The Outside World

At the beginning of summer, as the sun began to rise, a layer of mist enveloped the village on the outskirts of Qin's largest cities, revealing what might have been the most orderly village in the entire kingdom.

To the north of the village lay the Sword Mountain. A cluster of extraordinarily magnificent palaces was hidden in that mountain, and before them was a massive waterfall.

These palaces were guarded by men in black uniforms, each of them carrying bows on their backs and swords at their waists.

Hundreds of men could be seen standing guard; none of them seemed to doubt this duty, remaining in place as was expected of them.

The symbol on the flags in this place was an eye within a rectangle. Many feared this flag because it had been seen everywhere in the rural areas of Qin for the past six months.

When Jun set foot in the outside world, he did not hesitate to search for good subordinates to serve him. He did not have much time, so he chose a group of bandits with minor crimes in their histories.

Trevor recommended settling in one of the palaces Qin had near the Asura village. It was in this way that, from a base, they began to eliminate bandits, criminals who thought they could get away with their crimes, and many other lunatics.

Jun, who enjoyed this work, discovered he was being paid for it, so he went on to create a private army in the best way he knew, while also putting slaves to work.

These slaves were criminals. Jun would often buy slaves and offer them freedom after they had paid him back with a certain amount of labor. It might take them many years to pay it off, but it was better than being a slave for life.

Knowing the ways in which a man could gain power, Jun established his own mercenary organization, working under Qin with the sole purpose of bringing security back to the most defenseless villages.

But don't get it wrong, Jun was no hero; he was merely taking advantage of situations for his own benefit. All the villages flying his flag were protected, and in return, they provided a steady supply of arrows, food, and textiles.

Security in those times was the best thing that could have happened to the villages; crimes had ended, and justice prevailed.

This was how Jun had been working during this period while looking for something to do. It turned out that in those years, there were more wars than days in the year.

…

Main Hall.

Jun was training new recruits, who would be chosen for the archer division, knowing beforehand what their specialties were.

Not everyone was talented in warfare, so he focused on the youngest to explore their talents more deeply.

"You will shoot arrows until your fingers bleed, understood?" Trevor asked in a deep voice.

It turned out Jun couldn't distance himself from the twins when the clans learned what he was doing, so they supported him by sending more guards to this place.

"Any news?" Jun was bored; everything was very repetitive these days.

"Lord, we have news!"

"Maybe I shouldn't have asked..." Jun muttered, slightly annoyed.

"It is reported that they have chosen the Shiyuu; her name is Yuu Ren."

"Is she pretty?"

"Sir?"

Jun felt slightly embarrassed for asking such an out-of-place question; lately, he found himself saying things instead of just thinking them. "Continue with the information; this is of utmost importance."

"Understood!"

The messenger unfolded the information letter in front of Jun and said, "Yuu Ren is described as a very dark and somber person. Raised to be an assassin, she had become ruthless, almost devoid of any feelings. She is arrogant, cruel, and uses stealth tactics to secure victory."

"Nothing new, is that all?" Jun imagined that if they ever met, they would surely try to kill each other.

"It is said that in the Kyou tribe, a 13-year-old clan member has escaped after being ordered to commit suicide for missing the tournament. Her name is Kyou Kai; she fled after massacring many of her clan's elders, and her whereabouts are unknown."

Jun's eyes showed surprise as he asked, "Are the elders of the Shiyuu Clan so weak?"

"Either that, or she is very skilled with the sword." Liu, who had survived the trial alongside Jun, appeared at the back with another urgent message.

"Keep me informed of any new developments; I would be interested in meeting that girl."

"You're never interested in anything," said Vera, who had just arrived at the meeting after training his men.

"Why the interest now?" Lin was confused; Jun didn't usually behave like this.

Trevor looked at the messenger and said, "He's looking for a place to sow his seed. All crescent moons do it; it's no surprise he's looking for a strong woman."

"You have a golden opportunity; I think you should take it."

Lin, on the side, remained confused. What is this about sowing the seed?

"That's all."

Jun nodded slightly and said, "Let's move on. Lin, any news?"

"Well, this is..."

"If it's about the seed, you can relax; no one is bothered by it."

"It bothers me. Can we stop talking about the damned seed for a moment? I think my bells aren't ready yet," Jun replied casually.

They were all men; some would think about it, some would not, but for now, it was fun to talk about the bells.

After everyone fell silent, Lin murmured, "Because you refused to help the new King of Qin, he will send you to war through a formal request."

"I am not his soldier." Jun was annoyed by the current King of Qin's audacity; he still didn't know that Jun could take his head if he wanted to.

But Jun wasn't so angry as to do that; he recalled a message that had arrived about a request for help. Later, he found out that there had been a coup attempt; the current king's brother's faction tried to take the throne, but it didn't go well.

Jun, at that time, was busy killing bandits, helping the development of villages, and creating a private army.

"When is this war supposed to be?"

"He would need to move in a week to make it on time."

"Who are we fighting against?"

"Wei invaded a city that Qin took some time ago, and now a campaign is forming to retake that city and the head of the general in charge."

Jun nodded slightly and thought it might be good to get some fresh air; he might even find the criminal who had the courage to massacre her clan.

"I admire her a lot, and I haven't even met her yet," Jun thought lightly. He had never dared to attack anyone for his freedom, but he saw that she had been able to do so.