The pristine white manor stood silent for a moment before a fancy white carriage emerged from its gates. It halted, and the door opened to reveal a man in an elegant outfit.
"Are you the mercenaries who will be my guards?" the nobleman inquired.
"Yes, we are!" Jol replied with confidence.
The nobleman's gaze swept over them, his eyes lingering on Woon, who was clad in a simple black shirt and black pants, a sword at his waist. He seemed unskilled, a waste of money.
"Is he with your team?" the nobleman asked, gesturing toward Woon.
"Yes," Woon confirmed.
"You appear weak and lack proper equipment. How can you protect us if a group of bandits attacks?"
"Sir, I assure you, he possesses great skill!" Jol interjected, thinking, 'He's already ventured into the Forest of the Lesser Giants, so it's impossible for him not to be skilled!'
"Hmm, very well. Let's depart!"
The nobleman re-entered the carriage.
"Let's go!" the head knight commanded.
'He thinks I'm skilled, huh? I don't even know if I've improved! But that nobleman's words about bad luck... I feel something will happen!' Woon yawned, a deep, weary sound.
"Still sleepy, it seems," Jol observed.
"Yeah, I haven't slept in a day, but it's still doable!" Woon replied.
The carriage began to move, escorted by knights in the front and Woon and Jol's team at the back. The tight security clearly indicated the importance of the person being escorted.
They soon reached the city gate, passing through smoothly and immediately venturing into the dense forest beyond.
"So, Jol, where are we again?" Woon asked, unfamiliar with the surroundings.
"Bushy Forest! It doesn't have an exact name, we just call it that!"
"Oh, okay," Woon mumbled, stifling another yawn.
As they pressed deeper into the countless trees, moving further and further from the city, a horde of goblins suddenly appeared and attacked. Despite being outnumbered, the group swiftly defeated them all.
'Hmph, that was quite a bit of bad luck. It's only been half a day, and monsters are already showing up!' Woon muttered, "Ah, my clothes."
"Are you alright, Woon?" Sol asked. She remained unscathed, being an archer.
"Yeah, just a little of their blood got on my shirt," Woon said calmly.
"Oh, let me clean it!" Sol offered, stepping closer.
"No, it's fine!"
But Sol ignored him. "[Purify]," she said, and a blue light shone from her hands. All the blood on Woon's clothes vanished, leaving them pristine, even cleaning his body in the process.
"Whoa," Woon exclaimed, surprised.
"It's done!" Sol smiled.
"That's quite convenient," Woon commented.
They continued their journey until nightfall, setting up a camp for rest. Some slept while others stood watch.
"Woon, I told you to stop. Go to sleep already!" Jol urged, seeing Woon still awake.
"I need to train; I'm still weak!" Woon replied, sitting cross-legged.
"You're working hard. Okay, I'll just go for now!"
"No, you can sleep. I'll stay as a guard!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, the whole team is already sleeping, so go get some rest!" Woon insisted.
"Okay, thanks!" Jol said, heading to their camp.
Woon remained seated, running countless simulations in his head. He envisioned himself fighting a goblin horde, easily dispatching them. Then he simulated a fight against the Ogre he'd encountered previously. He won, knowing he had improved, but not by this much. He then tried two Ogres at once, still managing to win. Growing cocky, he attempted to fight ten at once, but as expected, he lost. No matter how strong he became, he couldn't overcome such large numbers of powerful opponents.
"Hoo, that's enough for now. I'll do some physical training instead!"
Woon began basic training: push-ups, pull-ups, and other exercises to improve his physical capabilities. Morning arrived, and Woon was still running around the camp. The knights, Jol, and his party began to stir.
"Hmm, brother, aren't you on watch?" Sol asked, still yawning.
"Woon said he'd guard and told me to sleep!"
"Then where is he now?"
"Hm, I don't know." Jol, still groggy, spotted a figure running.
"Oh, isn't that him?" Jol said.
"He's running around," Sol observed, confused.
"I think he's training. He said last night that he needed some training, so maybe that's why he's running around!" Jol explained.
"But he's been training since last night. He must be exhausted by now! He might not be able to go with us if he's that tired!" Sol worried.
"Woon, how about taking a rest!" Jol shouted.
Woon noticed them, gradually slowing his pace until he stopped in front of them.
"Hooo, that's good enough for now," Woon said calmly.
"You've been training since last night, right?" Jol asked.
"Yeah."
"What if you can't go with us if you're so exhausted? You need to rest somehow!"
"Don't worry about it; it's not that hard. Although I'm sweating a lot, I still have plenty of energy!"
"By the way, Sol, can you use that same thing you did to clean my clothes?"
"Yes, sure!"
"[Purify]," Sol said.
"Done," she announced.
"Thanks, now I'm clean again!"
Jol and his party, along with Woon, cleaned up their camp and prepared to depart, as they didn't have much time to linger.
"Let's go!" the head knight shouted.
They continued through the dense, tree-lined forest. Hours passed uneventfully, but suddenly, a group of bandits armed with swords emerged, surrounding them.
"Bandits!" a knight yelled.
Woon, Jol, and their party readied themselves for the attack. More bandits appeared, completely encircling them. The knights and Jol's party guarded the carriage, but Woon was uninterested in prolonging the situation.
"Hey, I'll spare you all if you leave now!" Woon warned them.
"Hahahaha! You've already fallen into our trap, and you want us to leave?!" the bandit leader scoffed.
'Hoo, so this big guy is their leader!' Woon thought. "Just leave; we're in a hurry!"
"Shut up! Guys, attack him!"
Two bandits charged Woon, swords drawn. Jol's party and the knights seemed worried for Woon, as he was their immediate target.
"Woon, come back here!" Jol shouted.
"Kid, hurry!" the head knight yelled.
The two bandits lunged, but Woon easily dodged them, swiftly unsheathing his katana.
'So, this is how it'll play out. If I don't do this, I'll die, so I'll just do this for self-defense!'