Both his swordsmanship and magic had reached top-tier levels, to the point where even the kingdom's "Finest Knight" was defeated so easily.
With such abilities, even if she wasn't chosen as the new Queen of the Dragon Kingdom during the Royal Selection, Priscilla believed that, with Wood's help, she could still achieve her revenge.
The strongest force of the Empire of Vollachia was Cecilus Segmunt, but Priscilla had met him. When it came to sheer power, Cecilus might be able to defeat Julius, but it would never be as effortlessly as Wood managed.
Powerhouses like Wood and Reinhard were already beyond what most would consider conventional limits.
Meanwhile, after Wood defeated Julius and successfully joined the Royal Guard as a unit captain, Emilia and her party had also arrived in the royal capital.
Since Roswaal's territory was on the fringes of the kingdom, Emilia's group ended up being the last of the candidates to arrive. Aside from Roswaal, who had gone ahead, Emilia was accompanied by Rem, Ram, and Subaru Natsuki.
"Barusu, you better prove useful this time. If you can't help Lady Emilia during the Royal Selection, you can expect to do twice as much housework when we get back," Ram remarked sharply.
Due to limited funds for the trip, Ram had replaced Subaru in the role of house sitter. However, as soon as Subaru heard about the "Royal Selection," he immediately recognized that a significant event had been triggered.
After all, he was a transmigrator—while his combat skills were nothing special, he was certain that the protagonist was the key to pushing the story forward.
With an opportunity like this—to prove his worth while also impressing Emilia—there was no way Subaru would let it pass. So, after a great deal of pleading and with Emilia speaking on his behalf, Subaru managed to join the group headed to the royal capital.
"Don't worry, Ram. I still don't understand what this 'Royal Selection' entails, but when it comes to brainpower, I have complete confidence in myself. Besides, we have you, Rem, Puck, and Roswaal on our side for any physical confrontations," Subaru said confidently, unfazed by Ram's cutting remarks.
Subaru's self-assurance wasn't without basis. Aside from having played countless RPGs, which gave him a good grasp of the tropes and story beats, Subaru also had a cheat ability. If anything irreversible happened or a grave mistake was made, he could always rely on "Return by Death" to try again.
"Sister, we should find a place to settle down soon, and then look for Sir Wood," Rem suggested.
According to what he said before, he should've arrived in the royal capital ahead of us and become a knight by now," Rem added.
Due to the "Beast of the Forest" incident caused by Meili, which was foiled by Wood, Rem didn't share much of a bond or any affection for Subaru in this timeline. As such, she was more concerned about finding Wood within the capital to ask him to help heal her sister's injuries.
"Finding someone in the vast royal capital is no easy feat. Since he said he'd join the Royal Guard, we need only follow Lady Emilia to participate in the Royal Selection—we'll meet him then, Rem," Ram said logically.
In truth, Ram had little expectation that Wood could help restore her broken horn. After all, neither Beatrice, with her vast magical knowledge, nor Roswaal, as powerful as he was, had been able to do anything for her. It was hard for Ram to believe there was anyone out there capable of helping her.
However, seeing her adorable sister so hopeful, Ram couldn't refuse, so she decided to take a chance and follow Emilia to the capital.
Upon hearing that Wood was also in the capital, Subaru, who had been full of ambition, visibly deflated, like a flower wilting in the frost.
The person who had left the biggest psychological scar on Subaru was, without a doubt, the dark-haired woman called "The Bowel Hunter."
The image of her pulling out his intestines was burned into Subaru's memory, leaving him with a lingering fear.
But besides her, the second person who made Subaru uneasy was Wood, the blonde youth that Rem and Ram often spoke about.
Wood was not only incredibly handsome but also absurdly powerful. Furthermore, like Subaru, he was also a "transmigrator." The difference was that Wood wasn't some naive newcomer; he'd grown up in this world, embraced its customs, and seemed to have left behind any sense of normalcy that a modern person might have. He was impulsive, always ready for a fight.
Although they were both "transmigrators," Subaru's cheat, "Return by Death," had no effect on Wood, who seemed to have an innate distaste for being reset. Wood had even once warned Subaru that if he kept playing around with "Return by Death," he'd make sure Subaru ended up as nothing more than a vegetable or cripple.
Such harsh threats made Subaru anxious at the thought of encountering Wood. And with Wood's charm and overwhelming power, Subaru couldn't help but feel overshadowed every time they were together.
"Calm down, Subaru. This is the royal capital of the Dragon Kingdom. There shouldn't be any life-threatening situations here," Subaru said to himself, trying to steady his nerves.
"Besides, the Royal Selection isn't solely about strength. Strategy, intelligence, and political acumen are sure to be tested as well. If it comes down to that, even against Wood, I, Subaru Natsuki, won't necessarily lose!"
Subaru continued to give himself pep talks, working to overcome his fear of Wood, while following Emilia to a nearby inn in the capital.
Shortly after Emilia and her group arrived at the inn, an official from Lugnica came to inform them about the start of the Royal Selection.
The Selection had originally been scheduled for the near future, but because all five "Dragon Priestesses" were already in the capital, the Dragonstone had shown an unprecedented reaction. Fearing the consequences of waiting, the kingdom's Council of Sages decided to advance the Selection ceremony.
Emilia, having just arrived in the capital, still didn't fully grasp the details of the Selection. Now, learning that they were expected at the palace the next day, she was left bewildered.
As Emilia tried to politely ask the official about the specifics of the ceremony, she quickly realized he had no intention of answering her questions. He simply delivered the Council's message and turned to leave.
As he left, Subaru and the others overheard him muttering, "I can't believe even an evil half-elf can be a candidate for the throne."
Emilia, catching the hint of sarcasm, pulled her hood lower, trying to hide her ears.
Both Rem and Subaru had initially wanted to stop the official and give him a piece of their mind, but Emilia held them back.
Since being awakened from her frozen state, this wasn't the first time Emilia had encountered such treatment. Though she didn't fully understand why, she knew her appearance—a half-elf—reminded the people of the Witch of Envy, Satella, who had brought catastrophe to the kingdom 400 years ago.
Moreover, Emilia's resemblance to Satella was uncanny; they looked almost identical.
For this reason, Emilia desired to participate in the Royal Selection. She wanted to prove that she was not Satella—that she wasn't the witch who brought disaster. Instead, she wanted to bring happiness to the people of the kingdom.
Emilia's arrival, along with the Dragonstone's response, prompted the Selection to begin sooner than expected.
Though Emilia and her group knew little about the Selection's procedures, they had no choice but to follow through now that it was happening.
Meanwhile, Wood had finally managed to get rid of the clingy Priscilla. As a new captain of the Royal Guard, he intended to open some channels and allow Elsa's faction to infiltrate the capital.
After writing several letters detailing plans for the assassination group and handing them over to Meili, a knight soon entered to inform Wood that he was required at the palace the following day for guard duty.
It had only been a day since he'd started his new job, and now he had to pull overtime. Wood grumbled about it, but once Marcos handed him two months' worth of salary in advance, his complaints quickly vanished.
If you want a horse to run, you need to feed it. If you want it to sprint, you better feed it well. Wood fully agreed with this sentiment.
Unlike a certain miserly goat-bearded old man who had always made him work overtime without a dime of compensation, Marcos was clearly more perceptive, not only advancing his pay but doing so at a captain's rate.
Wood now felt it wasn't such a bad idea to stand guard for a day.
The Royal Selection ceremony for Lugnica was about to commence, and the identities of the five "Dragon Priestesses" gradually came to light.
The five candidates were as follows:
First was Emilia, a half-elf who bore a striking resemblance to the Witch of Envy, Satella.
Then there was Felt, the granddaughter of the late king's brother, who had been kidnapped and was later discovered by the current Sword Saint in the slums.
Next, there was Priscilla, who inherited the Vollachian family and was known as the "Crimson Bride."
Crusch , the head of the Karsten Ducal House, was another candidate. At just seventeen years old, she had inherited her family title and was already recognized as a highly talented leader.
The last candidate was Anastasia Hoshin, who possessed remarkable business acumen and was the eldest among the five Dragon Priestesses, being originally from a merchant guild.
The citizens of the kingdom were naturally curious about who would become Lugnica's next monarch. After all, the new ruler would directly impact their lives.
In fact, some gambling establishments had even started taking bets on which of the five "Dragon Priestesses" would become the next ruler.
Among the five candidates, Crusch Karsten was considered the favorite, with the lowest betting odds. As the head of a ducal house, she had the support of many nobles and was viewed as the most likely to succeed.
The one with the highest betting odds, meaning the least favored to win, was Emilia. Despite being one of the "Dragon Priestesses," the majority of both the nobility and common folk disapproved of Emilia due to her resemblance to the Witch of Envy.
The Selection ceremony was held in the palace's grand hall, attended by the kingdom's ministers and the Council of Sages.
As members of the Royal Guard, Wood and his squad were assigned to maintain order during the event.
"Today is a big day—the Royal Selection is about to happen. Many have been preparing since yesterday. What's with that sleepy look of yours?" Reinhard asked Wood with an exasperated smile as he saw Wood yawning beside him.
Wood, Reinhard, Felix, and Julius had been assigned to the front row as captains of their respective squads, and Wood's lack of enthusiasm was not helping their image.
"Come on, I just started this job yesterday, okay? Besides, the 'Royal Selection' has nothing to do with me. Who becomes the new ruler has nothing to do with me," Wood replied, brushing it off casually.
He had stayed up late writing detailed proposals for expanding Elsa's assassination group and sent them to her via Meili. The Royal Selection wasn't exactly high on his list of priorities.
However, as the "Dragon Priestesses" walked into the grand hall one by one, Wood's indifferent expression suddenly changed to one of shock. He knew four of the five candidates!
Emilia was a given; Wood had already pegged her as the main heroine of this world. It wasn't surprising that she had the title of "Dragon Priestess."
What he hadn't expected was that the alluring widow he'd flirted with and the young girl he'd befriended in the slums were also "Dragon Priestesses" and contenders for the throne!
Of the two remaining candidates, the one with short green hair and a confident demeanor—dressed in male attire—was Crusch Karsten, whom Wood didn't know.
The other, however, he did know. It was Anastasia Hoshin, a striking girl with soft lilac hair, wearing a white dress and a white woolen hat.
In fact, unlike the previous two simulated lives, Wood was not a transmigrator from the Zero World or a reborn individual from the Mushoku Tensei World.
When Wood awoke in this world, the character he was simulating had already lived through some experiences.
Due to the accumulation of memories, Wood hadn't had time to sift through them after arriving in this world. Only recently, during a period of leisure, had he managed to absorb all these memories.
Wood's full name in this world was actually Wood Hoshin!
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Don't forget to give Power Stone
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