After making sure the children were safe, Rei left the Hunter's Tower. As soon as he stepped outside, the cloaked man appeared. "Did you bring the thing I asked for?" he said.
"Yes," Rei replied. "But first, give me the map."
The cloaked man chuckled. "Are you a fool? First, show me the dark ore."
Rei showed him the Dark Eye Ore. "Fine," the man said, taking out a map and exchanging it for the ore. Rei noticed a powder on the map. "What is this?" he asked.
"That's just some bonus for being quick in delivering my stuff, You know about herbs," the cloaked man said. "Try searching for vermillion herb powder." The man then left.
Rei immediately went to the Midgard and took out his herb book, searching for the powder. "Vermillion herb powder," he read. "After eating this powder, one's hair will turn black, helping them change their appearance. To change the hair color back, one only has to eat the red shade herb powder." Rei thought, "This herb can help me change my appearance; it's a great deal. Wait, something else is written here."
He read aloud, "Caution: if your mind is unstable, you should not eat it. Otherwise, the hair color will keep turning black every time your mind becomes unstable, and even your eyes might change color." Rei thought, "I don't have any brain problems, so there's no issue in eating it. However, I have to be sure and should read about all the other cautions." Rei read all the minor cautions and even collected information from the Hunter's Tower. After gathering all the information, he found the powder was not very dangerous. After some more consideration, he decided to eat the powder, but first, he wanted to check on the village he was planning to visit.
The cloaked man, meanwhile, went to an alley, took off his hood, and revealed his face. He then removed the face mask he was wearing and quickly put on another face. He changed his clothes, wearing something that wouldn't draw suspicion.
The next day, Rei went to the Hunter's Tower. The village he was going to visit was called Frerin Village. Rei asked the receptionist for all the information they had on the village. He was given a file and sat down to read. Frerin Village was known for its agriculture and heritage sites and was not far from his current location. However, a well-known bandit group was located on the path from here, near a city. Rei read that the group was large and intimidated people into paying a toll. Concerned about the Midgard, Rei decided to take another route and made some changes to his plans. He then studied the village map and memorized it.
After some time, he returned the file and was about to leave when he saw a new task on the board: "Wanted: a tutor in Frerin Village to teach our daughter. The person will be promoted one rank and would get 1000 silver coins." Rei was not lacking in money or rank, but he decided to take the job to keep himself engaged.
The next day, Rei ate the vermilion powder, and his hair turned from blonde to black. He started the Midgard and headed towards Frerin Village. The cloaked man, watching from a cliff, said, "Sorry, Rei, but you will become the driving force of doom for the principality." The man threw the Dark Eye Ore aside as if he didn't need it, mounted a horse, and started following Rei.
Rei kept traveling in the Midgard. Tenko came to Rei with a glass of water and gave it to him. "Thank you, Tenko," Rei said, taking a drink. "It will take two days before we reach Frerin Village." Tenko nodded.
Within the gods' realm, Hermes said, "Goddess Suez, Rei is going to Frerin Village, the one where Sigil and Daina are going."
Goddess Suez smirked. "It looks like we won't have to lift a finger to kill this insect."
Meanwhile, Sigil and Daina were sitting in an inn. Sigil was reading about new events, while Daina was readying for their journey. "Daina, something is wrong," Sigil said. "I'm afraid that we would lose against the demon if changes like these continue to happen."
"Don't worry, Master," Daina reassured him. "I am ready to face whatever challenges come." Sigil did not believe Daina, as he knew how terrifying demons were. "Why is this happening at such a crucial time?" he muttered.
Another man, who was very handsome, accidentally collided with a few bandits. "Are you blind?" one of them yelled. "Don't you know who we are?"
The handsome man smiled. "Oh, please don't be so offended. I am ready to pay whatever you need. Please follow me to this alley." As the bandits followed him, the man transformed into the Fate Demon. With a single swipe, he cut off the heads of the two bandits and consumed their corpses. He then returned to his handsome form. "I need to quickly find Rei," he thought, "otherwise, he will grow too strong to handle."
Rei, traveling in the Midgard, thought, "I wonder what will happen in Frerin Village. However, I have a feeling that I might get some huge chances there." Tenko barked happily. "Sure," Rei said. "Let's make the best of our chances."
Rei continued traveling until it was time to eat. He parked the Midgard outside a city and ate, then went back to the Midgard. After traveling for a few more hours, he noticed the sun was going down. Rei stopped the Midgard near a city and decided to sleep for the rest of the day.
The next day, Rei resumed his travels and arrived at Frerin Village at noon. The cloaked man was still far behind; Rei had lost him at some point during his travels, though he was not aware he was being followed. Rei drove the Midgard into the city and parked it near a residential area for now.