The captain of the soldiers of the republic was shocked when he found that the group of people he put in the prison was gone.
He quickly mobilized his men to find any clues about the group.
He had no idea that Souta and the rest were already on the other side of the republic's territory. They didn't even manage to know the group's identity so they thought that they were spies from other countries.
The entire republic locked all of its borders so every person who approached their land would be apprehended by them. They would only release them after they confirmed their identity that they were not a threat to the country.
...
"Hero from another world?" Souta was a little bit interested in this.
"Yeah, Sydfri Kingdom has a higher-scale summoning circle. It could summon a person from a stronger world. That person would be bound by the contract." Princess Dreimi explained.
"I see..." Souta smiled and rubbed his chin.
"The hero will return to where he came from after he finished his contract. According to our information, the hero will receive tons of benefits but we haven't confirmed it yet." Princess Dreimi said.
The group continued their travel inside the republic's land. The republic was huge so no one thought that they were outsiders. The folks here just thought that they were from the other parts of the country.
Souta and Eilish have tried all kinds of things that the republic could offer. They were like tourists that came here for vacation. They bought different street foods, visited various tourist attractions, and rented high-class hotels on their way to the border.
On the next day...
"We're finally out of the republic. Where should we go now?" Souta asked his guides.
"I think it's best if we take the route near the border of the Crimco Empire. We will arrive at our destination faster it's just that we need to be careful since it is highly dangerous." Princess Dreimi explained.
"Crimco Empire... A troublesome country... Its military might is on a whole other level." Baldur said.
"Well, before that we need to take care of some rats first..." Souta smiled as he turned his head.
"Yeah, they've been following us since we left the territory of the republic." Eilish nodded at his words.
Princess Dreimi, Baldur, and Heimer looked around. They haven't sensed anything at all yet Souta and Eilish said that someone was following them. They didn't doubt the words of the Messenger of God.
"Is it an assassin? Or an agent from the republic?" Baldur narrowed his eyes.
"It doesn't matter. We need to take care of this matter." Heimer said.
Souta glanced at the three and said, "Don't worry, I'll take care of it."
"How could we let Your Holiness dirty your hands?! We can't do that!" Heimer said with a hint of panic in his tone.
"It's fine." Souta shook his head as he took a step forward.
The ground was covered in shadows instantly. A sound echoed as several tentacles strangled an unknown group of people who were hiding in the dark.
"What is this?!"
"No!!"
"This...!!"
Souta stepped forward and looked at this group of people. When he was about to say something, these people suddenly discharged a high energy concentration.
"Self-destruction...?"
He closed his palm and the tentacles tightly wrapped around these people before they could even explode. The tentacles turned them into a pile of crushed meat. Their blood flowed to the ground, creating a small pool of blood.
Eilish walked beside him and said, "They are experts that are prepared to die. We can't get information from them."
"Yeah, it seems that someone is watching our movements. They even dared to send some people." Souta answered with a faint smile on his face.
Souta asked Baldur and Heimer if they somehow knew where those people came from based on their attire. They answered that they didn't know. Well, this was within his expectation so he wasn't worried a little bit.
"Let's continue..."
The group continued their journey and soon they arrived in the city called Crown. It was a huge and bustling city with a population of nearly two hundred thousand.
"We'll stay here for a while," Souta said.
"Okay, we'll buy some food and water needed for our journey," Baldur said.
"I'll go find rent an inn," Heimer said.
"Good. Then, we'll meet in the plaza an hour later." Souta said.
The group separated as they had their own task to do. Heimer rented rooms for them while Baldur and Princess Dreimi bought water and food. Souta and Eilish toured around the city.
Souta with his arms folded in front of his chest was sensing all the movements within his range. His range was tremendous as it covered the entire city.
"What are you doing?" Eilish asked.
"Hmm... I'm just trying to sense if there's any problem within this city. You know, I'm a kind-hearted person that is willing to help an unknown person in danger." Souta answered as he smiled.
"Tsk, as if that's true..." Eilish clicked her tongue, not believing his words.
"What? You don't believe me?" Souta looked at her.
"Yeah, yeah, I believe you..."
"No, you clearly don't believe my words."
"I already said I believe you..."
"Hey, did you forget that I can differentiate lies from the truth so I know that you didn't believe me?"
"Oh, I forgot about that. My bad."
After an hour, the group met at the plaza. Then, they entered the inn and rested in the room that Heimer rented. They would rest here for a few hours before they continued their journey.
Souta set up a barrier around his room before he sat down. Eilish was in front of him, waiting for him to finish his preparation.
Then, both of them entered Saya's inner consciousness. Souta started to perfect his Archetype while Eilish was training her energy capacity and spell casting. She wanted to break through to the Third Shackles as soon as possible.
She confirmed that her brother was still alive. She wanted to know the truth about what happened to her brother that day. In order to do that, she had to improve herself first as she knew that she would face countless obstacles in her way.
Plus... She wasn't alone.
Eilish opened her eyes and stared at Souta's face. She knew that Souta would help her no matter what. She believed him.
In the sky, above the continent, several meteors were descending towards the land with insane speed.
Countless people couldn't help but look at the bright meteors in the starry sky.
Rumble!!
After a second, the experts who were looking at the meteors frowned. Each one of them contained a vast aura that spread out in the surrounding area. It was like a flood sweeping everything in its way.
After a few hours...
Souta and Eilish finished their training. It was time for them to continue their journey. They headed out of their room and saw a commotion outside.
Princess Dreimi and the other two were also here.
Souta approached them and asked, "What's wrong?"
Baldur looked at him before he replied, "Several meteors fell from the sky... A lot of people said that it was a bad omen and a disaster will occur in this land."
"Meteors?" Souta raised his head as he looked at the dark starry sky.
"Yes, several meteors fell from the sky while we were resting in our rooms. It fell in different directions." Baldur said.
"I'm surprised that you didn't feel anything, Your Holiness. Just looking at those meteors made my heart palpitate. It feels like..." Heimer glanced at Souta. Those meteors gave a dangerous feeling just like when he first met Souta.
"Hmm..." Souta rubbed his chin. He didn't sense it since he was inside Saya's inner consciousness and there was a barrier around the room. The barrier prevented the leakage of energy and it also blocked energy from the outside.
Champion's Den, Athen's Champion...
Three warriors inside a spacious room noticed something peculiar. Hundreds of small spheres were in front of them and one of the spheres showed a strange ripple.
"This...?!" One of the warriors named Fred quickly stood up from his seat.
"What's wrong?" His comrade named Jaden asked.
"Look at this... Planet Plunyx... Someone entered the atmosphere of the planet." The other warrior said. His name was Berni.
The hundreds of small spheres in front of them represent the sub-world under Athena's name. They were the ones that collected information and counted all the resources that the legion harvested from these worlds.
Just now, the detection barrier around the planet showed a sign that someone forcefully entered Plunyx.
"Is it the right time to harvest the resources in Plunyx, right? Then, who's the one that took the mission." Fred asked his comrade.
Jaden hurriedly went to the table and looked at the papers. He then answered, "It's the Master of Hydra, the newly appointed Grain Leader of the Sixth Grain War of the Third Set Pallas Division, Souta."
"Damn! How many warriors are with him?" Berni asked.
"Just one... It's his comrade. This mission should be just a vacation for him but it seems that's not the case now. We should find available warriors now and send them as a reinforcement." Jaden answered with a grim look.
