My Hermes System

Some of Athena's many advice to meeting new races;

One-- Always learn their culture before making any dramatic encounters; if not possible, then have a liaison that would guide you throughout the new world.

Two-- Never put yourself in a position that would warrant the attention of more than 3 people; that number is all it takes for rumors to spark around your existence.

Three-- Avoid the world's police force as much as possible.

Four-- Probably don't take a member of a Royal family hostage.

Van might have made up the last part, but if he remembers correctly, then the others should have been mentioned to him by Athena. He was sure that there were many more; but alas, he could not remember most of them. But in his current situation, he supposes it didn't matter.

After all'¦ he already has a country's Prince currently'¦ resting on the palm of his hand and surrounded by almost a hundred soldiers of a country whose name he doesn't even know. Truth be told, he had already failed all of the above as soon as he entered the planet naked.

And since he was now in this situation, he might as well expedite the process and get to the end of everything-- there should be many more planets he can go to that are more interesting than this one, which did not really offer much in variety to his own world; one could even say it was less.

Of course, it was too early to tell-- and that is exactly why he should expedite the process. If Athena was here, Van was sure she would agree with him'¦ Yup, she should.

And so, after taking in a long and deep breath, he ran towards one of the wooden structures and swiftly tied the Prince there.

"I demand to see King Uther!" He then roared, "If not, I will burn his brother as soon as the moon reaches its peak!"

What he was doing now was indeed reckless, but since he didn't really have any allies or anyone that needed protection, it didn't matter. He could just run away if things get messy for him.

"Do you really think we would follow the demands of a heathen!?"

Of course, Van did not really expect it would be easy either. The only thing he could do was sigh as one of the soldiers mounted on a horse trotted forward; and considering he was carrying a banner with him, he should be an individual of authority'¦ or close to that.

"You and your companions will die here today!"

"...Companions?" Van then blinked a couple of times, before turning his head towards the two other presence that were with him in the center of the plaza, Arthur and Emrys.

"You guys are still here?"

"How do you think we're going to escape in this situation!?"

"You gave me another chance in life, I will not leave you here to die on your own."

"..." And then, suddenly, he had companions. Van once again let out a sigh as soon as he realized this. He didn't really have any obligations to protect the two, but since they were already here, they might as well use them to satisfy one of Athena's advice-- have a liaison to guide you through the world.

"Enough of this charade! Free the Prince and we will make your death swift!" The leader of the company once again raised his voice, waving the banner in the air as if to assert his dominance in the situation.

"Bring me King Uther, or I will burn the Prince," Van once again repeated, this type patting the tied up prince.

"Remove the Prince from the cross, this is your final warning!"

It might not seem like it, but Van did learn a thing or two from Athena. If this company of soldiers in front of him were confident enough, then they would have already attacked him even with the Prince beside him.

They could also be setting up a trap or a group of them were positioning themselves on a better vantage point to assassinate him, but it did not change the fact that they would not just suddenly attack him. No'¦ they were wary of him.

And since they were already wary of him'¦ evolving that into fear shouldn't be too bad in this situation-- Athena would surely agree.

And so, with that thought, Van raised.

"!!!"

The captain of the company almost fell from his horse as a loud thunderous explosion erupted from the skies. It was not only him, however, as most of the cavalry were doing their best to stay on their horses as the four-legged creatures became frenzied from the continuous rumbling coming from the skies.

"Ar'¦ Archers!" The captain struggled to raise his hand as he ordered his archers to draw their bows, "Get ready to fire on my command!" But even so, he still managed to regain his pride as the captain as he also regained control of his horse.

The captain was about to order the archers to knock their arrows, but before he could do so, the thunder stopped; and as soon as it did, a weapon appeared in Van's hand-- a hammer.

A small hammer.

"Pft."

The captain, as well as the other ones near him, could not help but burst out in laughter as soon as they saw Van's weapon. With all the chaos and rumbling happening earlier, they thought that he was releasing some type of aerial spell And so, to see the mighty spell actually be just a  small hammer, their relief was reflected by their laughs.

"You--"

However, before the captain could say another word, the hammer suddenly lit up in a spark; and without any warning, thunder once again echoed through the air. But this time, the roar of the sky screamed almost right in their faces as a flash of light threatened to blind everyone unfortunate enough to have their eyes opened.

The air then as if whistled through their ears endlessly; their vision recovering from a blur only to see a cloud of dust already clearing. And as the cloud parted, the scenery that welcomed them was completely different from how it was only moments ago.

Where the platform used to stand, was a huge crater; its earth completely burnt almost to a crisp. Perhaps it was luck that none of the incapacitated soldiers sprawled on the ground were near the explosion. If not, if they weren't truly dead, they would have been if they were inside the perimeter of the crater.

The hammer that Van received for defeating Thor; it was small, but it was terrible'¦ just like Van.

Able to store the force and momentum applied to it as energy; Energy which the wielder could then use against his enemy in the form of a lightning strike-- perhaps no other weapon was more suitable for Van.

"I am not going to ask again'¦

...bring me King Uther."

***

"You'¦ what you're using is not magic?"

A couple of minutes have passed since Van threatened the soldiers, and the captain seemed to have agreed in letting the King know of his demands. And so, right now, Van was just waiting if the King would truly show himself for his brother.

If he didn't, then Van could just take Arthur and Emrys away and let them guide him throughout the country. Van and the two others were currently beside the tied up prince, with Emrys and Van casually sitting on the ground, while Arthur was standing up, his foot tapping uncontrollably since earlier.

"That's because I am not this so-called mage, sorcerer, or wizard you people are speaking of," Van then let out a small but deep sigh, "I already told Mister Arthur last night."

"That looks awfully a lot like magic to me," Arthur also sighed as he looked at the soldiers, and towards the crater that Van made, "But at least I seem to be on the stronger side'¦ for now. If King Uther arrives, we're dead."

"You are still somewhat using mana," Emrys then stood up as he walked around Van, looking at him from head to toe, "But its usage is so minimal that it is almost negligible."

"I say you're a different kind of sorcerer as well," Arthur then intruded on the conversation as he looked at Emrys, "You still have a collar on you, but you're able to use magic?"

"...Perhaps it is because I draw mana from inside me, and not from the elements of the world."

"Is that how it--"

"Move."

And before Arthur could say any more words, he and Emrys were suddenly pushed away by Van, causing them to roll on the ground for a few meters. Arthur was about to scream foul, but as soon as he saw someone else standing where he was before he was pushed away, the only thing he could do was furrow his eyebrows.

Van was still seated on the ground, his arms, however, were raised as a shield covered him from being split into half by a sword bigger than his own body.

"King Uther, I presume?"

Van then said as he leaned his head to the side to see the man that suddenly waved his sword at him. He could not see the man's face, however, as he was completely covered by a golden helmet, with two short horns on the side and an elongated jaw-piece that made it look as if he had the head of a lizard. His armor was the same, golden and filled with scales that almost seemed like it was breathing.

"You'¦" King Uther then breathed out, and even though his voice should be muffled from the helmet, it could still be heard clearly even by the soldiers surrounding them.

"....You're not from around here, are you?"