NOVEL NEXT Chapter 9 – Branding
Until that moment, Alphonse hadn't paid much attention to his new 'notifications.' However, one of them caught his eye.
[Hey! Hey! Over here!]
[Quest Completed]
[New Skill Unlocked]
[Branding]
Mark your prey. It will be forever connected to you. You will be able to feel its mind whenever you wish. You can influence it with a lower Mana cost.
Limitations: Your prey must not resist you. You can have a maximum of three active marks. Increase your power to create more marks.
Mana: 200
[Do you wish to brand her?]
'Interesting,' the boy thought. 'How do I use this? Yes?'
The letters disappeared, and in their place, another sentence appeared.
[Touch where you want the brand to be and imagine the shape it should take.]
'Would it be like a tattoo?' the boy wondered, but there was no response. 'Where should it be?'
While Sophie lay stretched out on the bed, recovering, Alphonse touched his sister's ankles. Letting the mana flow, he imagined the mark he would leave on her body. From his fingers, a black ink began to spread across the girl's skin.
When Alphonse opened his eyes again, the mark was already there: a black rose with dozens of thorns entwined from her ankles to her thighs.
'You will be mine forever,' he whispered in his sister’s ear, who could only respond with a faint moan. 'Hmm.'
Alphonse woke up earlier than Sophie, and together with the coachman, they searched for someone to fix the carriage's axle.
Luckily for them, dozens of shops in the port city dealt with such repairs, as many goods arrived there.
Before midday, they were already cleared to continue their journey.
Inside the vehicle, Alphonse and Sophie observed the scenery in silence. Sophie was embarrassed by what had happened the previous night, though she did not regret it.
'I can't let Mother see this. God… how am I going to hide it?' she wondered about the tattoo on her legs. She didn’t know how it appeared but could sense her brother’s mana in it.
On the other hand, Alphonse was deep in thought about his next steps.
“Sophie, have you ever considered attending the Imperial Academy?” Alphonse asked.
“Yes, I’ve thought about it. But with the possible war breaking out in the south, it's not a good time to be far from home,” Sophie explained.
“True, but it would be the best way to get away from the Baron, and if we succeed at the academy, we would be even more capable of supporting Hohenberg if the war affects us,” Alphonse reasoned.
Sophie pondered her brother’s words—they made sense. However, they would have to abandon the academy if the war broke out before they returned home.
“Do you think the Baroness would allow it? Wouldn’t we need the Baron’s approval?” Sophie asked.
“Hmmm…” Alphonse thought for a moment. “After everything that has happened in the past few months, I think the Baroness would accept anything I asked for. But if we need the Baron’s approval for the admission test… then there’s nothing we can do.”
“Is this just because of the war? Or is it because of me?” Sophie asked.
“What do you mean?” Alphonse responded.
“While I’m at the academy, I can’t get engaged or married,” Sophie remarked.
“That too. It gives you an extra year before you marry me,” Alphonse said, and Sophie blushed instantly. “And it gives me an extra year before I deal with the Baron.”
This was the first time Alphonse had openly discussed his plan to eliminate his father. Sophie quickly moved from one shock to another.
She understood the problematic relationship between them, but she had never imagined that a son could be plotting his father’s death. However, she couldn’t go against Alphonse's will—on the contrary, she wanted to support him.
Just a day ago, this wouldn’t have been her reaction, but the mark on her body now prevented her from going against her master. Inside her mind, the girl convinced herself that it was her desire to protect her brother.
‘Besides, the Baron almost killed him already,’ she tried to rationalize.
“THRUMPH CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!”
“Damn it, this again,” Alphonse muttered as he heard the noise coming from outside. He guessed the axle had broken again.
When he stuck his head out of the carriage, an arrow grazed his cheek. He quickly ducked back inside.
“We’re under attack,” he said calmly to Sophie. “Stay inside the carriage.”
“B-but Al, you don’t need to go,” Sophie stammered.
“I need to check on the soldiers,” Alphonse explained before quickly opening the carriage door and closing it again.
The vehicle had stopped at the side of a hill. At the top, three hooded men were shooting arrows at the vehicle and the soldiers.
As soon as one of the soldiers saw Alphonse exit the carriage, he signaled the others. Before Alphonse could understand what was happening, the soldiers had already fled. Even the coachman had left.
‘Seriously?’ Alphonse thought.
They had been abandoned by those who were supposed to protect them.
‘I’ll have to talk to the Guard Chief about this,’ the boy mused.
Alphonse pressed himself against the side of the carriage to dodge more arrows. Seeing the soldiers flee, the bandits began descending the hill and running toward the boy.
One carried a large sword, while the other two wielded daggers.
'Uh! Uh! Is this going to be my first fight?!' Alphonse celebrated the chance to use his abilities finally.
He was just another noble boy in this world, but in his past life, he had been a police officer, rising through the ranks to become a detective. Alphonse had been in several shootouts and had faced far worse situations than this.
[Demon Skin]
Using some of his mana, he cast his first spell. As soon as it was activated, his skin began to change. His white skin turned red, and two sharp horns sprouted from his forehead.
[Temporary Buff]
[+2 Constitution]
[+2 Strength]
'Great, I can fight them hand-to-hand if needed,' Alphonse thought.
But he wasn’t planning to do that; he had other spells to test. As the first bandit approached, he finally got a good look at the boy.
“A d-demon? That’s not what we were told!” the bandit shouted.
“You should have fought the soldiers—they would have just taken you to prison,” Alphonse commented. “But me? I won’t leave a trace of your bodies.”
A small flame ignited in each of his hands, which he quickly aimed at the first bandit.
[Fire Spark]
[Fire Spark]
[Fire Spark]
[Fire Spark]
Several fireballs were shot at the bandit, quickly setting his clothes ablaze. The bandit fell to the ground, rolling in an attempt to extinguish the flames. The smell of burning flesh spread quickly, terrifying the other two thieves.
“I told you nothing would be left,” Alphonse said, pointing one hand at each remaining bandit. “If you surrender now, I’ll forgive your attempt to kill me—but first, you must tell me how you found us.”
“Y-yes,” the two bandits stammered almost in unison.
“Drop your daggers and kneel,” Alphonse commanded.
The two bandits dropped their weapons, raised their hands, and knelt.
“Now, tell me. How did you find us, and why did you attack?” Alphonse asked.
“We were paid. We don’t know by whom, but he wasn’t from this region,” one of the bandits replied while the other continued. “He just told us to attack a carriage with the symbol drawn there. He said that once we shot arrows, the soldiers would flee, and we could keep the jewels inside.”
“Hmmm,” Alphonse paced, thinking. “I see. Thank you for the information.”
“C-can we leave?” one of the bandits asked.
“Of course, I forgive you for trying to kill me,” Alphonse said.
As soon as both bandits turned their backs, the boy shot fire at them as well.
“I never said I’d forgive you for trying to kill my sister,” Alphonse smiled as he watched the flames consume the two men, who writhed on the ground.
[This is your first kill.]
[I feel I should give you some gift…]
[Well, I’ll wait till next time.]
“Hey, hey! If you’re enjoying the show, you should at least leave a gift for the performer,” Alphonse quipped, though there was no response.
While deactivating [Demon Skin], the boy approached the carriage and checked if it could still move. Although the horses were shaken, they seemed fine.
However, the carriage’s axle was destroyed.
'That bastard. The coachman must be involved in this too,' Alphonse cursed.
Alphonse opened the carriage door and asked, “Sophie, do you know how to ride a horse?”
