As mentioned before, the original Alex was an immature brat, but there was one thing that stood out in him compared to other princes.
He was born with silver hair and golden eyes!
The Kreimhild empire's royal family is said to have been founded by an ancient 'Hero' who was blessed by the God of Wisdom.
According to the legends, every blessed 'saint' of the god of wisdom has silver hair and golden eyes.
Moreover, when Alex was born, an oracle of God was bestowed to the pope of the god of wisdom's church that a chosen saint of the god of wisdom was going to be born in the royal family once again.
And Alex was born on the same night when that oracle of God was bestowed.
The Pope personally came and named the child 'Alexander,' which means 'Protector of Men.'
Alex did not grow up in the church, as he was a prince, and he stayed in the royal palace until he became 16 years old.
He became 16 years old two months ago, and a paladin was sent by the church to bring Alex to the church so that he could take over his duties as a chosen 'Saint.'
Alex, who was already a spoiled brat, did not want to go to the church at all, but his father did not have any particular attachments to this spoiled brat of a son, and thus Alex was kicked out of the palace mercilessly.
He was irritated and angry, but what could he do? The paladin was strong, and even if Alex punched him, his own hand would be hurt.
So, he had no other choice but to obediently go with the paladin.
As Alex did not have any authority or power as a prince, he had no subordinates or knights to serve him.
He was a very rude brat whom no knight wanted to serve at all, and thus he had no other choice but to hire a bunch of mercenaries to escort him through the dangerous wilderness.
Ethan, who's his paladin, is also just as much of an airhead; he's loyal to his work and duty, never questions anything, and does whatever he's ordered.
He only met Alex two months ago and has been serving him as his subordinate ever since.
'I am definitely gonna die… if not tonight then tomorrow…'
A sharp glint appeared in Alex's eyes as he stared at the fire and looked at the mercenaries from the corner of his eyes.
'Around 40 people or something… most of them look like regular humans but I don't know if there's any so-called superhumans among them…'
As mentioned before, the original Alex was an idiot; he didn't even investigate the background of these mercenaries and gave the money to Ethan to hire them.
Ethan himself is an airhead and likely didn't think too much and got tricked easily.
'They charged very little; each one of them is on a horse, which is very optimal for running…'
'Area proximity is the valley of Sorrows, which is famous for its dangerous environment in this nation, very optimal for committing various crimes.'
'Only one paladin as a guard and a sh*t ton of money and luxurious goods, I am a like a sexy lady seducing them with my seductive poses…'
Alex doesn't know whether that paladin is really a superhuman or not, but considering that he's a regular human who's just a little stronger than others, it's easy for a group of people to easily deal with him.
'Optimal time would be when the morning is about to arrive…'
People are most vigilant when they know that the situation is dangerous, and they tend to lower their guard when the situation is about to become safe.
Just when it would seem that they have safely passed the night, the mercenaries can attack and loot everything.
Then they can easily run away and hide in some secured hideout prepared beforehand.
Why is Alex so sure about this, you ask?
Because up until now, Alex hasn't seen a single non-combat person among the mercenaries.
In usual mercenary groups, there's bound to be a medic or logistics person who's not good at fighting and is responsible for other work.
In fact, from original Alex's memories, he has seen his brothers hire a lot of mercenary groups during their monster hunting festivals.
And this mercenary group is entirely made of combatants; they are all equipped with only the necessary amount of food and water.
They are extremely well prepared for the kill-and-run tactic.
'Phew… am I overthinking this? I do have a habit of overthinking, but usually my intuition is very correct…'
'I might need to run tests and some experiments before I confirm the situation… Also, I need to create some 'vaccine' before this 'virus' takes my life…'
Just when Alex was in a daze, his obedient and lovely paladin, Ethan, brought him his food.
"Your holiness, your food is ready! Don't worry about anything; I have already tested it myself. It doesn't have any poison or anything of the sort!"
Alex shook his head, took the bowl, and drank the bland soup given to him by his loyal paladin.
'This tastes horrible… like some weird cough syrup or something…'
Although the food didn't taste good, as if it was made by a very unskilled person, Alex had no other choice but to force himself to eat it.
He was hungry and needed energy to keep his brain functioning.
In a situation where his physical capabilities were way too weak, he needed to rely heavily on his brain, and that needed energy.
Ethan also removed his helmet and drank the same soup while sitting on the ground beside Alex.
His hair and pupils were brownish.
He had ordinary looks, and despite being in his mid-thirties, he was very flexible. He could sit in a lotus position even when wearing such heavy armor.
'That armor, it's very flexible and well made… how much money they splurge on that thing?…'
'If my memory serves me right… isn't the church of the god of wisdom currently in great peril… they are almost extinct and there's only one main church building is left…'
Alex sighed and stopped himself from getting distracted.
While eating, he observed the movements of the mercenaries and noticed something that made him frown a little bit.
There was a young girl among the mercenary group.
"Hmm? Who's that young girl, Ethan? I don't remember seeing her among the mercenaries before…"
Ethan who had his back against the mercenaries smiled a bit at Alex and replied with a smile,
"What are you saying, Lord Saint? You are quite good at joking haha…"
Ethan didn't seem to be taking Alex's words seriously, and his next words made Alex feel like a chill ran down his spine.
"Your holiness, there's no young girl among our group."
"In fact, why would we bring a young girl on such a dangerous trip?"
"This is near the valley of sorrows, you know, and there a monster-infested forest in that direction not far from here."
Alex's eyes widened in shock as he hurriedly looked in the direction of the mercenaries once again, and without a doubt, there was a young girl standing there.
She was leaning against a tree, and Alex could not see her face, as it was too dark around that place.
No mercenary seemed to have noticed her presence, and she was watching them all quietly without making any movement or sound.
The young girl seemed to have noticed Alex's gaze in that moment, and her head rotated like a robot in his direction.
What Alex saw at that moment almost made him faint from shock.
The young girl did not have a face.