Chapter 52: The Alchemy Order and the First Mission (3)

The initial missions of the reserve squad were carried out by pairs selecting from various mission requests received by the squad headquarters.

The purpose of the missions was to gain experience for the reserve squad members. However, the Golden Wing Squad, to which Chloe and I belonged, had a wider range of mission choices, as expected of the highest tier.

I read the request form Chloe brought.

Chloe handed me the request form with a confident expression. She didn’t even hide her face with her fan, as if she thought this request was the perfect choice.

“It’s a bit of a distance, but the Lutier territory is easily accessible by carriage from the Imperial City. And Baron Iaron, the lord of Lutier, is acquainted with my family. So, you’ll be able to carry out the mission comfortably, Lord Count.”

As Chloe said, upon checking the request form, a detailed map leading to the location was drawn. The road to the Lutier territory seemed well-maintained.

However, not all roads in the Holy Lamir Empire were like that. Insignificant territories, even with a lord, were no different from medieval mountain villages.

Especially since the appearance of magical beasts was unpredictable.

If magical beasts appeared in remote areas or countryside with poorly maintained roads, accessibility would naturally be poor. Noble students of high status would inevitably avoid missions in such places.

‘Moreover, if the transportation is poor, the accommodations would also be inadequate. It could even be a backwater village with no inns.’

Chloe emphasized this fact.

“If we take this mission, we can stay the night in a very ‘noble’ manner. Baron Lutier will provide us with good lodging, Count Julian. Besides, three Type 4 magical beasts are nothing for my skill… no, for our combined skills.”

Chloe looked at me confidently, as if there was no better mission than this.

Indeed. I had always scolded Chloe for violating noble etiquette. So, this mission must have seemed perfectly noble to her.

But I rebuked her instead.

“You incompetent woman! What do you take the Golden Wing Squad’s missions for?”
“What? Lord Count, what do you mean…?”
“The reason the Golden Wing Squad is the highest tier isn’t for you to pick and choose missions for your own convenience. Its greater purpose lies in carrying out even the most difficult missions that other tiers can’t handle. Chloe, do you have no pride as a Golden Wing member?”

Chloe’s expression crumpled momentarily. She had actually considered me as much as possible.

The last-place Count Julian, who hadn’t participated in any combat missions in his first year. She had chosen a manageable C-rank mission to accommodate him.

She had also eliminated any inconveniences such as difficult travel routes and poor accommodations, which high-ranking nobles would find unbearable.

But all she got in return was criticism, so she must be frustrated. As expected, she tried to hide her expression behind her fan but held back.

Chloe replied, “B-but, since you have no experience in combat missions, Lord Count, I tried to make your first mission as safe as possible…”
“That statement is also disrespectful to me. I am a reserve squad member of the Golden Wing Squad, just like you. What do you take me for, Chloe?”
“Th-that’s not it! I don’t underestimate your skills at all, Lord Count, but taking on inconvenient missions that commoners would handle is beneath a noble’s dignity…”
“Nonsense. The Margrave’s authority was built because members of the family personally led the charge to protect the people of the territory from magical beasts. The same goes for other nobles and lords. Are you telling me you don’t know that, despite being a Marquis’s daughter?”

Chloe looked even more flustered. It wasn’t that she didn’t understand the meaning of my words, but rather she seemed to be thinking, “Why are ‘you’ of all people saying this?”

But my words were the truth.

Of course, the reality was that many high-ranking nobles enjoyed only privileges and neglected their duties.

Still, Chloe had nothing to say because of the heroic legend that my grandfather, Margrave Wilhelm, had built throughout his life.

Chloe had no choice but to bow deeply again.

“I apologize, Count Julian. My thinking was shortsighted.”
“Good. Then, I’ll choose the request form myself. I doubt you’d bring a proper one anyway.”

At the final taunt, Chloe couldn’t hold back any longer and hid her face behind her fan.

We accepted the request from the squad headquarters and departed immediately.

Our mode of transportation was horses. The squad headquarters provided sturdy horses for the students’ missions. They were good horses, close to warhorses.

And my riding skills far surpassed Chloe’s.

“Knowing how to ride a horse is a basic requirement for a noble! But it seems you’ve neglected that as well, Chloe.”
“I-I apologize, Lord Count.”

We rode like the wind. The new request form I chose was as follows:

The distance wasn’t much different from the request form Chloe had brought. But there was an added cautionary note: poor accessibility.

True to those words, as soon as we left the main road from the Imperial City, the road conditions deteriorated rapidly. This made riding considerably more difficult.

“We need to rest for a while. Looking at your state, Chloe, I’m afraid you’ll collapse before we even reach the mission site if we force ourselves to continue.”
“I-I’m f-fine… Ugh!”

Chloe’s horse leaped wildly to avoid a rough stone on the ground. Chloe let out a moan as if the area between her legs had been jolted.

“You don’t look fine at all. We’ll rest for a bit.”

Of course, I wasn’t being considerate of Chloe.

Rather, it was a subtle tactic to burden Chloe and emphasize that she was nothing but baggage. As expected, Chloe bit her lip at the humiliation.

I dismounted and gently stroked my black horse. The High-Ranking Noble Offspring trait was currently active.

Moreover, perhaps because of the Demon Lord Successor title, the black horse submitted to me completely as soon as our eyes met.

Considering the nature of demons in Iceland, it wasn’t particularly strange.

‘Elves, dwarves, dragonkin, and other demi-humans. In the world of Demon Survival, these intelligent beings became demons.’

Jedin, the god of humans, and the gods of the demi-humans, whom humans called Demon Gods. Jedin won the war between these gods.

Thus, the gods of the demi-humans lost their status as gods and were demoted to Demon Gods. The demi-humans were also downgraded to demons by humans.

The Demon Lord was the ruler of the demons who served these Demon Gods.

In other words, the blood of demi-humans flowed in Julian’s Demon Lord blood. Animals like horses would instinctively recognize that blood.

Thankfully, looking at my face, it was clear there was no dwarf blood in me.

Awakening a non-human, demonic body was also one of the important quests in Demon Survival.

While I was lost in thought, Chloe, having somewhat recovered from the pain in her crotch, stood next to me.

I said to her, “Well, we made good time. We should arrive at this Niver territory before sunset. Of course, we would have arrived sooner if your riding skills were better, Chloe.”

Chloe was speechless at my taunt. Her riding skills weren’t bad at all, as expected of a noble lady.

But the road to the Niver territory was simply too rough. And her skills paled in comparison to mine.

Still, the humiliation must have been overwhelming for her prideful self. Even when we encountered rough ditches and paths impassable on horseback, I was more helpful than she was, despite her being a renowned alchemist.

‘It was the same method as in Professor Elmeyer’s lecture.’

Honestly, I had no way of beating Chloe in a delicate and precise alchemy duel at the moment.

The giant stone golem I created in the last lecture was the result of pouring in the abundant mana I had accumulated from quest rewards.

‘My awakened base mana was enough for the trait. So, I used the surplus reward mana generously.’

An average student would have at most 120 MP. But at that time, I had accumulated over 500 MP.

I poured all that mana into the stone to create the giant stone golem. The result was an undeniable victory.

And today, while riding, it was the same.

Chloe, exhausted from the rough road, was struggling on horseback. Instead of her, I used alchemy to create a passage through the difficult terrain.

‘That was much easier than creating a stone golem.’

Since there was an abundance of earth and rocks all around, the mana consumption was less. I created a makeshift bridge on the spot.

Chloe’s eyes widened as she watched.

I, not the renowned alchemist Chloe, was making full use of alchemy. So, Chloe must be feeling more humiliated than physically exhausted.

Judging by the way her hand holding the fan was trembling, I was right.

‘It’s almost time for her to explode.’

A mission with just the two of us. And the approaching night. Chloe, who had suffered countless humiliations at my hands, might find it difficult to let this night pass by.

Of course, that was exactly what I wanted. After a short rest, we continued riding.

And just before sunset, we finally arrived at our destination, the Niver territory.

As described in the request form, it was a small, nameless territory on the outskirts of the Imperial City. But I remembered the name “Niver” very well.

Anton, the lord of the Niver territory, welcomed us warmly.

“S-such noble individuals gracing my humble territory with their presence! I’m overwhelmed!”

Anton knelt before us, and the rest of the villagers prostrated themselves.

‘Is it because it’s a rural territory? The atmosphere is different.’

The Old Imperial City, where people could no longer live. Even the outskirts of the Imperial City, close to the Old Imperial City, were deserted and no different from the countryside.

Accordingly, Anton, though a lord, was a middle-aged man who barely held the title of knight. The territory itself was literally a medieval village.

“You must have had a difficult journey coming to this humble place!”

Anton was startled to learn that we were members of Pantheon’s Golden Wing Squad, and he nearly fainted when he heard our names.

“I and my people couldn’t handle the dungeon that appeared near my territory. So, I submitted a request to Pantheon, but! If I had known such esteemed individuals would come personally… I apologize!”

He, too, probably hadn’t imagined that the Margrave’s successor and the Marquis Aetern’s daughter would come to such a remote place.

Seeing the respectful welcome, Chloe’s deflated pride seemed to inflate again.

Still on horseback, she spread her fan wide and spoke haughtily, “Well, it is surprising. However, setting an example like this is also the duty of a high-ranking noble. It’s only natural for students of our status.”

Chloe subtly used the words I had spoken. However, the people here seemed much more interested in me, the successor of the hero Wilhelm, than in Chloe.

Especially Lord Anton, who practically sang my praises.

“Oh… Margrave Wilhelm’s successor! Radiance flows from your face, befitting the hero’s heir.”

Anton said he was from the lower ranks of a nameless knight order. But he said he had participated in the war alongside Margrave Wilhelm’s Essenmunt forces towards the end of the Great War.

“You truly resemble your grandfather with your dignified appearance! And to come to such a remote place personally! Lord Julian, you are no different from a hero!”
“Enough. The Margrave’s bravery was his own great achievement. I am merely a student of Pantheon. And I’m here on a mission. So, please treat me as an ordinary student.”

At those words, Anton bowed his head even lower, as if at a loss for words.

“So humble as well! Indeed, the blood of a hero cannot be deceived!”

Annoyed by his reaction, Chloe hid her face behind her fan.

After that, Anton showed us the greatest hospitality he could. He served us dinner and gave us a detailed explanation of the dungeon and the magical beasts that had appeared near the territory.

“You two must be tired from your journey on horseback. I’ll show you to your rooms.”

Anton’s mansion, though called a lord’s mansion, was smaller than my mansion in the Imperial City. Still, there were plenty of rooms, so Chloe and I were each assigned a separate room.

Chloe went into the next room. She had been quiet throughout dinner, as if the simple country food didn’t suit her taste.

‘No, actually, she must have been busy plotting something.’

Sure enough, as soon as I unpacked my luggage and changed into comfortable clothes, Chloe came looking for me.

“Um, Count Julian? Anton offered some simple snacks and wine. Why don’t we have a light meal together and prepare for tomorrow’s mission?”

She gave me a bright smile and offered a tray of snacks. Chloe’s red eyes sparkled.