Chapter 11 - Expectations

From above, Riku noticed a village guarded by military wearing plated silver armor and brandishing a variety of weaponry. The village was vast; he guessed that at least fifteen thousand people or more were inhabiting there.

After 10 minutes...

Riku observed a guard at the village's gate. He chose to hide behind the enormous thick tree in order to remove his wings before approaching the guard. Why? Because he was still unsure if the guard would be scared by his dark crow's wings.

Bam!

He landed safely on the surface. As soon as he took a deep breath, his chest rose and his wings began to penetrate his body.

"It's more comfortable than the first time I utilized the [Fly] ability. Since then, I've had the feeling that someone was eating and burning my skin."

He patted his pants and then jumped a little. To be presentable when he approached those guards.

There were a few moments after that. Riku took the straight path that led to the village, which was guarded by fierce guards. This location appeared to have a long history of civilization.

His distance within them was around 42 meters away. And then, out of nowhere, he scowled his brows as he heard unfamiliar words out from their mouth.

"Ehh?"

He first assumed it was due to his distance, so he tried to get closer to them so he could hear them clearly. However, the guards become more aggressive as they aimed their sharp spears at him.

"Who are you?!"

"Where Kingdom where you from?!"

While angrily glancing at him, the two guards were conversing. Riku could easily claim that his ears were not misleading him at this point, as he couldn't understand a word they were saying.

"What exactly are they attempting to say? So, what should I do? I'm not sure how I'm going to convey them. Also, no matter how hard I try, I can't understand anything they say."

However, based on their reactions, Riku deduced that those guards would not allow him to enter the village.

He took a step back as he sensed the guards' threatening proximity. 'No, I should explain myself to them; there's another method to communicate with them,' He was tenacious because he was desperate to return to Earth, specifically Japan.

Riku took a look around him. He noticed the wooden stick not far away and realized that if he drew images, there was a good chance they would understand each other.

The guards seized his hands before he could proceed to approach the stick. As a result, he cast a troubled glance at them and remarked. "What the hell is going on?! What exactly are you attempting to accomplish? Just give me a moment to explain!"

Thud!

The guards assumed this man was resisting them, so they delivered a powerful hit to Riku's nape, knocking him out.

"Wait..."

Last word, he could spit out of his mouth before he passed out.

...

"Mnn..."

Riku has slowly opened up his eyes after several hours had easily passed.

"Where is this place?"

He looked around and realized he was inside the small room, and the only thing he could see was the tiny lamp hung above his head.

He tried to stand up, but something stopped him. Riku discovered himself sitting on a chair, his limbs bound by heavy chains.

"What the f*ck is this-?" He paused for a second as he noticed someone was entering the room.

The door swung open, revealing two men in silver light armor in front of him. They were the guards who brought him here based on their attire and height. Then a man in gleaming heavy armor walked between them. He was the village's chief guard.

"Sir, this is the suspicious man who is loitering outside our village." One of the two guards said politely to the last person to enter the room.

"I can see it perfectly." With a solemn tone, the chief guard responded. Then he approached Riku slowly, observing him from his feet to his head. His earthen outfit drew the attention of the guards and made him appear suspicious.

"Sir, that person must be a spy from another country?" One of the guards inquired politely.

The chief guard held his chin and continued to stare at this man. "Hmm... There's a chance this person was a spy for our adversary, but his current level couldn't be higher than a warrior." The chief guard seemed to be able to tell Riku's strength simply by sensing the mana pool within his body.

Furthermore, this village appeared to be in the midst of a war with another country, as they were not allowing anyone easy access to the village. Even this village was in a rural part. They were still protecting the village from outsiders because there was a rumor that some of the outsiders gathered information about the village and sold it to their enemies for a high price. Moreover, the guards discovered no identification card in this man's pocket. If he was an adventurer or merchant from another country. They were just far too suspicious...

The chief guard lowered his body slightly so that his head could match that man's face. "Hey, what country are you from?" With a solemn tone, he inquired.

Riku was aware that those men were talking about him, but he had no idea how they were going to communicate with them or how he was going to protect himself from the danger. As a result, he barely bowed his head.

As the Chief Guard thought this man was disrespecting him, he yanked his black hair and slapped him across the face.

Thud!

"Do not bow your head at me while I am still speaking to you."

Then one of the two guards stood up and said. "Sir, that man is speaking in another language."

The chief guard cocked his head and cast a sharp look at the guard. "What language is it? Rather, what kingdom did this man come from?"

It appeared as if the guard could tell the exact kingdom from which the man came. This man's language could be determined by the chief guard.

One of the two guards shook his head slowly. "I'm not sure, sir; it's the first time I've heard that kind of language. Also, we tried to use our common language, which everyone understands, but this man didn't seem to understand anything." The guard elaborated.

People in this world spoke in a language that they had learned at a young age. They called it "Common language," and it was already taught to the children so that they could communicate if they traveled to another country.

Bang!

As he slapped that man's face again, the chief guard appeared to be brutal. It also caused Riku to sway his head to the right and have a hazy vision.

He will not call the chief guard if this man was weak. As Riku could feel the intense power that the chief guard was releasing every time his hand landed on Riku's face.

"Tch! This person is frail; he passed out again after only a light slap?" The chief guard said, releasing his grip on this man's sticky hair.

The two guards exchanged a chuckle.

"Yes, sir, I attacked his nape earlier to put a stop to him. But it came to an end when he was knocked down and awoke three hours later.

Despite the fact that Riku was working his body inside the unknown forest. Nonetheless, the human in this location appeared to have a different level of strength.

The chief guard rose to his feet and prepared to leave this isolated room. "Interrogate him when he wakes up. If he still refuses to answer your question, compel him to do so. We must find any information that will be useful to this man." He walked away after spitting these words.

The two guards saluted him by placing their hands on their brows. "Sir, yes! We will go to any length until this man says something to us!" They said it all at once.

The door was shut. Then one of the guards took a buck of water and splashed it directly on the man's head, causing Riku to immediately awaken.

"Ahhh!" As so much water entered Riku's ears and nose, he appeared to be drowning in a deep blue sea.

His eyes reopened, and he saw the guards' malicious smiles and eagerness to learn more about him.

"Tell me something, Brat. What country are you from?" Riku was asked in hushed tones by one of the guards.

"I'm from Japan! I'm here to gather some information on how I'm getting back to my world."

When they saw this man was still not using the common language. The guard delivered a massive blow on Riku's stomach.

"Argh!" Riku groaning in agony as he felt his bones being crushed by the guards' attack. The blood that spilled from his mouth as he was attacked was not an ordinary attack.

Riku, on the other hand, had no idea how he was going to communicate with those guards.

This is how he felt when he first met a human in this world. For the first time in his life, he was subjected to brutality. It was clearly distinct from the novels and manga he had previously read.

His expectation dropped....