Chapter 341: Grade 339 Stainless Steel
Re·Yestijie.
This is both the name of the kingdom and the title that had been used for the capital since ancient times.
As the nation’s capital with a total population of nine million, if there was one word to summarize the capital, it would be... ancient.
"Ancient" not only refers to its long existence and extensive history but also to the city being outdated and lifeless.
Here, the majority of the houses standing side by side are old and simple, devoid of any novelty or grandeur.
Here, there aren’t any notable sights worth mentioning, though there are plenty of places that evoke dissatisfaction and resentment.
Many roads are unpaved, covered in mud, presenting a sight unfit for a cityscape.
The citizens walk shoulder to shoulder along the sides of the roads, moving silently and oppressively through the crowd, preferring to be squeezed together rather than walk down the center of the wide main road.
That was because carriages frequently traveled along that main road, and the people on those carriages were either nobles or high officials. If one were to obstruct their path, even death at the hands of a guard would not be considered unusual.
Such was Re·Yestijie, a city dominated by nobility and high officials, with poor public order and disorder, hardly a place anyone would long to stay.
"...When will this situation ever change?"
This murmured question came from the leader of the kingdom’s warriors, a man hailed as the strongest warrior by neighboring countries — Gejiev Storunov.
At that moment, Gejiev was walking along a street in the capital, observing the outdated cityscape and oppressive street scene, lost in thought.
Perhaps due to his increasing age, recently Gejiev often found himself emotionally struck by things he had grown accustomed to.
Especially concerning the current state of the kingdom, Gejiev was growing increasingly worried.
Among the three neighboring human nations, although the kingdom was not the smallest, it was the one with the most issues.
For the kingdom was in a state where it wouldn’t be surprising if it split apart at any moment.
Gejiev was intent on changing this situation, yet he found that he truly lacked the ability to do so.
Admittedly, he was strong, undeniably one of the top figures in the country, but he came from a common background, and reaching his current position as the leader of the warriors was already an extraordinary leap. However, compared to those nobles who exerted profound influence on the kingdom, he was definitely at a disadvantage.
He, in his position, was not only unable to change the current state of the kingdom, he even found it exhausting to handle the daily challenges posed by the nobles.
A few months ago, the incident at Kain Village had informed Gejiev that some nobles in the kingdom would rather see him dead, even if it meant suffering losses to the kingdom itself.
This realization made Gejiev feel increasingly fatigued by his role as the leader of the warriors.
If not for his loyalty to the King and his service to the kingdom, Gejiev didn’t know if he could continue on.
"What would he have done in my place?"
Gejiev thought of the youth he had met in Kain Village.
Even now, Gejiev cherished that encounter.
It wasn’t just because his life had been saved by the other; it was also because he had witnessed a legend there.
As these thoughts occupied Gejiev’s mind, a surge of discussion suddenly arose from the crowd nearby.
"Have you heard? Our kingdom has birthed two fine-steel rank adventurer parties in the past two months."
This was a hot topic recently, not just in the capital but throughout the kingdom.
Fine-steel rank, the highest echelon of adventurers.
Each adventurer reaching this rank was at the pinnacle of their capabilities, and though not yet stepping into the Heroic Domain, they weren’t far from it.
Adventurers of this caliber were so rare within Re·Yestijie that you could count them on your fingers, and they had even formed two groups, becoming the only two fine-steel rank adventurer parties within the kingdom’s borders.
Recently, however, a third and fourth party had emerged.
Attracted by this discussion, Gejiev couldn’t help but prick up his ears to listen.
The ones discussing this topic seemed to be adventurers as well.
They wore minimal armor, apparently during a rest, wandering aimlessly on the street while engaging in such conversation.
"There’s a third and fourth fine-steel rank adventurer party in the kingdom now?"
"How did two fine-steel rank adventurer parties suddenly pop up out of nowhere?"
"It’s not exactly two parties; I heard one of them has only two members, and the other one is even just a single person. Whether that counts as two parties is debatable."
"With so few people, they completed tasks worthy of advancing to fine-steel rank?"
"That’s impressive in itself."
"They didn’t play some sort of trick, did they?"
The adventurers exchanged opinions openly and without restraint.
"So, what exactly have they done?"
"I’m not too sure, but I heard that the party with two people took on many high-difficulty commissions in these two months, such as eliminating the sudden surge of the Goblin Tribe Alliance from Tobu Great Forest, taking the opportunity to subdue the Forest Sage King who had dwelled in the depths of the forest for centuries, gathering exceedingly rare herbs with the help of the Forest Sage King, and defeating a giant snake beast and an undead legion from Kazi Plain. Lastly, they reportedly conquered a powerful vampire in the northern forests."
"That does sound quite astounding."
"No wonder they achieved fine-steel rank."
"That two-person party managed to complete such high-level tasks, it seems they are truly skilled."
"What’s the name of their party?"
"What color are they?"
The kingdom’s current two fine-steel rank adventurer parties — [Pale Rose] and [Crimson Dewdrops] both have representative colors.
[Pale Rose] is pale blue, that is, blue.
[Crimson Dewdrops] is crimson, that is, red.
This led to a trend among the kingdom’s adventurers of using a specific color as their team’s symbol.
Thus, the adventurers asked this.
However, this trend clearly had not affected the two subjects discussed today.
"Have you heard that the squad hasn’t decided on an official name yet?"
"However, the two adamantine-level adventurers in the squad both have their own titles."
"They’re called ’Hero of the Abyss’ Feifei and ’Beautiful Warrior’ Nabier, right?"
"So their representative color is black, isn’t it?"
"You could say that."
Hearing this, Gejiev Storunov quietly took note of the two mentioned in the conversation.
"’Hero of the Abyss’ and ’Beautiful Warrior’... huh?"
It was indeed remarkable for a duo to rise to the adamantine level.
Unfortunately, compared to another individual, Gejiev still felt they were somewhat inferior.
As for the reason why...
"Hm?"
Just as Gejiev was about to continue listening to the adventurers’ discussion, waiting for the topic of interest he had been following to crop up, suddenly, something caught his eye from the corner of his vision.
"Boom!"
The sky abruptly thundered, and a drizzle began to fall without warning.
"It’s raining!"
"Quick, back to the inn!"
"Let’s go, let’s go!"
The adventurers walking beside Gejiev hurriedly left.
The same was true for the people around them; some hurried to shelters to avoid the rain, while others took out their tools to shield themselves from the downpour.
Thanks to this, the topic Gejiev wanted to hear was forcefully interrupted, and no more discussions occurred. He no longer had the inclination to pay attention to those rumors and instead turned his gaze in a specific direction.
There, on a small path to the right of the main road, a man sat on the ground.
He was covered in dirt, looking like a vagrant who had been exposed to the elements.
His appearance was unkempt, even his hair seemed self-dyed, not appearing proper.
The reason Gejiev’s gaze was drawn to him was twofold.
One was, the man’s silhouette gave him a faint sense of familiarity.
The other was that the man was tightly gripping a weapon in his right hand.
It was a...
"Sword?"
Gejiev felt a certain affinity for the weapon known as a "sword."
It was said to be a rare weapon originating from a distant southern desert.
Gejiev had first seen this weapon two months ago on an incredibly strong youth, and he had a deep understanding of its hardness.
After all, there weren’t many weapons that could withstand his "Six Light Continuous Slash," but the youth’s sword managed to do so even without being drawn from its sheath.
Having encountered this weapon once again, Gejiev couldn’t help but be a bit curious. Coupled with the sense of familiarity the man gave him, after hesitating for a moment, Gejiev decided to approach him.
Before long, Gejiev stood in front of him.
"......"
The man seemed to sense something, but his reaction was quite sluggish; slowly, he lifted his head and glanced at Gejiev.
As a result, Gejiev got a clear view of the man’s face.
In an instant, memories surged back like a raging flood.
"Is it you?"
Suddenly, Gejiev was astonished.
...
Re·Yestijie Kingdom, the border mountains.
On a snowy mountain here, a figure walked through the blizzard without any winter gear whatsoever.
He walked against the wind with steady steps, as if the raging blizzard around him was merely a gentle breeze, not a single snowflake settling on him.
As he walked, suddenly, the man stopped.
"This is...?"
He seemed to sense something, retrieving a parchment from his chest.
On the parchment, a line of writing emerged without any warning.
"You are invited to the capital to discuss an important matter — Gejiev Storunov."
Upon seeing the suddenly appearing writing, the youth remained silent for a long time.
"Very well."
Shortly after, the youth put away the parchment.
"Let’s go see what this is about."
Thus, the youth disappeared into the blizzard, leaving no trace.