72 Visencounter

A couple days later :

Michael stretches his arms out as he begins his journey anew. He was completely refreshed and ready to get moving again, barring the occasional nightmare that'd strike. He'd spent some time relaxing in a beachfront village.

To be honest, he'd really needed a break both to relax his body, mental fatigue, and to allow him some time to properly consider his situation. Almost the entire duration he'd been in this world had been spent fearing for his life, running, and killing. Never letting his mind rest.

Fortunately, this beachfront village had allowed him to unwind a bit. Letting him test out his new swimming skill, which was actually pretty overpowered, and think about his plan here on.

His original plan to go to Albion and deal with the rebels to help Louise might've actually been entirely directed by the power of the runes over him. Despite his knowledge of their effect, they seemed to alter his decision making regardless of his attempts to resist them.

His time relaxing however had allowed him to pinpoint this. However, he still didn't intend to change his plans. The reason for this? Aside from the large amounts of EXP that he'd likely gain. There was something he'd almost completely forgotten about.

Louise was not the only friendly Void Mage he knew of... In fact, there was one far more suitable for his needs.

Tiffania.

She showed up quite late in the anime, but Michael eventually remembered her existence after going through his memories again. She was a sixteen-year-old half-elf that saved Saito's life after he fought against the Albion army.

He wasn't too sure why she was living on her own in the forest, nor how she managed to feed herself without any assistance. But regardless, she'd be far more useful to him than Louise. This should also help against the passive mental coercion of the runes, since he wouldn't be beholden to Louise for his plans any longer.

The only problem was actually finding her, since he knew literally nothing about Albion and its geography, plus the fact that the anime wasn't really clear from what he remembered. Meaning he'd probably have to scour the floating island for her.

So yeah, his objectives for Albion are to try and kill Cromwell and the rebels, steal that magic mind control ring, and find Tiffania.

For now, however, he had to focus on actually getting to Albion. Which might not be so easy considering the large outpost standing before him. He wasn't surprised it was here, since this was one of the main roads to Gallia, but the amount of troops presence was strange.

There were more men here than there was on the gate and walls of Antomiers. Meaning they were either anticipating an attack from Gallia, or, they anticipated something coming through. Maybe drugs? dangerous artifacts?... Or... Criminals?

...

No... How would they even know that he was coming this way? As far as Tristain was concerned, he was still idling around Antomiers...? Right?

To get around this, Michael started looking for other ways to get across. The outpost was comprised of two large stone towers that had a gate in between them. It was built atop a fjord which seemed to be the only real way across, aside from taking your chances swimming.

Michael was willing to swim, but the presence of so many guards patrolling the river made it unlikely for him to get across unmolested.

...

He lets out a long sigh and decides to say 'Fuck it' and go through the gate. It wasn't as if his bounty picture actually resembled him in any way. And even if they found him out, he'd be able to escape fairly easily anyway. The border of Gallia was only a couple of miles away, meaning he'd escape Tristain long before any actually dangerous opponents could catch up to him.

And...

They let him through...

He was forced to pay two gold, but aside from him grumbling about corrupt guards, nothing else of notice occurred... At least, not from the outpost itself.

Half an hour after stepping past the outpost, Michael could hear the vague sound of flapping wings... He turns around and looks up, only to be dumbfounded by the sight of three men riding Griffins flying overhead.

They didn't lack any of the grace the dragons of this world had. So it was actually a pretty impressive sight. If only Michael could watch it without worrying for his life... One of the riders seemed to notice him and started descending, eventually landing in front of him.

As soon as Michael laid eyes on the man, he regretted ever being cocky enough to walk the roads with impunity... Viscount Wardes. A man who was able to beat Saito in combat with relative ease, and is one of the main antagonists in the anime.

He was easily recognizable by his long grey hair, feathered cavalier hat, and rip-off iron man beard. He wore a dark blue coat that looked more akin to a robe, which went all the way down to his ankles but was open in the front.

At his side was a rapier-like blade, which Michael knew to be blunt rather, used for his magic as opposed to a functional melee weapon.

Michael wasn't sure if he'd be able to beat Wardes at this point, maybe if he ambushed him? But in a direct confrontation like this? With Wardes having reinforcements? VERY unlikely. For now, he just straightens his posture and tries to present a look of confidence.

"Hoh? Greetings traveler, I am Viscount Wardes, Captain of the Tristain's Griffin Knights." he says while giving a slight bow from his hip.

...

"Er, yeah... Did you need something from me, Viscount?" Michael asks, wondering why Wardes had even stopped here.

Wardes smiles and nods, "First I'd like to learn your name." he states, causing Michael to rapidly go through the various aliases he'd thought about... Obviously, using his 'Mike' alias would probably get him caught out, so he just randomly says, "Lou-Luke."

"Luke? A fine name, though, I believe it has origins in Gallia?" he questions, and Michael just nods.

"Ah-yes. I am returning to my home country... I-is there something wrong my Lord?" he asks, mimicking the way most commoners interact with mages.

Wardes shrugs as the other two Griffin knights continue to circle overhead. "I just wished to make sure of something, hair-like yours is rather uncommon. So I wished to confirm something... Would you mind showing me the back of your hands?"

...

Fuck.