In the next few days, two carriages travelled together northwestwardly towards the Dwarven Kingdoms.

Kairos had long heard of their mighty forges and as a blacksmith he is very much interested in their techniques. Despite there are no dwarves in Gaia, the tales of these sturdy and short people are famous, passed down as fairy tales.

Throughout this time, Relestia did not remove the scarf covering her nose and lips, but Leo and Linda could still tell that she is a beautiful young lady. Of course, as new companions, Leo did not ask about it and he told Linda to do the same. The little girl, having suffered what most children her age would not go through, had much stronger willpower and more matured than her age suggests.

Instead, the father and daughter duo have other things to focus about because along the way, Kairos started teaching Leo cooking techniques.

…..

Back on Gaia, after Kairos had been kidnapped, things had been busy as well.

In the days after conquering the Ku Kang Plateau, bad news started piling up. Calculus Devilheart had made his way over to take command of the once-undefeated stronghold and he threatened to declare the Snowdrifts a renegade organization if they refused. The Frosthral clans had gathered by the Great Khan’s command to retake the plateau and once he fully absorbed the fifteen Paramount Unit clone he will be unstoppable.

Because of these, the Snowdrifts army led by his four brothers started heading deeper north towards Tommy’s birthplace, Avalon.

…..

They travelled a week on the road without meeting any dangers. Along the way, Leo followed Kairos to hunt for wild game and search for the different ingredients in the forest. As a Class 5 Aura Knight, hunting is still within Leo’s means. Kairos privately applauded the man willpower. As a person with enough mental fortitude to bear starving for his daughter’s sake, how can his Aura be weak?

As Kairos taught, Leo show was more than willing to put in every ounce of effort to learn how to cook for his daughter and his spirit was infectious to Kairos.

In the forest Kairos taught him the art of procuring ingredients. There are various aspects that need to be met to be able to harvest them at their finest grade.

First and foremost is the freshness. When acquiring an ingredient, how to keep it fresh is the priority.

To do so there are so many options that Leo Stout felt that he is back at the Knight School.

The main objective is to keep the ingredient in the same condition that it is found. Often this means to bring back live game and special containers need to be made for that. For plant ingredients, they have to carefully remove it from the soil without harming the roots. The fungus types are the hardest, considering that those plants often grow on bark.

If keeping the ingredient whole is impossible, for example when there are no suitable containers around, then they must use another method to keep it fresh.

Cured, dried, salted, pickled, frozen, vacuum sealed, and fermented. Of course, if Kairos can use runes, he can also use anti-entropy, sl0w-time, stop-time, and spirit gathering stratagems that can prevent even expensive ingredients from deteriorating and losing their Heavenly Energies.

After freshness, the method of harvest is of the second most import.

The condition of meat varies by many factors of the animal, but there are three main ones: age, health, and mental condition.

The age and health of an animal effecting the meat is easily understood, like veal and beef taste different, and if the animal is sick it will also greatly depreciate the tenderness. Maintaining the best mental condition is trickier. To acquire meat without hurting the animal is a primary requirement as a creature in distress will cause its meat to taste acidic and its muscles will tense.

For plant ingredients, the main factors are season and temperature. Leo realised that one must be fully aware of the ingredient’s nature to properly harvest it. Some plants have several edible parts, like roots, shoots, and seed. Each part requires different handling, and really tests the knowledge of the harvester.

While preparing wild game, Leo learned Laksa’s carving technique. For herbs and plants, Kairos taught him Helena’s herbalist art.

They were busy during day and at night Kairos wrote down all the knowledge he learned from chef Laksa. Only when there is spare time will Kairos take out a book on Aura to read.

Leo Stout was surprised what a huge world of difference there is between the best chefs and third-rate ones. He finally understand what a precious gift his daughter has. One day when she grows up, Leo will impart Laksa’s culinary skills to her, as Kairos intended. To pass down the skills to a talent like Linda, Kairos is almost certain he wouldn’t be scolded by the master chef.

Time went by in a flash on the road, and Linda is looking better every day gorging on the food Kairos made. The devil also did not reappear during this time. It had most probably been severely weakened by the previous sanctification spells.

Two weeks later, when on the road, they met with another group. It wasn’t that they never met anyone along the way, but this time there was a fierce battle going.

Kairos went ahead with Relestia following along despite her Cultivation had been sealed together with the devil.

Meanwhile Leo took care of the two carriages. Not knowing Kairos’ combat strength, he had a worried look on his face.

Up the road ten kilometres away, a wagon train is being surrounded by a hundred men.

However, the attackers do not look like highway men or bandits. Instead, they are dressed in knights’ armour. Amongst them, there are a few commanding the knights and they are wearing obviously expensive clothing.

Kairos watched from a hidden location, considering if he can help. His wounds had not recovered during the week of travel despite the medical poultice and salves he made. In fact, all he can do is to prevent the injuries from worsening and this is considering that he has higher recovery rate than most people and can control his life force to heal himself.

The problem with his medicines isn’t their effectiveness but that he is losing his inner energy without a way to recover.

If he is in Gaia where Heavenly Energy is abundant, he wouldn’t be in this plight. Furthermore, his Spirit Stones were all lost when his Time-space rings were destroyed all except for the Thunder God’s Ring, which is still inaccessible.

As he watched, he noticed that the head of the group is a young man with short gelled-back hair. He had a gleeful look and murderous eyes as he watched the knights kill the people of the wagon train.

“It’s really your fault, you know?” the young man said to a burly large man who is tied like an animal and thrown to the ground, “I already said to hand me your merchandise. Since you saw fit to disobey my order, I can do as I please. That will teach you to disrespect your superiors.”

*Plat*

The man spat on the ground and stared at the young man.

“You are no superior of mine. You dress in the finest cloth but it doesn’t hide what a cretin you truly are!”

A smirk appeared on the young man’s lips.

“Don’t worry, after teaching all of you a lesson, when you beg for death, I will kill you. I am too kind for my own good, aren’t I?”

The young man shivered in delight as he imagined what he said happen. How pleasurable it is when he tortures a person, and yet that fool will repeatedly thank him for death granted?

“Let me tell you a secret. I came here on purpose. I know that if this trade of yours goes bad, you will go bankrupt. Well, how do I know that?

The staff that stole from you? I planted him there.

The bandits that destroyed the two trades you sent out before? Mine.

Even the loans you tried to get from the merchant union, I told them to reject it.”

The young man snickered and snorted, as if he had said the greatest joke of the century.

“And, do you know why?” he looked at the older man with obvious snide.

Suddenly his face distorted with rage and he screamed, “Because your daughter dared to reject me! See where we are now? Soon, her precious daddy shall die, she will be penniless and owes a great debt. In the end, she will still be in my hands, and after I had my fill of fun, I will sell her off like the refused goods she is.”

The young man laughed maniacally, “This… this expression on your face! Ah this is why I wanted to come this time. Oh, how addictive this is. I wonder how your daughter will look when I show her your bloodied head hanging in my bedroom.”

“You bloody whoreson, you piece of dog poo! I curse you to be quartered!”

The young man shrugged without caring, he had done things like this many times before. if non-magical curses works he would be dead long ago.

“Kill them, slowly. I want him to watch.”

The knights pulled out their swords and attacked. The mercenaries protecting the wagon retaliated but they are completely overwhelmed and people died as the tied-up merchant screamed. The wagon train that was heading towards the Dwarven Kingdoms had hired blades to protect the merchandise from bandits, and because it seemed safe, his wife is accompanying him.

The young man continued to gloat but the sounds of killing and screams drowned out his words. Kairos had an urge to interfere when the killing started but an immense pain struck him. His face paled instantly and blood dripped out from his nose.

His wounds are far more critical than he let on, and his haste to get here had done a number on him.

However, he is chosen by the Holy Element for a reason. The goodness in his heart persisted, and his hand cannot be stayed. A righteous anger against evil burned in his heart.

“Stay here,” Kairos said to Relestia, then tightly gripped the spear he took from the castle, the young man leapt into the battle below with terrifying speed.