I Reincarnated As A Stick

Chapter 268: Advent of a New Age

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Just like before, with the help of Felix’s abilities, the three of them exited the manor and arrived in front of the guards at outrageous speeds, only taking a few seconds to do so. Due to the suddenness of their arrival, the guards, who were chatting with one another with smiles and elated auras surrounding their bodies, could not help but slightly freeze up as all of them were instantly bombarded by a deep yet suffocating aura. Specifically, Felix’s aura.

In an instant, the guards hastily organized themselves into formation in front of the three, with every one of them making sure that the other guards beside them were properly positioned. After that, all of them went ahead and radiated imposing auras. They then simultaneously took in deep breaths before shouting to the three, “Welcome back, esteemed sirs!”

Looking at the change of attitude the guards had undergone through after they had left for the manor for only a few minutes, the three could not help but look at each other for a bit before looking at the guards, all of them radiating auras of confusion. The aura of confusion was more prominent on Argentum, wondering why these guards were treating them like this.

Unsurprisingly, it did not take long for Argentum to come to a conclusion as he glanced at Felix, remembering once again that the world followed the laws of the jungle where the strong ruled over the weak. He could not help but slightly scratch his head as he thought to himself, ‘Would the guards do something like this if only I and Blob were here?’

Pondering over it for a bit, he thought that the answer to his question was a big maybe. Although the former leader and Blob were equal to each other in terms of defensive stats, in terms of offense, the two of them were lacking against the former leader, who had been stuck at the Rank 3 level for a long time. To him, the best possible outcome in that fight would be a stalemate. If he could persuade the guards to move as well, then they might be able to imprison him.

Nevertheless, after thinking about it for a bit, Argentum placed the thought to the back of his head as he let out a light sigh. Catching their attention through imitating a light cough, he then said to them, “Uh…should I command you guys or something? I’m not really used to stuff like these.”

“Either way, come closer,” he continued before adding, “I have something to say to you guys.”

In response, the guards looked at each other for a bit before deciding to follow Argentum’s words. In a matter of a minute or so, the guards soon organized themselves in front of Argentum and the other two in a semicircle, making sure that each guard surrounding them would be able to hear his words clearly. Briefly thinking that these guards would surely become a good asset in the future, he then imitated the sound of one clearing their throat as he asked them, “Have you guys made up your minds already?”

It took no more than an instant for the guards to profusely nod as they then shifted their gazes towards a specific guard in the semicircle. Of course, with the guards doing it, Argentum and the other two could not help but look towards the direction they were looking at as well, revealing a normal-looking guard in front of their field of vision.

Then again, the guard only looked normal in terms of appearance. But in terms of the aura he radiated, to Felix and Argentum, they could sense that beneath the natural killing intent each guard had to protect their town, he also had a compassionate and ambitious side. To the two, he gave off the feeling that he was willing to do anything to improve the lives of the citizens in this town.

Not long after, Felix, who was behind Argentum, sent out a strand of energy towards him and said, “The guy they chose seems to fit the bill of a good leader. He has combat experience, gives off the feeling that everything he does is calculated, and not to mention, the innate kindness he has. Then again, it’s still up to you to choose as to whether or not he becomes your proxy.”

“If you enumerate his good points that way, then there’s no way I can’t make him the proxy,” Argentum replied with a light chuckle as he sent back a strand of his own. He then focused his sense of vision towards the guard everyone was looking at and asked him calmly, “Name?”

“I-It would be Delmann, sir,” the guard, who was not expecting Argentum to ask him, replied timidly. In response, Argentum repeated his name a few times in his mind before asking a follow-up question, saying, “Did the other guards force you to take up the position, or did all of you come to a consensus?”

“We have come to a consensus, sir,” one of the guards went ahead and replied to Argentum’s question. Soon after, the other guards repeated the same thing as light smiles were plastered on their faces. Although they were still scared of the fact that speaking up would lead to them ending up the same fate as their former leader, they were proud of the fact that all of them did not argue over who the next leader of Verdant Breeze Town would be.

In their minds, Delmann was someone who embodied the true spirit of a guard, even though he had only been a guard for a couple of years. All of them were well-acquainted with him, and knew as to how he would not stop at anything to make sure that the town was safe. Of course, there were other reasons as to why they chose him, but these two stood out to them since they were guards as well.

“I see.” After letting the other guards speak up for Delmann, Argentum soon nodded in understanding, taking everything he heard from them into consideration. Eventually, he gestured with his hands to silence them, only to remember something. He then asked them, “Do you think the other guards we threw a while ago would agree with this choice?”

“We do.” Surprisingly, a few voices spoke up, prompting Argentum to focus his vision on them. He soon noticed that these guards had a few holes in their uniforms, unlike their other comrades. Not only that, but a few areas of their bodies had some bruises, leading Argentum to conclude that the guards they threw a while ago actually came back.

‘I wonder how that optimistic guy is doing,’ he soon thought, recalling the man who tried to rouse the wills of the guards to fight a few times, only to fail.

“Well, since I think every guard in this town has agreed to let Delmann become the leader…” Argentum soon said after a few moments of contemplation, making the guards eager to hear his next words…only to have their expectations turned upside down in an instant.

“I shall become the new leader of Verdant Breeze Town,” Argentum followed up soon after, instantly sensing the tense atmosphere surrounding the guards. Knowing what would happen if he did not speak up soon, he hastily said, “Anyways, before you get angry at me, I’ll let all of you know that I won’t be ruling the town at this instant.”

“Huh? What do you mean by that?” one of the guards could not help but ask in confusion as the guards gradually calmed down. In response, Argentum radiated a slightly gleeful aura as he lightly giggled, saying, “In other words, I’ll have a person be my proxy in the meantime.”

“Delmann…” he soon focused his sense of vision back at Delmann, who was looking back at him with a slightly expectant gaze. “Are you willing to become the de facto leader of Verdant Breeze Town until I come to officially take the role?”

“Er…” At first, Delmann did not know what to respond, looking at the guards beside him. He soon noticed that the expressions of the guards were somewhat angry at first, which then turned into contemplation, before eventually turning into excitement. Oblivious to what the other guards had in mind, Delmann could not help but ask them, “What are you guys thinking about?”

One of the guards beside them responded to his question, whispering in his ear, “Although it’s a bit saddening for you to only become the de facto leader of the town for a temporary time, think about it from a different perspective.”

Soon after, another guard whispered in his ear, continuing where the first one left off as they said, “With you leading the town at the helm and these strong people taking on the place of our backers, don’t you think the town would enter a period of greater prosperity?”

It did not take long for Delmann to ponder over it and come to the conclusion that it could happen. With that in mind, as well as the urging of the other guards surrounding him, Delmann finally responded to Argentum with a nod as he said in a firm yet gentle tone, “I am willing.”

“Well, that settles that,” Argentum said in response to his words, letting out a light chuckle after that. He then told him, “Congratulations on becoming the leader of the town. Speaking of which, could you come with me for a second, Delmann?”

“Uh…sure.” Delmann nodded as he went closer to where Argentum was. He was then led by Argentum to a place where the other guards, as well as Argentum’s companions, would not be able to hear their conversation easily. Focusing his sense of vision onto Delmann’s eyes, Argentum took in a deep breath before saying, “I don’t know how long it’ll be before I come and take over your role, but please do your best to make sure everyone in this town lives a good life.”

Hearing Argentum’s words, Delmann could not help but feel touched as he profusely nodded, saying, “I definitely will.” On the other hand, Argentum took note of Delmann’s response, and inwardly smiled. As long as the citizens of the town are treated properly, they’ll definitely reciprocate this kindness in the future, he thought.

“Also, once I come back to this town, I might have another appearance by then, so…” Argentum said not long after before telling him, “We should make a code phrase that only the two of us will know.”

And so, after that, the two went ahead and exchanged their opinions back and forth through the usage of energy strands, eventually coming to an agreement as the two felt like the code phrase they made was simple enough for them to recognize, and complex enough for others to not get it.

They then talk about the goals the town should have while Argentum was gone, with Delmann giving the green light on goals that seemed to be feasible in the short term. At the end of their discussion, Argentum told him that his friend would keep an eye on the town from time to time, making Delmann let out a sigh of relief.

After that, the two of them came back to where the guards, as well as Felix and Blob, were. As he arrived, Argentum could not help but inwardly chuckle at himself as he thought, ‘Who knew Aurus would actually be good at stuff like management?’

While he was talking with Delmann a while ago, he was cross-referencing his words with the things Aurus said in his memories, specifically the ones that were related to managing resources and people. Although Aurus always told others that he was an independent player in ISE, in actuality, he only went solo after he became a Transcendent level player.

Feeling that all of the problems for now in this town had been resolved, Argentum focused his vision on the guards and said, “Make sure you do your duties well, okay guys?”

“Sir, yes, sir!” the guards simultaneously replied with excited expressions. Argentum then focused his vision onto Delmann and said, “Don’t let me down.”

“I won’t, sir,” Delmann said in response, a light smile plastered on his face. Through their private conversation a while ago, Delmann came to learn of Argentum’s name, but decided to follow how the other guards called him to not attract more attention towards Argentum.

Nodding in response to Delmann’s words, Argentum then looked at Blob and Felix and asked them, “Well, then. Shall we take our leave?”

“Sure,” Felix replied. As for Blob, he nodded in response. With both of them agreeing, Argentum took one last look at the guards and said, “I hope to see you all in the future stronger than before.”

Hearing those words, the guards felt like their hearts were warmed as they had not experienced such a sensation before from their former leader. With smiles on their faces, the guards then answered, “We won’t let you down!”

“Hehe.” Argentum let out a light chortle in response to that before sending a strand of energy to Felix. In it were the words, “Take us a few kilometers away from the center of the town. I and Blob still have something to do around these areas.”

Soon after, Felix nodded as he looked at Argentum before snapping his fingers, casting a blue magic circle that enveloped the three of them in an instant.

Whoosh!

Accompanied by a light gust of wind, the three of them had disappeared from the sights of the guards as they basked under the dim moonlight. Nevertheless, they looked at the area where the three had disappeared for a bit with expectant expressions. They then simultaneously looked up at the moon up above as the same thought crossed their minds.

A new chapter on Verdant Breeze Town’s history has begun.

——–

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