This wizard only wishes to be a teacher

"Go in." Lucien grabbed another player, handling him just like the birdman before, and tossed this dog-headed humanoid player toward the red line.

However, this time Lucien did not deliberately release his "malice" but merely attached his spiritual power to the player, observing him as if he were a bystander.

This panicked dog-headed person stumbled forward and, upon reaching a corner, instinctively ran in one direction.

It was the direction away from the core of the Mondok family mansion.

As the dog-headed person clumsily fled outward, he did not encounter attacks from other powerful players like the previous birdman had. However, whenever he faced a choice, he always picked a path leading away from the Mondok family mansion.

"Sigh..." Lucien, who had been quietly watching him with the mark of spiritual power, sighed softly in his heart. He then plunged into the Shadow Space, swiftly arrived beside the dog-headed player, and with a crescent blade, he beheaded the dog-headed player.

"It seems that if there’s no apparent hostility or malice, the countermeasures might be milder, but the outcome is the same, which is not to violate its core line, namely, getting close to the core area of the Mondok family mansion..."

Lucien, expressionless, glanced at the dog-headed person with wide-eyed surprise and casually removed the spiritual power mark previously attached to him.

He was quite satisfied with the outcomes of the experiments this evening, yet Lucien wanted to try one last experiment.

He gently closed his eyes, quickly tuned his spiritual power to its peak through controlled breathing, and then reopened his eyes. The imposing presence of a peak first-level Wizard’s spiritual power was then unabashedly released.

Unlike before, when he used his spiritual power as covert feelers, Lucien’s aura burst forth unhindered, sweeping rapidly around him, an aura so palpable that even players not adept in scouting could easily feel it.

Bursting out his aura under these circumstances acted as a provocation to other players, a declaration of sovereignty.

Thus, the moment Lucien unleashed his aura, he felt gazes from several powerful players around him.

These gazes may have mingled with malice or disdain.

However, Lucien could feel that three players, almost without hiding, began quickly moving towards his location.

"Let’s go." Without hesitation, Lucien reined in his aura and stealthily moved within the Shadow Space, leaving quickly before the players arrived.

"I can feel their ’malice’ toward me, but I do not yet know if such directed animosity will catch the ’red line’s’ attention." Not far away, on a spire’s top, Lucien silently watched the streets below while also sensing some special fluctuations that were difficult to detect with the naked eye.

Soon, Lucien looked toward the place he had stayed earlier; he could feel a strong surge of Magic Essence there now, seemingly from a powerful battle erupting, the reverberation of which indicated that it was caused by multiple peak first-level Wizards or perhaps second-level Wizards.

"Hehe... The final test, a complete success." Lucien’s lips curled slightly, then he was once more covered by the shadow’s airflow, diving into the layer of shadows and rapidly moving toward his dwelling.

...

"Thank you very much for your help..." In front of a temporary camp, Rudy of the Cecilia family was bowing solemnly to Hercules.

"During the previous Demon wipe-out, I was too reckless, nearly leading myself toward obliteration due to my talent going out of control and almost dragging everyone into the abyss..."

"We just did what we had to do." Hercules kept a stern face that Captain Roland always maintained, but he gave Rudy a ceremonial smile.

"But I still need to remind Young Master Rudy, in the battles ahead, it’s better to choose the conservative decision when between certainty and uncertainty because, on the battlefield, a teammate who isn’t able to exert an influence is far less harmful than..."

"I will definitely be careful!" Rudy’s face turned slightly red, seemingly embarrassed by his previous impulsive actions.

Hercules just nodded slightly and said no more, continuing his usual persona of being stern-faced, kind-hearted, and terse with words, only showing the other, unknown side of him to those he was more familiar with...

"Captain Roland, don’t be too hard on Rudy, haha, I think Rudy did quite well, certainly better than my first time on the battlefield!" Rafael laughed heartily, breaking the somewhat awkward and heavy atmosphere.

Hercules glanced at him and remained silent, but Rudy, reassured by Rafael’s kind of indirect comfort, visibly felt much better.

"His blood doesn’t contain any special ingredients, perhaps the extraordinary doesn’t lie in his lineage but in his talent..." Hercules silently focused his attention on Rudy, recalling the analysis and research he had conducted on Rudy’s blood using some equipment he carried the night before.

The five great heroic families... Hercules’s eyes flickered slightly, and then he turned his gaze to the purple-dressed girl, Sura, who was smiling at Rafael within the group.

She, too, was a "prospective hero" who had awakened her heroic talent; however, because she always followed by Rafael’s side, Hercules felt somewhat constrained.

"This is really troublesome," Hercules muttered to himself, but quickly put on a serious face again.

"Alright, the team is about to set off, Young Master Rudy, if you wish to continue conversing, you could step aside. But impeding the entrance of the camp is inconvenient for the formation of the other knights."

Then, Hercules glanced at Rafael, "Rafael, come over after you’re done with your talk. We are not far from our target, the Demon Nest, so I need you, our scouting leader, to perform your role!"

"Yes, Captain Roland!" Rafael saluted jestingly, causing Hercules to clench his fists secretly.

However, he did not say anything, just nodded slightly and then looked at a burly knight called Fogen, "Fogen, take a small team and assist Rafael in completing this task."

"Yes!" Fogen glanced coldly at Rafael, but his eyes flicked momentarily with an imperceptible chill.

He held a personal grudge against Rafael. Although it had been covered up previously due to certain circumstances, fortunately, he had now discovered the real murderer behind his sister’s death, and at this moment, it seemed he had found an excellent opportunity.

"Captain... I can handle it alone..." Rafael, looking at the seemingly naive Fogen, was somewhat reluctant.

"This is an order!" Hercules sneered inwardly, but still maintained a professional demeanor, "Fogen is one of the best knights under my command; with his help, even if you encounter small groups of demons, you have a high chance of escaping unscathed."

"Don’t worry, Captain, I will definitely protect Young Master Rafael," assured Fogen hastily, though his slightly rushed voice still managed to make Rafael shudder slightly.

Rafael opened his mouth but ultimately did not dare to say anything, especially since the deeds he had done in secrecy must not be disclosed to Roland or Sura...

"I understand, Captain Roland," Rafael could only nod resignedly.

"Alright, go," Hercules watched the departing squad with a cold gaze.

"I wonder if this sort of vengeance stemming from plot characters will attract the attention of the Red Thread, or perhaps, trigger other precautions from Rafael?"

Hercules sneered internally. As a "Reincarnator," he was aware of many hidden relationships between characters, including the reason behind Fogen’s sister’s death.

During his first reincarnation, the married woman he portrayed played an ignoble role during this timeline.

And behind it all was the flirtatious Rafael.

According to the plot’s progression, Fogen would probably learn the truth only two months after returning to the Trujillo family from this campaign, by which time Rafael had already become one of the war heroes against the demon clans, not someone Fogen could confront directly. Ultimately, Fogen opts for assassination, becoming the key antagonist that solidifies Rafael’s relationship with another female character.

But this time, Fogen learned the truth earlier.

It was Hercules, in the guise of "Roland," who had accidentally revealed a crucial clue during a conversation with Fogen, who pieced together the details he knew to uncover the truth early.

"The plot and characters align with the storyline; the only difference is the timing..." Hercules’s expression was calm and stern as he watched the now-distant scouting team, silently cheering for Fogen.

Wouldn’t killing Rafael, a player under the guise of a dream owner, serve as a cautionary tale for other players as well?

And eventually, they would also become catalysts in the search for the truth...

With this thought, the corners of Hercules’s mouth curved upward slightly. He then drew his knight sword, "First Company, disperse in team formation for patrol, slow down the marching speed, maintain formation as we advance! Stay alert for ambushes from the demons!"

"Yes, Captain!"

Hercules smiled, as the head of the Knights, it was his role to allow enough space and time for Fogen’s revenge.