A short, muscular man clad in a red robe strode over to Ilza, who was still too paralyzed with shock to stand.
"Guildmaster, you're unharmed?"
Relief washed over her the moment she saw he was in one piece.
"I was standing at death's door. The only reason I still have all my limbs attached is thanks to those slimes that boy summoned."
Recalling the slimes that had been bouncing proudly around Kai Heinemann, Ilza let her lips soften and nodded.
"True enough."
"So? What in the world was that?"
By that, he obviously meant Kai Heinemann.
"I haven't the slightest clue either. Honestly, I never dreamed he'd be so completely beyond all reason."
With an unfathomable power, he had slaughtered thousands of beast monsters—the very same kind that the guildmaster and the other two had barely managed to fight to a standstill.
Not only that, he had effortlessly pulverized the wolf, tiger, and eagle-headed beasts—the officer-class commanders that had pinned Knight Captain Arnold—and utterly crushed their boss, even after it morphed into a colossal lizard-headed brute several times its original size.
Calling him the strongest in the hunter world—no, the strongest in the entire realm—would hardly be an exaggeration.
"Curse that Elm! How did he ever breed such a monster?!" the guildmaster forced out through gritted teeth.
"You are mistaken. That War God has no master."
Ilza whirled around at the voice to see an old man with white hair and an equally snow-white beard approaching, a genial smile on his face.
"Master Aaron, it has been far too long!"
Knight Captain Arnold came running over as well, placing his right fist into his left palm and bowing deeply before the white-haired elder. A step behind him, Wolfman was also drawing near.
"Mm. Arnold, I am glad to see you in good health as well."
The elder offered words of praise to Knight Captain Arnold. Ah, so he's Knight Captain Arnold's master—the grand master of Cayen style swordsmanship, Aaron Cayen.
"Aaron! What do you mean, Kai Heinemann has no master?!"
"He is a War God. A War God has no need for a master. Am I wrong?"
"..."
At Aaron's words, the guildmaster rested his hand on his chin, sinking into deep thought.
"Now that you mention it, creating something like that should be impossible in the first place. Which means he's a natural-born..."
He began muttering incoherently to himself. Glancing sideways at Guildmaster Ralph, Wolfman spoke up.
"So? In the end, I'd like ya to tell me who that boy really is, too-zura."
Wolfman pressed firmly for answers.
"He is Kai Heinemann, Princess Rose's Royal Guard."
So the rumors were true after all. If that was the case, then—
"I see. Kai is Princess Rose's Royal Guard... So that is why the princess..."
Master Aaron crossed his arms, wearing a troubled frown as he pondered the implications. In contrast—
"I object! He is a pure monster! That level of power is far too dangerous for a single nation to possess! Making him the retainer of a mere princess is utter madness!"
Though slightly intimidated by the terrifyingly fierce expression on the guildmaster's face—one she had never seen before—Ilza pressed him on his intentions.
"Then, Master, what do you propose we do?"
"He belongs in an organization beholden to no nation—either the World Mage Academy Babel or the Hunter Guild, of course!"
Figures he'd say that. Yet the guildmaster had a valid point. Kai Heinemann's very existence could utterly shatter the delicate balance of power between nations and races that had held until now. In fact, she couldn't imagine an army of several hundred thousand soldiers managing to bring him down. It would only result in a mountain of corpses, just like those beast-headed monsters.
"There is no need to worry. The way he is now, he is hardly the sort of person to serve beneath anyone. He will not become a conventional knight like us. If anything, I expect their relationship will settle into that of a guardian supporting Lady Rose."
A guardian relationship with royalty. The only people who could ever hold such a position were ultra-high-ranking nobles or royal kin. No matter how strong he was, a mere boy had no business standing in such a role. And yet, in that moment, Ilza found herself readily accepting Knight Captain Arnold's words.
Master Aaron, who had been lost in thought with his arms crossed, stared solemnly at his disciple.
"Arnold, do you know the secret behind Kai Heinemann's strength?"
He voiced the single question everyone present wanted answered most.
"It is nothing more than my own personal assessment."
"Yet you are certain of it, are you not?"
"I am."
"Then tell me!"
As Master Aaron leaned forward eagerly, Knight Captain Arnold gave a firm shake of his head.
"It undoubtedly touches the very core of who he is, and beyond that, it is purely conjecture. Therefore, even on my master's command, I cannot speak of it lightly."
He gave a resolute refusal.
"Not even for me?"
"No."
"I see... Then there is no helping it, I suppose..."
As Aaron's shoulders slumped in defeat, Knight Captain Arnold offered a wry smile and added a clarification.
"However, there is one thing I know for certain: he was undeniably weak and powerless before this journey began."
"He was weak before the journey began, you say...? Hmm. That War God's strength is not something that could ever be attained through flimsy notions like talent or a Gift... In that case..."
Cutting off Aaron as he sank into a spiral of contemplation, the guildmaster barked, "Who cares about the source of his strength! The problem is that Kai Heinemann is strong right here and now!
The Hunter Guild is claiming him. You don't object, do you, Aaron?"
The guildmaster asked in a tone that brooked no argument.
"Aye, of course not. I harbor no foolish ambition to make that War God my disciple, either. Placing him in the meritocracy of the hunter world is the path of least resistance."
"Then it's settled! All right, we're going to be busy! We must raise that man's hunter rank without delay!"
With his eyes gleaming with ambition, the guildmaster sprinted off toward the city of Balse. Shrugging, Knight Captain Arnold gestured for Ilza and the others to follow.
"Let us go as well."
Ilza and the others nodded silently and set off toward the city gates.
The fierce wind whipping against her skin felt strangely invigorating. Only later would she realize that this sensation was no mere trick of the mind—she had been caught squarely in the raging tempest known as Kai Heinemann.