CHAPTER 72: DAMN

The following day, Arthur woke up very early, and the first thing he did was drink an Enhancement Elixir and train hard. Due to being busy over the past days, he had neglected his training considerably, but now he decided to double his efforts to reach Level D as quickly as possible.

After finishing, he decided to head to the bath for a cold, refreshing wash. He opened his room’s door and, as usual, found his maid Octavia waiting silently. Upon seeing him, she greeted him politely and somewhat shyly, "Greetings, my lord."

He nodded in response to her greeting and said, "Tell the maids to prepare the bath. Also, order ‎Brent to prepare some horses and soldiers; we will be touring the forest."

"As you command, my lord," Octavia replied, then quickly left to carry out his orders. He returned to his room and sat before his desk filled with blueprints, his face bearing a strange expression. After a brief moment of silence, he sighed, "She still acts oddly. Hmm, it’s fine as long as she doesn’t do anything strange or suspicious."

Calmly, he shook his head and stopped thinking about Octavia. More precisely, he emptied his mind of all distractions and focused on one thing. He moved his hand, and a small green glass orb faintly flickered in it. He stared at the Wooden Mana Core with mysterious eyes and then muttered, "Obtaining you was an unbelievable stroke of luck, but I really needed something like you. You’re the only thing that might help me solve my magical affinity problem. Still, it’s annoying and more complicated than necessary."

He sighed!

"More importantly, it’s painful and requires a lot of preparation."

Knock!

While he was immersed in thought, Octavia knocked on his room door and informed him.

"My lord, everything is ready."

"Alright, I’m coming." Calmly, he returned the Mana Core into the "Dimensional Storage," then stood up, opened his room door, and walked toward the bath. Naturally, Octavia walked beside him. When they reached the bath, he paused at the door and asked, "How is the progress of the new mages? Have they managed to sense mana?"

"Only one has managed to sense mana, my lord. The other three still can’t. Currently, Selene and Varek are teaching them as you ordered."

"Good. You may go arrange my breakfast table. Also, inform Selene that I’ll come to see the training results."

"As you command, my lord," Octavia replied and quickly moved to leave, but Arthur added, "This includes you as well. I will test how much you’ve progressed in using magic. Prepare for that."

What he said surprised her slightly, causing her to freeze for a moment. She didn’t know whether to be happy that he would test her abilities or worried that her skills weren’t that high and she might disappoint him. But she quickly recovered and replied, "It is an honor, my lord."

"Is there anything else, my lord?"

"No, you may go." Without saying more, he entered the bath and took a refreshing cold shower, which improved his mood.

After he finished, he dried himself and dressed. While doing so, he recalled the first time he wanted to bathe in this world, remembering the scene of the maids surrounding him and wanting to wash him, which he firmly refused and drove them out.

"Fortunately, I changed some matters after removing the Baronet."

He quietly mocked the situation, then left the bath, ate his hearty breakfast, and then headed outside the castle where ‎Brent and his escorts awaited him. Unlike past days, he didn’t ride a carriage but mounted a strong horse.

"Let’s go." Calmly, he led his horse toward the forest. As usual, he passed through the crowded village center, crossed the old bridge, and entered the forest filled with annoying obstacles that slowed their pace.

But Arthur didn’t really care. The task he wanted to accomplish wasn’t that urgent, and his destination wasn’t far either. Calmly, he followed the Thorn River stream.

While they traveled, Arthur heard ‎Brent chuckle and say to one of the soldiers, "The forest has been quiet lately. It seems Novarian is killing every beast he sees along his path."

The soldier replied in a slightly low voice, "Indeed, sir. He is strong and worthy of being the lord’s knight."

Arthur faintly smiled and sneered, ’It seems they’re impressed by Novarian. Well, that’s expected. He is, after all, the original protagonist of the novel. But they truly have no idea how foolish he is or the disastrous consequences he will face.’

As Arthur thought about this, he suddenly frowned, ’He’s useful for now, but I must find a way to get rid of him after defeating the goblin army. His continued presence in the barony will cause a disaster. Killing him isn’t a solution either.’

Because Arthur knew the events of the novel "Rise of the Sword Sovereign", he realized that killing Novarian was impossible. What he meant by getting rid of him was expelling him from the barony. Novarian’s ability, which defied logic, wasn’t free it too had a heavy price to pay.

’This isn’t the time to think about this matter it’s still too far away. The signs won’t even appear until after the goblin attack. That gives me enough time to prepare some kind of plan.’ Without further thought, and relying on his photographic memory, he followed the same path he had taken when he first arrived at the barony. After about two hours, he reached a very familiar place.

He stopped his horse and dismounted. The soldiers were slightly surprised but followed suit. ‎Brent stood beside him while the others spread out in all directions.

’Yes, this is the place.’ Arthur looked around with a small smile, remembering his fifth day in this world, when he was stranded in the forest, camped at this very spot, and caught some fish using a primitive fishing rod he had made. (Chapter 3)

Without getting lost in memories, he bent down and took a handful of sand next to the slightly deep river with many tiny branches.

[White Sand]

"Yes, this is what I need." Arthur quickly looked around and found that the riverbanks in the area were full of sand. He then ordered his subordinates.

"Extract as much of this sand as you can. Listen carefully: I want only the sand don’t contaminate it with soil or mud."

Internally, he sighed, ’This sand is already filled with enough impurities; I don’t need more.’

’All I need now is some limestone and some sodium-rich plants, and I’ll be able to produce glass. Even though the process is complicated and troublesome, I must craft some good laboratory tools; otherwise, the implantation of the fake Mana Core won’t succeed.’

Arthur shook his head and stopped thinking about the negatives. After waiting for some time while his subordinates loaded several leather bags with sand, he searched for limestone ore and, as expected, found it nearby, in another part of the river.

He didn’t need large quantities of materials, as he wasn’t planning for large-scale production. Thus, he took only a little limestone, then headed back to the castle.

After leaving the forest and crossing the bridge, he suddenly spotted a strange man riding a horse toward the town.

He furrowed his brows and felt somewhat annoyed. He pointed at the man and asked, "Who is that person?"

‎Brent looked at the stranger and shook his head. "I don’t know, my lord. He’s a stranger to this region, but from his clothes, he seems like a messenger."

Arthur was surprised, "A messenger?"

Then he said sternly, "Seize him and bring him to me."

Upon hearing his orders, ‎Brent quickly rode after the stranger, shouting, "You there, stop right where you are!"

When the stranger saw an armed knight chasing him, he showed no fear and calmly stopped.

His action surprised Arthur, and he quickly used the "Plot Savant" skill to appraise him:

[Name: Albert Tir Beaumont]

[Race: Human]

[Level: C]

[Class: Mage]

[Abilities: Fire Control (C), Fireball (C), Fire Seal (C), Flame Sword (C), Dimensional Ignition (C), Scorched Earth (C), Lava Hand (C), Enhancement Magic (D), Swordsmanship (E), Horsemanship (D)]

[Carried Items: Tidal Wave Scroll +3 (C), Rock Wall Scroll +2 (C), Rock Barrage Scroll (C), Eye of Truth Scroll (C), Dimensional Storage Ring (D), Enhanced Radiance Ring (C), Beaumont Dagger (D)]

When Arthur saw the stranger’s information, his expression tightened, and his body froze from shock. He felt extreme fear, not because of his high stats, but because of his family name Beaumont the name of Count Beaumont, who ruled the neighboring Red River County.

’Damn’, Arthur cursed and tried to remain calm. ’This is a problem. He’s a high-ranking noble. He must have met the real Arvan and seen his face. Doesn’t that mean he’ll know I’m a fake? Damn, damn. And he’s way too strong for me to defeat. Facing him would be pure madness.’

His mind descended into chaos, and he couldn’t think properly. His subordinates noticed that he had frozen strangely but said nothing and simply observed in silence.

At the same time, ‎Brent said something to Albert, who then turned and looked toward where Arthur was. He then began walking toward him.

’Damn, I should’ve kept quiet and let him pass.’ Arthur cursed again and prepared for trouble. He readied himself for battle while also trying to regain his composure and act naturally. After a few seconds, Albert reached him and stood before him.

The two stared at each other with mysterious gazes. After a brief moment of silence, Albert said, "Arvan Ravenshade, I wanted to avoid meeting noble scum, but alas, my bad luck."