Volume 1: Return from Exile

Chapter 1: Hunting

“Thud! Thud! Thud!” Three deep, resonant roars came from a hundred meters outside the forest. Almost simultaneously, three silver-gray crossbow arrows, arranged in a specific sequence and direction, formed a mysterious chain that silently enveloped a figure mid-leap into the air, about to dive into the woods.

As the arrows glided through the air, they suddenly emitted a strange, high-pitched whine. It seemed even the air could hardly bear this eerie sound, trembling violently. The arrow shafts abruptly shattered, transforming into countless wooden spikes emitting a faint phosphorescent glow. With a shrill screech, they formed a dense net covering the entire area. The agile figure had initially twisted in mid-air in a peculiar manner to avoid the ambush of the three arrows, but this sudden change left it unable to react quickly enough.

“Dampen!” At this point, any other attempt at defense seemed futile. The wisest choice was to slow down and reduce the damage inflicted by the opponent. The shadow’s body suddenly curled up in mid-air, trying to avoid the fierce blows head-on. Meanwhile, the shattered wooden spikes rained down like a storm. As spells still formed in its throat, the shadow’s skin silently underwent a transformation unknown to anyone else.

Along with the “crack-crack-thud” sounds, numerous spikes easily pierced through the thin armor covering the shadow’s body, embedding themselves in its torso. The shadow let out a pained growl. Its agile body trembled slightly before seemingly returning to normal. Without hesitation, it soared into the sky like an eagle, heading straight for the woods just a hundred meters away. Once hidden in the forest, it would have another chance to escape the relentless pursuit of its pursuers. It didn’t dare hope to escape completely, but hiding in the woods would at least greatly increase its chances. After all, having once been a disciple of the Mugui Gate gave it a significant advantage in the forest.

Several armored knights riding thunder horses, dozens of meters away, were stunned. Someone had managed to escape their leader’s ever-reliable “Thunder Net” tactic and still flee—it was hard to believe their eyes. The last knight even rubbed his eyes in confusion, unable to accept this reality.

A flash of surprise crossed the face of the middle-aged knight at the head, only to be replaced by an even darker expression, though he took no further action. The knights beside him had already stopped in their tracks when he fired three bolts from his crossbow. They knew the capabilities of their leader—once the Thunder Net was deployed, even the Holy Angels were doomed, let alone a thief. Of course, this was an unparalleled thief.

Yet, somehow, the knights were unable to express their feelings in words. As the figure seemed about to enter the forest, it suddenly froze mid-air and plummeted straight down, causing a spray of grass clippings with a “thud.”

“Huh?” The desperate knights had intended to sound the alarm to call for reinforcements from nearby areas. No matter how large the forest was, they would have to split up to block off exits, but the importance of the mission prevented them from slackening even slightly. Seeing this, they were filled with surprise and turned their attention back to their leader, who had remained silent until now. A faint smile finally appeared on his gloomy face, though the blood seeping from his lips proved he was utterly exhausted.

“My lord!” A knight serving nearby quickly dismounted and supported the middle-aged knight, who was trembling on his feet.

“It’s fine. I’m just a bit weak.” Waving his hand slightly, he tried to sit up straight. Several lightning horses leaped forward, lightly crossing the small hill and heading straight for where the dark figure had fallen. The middle-aged knight sighed softly, took out a pouch from his waist, and swallowed a golden pill.

“My lord, you seem preoccupied,” asked quietly the burly knight who had been following behind him without saying a word.

“Nothing. It’s a shame—a genius, a brilliant thief, perished in our hands. I wonder how many people will thank us. Those in the Westval Palace will surely be overjoyed.” Shaking his head in regret, his voice, filled with emotion, was slightly hoarse. Perhaps due to his injuries, dark purple blood appeared at the corners of his mouth again, forcing him to take another pill from his pouch.

Noticing this, the burly knight gently spurred his horse forward, and the agile lightning horse silently stepped up two paces, its concerned gaze fixed on the middle-aged knight. “My lord, did you use Holy Energy?”

With a bitter smile, he nodded slightly. The wrinkles on the middle-aged knight’s sharp-faced appeared even deeper. “This guy is the most cunning thief I’ve ever encountered. His unparalleled skills go without saying, and his ability to escape is unmatched. But what’s even more remarkable is his cunning—he managed to figure out our identities and take corresponding actions. If I hadn’t used Holy Energy along with the Cycad Divine Arrow and the Thunder Net spell, once he fled into these woods, we would have had no idea how much more effort it would take to track him down.”

“Lord, you even used the Cycad Divine Arrow?” The other knight was shocked, even the burly knight felt a chill. Holy Energy combined with the Cycad Divine Arrow and the Thunder Net spell? Such a rare artifact as the Cycad Divine Arrow was hard to come by. It was crafted by elven craftsmen and blessed personally by the Archbishop, who infused it with spiritual energy that gave it an almost indestructible strength capable of piercing armor and gold. Only five of these arrows were granted due to the commander’s outstanding merits, and not a single one had been used in ten years. Yet now, the commander had used three of them on this obscure thief all at once—wasn’t that a waste?

Seeing the obvious regret on his trusted subordinate’s face, the middle-aged knight also felt somewhat helpless. He clearly thought it was a waste to use the Cycad arrows on chasing after just a thief. But the words of the Archbishop’s envoy still rang in his ears, and he dared not disobey. Though he didn’t understand the reasons behind it, the fact that the Archbishop’s personal envoy, who had never left the cathedral for decades, had personally joined forces with him to chase this mysterious thief showed just how important this matter was.

“What else could we do? That guy seems to have some special magical protection. I’m afraid ordinary arrows simply can’t penetrate his defensive spells. I had no choice but to use them.” The middle-aged knight sighed again, spurred his horse, and rushed forward. The knights ahead had already dismounted to examine the dark figure that had fallen from the sky.

Riding closely behind the middle-aged knight, the burly knight lowered his voice and asked, “What exactly prompted us and the envoy to chase after this guy?”

The middle-aged knight stiffened slightly, turned back, and gave his usually composed subordinate a brief glance before saying in six short words, “It cannot be known, nor may it be asked.”

The commander’s casual glance was like a heavy blow to the soul, nearly knocking the mature knight off his horse. The sunny sky seemed to turn icy cold all at once, and cold sweat poured down his back. He immediately tightened himself and said nothing more. It was one of the rare times in years that the commander had looked at him in such a way; he knew he had gone too far.

The spot where that shadow fell was a slightly sunken small pit, already near the woods. Withered branches and leaves had piled up, making the pit slightly raised. Now, the figure that had seemed so unpredictable to the knights lay face up in the pit. Its square face had turned a strange golden yellow, its dull eyes lifeless, its lips slightly parted as if trying to say something. But the intense toxicity of the Sauraukia wood had taken its life the moment it opened its mouth, preventing it from even closing it.

The middle-aged knight who approached took just one look at the man, shook his head, and said nothing more.

The mature knight who followed dismounted from his thunder horse, and a sharp, thin blade silently slipped out from behind his cloak. Before the surrounding knights could even clearly see the glint of the sword, a small cut had already appeared in the chest armor of the corpse lying face up. After examining it carefully, the mature knight said solemnly, “My lord, this guy truly has magic protection infused with wood energy, and it’s at a quite high level. If it weren’t for the Sauraukia wood arrow, it would likely be difficult to break through his protective magic.”

The mature knight was filled with admiration. His earlier thought that the commander had overused the Sauraukia divine wood arrow vanished instantly. The thief lying on the ground was clearly dead, yet the edge of his sword still felt its skin to be incredibly tough. This could only mean that this man’s magic to dull wood energy had reached a masterful level. It was a pity he had bad luck and encountered the Sauraukia wood arrow, fired by the commander with sacred energy capable of breaking through anything in its path—whether armor or magic.

“Alright, Lord Jiaye is here. Let him see that our mission is complete.” Without much talk, the middle-aged knight seemed tired. His gaze fell on several riders approaching in the distance. He had already sent someone to inform them; they had come to check the results.

Before the magnificent thunder horses arrived, the leader of the group leaped off his horse without moving. His extraordinary land-flight skill amazed the knights, who almost dropped their eyes to the ground in awe and couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.

As if he hadn’t heard the knights’ praises at all, the figure who had rushed over landed right by the small pit. After taking a quick glance, he gave a subtle nod to the middle-aged knight. A strange sound, seemingly coming from within his heavily covered cloak, emanated from his figure: “Very good, it’s him. Commander, your mission is complete. On behalf of the Archbishop, I extend our most sincere thanks to you and your knights.”

“You’re welcome, Lord Jiaye. Please convey my regards to the Archbishop and our loyal blessings.” The middle-aged knight had already dismounted and bowed politely, placing his hand over his heart. The arrogance on his face had vanished, replaced by a warm smile. The other knights also dismounted and stood respectfully behind their commander, bowing politely. No one dared to be disrespectful or impudent in the presence of the Church’s envoy.