[WARNING!]
[Host HP is critical]
[Perform total healing immediately]
Agares slowly opened his eyes, feeling intense pain from the cuts and stab wounds on his body.
Blood continued to flow out, mixing with the river water. Agares gave up, not expecting that he was dying and would die in a new world he did not want.
'The Great Empire... The Kingdom of Caer Vireth... Helderic!' moaned Agares.
'If we meet again in the next life, I will destroy you all until there is nothing left!' threatened Agares, his eyes filled with hatred and anger.
[DING! Congratulations, you have awakened your inherited power]
[Hatred detected!]
[Vengeance detected!]
[Power transformation!]
[Affinity: Light -> Darkness]
[Talent: Athanor's Majesty]
Agares narrowed his eyes. He saw the panels appear faintly; his worsening physical condition affected his vision. As time passed, Agares could no longer maintain his consciousness.
"Athanor's Majesty…?" Agares whispered.
He fainted and his body was swept away by the river, unaware of where the current was taking him. Helderic and the people at Caer Vireth Castle looked relieved and happy; they had eliminated the real threat to them and the Great Empire.
A few days later, Jonathan arrived in the city of Solaris and joined the elite Lancer unit. Livia, Secilia, and Aaron found their places in the mage and assassin academies.
They were too focused on their own development without caring about Agares' condition. Jonathan was still worried, but his anxiety was buried under the many activities he had to do as a Lancer knight.
Two days later, a fisherman on the riverbank stumbled upon someone floating in the river. The man's body was pale and his clothes were torn, his appearance startling the old man.
"Grandpa! What is that?" asked a girl who was accompanying her grandfather, also seeing the figure floating in the river.
The man was stuck on a large tree branch that had fallen near the river. The old man stepped forward and approached the man, seeing his pale, wrinkled body slumped over. Still, he could feel the man's pulse, faint but still there.
"He's limp, but he's still breathing," said the old man.
"Nadia, help me lift this man out of the river," he ordered, his granddaughter nodding in agreement.
The two managed to lift Agares out of the river. But since neither of them were experts in healing, there was nothing they could do.
"Go to the village and find the Priestess Ara, then tell her we need help," explained the old man, Nadia obeyed his orders.
Not only did she have to call the Priestess Ara, but Nadia was also instructed to call her parents. They had to come to help him carry Agares home, Nadia understood.
While waiting, the old man tried his best to restore Agares' cold body temperature. He gathered firewood and lit a bonfire, then placed Agares right next to the burning fire.
To prevent him from getting colder, the old man removed Agares' clothes, leaving him naked from the waist up. To his shock, the old man saw Agares' body full of cuts and stab wounds.
"What happened to you, young man?" asked the old man, shocked by the wounds on Agares' body.
Soon, Nadia's parents arrived and saw the man lying helplessly on the ground, right next to the burning fire. Nadia's father turned and asked his father about the man's condition.
"What happened? Who is he?" asked the man, shocked.
"He is seriously injured. Help me take him to the house," he said, and the man nodded in agreement.
Without hesitation, he and the old man carried Agares' body from near the river to their house, about a 15-minute walk away.
From the direction of the village, Nadia arrived with Priestess Ara. The woman looked young with a radiant face, her hands clutching a magic staff, a sign that she was one of the priests.
"What happened?" asked Ara.
"We found him stuck on the riverbank. He seems to be severely injured," said the old man.
They carried Agares inside and laid him on the bed. Priestess Ara recited a magic spell and conjured white magic runes above Agares' body.
[Magic Spell: Second Level Healing]
Slowly, magical particles fell onto Agares' body. The wounds on his body began to close and regenerate. But to heal the wounds inside his body, Ara had to recite a third level healing spell.
One by one, the cuts disappeared and the stab wounds closed completely without a trace. However, after Ara checked again, Agares' internal condition was still injured.
"I need to perform a complete healing. Can you step out for a moment?" Ara asked.
"Of course. We'll leave."
The old man and his family stepped outside, allowing Priestess Ara to heal Agares completely. Glancing at Agares' right hand, she saw an abstract red pattern that looked like the Saber job pattern. It took her by surprise.
'Saber pattern? So, he's a saber knight?' asked Ara.
Everyone who was a member of the six knight halls was obliged to report anything related to saber jobs.
This time, Ara found a patient who had a saber seal on his hand. But she felt torn between choosing to treat Agares or fulfilling her duty to report him.
Ara remained silent for a while before finally deciding on what she believed was best.
The old man was still waiting outside the house, curious about the results of Ara's treatment. Ara was well-known throughout the village as someone who could heal any wound or illness; she was a trustworthy priestess.
Soon, Ara stepped outside, still holding her priestess staff in her hand. The old man immediately asked about the man's condition.
"He's fine. In two or three hours, he'll recover," replied Ara.
"Thank you very much, Lady Ara."
"You're welcome. It is my duty to heal anyone who is injured."
Before leaving, Ara turned to the side and looked into the house, specifically at the bed where Agares was lying. She preferred to save Agares rather than follow the emperor's orders. For her, Agares' life was more important because he was dying in front of her.
"I want to leave a message for him when he wakes up. Do you mind?" asked Ara.
"Of course not. What is your message for him?" asked the old man.
"Meet me at my clinic. There is something I need to discuss with him; it is about his safety.
"All right. I will tell him later."
Priestess Ara left the house to return to her clinic. The old man stepped inside and saw Agares still lying down. He was wearing simple clothes that the old man had provided.
"Nadia, stay here and watch over him. I'll go back to the river," the old man asked. Nadia nodded in understanding.
Nadia's parents returned to their work; her father went to the fields and her mother continued her knitting. Nadia sat in the room, waiting for Agares to wake up. She waited while continuing her unfinished craft.
Three hours passed, Agares' fingers began to move slowly. His eyes opened, although his vision was still blurry. He turned his head and saw a girl sitting beside him.
"Where... am I?" asked Agares softly.
Nadia gasped. She stood up and looked closely at Agares. He was fully awake, but his body was still weak.
As her grandfather had instructed, Nadia left the room and told her parents. Nadia's mother brought in some snacks and warm tea, while Nadia's father went to the fields to get her grandfather, who was still fishing by the river.
Soon, everyone gathered in the room. Agares only drank the warm tea that was served, not touching the snacks.
"How are you feeling?" asked Nadia's mother.
"I still... feel weak," whispered Agares.
He remembered Helderic and the soldiers from Caer Vireth. Agares immediately asked them about his current location, which Nadia's mother explained.
"You are in Faircallen Village. My father-in-law found you floating on the river," explained Mrs. Nadia.
"Is this still Caer Vireth?" asked Agares.
"Yes. Our village is still in Caer Vireth. What's the matter?" asked the woman.
Agares turned his head and tried to hide the saber pattern on the back of his right hand. He didn't want them to know his true identity to ensure his safety.
"One more thing, Priestess Ara left a message for you. He asked you to go to her clinic to talk. It has to do with your safety," replied the old man.
"Priestess?"
'Could she know about the saber pattern on my hand?' asked Agares.
"Yes. She came here and healed you for hours. You must go there to thank her," replied the old man.
'If she knows I have a saber pattern, she should have just let me die. What is she thinking?' asked Agares.
Agares turned, looking at the old man who had told him this information, "Can you take me to her?"
"Of course. Nadia will take you to her."