Rupture

Two weeks had passed since Princess Sravati's departure from Death Valley.

A man opened his eyes as the morning sunlight crept in and woke him up. He looked up at the wooden ceiling of his room, a ceiling he had built a few days ago with the Shop Owner.

The man never imagined that he would actually sleep in the room he built himself, inside the Death Valley, which was still referred to as a cursed land.

He got up from his bed and stretched his muscles. Then he dropped to the floor next to the wooden bed he had also made.

On the wooden floor, the man immediately started doing push-ups repeatedly until sweat cloaked his body..

After feeling satisfied, he left the inn and walked to the bathroom building outside. He went through his morning routine in the toilet, ending with washing his face.

Feeling refreshed, the man returned to his room. He picked up the sword leaning against one of the walls. Then he left the inn and swung the sword.

He practiced swordsmanship for the next few hours, at least until the cool morning air had faded from his skin.

This was the routine that the man, Jamie, followed every morning in Death Valley.

He couldn't go anywhere and could only wait for Legia to come and pick him up. Therefore, for now, he could only focus on strengthening himself.

Jamie was aware of the Third Princess Sravati's plan for the Blackwinter war. The Shop Owner had informed him. The Shop Owner said that if the plan succeeded, the war shouldn't last long.

But for Jamie, who had participated in several wars before, he knew very well that wars always took a long time.

Even if the plan shortened the duration of the war, there were still several important things to be done after the war.

Therefore, Jamie was certain that Legia's return to Death Valley would still be a long way off.

Jamie swung his sword swiftly, then ran and attacked a wooden block standing before him.

Hyat!

With one quick and accurate strike, the wooden block was cut in half.

Jamie took a deep breath and smiled. He then picked up another piece of wood, but this time it was twice the size of the one he had just cut.

Jamie swung his sword again, but unfortunately, his sword stopped halfway.

"Sigh... still not enough."

Clank!

At that moment, the front door of the shop opened. Jamie turned to the source of the sound and saw the Shop Owner, Cien, coming out with a bow in his hand and a quiver of arrows on his back.

The Shop Owner walked away and entered the forest, disappearing into it.

Almost every morning, Cien would venture into that forest.

Only in the past few days did Jamie realize that the area he was in was actually protected by a defensive formation. And at that moment, he also realized that every morning, Cien would hunt down any monsters near the border of the protective formation.

Initially, Jamie didn't quite understand Cien's behavior. After all, the monsters couldn't enter, so why bother hunting them?

But the Shop Owner's answer left him stunned.

"Because those monsters interfere with my business. What if there are customers out there who want to come here but can't because they're afraid of those monsters? They might end up staying away instead."

Indeed, at that moment, Jamie wanted to argue that no customers would come to this place. So Cien didn't need to worry about it. But in the end, he could only swallow his words.

Because after he thought about it, in fact, Legia was one of the people who would come here. And the presence of that monster would put his companion's life in danger.

In the end, Jamie could only feel that what Cien was doing was not in vain.

Shoot! Shoooot!

The sound of arrows whizzing through the silent morning forest echoed loudly. Jamie stopped swinging his sword, listening carefully to the sound of those arrows. He only heard it twice.

Afterward, silence returned. Only the chirping of birds and the cries of insects could be heard.

"As usual, Lord Millard kills his prey quickly."

It didn't take long before Jamie could see Cien's figure emerging from the woods. However, upon seeing his figure, Jamie raised an eyebrow.

Because he didn't see any prey brought by the Shop Owner.

"Impossible! Did the prey escape?"

Cien immediately answered when he approached.

"Jamie, there's a Blackwood Stag lying over there. Bring it back and skin it. You can take all the meat, and put the rest of the materials behind the shop."

Cien straightforwardly gave his order. Hearing that Jamie could get free meat made him unhesitant in accepting the command.

After giving the order, Cien prepared to return to his shop. However, his steps instantly stopped when he glanced at the piece of wood that Jamie failed to cut, and then he looked at the sword used by the man in his hand.

Cien then held out his hand towards Jamie. Making the man silent, not understanding, seeing an extended hand like a person asking for something, Jamie could only remain silent.

He didn't know what to give.

"Why are you just standing there? Lend me your sword for a moment!" Cien exclaimed.

"Ah!"

Jamie quickly handed over his sword. He watched as Cien swung the blade a few times, examining its surface with a serious expression.

"Hmm... it's trash."

"Wha–?!"

Jamie couldn't believe that Cien was criticizing his sword. The blade had been with him ever since he joined the army. It had claimed the lives of countless monsters and men.

While Jamie knew it wasn't a magical sword, it was still the best product he had found in his town.

Cien then tossed the sword back to Jamie, surprising him as he caught it in a panic. He turned to face Cien, ready to complain about the dangerous act that had just taken place.

But to Jamie's surprise, Cien had already turned his back and walked back into his shop.

"... what the hell?" Jamie wondered.

The answer to Jamie's question would only be revealed five days later.

On that day, as usual Jamie did his morning routine. He practiced his swordsmanship and had breakfast, enjoying a generous serving of Blackwood Stag meat.

After having breakfast, Jamie's next course of action was to go to the cave behind the store. As he walked there, he passed by the smithy.

For the past five days, he had been hearing the sound of the Shop Owner forging inside.

The rhythm of the Shop Owner's hammer striking the iron was consistent, creating a loud but pleasant sound to the ears.

Jamie smiled as he walked past the room and entered the cave, not far from the smithy area.

Inside the cave, which used to be empty and converted into a room by Reiss, there had been a drastic transformation. The Shop Owner had turned it into a garden.

After finishing the construction of the inn, Cien's next agenda was to create this garden. A beautiful cave garden, illuminated by sunlight streaming through the cracks in the cave's ceiling.

Cien had been shaping the garden for a few days now. Several vegetables and herbal plants had been planted there.

For the plants itself, Cien discovered some herbal plants in Death Valley and also purchased some seeds of vegetables in Wynteria when he attended the festival..

For Cien, vegetables were essential for the body's nutrition, while herbal plants were crucial for various potion recipes on his mobile phone. That was the reason he created the garden.

Usually, after hunting, Cien would take care of the garden, watering and tending the plants. However, for the past few days, Cien had asked Jamie to take over. He was too busy inside the forge.

As Jamie entered the cave, he immediately began watering the plants with water from the well that had been dug before.

After finishing watering the garden, Jamie sat cross-legged in the corner of the cave.

After practicing his swordsmanship, it was time for him to meditate, to enhance the quality and quantity of his mana.

In the past two weeks, the meals Jamie had received were rich in mana. It made him feel like he could break through the next blockade and become stronger.

Currently, Jamie possesses Rank 4 Middle Class power. If he could move to the next step, he could ascend to the Upper Class.

Truly, this rapid achievement was completely unexpected. If he were in Ethyria, maybe it would take him one or two years to reach the next class. But here, all of that could be achieved in just a few weeks.

'Perhaps staying here isn't a bad option.'

Jamie thought before finally sinking deeply into meditation.

Jamie meditated until late afternoon. He opened his eyes, feeling that the quantity of mana within him had increased. Unfortunately, he hadn't been able to reach the next class yet. Jamie thought he would need another day or two.

He stood up and went outside, intending to start preparing dinner.

Just as he exited the cave, he immediately found the Shop Owner standing in the backyard with a sword in his hand.

The long sword's surface gleamed black. Jamie watched Cien swing the sword repeatedly and nod in satisfaction with its condition.

Jamie approached.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Millard."

"Ahh~ Jamie. Perfect timing. Here, catch!"

Cien suddenly threw the sword towards Jamie, causing the man to panic and catch it in mid-air.

"Mr. Millard! That was dangerous!"

"Tsk! It's not dangerous. You're just not skilled enough."

"..."

Jamie speechless, he really wanted to retort, but he knew that he wouldn't win the argument. In the past few weeks, it had been made clear to him that Lord Millard didn't like being contradicted.

"I named this sword Rupture, and now it's yours."

"...what? I mean, Sir... you're giving this to me? For free?"

"Yes, consider it payment for what you've done here. But of course, if you feel uncomfortable, I'm willing to accept payment for the sword. I'll write it down in the debt book."

"..."

Yep, it was that last sentence that made Jamie realize that the man was indeed the Shop Owner. Jamie smiled bitterly, then his attention returned to the sword in his hand.

For some reason, he felt that there was something different about this sword compared to the ones he usually encountered.

'Rupture...'

Jamie's eyes glittered as he looked at the sword. He really wanted to try it out. In his eye, the sword shines like a diamond. The sword will become his cherished weapon.

Jamie smiles broadly with such a thought. Forgetting about the sword that hung in his waist. The one he had considered his closest companion just a minute ago.