My name was Horlan. I was a demon man. My wife, Lucidel, and I had fled from our respective villages back when she was still just my lover. We migrated to Village Five to seek help from her older brother, Langhor. We had been staying in a room in Langhor’s spacious house, living there together.
I worried that we were a nuisance, but Langhor told us that with his wife being pregnant, he was grateful for the extra hands around the house. It was a kindness I truly appreciated. However, I couldn't simply depend on him forever. My first priority was securing a steady income.
Fortunately, I had worked in metal processing in the village where I was raised. Through Langhor’s introduction, I managed to join the Goldsmith Guild, and they began arranging work for me. On the surface, things seemed to be going well—but there was a catch. I had brought my goldsmithing tools with me, but I didn't yet have a workshop.
The tasks I was assigned involved crafting decorative fittings for furniture, which required a fairly large workspace. If I were only making accessories, a single desk would have sufficed. My only option was to rent space in another workshop, but that meant paying a fee. Unfortunately, I didn't have the coin for it.
The standard practice was to teach one’s techniques to the workshop in exchange for the rent. The problem was that the goldsmithing skills I possessed belonged to my family’s house, even if I had run away. I felt a deep resistance to sharing them without permission. No matter how poorly they had treated me or how they had opposed my marriage to Lucidel, I still felt I owed them for raising me. I couldn't just let those family secrets leak out.
While I was agonizing over the situation, Langhor stepped in and told me I could use a spare room and a portion of the garden as my workshop. He even insisted I didn't need to pay rent. I questioned the propriety of leaning on him even more when my goal was to become independent, but I eventually realized there was no point in being stubborn. I had to start earning money first.
And so, I accepted the use of the spare room and the garden. I resolved to work as hard as possible, earn enough to eventually pay him back for the rent, and save up until I could afford a workshop of my own.
About thirty days had passed since we arrived in Village Five. I was settling into our new life, but I realized I still knew very little about the town. My work kept me indoors, and the only times I ventured out were to the guild to accept orders or deliver finished products. Since I could buy all my materials there as well, I never had a reason to wander.
Langhor eventually told me it was a waste to live in Village Five without seeing the sights, and he practically dragged me out of the house.
"Hey now. You can start calling me 'Big Brother' soon, you know," he said.
"I’m sorry," I replied. "I feel like if I start calling you that, I’ll just end up depending on you even more."
"Hahaha. Well, I won't force you. Besides, it’s better than being called 'Master.'"
That incident was still weighing on him, it seemed. When we first arrived, Lucidel had tried to address Langhor as "Master." He had been genuinely horrified by it. Lucidel’s argument was that since he was her employer, they should maintain professional boundaries, but Langhor wanted none of it. He had asked me to persuade her, which was quite the ordeal. There was no way I could ever win an argument against Lucidel. Still, I worked hard at it and eventually convinced her to stop. Since we were the ones relying on Langhor, the last thing we wanted was to cause him distress.
I realized I had fallen behind Langhor while I was lost in thought and hurried to catch up.
"Anyway," Langhor continued, "the reason I brought you out today... there are some things you need to know."
"Things I need to know? About Village Five?"
"That’s right. But first—has Lucidel told you about her eyes?"
"Ah, yes. I heard after we arrived that she has an Evil Eye. I don't know the specifics of what they do, though."
She had looked ready to tell me if I asked, but since she had kept it a secret for so long, I had told her she could share it whenever she felt comfortable.
"I see. Well, it would be a problem if the word got out, but there’s no harm in you knowing. To put it simply, Lucidel’s Evil Eye allows her to see an opponent’s title."
"Their title? You mean the Evil Eye of Attribute Reading?" I asked, remembered the legends from old stories. It was a rare power that could see through a person's name, race, status, and titles.
"Lucidel’s version isn't quite that convenient," Langhor clarified. "She can only see their race and their title. Even then, the title won't show up if it’s just something their family calls them. It has to be a name known by a significant number of people."
"Even so, that sounds incredible."
"It is. It makes it much harder to accidentally offend someone powerful or important. Not that it was much use in the village where we grew up."
"I suppose that’s true."
"It has one more weakness, though. If you can’t read, the power is useless. You’d just think there was something wrong with your vision."
"Ah, so that’s why Lucidel has been obsessed with learning to read since she was a child."
"Most likely. And as for that Evil Eye... I have it too."
"You too, Langhor?"
"It seems to run in the family. Out of all our siblings, only Lucidel and I inherited it. I doubt our parents even realized we had it."
"It would have been a disaster if they had."
"Yeah. Neither I nor Lucidel would have ever been allowed to leave. Anyway, that brings me back to Village Five. I told you about the eyes so you’d believe what I’m about to tell you."
"I see. So the reason you know so much is because of your Evil Eye."
"Exactly. Look, there are several key figures in Village Five. You probably won't have to deal with them directly, but knowing who they are will help you stay out of trouble. I wanted to point them out to you."
"Lucidel mentioned that there are former members of the Four Heavenly Kings here," I noted.
"It's not people that obvious. Oh—excuse me. It has been a long time!"
Langhor suddenly bowed deeply toward a young maid who was passing us.
"Ah, Langhor-san," the girl replied. "My apologies for not greeting you first. And this is?"
"He is my brother-in-law. He works as a goldsmith."
"My. Then he is your younger brother by marriage." The little girl maid looked at me and gave a flawless bow. "My name is Miyo, a maid. I look forward to our future acquaintance."
"Y-Yes. I am Horlan. It is a pleasure to meet you."
"How polite. I would like to speak with you more, but I have been summoned. Please excuse me." The young maid departed with a gentle smile.
I looked at Langhor. Given his behavior, she had to be one of the people he was talking about.
"That was Miyo-san," he whispered. "She is the secretary to the Magistrate of Shashato City. Whatever you do, never get into a dispute with her. And if she ever asks for your help, try to accept as much as you can. But don't push yourself too hard—she’d consider it a nuisance if you overdid it."
"I understand, but... isn't she from Shashato City?"
"She was dispatched from here in Village Five. Trust me, she is no ordinary girl. Her race is Mercury, a Royal Guardian of the Ancient Kingdom. Her title is 'Royal Steward.'"
I froze. The Ancient Kingdom? That was the legendary nation from the era when magic technology was at its peak. I had heard it was destroyed over a millennium ago. Was she a survivor?
"Probably," Langhor said. "And... keep your eyes forward. Don't stare. It’ll only cause trouble. See that girl passing in front of the house with the red roof?"
"I see her. She looks like a normal village girl."
"She’s a Mercury, just like Miyo-san. Her title is 'Royal Shadow.' She goes by Nana, though I don't know if that’s her real name. I’ve seen her in several different forms. When I reported her to the Village Council, they just told me to leave her alone because she’s one of Lady Yoko’s subordinates."
"There are surprisingly many of them, aren't there? The survivors of the Ancient Kingdom."
"Indeed. I know of at least a few others."
"So they are the people I should watch out for?"
"Yes. But there are more."
I felt a cold sweat. Was Village Five actually a terrifyingly dangerous place?
"Hahaha. Don't worry, it's not like that. Really, it isn't. I'm sure of it."
After that, Langhor led me around and pointed out various other figures. It seemed this village was home to a much wider variety of races than I could have imagined. I saw a messenger of the Snake God and even a Tiger Sacred Beast. At the shrine in the northeast, there were many foxes with titles that sounded quite violent. Langhor told me not to worry about them since they worked for Lady Yoko. He added that the Tiger Sacred Beast was only a visitor and that I was lucky to even see him.
However, the groups he told me to be most cautious of were the High Elves and the High Ogre race. To me, they looked like nothing more than a group of carpenters and a group of cooks, but Langhor insisted I shouldn't let my guard down.
"I think you’ll be fine, but as long as you don't pick a fight with them or mock them, you'll be okay."
"I would never dream of it."
"I know. But there are fools everywhere who get too big for their boots."
"That’s true."
"By the way," Langhor said suddenly, "my house is quite nice, isn't it?"
"Eh? Where did that come from? Yes, it’s a wonderful house. It's very comfortable."
"Shortly after I arrived in Village Five, I heard those High Elves were planning to build a house. I was young and foolish, so I picked a fight with them, asking if they were even capable of it."
"You picked a fight? With them?" I was stunned. High Elves did have a somewhat delicate appearance, I suppose.
"I did. I couldn't believe they were actually capable of carpentry. So, they built that house specifically to prove their skills to me."
"Is that the truth?"
"It is. Part of it was because the house was built at the foot of the mountain back when the village was still new, but because I was the one who challenged them, I made all sorts of requests for the layout. That’s why it ended up so massive."
"You even made demands?"
"Like I said, I was a fool. Right after it was built, it served as lodging for the High Elves and High Ogre race, but when I heard it was going up for sale later, I bought it. It was lucky I had the gold for it."
"I see... But Langhor, you have the Evil Eye. Didn't you realize the High Elves were dangerous back then?"
"When I first came here, I couldn't read yet. I thought they were just Elves."
"Ah... I see."
"Still, it's not like they did anything terrible to me. So everything worked out, right?"
"I suppose so."
"Once I learned to read and looked at those Elves with my Evil Eye again, I realized their race was High Elf and their title was 'Man-eater.'"
I felt a chill run down my spine.
"Don't pull away like that! It’s fine. I apologized properly, and we’ve reconciled since then."
"T-Thank goodness."
"Anyway, the point is: just don't pick fights or mock people. That’s all you have to do."
"I understand. Regardless of whether they have a title or not, I’ll make sure to be respectful to everyone."
"Good. That’s the way to do it. Dangerous people don't always carry a title around, after all."
"I’ll also work hard to learn how to read. I don't have the Evil Eye, but it’s clear that being literate is a necessity here."
I remembered the note Lucidel had left when we fled our home. I hadn't been able to read a single word of it. I had promised myself then that I would study.
"Speaking of that note," Langhor asked, "did anyone back at the village even know how to read it? It wouldn’t have done much good if they couldn't."
"She said that the time it would take them to find someone who could read it was exactly what we needed to buy ourselves a head start."
"I see. Well, you're right about needing to read and write. There are plenty of places to learn here in Village Five. Actually, the school run by the Angel Race might be your best bet. People say they’re excellent teachers."
"The Angel Race? Wait, do I not need to be cautious of them? You didn't mention them before."
"You’d be cautious of the Angel Race even if I didn't tell you, wouldn't you?"
"...Well, yes. But shouldn't I just avoid them entirely?"
"Do you honestly think you can escape the Angel Race just by avoiding them?"
"I suppose not."
"Then there's no point in being overly guarded. Just treat them with respect, like any good neighbor."
"In other words, I should just accept my fate when it comes to the Angels."
"Don't put it so bluntly. Besides, Lady Yoko did say that the Angels here in Village Five and Shashato City are fine."
"Then they’re safe?"
"Well... she also told me to report them immediately if they were doing anything strange."
"Ah. They are Angels, after all."
"Because they’re the Angel Race."