The work itself was just a matter of making rocks disappear, so it didn’t take much time. However, a considerable distance was blocked, and Garuku made a conjecture.

It’s possible someone intentionally blocked these Ancient Ruins.

What for…?

To prevent anyone from knowing these Ancient Ruins exist… or perhaps, they intend to hide something they did here.

Either way, it probably isn’t for a good reason… Convinced of that, I went outside with Sofia and the others.

It was—as expected—an unfamiliar landscape.

I look around. It’s a Deep Mountain, just like when we entered, with rugged rock faces and Plains spreading out below.

Behind me is the mountain peak. That said, the elevation isn’t very high. And with a Highway present, it’s definitely an area where people live.

Hmm, I can’t tell where we are just by looking at the terrain.

Richard says. Yeah, I have no idea either.

All I see are the Plains and a well-maintained Highway. And, I can see a Town at the end of the road.

For now, let’s go to the nearest Town visible from here.

Sofia and Richard nodded at my words and were about to start moving—but,

A presence…?

The moment I spoke—figures emerged from the shadows around us.

Emerging from the Ancient Ruins… Who are you people?

I looked around. And at the opponents I saw—I was speechless.

There were four of them in total. All of them wore matching equipment, making it clear they were Knights or Soldiers.

Who are you guys?

Richard asks back. It’s understandable.

They were like Knights in full armor—but their faces were covered by helmets and iron masks. Moreover, the armor they wore was eerie.

The color was blue. However, a crest-like symbol was etched in red on the armor, looking like a curse.

Who are you? And what’s that Angel behind you? A Familiar?

The opponent—one of the Knights—asks. It seems they won’t accept our questions. Well, that’s to be expected.

My rigidity also dissolved, and I opened my mouth.

We’re explorers of the Ancient Ruins.

I couldn’t very well say that a Teleportation Device had activated, so I replied that, but it had no effect.

Don’t be ridiculous. There was no one in the Ancient Ruins when we blocked it. Or were you hiding?

What should we do…?

Sofia came next to me and asked in a low voice. I also didn’t know how to answer. But—

Did you do something to make the Magic Power in the Ancient Ruins disappear?

The moment I asked—the Knights stopped moving. I couldn’t see their gazes, but they were probably staring.

It seems there’s no need to keep them alive.

Already? Well, I had a hunch.

However, I was able to gather a lot of information. It seems these guys were doing various things inside the dormant Angel Ruins, and it’s something they don’t want known.

“Just to confirm, is it impossible for both sides to do nothing?”

I ask. The result is–

“Impossible.”

A concise reply. With that, all four of them draw their swords.

“It’ll be troublesome if people come. Let’s finish this quickly.”

The one furthest back among the Knights… upon closer inspection, there are silver decorations on various parts of his armor. It seems safe to assume he’s the leader.

“What should we do…?”

Sofia asks anew. Her previous question was about “how to deal with them,” and this time it’s probably more like “should we let them live or kill them?”

“For now… let’s put them to sleep.”

Immediately after my words, three Knights, excluding the leader, attack. Each moves without a single opening. Although there are only four of them, it’s clear they form a well-coordinated unit.

“They’re fast.”

Richard offers his observation. I inwardly agree, but… frankly, they’ve picked the wrong opponents.

I stepped forward first. Then, one of the Knights leading the charge rushes at me.

He’s moving at a decent speed, with enough force to run me over, but… I saw through it and dodged.

Next, I slash with my sword as I pass by, dulling the blade’s power. Even so, the sword calmly slid into the blade, making a grinding sound.

“Gah!?”

Suddenly, the Knight groans. As I swing my sword, the charging Knight is sent flying backward as if time itself had reversed.

I don’t know what the other two Knights, who were closing the distance, thought, but… seeing them continue to charge forward without hesitation, it seems they haven’t lost their will to fight.

“–Lightning Flash.”

At that moment, Sofia’s Lightning is unleashed. The Lightning Strike directly hits one of the remaining two. A burst of sound fills the surroundings–and the Knight collapses.

At this point, the remaining Knight has no choice but to stop. The one I blew away is also down, so the situation is clearly unfavorable for them.

“–You all…”

Immediately after the leader-type Knight spoke, I kicked the third charging Knight. He couldn’t dodge and was hit directly in the face. Although he’s wearing a helmet, so there wouldn’t be any damage normally… I added a shockwave from magic power, so that was poured into his head.

“Ugh…”

The Knight falls. I think the helmet is designed to block some magic power, but it seems it couldn’t withstand it after all.

And then, the remaining leader-type person. His figure, gripping his sword and speechless, looked somewhat pathetic.

“I have one question.”

I open my mouth, thinking he might answer given his current state.

“What were you doing in those Ancient Ruins?”

In response to my question, the Knight turned his back. It seems he’s abandoning his subordinates and fleeing.

At that moment, Sofia delivered a ‘Lightning’ strike… and the leader-type also collapsed.

“They’re weak… or rather, Ruon and the others are too strong,”

Richard said, scratching his head.

“But it’s dangerous for them to attack without question. What kind of equipment do these guys even have?”

“I have an idea.”

I replied, then approached the Knight lying closest to me. Then, I peeled off the mask portion.

“–This is…”

Sofia is surprised. It’s understandable.

The facial features of his head are different from those of humans. In this Knight’s case, he has red skin and scales… he’s a Dragon.

“A Dragon… with a human body?”

They’re called Dragonkin.

Richard muttered with interest.

We call them humans for convenience, but they’re actually Dragons who have transformed into humans.

Dragons… into humans?

Even though they’re Dragons, they’re not the same powerful species as the Dragons we fought with in the War with the Demon Lord… that’s why they’re armed like this. The closer they look to humans, the greater their power, they say.

At this, Richard looked at me.

Of course, their basic physical abilities are higher than humans, so in a direct fight, humans often lose… but well, Lord Ruon and your group probably don’t need to worry about that.

He shrugged.

So, the existence of these Dragonkin means—

Just then, a bird’s cry echoed around us. I looked up at the sky and saw a bird flying from our location towards the other side of the mountain.

As I watched it, I suddenly became curious about what was on the other side and started to walk. However,

“Should we restrain the Knights? Should I use magic?

“Leave it to me. I can bind their movements.”

Richard offered, restraining them with Magic Rope. For now, I’d create a Familiar to monitor them, and we’d discuss what to do after checking the situation… so we headed to the mountaintop.

And on the other side, we saw it… a Large Town. But it looked as if it had been caught in a war, with damage visible from the mountain.