Shumanton pulled apart the heavy, broken logs blocking the path with his bare hands. Behind him, Chris carried the unconscious young girl on his back. Annoyed, Chris led the black horse with one hand, trudging through the mud and following Shumanton's footsteps deeper into the desolate, uninhabited forest.

  "It seems this forest is far older than I imagined."

  Shumanton stepped over a damp boulder. Its sharp edges emitted a faint yellow luminescence. Even though he was blind, his gaze seemed to land precisely on the distant pile of rubble glowing with yellow light.

  Sensing some lingering, highly threatening magical energy, the black horse let out an uneasy whinny, instinctively backing away.

  "What the hell are you doing, you beast? Get over here! Seriously—" Chris yanked the reins violently, his temper flaring.

  "There's no need to force it, Chris." The damp, rough stone left trails of water and dirt on Shumanton's broad palms, faintly resonating with the golden core-seal patterns within his body. "It simply doesn't know how to handle 'danger.' You should be able to train it well, shouldn't you?"

  "Tch." Chris spat on the ground in displeasure, opting to temporarily tie the black horse to a thick tree trunk nearby. He looked up at the empty, steep cliff face in the distance, his brow furrowing tightly. "Lord Shumanton, we should get going. Speaking of which, that old hag should have been here, right? Where on earth did she go? Did she fall off the cliff?"

  "You aren't blind, are you, Chris?" Shumanton's tone was flat, as if stating something trivial. "Miss Pu-Ying was likely attacked. Judging by the residual Solar-ore powder in the air, the enemy's firepower was quite formidable. However... the scene has been 'cleaned up' entirely too well. How truly suspicious."

  "Tch, what the hell." Chris placed a cautious hand on the hilt of his sword at his waist, glancing at the girl on his back. "This woman is such a nuisance."

  "She isn't injured, is she? Use the puddles nearby to splash her awake." Shumanton tilted his head slightly. "There's a very unusual aura about this child... It's older and purer than ordinary healing arts."

  With that, several black thorns, acting like living creatures, emerged from Shumanton's side. They nimbly slipped into the black horse's leather saddlebag, wrapped around an iron flask, and handed it to Chris.

  "What kind of cheap trick is this?" Chris unceremoniously scooped up water from a puddle with the flask. It was just rainwater that had recently fallen, so it wasn't too dirty. "Lord Shumanton, a suspicious character like her won't spill the truth without suffering a bit of flesh wound."

  "You're clearly quite awake. However, I believe she might be—"

  Splash—!

  A merciless wave of cold water hit the girl squarely in the face.

  "What were you saying she was?" Chris asked casually. "...Is she awake yet?" "Not yet, Lord Shumanton." Chris roughly patted the girl's cheek. "Hey, wake up. You'll catch a cold sleeping in a place like this."

  "Pfft." Shumanton couldn't help but chuckle softly, a teasing edge to his voice. "She must be quite the beauty, isn't she, Chris?" "Huh? Lord Shumanton, I think you really are blind. This woman is ugly as sin..."

  Accompanied by a few violent coughs, the girl jolted violently like a startled little beast, curling her body as she scrambled up from the mud.

  She looked up in panic. Filling her vision was Chris's fierce, disgusted, and guarded glare; behind him stood the smiling man. With a slight raise of his hand, countless black thorny vines instantly broke through the earth, weaving into a massive cage across the ground and mid-air.

  "W-Who... who are you? W-Why are you kidnapping me?!" Facing two incredibly imposing men, the frail girl's face was etched with terror.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  "Timid women always manage to invoke such pity," Shumanton chuckled lowly.

  With a casual wave of his hand, a section of black vine slithered like a viper, wrapping around the girl's wrists and ankles. She shrieked in terror, losing her balance and falling to the ground. She desperately tried to flee outwards, but the vines didn't bind her tightly. Even the surrounding thorn cage deliberately left an opening, as if mocking her with the illusion that she could leave at any time.

  "Please don't mind them; these vines are my 'subordinates.' Allow me to introduce myself—I am Natsuhyan Shumanton, a 'weapon of war' formerly manufactured by the Verbonia Empire. As for this man, Chris, as you can see, he is my subordinate."

  "'As you can see,' what does that mean? Lord Shumanton, I'm not wearing my military uniform right now," Chris interjected coldly. "Oh my, you misunderstood. I meant that you must be dressed very handsomely today..."

  "What are you trying to do?!" The girl suddenly spun around. Even though her hands were still trembling uncontrollably, a fiery anger ignited in her eyes. "Natsuhyan Shumanton has been dead for a long time! In the resource-plundering war seventeen years ago... Isn't that common knowledge?!"

  "Tch." Chris took a large stride forward. His muscular frame cast a massive, dark shadow over the girl, terrifying her into shivering once again. "Isn't the guy standing perfectly fine right there? What, has everyone gone blind today?"

  "Chris, don't be so rude." Shumanton slowly walked over. Seeing this, Chris immediately stepped half a pace back, making room for his superior.

  "You're not wrong. In every sense of the word, the theoretical 'me' is indeed 'dead.'" Shumanton's tone was calm, carrying a trace of careless weariness. "But now isn't the time to discuss history. Please forgive the vines; they are quite prickly, wouldn't you say?"

  "S-Shumanton... Rumor has it that the weapon he used in the past was indeed these black vines..." the girl muttered to herself.

  "Pfft, it seems the title of 'weapon' always commands more prestige. Leaving idle chatter aside, may I have the honor of knowing your name?"

  The girl bit her bloodless lips hard. Under Chris's fierce, angry glare, she gritted her teeth and answered: "...I am Chloe."

  "What an interesting encounter, Chloe." Shumanton 'looked' towards her. "Although my barrier magic blocked the explosion just now, the fact that you remain completely unscathed from that kind of impact is quite intriguing. Tell me, where did you get that crystal ball in your hands?"

  "Y-You... Do you want to conscript me into the army too?! You imperial lunatics!" "You damn woman, what nonsense are you spouting?!" Enraged, Chris drew his sword to step forward, but Shumanton stopped him with an outstretched arm.

  "Oh, you misunderstand. I retired a long time ago, and I have no intention of continuing to risk my life for the Empire." Shumanton sighed. "It seems the history books weren't written very well, right, Chris? They should say: 'Shumanton betrayed the Empire, sealed the ultimate weapon they were so proud of, and then vanished without a trace.'"

  "History books are always full of lies, but that's not your fault, Chloe." Shumanton gently stroked his chin with his long fingers, a dangerous smile curving his lips: "That is no ordinary crystal ball. If my guess is correct... you must be on quite good terms with the God of Wind, aren't you?"

  Hearing the title "God of Wind," Chloe jerked violently, clutching her shoulders tightly.

  Sensing her shaken state, Shumanton's thorns slithered like snakes, coiling smoothly around her pale neck. He leaned down slightly, using a calloused finger to playfully tilt the girl's chin up, a sneer of contempt tracing his lips.

  "I only work for the Ancient God of Seals. There's no way the history books missed that, right? Tell me, what lies did that incompetent thing use to deceive you?"

  Smack! Chloe angrily slapped Shumanton's hand away.

  "'She' is my friend! And I am her servant, it's as simple as that!" The girl tilted her head up, snapping back without backing down. "Besides, so you're the servant of the Ancient God of Seals! Sorry, but the history books truly didn't mention a single word about that!"

  "Lord Shumanton, this woman is beyond saving. Can I just cut her down already?" Chris's fingers tapped impatiently against his sword hilt.

  "My, my, please forgive this man's crudeness. He always gets flustered when he meets beautiful women; no wonder he's always trying to get rough with you." Shumanton straightened up and turned away. "Well then, until we thoroughly figure out your background, I'm afraid we'll have to ask you to come with us. Chris, prepare to move out!"

  Leaving the bewildered Chloe standing there.

  Tch! How did it come to this? Why hasn't the God of Wind appeared?

  In the distance, a gentle breeze swept by, softly ruffling Chloe's slightly wavy brown hair. She looked around with a heart full of hope. However, the forest quickly sank back into a dead silence, and nothing happened.

  Shumanton seemed to keenly catch the flow of the wind, a fathomless smile flashing across his eyes. He glanced back slightly—even though his eyes could see nothing. Those thick, black thorns still stood tall and immovable like an iron wall, cutting off all paths of retreat.

  "Chloe, please come over here. It will be much easier to ride on horseback." Shumanton smiled gently at Chloe. However, Chloe was clearly extremely displeased by this—especially when she realized that the one holding the horse's reins was that murderous-looking Chris.