Ryn
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Chapter 202
🕑 Added 2024-11-12 19:00:04 +0000 UTCUpon closer inspection, the building was in quite good shape. The stone wasn’t brand new, but there weren’t any large signs of damage and the glass windows were quite clean. Even the hedges were maintained properly.
However, as they walked toward the front door they were intercepted by two unknown assailants.
“Hey, Elder Han, who’s the kid?” A brat with red hair and dirt all over his face asked.
“Shut up, Landon. Ever since you turned ten you have been calling everyone kid, as if you aren’t a kid yourself,” another kid that was following behind who was similarly covered in dirt but had black hair.
“Yeah, so what?”
“Then stop calling people older than you ‘kid’, it’s weird,” the black-haired boy told Landon.
“You’re weird!”
“Yeah, but you’re more weird!”
An argument quickly started and the old man, who was supposedly named Elder Han just sighed and massaged his forehead.
“Landon, Abel, stop yelling at each other. You guys better go get cleaned up before Sister Cathy gets mad at you two for being late.”
That seemed to scare the boys into compliance. The moment the name Cathy came out, the two of them stopped immediately and ran off to get cleaned. As they were sprinting, the red-haired boy tripped the other boy and ran away with a giggle.
Julius observed Elder Han smile as the old man watched the two boys run away.
“Kids will be kids,” the old man finally said.
Julius just grunted in agreement as the two of them calmly walked toward the building.
“Who are you really?” Julius asked curiously.
Unlike the last time, the old man actually gave him a serious glance. “Just an old man trying to find some purpose in these old bones before I kick the bucket.”
“And before that?”
The old man shook his head. “Not important anymore.”
Julius was about to press more but withheld his curiosity. The man obviously didn’t want to talk about it, and Julius could respect that.
“Do you run this orphanage?” Julius asked, changing the subject.
Elder Han nodded. “Partly. I have plenty of help and each one is as vital to the upkeep of the orphanage as I am.”
They paused as a group of small little girls ran by in a hurry. Probably scared of Sister Cathy like those two boys were.
Once they were out of earshot, he asked the old, “How did you know about the guards?”
“In a town like this, it’s more difficult not to notice anything out of the ordinary,” the old man said cryptically.
“What does that mean?”
“It means that you don’t often see two Tier 2 kids exuding the aura you and your friend do in a town this size. Most of the kids who even come close either end up going to an academy to study or end up joining a sect.”
“Sects?” He asked.
“You never heard of sects?” The old man asked surprised.
“No, I do, but information was pretty limited about them,” he explained.
It was true. Even with the extensive library, he hadn’t really found much about sects. Then again, he wasn’t that interested in them and hadn’t looked that hard. He was more interested in fun stories and interesting historical accounts that might give him some inspiration for his skills.
As far as he understood it, sects were like private communities. Those who were a part of them rarely interacted with the outside world.
There was supposedly a pretty large sect near Heston. It was called the Stormbreaker Sect and from what Julius had heard about it, its members were quite powerful fighters. However, from what Julius had heard they stayed out of the Empire’s politics and focused on fighting monsters.
“Well, there are a few local sects around here that every so often have an exam to scout out talent. Most of the children who have it, end up going with them or choose to go to an academy.”
“Is there a large difference between academies and sects?” Julius asked, taking advantage of an opportunity to learn more about this world.
“Of course.”
“Like what?” He asked.
“Well, some people choose academies because there is less of a commitment. Whereas, if you joined a sect, it is kind of a lifetime commitment. You can’t share what you learn from them with others and you owe your allegiance to them,” the old man explained as he opened the door for Julius.
Julius had to wait to enter as one last group of children ran past him, eager to get some food.
“So why would people even consider a sect?”
“Power,” Elder Han explained simply. “Because of your commitment, you are able to learn much more powerful skills and techniques.”
“You make it sound like academies don’t provide that.”
The two of them were walking down a long hallway that was warmly lit. It felt distinctly homey and cozy.
Elder Han turned to look at him with a meaningful look. “Do they? You should know better than anyone else.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It’s pretty obvious. If you were from a sect you would know more about them and from the way your defending academies make it seem like you go to one,” Elder Han stated, but then sighed. “Look, I’m not trying to say that academies are useless. But there is a reason why most students are nobles. They already have backing from their families, they have skills and legacies with long histories. Not every commoner has that.”
“There are commoners at the academy I go to,” he pointed out to the old man.
“Those are the outliers. Most commoners, especially the ones out here choose to enter a sect or some sort of association. Not only will they get access to more help with their skills but also they gain the backing of an established power. The allegiance goes both ways. Just as you have to be loyal to your sect, your sect will have your back when you need it.”
Julius paused as he thought about that.
It made sense. Most of the students he met at Goldencrest already had an idea of what kind of skillset they were pursuing. Their families most likely picked many of them out for them when they were young.
He couldn’t expect that all commoners were like himself and were able to acquire powerful skills on their own. Some would need some guidance to do so, and he hasn’t seen that from Goldencrest. Even Gabriel was limited in what he could show Julius, the big baldy said so himself.
But if you were to swear a magical oath to keep how one learned a skill a secret and to swear loyalty, then it wouldn’t be unfair to say that someone would be more willing to teach a person said skills.
Goldencrest didn’t have anything like that in place. They had opportunities to get stronger, but it was very much a find-your-own-way type of school. However, you also didn’t tie yourself to a single power.
Regardless, for a commoner with nothing to support them except for their families, he could see how the sects were a superior offer.
Elder Han waved his hand. “I don’t know how I ended up lecturing you on my dated opinions, but I apologize. You are free to make your own opinion later in your life. But for the moment let’s just go eat. Sister Cathy doesn’t like it when anybody is late, that goes for me as well,” he chuckled.
***
Reinera POV
She had no idea where Julius had run off to. She spent several minutes knocking on the door to his room, but there was no response, which likely meant that he was out.
She had wanted to take the time to have a sit-down and real talk with Julius now that everything had calmed down.
There wasn’t exactly a lot of time, nor it was the right place to have a heart-to-heart in a labyrinth. But now that they had reached a town, it was different.
Where could he have gone? Did he go out and get some more food? She thought to herself wonderingly.
She would be the first one to admit it, but she loved food more than most people would find healthy. However, Julius might have been an even larger fanatic when it came to food.
Although they had been stuck in a Tier 3 rift, Julius had no end of delicious and delectable treats. It was like the boy had his very own personal buffet stored in his storage ring. It wasn’t like she was complaining though. It had made the frightening experience much more bearable. It was amazing what a few good meals could do for the soul and morale.
Thinking about it for a moment, she decided to go and look for him. While she was at it, she could observe the town for herself.
As a princess who was always guarded by Amelia or others, she rarely had the opportunity to explore on her own. However, now that she did have that chance, she wanted to take it.
It was this same feeling of freedom that prevented her from letting her family’s retainers from knowing where she was.
She hadn’t told Julius, but she had an item that would activate as a distress beacon. The moment it was activated, a team led by a space mage would appear in a matter of minutes.
However, she hadn’t activated it after they left the rift and she still wasn’t activating it now. She knew it was selfish and Julius might have been angry if he found out, but she wanted to experience this just for a little. Her entire life she had been caged up and coddled, and she just wanted to see how it felt to be someone normal.
Someone who wasn’t burdened with royal responsibilities.
As she left the noisy inn, she started to walk down the street aimlessly. She had no direction and really didn’t have the intention of finding Julius. It was just a pretense for her to leave her room and explore.
The sun was falling over the horizon and she noticed how quiet the town seemed.
It was so different than what she was used to. Heston and the Capital were always busy, it didn’t matter what time of day it was. It could be two in the morning and there would be many people out and about.
Stonewall was different. There was this distinct sense of peace as she walked down the streets. There was the occasional laughter and noises coming from homes and restaurants, but it was peaceful and she was enjoying it.
The crisp night air felt great against her skin.
It felt so great that she found a bench near a fountain and sat there for a while, just taking it all in. She didn’t know the next time she would be able to do something like this. She didn’t know the next time she would be completely alone. So she savored every second of it.
It was just too bad she wasn’t allowed to.
She felt the impact before she sensed the mana. Something cracked the back of her head with a surprising amount of force.
The blow completely caught her off guard and she instinctively threw out a bunch of mana at random.
She had been so focused on enjoying the moment that she let her guard down. It was so stupid of her, she had been reminded of not doing it so many times, yet here she was.
Still, whoever was attacking her wouldn’t get an easy fight. She tried to steel her hazy mind, still disorientated from the ambush, and sent a barrage of smaller spears of light at the attackers.
There were half a dozen masked attackers and all Tier 3s, but her quick response had surprised them. They probably weren’t expecting such a violent reaction from a Tier 2 girl.
It took one of them by so much surprise that he allowed himself to get pummeled by the spears of light. One of them, stabbing quite deep in his stomach.
However, to their credit, they didn’t take it lying down. The rest of them threw out blasts of mana and those who didn’t have a ranged attack rushed her down.
She tried her best, she really did. She used everything, including her improved physical enhancement skill, but half a dozen Tier 3s were too much for her. The attacks smashed through her defenses and there were too many of them for her to deal any damage.
She clawed and scratched her way, making sure that she didn’t give up. That was one thing she learned from Julius. It was to not accept defeat so easily. However, she didn't have his overpowered skills to back her up.
Regardless, she gave it her all. Every ounce of mana was spent fighting back. Even when she was tossed off of her feet and clobbered in the face, she didn’t let up.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t like Julius, who could beat down an entire group of Tier 3s with ease and eventually fell under the barrage.
However, as she did, she got a good look at the people who attacked her and couldn’t help but smile when she saw them worn out and bloodied from their fight.
“Grab the girl quickly. We made way too much noise. People are going to come to investigate,” a voice called out.
“Can we just kill the bitch?”
“No! She is way more valuable alive. Anyone who is wearing clothes made out of Void Panther materials is definitely the daughter of some rich noble.”
The one time I just wanted to get some fresh air, she sighed to herself as the darkness came for her.
Comments
Kevin O'Malley
Might have been a good time to activate that distress beacon.
Raven
Yes, it fits her character. But let's be honest, we are reading story about Julius. Who would read her story? Not me.
PikaAndrew
Tftc
A B
Edit suggestion: No, I do -> No, I have have it, end up -> have it end up
V B
From the mention of the beacon, I'm honestly done. It seems like the story is written by someone else... I'll come back in the future and see if it improves.
L Pedersen
You have mentioned that most people will get to t3 in their lifetimes, it just seemed like the situation was tailored for the princess to fail (which is probably was?). Don't feel to bad about the criticism from this chapter though, as someone else pointed out later you've put out 200 chapters and this was the first time I felt the need to leave some criticism. I stand by what I wrote but it's also possible that if I could have just clicked the "next chapter" button it wouldn't have been that big an issue. That's honestly the biggest problem with editing and improving a serial story, it's hard to know what criticism is valid and on point and what stems from the readers getting blue balled by the story and since they can't read on they have time to think about the last chapter and make comments :P Still, I hope this gets resolved quickly but since you're awesome we won't have to wait that long.
Ryan
This is actually a part of the main plot, I don't know if that is a spoiler or not. As for the 6 Tier 3s, I could be wrong but I believe I made sure to mention that almost everyone will eventually get to Tier 3 sometime in their lifetime with minimal effort. I do feel bad about having her get kidnapped again, but to be fair, she is a princess. Still, I will take your guy's complaints to heart. Oh and the sects aren't really that big of a deal. I just wanted to talk about them because they are involved in the future and are a part of the wider world. Just planting some seeds with a few sentences and to throw off people who like to make guesses.
Paul Smith
I really like this chapter! I can see that several people have issues with it, but frankly, we’re 200+ chapters in to this series, and Ryn hasn’t let me down yet. This fits the personality of the princess. I mean seriously, if nothing else it reinforces Julis’ belief that this is a savage world. He is the sage of savagery after all! Sometimes he needs a chance to be savage to someone other than himself.
meu 32
I bet he did, he probably either decided it wasn't his place to interfere, or the next chapter will start with him informing Julius and Julius getting there just barely too late.
Bacardi Baiju
Stopping Patreon today, there has been nothing but description of food and inconsequential events for the past few months.
Amazon Shopper
i think its just that this entire thing feels contrived and forced. like why specifically 6 tier 3s. That is overkill to kidnap the average tier 3 noble, let alone a 15 year old girl. Another divergence from main story to force julius and princess romance. it doesn't read well
Amazon Shopper
i thought u were about to say mourn the loss of 1/2 the patreon subscribers...
Amazon Shopper
I hope that this isn't another sort of side-plot. would def remove ptrn and just wait for rr to catch up. Not worth it if its just going to be jumping from side story to side story, minimal plot progression other then the forced romance between mc and princess where he is forced to save her over and over again. the worst part is that it isn't consistent, they are in a small town in middle of nowhere, only there for 1 day, it really feels like 6 tier 3s was chosen by the author as the minimum amount of assailents to be able to subdue her without issue, not because it makes sense in universe but as an excuse for this side plot/story thats about to happen. i dont like
L Pedersen
Yeah I'm late to the party but it seems like most people feel the same way I do. This just seems bad. In the Julius pov we get exposition about sects instead of getting the info he needs to get back to goldencrest, which I would have thought would be the higest prio. And "Elder Han" is totally not connected to the local sect in any way and that brings us to Reinera. Most people in the comments are shitting on Reinera, I actually don't think too poorly of her. Yeah she should have told Julius she had the ability to call for help but there are actually good reasons for both of them to want to get back to goldencrest on their own. Both of them would rather sweep this whole thing under the rug. As for going out in the town and enjoying herself a little? Totally understandable. Both she and Julius thought the little town was safe, it's a rural town in the middle of nowhere, NOBODY knows who they are, why wouldn't it be safe to take a stroll? And that brings us to the "bandits". Really? 6 t3 "bandits" in this dinky little town? And they're all dumb enough to think that kidnapping an unattended rich girl for ransom is a good idea. If these idiots aren't connected to the local sect, I'll eat my hat. Gotta say though, Reinera getting jumped feels so unecessary to me unless the next chapter has her waking up after passing out for a second and going super saiyan on these idiots. We *just* had an arc where she essentially got kidnapped and saved by Julius. Do we really need that again? Is the lesson for Reinera that she's a little girl who needs to never run out of sight of her babysitters? However if this goes the way I think it goes we'll either get this resolved in the next chapter since scary Elder Han will notice this and show up with Julius before they can even get a couple a feet away from the incident OR he doesn't. And then it'll be another 20 chapters of Julius playing detective, eventually tracking her down and staging a daring rescue. Which would feel redundant. I really love your story Ryn and it's because I love it so much that I feel the need to be honest, please don't take it the wrong way but I really think you should concider the feedback you got on this chapter whenever you do editing. Maybe it would even be better to have our intrepid heroes get back home quick and give us the intro to sects at a later point.
Len
Or maybe edit it -with the calibrating part- to something like "she tried to use the ---insert it's name here-- alarm but due to the multiple teleports, the stone still needed several hrs to fully recharge/calibrate and she will activate it as soon as possible, or tomorrow after breakfast, whichever comes second
ReadingObsessed
And the orphanage fella just let it happen?
L Pedersen
It's the curse of the magic school arc😋 Joking aside, I don't think we're there yet but unless the pace changes it could end up running the story for me. I've read so many stories where the mc went to magic school and then never left. I check back 200 chaps later, still in school.
11037
Plot twist: They're only doing this kidnapping because one of the guards is desperate for money for medicine for his sick children. He almost had enough saved up, but it seems he was robbed earlier in the day.
ReadingObsessed
This feels very contrived. Knew it was coming and it did
ambullseye
For me the idea that the princess did not automatically trigger the devices is odd but not totally unreasonable. That being said i do agree that after an assassination attempt to be caught unaware is "plot armor". I would think maybe a scenario like she had the device that could get instant help (the beacon) AND have Julius gives a false sense of confidence so she does not trigger instantly (or as soon as she does not see enemies waiting outside the rift that would jump them), the rest of the story proceeds as you say BUT have where she was not caught unaware of the attack but was overwhelmed by the extent, ie she sense the blow incoming and reacts to dodge and attack but cant account for the 6+ followup attacks. Ie same as you have written but she feels the first attack and reacts before impact causing the damage you describe but is overwhelmed by the 6 T3s as you describe. As soon as she she realizes how many are attacking her, she triggers the device and then realizes (as Jana suggested in the previous post) the device needs time to recalibrate (which she did not know / realize / forgot). Something like that. basically rather than inexperience, maybe a touch of over confident BUT then finding out her safety net had holes in it.
Flusspferd
I apologise, my brain seems to have shut down already for the night. In hindsight that is pretty obvious
Zenty
I already disliked the princess but now that's she's literally just a damn damsel I'm pissed.
Jana
Yeah, my utter dislike for the damsel sterotyp is surely one reason for my statement but i always felt like she was at least partialy educated to rule and i can totally see her going out and forgetting the world for a moment but not using the device feels a bit too much. I aknowlege that my personal preference plays a huge role in it so feel free to not give a shit ;-)
Zach
We are gathered here today to mourn the very soon to be lost group of tier 3 bandits. They were terrible people, who poked a very dangerous Julius, and now are about to find out what that means. For the crime of trying to kidnap his friend, the sentence of atomic Julius blast is appropriate. Amen. TFTC!
Ryan
If you're feeling like Reinera is being selfish and shortsighted then I did a good job I guess. She's a sheltered princess who has gotten everything she's ever wanted except for one thing... freedom. Then again, it is still the first draft so it needs some polishing but that's the idea I want for her. It gives her more room to grow, at least that's how I am looking at it. The idea of recalibrating the device is a good one though, don't be surprised if I steal that XD
Kevin Jalop
Talking about the MC and the T7+ dude lolz
webolive
Yes this feel contrived and forced for plot convenience, this make MC looks really stupid.
LordDark
This feels like suspension of disbelief
Read Isekai
That's a good point, and I feel is pretty likely. I was honestly thinking he might just screw around doing a Liam Neeson impersonation for the next few chapters 🤣
Connor Hinrichs
He didn't forget though, when he left the inn, he thought she would go to sleep or stay in her room. Also, if he never met the old guy he would have made it back to the inn by now
Flusspferd
Probably, yeah. As Kyfe mentioned below, I assume that this leads to more of his capabilities being exposed to some important people (nor this backwater town). Otherwise it feels a little too forced and Ryn has been really good so far with forced plot points. Sure, there were some, but they pretty much all directly advanced the overall plot.
Connor Hinrichs
To be fair to Reinera, she is only 15 years old. No 15 year old I've ever met makes the best most logical choices (including myself😅). Getting the chance to experience freedom would be just too tempting to a stifled teenager
Flusspferd
How did you get to that conclusion??? They literally said they kidnapped her in order to ransom her back based on her wearing insanely pricey clothes…
Connor Hinrichs
It sounded like she just didn't have the time after being ambushed
RedLeaf
Thanks for the chapter!
Read Isekai
Time for Julius to go on a rampage?
Jana
I ll be honest this feels a bit strange. I get the Princess enjoys her freedom, but after being victim of an assassination attempt when her friends and family fear for her... that feels extremly selfish and shortsighted. I would have prefered something like the device needing to recalibrate after a teleport between two dungeons which are basically spacial anomalies and migth have messed with it.
Kevin McKinney
Well … darn. I would think the old guy would notice this
Pete's Place Garage
Really? The princess got kidnapped because Julius went on a side-quest? Who would have ever guessed? I wouldn't want to say "I told you so", but....
Kyfe
Of course. Spotted that happening a mile away, lol. Now we just have to see what the next response is. If the old dude could sense their auras from the orphanage, no way he didn't sense her getting attacked by a mob of T3's. If he doesn't tell Julius right away, he's a prick. My guess for the action is Julius will storm their gates while Reinera will activate her beacon without knowing, and the rescue team will show up to witness Julius decimating a horde of T3's with ease.
Mike
Julius ought to be ashamed of himself for forgetting about Reneira. 🥺🤦♂️
Rod
I don’t understand why they let their guard down u just came out of a place where you fought for your life and ended up somewhere you were not familiar with what about that spells let down my guard.. i know these are not the people who tried to kill her but if she had maintained her vigilance… maybe its the whole damsel in distress thing…. How long has J been attending school? There is progress but it seems more slice of life… alot more happened in the first and second arc i know im ranting i love the book and some of the characters it just feels like its not going anywhere
Ray
why would she not use the previously mentioned beacon as she was getting attacked?
Raymond Mouton
Thanks for the chapter. Reinera, you… Just, sigh…
Kevin Jalop
Oh no! They really have pissed off someone important
Quentin Cozzi
Thanks for the chapter!
Bing Lun
Thanks for the chapter! The princess just can't seem to catch a break
