The Guardians' Throne - The First Magic Swordsman

In the end, Zaos had to use Thunder Armor to charge and pass through the army before he finally ran over the walls and reached the floor where the commander was. As expected, Brien still was there, and he still had been watching the battlefield.

"We need to talk," Zaos said.

"You…" Brien said and then clenched his teeth. "You monster… how dare you return after all you have done to this country? To your old friends!"

"Let's skip the insults," Zaos said. "What have you heard from Drannor's spies on the mercenaries country?"

Brien stepped backward and then touched the hilt of his sword. While he was in his fifties and that he had never been a top-rank soldier, he still was ready to fight, even if he didn't have any other choice.

"Would you attack an unarmed man?" Zaos asked.

"You can use magic," Brien said. "Besides, didn't you kill someone who was unarmed as well?"

"... I did and someday I will pay for Ameria's death, but first I have something to do," Zaos said. "The demon god is about to return and he is planning to use Milliendra. Unless your spies are blind, they should have seen the demons that I fought."

"...You probably just used some trick to win over the soldiers and the inhabitants of that town," Brien said.

"Did I also use a trick to defeat the three armies there?" Zaos asked. "Did you see the trick that I just used to pass through your army? If I had a sword, I could behead fifty of your soldiers, but I didn't. I am not here to fight."

"Of course not, you want to fool us and make us help in kidnap the princess," Brien said. 

"I guess that makes sense…" Zaos frowned. "Anyway, just make sure to keep your army ready to fight and make sure that they don't hesitate in any type of situation."

  Zaos could see things getting tense inside the base since some soldiers retreated to protect the commander. Before things could get messy, Zaos jumped from the third floor and then escaped at a fearsome speed. Chasing him was useless. Still, using Thunder Armor to solve all his problems wouldn't do. Just like Aleni needed, he needed something else to convince everyone. Regardless, he will have time to think about that while he heads toward the capital of the Sairus kingdom.

"It didn't work, huh," Aleni said.

"My reputation is so bad here that if the demon god and I argued, I guess the people here would side with the demon god," Zaos said. "He didn't kidnap or kill any princess, after all."

"Still, your presence will keep the soldiers of the kingdom on their toes," Aleni said. "The question is if we are going to have any peace while we cross the kingdom."

Zaos decided to follow a roundabout route, but they still didn't fool the soldiers of the Brien army. Fortunately, he was acting with the assumption that Zaos wanted to drop their guard and another army would attack them from behind. So, only one thousand soldiers were chasing them from a distance.

"What are we going to do if we are attacked from several directions?" Aleni asked. 

"I suppose that I can surprise the commanders at night with my speed, capture or threaten them," Zaos said. "While I don't want to hurt anyone, I can't act like a pushover or the others won't take me seriously."

  To avoid problems, they camped every single time and kept their distance from the main roads and any towns and cities. However, even after one week, they still were being followed by the Brien army. They sure were determined, but Zaos was worried about something else… the fact that his spies showed up. Still, neither of them had any information regarding Drannor's location.

"I am sorry, boss," Nakin said.

"Don't worry, it seems like Drannor has been planning for a situation like this for quite a while," Zaos said. "It is only obvious considering how smooth things worked for him. He got us good and then disappeared knowing that we would be too busy recovering from the damage to chase him."

"You know him since he was a kid, you must know how he usually thinks," Aleni said. "Who are the people he trusts the most, right now?"

"Orleand family in Vezar, perhaps some friends that he made after we graduated in the North…" Zaos replied. "I don't think that he would leave the kingdom behind and meet Milliendra in Vezar, there is a chance that he created a better base in Ashiris kingdom and finding any information about him and her will be difficult."

"Ameria never interacted with those friends of his that much, so I can't help with that," Aleni said.

"I see… considering that Nyana and the others entered the royal library with no problems, I would say that Drannor is staying Ashiris more and Ameria's parents are in the capital of this kingdom… do you know where the bloody knights are camped?"

"In the capital of this kingdom," Nakin said. "While they are the strongest unit after the golden spears, they don't have much influence…"

"Because I once was their leader," Zaos added. "Still, I guess it is worth a shot go to the capital and talk with them and also visit the royal library."

"Are you sure things will work that smoothly?" Aleni asked.

"No, but things can't get worse, all of my old friends hate me, after all," Zaos said and then shrugged.

"As expected of you… to say that so nonchalantly," Aleni said.

Although she said that, Aleni could tell that Zaos was a bit sad by saying that. He abandoned the kingdom without hesitation when he discovered about how the royal family knew the truth about the demon god but still treated their followers worse than monsters. Still, he didn't consider that he would lose all his friends… he only realized that over the years.