Chapter 11: A Predicament

"I told you, I'm no one of interest at all." Kaze raised his voice slightly, trying to get his point across to the man in front of him.

After an unsavory encounter with the bandits moments before, the knight in golden armor took it upon himself to threaten Kaze into them sitting down in a secluded spot in a tavern. Kaze was stubborn, but the knight's blade was at the time very close to his neck and could have ended his life in an instant.

The knight took off his helmet and headpiece, revealing lush blonde hair and brown eyes. It was more of a show of respect to the other patrons and the owner of the tavern, it would be rude if a knight did not humble themselves in an establishment of entertainment and safety. He takes a deep breath and finally spoke to Kaze.

"You are not from here, right? Or have you lost your mind?" He questioned.

"If I have lost it, I would not be able to fend those bandits off. And yes, I am not from here." Kaze responded in the only way he could.

"Then..." The knight trailed off, looking to the side and seeing the spear that Kaze has rested to the side of the seat. "What do you have there? Do you have the slightest clue what that weapon is?"

"I have no idea. It was just given to me by my father as an heirloom." There's that cover story that Kaze wants to use again. He was lying about it, but the way he spoke would make it seem otherwise.

"Then where did you come from then, stranger?" The knight pushed further.

"Opami," Kaze responded immediately, now getting used to the intricate web of lies he created.

"The Grand Duchy of Opami, huh.." The knight hummed, pondering for a moment.

"Then who is the current ruler?" The knight said with a smirk growing on his face.

Silence fills the space between them, now filled by the ambiance of the tavern they are conversing in. There's no way Kaze could figure this out just by guessing or lying, he needed a name of some sort. Unless...

"The grand duke of course!" Kaze answered and laughed nervously, knowing this won't slide. But he was out of options at this point, and not answering entirely will make it a disaster for him.

"You sure about that?" The knight's tone or expression did not change, so that bogus of an answer probably could work in this case. Well no turning back now.

"A-Ah yes, of course. I came from there so I would know it would be him."

"Thing is... You are wrong about one thing." The knight eased up his posture and leaned back on his seat. He took a deep breath and exhaled with a satisfied look on his face. "Not only is the grand duke dead and a regent had to take over, but the regent... Is female."

"O-Oh right. Last I heard from home, he was still the ruler." Another lie coming out of Kaze.

"Not only that, and you don't even remember his name or his daughter's name?" The knight raised an eyebrow.

It was about time to give up this whole charade. There's not a chance Kaze can convince someone from this world about something he has no idea about. Surely whatever punishment or sanctions that will be placed upon him will be lighter if he just dropped the act right now.

"...Alright, you got me. I have no idea. I am not from here entirely." Kaze said after a bit of hesitation.

"That much is obvious. Where did you come from anyway? Don't tell me you're from New Ventia, if that was the case, I won't hesitate to fillet you this instant." The knight glared at Kaze.

"I have no idea what or where that is, either. I'm telling the truth this time!" Kaze waves his hands in a panic because of yet another threat that the knight has imposed on him.

"I suppose I'll believe you now that you admit defeat in your actions. How did you end up here?"

"I don't know." It was a straight answer. Technically, he could recall how he was first forced to take the spear and then be dropped off in the plains of this country, but that would be too specific and too ominous at this time. "I just woke up with this spear next to me."

"I see..." The knight remarked, visibly disappointed with the response he received from Kaze. "That spear right there was forged by the best blacksmith in Maveicalia. Their name and origin are still being speculated, but that spear was used by Leo II to crush the tribes that opposed him long ago when the Empire was but a rising kingdom in the region."

"You at least have the common sense to go out and learn about the place you ended up in right? I'm surprised you know about the Grand Duchy next to us, so I humored you." The knight chuckled.

"Yes, yes, I at least know that this is the Maveicalian Empire. Other than that, all other information is new to me." Kaze let out a soft sigh, now realizing his mistake earlier.

"And now you are the person that possesses the weapon that has served the Empire's second-ever ruler. We have been looking for that thing ever since Leo II died in battle. We assumed that the enemy took it as a war trophy, but even our best informants and spies came to us with nothing. It has been missing for the past 250 years, boy. It remains to be one of the mysteries of the Empire." He went on, looking over to the spear again and shook his head. "To be in the hands of someone that does not belong to this world? I must be in some sort of dream." He laughed in amusement.

"So what do you want from me, then? Do you just want me to hand it over?" Kaze cut to the chase, not wanting to waste any time.

"Oh, no, no, boy. We won't let you just walk away like that. The spear heeds to you."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Watch." The knight leaned over to try and take hold of the spear that was beside Kaze, but the spear simply refused to be lifted, and it looked like the knight was using all force he had to try and get the weapon off the seat. After a moment, he huffs and sits back down. "And I was not bluffing that. Now you try."

Kaze leans over to his side to effortlessly pick up the spear by its handle, not finding any difficulty in doing so. He lifts it and down to see if any weight would suddenly appear on the weapon, but nothing happens at all.

"Huh..." Kaze looked down at the spear and exhaled. "So I'm the only one who can use this thing?" He looked back up to the knight.

"That's right. And even if you were to fall in this world, no one else will be able to hold that weapon. So we are going to have to take some precautions..." He trailed off and looked out of the window.

You'll be holding me as a captive?" Kaze assumed the worst and pulled out a guess that came out of nowhere.

"No, that would be too much. You are the one that controls that spear, it would benefit us if we had an asset like you." The knight explained bluntly. "We... Well, more like I want you to join the ranks of the standing army. But not just some regular old levy, you'll be part of the Royal Guard." He smirked as he offered the proposition.

"Who are you to say that can happen? Aren't you just some knight that happened to come across me outside the city walls?" Kaze questioned out of skepticism and wanted to make sure he wasn't getting set up or fooled.

"You're talking to the Captain of the Royal Guard, Jerome Ivanov." He picks up the helmet he took off moments before and gestured to how there were golden features not only his helmet but on his entire suit of armor. "Now that reminds me. What's your name, boy?"

"Kaze. Kaze Fubuki." He introduced himself. "And that offer is tempting. I don't have any choice right now. I have some gold, this spear, this book, and nothing else to my name." He thought out loud. "But I want to make something clear. I don't want to serve as your pawn or your Emperor's pawn. I serve for the sake of my survival. I will not swear an oath or my loyalty to your cause."

Jerome shook his head and leaned back onto his seat. "I bet you're response would have been completely different if you didn't have the spear as your leverage. Any knight or levy has to swear eternal loyalty to His Majesty. But I suppose if you put it that way, I have no choice but to accept your conditions. You're a lot clever than you give away, Kaze."

"To be perfectly honest with you, Captain Jerome, I just want to go home," Kaze stated bluntly. "What if you were to be transported to another world and have no clue what to do?" He asks.

"About the same courses of action that you took. We got eyes everywhere, Kaze." He raises his right arm and snapped his fingers, a bunch of hooded figures that were close to them the entire time unveil themselves and all look to Jerome. "Ever since you appeared on the plains near the plains of Equora, spent a night there trying to blend in, and marching over to Tanal in hopes of employment, we were watching. You were just too important for us to just leave you be, sorry."

"How about on my way here, then? When the bandits attacked, why didn't any of you do anything? Plus, how did that bandit take that spear out of my hand now that I think about it?" He was talking to the spies that surrounded them.

"We just wanted to see if you could defend yourself. If things got bad, we would pop out and help you out." A male spy behind Kaze spoke up.

"Legend says that the spear was free for anyone to use until... The chosen user by the spear can do some extraordinary things with it. That's why I went out there so suddenly. I was simply stunned by what I was looking at." Jerome remarked.

"I guess that works too. So how's this going to work, Captain?" Kaze held onto his spear and stood up.

"Every member of the Royal Guard has to meet the Emperor and the Princess and swear their fealty to them. But I suppose things will be a bit different this time around. I have no idea how the Emperor will respond to this, but he won't have a choice once he sees a relic that was assumed to be lost to time..." Jerome stood up as well and puts his helmet back on.

"You done interrogating the foreigner, Jerome?" A female voice abruptly disrupts the serious air in the atmosphere. It was a young woman with long purple hair. It looks like she was helping out in the tavern, as she was holding a serving dish in her hands.

"We've reached an agreement. He'll be part of the Royal Guard from this day forth. Now we'll just deal with some pleasantries. Kaze, let's move."

"Right behind you."

With that, the two men just leave the lady with not much of an answer. "H-Hey! What do you mean? How could he be so important?!" Her yells could be heard behind them as they got farther and farther away from the tavern they conversed in. The spies that happened to be in the tavern followed suit but made sure they had a considerable distance between them and the two.

"Where are we headed, Captain?" Kaze asked, despite knowing that they were going to visit the Emperor a visit. But he didn't know where to be exact.

"The imperial palace. Right there in the middle." Jerome pointed to a keep that was surrounded by high walls. Watchtowers and the central keep loomed over the rest of the capital. You would only notice it if someone pointed it out, though.

"Damn. You better cover for me, though. Not only am I an unexpected guest, but I also will not bend down in his presence." Kaze reminded the other male.

"Who knows. You may be acclaimed as some hero once I explain the whole thing to them." Jerome answered back, sarcastically.

"That would be nice, but I haven't done anything yet..." Kaze looks down at the spear in his hands and could not help but smile to himself. "Not yet, anyway." He added with a hint of cockiness in his tone.

They kept making small,-talk as they walked through the city. From looking at the environment, the city is very prosperous and lively. According to Jerome, it is thanks to the Northern lords that provide expensive materials like gemstones that are used for accessories.

"Suddenly, a group of women wearing school uniforms stops the two in their tracks. Jerome motioned for Kaze to back off a bit. Kaze complied but confused as to why.

"Ladies, what do you need from me today?" Jerome's tone turned suave and he took off his helmet.

"Oh Captain, we were just going to see if our Support magic training is coming along fine. We just want to check your-" One of the girls spoke, but was cut short by Jerome.

"I'm afraid you asked me that yesterday as well. Don't think you can fool me by putting on the hood of your uniforms." He reaches for one girl's hood and pulls it back, revealing her face. "You already know my Tier, it's A if you remember. Now if you'll excuse me I have some business to attend to." Jerome looked back to Kaze and gestured him to move quickly as he followed after him, putting the helmet back on.

"Support magic? There's magic in this world?" Was the first thing Kaze asked him once they were at the same pace.

"Yes, there's a few types of magic. Elemental, Light, Dark, and finally Support." Jerome sounded a bit frustrated but he soon realized that Kaze probably never encountered things like magic before.

"I can get the first three types, but what about Support? What does it do?" Kaze pressed further.

"You know that lady's tent you entered in when you were still in that village? She's what we call a Witch. A person that checks your Tier and stats. She probably completed her training here in the capital and moved out since it's too crowded." Jerome explained.

"Only women can do Support magic?"

"Goddess herself Qhizelia made it so. If a male were to do Support magic, they would just explode."

"That's oddly specific but alright." Kaze shook off the thought and now also found out that this country, maybe even the world has its religion. He'll inquire about it to someone who's not Jerome, or if things are a little different from now.

"How about you and the ladies? You seem to be popular." Kaze observed.

"Ah well, you know how it is if you have a position like mine. If a man were to threaten His Majesty's life, they will have to come through me first. Every soldier in the Empire sees my position as a dream of theirs. It's one of the highest honors a man can receive, besides serving His Majesty directly of course." Jerome took a look at their surroundings, like checking if there was any imminent danger that could pose a threat to them.

"And as for the ladies... Well, they throw themselves at me because everyone knows I don't have a child yet. Every single young lady will try their hand at marrying the Captain, and it's only just to secure their future." He added, growing frustrated with the topic they were discussing.

"You want a girl that loves you for you, huh?" Kaze's voice softened, and his composure wavered for a split second. A flood of memories surge to his brain but he immediately brushed them off and was curious about what Jerome had to respond with.

"You're right. I don't want a marriage that solely exists for pure benefit. No love or affection is just... Painful." Jerome responded, but their little conversation was cut short by them reaching the front gates of the Imperial Palace. Two guards block their way.

"You've arrived back safe, Captain." One of the guards spoke, but their expression changed once their eyes land on Kaze. "Who's this? Is he someone that needs to speak with His Majesty?" The other guard expressed both of their confusion.

"This man holds the relic that we've been searching for decades." Jerome took the arm Kaze was using to hold the spear and lifts it, presenting the weapon to the two guards. They were shocked and immediately lowered their guard, stepping to the side.

Jerome then starts walking forward towards the palace's main entrance, and Kaze follows behind. Guards, maids, and butlers littered around the area doing their task that was assigned to them. Only the guards were paying close attention to who it was that was following the Captain around. They kind of just stood there in the distance, just watching them from the palace's walls. It did not take long for the two to arrive at the main hall, though. Where people in very lavish clothing were conversing and lounging around. These are probably some of the vassals or other lords around the Emperor's finger.

"Let's not waste any time. Right over here." Jerome spoke in a hushed voice, ushering for Kaze to move quietly through the lounge and through the hallways that would eventually lead to the throne room. Some noblemen and women tried to get their attention for questioning, but they simply walked past them and pretended they did not exist.

Now lies a grand door in front of them. From its handle to its hinges, gemstone, and fine metal lace the thing, giving it a very elegant aura. It reaches the point where Kaze doesn't want to lay a finger on it. "You open it." Kaze looked to Jerome, "It might break or something, man." He laughed nervously.

Jerome took a deep breath and sighed deeply, "If you insist. Prepare yourself, and don't get too cocky, now." With those words, Jerome placed a hand on the center of the door, and push it open.

A red carpet is what they first see, which leads to a throne made out of solid gold and velvet. Behind the throne is a purple curtain that shields the residents inside from the sun. There are also silver seats that are next to the throne for special guests or visiting countries. White marble columns array the path of the carpet, and the high windows are covered by red sheets that have designs that depict a story if one pays attention to what's happening in the graphics.

Jerome takes a few steps forward and takes a knee before the Emperor that's seated upon the throne. The man before them is what looks like a relatively young man, in his early 30s. He has flowing brown hair and emerald green eyes. Kaze expected this man would have a full-grown beard and was terminally ill or somewhere along those lines.

"What have you come here for, Captain? I don't remember summoning you." The Emperor's gaze directs toward Jerome, and his tone is rather harsh.

"Your Majesty. We have finally found it." Jerome raises his head to look at the Emperor. "The D'yavola. It's in safe hands."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor's eyes widened and his expression wavered into a state of shock and awe. "Where is it?! Bring it to me this instant!" His excitement leaked from his voice, and his prior demeanor was completely replaced with a man that looks like he lost something very valuable to him, and now it's being brought back to him.

"There's only... One problem." Jerome stood up and looked back to the grand door, Kaze still has not entered the throne room. "Step forward and meet the Emperor, Izbrannyy."

And so Kaze did, holding our the spear with one hand, he walks down the red carpet and stops as he was at the same position as Jerome. He was very nervous, it's like he ever met with anyone super important before in his world. And now he's meeting one of the leading figures in a major country in this world. It was quite surreal, like in a story he liked before.

"I wield it now. And according to legend, only a chosen user can even lift this weapon. My name is Kaze Fubuki." Real smooth. Kaze did his best to sound and look cool there, and it worked pretty well, he thought. Kaze held the spear by the handle and pointed the tip at the Emperor's direction, then did a little strike downwards and brought the spear back to pointing down. This was done to prove that he could indeed hold and use the spear properly to an extent.

"I see." The man before them sounded pretty disappointed, and it was to be expected. The spear probably was reserved for only the Emperor to use. But here's this guy, flailing it around trying to look intimidating.

"Kaze Fubuki. You hold the D'yavola, the Devil in common language. It was forged by our greatest blacksmith, and given to my Great-great grandfather. At first, it did not have a name, but in one battle, the spear glowed red, and fired off a bolt of energy so powerful that it took out an entire army." He retold the full version of the legend. "250 years later, and now we find it in your hand. How could it be? Were you related to the Saskerov bloodline in any way?" He asked.

"I have no idea about that. I only appeared in this world yesterday." Kaze stated. "And it so happened I woke up with this spear with me. The Captain over here can explain if you don't believe me." He said looking to Jerome to his side.

"What he says is true, Your Majesty. We've been keeping a close eye on him since yesterday. We could not afford for him to die, after all." Jerome affirmed.

The Emperor pondered for a moment, deciding what to do with the situation in front of him. "Well then, it seems some strange circumstances have brought you to this world. Goddess knows what it might be, but for now, I'll be putting you under the protection of the Empire, Kaze Fubuki."

"Your Majesty." Jerome interrupted. "I suggest that we bring him into the Royal Guard. He may not know how to fight so well now, but I'll train him myself. And the power that spear has, he needs to be able to control it." He explained further.

"That's a very good idea, Captain. I trust that you will make him a fine asset for the Empire. Now, Kaze Fubuki, I want you to swear you-"

"No." Kaze interrupted him. "I am not going to swear anything to you. I came to this world and I don't have a clue on if I should trust you or not. From the history of my world, great warriors usually just die in vain in the name of their liege." He explained.

"Isn't that what a good warrior should do?" The Emperor tried to rebut Kaze. He was visibly offended by the man's insolence.

"I would say that if I was serving my own country back home. But here, I know absolutely no one, and I have no good reason to serve you. I want to go home, sir." Kaze came back with his answer. "Just make me part of the Royal Guard. I'll do whatever is required of me so that I won't be killed in retribution. Remember, as you said, this thing can take out armies." He pointed the tip of the spear towards the Emperor again, then brought it back down.

"Alright, alright, fine. For now, I won't need you to swear an oath to me. But when you are needed, you better respond to the Captain here." The Emperor's expression softens, and he figured it wouldn't fare well if he argued with the now chosen one that possesses a dangerous weapon.

He stands up from his throne, walking over to Kaze and unsheathing the saber that was on his side. "I, Leo Saskerov VI, present you this blade that will be our bond. You will fight for the sake of the Empire, or even for yourself in this case. Let all those that cross you fall by your hands, and may the Goddess grace you with her protection and divine wisdom." He holds the blade up with two hands, and Kaze promptly takes it. "This is certainly a new type of recruit, huh, Jerome?" Leo flashed a smile, something Kaze has never seen before from this man.

"No one has ever refused a direct offer like that from His Majesty before, Kaze. But trust me, he's a huge idiot that just wants to be formal to strangers." Jerome's tone softens as well.

"Even if you're reasons are outright insulting, it makes sense. I wouldn't want to serve some old fart I just met either." Leo takes a seat back on his throne. "Oh yeah, Captain, can you check on my daughter for me? I sent a squad of Royal Guard to act as her bodyguard, but you never know."

"Where did she go this time?" Jerome asked curiously.

"She nagged at me for days that she wants to go out into the forest right outside the city walls. Today, I finally gave in. Now I'm getting pretty worried, she's been out at least an hour later than we agreed upon." Leo explained the situation, resting his head upon his hands.

"We'll look for her. I'll do this to prove I'm not completely disloyal to you." Kaze spoke up to Leo instead of Jerome who was going to speak first.

Leo was amused and nodded simply in response. "I'm pretty sure she just wandered off and the Guard has no choice but to follow her around, but thank you anyway, Kaze Fubuki."

"We'll be heading out then, Your Majesty. We'll be back shortly." Jerome finalized it and tapped Kaze on the shoulder before walking towards the grand door, with Kaze walking after him.

***

The two now find themselves at the entrance of the capital, the dense forest now covering most sightlines. Jerome has the whole layout of the forest memorized in his head, and they opted to make a methodical sweep to cover a lot more ground than one would try and do normally. They run into some forest bandits in these patrols, but all of them were cut down easily with Jerome being a seasoned knight while Kaze supported by acting as a skirmisher, throwing his spear into an enemy, then attract it back with the ability it has.

Other than that, nothing was found so far. They were about midway through their patrol, but a rather familiar sound rings in Kaze's ears. The crackle of a bullet flying by and the projectile landed somewhere behind the pair. The two freeze for a second, but Kaze was the first to take initiative. From his time playing shooter games, he knows it's suicide if you just stand around and not do anything.

"Move with me, Captain. I'll zone them out." These are the rare occasions Kaze has a good grip on the situation, and it looked like Jerome has no idea what they are dealing with. A woman's scream can be heard from the distance in front of them, and yet another gunshot rings out. But this time, it did not go in the pair's direction. The two move through the trees and foliage, and eventually, they found a scene that Kaze never expected to see in this world.

A bunch of corpses littered the ground, wearing the apparel and armor that Jerome was wearing. Assuming this was the squad that Leo sent out to protect his daughter, they did a terrible job. Hiding behind a tree, a woman holding what looks like... A rifle? Kaze was no gun expert, but it looked like a single-shot breach-action rifle. The woman looked like her father, long brown hair, and emerald green eyes. She was not wearing a dress or anything too formal, just a red padded shirt with leather features, and blue pants that went down to her shins.

Currently, though, she peeks out from her protection and takes a shot at a figure that is slowly but surely making their way towards her. Every time the princess tries to fire at the figure, they get engulfed in a black mist and move a few inches forward before being visible and normal again. "Come on, princess, if you just come with me, you won't be hurt." The assailant spoke, and their voice was masculine in sound and volume.

"Get away from me, you creep! Just die already!" The princess yelled back in desperation, peeking out again and firing after a reload.

"No can do." The man cloaks himself again, and the bullet harmlessly passes through the mist, and once it's through he reveals himself again after advancing a small distance. Kaze can now clearly see the man from their little hiding place that is at the flank of the scene. The man takes off his hood to reveal his face. A young man who just entered adulthood recently, short black hair, and soulless grey eyes. On his left hand, he holds a mini-crossbow made out of wood and fiber. On his right hand, magical energy colored pure black is emanating, and he holds it out into a ball as a type of technique to manipulate or rein it in.

Kaze has to make a decision now. He needs to save the girl quickly, but he stands probably no chance against the assassin sent by whoever wants the princess alive in close combat considering he has some kind of dark magic he can use. Time was ticking, and Kaze decided with the safest option. He readies his spear and aims it toward the assassin, using his left hand as a sort of guide for aiming. Once his right arm was chambered far enough, he hurls the spear at the assassin's general direction, then which happens to stab him right on the upper thigh. A wince of pain came from the man, and he staggered to stay balanced, but Kaze quickly recalled the spear back to his hand, which caused an unprecedented amount of pain and discomfort for the assailant. He proceeds to drop to the ground and writhe and pain.

Kaze gives Jerome a good smack on the back as a signal for him to close in to finish him off. Jerome nods and closes in on the man and tries to end his life with a stab of his sword. But as the sword is about to pierce his neck, he engulfs himself in the same black mist and speeds away as fast as possible.

"Drat, we lost him!" Jerome regains his composure and looks over to the direction the assassin fled to.

"More importantly." Kaze looks at the girl who's practically shaking in fear behind them.

"Are you okay?"