A few days later…
Chuck had been training and practicing vigorously for the past few days, both in magic and in physical training.
During this time he did not really do anything to improve or practice necromancy any more as it was just too risky to have multiple undead at the moment.
The little bird, which he named nugget because it's as small as a chicken nugget, had already greatly improved its magic limit and can now fly for a good half an hour before having to rest and recover for about fifteen minutes.
He has been hiding nugget well the past few days, and it's quite easy to do so since he is so small.
He had been using the small bird for some simple reconnaissance around the castle and had learned about a certain someone who was very fragile right now that he could potentially use.
He would go see 'him' later today, if his guess is correct he may try to escape again today…
Chuck had also improved his own stats passively, for example strength and endurance improved a little due to training his body and his magic stat improved a little as he got better at magic.
Here are his current stats
...
[Status Screen]
Name: Chuck Samuel
Age: 24
Race: Human (Evolvable)
Level 1 exp 50/100
Class: Villain
───[Stats]───
Strength: 7
Endurance: 7
Agility: 6
Magic: 8
Charisma: 10
Luck: 10
───[Skills & Traits]─── (tap to expand)
───[Quests]─── (tap to expand)
...…
He still wasn't sure how to get exp other than completing quests, but he assumes that it might have to do with defeating enemies or monsters.
Also he had completed the magic firepower quest by learning how to throw/shoot simple basic magic such as a fire ball.
And so his magic stat increased by an additional 2 points.
Chuck yawned and stretched in his bed, it was time for him to begin enacting some schemes, after all, one can't be a villain and not do villainous deeds.
He had arranged for him to leave the castle and visit the actual capital today.
He wants to browse the various shops and market stalls mainly.
However due to him not being very strong quite yet, prince Raith allowed him to go but only if he took a bodyguard.
He didn't refuse this since it made sense, after all if there are enemies that somehow are lying in the capital or something to assasinate the 'hero' then he might be screwed without a bodyguard.
He isn't quite strong yet, sure he has a bit of improvement in swordsmanship and can fire a fire ball at an enemy if need be, but what is a measly little flame and a heavily inexperienced swordsman going to do against a skilled assassin or something.
Point and case, he actually needs the bodyguard.
So he choose a young knight named verim who was around his age, had black hair and a light goatee, as well as light green eyes.
Verim had graduated top of his class in Edgar academy's knighthood program, which teaches swordsmanship, etiquette, and a bit more.
Chuck was given a small pouch of 20 silver coins, though that was way too much.
He wanted to buy a few things but he didn't need THAT much money.
Still he would keep the extra which he assumed in the end will be quite a bit, for a rainy day.
A bit later Chuck was walking down the merchantile streets of the capital with Verim following behind him.
He noticed a market stall with various robes and wooden masks in it displayed.
This is one of the reasons he came out here, it would be suspicious to just suddenly ask for a mask in the castle.
But if he bought one out here he could just feign being fascinated with the design or something.
He also bought a couple robes because they looked good and thought they would fit nicely.
He ended up spending one silver there.
In Teo, coinage was simple enough for anyone to remember—at least once you got used to it.
A hundred copper coins made up a single silver, and a hundred silvers made a gold.
There were even smaller coins than copper, little iron bits, but only the poorest of villages still bothered with them.
For most folk, copper was the coin of daily life.
Two coppers could buy a loaf of bread, three would get you a mug of ale, and ten could pay for a simple tavern meal.
A plain cloth robe might cost twenty-five copper, a fancier one twice as much.
A carved wooden mask could go for fifty copper, while a pair of sturdy leather boots would run you a silver.
One silver could also buy you a comfortable night at an inn, a small boat trip across the river, or even a short-lived spell scroll if you knew the right shop to visit.
Swords and armor, of course, climbed well beyond that—an average blade costing at least fifteen silver, and a warhorse enough to make a merchant weep at 20 gold or more, though that's only from professional horse breeders.
Anyway, Chuck continued through the capital buying and browsing various items and bakery goods, even though verim told him if he wanted anything he could ask the chefs at the castle for it, but for some reason the fresh bakery goods just sounded good.
Alas the fun came to an end eventually as they were on a time schedule, there was another condition to go to the capital that Raith had put in place, he must be back before evening.
As it was getting a bit late, the duo went back to the castle and parted ways and Chuck dropped off the stuff he bought in his quarters and then left to go somewhere else, after all he had someone he HAD to meet.
Chuck arrived in front of a iron door and knocked on it, soon after a young green haired teenager opened the door.
He spoke up starting the teenager "Hello, Burty, it's nice to finally meet you. "
Burty looked at the stranger in awe, he recognized him immediately as the hero due to his purple hair, purple hair is the rarest among all, and there isn't anyone else in the castle with purple hair currently especially not such a vibrant shade.
Let me tell you a quick story about Burty… that Chuck happened to learn most of these past few days…
——————————-
Burty Veylen's life began with tragedy.
The moment he entered this world, his mother left it.
In Teo, such deaths during childbirth were not uncommon. His father, Rick Veylen, did not curse his son for surviving where his wife could not.
If anything, he clung to the boy's life all the more fiercely.
Rick never showed weakness before others.
Not before his knights, not before his retainers… not even before Burty.
But in the dead of night, away from prying eyes, the man would sit alone, staring into the darkness, tears slipping silently down his face.
Who said men didn't cry?
They simply learned to hide it.
From the age of six, Burty's talent for swordsmanship shone like steel in sunlight.
His father trained him personally, beginning with slow, careful drills to avoid damaging his still-growing body.
Rick imagined a future where his son would be a swordsman without equal—a legacy of the Veylen name.
But as the years passed, a shift began.
Burty's eyes no longer lit up at the clang of steel.
Instead, they sparkled at the flicker of magic particles and the swirl of spells.
His questions turned from sword grips and stances to incantations and mana theory.
At first, Rick indulged him. "So long as you keep up your sword training," he'd said.
But Burty didn't. Slowly, the boy's practice hours with the blade shrank… until they vanished altogether.
Rick told himself it was a phase.
Yet with each passing year, the knot in his chest tightened.
And then came the day that snapped it.
Burty was fifteen—the age of adulthood in Teo—when he strode into the training grounds, shoulders straight, eyes firm.
Rick was drilling the knights when his son spoke the words.
"Father, I'm done with swordsmanship. I want to study magic full-time. I'm going to enroll in the academy."
The weight of the statement was a boulder hurled into a still pond.
For a heartbeat, Rick simply stared.
Then the boulder cracked.
"You… what did you say?"
"I said—"
The blow came before the sentence could finish.
The training grounds filled with the sound of fists on flesh, the gasps of the watching knights.
"Ungrateful brat!" Rick roared, each word punctuated by a strike.
"Throwing away your gift? For that pathetic spark?"
Burty scrambled back, casting the only spell he knew—basic fireball magic—but Rick's strength crashed through it like an avalanche.
The man pinned his son to the blood-spattered ring, eyes blazing.
"I'll make sure you can never use that blasted magic again! You will walk the path of the sword—whether you like it or not. This is for your own good!"
And with cold precision, Rick channeled a technique few dared to use—sealing the boy's magic particle veins that were within the bone itself.
A crippling that only the most skilled healers could undo.
From that day onward, Burty was confined to the castle.
He was forbidden to see any healer capable of restoring his veins.
Rick's order was absolute.
But Burty's will was just as strong.
Sword in hand?
Never again.
In his heart burned only one goal—escape.
Escape the castle, find a healer, and claim the magic he had once touched.
No matter how many times his father dragged him back… he would try again.
And again.
Until the day he was free.
——————
Now back to the present…
Chuck has come to burty with a simple plan in mind, to convince him to become his subordinate somehow, especially now because as soon as Burty opened the door Chuck activated his inspection skill on him and saw the status screen about Burty that he himself couldn't see.
The faint shimmer of the Inspection skill passed through Chuck's vision like ripples in still water, and suddenly, a translucent window appeared before him—visible only to him.
...
[Status Screen: Burty Veylen]
Name: Burty Veylen
Age: 17
Race: Human (Evolvable)
Level: 5 — exp 230/500
Class: Magical Swordsman (current rank: E-rank - Potential: SS Rank)
───[Stats]───
Strength: 14
Endurance: 12
Agility: 13
Magic: 0 (Sealed)
Charisma: 8
Luck: 6
───[Skills & Traits]───
• Sword Mastery (Intermediate)
• Mana Affinity (High) — Currently unusable due to MP Vein Seal
• Adaptive Combat Instincts — Gains increased combat awareness when fighting stronger opponents.
• Unyielding Will — Status ailments that affect morale are greatly reduced.
───[Potential Unlocks]───
• Dual Force Flow — Perfect synchronization between mana and swordsmanship, amplifying both. (Locked)
───[Hidden Condition]───
• Seal of the Veins — Magic stat and all magical skills locked until the seal is removed by a master-tier healer.
...
Chuck's brows rose slightly.
"…Well now, aren't you a little goldmine," he murmured under his breath.
From the look of it, Burty wasn't just talented—he was terrifyingly talented. SS-Rank potential wasn't something you saw in just anyone.
In fact, it was the kind of thing you heard about in stories, right before the character in question went on to do something insane… like slay a demon lord or start a kingdom.
The only thing holding him back?
That zero in his magic stat.
And the chain around his ankle named Rick Veylen.
Chuck's smile slowly curled.
If he could unseal Burty's veins… if he could point all that talent in the right direction… and use it for himself…
Then "villainy" would become a much easier business.
"Well," Chuck said aloud, giving the green-haired boy a disarming grin, "I think you and I might just be able to help each other out."
Burty wasn't sure what the hero meant by that, those words and how he was staring at him for some reason sent a chill down Burty's spine.
Nonetheless he spoke up.
"To what do I owe this honor sir Tom, and what do you mean by we can help each other out?"
Chuck replies swiftly, looking around seeing if anyone is nearby but there is no one.
"It's a bit of a private matter, may I come in?"
Burty was a bit confused but invited the hero in anyway.
He invited the hero to sit at a little table in the room and he did so while Burty soon after sat as well.
"So what's this 'private matter' you speak of"
Chuck grinned and replied
"I'll cut right to the chase, I have a skill that allows me to see people's 'talents' and affinities, and you kid, you have great potential to be a magic swordsman like me or even better than me maybe."
This is where the ruse begins
*Ding
[new quest issued: to form a bond
Quest description: your first attempt at bringing someone over to your personal side, don't screw this up and let such a talent slip by you!
Quest goal: convince this green haired brat to join you one way or another, use any deception you need.
Quest reward:
Oathbound Dominion (Unique Skill) – Form an unbreakable pact with any who willingly swear loyalty to you. Bound subordinates must obey your commands, cannot sever the bond by natural means, and can be sensed by you at all times. The bond strengthens obedience over time.]
Chuck grinned madly inwardly.
Burty, shocked by what Chuck just said can't help but ask, shivering slightly.
"Can you repeat what you just said, I think I may be going mad if I heard that correctly."
Chuck repeated himself briefly using only the important parts this time.
"You have great potential as a magical swordsman, enough to surpass a hero potentially."
Burty slammed his hands on the table and exclaimed.
"What?! Are you absolutely sure? Wait a moment, why are you even telling me this… there's some kind of catch isn't there."
Chuck smiled outright and then spoke in reply to his questions.
"Yes I'm sure and yes there is a catch to me telling you this, which brings me to my main point…"
Chuck paused for a moment before speaking briefly.
"I want you to become my right hand man, my body guard for life, in exchange I will do everything I can to ensure you grow stronger and that your father lets you get healed and then you can enter the academy or whatever you want to do, however your actions may be somewhat restricted due to working for me."
Burty swiftly replies
"I'll do it."
"Huh?"
Chuck is surprised
'That was easy' he thought.
Chuck blinked, momentarily thrown off by how quickly Burty agreed. He'd expected a drawn-out back-and-forth—maybe some bargaining, or at least a dramatic pause for effect. Instead, the green-haired boy sat there, his eyes blazing with something between desperation and determination.
"I said I'll do it," Burty repeated, leaning forward.
"If it means getting stronger, if it means getting out from under my father's thumb, I don't care what I have to swear."
*ding
[quest complete: to form a bond
Quest rewards are being distributed…]
[system note: don't forget to use your new skill]
Chuck's grin returned, sharper than before.
"Good," he said, his voice lowering to a conspiratorial whisper.
"Then let's make it official."
A faint, ominous glow began to gather in Chuck's palm as he activated his new skill.
Thin threads of dark-gold light coiled outward, circling Burty like lazy snakes before sinking into his chest.
Ding!
[Bond formed: Burty Veylen — Status: Oathbound Subordinate]
Burty gasped, a strange warmth settling into his core. "What… was that?"
"Just a promise," Chuck said smoothly, standing from his chair. "One you can never break."
Chuck's smile deepened.
The first piece of his empire was in place.
Next comes the problem of convincing Rick to let Burty be healed.