The shape of his eyes curved softly into crescent moons. They shimmered like a wide-open lake.

They were so enchantingly beautiful that I forgot how shocked I was.

I felt mesmerized as though I was in a field covered with flowers in full bloom.

“Snoa Calisis is an archmage. Without a doubt, he is the most powerful mage alive. He’s incomparable to the wizards at the magic tower.”

I stared at them in disbelief again as if I heard him wrong.

What?

“Adar Aroa. He used to be the leader of an assassination group called ‘Dawn.’ They would track down criminals that managed to escape the law and kill them.”

Assassination group?

I turned to peek at Adar. He winked at me.

Shivers went down my entire body.

“No hitman or assassin could outmatch him. He was so infamous at one point that no one in the criminal underworld would dare go against him.”

“W-wait.”

“Halik Galopsa. He is the mercenary king of the sea. He has come to be known as a legend among the people now.”

“Mercenary king of the sea? The one that the bards sing about...?”

“And Almoer Daor. He is the king of the anthropomorphic dragons and owner of the last dragon orb from the east. If only he could retrieve the dragon orb...”

“Wait!”

I jumped up from my seat and blurted out at the top of my lungs.

Chellus paused patiently.

Lost in confusion, I looked up at his innocent face.

His introduction as a sword master echoed in my mind.

‘Sword master?’

It wasn’t a title that one could easily claim to have.

'Sword Master' was a title given to those who had complete mastery of the art of swordsmanship. So far, only one person was said to have ever earned the title.

They were known to be able to control mana as if it was an extension of their own body. They could cut through a mountain or the sea with just a single strike of their sword.

They were also rumored to be able to take on entire armies on their own.

And he was claiming to be that kind of person?

Was he really the only existing sword master on this entire continent?

And that kind of person allowed himself to be so easily caught and have his mana extracted?

Suddenly, I burst into laughter.

I couldn’t hold back anymore.

A sword master would've been able to crush those handcuffs with his bare hands alone even if they weighed more than 200kg.

This was more ridiculous than some third-rate fiction novel.

If he had said something that sounded more plausible, then I would've at least pretended to listen.

“Do you expect me to believe that? If you’re joking, you got me. It’s been a while since I had a good laugh.”

I finished squealing with laughter and composed myself. Fanning my flush red face with my hand, I continued.

“Let's say you are telling the truth. Who’d believe it? How could such a strong person let himself be captured and imprisoned like that? It doesn’t make sense.”

“Being overpowered can also work against you.”

Almoer, the dragon anthropomorph who had been silent this whole time, suddenly spoke up.

His voice was heavily lethargic as though he was recounting some boring, old story.

His tone had a way of capturing your attention. I erased any traces of laughter and looked at him.

His bloody red eyes looked back at me with a piercing gaze.

“The Empire is cruel and greedy and fear any loss of power. For them, we and those like us are a nuisance.”

Almoer sat slouched on the arms of the sofa and let out a low sigh.

“The Empire realized an important fact: we could freely control mana. In other words, if they could disrupt our mana, then they could diminish our power down to that of mere humans."

“...”

“Hence, the Empire crafted a most intricate plan and gathered only the most talented individuals in the land to organize and carry it out. Chellus, Snoa, Halik, and Adar. They were all once heroes that had given everything in the name of the people. Like other legends or myths, however, their names were not passed on. That is exactly what the Empire is after as well.”

Unsure of how to respond, I made a puzzling frown.

“Records say that the heroes suddenly went into hiding soon after their service in the Dimension War ended some 180 years ago. However, that is not the truth.”

The Dimension War!

It was a famous war that even I knew about despite my lack of formal education in history.

I carefully listened to Almoer as he continued.

“It is true that the Empire feared the heroes for their great power and exploited their loyalty in order to poison and imprison them. But as nearly 200 years came to pass, so came to pass the generation that remembered the war, and their fears were eventually forgotten. The next generation that was left led a comfortable and peaceful life. The Dimension War had become a thing of the past.”

He paused to take in a long breath as if recounting the old story left a bad taste in his mouth.

“The Empire’s upper class was the first to achieve stability thanks to the heroes’ actions. Though, they soon fell into corruption and it was anything but trivial. After all of the money was exhausted by the upper class supporting their lavish lifestyle, the Empire came up with a foolish solution.”

“There were certain individuals who had so much mana in their body that they were more or less immortal. These individuals were useless to the Empire, but killing them would be a waste. So, what did the Empire think up as a solution? Use these individuals to harvest money, forever.”

I thought back to the conversation I had overheard between the slaves at the Dicata underground base.

Built differently.

Humans with an endless supply of mana.

Heroes.

“As you can imagine, it wasn’t simple. Only under certain conditions could this actually be done. It required creating a restrictive space and also the use of a device that could harvest the mana at the same time.”

“It was at that time when they came up with the idea of how to generate even more money from us.”

“Are you referring to mana gems?”

“Exactly.”

Almoer smiled jaggedly.

“You could say that the Empire's plan was a success. After all, we surpassed the fourth awakening of mana. We absorb mana even when we breathe.”

“Our lives are extended due to the amount of mana our bodies hold. If we lose mana, our bodies absorb more to replace it. We're worth even more than gold and diamonds to them.”

“...”

“Since our mana was being heavily suppressed, we couldn’t exert any of our special powers. There were guards on watch, and we needed their antidote every week. They simply thought that we couldn’t escape. That’s right... The Empire really has no idea what the heroes are capable of. So, they must be losing their minds right now.”

There was contempt in Almoer Daor’s eyes, the kind one would have from seeing atrocities.

The loathing in his eyes quickly disappeared and they looked calm again. Seeing Almoer’s unmasked expression for a moment made me feel so uneasy that I bit my lower lip.

“Is that really true?”

None of the five men answered.

Their silence gave away the truth more clearly than any spoken response could have. I felt my heart become tight.

My legs gave out and I sat down on the sofa.

There was so much information that my mind needed time to process it all.

“We’ll protect you, Kakana. Could you help us?”

Snoa pleaded with a fervent look.

Letting out a soft groan, I buried my head in my hands.

To tell the truth, I knew I’d end up agreeing to help if they kept on pleading.

My heart was already feeling weak with regret for having them wait outside with nowhere else to go.

Moreover, it just so happened that there were things I’d have to investigate. The “sheep” was suspicious, and the whole incident was strange.

As its name suggests, the Forest of Death is a dangerous area. Not even the Empire could just casually walk in.

In the corner of my mind, I started devising a plan.

I was already trying to keep a low-profile by living in the forest.

I wouldn’t face much trouble if I continued to live this way.

There was something I realized while living a life such as this, however. I had to make it clear that the help they were requesting was not a small matter.

Plus, as someone who found it hard to walk away from others in need, this was my best plan of action.

I was an herbalist and a healer.

It was my duty not to walk away from those who directly requested my help.

But I didn’t know just how serious this matter really was.

It just doesn't seem like something I could handle.

“You seem to be interested in herbs, Kakana.”

Just then, Adar spoke with some charm in his voice.

They sounded like sweet temptations from a demon.

“Then there must be a lot of herbs you’d like to have.”

That was needless to say.

‘Herbs...’

Just thinking about the word alone made me feel hazy. I dazed into space. With a gasp, I snapped back.

Adar smiled slyly when he saw my wide, startled eyes.

“There are all kinds of things sold on the black market, from commonplace products to more rare and dangerous items. Once settled down, I’ll find all kinds of unique herbs and give them to you for free. What do you say?”

“U-unique h-herbs? Really?”

“I’m not the type to lie.”

There was something uncanny about the way Adar spoke.

“It’s how I grew up.”

“I-I see...”

He didn’t have to be so elusive like that when he spoke.

With bated breath, I tried to think it all over.

‘Herbs, herbs... unique... that I can’t find in the Forest of Death...’

I messed up.

In my head, I was already coming up with a list of all the unique herbs that I couldn’t find. I was completely swept up in this already.

“I believe you hike regularly to find herbs, Kakana.”

Chellus spoke politely.

By now, I was counting with my fingers, wondering which herbs to ask for first. My eyes widened and I looked back at him.

Chellus gazed at me with kind eyes that made me feel safe.

“We’ll protect you. We’ll be your bodyguards. You’ll be safe from monsters and wild animals.”

“Oh, good idea. I’ll do that, too. Once we're all situated, I’ll lend you some mercenaries for free.”

Halik added to the offer with an exhilarating laugh.

“I’ll provide you with magic tools for free. There’s nothing I can’t make. I’m sure they’ll be useful.”

Snoa said with a soft smile. His eyes shimmered like water.

Every single one was a tempting offer that I couldn’t possibly turn down.

With all my will, I tried to calm my wavering heart when Chellus politely continued.

“Of course, if you don’t like our suggestions, we won’t do it, Kakana. It’s our responsibility to come up with different ways to pay our debts to you. We probably wouldn’t even be able to pay you back even if we placed our entire lives in your service.”

“Th-that’s fine.”

“Yeah, Kakana. We’ll do whatever you ask for!”

Halik, the King of the Mercenaries, wrapped his heavy arm around my neck as if it were some kind of weapon and smiled.

“Bah!”

I thought I was going to choke and die.

Halik stepped back with an “Oops!” as I began choking.

He needs to be more aware of how overpowering his body can be.

I massaged my neck, glaring at him.

Bodyguard, free mercenaries, magic tools...

‘If they’re doing all this for me to heal them...’

It really was no big deal to heal them.

It would take a long time, but it was nothing difficult.

I licked my lips like someone who discovered a pot of honey.

“We just want one thing: to have our mana back. If you heal us, I will also grant you a wish. I can even have the whole Empire kneeling at your feet.”

Even Almoer leisurely added to the offer with a playful look on his face.

“You shall witness the beginning of a new era. I will have you watch it all from the best view.”

And then he gave me a smile so wickedly arrogant.

“So, forget your worries and heal us. You seem to want that as well.”

At this point, I was utterly lost for words.