"Just act as if nothing happened, so as not to scare the fish behind you," Kael whispered to Enri in a flat tone, his eyes slightly shifting to monitor the endless interaction between the village chief and the Royal Knights.
Seeing the stalemate in the conversation, Kael quickly made a decision. Honestly, Warrior Captain Gazef Stronoff was a commendable figure: loyal, brave, tenacious, and possessing a strong sense of gratitude. His combat abilities and experience far surpassed ordinary humans, making him a more valuable asset to recruit compared to the average Carne Village resident.
However, his one fatal flaw was his absolute loyalty to King Ramposa III of Re-Estize. He would never betray his king, and this fact significantly lowered his value in Kael's eyes.
What's the point of having great subordinates if their loyalty isn't directed at you? Am I going to force him to see me as his father? Kael thought cynically.
Now that Gazef had arrived at Carne Village, the Slane Theocracy's special forces, the Sunlight Scripture, who were pursuing him, shouldn't be far behind.
Kael's primary goal in coming to this remote village was to capture the Sunlight Scripture and make use of them. He certainly didn't want to waste valuable time dealing with Gazef any longer than necessary.
High-Tier Collective Teleportation!
The spell echoed in his mind, and just as Gazef was about to appease the angry village chief and dig for more information, the surrounding scenery suddenly changed drastically. Dozens of figures appeared out of nowhere between them.
Kael and Enri suddenly stood beside the startled village chief. More than 20 Resurrection Angels with menacing auras surrounded the members of the Royal Knights, creating a tense and dangerous situation in the blink of an eye.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The well-trained members of the Royal Knights reacted swiftly. They immediately drew their swords, grabbed their respective weapons, and entered a state of full alert, ready to face the sudden threat.
Gazef, who was at the forefront, also quickly placed his hand on the hilt of his sturdy sword, staring at the suddenly appearing Kael with a gaze as sharp as a tiger's. Despite trying to remain calm, undeniable fear was clearly visible in his eyes.
Terrifying! Gazef silently increased his vigilance to the maximum.
He had been through countless battles in his life and could be considered a true war veteran, but he had never encountered an opponent with such terrifying power.
Among the third-tier magic he knew, there was the spell [Dimensional Move], which allowed the user to instantly distance themselves from the enemy in a flash. However, its teleportation distance was not very far and only allowed one person to move at a time.
What he had just witnessed clearly far surpassed the capabilities of third-tier magic. The opponent had transferred dozens of angels, including himself, at the same time, an ability that clearly did not originate from [Dimensional Move].
In other words, the person before him was a magic caster capable of using magic above the third tier, possibly even much higher.
Judging from adventurer rankings, his opponent was at least at the orichalcum or even adamantite level, an existence that could not be taken lightly and was extremely dangerous.
However, Gazef felt that the other party's power was far more than just that.
Although he didn't know what kind of magic was contained within the golden light enveloping the man's body, every time the light touched him, Gazef felt as if his body was being pressured to a certain extent, and even the will to resist felt weakened.
"God!" the village chief exclaimed in a tone of shock and reverence. His reaction was much slower than Gazef and the more trained soldiers.
As the warmth of the holy light enveloped his body, his surging anger suddenly subsided and was replaced by a strange calmness. Only then did he realize Kael's presence beside him and respectfully bowed, then took the initiative to step back a few paces.
God? When Gazef heard the village chief's statement to Kael, his eyebrows furrowed slightly.
There were many gods believed in this world, among which the six great gods of the Slane Theocracy were the most famous and had many followers. In addition, there were evil gods such as the Eight Fingers God and the Six Arms God who were feared, as well as various demons believed in by some evil churches and organizations.
Carne Village was just a small and insignificant border village, how could this remote village attract the attention of a real god?
So, although the power Kael used looked holy and strong, Gazef's first impression of him was that he was most likely just an extremely powerful magic caster who used illusions and his magic power to deceive the ignorant and gullible villagers, or a heretic who was good at disguising himself as a false god.
"Loyal, brave, and honest, mortal," Kael said in a calm and indifferent tone, looking directly at Gazef, as if he could see through his body and examine his soul directly, "your soul shines brightly."
Of course, in the eyes of the skeptical Gazef, such behavior and words were nothing more than a trick, an attempt to intimidate and control them psychologically.
In the next second, he saw Kael slowly raise his hand in a graceful yet threatening gesture.
"But your view of God is filled with deep doubt. God... dislikes disbelief."
He spoke softly, yet there was an unexpected power in every word. A faint ray of light flashed briefly on Kael's body, almost obscured by his brighter holy light, and an invisible wave of magic power suddenly swept out towards Gazef and his soldiers.
Collective Human Domination!
Move... I can't move! Gazef's eyes suddenly widened in shock and panic. At that moment, he found his body felt as if it were bound by countless fine threads, pulling him from all directions. He couldn't move a single muscle at all, not even to blink.
"Down," Kael commanded in a calm voice that held undeniable authority, as if his words were an unyielding law of nature. Strangely, Gazef's body moved on its own, beyond his control.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Hearing the thudding sounds behind him, although he couldn't see it, Gazef could imagine his subordinates being thrown from their horses like him, falling heavily to the ground.
"Worship," Kael said again, and this time, his command felt stronger, more forceful.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
With their bodies completely out of their control, Gazef led his entire group of soldiers to kneel in unison before Kael, paying their respects in the most pious manner they could in this bizarre situation.
Huh? A fleeting look of surprise appeared in Kael's eyes.
He saw that although Gazef was clearly affected by his magic power and unable to resist his commands, the warrior captain's entire body was trembling continuously, indicating that his spirit had not yet surrendered and he was still trying to fight against the binding magic.
Yes, he is a brave warrior captain after all. This situation is quite understandable, Kael thought.
Then, Kael used stronger control magic to order Gazef and the other soldiers to enter the village. After stripping them of all their weapons and equipment, he tied them up with strong ropes and threw them into one of the empty wooden houses.
After that, he asked some of the younger and stronger villagers to put on the armor of the fallen Theocracy soldiers and stand guard at the village entrance, disguised to deceive any incoming enemies. Meanwhile, the other villagers and the Resurrection Angels hid in other houses, waiting for the arrival of the Slane Theocracy's special forces, the Sunlight Scripture.
Inside the dark and stuffy wooden house...
Gazef and the other members of the warrior group were tightly bound to sturdy wooden pillars. The influence of the magic controlling them slowly dissipated, but everyone was still in a state of shock and confusion over what had just happened.
"Warrior Captain," the subordinate tied next to Gazef asked in a trembling voice, fear clearly audible in his tone, "could it be... that monster is really a god?"
"Don't let your imagination run wild!" Gazef rebuked his subordinate in a low yet firm voice, trying to maintain his composure even though his own heart was filled with doubt. "The other party is just an extremely powerful magic caster. We were just caught off guard."
What they had just experienced was too extraordinary and terrifying for ordinary people. Gazef worried that if his soldiers didn't quickly realize that they were only facing powerful magic, they would most likely suffer deep psychological trauma and lose the courage to face the mysterious man later.
However, his advice didn't seem to have much effect on the still-shaken soldiers.
"But, Warrior Captain," another soldier murmured in a confused tone, "is there really a mage who can do something like that? He just opened his mouth and we... we instantly couldn't move."
Gazef himself fell silent for a moment, pondering the strange events they had just experienced.
He had heard rumors that extremely powerful magic users could use a type of high-level enchantment magic to control the minds and bodies of others. However, the effects of such magic were usually only effective against one person at a time, and even then, it couldn't completely dominate and could be easily resisted by the other party if they had a strong will.
In the Adamantite-ranked adventurer team he knew better, Blue Rose, there was a high-level magic caster who was very proficient in various types of magic.
He had consulted with a member of that team about the power of such magic before, and the answer he received was: "A warrior with your level of strength and mental resilience can usually withstand the influence of such magic, so don't worry too much."
However, considering how easily Kael had controlled all of them at once, and that he had absolutely no power to resist the magic binding them, Gazef couldn't help but feel a little shaken and doubt his initial beliefs in his heart.
Could it be... that person is really a god with power beyond human comprehension? That thought began to haunt him, planting seeds of doubt that gnawed at his once firm convictions.