to be slightly older than me stood on the line in front of me. Her cold black eyes studied my appearance, and I noticed her body was fully covered in a robe.
Behind that robe… is an armor.
"Nice to finally meet you. I heard so many crazy things about you." The young lady said to me as she lifted her hand forward, as if asking for a bowl. I was very confused, and I couldn't even move my hand to bring the bowl to her.
"Who are you…?"
"Just someone who lost their home, like these people. Now, are you going to give me my breakfast or not?"
"Are you a knight from the dark republic?"
"I'm not. Listen, are you going to give me breakfast or not?"
"No breakfast for the long nose." I pulled the bowl away from her, and I can tell she looked so annoyed. She grinned for a while before turning around.
"Fine. I wasn't starving to death, anyways." She walked away after realizing I'm not going to give the breakfast to her, and I realized that she wasn't lying when she said she was hungry.
Then… is this not a chance for me to take her down…? If she really was a knight from the dark republic, then couldn't she be one of the numbered knights?
After that, I excused myself to someone else who was on duty. They complained because now they have to pour the soup for two lines at once, but I genuinely need to investigate this.
I followed her to the forest, where she walked after she was denied a bowl. However, before I could find her, she found me first.
"!!"
FTANNNGGG!!!!!!!!!!
From above the trees, she jumped down and ambushed me. To my surprise, the object I protected myself from wasn't a metal blade.
It was… a shadow scythe. A weapon that is formed with the darkness origin.
"Oh!? You had an eye behind your head or something!?" She cheerfully commented, but I already charged a ton of flames onto my other hand.
BOOOMMMMM!!!!!!!!!
My fire blast destroyed multiple trees on its path. The snow that was on the ground and on the trees melted, but it wasn't enough to cause a forest fire.
The lady with the robe took off her robe completely, allowing me to see her armor. It genuinely looked like she was a knight, because she was wearing pitch black armor with many sharp pointy nails coming out of certain areas.
Her face smirks widely as she studies my appearance, and I have already activated my Limit Break in that short amount of time.
"I knew one of you would've roamed around the place randomly."
"One of who? Do you even know who you're talking to?" She replied so calmly, which made me wonder if she really knows what she is dealing with.
My achievements should be quite famous. People already know how strong I am based on the stories. And yet, she knows exactly who I am and still acts like that.
The only person who can act like this in front of me is the headmaster. I refuse to believe there's others who are so stupidly powerful like him existing out there.
"I guess we've talked enough. I'll bring you in for questioning." I said as I took out my sword, but she only chuckles while swinging her black scythe that was made with the darkness origin.
"If this is your love language, then I'll gladly accept it." She said so flirty to me, and I didn't care anymore and started rushing at her.
My movement felt quite difficult due to the terrain, but it didn't matter. The micro blasts movement got me so far in just a few seconds, and I swung my fiery blade towards her body.
But before I could reach her, her entire body began to shine brightly.
W-What!?
BLAAARRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My body was caught in a lightning blast out of nowhere. It does sting a little, but my passive healing should get me up and working in no time. However, I need to make some space.
Another bastard is here…? A lightning origin?
"Where are your eyes looking?"
From above, the same flirty taunt was heard. I turned my gaze upwards to find the armored lady standing on top of a tree branch, and my eyes were opened widely.
Her hands are covered in black liquid from her darkness origin, but it was heavily sparkling with electricity. Traces of lightning can be seen faintly around her entire body, and I knew right away that it was done by none other than herself.
She has… both the darkness origin and the lightning origin.
This is a lot more dangerous than I imagined.
"I shouldn't fight on an empty stomach. But, you forced me this way by not giving me the bowl. And just like any hungry wolf,-" The lady's words were cut off as she disappeared into a lightning strike, and I became aware of how fast she was moving.
"I will do anything to consume my meal." She said right behind me, and I was far too slow to react.
She's… so fast!! My Limit Break can't even keep up!!
VWOOOMMMM!!!!!!!!!!
BAAKKK!!!!!!!!
I tried firing a fire blaze behind me, but she dodged it like it was nothing. Her long foot covered in very sturdy metal boots kicked me on the stomach, and I was thrown far backwards.
I balanced myself and began calming down, figuring out a way to face someone like her. She's faster than me, so naturally I will just have to make an unexpected move and find the right timing.
… Now!
BOOOMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!
I casted a powerful blast downwards, right below my legs. The lady was approaching me, and she definitely did not expect me to blow myself up.
"What!?" The lady yelled as she opened two large shadow wings with her darkness origin, but I already leaped to her with my sword blazing.
"You're not going anywhere!!" I shouted as I swung my sword, but the lady only smiled.
She lifted her right hand forward to me, and I realized right away that I made a mistake for blindly rushing at her. Her hand immediately started glowing, but it is glowing a color that I wasn't expecting.
It's glowing… black.
BLAAAARRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My body was thrown backwards very powerfully, and I crashed through multiple trees before finally stopping. The bones on both my ribs and my arm were snapped, and I can tell I'm about to cough a lot of blood.
"Ghahhakkk!!!!!--"
Those damn trees are as hard as rock or something…?
That blast was very powerful. So powerful that it's comparable to my strongest explosions. And she did it so quickly, at such a close range.
So fast… so powerful. Without a doubt, it came from something that I'd never expected to see here.
I lifted my pained eyes upwards, and I spotted the lady flying in the air with her shadow wings. Her left hands are sparkling with her lightning origin, which I thought to be fine. However, her right hands are sparkling with black electricity all over.
First darkness origin, then lightning origin. And now, she can use a combined version of them… the black lightning.
How… is someone like her not a goddamn holy knight? Who the fuck is she?
Am I just… going to die here?