Starting With an SSS-Rank Swordsmanship Talent

While Alaric was discussing with the senior inspector, a servant came to inform him of the arrival of the Grand Commander.

“So he’s finally here.”

The empress promised him that she would send the Grand Commander to help him with the investigation.

“Bring him here.” Alaric sent Galanar a look.

“I understand.” Galanar nodded and left to escort the Grand Commander.

A moment later, he returned with a gray-haired old man wearing silver and blue armor.

He had a rigid face that sported sword scars. He entered the room with a confident gait.

“Greetings, Your Highness. I apologize for my tardiness.” He made a fist-palm salute as he greeted Alaric.

Alaric stood up from his seat and smiled at him. “It’s an honor to have you here, Grand Commander. I have been wanting to make friends with you, but we are both busy men so I couldn’t find the right timing.”

The Grand Commander grinned and replied. “The honor is mine, Your Highness. I have long heard of your glorious name so it has been a wish of mine to speak with the youngest Venerable in history.”

The two exchanged pleasantries.

Alaric silently used his Appraisal on the Grand Commander.

Ludwig Emerson [Mythical Knight] EXP: 7752/10000

Potential: SS

Traits: Close Combat (SSS), Halberd Mastery (SSS), Horseback Riding (SS), Swordsmanship (SS), Intimidation (S), Archery (S), Command (S), Pain Tolerance (S), Spear Mastery (S), …

Strength: 1277

Stamina: 1249

Agility: 1250

Vitality: 1420

Endurance: 1388

Mana: 1339

This guy isn’t any weaker than the empress, but can I really trust him?

After his encounter with Samantha, he realized that the heretic cult had already infiltrated Veronica deeply.

He didn’t know which people could be trusted.

“This is Senior Inspector Jaymund Felton from the Inspection Department. His men will be responsible for the investigation.” He introduced the senior inspector to the grand commander.

Jaymund Felton was awestruck. He had only seen the grand commander from afar and he had never spoken once to him before.

“It’s a great honor, Grand Commander!”

The Grand Commander laughed and patted his shoulder. “Relax. We will be working together soon so there is no need to be formal. Just be casual with me.”

“Yes, my lord!”

“Alright. You two sit down. We will discuss everything from the start.” Alaric made a hand gesture at them.

The two men took their seats and listened to his plans.

“Do you have any questions?”

“Your Highness, this could greatly affect the peace of the city. Even the entire country would be affected. Do we really have to go this far?” The Grand Commander spoke of his concerns.

He was the highest military officer of the empire so it was his responsibility to ensure the people’s safety.

Alaric’s face was grim as he responded. “From what I have heard, the heretic cult has been a big problem for Veronica for several decades. If you leave them be, they will only continue to grow. There might come a time when they would have the strength to overthrow the empress.”

The Grand Commander’s face fell upon hearing this, but he stayed silent and listened to his words.

“Grand Commander, I know you only want your people to be safe, but they will never remain truly safe if the heretic cult is here. Your people will live in constant fear.”

Alaric stared deeply at him.

“We must eliminate them now!” He exclaimed, his aura subconsciously leaking out, surprising the grand commander.

His strength… this cannot be!

From what he knew, Alaric had just advanced to the Mythical Knight realm. However, Alaric’s aura wasn’t that of a newly ascended Mythical Knight.

The young Venerable was nearly on the same level as him!

This filled him with profound shock.

He took a deep breath to calm his emotions. He then cleared his throat and said. “To tell you the truth, I have made investigations on the heretic cult on my own and I discovered something alarming.”

“The cult leader isn’t human. He is a half beast and half demonkin at the peak of the Catastrophe-Grade!” He exclaimed with a look of horror.

Alaric was stunned by his words.

“There is someone like that in the cult?” He couldn’t believe it, but it all made sense now.

He finally understood why an apex expert like the empress was unable to eliminate the heretic cult. It turned out that there was a dangerous monster at the helm, controlling the cult from the background!

“That’s right.” The Grand Commander nodded.

“We fought him two decades ago and he left me with this scar.” He removed his armor and took off his shirt, revealing a gruesome scar on his chest.

“I only survived that day because of Her Majesty. If it weren’t for her, I might have perished back then.” There was fear in his eyes when he mentioned this.

Suddenly, a notification popped up in front of him.

___

Your mission has been updated.

Mission: Destroy the Heretic Cult!

Mission Difficulty: Hell

An organization run by a mysterious expert has infiltrated Veronica and spread fear throughout the whole nation. They have deceived the ignorant people and taken the lives of many under the guise of sacrificial offerings.

Eliminate this evil organization to bring back peace to Veronica!

Mission Rewards: 15000 Battle Points, 2500 EXP, 300 Stat Points, SSS-rank Trait Card x1, Random Trait Upgrade Card x1, Mythical Knight Card x1

Penalty for failure: Veronica will fall into the hands of the heretic cult within ten years.

___

Alaric nearly jumped when he saw the rewards, but he quickly composed himself.

High rewards meant that the mission was incredibly dangerous.

He closed the system screen and looked at the grand commander. “Lord Grand Commander, I will request more support from Astania if you are willing to join me in this fight.”

The Grand Commander fell into silence. He came here thinking that this would only be a minor investigation to determine the killers of the bishop. However, Alaric’s goal was actually to eliminate the entire heretic cult!

“I can’t decide this on my own, Your Highness. I need to inform Her Majesty first.”