Chapter 4: Chapter 4

Ron instinctively took the paper bundle the girl handed him. His first thought was neither that there was meat to eat nor that it was still warm, but rather that the territory had a sufficient supply of paper to let a young girl casually use it to wrap roasted meat.

He quickly brushed aside the stray thought, however, and said to the girl in “Ron’s” tone, “Thank you, Liya, and give my thanks to Uncle Jason and Aunt Mary too.”

“Ron!” Liya pouted, feigning anger. “You’re still so formal with us. If it hadn’t been for your father back then, our whole family would have been eaten by Aberrant Beasts.”

At the mention of Ron’s father, Liya seemed to realize something. She stuck out her tongue reflexively and said to Ron, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring up your father. But we really should already be family by now. You don’t need to keep avoiding me like this.”

So there was another layer to why “Ron” hadn’t dared express his feelings. But the current Ron would not shrink back, and besides, he truly couldn’t bring himself to reject such a caring girl.

Moreover, from “Ron’s” perspective, there had been regret even in that dying moment in the snow. So now, Ron told Liya:

“I’ll marry you once I become a Knight. I want you to be a Knight’s lady, not an ordinary farmer’s wife.”

Ron had expected Liya to be overjoyed at those words, but to his surprise, her face went pale with alarm. “What? You want to join the territory guard? No, no, that’s far too dangerous!”

The territory guard, in addition to dealing with the annual summer Aberrant Beast invasions, was also responsible for maintaining the territory’s everyday security. They had to venture out periodically to exterminate and drive off evil spirits, making it extremely dangerous work.

Both “Ron’s” father and Liya’s father had been members of the territory guard.

And the Sis Territory recruited new guard members every winter. If there weren’t losses every year, why would they need to recruit every year?

Compared to “Ron,” who had long since lost his connection to the guard, Liya, whose father was still an active member, understood all too clearly the perils of joining.

Mastering transcendent power did not necessarily make one safer than an ordinary person. Power often meant responsibility, and responsibility frequently came hand in hand with danger.

Liya respected those who joined the territory guard to protect the territory’s safety. But in her private heart, if she had the choice, she would rather her father be an ordinary farmer.

What she felt for her father, she hoped for Ron as well.

Perhaps the local “Ron” had felt the same way. But for the transmigrator Ron, personally wielding transcendent power was a lifelong dream. After writing so many novels and fantasizing about so many forms of supernatural power, how could he not yearn for it!

Furthermore, as an outsider, he felt profoundly insecure in this strange world. Even though he currently wore a native “skin,” he still wanted to live openly under the sun with his own true face!

Of course, not in his current Light Orb form, but in the human body he was most familiar with from before transmigrating.

To achieve that goal, he would need sufficiently powerful strength and a sufficient number of followers. Without them, everything was empty talk.

And right now, there was the simplest, most direct opportunity to come into contact with transcendent power: joining the territory guard. How could Ron possibly give that up just because of Liya’s persuasion!

Besides, he also wanted to minimize contact with people who had known the original “Ron.” Joining the territory guard was the perfect choice. Even if someone noticed something unusual about him in the future, he could explain it away as changes brought on by guard training.

…

Of course, facing Liya at this moment, Ron employed a different set of arguments. “I know joining the territory guard is dangerous, but is being an ordinary person not dangerous? If everyone feared the danger and refused to join the guard, who would protect our safety?”

“Ron!”

“Don’t try to talk me out of it, Liya. I’ve made up my mind. I will join the territory guard. I want to protect you with my own hands in the future, not beg for someone else’s protection.”

Faced with what amounted to a declaration of love, Liya should have been thrilled. But the moment she thought of the dangers Ron might face in the territory guard, she could not feel any joy.

“I’m heading back now. Tomorrow I’ll have Father come talk some sense into you. If you won’t listen to me, surely you’ll listen to him!”

With that, without waiting for Ron to say another word, Liya turned and left, quickly vanishing into the wind and snow.

…

Watching Liya’s retreating figure, Ron couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. But as a transmigrator who had already crossed worlds, what could possibly sway his resolve now!

Returning inside, he opened the paper bundle Liya had brought. Inside was a piece of roasted beef, roughly a pound or so. Ron didn’t stand on ceremony and bit right into it.

He called it beef, but the taste was actually quite different from the beef he remembered from his hometown. After just one bite, a warm glow spread through his entire body. He confirmed repeatedly that this was not from sitting by the fire, but from the beef itself!

“Is this the wonder of a magical world!”

If even Sis Territory, a remote borderland, had evil spirits, transcendent Knights, and such miraculous beef, what kind of sights awaited beyond its borders!

That night, Ron did not sleep at all.

…

Of course, Ron’s sleeplessness was not so extravagant as to waste his first night after transmigration fantasizing about the marvels and splendors of a magical world. He had indulged in those fantasies countless times before he ever transmigrated!

The real reason he stayed awake was that, having just transmigrated, he still had far too many unanswered questions about his current state. The quiet of night gave him the perfect opportunity to conduct a thorough self-examination.

There was also another reason: his true form, the Light Orb, did not need to sleep, or at least not in the way his former human body had.

As long as he was not using full-immersion mode to control the body or performing other operations, this state itself was essentially a form of rest. One could also vividly describe it as 【Standby Mode】.

During this night, Ron withdrew from full-immersion mode, letting “Ron’s” body rest naturally, while he himself used the perspective of his Light Orb true form to conduct a more detailed exploration of both himself and “Ron.”

Unlike when he had first arrived, the mysterious patterns on the surface of his Light Orb that represented “Ron” were no longer increasing as rapidly as they had during the familiarization process. Instead, they were now growing and fading at a comparatively gentle pace.

The total amount remained essentially stable, neither increasing nor decreasing.

The foreign-colored patterns that had previously infiltrated the “Ron” pattern system had already been expelled long ago, merging with the other foreign-colored patterns on the orb’s surface.

Ron “watched” those ever-shifting foreign-colored patterns. Deep within, he sensed an invisible threat drawing ever closer, just as he had felt when he first transmigrated:

If those foreign-colored patterns were allowed to cover the entire surface of the Light Orb, that would surely be his end!