MAEPG: Episode 49

Episode 49 Preparation (3)

“Dried fruits for sale~! Sweet and delicious, perfect for traveling!”

“Carriage to the capital departing soon! Only a few seats left, hurry!”

“Oh, this is too expensive, can you give me a discount?”

Heinz was walking through the heart of the city.

He had handed over control of the barrier he had set up in the monster forest to Hans and come outside to take care of other matters.

Even if he used all the materials he obtained from Heaven’s Turn Society and those Harley had gathered, there would be no problem with future material supply.

Hans couldn’t go outside recklessly, but he had countless undead to act as his hands and feet.

‘As long as the Immortal King’s Fragment isn’t directly exposed, it’s fine. No matter how great the Saintess’s ability is, it’s impossible to monitor the entire continent and identify every single undead.’

The fragment itself was difficult to hide because of its distinctive characteristics, but a simple dark magic power concealment field was enough for his undead subordinates.

Heinz, who was heading towards his destination, stopped by this place because he suddenly thought of someone.

Raffella City in the Talia Kingdom, located in the western part of the continent.

It was the city where he parted ways with the siblings he met in Azantu.

‘It’s been about seven months since we parted ways. Time flies because of the different flow of time.’

Three days on Earth was a month here.

Of course, he could feel the passage of time because his clone, Heinrich, was still in Auterica, training.

The problem was that Heinrich didn’t feel it much because he was engrossed in the daily repetitive training at the Church.

‘Definitely, I can see some vampires here too. They’re not as rampant as in Azantu, but they seem to be laying low.’

He could sense the vampires throughout the city through his transcendental synesthesia and “Insight”.

But Heinz walked confidently, ignoring them.

There was no one who could see through his “Concealment” anymore.

Unless it was a Sacred Blood.

“Kyahahaha~”

“Rafi! It’s dangerous to run like that!”

As he was walking around, looking around,

As he approached the grocery store where the siblings were staying, a little girl suddenly ran out from a corner by the road.

“…Huh?”

Heinz, who had already sensed her approach, naturally dodged her, but the surprised girl tried to stop but tripped over her own feet.

“Eeee—?”

“Rafi!”

She was about to fall and get seriously injured due to the momentum.

But before the girl could hit the ground,

Tap—

Heinz caught her naturally and gently placed her on the ground.

“…Huh?”

It was such a natural movement that even the girl herself just blinked.

As if nothing had happened.

“Rafi! I told you to be careful because it’s dangerous!”

The boy, who hurriedly ran after her, scolded the girl and checked worriedly if she was hurt.

And he sighed in relief after confirming that she was fine.

“Ah! Thank you! Thanks to you, Rafi didn’t get hurt. Come on, Rafi. You have to say hello.”

“…Sniff.”

At the boy’s urging, the girl, who looked to be about four years old, stealthily gauged the situation and bowed her head.

And then she hid behind the boy, peeking out with only her eyes.

“I’m sorry. She’s a bit shy. Thank you again.”

The boy bowed his head again and expressed his gratitude.

It was a relief that they seemed to be doing well.

“It’s okay, Aaron. It seems like you’ve been doing well.”

“…Uh, yes? Do you know me…?”

“…”

He was about to feel hurt that they had already forgotten him, when he realized that his face was different from before.

His skeleton had changed due to “Hybrid Evolution”, he had grown into a True Blood, and decisively, he had altered his face to remove any resemblance to the original body.

“Well… It’s Heinz. My face has changed a bit because of some things that happened.”

He should have restored his face before coming here.

It was too late now, so he had no choice but to say that.

“…Is it really you, mister?”

“Yes.”

“…”

It must be hard to believe.

As he was wondering what to do…

Hug—

“Mister—!”

Aaron rushed into his arms, tearing up.

‘He believes me quickly.’

Heinz gently patted Aaron’s back.

After a brief reunion, Aaron took the hand of Rafi, his uncle’s only daughter, and led the way.

“Sister will be so surprised to see you! She’s been waiting for you so much, it’ll be funny to see her not even recognize your face!”

“Heehee~”

Aaron chattered excitedly, and Rafi swung back and forth, holding his hand.

He had been tasked with taking care of the child before they parted ways, and it seemed like they had become quite close.

They arrived at the grocery store.

Diana was already looking at them, organizing items on the shelves.

“Sister! Guess who I…”

“Mister—!”

Dash— Hug!

Diana rushed at him before Aaron could finish speaking and threw herself into Heinz’s arms.

She buried her face in his arms, tearing up, just like her brother.

“…Wait, how did you recognize me right away?”

Except for the fact that Diana recognized him immediately.

Heinz quickly pulled down his hood as he sensed someone coming out from inside the store.

“Diana! What’s going on… Huh?”

“Greetings, Mr. Bolt. It’s been a while. I’m Heinz.”

He greeted Bolt, who came out in surprise, and calmed Diana down.

And he discreetly asked her what he was curious about as he moved away with the children.

“Well… you don’t smell like blood anymore. But you still smell like mister… uh, I don’t know how to explain it. I just knew.”

It was also shocking to me that Diana was able to recognize Heinz immediately.

It meant that she saw through his “Concealment”.

‘The fact that she doesn’t smell blood means that I’ve successfully hidden the fact that I’m a vampire. I did focus on concealing that part.’

Still, the fact that she was able to somewhat see through Heinz’s enhanced “Concealment” meant that her ability was more amazing than he thought.

She could become a great talent if raised well.

“We’re doing well. I go to a tutoring center with Aaron in the morning to learn how to read and do calculations, and we help out with the store in the afternoon. He says we don’t have to, but I want to help somehow.”

It seemed like they spent time at the tutoring center every two or three days, reading books or doing other things during their free time.

Fortunately, the siblings’ uncle seemed to be keeping his promise.

“I stopped by because I thought of you on my way, and I’m glad to see you’re doing well.”

“Hehe, it’s all thanks to you, mister. How have you been?”

Diana didn’t say anything about his changed face.

She probably didn’t care about that much change since she knew Heinz was a vampire.

“Hmm… yeah. Not bad.”

He had achieved some things.

His goal had become clear.

He spent the next day catching up with the three children, including Rafi, buying them delicious food, and gave support money to Bolt, the siblings’ uncle.

And then came another parting.

“Mister, be careful—!”

“Come again!”

“Bye-bye~♪”

Perhaps because it was their second time, the children didn’t cry this time and waved goodbye cheerfully.

‘Then shall I go check on the situation?’

Heinz left the city and headed towards his original destination.

Heinz was very busy raising Heterosis on Earth, but he was able to make some time using the time difference with another world.

Gathering information occasionally wouldn’t take that much time.

The reason he was going this far.

Heinrich was able to build relationships with many people while training at the cathedral to become a holy knight.

Among them were many who had participated in the Immortal King subjugation force, and he was able to hear detailed stories about what happened during the expedition.

The clash with the dark mage group, the friction with the vampires and the higher-ups who seemed to be under their influence.

Combining that information with his experience of encountering a female True Blood near the capital when he first arrived in Talaria…

‘The Brokoslack Clan’s influence reaches deep into the Talia Kingdom.’

A force that had already intervened deeply in politics, influencing a country from behind the scenes.

The Brokoslack Clan, the vampire group that was the origin of Heinz the Second’s power.

‘They’re a very useful pawn. The best.’

That’s why he came all the way here again.

To gather information before properly taking them over.

To Talaria, the capital of the Talia Kingdom, where the Brokoslack Clan’s headquarters was likely located.
____________________

“Oh? It suits you well.”

“Haha, really? It’s amazing. A perfectly tailored armor.”

“It’s no exaggeration to say that the craftsmanship of the artisans in our cathedral is the best on the continent. It’s nothing to modify existing armor to fit your body.”

Heinrich was wearing the holy knight armor he received after being knighted.

Smooth armor with a white and silver sheen.

The inside was densely inscribed with prayers related to defense and resistance.

“But what about your weapon? Usually, by the time you become a holy knight, you know what weapon suits you, but you were knighted so quickly that you don’t know, do you?”

“Yes, I’m currently using a sword and shield as the basics and steadily learning other weapons…”

Heinrich’s main skill, “Holy Warrior Combat Arts”, was a practical martial art for chaotic battlefields.

From bare-handed techniques to comprehensive weapon skills that allowed you to pick up and use any weapon.

Once you found a weapon that suited you, you would learn advanced weapon skills related to it, but Heinrich had grown so quickly that he hadn’t decided on a main weapon yet.

There were many retired senior holy knights at the Roselia Cathedral, so there was an environment where he could learn all sorts of weapon skills from them, who were working as martial arts instructors.

It meant that he could receive training whenever he wanted.

“Or you can join a holy knight order that mainly uses the weapon you want and train with the seniors. If you’re lucky, you might even receive guidance from the captain. Come to think of it, have you decided where to join? How about the Silver Wing Holy Knight Order that I’m in?”

The Silver Wing Holy Knight Order, which had participated in the Immortal King subjugation force in the Talia Kingdom.

This senior was the youngest holy knight who had returned with him from the Talia Kingdom.

He had occasionally given him advice and taken care of him, but he wasn’t keen on being officially affiliated with a holy knight order and having his freedom restricted.

“Rather than joining a holy knight order… I want to wander the continent, helping those in need and spreading the Main God’s teachings.”

“Hmm, you want to become a freelance holy knight?”

He nodded with an ambiguous expression.

“Well, spreading the Main God’s will is a good thing. It’s just not recommended because it’s dangerous and difficult. You’re more likely to be targeted by heretics.”

“I know. But I have no intention of giving up.”

“So there are certain standards you have to meet to become a freelance holy knight. It’s impossible at your current level.”

It was a goal that would take time for Heinrich, who had just been knighted as a holy knight.

He would be able to reach it soon at his growth rate, though.

“It all comes back to weapons. You need to decide on your main weapon to learn advanced weapon skills. You’ll be temporarily assigned to various holy knight orders for training, so think about it slowly.”

As he said, Heinrich had to learn the ropes by being temporarily assigned to various places.

Since there were many holy knight orders in the Roselia Cathedral, their main duties also varied.

There were holy knight orders that subjugated dark mages and demon worshippers, hunted dangerous monsters, guarded specific areas or individuals, and so on.

Of course, the first place Heinrich, a new recruit, was assigned to was the one with the most basic duties.

“The work we do is the most important! Of course, there are so many strong people here that you could trip over them, but that’s no reason to neglect our guard. Our job is to thoroughly protect this place so that nothing happens, even in case of an emergency!”

His first training ground was the Sky Shield Holy Knight Order, which was in charge of defending the outer perimeter of the Roselia Cathedral.

The senior holy knight who was guiding him constantly emphasized the importance of their work.

“This is the Roselia Cathedral, the heart of the Church! Naturally, heretics will try all sorts of means to tarnish the Church’s name. If we allow even the slightest opening, they’ll rush in. We can’t let our guard down for a moment!”

But fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, nothing happened during Heinrich’s stay.

He then joined the Sun Wolf Holy Knight Order, which patrolled the area around the holy land, but it was just as peaceful.

It was only natural that nothing happened, as it was the heart of the Main God Church, one of the largest forces on the continent.

A few months passed as he learned the ropes and focused on training.

During that time, he was also able to get used to “Blessing: Leap”, which he obtained at the knighting ceremony.

A wonderful blessing that allowed him to arbitrarily leap through space within a set total distance limit per day.

He could move the entire limit distance at once, or he could divide it and use it as needed.

There was a cooldown of a few minutes for consecutive use, so there were limitations to using it multiple times during battle, but there was no better skill to use as a last resort.

The distance he could travel per day was still short, but it was gradually increasing through training.

Perhaps he would be able to leap across continents in the future.

Another gain was that his thoughts on his main weapon changed.

‘I have “Martial Bones”, growth acceleration, and bonus effects, so why should I limit myself to one weapon?’

Of course, there would be greater effects if he focused on one thing.

But if he had to choose only one weapon that suited Heinrich, he would tilt his head in confusion.

It wasn’t a joke, it really felt like they were all the same to him.

He didn’t know if it was due to the influence of “Martial Bones” or if it was his natural aptitude.

‘In that case, I’ll just learn them all. I’ll focus on sword and shield, which are the most commonly used. It’ll all be useful later.’

Since he had “Super Recovery”, it was a problem that could be easily solved by reducing his sleep and leisure time.

He had learned sword and shield techniques from the Sky Shield Holy Knight Order and spear techniques from the Sun Wolf Holy Knight Order.

“Huh, to think you would master it so quickly. I’ve heard a lot of rumors, but you live up to your reputation.”

“Hmm… You won’t die a dog’s death anywhere with this much skill. You’ve learned the basics, so don’t get too arrogant.”

He also visited martial arts instructors whenever he had time and was able to learn all sorts of weapon skills, including blunt weapons and greatsword techniques, at the places he was assigned to.

As a result…

《The individual gains enlightenment through repeated training. You have acquired the skill “Comprehensive Weapon Mastery”.》

A few months passed as he devoted himself to training, even sacrificing sleep.

‘I think I finally understand how to handle weapons.’

His understanding of weapons themselves increased dramatically, separate from “Holy Warrior Combat Arts”.

Now he would be able to use any weapon more skillfully and efficiently.

‘And it’s a versatile skill with high growth potential. It will grow with me. And it’ll also be helpful to other avatars later.’

Currently, Heinrich was the only avatar who used weapons, but there was no guarantee that it would stay that way forever.

When that time came, he would be able to prove that the knowledge he learned in this excellent training environment wasn’t a trivial matter.

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