Zeno set off toward the capital of the kingdom. Along the way, he encountered many unfortunate events, but the most interesting one was his encounter with an elf named Arisa...
Zeno was sitting by a fire in a dark forest, eating grilled meat, when suddenly the sound of clashing sword blades reached his ears. His attention was drawn, and he headed toward the sound.
When he arrived, he saw a girl with blonde hair, blue eyes, and pointed ears fighting against two people.
The moment Zeno saw her, his eyes filled with tears—because he saw Kurinai's face in hers. He lost himself for a moment and slowly reached out his hand, but suddenly he noticed someone else: a powerful figure rushing toward the girl at high speed.
Zeno dashed toward that person. When he got close, he drew his sword at lightning speed and struck—but the opponent blocked it and leaped back.
The unknown figure stood calmly and said:
"Who the hell are you… Get out of my way."
Zeno smiled and replied:
"And if I don't?"
A fierce battle began between Zeno and the unknown man.
With every exchange of sword strikes, a terrifying shockwave spread throughout the entire forest.
A few minutes passed, and the unknown figure was brought to his knees.
Zeno sheathed his sword and said seriously:
"You're never getting near that blonde girl again."
The unknown man gritted his teeth, about to attack once more, but the rest of his group arrived and dragged him away.
Zeno quickly turned back toward the girl—but she was gone.
He sighed and continued on his way. Along the road he encountered bears and monsters, but all of them either fled or ended up as Zeno's food.
And finally, he reached the capital...
Zeno arrived at the main gate. Two soldiers in shining armor stood guard.
He tried to enter the city, but the two soldiers blocked his path. One of them asked:
"Where are you from, and why are you here?"
Zeno replied calmly:
"I'm from Ashin village. I want to become a Holy Knight."
The soldier looked surprised and said:
"From Ashin village? How many days have you been traveling?"
Zeno answered coolly:
"About three days."
The soldier burst out laughing and said:
"Alright, go ahead."
After Zeno passed, the soldier laughed to the other guard:
"Hahaha! Another lunatic added to the capital… He says… he says he got here in three days!"
When Zeno entered the capital, his eyes sparkled at the sight of the grand, beautiful shops. He said happily:
"Wow, this place is huge!"
But suddenly his eyes filled with tears and he whispered:
"I wish Sister Kurinai could see this too…"
The Kingdom of Shamrock:
A land that, years ago, had witnessed the war between the gods and the Demon King Shinigami.
Zeno reached the palace gate. His eyes widened at the grandeur of the castle. He was walking straight ahead when the guard at the entrance stopped him and asked:
"Where do you think you're going?"
Zeno smiled and said:
"I want to go inside to register."
The guard asked:
"Register for what?"
Zeno smiled again:
"Holy Knight."
The guard said sternly:
"Becoming a knight isn't a joke. You have to go through the proper process!! … Now get lost and don't waste my time!"
Zeno turned back toward the city. Suddenly his stomach growled loudly—he was hungry. He headed to a shokudo (restaurant), sat at a table, and the ten'in (waiter) came over and asked:
"What would you like to order?"
Zeno quickly said:
"Curry soup—with meat."
The ten'in left and returned moments later with a steaming bowl.
When Zeno saw the soup, drool ran from his mouth. He took a quick spoonful—but burned his tongue.
The ten'in laughed and said:
"Blow on it first, then eat."
Zeno, tongue burned, mumbled:
"Okay. Whooooo. Ammm ooooh. it's so good."
The ten'in laughed again and said:
"You're really funny. I like you. My name's Hana."
Zeno smiled with his tongue still out and said:
"I'm Zeno, I'm going to become a Holy Knight."
Hana laughed even harder:
"Ooooh, good luck with that!"
Suddenly the restaurant door burst open with force. Several minotaur-like figures and beastmen stormed in. A group was sitting at one table, but the newcomers flipped the table over and threw them out of the restaurant.
One of them shouted:
"Hey Hana, my love! Bring out all the meat you've got—and come sit next to me. We're gonna have some fun tonight, right boys? Hahaha!"
Hana's face filled with fear. Zeno noticed and asked:
"What's wrong? Why are you scared?"
Hana replied calmly:
"It's nothing…"
Hana, upset and frightened, went to prepare meat for them. She told the cook:
"Cook whatever meat we have."
The cook sighed and started cooking, but Hana angrily said:
"Why don't we call the jonsa (patrol guards)?"
The cook snapped back furiously:
"I've told you a hundred times—we can't! They're hunters. The jonsa can't do anything to them. They're the ones responsible for protecting us. Without them, the demonic monsters would destroy the entire capital in a single day."
Hana said:
"These guys aren't much different from monsters."
Zeno finished his soup. Moments later, his stomach cramped—"I ate too fast." He quickly ran to the restroom.
At that moment, Hana returned with a tray full of meat and placed it on their table. But just as she turned to leave, one of the minotaurs grabbed her hand. Hana screamed:
"Let go of me, you ugly monster!"
The minotaur got angry and slammed Hana to the ground. Blood sprayed from her mouth, and she fell unconscious among the broken wooden pieces, her face wounded.
Zeno heard the noise and said:
"What's going on?"
The minotaur pulled out his kanabo (spiked club) from behind his back and roared:
"Who're you calling a monster, you filthy girl?!"
He was about to swing the kanabo down on her when the cook suddenly rushed in and threw himself at the minotaur's feet:
"Please forgive my daughter… In exchange, I won't even charge you for the meat."
The minotaur and his group laughed:
"Money for food…? Hahaha… All the food we eat here is free. Don't you know we're hunters? You people should worship us for saving your lives."
The cook, in tears and fear, said:
"Okay, okay, anything you want—just don't touch my daughter."
The minotaur said coldly and wickedly:
"I'll forgive your daughter…"
The cook looked relieved—but the relief didn't last long.
"…on one condition. She spends tonight with me."
The cook's eyes widened. He grabbed the minotaur's leg and begged:
"Please don't do this! I'll do anything else—just not my daughter, I beg you!"
The minotaur grabbed the cook by the throat and squeezed. The cook was choking when suddenly the door opened and Taisa (the security commander) entered.
A commander with a terrifying scar across his face—a ruthless, merciless man. Hunter or Holy Knight, it didn't matter to him—he punished lawbreakers.
When the minotaur saw Taisa, his eyes widened and he instinctively released the cook's throat.
Taisa, having seen the scene, approached calmly but with clear anger. The minotaur's group got scared and fled the restaurant.
The minotaur yelled:
"Hey, you bastards! Where are you running?! Come back and protect your boss…!"
Taisa slowly drew his sword with a chilling sound:
"Be quiet. Kneel before the law and show it respect."
The minotaur roared in rage, raised his kanabo, and swung it down at Taisa with full force…
Shiiiing…
The kanabo shattered into pieces. The minotaur fell to the ground. In his final moments, all he could see was Taisa's dark face and the terrifying red scar across it.
Taisa said in a terrifying voice:
"You have two choices. Either pay for the damage you caused and apologize to the owner, or I punish you right here!!! … You have five seconds! Countdown begins. Five…"
The minotaur hurriedly dumped all his coins in front of the cook and begged with tears:
"Please forgive me! I was wrong!"
But the cook stayed silent…
Four…
The minotaur begged again.
But the cook remained silent.
Two…
The minotaur screamed:
"I WAS WRONG!!!"
…One
Suddenly the cook said:
"Fine. I forgive you."
Shiiiing…
Taisa sheathed his sword. He grabbed the minotaur by the horn, lifted him up, and said:
"Get out of here and never show your face again. Understood?!"
The minotaur, terrified and stumbling, fled the restaurant…
The cook threw himself at Taisa's feet in gratitude, but Taisa left the restaurant without any reaction.
The cook hugged Hana and carried her away. Zeno came out of the restroom, saw the destroyed place, and asked someone nearby:
"What happened here? Why is everything wrecked?"
The person replied calmly:
"There was a little fight."
Zeno asked again:
"No one got hurt, right?"
The person:
"Yeah, the ten'in got hurt."
Zeno let out a calm sigh of relief and left the restaurant…
He walked through the city and asked someone where the registration for the selection tournament was. The person gave him the address.
Zeno happily headed to the registration site—a large circular arena. He entered. There were many people: big, small, mages, swordsmen, half-beasts—everyone was there.
Zeno was looking around in amazement when he suddenly bumped into the same minotaur from the restaurant. The minotaur glared at Zeno in anger.
But Zeno just apologized and walked past him.
The minotaur's men, surprised, asked their boss:
"Boss, he bumped into you! … Why didn't you punish him?"
The minotaur growled angrily:
"Mind your own business! …"
But they didn't know what he had seen: "What the hell was that thing?! … He wasn't even human!!! … His power had no limits!!!"
Zeno's eyes caught a line. He walked forward, bypassed the queue, and reached a desk where a girl named Misaki was registering people.
When he got to the desk, Zeno said to Misaki:
"Please write my name down too."
The people in line looked at Zeno in shock. Misaki looked up and saw him standing outside the line. She said tiredly and indifferently:
"Go stand in line…"
Zeno asked in confusion:
"What's a line?"
Misaki looked up again—this time with an angry face, eyes wide and bloodshot, teeth clenched.
Zeno's hair stood on end. He said:
"My bad!"
And quickly went to the back of the line. The line slowly moved forward. Finally it was Zeno's turn. Misaki said:
"Your name?"
Just as Zeno was about to speak, he caught sight of the blonde girl again—she was turning into a corridor. Zeno dashed after her so fast that he scattered all of Misaki's papers.
He followed the girl from behind. She turned into another corridor. Zeno kept running after her until he lost her.
"Damn it, lost her again…"
When Zeno turned back, he suddenly saw a shadow behind a pillar—it vanished again…
Zeno went straight back to Misaki's desk and stood there. Misaki looked at his face and said:
"Go stand in line!!"
Zeno got angry and shouted:
"I was just standing there a few minutes ago!"
Misaki snapped:
"Then stand in line again…"
Zeno closed his eyes, slammed his hand hard on the desk, and said:
"I don't have patience for this! Write my name down NOW!!"
Suddenly there was a commotion. The line broke apart. A shadow struck Zeno's face like a hammer. He opened his eyes—cold sweat poured down his face. Slowly, the color drained from him…
A pitch-black figure with white eyes stood in front of him, holding a massive hammer in an attack stance.
"My bad!!"
BOOOOOOM...