---

Zayn's group crossed the border. Zayn asks Lloyd, "How much longer until we arrive?"  

Lloyd: "Two more countries until we reach the ocean that will take us to our destination."

Lloyd looks at the large map of the world. In this world, there are three continents:

The Kingdom of Elvard in the western continent, the smallest, surrounded by eight countries.

The central continent contains 21 countries, including the Kingdom of Zyn Verdissa, the largest of the continents.

The eastern continent is divided into the southern and northern parts (they are connected but politically separate), and it is medium in size.  

There are also some scattered islands in the seas.

The Land of Doctors is located in the far west, in the Mariana Ocean, which lies between the eastern and western continents. There is also the northern and southern ocean, and seas that separate the continents.

---

At that time, Ren is found in his military uniform outside the elite barracks. He calls Karl:  

Karl: "So, hurry up and get to the big prison. Once you're done with the introductions, we'll wait for you there."  

Ren: "Alright."

There, the two new soldiers [wearing uniforms similar to Ren's but in different colors]. One has brown hair, average height, with features slightly foreign to the region, named Kabuto. The other is blond, with brown eyes, named Nathan. They are from the elite unit, watching Ren and eavesdropping on him, but they are far away.

Ren quickly rides off on a horse, and they take two horses from the barracks' stable, which contains eight horses (Ren and the two soldiers take three, leaving only five).

---

Karl and the king are waiting for him in the prison, in the interrogation room with the criminal. Karl is sitting, staring sharply at the accused, while the king paces the room. The atmosphere is tense, and the accused is sweating, showing fear.

Meanwhile, that mysterious person enters the soldiers' hall. Half of it had been repaired after the battle, and soldiers are training there. The person speaks to one of the soldiers:  

"Start without causing chaos!"

He exits the hall and jumps onto a roof, walking around. We hear the sound of soldiers falling inside the hall. A large group of soldiers draws their swords and attacks the others. The sounds of killing and shouting fill the place, but the hall is somewhat far from civilian homes.

That person speaks loudly to himself as he runs across the rooftops:  

"The time for the feast has come, oh peaceful kingdom."

---

Ren arrives at a place behind the prison (it's an abandoned clinic where he hid during his escape from the troops when he was accused of killing the deputy). He enters, and the other two follow him. They go up.

Kabuto says to Nathan:  

"Haha, we've cornered this idiot. But what will he do?"

Nathan: "Let's be careful until we reach a place where we can kill him. But be cautious; he's from the elite despite his young age."

Ren climbs the stairs to the third floor, and they follow him.  

Kabuto: "Don't tell me you're scared of this kid now, Nathan."  

Nathan: "I didn't say that, but we should be cautious. Don't rush."

Ren reaches the third floor, which is an open rooftop. Ren says loudly:  

"Come out, you two soldiers."

The two are shocked, and Kabuto quickly steps out, saying:  

"We're here. Don't worry, we won't leave you alone, little one."

Nathan is stunned and thinks: "Is it possible he knew about us and lured us here? No, he's just a boy. It's impossible."

Nathan follows Kabuto to the rooftop. Ren says coldly and mockingly:  

"Are you really spies? You can't even hide yourselves properly."

Kabuto, walking toward Ren:  

"Well, the important thing now is that you're going to die."

Ren coldly:  

"I was so scared."

Nathan thinks angrily: "Is this boy mocking us? Did he trap us, or what?"

Nathan attacks, and Kabuto follows.  

Kabuto, running: "It's not like you to rush."  

Nathan: "This boy is annoying me."

Ren thinks: "They rely too much on their strength."

They attack fiercely, but Ren dodges as if playing. He continues to evade their strikes easily, grabs Kabuto by the face with his hand, and slams him into Nathan. Both fall, and Nathan's nose bleeds from being hit by Kabuto.

Both are furious and unleash their full power, reinforcing themselves.  

Ren mockingly:  

"Idiots."

They attack again. Ren dodges their strikes, kicks Kabuto in the ankle while evading his attack, and Kabuto falls.

Then he grabs Nathan's pulsating fist without being affected and starts slamming him into the ground repeatedly (he holds Nathan's fist with his hand and lifts and slams him into the ground).

Kabuto gets up and reinforces himself to his peak strength, attacking with everything he has. Ren dodges and punches him with just his hands. Kabuto is in pain but not greatly affected.

Ren uses a bit of his pulse, and Kabuto falls with a single weak punch.

Ren takes out handcuffs from his waist and cuffs them, rendering them immobile after the beating they took.

---

Ren calls Karl. Karl's phone rings in the hall, and he answers:  

"Why are you taking so long, Kagero?"

Ren indifferently:  

"Sorry, sorry. There were two people following me, so I dealt with them. Man, you need to keep a better eye on your soldiers. Their behavior is terrible."

---

On the rooftop of the abandoned clinic, Kagero carries the two bodies on his back and walks them to the prison, which isn't far away.

The prison gate guards:  

"What? You're the new recruit, right? I heard you were acquitted and became one of the elite fighters. But who are these two you're carrying?"

Ren smiles:  

"They're criminals."

Ren enters the prison with heavy steps. He finds Karl coming toward him.  

Karl: "You finally arrived. So, are these the two you said were following you?"  

Ren: "Yes."

The two can't move and are bruised all over.  

Karl sees their condition and thinks: "Is Ren even human? I actually feel sorry for them."

Karl immediately:  

"Alright, I'll call the guards to imprison them, and we'll interrogate them if they can speak. You can go ahead to the interrogation room. It's the first door on the right corridor."

Kagero goes ahead of Karl to the room. Upon entering, he finds the king standing, waiting for him.  

Kagero looks around the room: it's closed off from all sides but clean. There's a table and three iron chairs, with cuffs attached to the table.

The king, spreading his arms:  

"Finally, you're here. Are the spies here?"

Kagero, smiling:  

"Yes, they're here. Shall we start the interrogation now?"

The king:  

"Yes, as soon as Karl joins us."

Ren, inquiring:  

"Your Majesty, I have a question. Why did you come to investigate with us? You could have stayed in your office and received the interrogation report."

King Altair, smiling:  

"No, I'm just curious."

Ren:  

"Behind that smile is great worry that what I said about the deputy might be true, isn't it?"

The king's smile fades, and he frowns.

Ren continues coldly and seriously, as usual:  

"You don't want to believe that you were betrayed because you acted sincerely. But this is the price of dealing with humans sincerely, even if they are of our own flesh and blood. Also, you don't want to believe it because if his betrayal is proven, you'll be partly responsible for what will happen to the kingdom sooner or later due to giving the deputy position to someone like him, isn't that right, Your Majesty?"

Altair:  

"As usual, you're always right. This is all because of my excessive trust and overly sincere intentions."

Ren:  

"Some deserve kindness, and some deserve hatred. Between giving kindness to the sincere and hatred to the traitor, there's either a share of our choices, and we enjoy having a true human by our side, or we make a mistake and live with a fox waiting for its prey and its own benefit. In the end, what guides us to rule correctly or incorrectly is trust."

King Altair:  

"You're right. We must think a thousand times before trusting our decisions. And yet, we might still make mistakes."

Kagero:  

"What matters now is what you'll do after this. You can't keep blaming your sincerity and kindness forever. You must now correct what you initially did wrong, even if it wasn't entirely your fault. And before correcting the mistake, you must first accept it, as you know. You can't correct a mistake you don't acknowledge."

King Altair:  

"Yes."

Altair thinks to himself for a moment:  

"What a boy! I wonder what he's really been through."

---

Near the palace, we find that mysterious person wearing a magnificent armor (it's the same person who was with the deputy at the time). He watches the palace guards and shoots them with tranquilizer darts from a distance using a tranquilizer gun.

He moves their bodies to another place, ties them up, and sneaks into the palace.

---

At the border of the Land of Brag, we find Zayn thanking the border guards for letting them through without issues.

Selena notices Mina's tension and thinks:  

"During Kagero's speech at the table, she didn't speak or worry. She was always smiling subtly. Now she's anxious and trembling. Could it be..."

Selena starts talking to Mina in a low, laughing voice:  

"So, what do you think of him?"

Mina: "Who? Who do you mean?"

Selena: "You know who I mean. I mean that Kagero."

Mina turns away, her cheeks slightly red with embarrassment. A commoner sees her and faints comically from the sight.

Mina says, still turned away, pretending to be firm:  

"What do you mean? He's just a committed soldier, perhaps. I don't know."

Selena: "Just that?"

Mina, still turned away, in a voice barely audible to Selena:  

"He's committed, polite, and strong because he defeated my brother Karl. And also kind." (raising her voice slightly) "But he's very cold."

Selena laughs softly:  

"Haha, so that's how it is. And he's handsome too, don't you agree? I think he's better than Zayn."

Mina blushes more and turns further away:  

"Maybe."

Many men who see her in that position faint comically.

---

We move to the prison.  

Karl enters, interrupting Altair and Kagero's conversation, saying:  

"Sorry for the delay.  

...