Swordmeister of Rome

It had been ten days since Sian moved to his new station in El-Lua.

When in training, new recruits were accompanied on patrol, but actual patrolling consisted of three men that patrolled the area on their own to cover a larger area and respond quickly. When something occurred, the man closest to the area was expected to respond first and wait for his teammates to arrive.

Sian loved his new life. Guarran-Tia was like a dream job for him.

There was no one around to tell him what to do and the area he patrolled was a district of high-ranking officials and Nobles where nothing serious occurred. Unlike some ruffians from the slums, the public road was not their fighting ground.

Not only that, the houses and buildings in the district were lavishly decorated with various decorations and statues that made Sian feel like if he was one of those high-ranking nobles himself.

He was a high-ranking noble, but his family lived in a very modest way, so he had never experienced something like this.

Sian heard that his placement was influenced by Count Kerbel. He realized why people emphasized having good connections.

El-Lua was usually a very quiet area, but it had been very busy lately during the ten days that Sian started working.

<Return of the Guards>

The day for the heroes to return from the Great North Wall was soon and all families were preparing to greet them. El-Lua, in order to not disrupt nobles who lived, was quieter and more modest than other districts.

Unbeknownst to Sian, the entire capital was celebrating.

Commoners stopped working and began gathering around to see new heroes return and merchants and traders shouted in joy as they worked hard to meet the demand. It was a huge opportunity to make good money that only happened once every five years.

As the commoners were enjoying the festivities, Nobles and the Royal family in El-Lua were preparing themselves as they became wary of their competitors.

They all knew that once the Guards returned, the capital would lead Tian Kingdom in an unknown direction. Yet everyone was aware that they could not fall behind in this change. There would be no mercy for those who failed.

To Sian, however, nothing mattered. All he needed was to do was carry out his job.

He was a son of the Roman family that protected the Royal family, but it was to protect against outside enemies. Roman families never got involved in internal affairs.

<Hone your skills, never side with others, and be responsible>

This was what the Roman family followed for generations. It was also the second family motto.

The first motto was to have as many babies as possible, which Sian was eager to keep up.

He gave up on honing his skills, but it was easy to adhere to the other two parts of the motto.

First, do the best to keep the peace in El-Lua district. But only work from eight to six.

Second, respond to each situation according to the book. The rank or status of an individual does not matter.

Sian organized his thoughts and patrolled the area. He was bad at memorizing, so he continuously read the manuals he kept with him.

As Sian was patrolling the city, the plain at the north perimeter of the capital was preparing to greet the returning Guards.

Bashar Plains. North of the capital perimeter.

There was a huge teleportation rune installed there.

<Ra-Shar-Roa>

Means 'Road of Light' where the Sun God walked. It served one purpose.

It was used to teleport between two great magical runes.

The Exalted Magical Council successfully recreated the old teleportation runes that the Empire barely managed to use in old times. It required so many Talic Stones and other precious minerals that only about twenty in total existed on the entire continent.

But its effect was that of a miracle.

It connected thousands of miles and allowed one to travel in seconds. Each country used the best of its power to maintain the powerful magic runes, even when it consumed up to 3% of the total Talic Stones used in the country.

Each country used the rune to move people and supplies to and from the Great North Wall.

Tian Kingdom had two such runes: one near the capital, and one at the Royal province near Count Celaine's province. This one near the capital, located in Bashar Plains, was where the Guards would return.

First and Second Class Magic Priests gathered on the plains worked on using their Talic Stones to initiate the transportation process under the watch of many Nobles and Royals.

The rune, Ra-Shar-Roa, made a huge sound as it glowed with multiple streams of light. Magic Priests concentrated even harder and the light grew brighter. At that moment, a crashing sound was heard from the emptiness in the middle and the space broke into a crack.

The cracking sound grew louder and the crack itself became wider. As it got bigger and bigger, it took the shape of a huge black ball in the air. It started to suck every light ray into it and exploded in its lights. The bright light blinded everyone looking at it and it made them close their eyes.

When they opened them again, Ra-Shar-Roa was in full operation. There was no black void.

The hole was now showing the Guards of the Great North Wall, waiting on the other side with familiar, vicious looks on their faces.

"Finally, they are here…" Viscount Talin mumbled as he watched. He was especially emotional as he handpicked most of the individuals that were sent back then. Working under Marquis Narasha, Viscount Talin picked out thirteen promising young men with high potential and steel-like mentality. Out of hundreds of volunteers, there were only thirteen.

The Royalists believed that they had put up a close fight as they were given eleven spots, but it was not. The Nobles only needed thirteen, no more. They even gained various mines in giving up the eleven spots, so it was very profitable in the end.

However, the returnees were six from the Royalists and eight from the Nobles. Viscount Talin was sad that a few of the men were sent out to die when they could've been a powerful asset if they stayed here.

This was only Viscount Talin's train of thought, and he was not a warrior.

All the other warriors tried their best to keep calm as they felt pure might and strength emanating from these returning Guards. The recruits standing next to them was nowhere close to them. If these recruits turned out like that in five years, only two out of fifteen would mean a huge success.

Not only that, they were sure to bring Talic Stones upon their return. It was a win-win situation no matter what.

As everyone was busy with thoughts and their works, there were only two people who kept their calm.

Marquis Narasha, the Kingdom's great protector.

Duke Kiraine, the Kingdom's greatest swordsman.

Other than Count Roman who remained neutral while protecting the kingdom, these two giants that represented each faction had deep complicated thoughts.

The old and new Guards switched places through the portal that opened and Ra-Shar-Roa soon stopped working. The area was now back to the normal, Bashar Plains.

The only thing left in the plains was the two factions looking at each other.

The first to break the silence was Marquis Narasha.

"Duke Kiraine, we should return to the capital now. Tian awaits us."

Marquis Narasha spoke and waited for the answer. The Duke quietly eyed the Marquis for a while and answered shortly to him. He turned back to his people and shouted, "Sure, to the Tian that waits. Everyone! We will return! The city will be waiting to start the celebration of the Guard's return."

They turned and began moving down to the capital. It was a day of celebration, but only one thing filled everyone in each faction's minds.

<Beginning tomorrow, change will begin. And WE will be the one to prevail!>