Part 1
The monsters of Star Fantasy were very similar to those found in the myths of Earth's history. For example, monsters like dragons and krakens existed and were worshipped by tribes all around the world.
Out of these monsters, there existed many that bore the title, [Boss] in the game.
Villains and Bosses differed since the former were heteromorphic or human beings and the latter were monsters equal in rank to Lords.
Luke's first big conquest happened during the School Arc. He had slain an A-class Wyrm which was a popular known farm mini-boss. It was an immortal monster that kept spawning so players would always hunt it regularly to farm.
Since the School Arc was just around the corner, Arnold wanted Flora to quickly teach Luke proper swordsmanship. Since the battle was needed for Luke's first step to becoming a hero, there was a chance that the gods would retract their blessings so that Luke would persevere on his own. It was a sort of test that they wanted him to pass.
That would determine if he was worthy.
If not then the gods could always find a replacement even though that wouldn't happen anytime soon.
The Golden Aura wouldn't be there to help him. Like Arnold said that night after their fight: It was a fluke that had to happen but there won't be a second chance.
After the Wyrm, Luke would battle against many other enemies before eventually fighting the final boss.
The Demon King.
"But there's a secret boss after the battle with the Demon King. Those sneaky developers. Saying stuff like it was a glitch in the system."
It was known as the Star Beast and was a monster above the ranking of dragon lord.
A monster of unfathomable power and unknown origin. Some speculated that it was on the level of the Demon King but that was never really proven to be true. There wasn't a way to modify the game so that the two could fight after all.
The power level of the Hero was much weaker than the Demon King even at his strongest. What made Luke so dangerous and an unmatched being was the [Holy Sword of Star] and his thousands of blessings from various gods.
He had support from two of the three timeline gods as well.
"If I remember correctly, the holy sword was the weapon of one of the founding gods of this world."
That sword alone made Luke the most powerful being in the world. He wasn't stronger than peak villain Arnold. His growth started fairly later than Arnold which was why he was much weaker. But their potential rivalled each other.
Hero Luke was also weaker than the Demon King, and even the Star Beast for that matter but that weapon changed everything.
It was the final piece to slaying the Star Beast and the Demon King.
It was also the sword that beheaded Arnold in the epilogue chapters of the game.
**
"The monsters don't seem that different from the usual fantasy creatures. I wonder if all the Dragon Lords are at their original locations."
Monsters of Lord rank always had their own domain that they ruled.
The Dragon Lord of Wrath controlled the forest north of the Holy Kingdom.
The Dragon Lord of Silver, Geretar, that made a ruined castle its home. It was somewhere near the ruined Kingdom of Juliar.
Then there was the Dark Dragon Lord. Even though he was a veteran player, Liam had no idea what this monster's name was. It hadn't appeared in the DLC story or the base game at all. It was just mentioned. Perhaps the developers couldn't fit another name in the database.
These three dragon lords were the only three that were known about so far. There was speculation that there were more dragon lords but that fact had never been proven ever since this rumor started.
"Like their counterparts, normal dragons wouldn't show themselves without reason." Arnold remembered that dragon that he could understand for some reason. "Yet why did that dragon come to human settlements? So many questions yet no answers."
His words were referring to two things.
First was him being reborn into this world and the second was the Demon Sword that was standing against the wall. He had ordered a servant to bring him sealing cloth that help restrict the movements of cursed items and such. The difference between the sword and cursed items was that the former didn't resist the sealing of its power.
Arnold lifted his hand and grasped the sword.
"Still ominous even though it's completely covered." He shivered when he felt the sword's demonic aura.
Unless one was of the demon race, you wouldn't be able to handle the debuffs and negative karma levels of demonic weapons. But there was a second reason Arnold could wield it.
His negative karma was -9500.
Remembering that notification thingy, he sulked.
"I can't believe this. Even some of the most renowned villains of the story only have -100 karma. Arnold, what the hell is up with you? Are you a demon god incarnation or something?"
Arnold's mood brightened remembering that overflow of power when he wore that armor. However, despite his pride over that power being his, he knew that it wasn't without any conditions.
He didn't know what it was yet but he was certain there was a catch to using the power.
"I can't rely on that power too much in the future, huh. There's no choice then. I have to get stronger by using this villain's potential to my advantage."
Arnold von Berkley was a prodigy when it came to both academics and fighting.
However, when Liam transmigrated into him, everything changed.
Despite being Arnold, Liam didn't know a thing about the martial arts that Arnold learned growing up.
Those question marks only served to depress him. There was a large variety of martial skills and titles yet he couldn't see any of them.
If he ever met opponents like Lancelot in the future without preparation then there was a high possibility that the same outcome such as the battle against Lancelot would occur. He was too weak despite bearing the name of one of Star Fantasy's most iconic villains.
If he couldn't beat people like Lancelot then it was stupid to even think of taking on the Demon King. Arnold wouldn't antagonize the Demon King, of course, but there was a possibility that the two might meet even if he didn't want that to happen.
Fate wasn't on his side since even the gods looked upon him with contempt.
That meant that Arnold was alone in this world. He had to look out for himself without relying on anyone else.
That was why he decided to gather all the books of martial arts that had been collected over the history of the family.
"Is it better to start with the first martial art to be passed down in the family?" He gazed at the topmost book on the stack of books in front of him. The book was old as the pages were yellow and on the verge of tearing.
The book was written by the first patriarch of the family's history. It wasn't an ordinary diary or biography.
It was a book known as a Martial Record.
Martial artists, as well as swordsmen, would buy such books and write the secrets of their techniques and martial arts. It wasn't something anyone could read though.
That was precisely why these books must always stay in the library of the family's residence. It was also why a library was so important for a noble family. It existed with the purpose of storing the history of the family.
"Gentle Storm of Naraseth."
Arnold said the name of the first martial art he saw. Since the first patriarch was a pure martial artist, all his knowledge was about moves related to fighting with one's hands.
The word "Naraseth" was the name of a god that stood above all when it came to martial arts. They said that this god was the founder of all martial arts. His own martial art had led to the development of other martials arts resembling his own.
Time passed by and martial arts—far different from his own—was born.
The skill mentioned above was one of the martial arts derived directly from the founder of martial arts.
'That means that it is very powerful.'
The purer it is from its source, the stronger the skill. That was why leaders of martial facilities banned their students from creating their own version of their martial arts. Not only would it be weaker, it would shame the God of Martial Art's name as well.
Arnold smirked and turned the page. That smirk immediately turned into a grimace. His throat was dry just by looking at what awaited him.
"What the hell…?"
There were over one hundred steps to perform the martial arts. Of course, one hundred was a very low number considering the rank of the arts.
The problem was that he could read it but he couldn't understand what was going on.
"My earthling brain is unable to understand this nonsense. Do they sell supplements that make a person smarter?" Arnold's expression turned bitter.
Liam wasn't the brightest person out there so he knew that it was impossible to learn martial arts the legit way.
'It seems that it isn't just Luke who needs an instructor.'
"Wait a second…" A certain person appeared in his mind. "Couldn't Sebas teach me? He was Arnold's master in the first place."
But the problem was that original Arnold already finished all his lessons that Sebastian had planned out for him.
"Hmmm…" An evil smile appeared on his face. "Maybe if I say that I want to learn forbidden martial arts…"
Sebastian was a former gladiator from another nation before he took up lessons to become a butler. He had met Marcus on the battlefield when he was a young man. His background was unknown to his lord, but Arnold knew that Sebas had a dark past.
His class was mixed martial artist. That meant that he didn't only have one kind of martial arts but several. Arnold knew that Sebastian had ties to the underworld so he definitely had some sketchy martial arts as well. Some that could even kill people horribly.
"It's better than nothing. I can use those martial arts until I'm able to understand this nonsense."
Although original Arnold was a professional warrior and knight, his level was still too low to be able to classify as a powerhouse. Since he would need to travel, there would definitely be times where he encounters strong opponents or monsters.
Martial arts didn't apply to one's level. That was why it was better to learn a strong martial technique instead of finding quick hacks to becoming stronger. In fact, there existed no legit ways to quickly increase one's level.
"It might also be good to investigate countermeasures against divinity." Arnold remembered that burning sensation on his wounds when Lancelot cut him.
If Lancelot's divination power alone could cause such harm, what not of priests and Templar knights who served the Father?
'Going by this world's standards, my soul should be even blacker than a demon lord's. Ugh, no wonder the gods hate me.'
He couldn't even visit a temple to cure a disease, for example. They would be able to identify his existence as a demon lord factor just by doing a quick check-up.
Arnold was certain that the demonic aura was somewhere in his body and would only surface if he used the armour. The armour acted as an activation sequence.
"The armour is quite similar to the Air Battle Suits in the game. Didn't I also have one? Ah, but I can't really remember what model it was."
Arnold then said: "Anyway, my priority is to make the power mine. But how? I'll think about this later when I have answers."
He flipped past more books and found some simple and very generic martial arts that could help him. The ones that were more higher levelled were much more difficult to learn in ten or so minutes.
Arnold didn't want to waste his time too much since there was still the dinner with his family. There was a saying that all the members of the family must always sit at the table when it is dinnertime.
Even original Arnold followed this rule since he was very traditional.
"There's nothing as powerful or at least a level lower than my current martial skill." He was referring to Storm of the Water Dragon.
The ones that were here were only C rank or lower. If he wanted to get the juicier martial arts then he had to search deeper. It wouldn't just be lying around after all.
"Hmmm. Flaming Gauntlets?" He imagined the steps he learned and the a scorching warmth spread around his arm.
"It's a shame my left arm isn't working right now. This skill looks a little underwhelming with one arm." He put the fire out by shaking his hand.
Owing to his superhuman vitality, Arnold's aura had already been fully restored in two days.
"What is this? Ice Spirit?" He took out his aura sword and tested the martial skill he just mentioned.
Ice blew around the sword, turning the blade a crystal white. He swung it a couple times and noticed that a certain part of the floor was covered in ice.
"Oho! So it can freeze anything it touches? This'll become very handy, indeed."
Taking out his diary, he added the martial skill under the list of skills he wrote down.
"Ah?" while paging through the little black book, he noticed that his bookmark was on a certain page.
"This is…The list I made on my first day as Arnold." One the page he turned to was a list of names.
Particularly, his death flags.
Luke's name was the only one that was highlighted as extremely important.
Part 2
(Present)
"Who will pray before we eat?" Adrianna asked as the servants brought a large variety of cuisines prepared by the family's head chef.
The main course was: A stuffed chicken, a quarter of stag, and a loin of veal which were covered in pomegranate seeds, sugar plums, and sauce. There was a huge pie surrounded by smaller pies forming a huge circle of different food and vegetables.
Adrianna was sitting on the head seat where Marcus usually sat at. Arnold was on her left while Olivia was on her right. The rest of the family members were scattered randomly on the table.
As for Claudia, she was seated directly next to Arnold.
'Is this really a woman who has two kids?'
Arnold thought in disbelief as he glanced at the mature blonde haired beauty. She was wearing a rather familiar dress.
It was one of those rare pieces that his mother bought cross country. It did wonders on Claudia's hourglass figure which wasn't as explosive as Victoria.
The light makeup on her face only added an otherworldly glow to her cheeks and lips. Her big green eyes were so warm and soft as she merrily spoke to Luke.
Arnold caught sight of Anna looking at him with a smirk.
She giggled mysteriously while shaking her head.
'Shit. What is that smile for? Knowing her it's not something good….'
Arnold cleared his throat before closing his eyes and lowering his head.
The prayer for their food began and before long everyone opened their eyes.
"Thank you, miss Claudia. That was a wonderful prayer. Are you a churchgoer?"
"I only go once a month so I cannot really say I am a frequent churchgoer…" Claudia smiled wryly at Adrianna's praise. "But I must say, the castle chefs are truly amazing. To prepare such a feast just for our welcome…"
"Of course. We wouldn't settle for anything less for our guests." Adrianna smiled with pride.
Arnold could see Olivia smiling as well. He could tell that the smile wasn't genuine. It seemed to him that she hated everything about this.
Or maybe it was just because she was now related to Arnold von Berkley regardless of what she chose to do.
'All your efforts are in vain. Well, I won't be bothering you like a clown like original Arnold.'
Remembering how that guy would lick Olivia's feet at a call of his name made Liam shudder all over. How much of a licking dog can one man be? He didn't value Olivia's wishes at all and only wanted to satiated his own lust and feelings.
'Olivia might still be mad after that day.'
To say she was mad wasn't actually the correct word to use. Rather, she was regretting her decision. To add context to Arnold's thought, Olivia had given in to Arnold's wishes once and gave her first time to him, though with great hesitation.
It was only to get him off her back since he was so persistent but never would she have imagined that she'd regret what she did.
Since Arnold was originally supposed to be her husband, she could just fake the fact that he took her first time on her wedding night. Cutting her wrist and letting blood flow onto the sheets would've been one solution to fool her parents and the nobles.
Virginity was one of the most important things to girls in this world. It was even more valuable if one was from a noble household.
'Shit. Arnold, you bastard. Now she has every reason to hate me.'
She was angry at him even though she was the one who allowed him to sleep with her. To her, her virginity was nothing much, but circumstances were different now.
'Being the prideful woman that she is, there's no way she's admitting to being at fault. Sigh…'
Arnold looked at Olivia with an awkward gaze as she continued ignoring him. Her gaze had only settled on him for mere seconds before turning away in disinterest and a little disgust.
"Young master Al, you must open up. Say 'Ahhh'." Victoria's voice entered his ears.
She was sitting right next to him with his food on her lap.
Yes, she was feeding him at this moment.
Arnold's face turned red as he opened up his mouth.
"Ahhh~."
Someone went "pft" seeing Arnold being fed like a baby. Ignoring whoever that was, Arnold continued allowing his future wife to feed him. He convinced himself that this was practice because there would be many more romantic moments like these for the two of them in the future.
"Anna, has there been any news at the firm about the Empire's current state?" Adrianna asked amidst the silence.
"Oh, I almost forgot. I heard something from one of my employees who went to sell a wagon of wheat to a village near the empire. Although I'm not sure if it's very useful information…"
"What did that person say?"
"Half of the Imperial Army is apparently absent from the empire. They were recalled to a region in the south."
"Hm? When did this happen?" Olivia seemed surprised about this.
"You didn't know?"
"No, Anna. This is the first time I'm hearing of this. I have been around the country with my airship so I have not been to the empire in quite a while. What about you, elder brother?"
Jurius, who was digging in his ear replied: "Nah, I heard nothing. I've been busy, you see."
'With what exactly, you brainless monkey?'
Arnold could see Grace roll her eyes. She was probably having the same thought as him.
"That means the empire is now vulnerable to any outside attacks, right?" Arnold asked Olivia.
"Huh? Oh, yes." She confirmed with a nod.
"So that's why father hasn't returned yet. The other three Great Nobles are probably also present. This is a level 3 Protection Law, after all."
A level 3 protection law was a law that was implemented in case more than half of the imperial army was absent from the empire. Citizens are forbidden from wandering outside after a certain time period and work hours are cut which meant that many stores would lose out on money.
But that was a small sacrifice to ensure the empire is protected. Any and all individuals caught outside will immediately be detained.
In case of a level 5 Protection Law, all the connections the empire has outside would be cut off and the empire's gates would be closed. A magical barrier would also surround the entire capital.
The law would be implemented in case at least two of the four Great Nobles are defeated in battle and the entire imperial army was annihilated. A magic bomb would also be set off that would destroy the entire empire in the process.
Of course, civilians would be evacuated beforehand.
'There's a hell of a big difference between level 3 and 5. If I recall correctly, there was almost a level 5 during a certain part of the game's story? In any case, I'm glad my father is safe. Now there isn't any worry over anything happening to the household.'
"So the emperor must have ordered them to station their troops there?" Claudia wondered.
Olivia nodded.
"Their armies can fill the gaps left by the imperial army even if just temporary. Though, knowing the Great Nobles, they alone would be enough to stop a single small nation individually." Olivia explained.
"So they were such amazing people. I never knew that…" Claudia's eyes were shining brightly like a little girl excited to hear about a knight saving a princess.
Adrianna was grinning with her head held high for some reason.
"I have hopes that Luke can also fill that role in the future." Adrianna added as she gazed at Luke.
Luke—whose head was lowered to avoid being seen—shakily looked up.
"Role? Which role?"
"You will become the next Great Noble once my husband steps down. You are ready to achieve that one day, right?"
"Of course! I made a promise after all!"
Arnold could only sigh.
If the hero believed something was meant to be then he would do his utmost to make that something happen or at least sustain it. Since becoming the duke would benefit his family and his first love, there was no room for argument.
Adrianna nodded in satisfaction at his enthusiastic reply and spoke again.
"But there are steps to making that happen. The first step is the Imperial Academy."
Part 1
The monsters of Star Fantasy were very similar to those found in the myths of Earth's history. For example, monsters like dragons and krakens existed and were worshipped by tribes all around the world.
Out of these monsters, there existed many that bore the title, [Boss] in the game.
Villains and Bosses differed since the former were heteromorphic or human beings and the latter were monsters equal in rank to Lords.
Luke's first big conquest happened during the School Arc. He had slain an A-class Wyrm which was a popular known farm mini-boss. It was an immortal monster that kept spawning so players would always hunt it regularly to farm.
Since the School Arc was just around the corner, Arnold wanted Flora to quickly teach Luke proper swordsmanship. Since the battle was needed for Luke's first step to becoming a hero, there was a chance that the gods would retract their blessings so that Luke would persevere on his own. It was a sort of test that they wanted him to pass.
That would determine if he was worthy.
If not then the gods could always find a replacement even though that wouldn't happen anytime soon.
The Golden Aura wouldn't be there to help him. Like Arnold said that night after their fight: It was a fluke that had to happen but there won't be a second chance.
After the Wyrm, Luke would battle against many other enemies before eventually fighting the final boss.
The Demon King.
"But there's a secret boss after the battle with the Demon King. Those sneaky developers. Saying stuff like it was a glitch in the system."
It was known as the Star Beast and was a monster above the ranking of dragon lord.
A monster of unfathomable power and unknown origin. Some speculated that it was on the level of the Demon King but that was never really proven to be true. There wasn't a way to modify the game so that the two could fight after all.
The power level of the Hero was much weaker than the Demon King even at his strongest. What made Luke so dangerous and an unmatched being was the [Holy Sword of Star] and his thousands of blessings from various gods.
He had support from two of the three timeline gods as well.
"If I remember correctly, the holy sword was the weapon of one of the founding gods of this world."
That sword alone made Luke the most powerful being in the world. He wasn't stronger than peak villain Arnold. His growth started fairly later than Arnold which was why he was much weaker. But their potential rivalled each other.
Hero Luke was also weaker than the Demon King, and even the Star Beast for that matter but that weapon changed everything.
It was the final piece to slaying the Star Beast and the Demon King.
It was also the sword that beheaded Arnold in the epilogue chapters of the game.
**
"The monsters don't seem that different from the usual fantasy creatures. I wonder if all the Dragon Lords are at their original locations."
Monsters of Lord rank always had their own domain that they ruled.
The Dragon Lord of Wrath controlled the forest north of the Holy Kingdom.
The Dragon Lord of Silver, Geretar, that made a ruined castle its home. It was somewhere near the ruined Kingdom of Juliar.
Then there was the Dark Dragon Lord. Even though he was a veteran player, Liam had no idea what this monster's name was. It hadn't appeared in the DLC story or the base game at all. It was just mentioned. Perhaps the developers couldn't fit another name in the database.
These three dragon lords were the only three that were known about so far. There was speculation that there were more dragon lords but that fact had never been proven ever since this rumor started.
"Like their counterparts, normal dragons wouldn't show themselves without reason." Arnold remembered that dragon that he could understand for some reason. "Yet why did that dragon come to human settlements? So many questions yet no answers."
His words were referring to two things.
First was him being reborn into this world and the second was the Demon Sword that was standing against the wall. He had ordered a servant to bring him sealing cloth that help restrict the movements of cursed items and such. The difference between the sword and cursed items was that the former didn't resist the sealing of its power.
Arnold lifted his hand and grasped the sword.
"Still ominous even though it's completely covered." He shivered when he felt the sword's demonic aura.
Unless one was of the demon race, you wouldn't be able to handle the debuffs and negative karma levels of demonic weapons. But there was a second reason Arnold could wield it.
His negative karma was -9500.
Remembering that notification thingy, he sulked.
"I can't believe this. Even some of the most renowned villains of the story only have -100 karma. Arnold, what the hell is up with you? Are you a demon god incarnation or something?"
Arnold's mood brightened remembering that overflow of power when he wore that armor. However, despite his pride over that power being his, he knew that it wasn't without any conditions.
He didn't know what it was yet but he was certain there was a catch to using the power.
"I can't rely on that power too much in the future, huh. There's no choice then. I have to get stronger by using this villain's potential to my advantage."
Arnold von Berkley was a prodigy when it came to both academics and fighting.
However, when Liam transmigrated into him, everything changed.
Despite being Arnold, Liam didn't know a thing about the martial arts that Arnold learned growing up.
Those question marks only served to depress him. There was a large variety of martial skills and titles yet he couldn't see any of them.
If he ever met opponents like Lancelot in the future without preparation then there was a high possibility that the same outcome such as the battle against Lancelot would occur. He was too weak despite bearing the name of one of Star Fantasy's most iconic villains.
If he couldn't beat people like Lancelot then it was stupid to even think of taking on the Demon King. Arnold wouldn't antagonize the Demon King, of course, but there was a possibility that the two might meet even if he didn't want that to happen.
Fate wasn't on his side since even the gods looked upon him with contempt.
That meant that Arnold was alone in this world. He had to look out for himself without relying on anyone else.
That was why he decided to gather all the books of martial arts that had been collected over the history of the family.
"Is it better to start with the first martial art to be passed down in the family?" He gazed at the topmost book on the stack of books in front of him. The book was old as the pages were yellow and on the verge of tearing.
The book was written by the first patriarch of the family's history. It wasn't an ordinary diary or biography.
It was a book known as a Martial Record.
Martial artists, as well as swordsmen, would buy such books and write the secrets of their techniques and martial arts. It wasn't something anyone could read though.
That was precisely why these books must always stay in the library of the family's residence. It was also why a library was so important for a noble family. It existed with the purpose of storing the history of the family.
"Gentle Storm of Naraseth."
Arnold said the name of the first martial art he saw. Since the first patriarch was a pure martial artist, all his knowledge was about moves related to fighting with one's hands.
The word "Naraseth" was the name of a god that stood above all when it came to martial arts. They said that this god was the founder of all martial arts. His own martial art had led to the development of other martials arts resembling his own.
Time passed by and martial arts—far different from his own—was born.
The skill mentioned above was one of the martial arts derived directly from the founder of martial arts.
'That means that it is very powerful.'
The purer it is from its source, the stronger the skill. That was why leaders of martial facilities banned their students from creating their own version of their martial arts. Not only would it be weaker, it would shame the God of Martial Art's name as well.
Arnold smirked and turned the page. That smirk immediately turned into a grimace. His throat was dry just by looking at what awaited him.
"What the hell…?"
There were over one hundred steps to perform the martial arts. Of course, one hundred was a very low number considering the rank of the arts.
The problem was that he could read it but he couldn't understand what was going on.
"My earthling brain is unable to understand this nonsense. Do they sell supplements that make a person smarter?" Arnold's expression turned bitter.
Liam wasn't the brightest person out there so he knew that it was impossible to learn martial arts the legit way.
'It seems that it isn't just Luke who needs an instructor.'
"Wait a second…" A certain person appeared in his mind. "Couldn't Sebas teach me? He was Arnold's master in the first place."
But the problem was that original Arnold already finished all his lessons that Sebastian had planned out for him.
"Hmmm…" An evil smile appeared on his face. "Maybe if I say that I want to learn forbidden martial arts…"
Sebastian was a former gladiator from another nation before he took up lessons to become a butler. He had met Marcus on the battlefield when he was a young man. His background was unknown to his lord, but Arnold knew that Sebas had a dark past.
His class was mixed martial artist. That meant that he didn't only have one kind of martial arts but several. Arnold knew that Sebastian had ties to the underworld so he definitely had some sketchy martial arts as well. Some that could even kill people horribly.
"It's better than nothing. I can use those martial arts until I'm able to understand this nonsense."
Although original Arnold was a professional warrior and knight, his level was still too low to be able to classify as a powerhouse. Since he would need to travel, there would definitely be times where he encounters strong opponents or monsters.
Martial arts didn't apply to one's level. That was why it was better to learn a strong martial technique instead of finding quick hacks to becoming stronger. In fact, there existed no legit ways to quickly increase one's level.
"It might also be good to investigate countermeasures against divinity." Arnold remembered that burning sensation on his wounds when Lancelot cut him.
If Lancelot's divination power alone could cause such harm, what not of priests and Templar knights who served the Father?
'Going by this world's standards, my soul should be even blacker than a demon lord's. Ugh, no wonder the gods hate me.'
He couldn't even visit a temple to cure a disease, for example. They would be able to identify his existence as a demon lord factor just by doing a quick check-up.
Arnold was certain that the demonic aura was somewhere in his body and would only surface if he used the armour. The armour acted as an activation sequence.
"The armour is quite similar to the Air Battle Suits in the game. Didn't I also have one? Ah, but I can't really remember what model it was."
Arnold then said: "Anyway, my priority is to make the power mine. But how? I'll think about this later when I have answers."
He flipped past more books and found some simple and very generic martial arts that could help him. The ones that were more higher levelled were much more difficult to learn in ten or so minutes.
Arnold didn't want to waste his time too much since there was still the dinner with his family. There was a saying that all the members of the family must always sit at the table when it is dinnertime.
Even original Arnold followed this rule since he was very traditional.
"There's nothing as powerful or at least a level lower than my current martial skill." He was referring to Storm of the Water Dragon.
The ones that were here were only C rank or lower. If he wanted to get the juicier martial arts then he had to search deeper. It wouldn't just be lying around after all.
"Hmmm. Flaming Gauntlets?" He imagined the steps he learned and the a scorching warmth spread around his arm.
"It's a shame my left arm isn't working right now. This skill looks a little underwhelming with one arm." He put the fire out by shaking his hand.
Owing to his superhuman vitality, Arnold's aura had already been fully restored in two days.
"What is this? Ice Spirit?" He took out his aura sword and tested the martial skill he just mentioned.
Ice blew around the sword, turning the blade a crystal white. He swung it a couple times and noticed that a certain part of the floor was covered in ice.
"Oho! So it can freeze anything it touches? This'll become very handy, indeed."
Taking out his diary, he added the martial skill under the list of skills he wrote down.
"Ah?" while paging through the little black book, he noticed that his bookmark was on a certain page.
"This is…The list I made on my first day as Arnold." One the page he turned to was a list of names.
Particularly, his death flags.
Luke's name was the only one that was highlighted as extremely important.
Part 2
(Present)
"Who will pray before we eat?" Adrianna asked as the servants brought a large variety of cuisines prepared by the family's head chef.
The main course was: A stuffed chicken, a quarter of stag, and a loin of veal which were covered in pomegranate seeds, sugar plums, and sauce. There was a huge pie surrounded by smaller pies forming a huge circle of different food and vegetables.
Adrianna was sitting on the head seat where Marcus usually sat at. Arnold was on her left while Olivia was on her right. The rest of the family members were scattered randomly on the table.
As for Claudia, she was seated directly next to Arnold.
'Is this really a woman who has two kids?'
Arnold thought in disbelief as he glanced at the mature blonde haired beauty. She was wearing a rather familiar dress.
It was one of those rare pieces that his mother bought cross country. It did wonders on Claudia's hourglass figure which wasn't as explosive as Victoria.
The light makeup on her face only added an otherworldly glow to her cheeks and lips. Her big green eyes were so warm and soft as she merrily spoke to Luke.
Arnold caught sight of Anna looking at him with a smirk.
She giggled mysteriously while shaking her head.
'Shit. What is that smile for? Knowing her it's not something good….'
Arnold cleared his throat before closing his eyes and lowering his head.
The prayer for their food began and before long everyone opened their eyes.
"Thank you, miss Claudia. That was a wonderful prayer. Are you a churchgoer?"
"I only go once a month so I cannot really say I am a frequent churchgoer…" Claudia smiled wryly at Adrianna's praise. "But I must say, the castle chefs are truly amazing. To prepare such a feast just for our welcome…"
"Of course. We wouldn't settle for anything less for our guests." Adrianna smiled with pride.
Arnold could see Olivia smiling as well. He could tell that the smile wasn't genuine. It seemed to him that she hated everything about this.
Or maybe it was just because she was now related to Arnold von Berkley regardless of what she chose to do.
'All your efforts are in vain. Well, I won't be bothering you like a clown like original Arnold.'
Remembering how that guy would lick Olivia's feet at a call of his name made Liam shudder all over. How much of a licking dog can one man be? He didn't value Olivia's wishes at all and only wanted to satiated his own lust and feelings.
'Olivia might still be mad after that day.'
To say she was mad wasn't actually the correct word to use. Rather, she was regretting her decision. To add context to Arnold's thought, Olivia had given in to Arnold's wishes once and gave her first time to him, though with great hesitation.
It was only to get him off her back since he was so persistent but never would she have imagined that she'd regret what she did.
Since Arnold was originally supposed to be her husband, she could just fake the fact that he took her first time on her wedding night. Cutting her wrist and letting blood flow onto the sheets would've been one solution to fool her parents and the nobles.
Virginity was one of the most important things to girls in this world. It was even more valuable if one was from a noble household.
'Shit. Arnold, you bastard. Now she has every reason to hate me.'
She was angry at him even though she was the one who allowed him to sleep with her. To her, her virginity was nothing much, but circumstances were different now.
'Being the prideful woman that she is, there's no way she's admitting to being at fault. Sigh…'
Arnold looked at Olivia with an awkward gaze as she continued ignoring him. Her gaze had only settled on him for mere seconds before turning away in disinterest and a little disgust.
"Young master Al, you must open up. Say 'Ahhh'." Victoria's voice entered his ears.
She was sitting right next to him with his food on her lap.
Yes, she was feeding him at this moment.
Arnold's face turned red as he opened up his mouth.
"Ahhh~."
Someone went "pft" seeing Arnold being fed like a baby. Ignoring whoever that was, Arnold continued allowing his future wife to feed him. He convinced himself that this was practice because there would be many more romantic moments like these for the two of them in the future.
"Anna, has there been any news at the firm about the Empire's current state?" Adrianna asked amidst the silence.
"Oh, I almost forgot. I heard something from one of my employees who went to sell a wagon of wheat to a village near the empire. Although I'm not sure if it's very useful information…"
"What did that person say?"
"Half of the Imperial Army is apparently absent from the empire. They were recalled to a region in the south."
"Hm? When did this happen?" Olivia seemed surprised about this.
"You didn't know?"
"No, Anna. This is the first time I'm hearing of this. I have been around the country with my airship so I have not been to the empire in quite a while. What about you, elder brother?"
Jurius, who was digging in his ear replied: "Nah, I heard nothing. I've been busy, you see."
'With what exactly, you brainless monkey?'
Arnold could see Grace roll her eyes. She was probably having the same thought as him.
"That means the empire is now vulnerable to any outside attacks, right?" Arnold asked Olivia.
"Huh? Oh, yes." She confirmed with a nod.
"So that's why father hasn't returned yet. The other three Great Nobles are probably also present. This is a level 3 Protection Law, after all."
A level 3 protection law was a law that was implemented in case more than half of the imperial army was absent from the empire. Citizens are forbidden from wandering outside after a certain time period and work hours are cut which meant that many stores would lose out on money.
But that was a small sacrifice to ensure the empire is protected. Any and all individuals caught outside will immediately be detained.
In case of a level 5 Protection Law, all the connections the empire has outside would be cut off and the empire's gates would be closed. A magical barrier would also surround the entire capital.
The law would be implemented in case at least two of the four Great Nobles are defeated in battle and the entire imperial army was annihilated. A magic bomb would also be set off that would destroy the entire empire in the process.
Of course, civilians would be evacuated beforehand.
'There's a hell of a big difference between level 3 and 5. If I recall correctly, there was almost a level 5 during a certain part of the game's story? In any case, I'm glad my father is safe. Now there isn't any worry over anything happening to the household.'
"So the emperor must have ordered them to station their troops there?" Claudia wondered.
Olivia nodded.
"Their armies can fill the gaps left by the imperial army even if just temporary. Though, knowing the Great Nobles, they alone would be enough to stop a single small nation individually." Olivia explained.
"So they were such amazing people. I never knew that…" Claudia's eyes were shining brightly like a little girl excited to hear about a knight saving a princess.
Adrianna was grinning with her head held high for some reason.
"I have hopes that Luke can also fill that role in the future." Adrianna added as she gazed at Luke.
Luke—whose head was lowered to avoid being seen—shakily looked up.
"Role? Which role?"
"You will become the next Great Noble once my husband steps down. You are ready to achieve that one day, right?"
"Of course! I made a promise after all!"
Arnold could only sigh.
If the hero believed something was meant to be then he would do his utmost to make that something happen or at least sustain it. Since becoming the duke would benefit his family and his first love, there was no room for argument.
Adrianna nodded in satisfaction at his enthusiastic reply and spoke again.
"But there are steps to making that happen. The first step is the Imperial Academy."
