Chapter 7: The Village part 2

Adam, after taking a deep breath, finally turned back and gazed upon the now calmer demihuman.

"Sir... Would you mind telling me your name? I can't help but longing to learn about powerful beings..." Jabbered Ruion.

"Right, I completely forgot to introduce myself... But then again, I need to come up with a name befitting of my character... My usual, mundane character name, Adam, would not be fitting at all. I need something which represents him... Something..." Mulled Adam.

For a brief moment, Adam looked at the sky and then chuckled.

"Solo. Call me Solo!"

Meanwhile, outside of the forest, two men were slowly riding horses towards the forest. Behind them, the silhouette of a settlement could have been seen, and in it, there was a single towering structure, presumably a castle.

One of the men was wearing decorated, hardened leather armour and leather boots. The gloves, shirt and trousers he wore were made from fine silk-like material. They were so delicate; it seemed pretty silly how the man was wearing armour yet was wearing such expensive undergarments. The man also had a shining sword, and which scabbard was also decorated. The man's short, slightly missing black hair was being played with by the wind.

As for the other male, he was wearing a single robe and was holding a staff in one of his hands. He, on the other hand, had long dark brown hair spiced with a few silver pieces of hair. The two men were about in their mid-forties. And despite the difference in status, they seemed to be on equal footing with each other.

The man in leather armour was called Lornin Ciorn; he was a baron who was granted the land. Although not from the nobility, the man who rode next to him was a powerful mage called Polyn Tusard; sent by Lorin Ciorn's lord, the mage was tasked to aid the subjugation of the demihumans.

"Are you certain that what you have described really happened?" Asked the baron.

"I am certain... The trap was set up perfectly, it activated, but then it was destroyed... I have a feeling that the men who were sent to deal with the pests are most likely dead. They were nothing more than weaklings with minor combat abilities and a few enchanted items and potions. They were a waste of effort. It would have been wiser if I had gone there alone and dealt with them. It would have been faster and more cost-efficient!" Explained the mage with slight anger in his voice.

"That would have been faster, correct, but I was told to only ask for your help when crucial. Also, now that you mention it. How strong do you think the man who broke your spell?" Questioned the baron after a few seconds of pause.

"Can't say for certain. The casted spell was designed to hold that demihuman beast who specialises in close-quarter fights. However, the spell could have been broken by a second-tier mage, as it had low magical resistance. But I believe we can defeat that being." Stated the mage with a smug smile.

As they travelled closer to the forest, suddenly, the horses they were riding on came to a sudden halt; at first, the men were surprised, but then moments later, their eyes widened.

"W-what was that?!" Lornin shouted as he almost fell down.

"It was a burst of magical power... A teleportation spell... It came from the forest... And since I couldn't detect where the teleportation was aimed at, it must be quite far." Stated Polyn, and he jumped off of his horse.

"But seeing how that teleportation spell caused such a noticeable wave, I believe the caster wanted to show their presence... Then again, I think I could defeat them if we had to fight!" Mumbled the mage once his feet touched the ground.

The baron at first looked down at his companion and then followed his example and got off his horse. As he was getting off the horse, the men, who were sent to subjugate the village, came running towards them from the forest.

"Sir! Please don't go there! It is too dangerous!" Screamed one of the men.

"They are too strong!" Shouted another man.

"Pathetic!" Thought the baron.

With a swift movement, he drew his sword, dashed forward and sliced the man who ran at the front into two perfect halves. With a glare, the man sheathed his sword. At that moment, the soldiers stopped running; one of them even fell but jumped right back up.

"You have accepted this job, so the only way you can fail is by dying. These pests must be evicted or subdued; this was the request you have accepted. So choose wisely. Either do your job or be executed right here and now!" Shouted the lord furiously.

The soldiers all started fidgeting with their hands, and some even began to shake slightly. As Lornin received no reply, he stepped onto one half of the corpse and glared at the men before him.

"S-sir... They had a powerful mage... We didn't see any sort of magical circle, yet as he attacked one of us... He killed Leon by exploding his head!" Uttered one of the men.

"A spell which exploded a head without needing a magical circle? That is ludicrous! I have never heard of such a thing." Added the mage, and he furiously slammed the tip of his staff to the ground.

"S-sir! I swear! He only used his bare fist; it must have been a spell!" Stuttered another man, and he fell to his knees.

A few minutes before, back on the outskirts of the demihuman village. Adam and Ruion didn't say a word for minutes, and Ruion grew seemingly more worried. Although it was not visible, Adam was quite nervous, and that was the reason he remained silent.

"Why did I say Solo? It is true that I played alone a lot, but it was a bad choice... But I guess I will stick with it; it still has more seriousness behind it than just ADAM..." Thought Adam.

"Solo? That... That is a unique name I have never heard before." Thought Ruion.

"It was a bit too flashy, and I would say you tried to show off! You could have easily walked here!" Stated Adam coldly.

At that moment, a blue bubble of light appeared not far from him, which soon vanished. In the centre of the area where the light appeared, two figures stood. One of them was Lulu, the knight whom Adam used as a companion to carry and sell items. The girl stood in her armour, but this time she had two shortswords on her side and one great sword on her back. Each placed in their scabbard.

The other girl was of a much smaller size. She was about the size of Adam's index finger, but despite her tiny size, her chest was of considerable measure. She had a pair of dark purple wings on her back. Her whole body was covered with one single black suit, which seemed as if it was made of some sort of slimy material. The girl had short black hair. Her eyes were quite unique, as their colour was glowing purple, and her sclera was black. The tiny girl's name was Fayn.

The moment Adam looked at them, Lulu instantly kneeled down. However, Fayn did not. Since she was on top of Lulu's head, she jumped off and flew towards Adam, who was caught off guard and seemed surprised. The girl passed right next to Adam's right hand and hugged his index finger, and smiled delightfully, causing Adam to feel uneasy.

"Sir! Sorry for the intrusion, but as your personal assistant, I couldn't sit by idly!" Stated Lulu.

"Oh...So it must have been Fayn who contacted me previously... I set her to be my right-hand man... Back in the game, I thought it would be fun to set her to be quite clingy and attached... But now, it feels strange... "

"As for Lulu... Although I did make her my personal follower... But she is quite weak; she is only level 30, as I only used her to sell unnecessary items. Players have a near infinite inventory, but companions have limits, and if I remember correctly, level 26 is the threshold where companions reach their maximum capacity...in terms of inventory." Thought Adam as his left eye started slightly twitching.

"Sir! Why did you leave me behind? I wanted to come with you! What would we do if something happened to you!" Uttered the tiny girl as she hugged Adam's finger tighter.

"Could you give us a moment, please, Ruion!" Stated Adam and looked at the demihuman.

"Oh...Of course! I will be going back to the village in that case!" Replied Ruion almost instantly.

The man nodded and quickly walked away, leaving Adam and the two girls alone. While the man was leaving, Adam took a deep breath, raised the tiny girl hugging his finger, and looked into her eyes.

"Lulu, Fayn... I have an important announcement!" Stated Adam but paused.

During that pause, Lulu raised her head and looked at Adam's face with genuine curiosity. Fayn, although Adam was looking at her, she needed a few seconds before she finally let go of Adam's finger, much to Adam's relief. And then flew over to Lulu's head and sat down on it.

"I have decided that it was time for me to change my name... From this day forth, my name shall be Solo, and this day, marks the birth of Solo, the shadow! Inform everyone of this announcement in the base." Declared Solo with a nervous but seemingly devious smile.

"Yes, Lord Solo!" Shouted the two girls simultaneously.

This sudden reaction slightly shocked Solo, as he was expecting a different response, but still, he found it quite pleasant.

"Sir, can I ask you something?" Spoke up Fayn after a brief period of silence.

"Yes, go ahead." Replied Solo and looked at the girl, who instantly smiled.

"Sir, would you mind telling us your plans? I have noticed that we are no longer in the area we used to be...Also, I noticed some pests in the area as I teleported. Would you like me to deal with them?" Asked the tiny girl.

"No, do not kill them, at least not yet. I have discovered a strange, new type of spell, and I want to learn more about them, as such skills were not present in Gates of Ardion. It was some sort of binding spell..." Replied Solo as he took a deep breath.

"Plan... Hah... Yeah, I haven't really thought of that. What to do... Ardion... He brought me here in a blink of an eye without even explaining anything... Should I try to find a way back to my Earth? Would it be worth it? Back there, I was a no-name, a nothing... The only one who cared about me is...Or was? Uhhh... My sister... Maybe it is better for her as well... She will be able to focus on her studies... Here, maybe I will be able to enjoy life more..." Contemplated Solo as he slowly raised his head and started looking at the sky.

Fayn and Lulu were anticipating further explanation and just stayed still for almost a minute; at that moment, Solo finally looked back at them.

"I am going to take a stroll; meanwhile, I want you, you TWO, to follow that demihuman, Ruion, and learn as much information as possible. Once you have gathered enough information, one of you will return to base and inform everyone of my new name while the other stays here!" Declared Solo.

"Yes, sir!" Replied the girls instantaneously.