“Good heavens…”

Having regained his senses belatedly, Karyl Rayvan hastily moved and arrived at the Hestia territory.

Those who reached the estate were left astonished.

The Hestia territory, known as a place of exile.

Rumor had it that the estate had already been devastated by magical beasts.

Hence, in people’s perception, Hestia was nothing more than a ruined ghost territory.

But then…

“The palisade is incredibly tall!”

“Wow… This looks like it wouldn’t even budge under a strong impact!”

The Hestia territory was different from what they had imagined.

The palisades, which they thought would be crumbling, loomed as tall as a mountain, resembling an immense wall.

Standing before it evoked not only a sense of grandeur but also an overwhelming intimidation.

‘Something’s different.’

Karyl Rayvan couldn’t believe his eyes.

The contents of the documents he had received were entirely different from the reality before him.

According to the records, Hestia territory, ravaged by the proxy lord Rex’s embezzlement, was on the verge of collapse.

But look at these palisades.

‘No magical beast could possibly breach this palisade.’

Being a landless noble, he had traveled extensively and seen countless palisades.

Some were mere fences.

Others were full-fledged walls.

Yet, among them all, he had never seen anything superior to Hestia’s palisades.

‘It’s different! Something’s definitely here!’

“I must confirm this… I must!”

He urged his coachman.

“What are you doing? Hurry and enter!”

“Well, I’d like to, but…”

The coachman looked troubled.

“There’s someone blocking the way, so I can’t get through.”

“What? What do you mean by that?”

“Just as I said, Baron. A man is blocking our carriage…”

“Who dares!?”

Karyl Rayvan’s face contorted with fury at the coachman’s words.

His angry shout made the coachman tremble.

He hastily addressed the man blocking the carriage.

“Hey, you there! Step aside quickly! Do you know who’s in this carriage? This carriage carries someone you wouldn’t want to cross! Make a mistake, and you’ll regret it!!”

The coachman had been in Karyl Rayvan’s service for a long time and knew his personality well.

He was a terrible man.

Once, he had assaulted a commoner just because the man’s gaze annoyed him as he passed by.

Although he was caught by the guards, Karyl Rayvan was released simply because he was a noble.

Meanwhile, the assaulted commoner was unjustly imprisoned.

In a society ruled by hierarchy, a commoner could never defeat a noble, no matter the circumstances.

“Hurry up!”

“You insolent fool!”

Eventually, Karyl Rayvan descended from the carriage himself.

The fury that engulfed him was palpable, evident even in his heavy, angry footsteps.

“Who dares block my carriage? Are you so eager to die!?”

Thus yelling, Karyl Rayvan stepped out of the carriage, only to finally see the man blocking the way.

At the sight of him, Karyl Rayvan was rendered speechless.

The rage that had surged to his head vanished in an instant.

He felt his normally unrestrained anger inexplicably subside.

With great effort, he managed to move his lips, which suddenly seemed heavy.

“Who… are you?”

“I am… No, I’m Hans, the captain of Hestia’s guard.”

“…The captain of the guard?”

“Yes.”

“…”

Karyl Rayvan and the mercenaries around him looked dumbfounded.

Judging by the man’s face and physique, no one would have guessed he belonged to the guard.

Look at those vast trapezius muscles and the broad pectorals that seemed capable of effortlessly repelling even an ogre’s blow.

It was hard to discern whether such muscles belonged to a human or a monster.

‘No, get a grip! Karyl Rayvan!’

Karyl Rayvan quickly composed himself.

The man was a guard captain, and he was a baron.

Yes, the man looked… no, was terrifying, but a noble like himself had no reason to fear a mere commoner.

“Ahem, you fool! Do you know whose carriage you’ve stopped? I am Baron Karyl Rayvan! Are you so eager to die!?”

He gathered his courage and spoke boldly.

Truthfully, he was terrified.

Look at those muscles.

Who wouldn’t feel intimidated in front of those muscles?

Even a drug addict high out of his mind would sober up in Hans’s presence.

If they didn’t?

They’d meet Hans’s fists and reincarnate as a decent person in their next life.

Flex!

With each twitch of his muscles, Karyl Rayvan’s knees threatened to give way.

The law was far, but fists were close.

Though mercenaries surrounded him, he doubted they could even serve as shields.

“Explain yourself!”

“It is by the lord’s order.”

“The lord’s order?”

“Yes.”

“And what order is so important as to block my way?”

“The lord has instructed that Baron Karyl Rayvan is not to enter the estate but instead make an immediate U-turn.”

“U-turn? What’s that?”

“I don’t know either. But it means to turn back and retrace the path you came from.”

“Why!?”

“Your task is complete. You are to return.”

“My task…?”

Karyl Rayvan’s assigned tasks were twofold.

One, deliver the support funds.

Two, gather intelligence on the Hestia estate.

Outwardly, it was for the first reason, but the second was a secret mission from Judah Saronton.

The first task was done.

The second hadn’t even started since he was blocked at the gate.

‘I can’t return like this! If I do…’

Judah Saronton was a perfectionist.

He liked things done thoroughly.

While Cecilia was satisfied with merely sending Karyl Rayvan, Judah Saronton preferred to confirm everything.

Hence, Karyl Rayvan had been dispatched.

To prepare for the unexpected.

‘If he perceives me as a liability, he won’t hesitate to destroy me.’

Despite being younger, Judah Saronton exuded an ominous pressure whenever they met.

“Move aside!”

“I cannot.”

“I’m a baron! Are you still going to block my way!?”

“This is the lord’s command. Do I need to explain who holds more authority here?”

Aiden was a duke’s son.

Although expelled, he hadn’t been removed from the family register, so pulling rank wouldn’t work.

“We’ve traveled far! At least let us rest!”

“That’s still not allowed.”

A perfect stone wall.

“You fools! What are you doing!? You were paid to work, so remove him!!”

At Karyl Rayvan’s roar, the mercenaries flinched.

Still observing the situation, they hesitated, but they were mercenaries hired with his money.

They had to obey his orders.

“Attack him at once!”

The mercenaries exchanged glances nervously.

“What do we do? Should we?”

“Are you insane!?”

“Look at those muscles. You want us to fight that? Don’t be ridiculous.”

“That’s a novel way to commit suicide. I’m out.”

Knowing is power.

Mercenaries were professionals in physical combat.

Their expertise made them keenly aware of how trained Hans’s body was.

If they fought, they’d die.

Victory was impossible.

Looking at the terrified mercenaries, Karyl Rayvan ground his teeth.

“Useless scum…”

He sharply glared at the territory.

“Next time, it won’t end like this…”

With those words, he boarded the carriage.

Hans threw an ointment he had on hand toward the departing mercenaries.

“Take this. It’s an ointment I made. If you apply it to your wounds, it’ll stop the bleeding.”

“…Thank you for your kindness.”

Thus, the uninvited guests were cut off at the entrance before they could even enter the territory.

---

“Will it be alright?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

At Alfredo’s concern, Aiden brushed it off lightly.

He knew who that was because he had read the original story.

Karyl Rayvan.

In the original, he acted as the hands and feet of Judah Saronton, committing all sorts of dirty and despicable deeds.

Though he was currently weak and without a support base, later on, he gained Judah Saronton as his backer and soared high.

‘He appears as a villain harassing the protagonist.’

He was indeed a villain.

Not the main villain, but a sub-main villain who persistently hindered whatever the protagonist tried to accomplish.

The fact that such a man had shown up meant…

“Is Judah Saronton taking an interest in this place?”

The only person who could move Karyl Rayvan was Judah Saronton.

In the future, he becomes one of the main villains obstructing the protagonist.

A perfectionist to the extreme.

He was someone who would stop at nothing to execute his plans.

‘He plans to join forces with a dark sorcerer, make a pact with demons, and obtain the ultimate power, right?’

He even planned to sacrifice thousands or tens of thousands of people to achieve it.

But his schemes were thwarted by the protagonist.

‘Then why is he here now?’

It didn’t make sense.

He wasn’t one to take much interest unless it directly threatened him.

By now, he should be busy competing for succession within his family and wouldn’t have the leisure to meddle outside.

Why had he moved Karyl Rayvan?

“Is the original storyline diverging again?”

He wasn’t entirely sure yet.

Since the novel mostly depicted things from the protagonist’s perspective, there was little description of Hestia’s territory, where the protagonist wasn’t present.

He lacked information.

He remembered the major events, but the rest came to him only in bits and pieces.

“But won’t sending him away like that make him bear a grudge and come back later?”

“No, I doubt he’ll do that.”

“Why do you think so?”

“Because for a while, that guy will be too busy running around trying to prove his innocence.”

“Sorry? What do you mean?”

“It’s a thing.”

“Hey, come on, tell me. You’ve piqued my curiosity!”

“Are you curious?”

“Yes! I can’t stand not knowing things like this. If you don’t tell me, I won’t be able to sleep tonight!”

“Hmm, fine, I’ll tell you. So, what happened was, when I went to save that guy…”

“When you went?”

Seeing Alfredo perk his ears, Aiden smirked slyly.

“Ah, now I don’t feel like saying it.”

“How could you?!”

“Well, I can. Anyway, I need to make some purchases. Get out.”

“Wait… What did you do? What happened?! Just don’t say anything if you’re going to stop midway!”

“Hahaha.”

“Don’t just laugh!!”

Frustrated, Alfredo shouted, but Aiden didn’t reveal anything until the end.

---

Some time passed.

When Karyl Rayvan returned to the Saronton estate, he immediately met with Judah Saronton.

“So, you’re saying you couldn’t even get in?”

“That’s correct.”

“Hah.”

The heavy sigh he let out carried a variety of emotions.

Contempt, disappointment, irritation.

So many negative emotions could be felt in that single sigh.

“I apologize.”

“You should’ve avoided doing something you’d need to apologize for. I took you in after you offered to be my hands and feet, and yet you can’t even handle such a simple task?”

At his words, dripping with disappointment, Karyl Rayvan could only lower his head.

Though it hurt his pride to bow to someone much younger than him, he could swallow his pride if it meant gaining significant power.

‘Damn it! It’s all because of that guy!’

“So you were attacked by demonic beasts, but the soldiers managed to kill the hound?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm, that’s unlikely.”

There shouldn’t have been any proper troops in Hestia’s territory.

From what he’d heard, they barely managed to hold on by hiring mercenaries through the guild.

Yet soldiers who could kill a hound?

“And the palisade had changed?”

“Yes! It looked like a large, sturdy wall.”

Judah Saronton stroked his chin.

It was too different from what he had heard.

‘If only Mother hadn’t removed the shadow, I’d have more reliable information…’

“Hmm, Aiden Saronton.”

He was starting to get curious.

‘When he was in the family, he was so quiet that I didn’t pay him much attention. Was he hiding his fangs all along?’

It was strange.

‘Father’s genes shouldn’t have produced someone like him… As expected, the saying “a wolf’s cub is still a wolf” is true?’

He wanted to investigate further, but he didn’t have the resources to do so at the moment.

‘What a shame. If not for the First Prince’s request, I could allocate more manpower.’

Solving the First Prince’s request was a priority.

He needed the prince’s support to solidify his position in the family.

While he was already secure, the movements of the second son were becoming more suspicious, and he wanted to be absolutely certain.

For that, the First Prince’s support was essential.

“Tch, forget it. Useless scum. Get out of my sight.”

“Y-Yes, understood.”

As Karyl Rayvan stood to leave, something fell from his pocket with a thunk.

Judah Saronton’s eyes widened as he noticed it.

Falling from Karyl Rayvan’s possession was…

“Why do you have Mother’s magic pouch?”

“Gasp! T-This, I truly don’t know! I have no idea how this came to be!”

“Don’t give me that! Then why did it fall out of your pocket?!”

“I truly don’t know!”

“Now I see! You’re nothing but a thief! Is anyone there? Lock this man up in the dungeon immediately!”

“I’m truly innocent! I swear I’m innocent!! Please believe me, Master Judah!!”

Karyl Rayvan desperately called out his name, but his pleas did not reach Judah Saronton.

As Aiden had predicted.

Karyl Rayvan never set foot in Hestia’s territory again.

---

In a dark forest.

A small, muscular dwarf was frantically running toward somewhere as if his life depended on it.

His eyes glistened with indignation that seemed ready to burst at any moment.

“Damn humans! How dare they destroy our haven!!”

He clenched his teeth.

He had thought they had hidden well, but humans’ relentless persistence had uncovered their sanctuary.

To seek help, he ran with all his might.

The elder’s prophecy had been clear.

‘Find the Fairy Princess. They will be our savior.’

The Fairy Princess!

He needed to find the chosen one, the princess blessed by the fairies.

“Wait for me! I will find the Fairy Princess no matter what!!”

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