"Trap them?" Gabriel couldn't help but let out a sigh. "If only I could..."
He didn't have any forces to split them up to be able to make a trap for them. Moreover, there was another place where he needed to be, so that was out of the question.
"Don't worry. There will be no trap for them. In reality, we are going to the Axin Kingdom. It's just to throw them off our trail that we need you to lie. It's because I don't want to have to fight again."
Even now, Gabriel lied to her about his real intention. He wasn't sure if Olivia was going to betray them or not. That's why he lied about his real destination as well, naming the Axin Kingdom instead of the Arecia Empire. That way, even if she betrayed them, there was no way that anyone could create trouble for them.
Olivia didn't comment, though she certainly was surprised that Gabriel told her where they were actually going to know. She wondered if this guy really trusted her.
Gabriel and Olivia walked on the empty streets of the town together. Gabriel observed the town which was in a much better condition than the town he was born in. Despite being near the border, the town wasn't shabby.
"You like our town?" Olivia asked, feeling that Gabriel was somewhat impressed at what he was seeing.
"It's not bad," Gabriel answered.
"Yeah. We don't lack anything in this town. Here, we do our own farming and create the things we need. Still, unfortunately this town has never gained the favor of the Royal Family. No one shifts to the town either, due to our proximity with the Beast Mountain which is overrun by fierce beasts."
"That fear is what keeps the town from growing. If not, I have a feeling that we could've become a city by now. Unfortunately..."
Olivia had lived in this town all her life and knew just what the ground reality was. The perception of this town amongst the outsiders wasn't good.
"Do the beasts ever attack the town?" Gabriel looked in the direction of the tall mountain in the distance which was clearly visible from where he was standing.
"Fortunately they don't. Otherwise our town would've been destroyed long ago," the young girl answered. "Though there are certainly times when one or two stray beasts come toward the city. But in that case, the Church takes care of them. Well, at least they did in the past. I believe we'll have to do that ourselves now."
Walking through the streets, Gabriel soon reached the spot where the Church of Light branch used to be. He could only see a burned building before him that was barely standing.
Not thinking much, Gabriel entered the burnt building out of curiosity. Not even the remnants of the bodies were left behind. It in itself was surprising that the building was still standing.
After looking around the Church of Light, he stepped back out. He could still notice a few gazes on him. The citizens of the Town were looking at him through the windows, most hiding behind curtains. It was evident that these people were scared and there was nothing he could do about this.
While taking the trip of the town, he didn't even realize when he reached the end of the town which wasn't very big.
He stood at the entrance of the town, which was also its exit. Looking at the direction of the sun, he tried to get a general idea of the direction he needed to take to get to the Arecia Empire.
'It should be that way... After he returns, I should get going. I also need to send him back to his home. He already did more than he needed to. He had been in this world for a long time. Since it's just traveling now, I shouldn't keep him here..."
He decided to send the Infernal King back to his home before leaving the city, not bothering him to travel together since that wasn't needed. From this point on, he needed to be more inconspicuous.
[Growl]
In his initial curiosity, he had even forgotten that he hadn't eaten anything in the last two days. His stomach had already started growling, bringing his attention to his hunger.
"Let's go back," Olivia suggested. "Now that you're up, you should eat something. You still need to eat to regain some strength. There's no better healing than letting the body do its work."
Gabriel agreed as he also turned around to go back, only to stop in his tracks as soon as he took his first step.
Frowning, he looked behind in the distance.
"What happened?" Olivia also turned around, wondering why Gabriel stopped. However, it was only when she turned around that she realized the reason.
In the distance, she could see a group of people coming toward their town on their horses.
The distance for now was too much so she couldn't see them clearly, but it was clear that they weren't from the Royal Army or the Church of Light.
Unlike her, Gabriel was able to see much more clearly. It was a group of six, all in their early twenties. Only two of them were boys while the other four were girls.
"Based on their attire, they seem to be from a wealthy family," he commented. "Do you know them?"
Olivia shook her head. "I don't remember seeing them before. My first time as well."
"I see..." Gabriel couldn't sense any danger from those people. At best, he could feel that they were as strong as Garrick from the Academy of Elements, if not slightly weaker. If the Royal City knew about his presence there, there was no way they were going to send people like them here. He was sure of that.
****
A group of six came closer to the town, noticing Gabriel and Olivia standing at the entrance.
"Hahaha, it seems there are already some guests waiting for us." A red haired man burst into laughter.
"That shouldn't be possible," the blue haired woman in the lead shook her head. "They should've had no information about our arrival. How could they be waiting here for us?"
All six people had Marks of Elements on their left hand, highlighting their prestigious positions of mages.
"Yeah, it must be a coincidence that they were at the entrance when they saw us. We shouldn't think too much about it. Just focus on our aim," Another woman chimed in.
"Qing is right! We can't afford to fail. This will be our opportunity to shine!"
