Starting With an SSS-Rank Swordsmanship Talent

The soldiers were surprised to hear his introduction.

An older soldier who seemed to be the leader of the bunch stepped forward and asked. “If you are from Gilsan, why go all the way here to guide them?”

Shin Dol-seok smiled and responded. “This is His Highness Alaric of Astania. No one in his group is familiar with the way so I volunteered to guide them to the capital.”

Hearing this, the soldiers were stunned.

“The prince of Astania?!”

“Is he the crown prince of Astania?”

“No wonder he looks like an important person…”

The older soldier glared at his subordinates and quickly approached Alaric with an apologetic smile. “I apologize if we may have inconvenienced, Your Highness.”

Alaric waved his hand indifferently. “It’s fine. Just make it quick.”

“Of course! We will do it fast so you can head over to the capital.”

The soldiers quickly inspected the flying permit and all the items they brought, but under the pressure from their leader, they didn’t make a thorough inspection and just did it for show.

After about ten minutes, the inspection was completed.

“We have checked everything, sir. There are no issues with their items.” One soldier reported, his face was covered in sweat.

“Good!”

The older soldier smiled warmly at Alaric and told them that they were free to leave.

Alaric tossed him a few gold coins and left with his group.

In the next moment, the Draconic Lion soared into the sky and flew off into the distance.

…

The group had to stop by three more cities before they arrived at Ulmunsan, the second-largest city in all of Veronica. It was also the last stop for all flying beasts since flying was restricted in the capital.

The person who greeted them at the entrance of the city was surprisingly a Venerable.

It was a woman who looked to be in her early thirties. She looked quite young on the surface, but Alaric knew that she was way older than she looked.

“Oh my! It’s an honor to meet the famous Alaric Silversword! You can call me Park Sagwa.” The woman introduced herself.

Alaric hadn’t heard of her, but her attributes brought him quite the surprise. She wasn’t that strong, but she wasn’t weak either. Compared to all the Venerables he had encountered, she could be ranked in the mid-range.

She was a 4-Ringed Beast Soul Grandmaster with unique sets of integrated monster traits. She wasn’t specialized in large-scale battles, but based on her traits, she was skilled in single combat.

“The honor is mine, Miss Park Sagwa.” Alaric maintained a kind attitude towards his elders.

“Miss?” Park Sagwa covered her mouth and giggled in amusement. She had never been called ‘Miss’ for a long time and it made her quite pleased, especially when it came from a young and handsome man like Alaric.

Park Sagwa? Is she that person?! While they were exchanging pleasantries, Shin Dol-seok was in disbelief when she recognized her identity.

Park Sagwa was one of the most famous figures in all of Veronica. She had only recently become a Venerable, but her exploits were not ordinary.

She was known for her skills with the dagger. She was a highly-trained assassin who had never failed a mission. Because of her 100% success rate and her undeniable beauty, people started calling her ‘Bloody Iris’.

“How about you join me for a meal? I’m sure your subordinates are also tired from the journey.” Park Sagwa invited him with a charming smile.

Alaric hesitated. He couldn’t just reject her since her identity was quite special. She might also be offended if he were to reject her outright.

“Alright. It would be a pleasure to dine with, Your Grace.” He agreed. He felt reluctant, but he didn’t show it on his face.

“Perfect! My carriage is ready. Please follow me, Your Highness.” Beaming, Park Sagwa did a ‘this way’ gesture.

Alaric understood his intentions and walked alongside her.

Why did she invite me to dine with her? Does she have some motives? Alaric thought to himself, his heart turning cold.

Following behind them, Nivis mumbled to herself. “I don’t like that woman. She seems to be hiding something.”

Shin Dol-seok was walking next to her so he heard her words clearly.

With a terrified look, he reminded her. “Miss, you shouldn’t speak so carelessly. Her Grace is the Duchess of Ulmunsan! One word from her and we will all lose our heads!”

Nivis scoffed at his words, not taking him seriously at all.

Park Sagwa was a 4-Ringed Beast Soul Grandmaster so she could hear her voice, but she didn’t seem to be furious. She was only amused at the unexpected comment from someone she deemed to be Alaric’s servant.

“Your Highness’s subordinate doesn’t seem to like me.” She remarked with a chuckle.

Alaric smiled helplessly. “Please don’t mind her words. She can be mean sometimes, even to me.”

“Is that so? What an amusing girl!” She giggled in response.

Soon, he boarded a luxurious carriage with Park Sagwa, while his subordinates had to travel on horseback with the duchess’s people.

The duchess’s territory was at the heart of the city and it occupied almost 30% of the entire city’s total landmass.

There was a whole town in her own territory and she explained that they were families of the people working for her.

Inside her territory, he saw a big coliseum.

“That coliseum was constructed by my late father. He loved to watch warriors in battle so he built it mostly for his personal entertainment, but it later became a family symbol. Now, we hold tournaments annually and people have to pay so they can watch the event.” Park Sagwa observed his expression while she explained this.

She knew that some people didn’t enjoy this kind of activity.

Alaric didn’t give much of a reaction since Astania had the same tradition. He only felt that it was a smart move to turn the tradition into a way of making money.

I should suggest this to Mom when I return home.