3 Chapter 2 - The Retired General

** Endo Ken's Point of View **

"Haha! Your kidding, right?"

"Nope! Isn't it so funny?"

Laughter could be heard from outside Elvain La Piece, a famous bar in Elvaina.

Those inside are mostly military officials who were off or on break. They were all gathering around one person, me.

"Hey, Ken! What do you think?"

The reason why everyone is laughing and joking around is because of what happened an hour ago. Two citizens came running inside, screaming their lungs out. They were screaming, "Run away! The Blue Devil is here to eradicate us!"

This, of course, brought a frenzy to those around. Now, if these were regular citizens, then the chaos would have been lessened; however, one of the screamers was a level three.

In Elvania, citizenship is made up of levels. The base level is zero for ordinary citizens. Next is level one, for those who own businesses. Level two is for the military, and level three is for landowners. Level four and five are unique. Level four is for the 2nd council, and level five is for the central council.

Since a level three was involved, the military couldn't ignore them. A soldier ran over to them and tried to calm them down. Afterward, the solider asked questions to the level three. To summarize, the male, who was the level three, wanted to impress a female, so he brought her to the center of the Blue Devil's den to prove his strength, which is normal.

It is reasonably popular for new couples for the male to show his devotion and venture out into the center of the Blue Devil's den. The weird part about the investigation was that they encounter the beast.

The Blue Devil, a legendary creature with the power to destroy the world without needing to use its limbs. All fear such a beast; however, most people don't believe in his existence since there is no proof.

No one, but a few, took them seriously and fined them for causing a commotion, which brings us to the present, where soldiers who were on duty, now on break, are laughing and spreading what happened earlier today. I, however, was indifferent.

"In my opinion, I don't think we should take this lightly..."

Everyone around me was shocked by my answer.

"Huh?! Ken, you believe that the Blue Devil is real?"

"I don't know if he exists, but I do know that a level three, which is higher than us, says that he encountered him. Even if it is not the Blue Devil, it might be a high-ranking monster that needs to be suppressed."

Landowners, level three's, were ranked higher than the military because of power reasons. The council didn't want the military to have too much power, so they made landowners higher than them.

"You are right, but what if he was hallucinating or joking around? He was a first-rate, after all."

First-rates are those who are 0-99 years old, what we call the youths. There is a total of six rates. Each rate goes up by a hundred. For example, third-rates are those who are 300-399 years old. The last rate is different, though. Sixth-rates are those who are above 600 years of age. The average life expands for elves are 500 years, but some can live up to 1,000 years. Thus, we add a 6th rate for those above 600 years of age.

"Even so, it was a level three. He was also an older first-rate, so I doubt that he would joke around. Again, a monster must be high-ranking to be mistaken for the Blue Devil."

Everyone went silent. The loud bar which outsiders could hear laugher was now dead silent. After a bit of time, someone broke the silence.

"Ken is right! We should investigate immediately. If a monster was mistaken for the Blue Devil, then they must be powerful."

Everyone agreed to the man. "Yeah! Your right." "True, true indeed." "Heh... It's still a little funny." Laugher started up again inside the bar. After a while, a third-rate soldier entered the bar and walked straight up to me.

"Well, looky here. The strongest general is sitting in a bar, wasting your time away. You must have nothing to do if you sit here 24/7."

His voice was deep and stern enough to quiet those around. I looked in his eyes and replied in my natural tone.

"I think you mean retired general. Besides, I do have nothing to do. Is there a problem? I mean, you here, aren't you?"

He looks at me with a mildly angry expression but then relaxes. "Heh, nevermind. I assume you have heard the rumors spreading around from the duo screamers. It's so funny that I can't stop laughing! The Blue Devil? Ha! Who would believe in such a creature?"

"Does this mean that the military has no intention to investigate? Even if it's not the Blue Devil, it might be a high-ranking monster."

He looks at me with a lackadaisical expression.

"Hah! A high-ranking monster? You might have forgotten since you been retired for a while, but monsters don't get near this barrier. We do not need to worry! However, what you said is interesting... Does the retired 2nd tier general believe in a mystical beast?"

The military uses another ranking system. Each rank in the army has a tier system. For generals, there are five tiers. I used to be the 2nd tier general; however, I retired a year ago. This fellow before me is the current 3rd tier general.

"I'm in between, but we should never rule him out."

His expression suddenly changes—a wicked smile forms on his face.

"Hah... If you're so sure, then how's about a little challenge? I'm sure the strongest elf isn't rusty. How about you travel to the center of his den and see if he's there?"

Everyone's eyes widened when they heard the general.

Now, this is a predicament. Traveling to the center isn't the problem. The real question is if I encounter him. I was once the most powerful elf in the world; however, no one can stand against the Blue Devil.

Still, though... It isn't fun being mocked by this guy. And if there is a high-ranked monster, I could warn the council.

"Fine, I'll travel to the center of his den starting tomorrow."

This causes everyone to panic. Even the general was taken aback. "No way!" "Ken is going to go!?" "Maybe the Blue Devil is real..."

The general reposition himself. After a little bit, he started to leave but said something to me right before. "Hah! Good luck then."

After a couple of minutes, the bar resumed its loud nature of having people laughing and talking. Finishing my drink, I return home to get ready for tomorrow's journey. "Been a while since I was this excited for a mission," I whispered to myself...

After getting a night of healthy sleep and full breakfast, I set out for the blue devil den. 'Let's hope I don't regret this decision...'