CHAPTER 117: REUNION AND TEMPORARY PEACE

After receiving his reward from Bordeaux, Wang Yu didn't linger long. He returned to Redmaple Street with the other members of the special ops team. The Professor and Sieg, ever busy, had other matters to attend to. They decided not to join Charles and Wang Yu, who were planning to visit Edward.

The two walked down Redmaple Street, noting that the area had been relatively lucky. Being part of the central district and close to Stevenson Academy of Magic, it had suffered less damage from the demon invasion than other parts of the capital.

Apart from a few burned buildings caused by the sudden appearance of a demon summoner, and some craters left behind by a few Hellworms, the destruction was minimal.

The two used their communication devices to contact Edward, who told them to meet him at the street corner. He seemed to be recovering well.

As soon as the two stepped off the carriage, they spotted Edward standing beneath the large red maple tree at the corner. He was holding a bouquet of white flowers, which he placed solemnly at the base of the tree.

The catfolk girl Sue stood behind him, holding a bundle of the same white flowers. It seemed that Edward's bouquet had come from her flower shop.

"Hey!" Charles waved at Edward, sensing that the atmosphere wasn't quite right. His tone wasn't as cheerful as usual as he and Wang Yu walked over to join Edward.

Edward turned around, nodded at them, and then gave the tree a standard military salute.

"Who is it for?" Wang Yu politely took a white flower from Sue, thanked her, and placed it in front of the maple tree. He turned to Edward, curious.

"Do you remember the squad leader who faced the Font of Life, Erphine, with us? He's dead. He didn't realize how destructive the demon summoners' flames were and went straight in. He died right in front of me." Edward sighed, a touch of sadness in his voice.

"Oh, him? I think I remember him. A bit inexperienced, but he was responsible and brave in the face of danger." Charles also placed a white flower in front of the maple tree, mimicking Wang Yu's actions.

"It's just... losing someone I was somewhat familiar with so suddenly feels surreal. Life is so fragile. I don't even know his name," Edward said, gazing at the red maple tree with a sense of melancholy.

"There's nothing we can do about it. The world has always been like this. You at least knew this squad leader and learned of his death. But what about the other city guards who died in this incident? The civilians? Many of them perished without anyone's knowledge. What we can do is limited. Get stronger and try to protect the people you care about—that's about it."

Wang Yu clasped his hands together in respect as he bowed toward the red maple tree. He wasn't sure if this world had deities like Yama or Buddha, but he hoped they could watch over this fallen squad leader.

This world had always been cruel. As the son of a grand duke, Edward might need some time to understand this fully, but Wang Yu believed Edward wasn't the type to be shackled by these burdens for long. Wang Yu wasn't great at comforting others, so he chose to state things plainly.

"You're right. I'm still too weak. I need to get stronger, at least strong enough to protect those I'm responsible for—my family, my friends, my people. That's my duty. Sorry, I just... got caught up in some memories of the past."

In Wang Yu's experience, consolation wasn't always necessary—a casual chat might clear things up better.

"Duty, huh? Take care of yourself first. Look at the state you're in." Charles walked over and poked Edward's bandaged torso, making him wince in pain.

"Get off!" Edward swatted Charles away, his face contorting in pain as Charles smirked mischievously.

"Look at you, all banged up. How are you supposed to win anyone over, huh? But judging by the looks of things, you're making good progress." Charles grinned, gesturing slyly toward Sue, who was standing behind Edward.

"Shut up! What nonsense are you spouting? And you even got her name wrong when you told me about her!" Edward, exasperated, waved his one good arm to shoo Charles away. However, his expression betrayed his feelings.

"Haha, just admit it!" Charles laughed as he dodged Edward's swats, his antics lightening the somber mood.

"Edward, just a heads-up: you were supposed to get a reward too, but your father seems to have said it wasn't necessary, so it got revoked," Wang Yu mentioned, after some thought.

"Oh, that's fine," Edward replied, seemingly unconcerned. His attitude was a sharp contrast from that of the greedy Charles, who was still laughing nearby.

As the only son of a grand duke with a unique position, Edward could have used his status to gain certain privileges, such as command over some of his father's troops.

Yet he never exploited these advantages. Instead, he acted like a regular member of the special ops team.

Even when his identity was used as leverage, it was Charles who took advantage, not Edward.

Edward stood out as a unique figure among their group, and the brief mentions of his past to date made it clear that there was much more to him than they were aware of.

However, just like with the old knight Reynard, Wang Yu had no intention of prying into Edward's past unless Edward chose to share it himself.

After bidding farewell to Edward and Charles, who were off to grab a drink, Wang Yu made his way home. He didn't drink, so he didn't join them.

As he walked away, he could hear Sue scolding Edward for drinking despite his injuries, while Charles' booming laughter echoed in the background.

At his doorstep, Wang Yu was just about to pull out his keys when his expression suddenly shifted. Tossing his keys back into his pocket, he activated Bloodburn Drive without hesitation.

Just as Wang Yu completed these actions, a figure leapt swiftly out of his yard. The person closed the distance in a few steps, their foot a blur as they aimed a kick at Wang Yu's chest.

The attack was bold and straightforward, but easily evaded with a well-timed dodge. Using the invisible force granted by his wizardry, Wang Yu ducked low, narrowly avoiding the powerful sweep of the kick.

He countered by springing up, twisting his waist to drive his fist forward with full force.

His punch collided with the attacker's, and the clash of their gauntlets resounded with a deafening clang.

Both figures slid back several meters from the impact, the ground beneath them kicking up dust from the sheer force of their collision.

"Garcia, what's the meaning of this? You nearly gave me a heart attack," Wang Yu said, shaking his slightly sore fist. Standing before him was Garcia, an old acquaintance—or rather, someone he had just seen at the palace.

"Your abilities are still evolving, huh? Pretty good reflexes considering you were countering an attack from your blind spot. But don't tell me this is what you call being startled," Garcia said with a hearty laugh as he lowered his fist.

"Your progress is astonishing. You're at the level of an intermediate knight, close to advanced. That's beyond impressive—it's miraculous,"

Garcia continued, unable to hide his surprise beneath his smile.

"Punch me again and see for yourself," Wang Yu said, taking a stance and motioning for Garcia to attack again.

"Alright! Let's see how strong you've really become." Garcia didn't hesitate, launching another punch.

This time, Wang Yu was sent flying. He crashed into a wall and left a deep dent in it.

Garcia was taken aback. Even though he'd increased his strength slightly, Wang Yu shouldn't have been blown away so easily.

Wang Yu waved away the dust and reset his dislocated arm. "My strength comes from a combination of my knight's secret art, void energy, and fighting spirit. It's not sustainable. At this level, I can only maintain it for three minutes."

Though Wang Yu could temporarily match the physical strength of an intermediate knight with Bloodburn Drive, its effects were fleeting.

Without it, his true strength was closer to that of a peak knight-in-training. There was still a significant gap between him and Garcia, but that was only natural. Garcia's strength had been built up over decades of training, while Wang Yu had only just begun. Expecting to match Garcia head-on would have been unrealistic.

"So that's how it is—and here I was wondering if you'd just become the most talented knight in history."

Hearing Wang Yu's explanation, Garcia finally understood the source of his immense power. Even Wang Yu's temporary strength was remarkable, though certainly within the realm of possibility.

The wooden door to Wang Yu's house creaked open as Avia stepped out wearing casualwear and an apron.

"Wang Yu, you're back? Perfect timing, dinner's ready! Come and eat... huh?" The girl had stepped out with a cheerful expression but froze when she saw Garcia frozen mid-punch and Wang Yu covered in dust. He was getting to his feet from beside the wall, which now had a huge dent in it.

"Uh, well..." Garcia was a bit embarrassed. His sudden test of Wang Yu's recent progress had turned into quite a mess. Although it was Wang Yu who ended up covered in dust, the situation now left Garcia feeling rather awkward.

"Let's go." Wang Yu dusted himself off as he got up, not seeming to mind.

"Sure."

Wang Yu savored the large portion of braised beef with potatoes in front of him, satisfied beyond belief. He scooped up a spoonful of thick, rich broth—it was flavorful without being overly salty. Avia's cooking was impeccable and continued to improve, and the recipes Wang Yu had recalled from memory were proving to be very useful.

Sitting across from him, Garcia watched as Avia handed Wang Yu a towel to wipe off the dust from earlier. Though the food in front of him was delicious, an awkward feeling lingered.

He suddenly recalled that Wang Yu had just returned from receiving an official commendation at the palace. Before that, he'd made a point of cleaning up, ensuring he was at least presentable—only for Garcia to send him crashing into a wall and leaving him covered in dust...

"Oh, Avia, this is for you." Wang Yu wiped off the dust before handing her a replica of a notebook he'd received as a bonus from the Minister of Finance.

"Huh? What's this?" Avia took the notebook, her surprise evident.

"It's a copy of the notes left by that wizard, Roland. It came from the royal archives, so it should be close to the most accurate version, unlike all those fabricated tales. It might be useful to you."

"Ah, thank you!" Avia accepted the book with delight. For an avid researcher and bookworm, notes from the legendary wizard Roland were a treasure in both senses.

"I'm glad you like it, haha." Wang Yu laughed, digging into his food with gusto.

"And Garcia, I passed along your message to Miss Lilya. She said you were just like a big kid." Wang Yu smirked as he relayed Lilya's response.

"Ah, I see. That's just like her. Well, considering her age, I guess calling me a kid isn't exactly wrong." Garcia chuckled wryly, the awkwardness from earlier fading as the conversation shifted.

The three of them ate and chatted, mostly about casual topics among friends, but also touching on the current state of Aleisterre and the ongoing war at the frontlines.

From Garcia, Wang Yu learned that Selwyn's infiltration and sabotage of Aleisterre were still ongoing, just as Aleisterre was conducting covert operations within Selwyn. The two nations were locked in open and hidden conflicts simultaneously.

On the frontlines, however, the intensity of the fighting had begun to wane with the arrival of winter. For the two northern kingdoms, the cost of waging war in the harsh cold far outweighed any potential gains from victory.

This meant that some soldiers at the frontlines would soon be able to return to Aleisterre's capital, and many members of the Nightblades carrying out missions abroad would likely take advantage of this lull in the conflict to return to their headquarters in the capital as well.

The return of these individuals—key components of the city's combat strength—would undoubtedly bolster the capital's security, ushering in a brief period of peace and stability. Wang Yu, as a "patrolling officer" of the Nightblades' special ops team, could also expect some downtime.

"Oh, it's snowing!"

"Really?"

"Wow, haha, winter's here! That's exciting!"

"Yeah, it's been getting colder these past few days. If not for the demon invasion, people would probably be busy setting up their fireplaces and heaters."

Voices from passersby outside caught their attention.

Glancing out the window, Wang Yu saw snowflakes beginning to fall. They landed on people's clothing as they walked by.

In the distance, the sky had turned a soft white—a sign of the imminent snowstorm. The setting sun cast a faint glow, lighting up the city in the late afternoon.

The snow blanketed the capital, which had just endured a major upheaval. The scenery was beautiful, but tinged with sorrow. How many lives had been lost in recent events? How many survivors, like Edward, were left with lingering melancholy?

Wang Yu turned to look back at the warmly lit room. Garcia, the seasoned knight, was hurrying to finish his now-cold braised beef with potatoes, while Avia, holding her bowl, stared at the snowfall outside. Noticing Wang Yu's gaze, she smiled.

"Well... this world may be chaotic, but there are times when it's truly not so bad."