Chapter 8 Hard Enemy!

After he was done making some plans, it was time for him to go while it was still night, just around 8:00 PM.

Looking at Alfred, he instructed, "That is all, Uncle Alfred. I know there are still lots of problems, but let's delve into these problems tomorrow. We will begin to issue this royal order. You can go and sleep now, Uncle."

Alfred, hearing this, nodded, but he stayed there for a moment, looking at his young lord who had become mature overnight.

"You are not planning to back to the bar and the gambling site, are you Young Lord?" Alfred inquired with a scrutinizing gaze.

Alexander could not help but feel sad. "Uncle, I will not be going back into those places anymore, I promise. I'm a changed man right now. If I continue to idle then the kingdom that my Father built will go into ruins," he stated with a crooked smile.

"I see. Then I'm off now, Young Lord." Alfred then bowed his head as he left the room, leaving Alexander alone.

Alexander, now alone in the room, opened the window just behind him. The full moon was high in the sky.

He could see the town, the market, with only a few people. Looking afar, he could see the village and beyond that, the mountain range which was his destination.

With that, he exited the room as he walked in the hallway. When he arrived at his room, he went directly to the closet and found a green quilt.

There were no more jackets or robes, so he decided to use this for his cover right now. Picking it up and closing the door of the wardrobe, he was about to leave by walking to the door when a soft voice called him.

"Where are you going, Alex?" Serena asked, who was sitting on the bed when he went into his room.

She was already standing up with her hands on her chest, looking at him. Alexander stopped and saw Serena, making him dumbfounded for a moment.

"How come I didn't notice her presence?" Alexander said inwardly, but after thinking about how focused he was, this must be the case.

Alexander then stood there clumsily, not knowing what to say, since if he told her this, she would be worried about him all day.

"Uhh, I'm just going out, you see..." Alexander, searching for an explanation, froze when he heard a small muffled voice.

As he looked at Serena, her tear-streaked face met his gaze, her sobs making her words uneven.

"Didn't you just... sniff... promise me?" she said, her voice trembling as she wiped her tears with her sleeve.

"Are you just... sob... lying to me?" she managed to say between shaky breaths, her eyes filled with hurt and betrayal.

Alexander, seeing this, was frozen on the spot. When he saw her crying, his heart felt like it was being squashed.

"Damn, what did I do?" He panicked, as he went towards her and placed both of his hands on her shoulders.

Looking down since he was head-taller, she just continued to cry while he was very anxious.

"Serena, can you please stop crying? I think you got it wrong."

But when he said those words, her crying just got even stronger, as her head leaned into his chest, hitting him in the chest with her two delicate fists.

"Dang, dealing with a trash-talker is literally easier to ignore than this," He cursed inwardly, as he tried to use 100% of his EQ to stop her from crying, but nothing came.

So he's just going to let it go with the flow. "Wife, please stop crying. You're just making me anxious. Can you pleaseeee stop?"

Alexander pleaded in a soft voice filled with care. He hesitated to touch her hair, but in the end, he touched it, caressing it, feeling warm inside.

He couldn't describe the feeling, as a gentle smile began to form on his face when suddenly the girl between his arms finally stopped crying. She looked up, and their eyes were interlocked with each other.

Serena's eyes were a bit weary, and there were still some tears remaining in her eyes. She tried to wipe her nose, which was runny from crying.

When she exhaled some air, her nose made a sound. Looking at her silly look, he couldn't help but laugh, thinking he struck gold to be able to marry this kind of girl in his life.

"Look, when you continue to cry, you will look even more silly," Alexander said in a soft tone as he held her waist.

The feeling was so different, and he couldn't fully fathom or describe it since this is the first time he ever held a woman in his arms, a beautiful one at that.

Serena was very angry when he was still calling her by her name, making her slightly annoyed, but when he called her "wife," she couldn't help but feel very happy.

Especially seeing his scared and anxious look and hearing what he said in the end, made her a little shy, especially from his touch that was a bit intimate, considering he was currently holding her waist.

While both of their bodies were colliding with each other. Shaking her head, she returned to her normal self and looked at him deeply.

"Whe-where are you going then? It's night. Please don't go. I'm still here, that is if you wan-want to have sssee-" Seraphina muttered in a very low tone in the end, making the final words inaudible.

Her eyes were full of embarrassment as it darted around the room, not looking straight at him.

Alexander, hearing what she said, sighed. She clearly misunderstood him, and hearing his proposal, he was even more speechless. But he didn't want to take advantage of her because of this reason.

Looking at her with a smile filled with warmth and love, he responded while pinching her cheeks.

"Silly girl, if we are ever going to do it, I will first revive the kingdom, get married, and let all of the people and the neighboring kingdoms know that you are this lord's queen. So wait for me until I accomplish this, so I can give you a better life," Alexander remarked.

Hearing his plans for their soon-to-be special day, she was very happy that he would do this much for her. So as his greatest supporter, she would naturally support him.

"Okay then, Husband. I'll wait," She smiled, showing her peerless teeth.

"But where are you going in the night if not looking for your mistress! Where then?" Serena inquired with a scrutinizing gaze.

Alexander then explained that he was just going to investigate the kingdom's current situation outside since he and Alfred were planning to do something tomorrow.

He didn't really tell her the truth about him going to grind in the 'Grimhowl Forest' or else she would be greatly worried.

Seraphina, who was feeling reluctant since it's dangerous to go out at night, but since her husband had already made this decision, she decided to just agree with him.

Alexander then let go of her and bid farewell since he needed to walk his way over there. With his improved physique, he knew that he wouldn't get tired even if it was miles away.

His vitality and stamina were already tripled, so he was confident that even without a mount, he wouldn't collapse when he reached the outskirts of the place.

Before going, he took a sword, just an iron sword without any enchantment. "I should have bought a sword in the Omnishop, but I already gave the money to Alfred. Also, my strength seems to be focused on bare fists," he muttered, standing outside the palace in the roof of a small house.

With his green quilt that's like a robe fluttering in the wind, he looked so cool from below. When a kid saw him, his eyes were in a trance since he looked like a superhero in his eyes.

"Just because my strength is abnormal doesn't mean I don't need a weapon. I think a heavy sword, battle axe, or a trident. Actually, why am I even thinking about this?" he exclaimed, looking at the full moon.

"I'm already broke, so let's focus on the more important part first." With that, by exerting power in his legs, he jumped from roof to roof with great speed.

He was so fast that only a dark image could be seen. The kid, seeing him burst out in speed and disappear from sight, was filled with admiration.

"Amazing," the kid murmured when suddenly his ear was pulled by a big, fat woman.

"You little kid, go back inside now. Don't you know how dangerous nighttime is?" The mother of the kid angrily pulled him inside their house.

The kid could only cry in pain as he was pulled inside. Alexander, not knowing that he already had a fan, continued on his way.

He was in the core section of the kingdom. After a few minutes, he went down from the roof, arriving at the kingdom walls. They were so old and worn out that even a small cannonball would be enough to destroy them.

"It's actually worse seeing it rather than reading the reports," he said, glancing at the entrance of the kingdom. There was only a small number of soldiers stationed there, making him sigh.

The kingdom's soldiers looked so ordinary. Their armor, which was supposed to be silver, was so worn out that some of their chest plates had cracks in them.

Shaking his head, he decided to fix this problem tomorrow. The two soldiers guarding the door yawned since they were really tired.

Suddenly, a strong gust of wind as a black shadowy figure burst. Passing between the two guards, making them unsheathe their swords, but it was too late.

"What the heck was that?" the soldier who had just yawned exclaimed, looking at the road leading outside the kingdom.

"Did you feel it too?" a soldier beside him inquired with a confused look.

"Yes, I saw a black shadowy figure just pass us. But I didn't see anything when I looked around," the first soldier responded, scratching his head.

"Hmm, I think we're just tired. Let's just forget about it," the second soldier replied, sheathing his sword as the first soldier nodded.

They then stood guard and treated what had just happened as their imagination. By the time Alexander left, he had already reached the forest and continued on his way.

If he's right, and if he continues going this way, he will eventually arrive at his destination. Finally, he gets out of the forest. In front of him is an endless expanse of grass, and with that, he continues on his way.

"I can't believe that after crossing hundreds of kilometers, I can still run without getting tired," Alexander exclaimed in surprise.

He kept running as he looked at his stamina, which was depleting since he had been running non-stop for half an hour.

[Stamina: 65 → 64. 63. 62. 61 → 65]

This made him stunned, as every 5 minutes, his stamina was replenished, making him feel more energetic.

"Now I understand why it's a legendary bloodline," Alexander muttered, closing the system panel.

With this, he felt that fighting for days non-stop would not tire him out at all. This passive skill was clearly too OP.

After crossing the expanse of grass, he was back in the forest, and he continued running. He just wondered why he hadn't encountered any beasts along the way.

He had already crossed about 3 miles and had been running on foot for hours now. He was even much faster than a vehicle. Glancing back at his stats, the stamina was still full, making him smile wryly.

"I'm literally a broken character," he mused inwardly.

While he was contemplating why he hadn't spotted any beasts, his wish came true when he heard a loud growl from some kind of animal.

As he dashed deeper into the area, the growl grew stronger, and it seemed like it was following him the moment he heard those sounds again and again.

So, he stopped in his tracks and glanced at the surrounding area. The forest was not really that thick or filled with underbrush, but it was somewhat dark as he tried to glance around.