I exited Red Stone Town and walked west towards the plains, to the center of Golden State Duchy.

My destination is the Arvilgen Forest on the northwestern part of the duchy, that has some places where Crystal Fiber Flower grows.

I had to walk there, and the center of the duchy was far away. My first stop is at Argent Heart City, that is the heart of the county where Red Stone Barony is located, the Argent Heart County of the Argent Heart family. I plan on taking a caravan from there towards Arvilgen Forest.

Argent Heart city is a hundred and thirty miles from here, or a little more than 200 kilometers. With my new healthy body, I can walk twenty-one miles in eight hours. It will take a little more than six days to get there.

I have no horse since those are expensive and I have gone bankrupt after buying the supplementary ingredients for the Magic Ritual Circle. So, my two bags were still over my shoulders, and not on a horse or a mule.

For the first two nights, I camped on the fields with the tent I bought in the town, nothing bad happened until now, which is normal.

It's hard for bandits to attack single people with no horses, carriages or retainers since they are hard to spot. Even if some bandits do see me, I would be ignored since I don't wear fine clothes or looked like a noble or merchant in any way. I am only cleaner than I should be because Lord Angus let me borrow a bottle with a Clear Water spell for bathing, drinking and washing my clothing... Which is good since I am not used to be without bathing for a long time.

But… Something happened at noon of the third day.

"Looks like you have company." Said Sixth chuckling, ready to watch a good show. (And literally creating popcorn to watch it.)

I was resting when he said that, that's when I saw a group of twenty-three people coming towards me wielding either swords or daggers and donning thick fur clothing.

The twenty-odd people stopped in front of me, and a tall man with big muscles came forward with a big sneer on his face.

"White-faced noble pig! Hand over your stuff or face me and my boys' blades to your neck!" The man threatened.

Getting up, I looked at him with my usual poker face.

"I am not a noble. I'm just a commoner traveling towards Argent City in search of a job. I have nothing on me but rations and my clothing." I said.

I really have nothing else. Every bit of silver I had was already spent on the materials I bought, all of which I left stashed in my room.

The bandit looked at me and snorted.

"Hmpf! You aren't a noble you say? How the hell are you so clean then you motherfucker?! Do you take me for someone stupid?" He said.

He was indeed stupid for trying to rob a noble, even a bastard noble with no inheritance, but I wouldn't say that to his face.

Also, how the hell not having shit covering me instantly heightens my status?! Although, now that I think of it those small peddlers at Town didn't stink nearly as much as the peasants... They aren't nobles even still, it's too far-fetched that a noble wouldn't have a single bodyguard.

"No, sir! I really am just a peasant!" I said, still not showing my fear.

Seeing my poker face, the big bandit took it for arrogance and said nothing, only swinging his sword towards my chest with monstrous strength.

Startled, I fell backward and landed on my butt. Thankfully, the sword didn't hit me, and because of that I successfully avoided death.

But when the sword swung past me, I could feel a gush of air that sent me rolling backward for two meters, making my body ache all over.

When the dizziness passed, I looked again at the big bandit that was smiling in satisfaction. My face now showed true fear, and I almost peed my pants from the shock.

"Uh… What bad luck!" Sixth said.

He said that because the man was able to form that gust of air with a swing of his sword, so even though he wasn't a martial artist, he was surely training to become one and already had some mana.

Out of pure reflex and fear, I waved my hands in the air forming three weird motions.

When I noticed that nothing happened and that my hands were trembling, my fear increased even more.

"Calm yourself! Those trembling hands can't even hold a paperweight, much less weave mana."

Sixth was referring to the gestures I was attempting to execute. They are necessary to cast a spell but needed to be precise and with the right intensity, the force control is extremely important for casting...

The bandit looked at my attempt to cast a spell while laughing, he probably thought I was trying to beg for forgiveness but was too scared to do so.

Calming myself, I repeated the gestures again, slowly this time.

When I completed them, three vortexes formed, one on each of my hands and another on my forehead.

Those vortexes became three white shadows that flew towards the big bandit in front of me with the speed of a crossbow bolt.

Spurt!

Blood gushed from the bandit's chest as he fell to the ground.

"Seriously?! Not killing a caster before they can use a spell is such a basic error!" Sixth jeered, mocking the bandits.

Both, me and the bandits were stunned because of the sudden fall of the big bandit, but my hands didn't stop even though I was scared and shocked, they moved involuntarily in the way I had prepared to beforehand, regardless of my shock.

That was a big stroke of luck since I am too afraid to think, and that involuntary reaction saved me. The gestures now were taking longer to execute, since this is a more complex spell.

When the other Bandits managed to react, I had already finished my motions and two vortexes appeared from my hands, sending a grey mist into the air, making the bandits stop their charge in fear.

The mist entered the Big Bandit's body through his pores, and his skin turned pale, his muscles convulsed, and his body trembled in constant spasms for a few seconds before stopping.

Right before the eyes of the shocked bandits, the corpse of the big bandit got up.

"You forgot to say: RISE MY CHILDREN!! Like a necromancer would… Even though it's just one."

Ignoring Sixth's remark, I looked at the rising bandit.

He looked exactly like when he was alive, but the three things on his chest, which looked like white arrows, were still stuck on it; but the wound wasn't bleeding, only the bloodstains on the fur clothes remained.

The Bandit took hold of his sword and ran towards the bandits, swinging ate the nearest one and beheading him…

But that wasn't all.

The swing was followed by a black wave of energy that could be seen by the naked eye that beheaded all the other bandits. The energy continued for a few meters, killing the last bandit before dissipating.

"OP! There's really an enormous difference between people who can use mana and those that can't." Sixth said, slightly unsatisfied with the fast fight. I never paid attention to his remarks, since until now, I was afraid of dying.

After killing his previous companions, the bandit sheathed his sword and walked towards me. He was a head taller and I immediately felt pressure from him.

But that towering figure suddenly lowered its height, kneeling in front of me with his hand on his chest, lowering his head in subservience.

"Ghoul Warrior, Albert, pays his respects to his liege Lord Knight." He said, not looking at me directly in the eye.

This man, Albert, was a Ghoul Warrior raised from a martial artist in training. He completely entered the level of Apprentice Martial Artist after becoming a ghoul.

His skin was pale from the blood that was replaced by necrotic energy, the wounds that revealed only flesh, leaked a black mist…

He was the first man I ever killed, and my first undead.