Wizard starting from shoeing donkeys

"Reine, you could first look through the information related to this Bounty Order,"

"Originally, it was just a bounty, but after being posted for a long time without resolution, it has now turned into a mysterious event that needs to be resolved by official imperial channels,"

"This is one of several mysterious events that have occurred recently in the regions belonging to Meist County, which I selected. Once a mysterious event is resolved, the merit rewards are three to five times, or even more, than those of ordinary events,"

"Reine, considering that you have already stepped into the ranks of a Transcendent Knight and also possess the 'Glimmering Greatsword,' I think you will not face much trouble with this mission as long as you are careful about your safety,"

Reine nodded, having no objections to Lord Hamilton's arrangements.

With the 'Glimmering Greatsword' in his hand, if the source of the mysterious event was some form of evil, he still carried a certain advantage,

Reine took the Bounty Order and began to read it closely; after a short while, he looked up at Hamilton in surprise and said, "I never expected ghosts to truly exist!"

"Although it could be exaggerated by common folk, these entities do exist in reality, just in extremely rare numbers, hence most often they are regarded as mere legends,"

"Such Bounty Orders are generally not considered by typical bounty hunters because they lack the capabilities to eliminate these ghosts and would only endanger their lives, making it not worth the risk,"

"Furthermore, those who can eliminate these ghosts are usually known as Demon Hunters, a group even rarer than the spirits themselves," Hamilton explained.

"Demon Hunters?" Reine mulled over the title internally.

This world's Demon Hunters wouldn't also be using a pair of swords—one silver and one steel—would they?

"Yes, it is said that to become a Demon Hunter, one needs to awaken some kind of Transcendent trait, but the specifics, I am not too clear about,"

"Of course, apart from Demon Hunters, there are also individuals within the church capable of eradicating them, but throughout the entire Meist County, there is only one large cathedral dedicated to the Monsoon and Ocean Goddess,"

"Those capable of dispelling evil are mostly high-ranking church officials, and if the mysterious events do not occur within the County Town, they generally do not partake,"

"The same is true for the advisors of the great nobles,"

Reine nodded in understanding, realizing that people with such capabilities are rare and high-ranking, and naturally, they would not be the ones to take on such bounties,

"Lord Hamilton, then I will make minor preparations and head to Agatha Mill as soon as possible,"

"Oh, Reine, I have a bottle of 'Holy Water' here from the Buffalo Cathedral in the County Town. If you are dealing with a resentful spirit or some such evil creature, 'Holy Water' should be highly effective,"

Considering this, Hamilton took an oval-shaped glass vial from a drawer,

The liquid inside was clearly visible, a pale blue in color,

Reine took it and examined it carefully; he could feel a subtle energy within, but it seemed to pose no threat to him,

"Thank you, my lord," Reine said, slightly bowing in gratitude.

It seemed that Lord Hamilton had made thorough considerations for his first mysterious mission,

After leaving the office, Reine thought it over and realized he didn't have much to prepare,

The 'Glimmering Greatsword' was currently strapped to his back, and he was wearing knight armor. Other shields seemed redundant since acquiring the supernatural trait 'Iron Skin', which could hinder the performance of his Dual-Handed Greatsword,

After pondering for a while, Reine decided he could set out immediately,

Considering it was only around nine in the morning, he could perhaps return by evening if all went smoothly,

Given the 'official duty' nature of this mission, Reine unhesitatingly chose a warhorse from the stable in the administrative hall,

With a slight kick, Reine mounted the horse, ready to set off,

Just then, a carriage arrived at the entrance of the small town's administrative hall, and Reine casually glanced at the insignia on the carriage—it was the noble crest of the Habus family: 'a stooping bird of prey',

Though Reine was a bit puzzled, he presumed they were here for Hamilton and didn't concern himself much, planning to ride off,

"Excuse me, is this Lord Reine?"

Just as Reine was about to depart, a middle-aged man's voice called out from behind him,

Turning around in bewilderment, Reine saw a man in a long black robe, with a parted hairstyle in the middle, stepping out of the carriage and smilingly addressing him,

"Yes, may I ask who you are?"

"Lord Reine, I am Michel, the butler of Baron Alonso, the eldest legitimate son of the Habus family,"

'Alonso'?

Upon hearing the name, Reine's pupils contracted; he certainly knew who the man was, just not the reason for his visit,

All Michel, the butler, did was maintain his formulaic smile and continued, "There might have been a small misunderstanding between us before, but that's all in the past,"

"This time, Baron Alonso has sent me to have a talk with you, Lord Reine. If it's convenient for you, please join me in the carriage," Michel continued with a smile, gesturing towards the carriage,

"This...." Reine pondered,

Worried about an assassination attempt?

The other party wasn't foolish; it was highly unlikely that they would try to assassinate him in front of many guards at the door of a small town's administrative hall,

This time, it seemed they were here to recruit him, but...could a past assassination attempt really be brushed off with just a small misunderstanding?

Reine had already decided, despite whatever enticing offers they might make, to listen first and gauge their intentions,

"Alright!" Reine dismounted and walked over, while Michel warmly opened the carriage door for him,

As soon as Reine stepped into the carriage, he was stunned.

The next second, he realized what was going on and slowly sat down on the sheepskin-covered carriage seat.

Opposite him were a pair of beautiful twin girls, dressed in identical white, off-the-shoulder dresses with trim, which accentuated their delicate and tender bodies to the fullest extent.

When the two girls saw Lord Reine's gaze, they shyly lowered their heads, and their delicate bodies even leaned closer to each other, giving one the sense of appreciating the beauty of joint lotus blossoms.

Lord Reine couldn't help but look a few more times.

For beautiful things, humans instinctively pursue them.

Michel, who was nearby, seeing Lord Reine's slightly shocked expression and his subsequent frequent glances toward the twin girls, nodded slightly with a smile.

It seemed that this arrangement of his was quite to the liking of this "farmer's son."

Previously, his judgment was that since the "farmer's son" had such exceptional talents but had never shown them before, it was very likely that he had a special affection for Lady Creya; otherwise, it was hard to explain this situation.

If so, even though they might not find a beauty comparable with Lady Creya, there is a saying, two is better than one.

Now, it seemed the effect was not bad.

"Lord Reine, Baron Alonso highly appreciates your talent. If you agree to become a follower of Lord Alonso, then these two beautiful girls from Crab Claw Peninsula will be your maidservants," he said.

"Furthermore, Lord Reine, here is a set specially prepared for you....."

"Wait a minute, Michel butler, if I heard you correctly, did you just say 'follower'?" Lord Reine frowned, interrupting Michel's continuous story.

"Yes, if you become a follower of Lord Alonso, all your cultivation expenses will be...."

"Sorry, but please forgive me for not being able to agree," Lord Reine shook his head and outright refused.

What a joke.

If previously Lord Reine was unclear about the difference between a follower and a guardian knight, after Lord Hamilton's explanation, he understood it very clearly.

Being a follower might seem nice, with the master covering food, lodging, and cultivation resources, but the consequence was that there was almost no autonomy.

This was fundamentally in conflict with what Reine sought—to control his own fate.

Thus, Lord Reine did not hesitate to refuse.

"What?!" Michel had the expression of a duck whose neck was being squeezed, and the twin girls also covered their mouths, looking at Reine with a face full of surprise.

Michel was stunned for a good while before he said with a gloomy expression, "Lord Reine, I think you should reconsider Baron's suggestion carefully."

"Thank you, but there's no need," Reine replied.

"Michel butler, I have other matters to attend to, so I will take my leave," said Lord Reine, and immediately turned around and stepped down from the carriage.

Lord Reine knew very well what his refusal meant, but to be informed is to be calm, to be compassionate is to be anxiety-free, and to be brave is to be fearless!

Meanwhile.

In Meist County City.

In a luxurious mansion's underground hall.

A slender knight holding a scythe-like weapon was respectfully reporting:

"High Priest, the cause of Mort's death has been clarified: according to the findings, he was killed by a newly emerged knight. Here is the information concerning that knight."

The scythe-wielding knight handed over a document to the High Priest, who was sitting in a large armchair. Under the light of a wall lamp, the cover of the document clearly bore the name Reine.

"In addition, since the stronghold near Flashgold Town has been exposed, we lost more than twenty 'materials', and there is definitely not enough time for the Black Flame Prayer Ceremony. Therefore, we must expedite it by holding a blood sacrifice."

"As for the location of the blood sacrifice, please instruct, High Priest," the scythe-wielding knight continued.

"Oh! A newly emerged knight from Flashgold Town? How coincidental."

"The location... have you heard? An Evil Spirit Knight has appeared near Flashgold Town. This might just be our opportunity."

"Are you suggesting Flashgold Town, High Priest? But isn't that a bit too close to the County Town? Moreover, the Habsburg Manor is just up there..." the scythe-wielding knight hesitated for a few seconds before speaking.

"The Monsoon and Ocean Goddess Church should be dispatching someone to Nightingale Forest soon to investigate the Evil Spirit Knight incident, by which time the defensive force in Flashgold Town is bound to be drawn away, leaving it vulnerable."

"As for the personnel arrangement of the Habsburg Manor, leave that to Alonso."

"As you command, High Priest."

...

After refusing Michel, Lord Reine quickly rode his horse to the Agatha Mill, located not far from the County Town.

This mill, by jurisdiction, was no longer under the management of Flashgold Town but belonged to the outskirts of County Town.

The geographic location of the mill was excellent, backed by a grassy hillside, with a large wheat field in front, making it an ideal spot for a mill.

But even in the harvest season, the road leading to the windmill was sparsely populated.

Lord Reine continued to ride towards the mill.

As he approached, he noticed three large, lighthouse-shaped windmills. While one was still in use, the doors of the other two mills were tightly locked and completely unused.

At that moment, a round, chubby middle-aged man approached, wiping the sweat from his brow as he hurried over.