The man was a former noble.
Born the third son of a marquis, he had grown up wanting for nothing. Since his eldest brother was set to inherit the house, he was raised with a relative degree of freedom.
While he possessed little talent for magic, he had been quite capable in his studies.
However, at some point, a distortion began to take root.
It started when he broke a toy he had been given while playing with it.
He expected to be scolded, but that never happened; he was simply given a new toy immediately.
After a while, the child grew bored of the replacement and broke it on purpose.
Again, there was no scolding—only another new toy.
He was taught by live-in tutors who remained at his beck and call.
Because he was not unintelligent, his tutors showered him with excessive praise, and he grew to believe every word they said.
Due to his status, no one dared to challenge him, which fostered a sense of unfounded confidence.
His pampered heart grew arrogant, and his ears, accustomed to constant flattery, became deaf to admonition. An ego that knew no failure overestimated its own capabilities.
He learned to squander money, discovered how to toy with women, and found pleasure in tormenting the weak.
Eventually, he began to desire the marquisate for himself.
He racked his brains, considering what he must do to achieve that goal.
The man learned to skillfully hide his distorted inner nature, playing the part of a somewhat affected, suave gentleman to the outside world.
Then, at the young age of twenty, he obtained the position of assistant to a lord.
Around the same time, a mysterious collaborator appeared and granted him a new "power."
Money, women, authority—the next thing the man obtained was violence.
The price was simple.
He only had to use his authority and wealth to smuggle certain gems from one organization to another.
There should have been no problems.
However, one year ago, he tasted failure for the first time.
The gems were a national monopoly. His activities drew suspicion, leading to an investigation by the authorities.
He had hidden the ledgers used for the transactions on a strangely shaped boat that happened to catch his eye. He intended to retrieve them quickly and destroy the evidence.
But an unforeseen complication arose.
The boat had disappeared.
By the time he found it again, it was floating in a public space to participate in a famous local competition.
He had to either seize the boat or, at worst, destroy it along with the evidence.
He failed at both. The opponent had been far more formidable than he had imagined.
The taste of failure was bitter.
The man swore revenge against the one who had forced that bitterness upon him. He did not consider his grudge to be a misplaced one for even a second.
He was soon able to learn of his opponent's movements. He heard that the man would be traveling to another country in the company of a returning noble.
His mysterious collaborator granted him even more "power."
With this, he could take revenge on his hateful enemy.
That opponent's name was "Jin."
After passing through the border fortress, the carriage headed down a gentle slope.
"Once we pass the valley ahead, we will leave the peninsula and enter the main continent," Elsa explained.
The highway continued between sheer cliffs; she mentioned that the narrowest point was just ahead.
This route had apparently been designed this way during the Great Magic War to prevent an invasion by the demon race.
Elsa explained that this was the final difficult stretch, after which they would simply travel leisurely along the highway built on flat land.
"What kind of town is Blue Land? I've never been inside, so I'd like to hear about it," Jin said.
Elsa thought for a moment before beginning her explanation.
"Blue Land is a fortress city. It is the economic center of the Kingdom of Egerea."
Highways extended in all four directions from Blue Land, making trade with the surrounding cities, towns, and villages flourish.
Furthermore, it served as the trade gateway to the Kingdom of Elias, and the lord, Duke Blue, was a cousin to the King of Egerea.
The surrounding lands were divided into farms, ranches, and mines, each ruled by two counts.
She paused there, then concluded.
"I am not good at explaining. But if there is anything else you want to know, just ask."
Jin, feeling curious, asked, "Um... do you know the names of those counts?"
Elsa answered immediately.
"The one ruling the lands with the farms and ranches is Earl Kuzuma. I believe the mines belong to... Earl Guarana."
Internally, Jin thought, Just as I suspected. Still, he figured things would work out since Earl Guarana didn't know his face.
At that moment, the carriage came to a sudden halt. Jin, who had been lost in thought, nearly tumbled from his seat, but Reiko caught him immediately, preventing a fall.
"What happened?" Elsa asked the coachman.
"Milady, it looks like a rockfall. It seems the road is blocked."
"What?"
Opening the window and looking ahead, they saw a massive rock indeed blocking the way.
Jin saw it too and stepped out of the carriage with Reiko.
Reinhard also climbed down from the carriage ahead of them to examine the rock.
It was three meters high and three meters wide. The highway was just about that wide, and the sheer cliffs on both sides rose about twenty meters high.
Even if they wanted to move it, there was nowhere to push it.
"This is a problem," Reinhard muttered. Jin also thought it couldn't be moved by conventional means and was about to say something to Reiko when...
"Jin, let me show you my golem too!"
Reinhard approached the luggage wagon at the rear.
"Wake up!"
He spoke the keyword.
The cover of the wagon was pulled back, and a humanoid figure sat up.
It was a pitch-black golem, two meters tall.
"Stand, Schwarzritter."
The golem slowly climbed down from the wagon and stood.
"Jin, this is my Schwarzritter. It might not compare to Lady Reiko, who is an artifact, but..."
Just as Reinhard was about to continue, a tremor shook the ground from behind.
"What is that!?"
Turning around, they saw two golems through a rising cloud of dust. It appeared they had jumped down from the top of the cliff.
The fact that they were unharmed after jumping from a twenty-meter height meant they were highly advanced golems.
Without warning, those golems struck the carriage at the very end of the line—the one carrying their supplies. The carriage was destroyed with a single blow, scattering food and water everywhere.
"What are you doing!"
Reinhard immediately directed Schwarzritter toward the intruders.
"Schwarzritter! Stop them!"
"Yes."
With that short acknowledgment, Schwarzritter moved toward the two golems.
The enemy golems were about the same height as Schwarzritter and were a dull silver color. However, their appearance was something Jin recognized well.
"Those are..."
They were the same type as the golems that had attacked for tax collection when Jin was in Kaina Village. However, their movements and power were on a completely different level.
But Reinhard's Schwarzritter was no ordinary golem either.
With the flexibility of movement possible only for an autonomous type, it managed to engage the two golems individually.
First, it moved behind one and delivered a powerful kick. The enemy golem was blown away, tumbling in a direction far from the carriages.
Schwarzritter then closed in on the remaining one. The opponent reached out with both hands, attempting to grapple.
Schwarzritter dodged the arms, circled to the rear, seized the golem, and lifted it high above its head.
"Good, throw it!"
Without even waiting for Reinhard's instructions, Schwarzritter hurled the golem it was holding toward the other golem as it rushed back in.
Seeing this, Jin decided to prioritize his and Elsa's safety first, instructing Reiko to focus entirely on defense and not attack unless the situation became dire.