Nova tossed Letto to the ground and stared ahead at the medium-sized village. Its insignia was different from any found in the Lotra Kingdom. This was the nearest settlement of the Blackridge Kingdom, nestled at their western border.

Behind him, Letto struggled to his feet, legs trembling. "S-Sir, what do you plan to do here?" he asked, his voice shaking. The memory of the terrifying speed at which Nova had carried him made his stomach churn. If he'd so much as twitched and caused Nova to drop him, he would've been reduced to pulp.

"I'm here to train. So shut up and follow me," Nova said coldly, striding toward the village with Dreadscape in hand.

Letto gulped and nodded quickly.

At the village entrance stood several guards. Through the narrow gate, others could be seen patrolling inside. Unlike the vigilant soldiers of Larmida, these guards were lax. Even as Nova and Letto approached, they continued to joke among themselves, until the pair stood right before them.

Finally, a younger guard stepped forward. "One copper coin to enter," he said, smirking.

Letto had just enough time to fumble a copper coin from his bag when something warm splashed across his face. Instinctively, he shut his eyes, and he heard a heavy thud.

This…? Is this the training that demon meant?!

The guards at the post, alerted, turned toward the noise, toward the two and... the half. When they saw what remained, they shouted in horror.

"Jay!"

"You bastard, what did Jay ever do to you?!"

Some of Jay's closer comrades in the guard unit stared in disbelief, eyes welling with tears at the sight of his lifeless body.

Meanwhile, Nova had already tuned out the chaos around him. Lost in thought, he reflected:

'Still nothing… I felt nothing from this one either. That means it's not just the act of killing in itself. Then what is able to stir my heart? I need answers, and fast. If I don't improve quickly, I might be stuck in this portal for years due to that pathetic king. That is, if his kingdom even lasts that long.'

He blinked, snapping back to the present as a desperate voice pierced the air.

"Why?! I WANT TO KNOW WHY!"

Nova turned to the anguished man and replied in a calm, almost detached tone, as if speaking only to himself "Seems like I was the wrong person to enter this portal. Any other mission, maybe I could've done it with less bloodshed. But not this one. Not in these conditions. You were unlucky… but don't worry."

His eyes turned cold. "I'll send many more to join you soon. After all, between this small civilization and myself, I'll choose me, every time."

None of the guards could make sense of what Nova had said and he neither did he care. He wasn't speaking because he was sorry. Since he was using them for training, answering the question was simply his way of sending them off with some semblance of peace.

With a flicker of Dreadscape, the remaining guards collapsed to the ground, each with a gaping hole in their chest.

"Search them. Gather anything valuable and hold onto it for now," Nova ordered as he strode into the village.

Letto froze. He had suspected Nova's intentions, but witnessing them firsthand was another matter entirely.

I'm the bandit, he thought bitterly as he knelt to rummage through the guards' belongings, but compared to him… I might as well be a priest.

He quickly pocketed what he could and hurried after Nova into the village.

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The once-lively streets had gone eerily silent, save for the occasional cry or desperate plea for help.

When Nova, with a trembling Letto trailing behind, finally stepped out through the village's far gate, he muttered to himself, "Nothing. My heart is as still as a lake. Was it because they weren't strong enough? Or because they barely fought back? Maybe both. I need to find a place with a knight… and see what happens."

Without warning, Nova grabbed Letto again and vanished in a blur, heading deeper into the Blackridge Kingdom.

Along the way, he passed several other villages, each with the same number of people, the same weak defenses. They were meaningless to him.

Two hours later, his eyes locked onto a small town on the horizon.

'That one will do,' he thought, heading toward it.

As soon as he arrived, Nova dropped Letto unceremoniously to the ground, then without pause, slaughtered the few guards stationed outside and walked into the town.

He moved so fast that by the time the guards on the walls were alerted, Nova was already standing in the center of town. His voice echoed through the square "I want the knights of this town to face me within five minutes. If they don't, I'll slaughter everyone."

At first, no one took him seriously. A few people even laughed and pointed, amused by what they thought was a madman making idle threats.

But then the guards from the gate, where Nova had entered, burst into the square, faces twisted in panic.

"Get away from him at once!" one shouted. "He's a murderer!"

And just like that, the mood shifted. The laughter died. Fear took hold.

A wave of panic swept over the crowd as reality sank in. People began shoving and yelling, desperate to escape.

"Why are you slowing us down, old hag?!"

"Move! If you can't run, get out of the way!"

"Keep pushing me and I'll break your legs!"

Chaos bloomed in every direction as the town descended into a frantic scramble for survival.

While the ordinary citizens scattered in fear, the only captain present stood his ground. He stared at Nova and asked coldly, "Why do you want to see the knight?"

He wanted to charge in but he wasn't reckless. After witnessing how easily this man had butchered the gate guards and stormed into town, the captain knew he didn't stand a chance. If he couldn't fight, then he'd stall for time.

'Knight? One?'

Ignoring the captain's question entirely, Nova said flatly, "You have one minute left."

A hot-headed guard nearby snapped, "You said five minutes! It's barely been two, how is it down to one already?!"

His fellow guards, though just as outraged, quickly stepped away from him, none of them wanted to be standing next to someone foolish enough to talk back to the murderer in the square.

But before the situation could escalate further, a middle-aged man stepped forward and shouted, "So you're the one threatening to slaughter everyone under my protection? Where did you find the courage to say such things? Do you realize there's nowhere in the Blackridge Kingdom you can run now?"

Nova gave him a dull, unimpressed look. "You talk too much for someone who's only at the Awakened stage."

In a flash, Nova dashed forward and thrust his spear.

Caught off guard by both Nova's words and the sudden assault, the knight barely managed to block with his sword, still sheathed. Though he stopped the spear's tip, the overwhelming force behind the blow sent a shock through his body, cracking several bones in his arms under its sheer weight.

The moment Nova paused, the knight staggered back, chest heaving. Sweat poured down his face as he forced out a shaky breath. "I-If you leave now… we can forget this happened. No trouble for either side."

The guards' captain furrowed his brow. "Sir, he killed so many—"

"SHUT UP!" the knight barked, cutting him off.

Of everyone present, only he understood the power behind Nova's strike, how bones had cracked even though he'd blocked the blow. He wanted nothing more than this person to leave as fast as possible.

Though still fuming, the captain clenched his jaw and obeyed. A direct order from a superior left him no choice.

Nova's voice broke the silence. "Are you the only knight here?"

The knight gave a short nod. "Yes. There was another, but he was recently reassigned to a different town."

'I'll need to find another place... but first, I have to finish this quickly.'

Without another word, Nova lunged forward.

"Why are you still attacking?!" the knight cried, panic rising in his voice.

///////////

"Did you loot this guy's house?" Nova asked, pointing Dreadscape at the knight's lifeless corpse.

"Yes, Sir," Letto replied, eyes fixed on the ground. "I also looted the others…" He gestured toward the guards and their captain without looking up. He didn't dare meet Nova's gaze. He had known from the start that this young man wasn't a saint but ever since they'd left the royal palace, he had done nothing but kill.

Nova gave a noncommittal "Mhm," his mind elsewhere.

[16,935,200,000 Stat EXP received]

'Even this knight made no difference. What am I missing? Do I need to find someone in the Flow Stage? If that's the case, then I'll need to head for a large-sized town. Doubt a mid-sized one would have someone like that stationed.'

His gaze shifted to the few trembling townspeople watching from a distance.

'As for them… the more I kill, the faster the Blackridge King will notice. And the faster he notices… the sooner war will erupt and I get to bring this place down.'

Without another word, Nova walked out of the town, a long trail of blood stretching behind as if escorting him out.

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