Reincarnated with an SSS-rank Tamer System: My Harem of Villainesses-Chapter 20 – Departure to Thornwick
At last, the day Adam had been waiting for had arrived.
Right now, he stood at the main entrance of the Shadowend mansion, watching his family gathered to bid him farewell. Not all of them were present, obviously. Dorian had left earlier for the Arcanis Academy, and his older brother Kaelen had departed shortly after the fight with Dorian without bothering to say goodbye.
But the others were there, each one waiting for their turn to say something before he left.
Layla was the first to step forward with that mischievous smile that Adam now recognized as a sign of trouble. "I hope you enjoyed my gift." She said casually while winking at him.
Adam simply nodded slightly. "It was... interesting."
"I’m glad to hear that," Layla replied before walking away just like that, clearly satisfied.
Then it was Selene’s turn, his other sister. She was the quietest of all his siblings and rarely spoke to anyone unless it was strictly necessary.
She stopped in front of Adam and looked at him in silence for several seconds before finally speaking. "Be careful at the academy."
"I will." Adam replied simply.
And that was all. Selene gave a slight nod before turning around and walking away without adding anything more. The entire conversation hadn’t even lasted thirty seconds.
’Well, at least she spoke to me...’ Adam thought as he watched his sister disappear down one of the mansion’s corridors.
His mother Liora was the next to approach, and unlike the others, there was genuine concern in her eyes as she looked at him.
"Be careful, Adam." She said as she placed her hands on his shoulders. "The academy can be a dangerous place if you’re not attentive. Not all students are true nobles, and some may try to use... less honorable methods."
Adam looked at her for a moment before sighing. "I’ll be fine, Mother. Don’t worry."
Liora simply looked at him before briefly hugging him, something that caught him by surprise, but he didn’t reject it. When they separated, she had a small smile on her face.
"Make me proud." She said before walking away.
Finally, his father arrived. Alden approached with that serious and imposing expression he always wore. He stopped in front of Adam and looked him up and down, as if evaluating him one last time.
"I fulfilled my word." He said in a firm voice. "Carry the Shadowend name high. Prove that you are worthy of bearing it."
There was no affection in his words, only pure and harsh expectation, but Adam had already grown used to that.
"I will." He replied.
His father only gave a slight nod before leaving without anything more to say. That was the entire farewell he would receive, and honestly, Adam hadn’t expected more.
Ravenna was the last to approach.
Despite her strange behavior over the past few days, she now seemed to have regained some of her usual composure.
"Do not worry about anything here, Your Excellency." She said while looking him in the eyes. "Everything will be in order when you return."
Adam looked at her for a moment before responding. "I’ll return in a few years... but I hope that will be the case when I do."
He couldn’t take her with him because it was one of the academy’s rules: no noble, regardless of status, could be accompanied. But if he ranked among the top fifteen students of his respective year, then he would be allowed to bring her with him.
"I wish you the best." She said with a bow.
Adam nodded before turning toward the carriage that was waiting for him to depart.
Thessaly, the head maid, was standing beside the carriage checking everything one last time. When she saw Adam approaching, she bowed.
"Everything is in order, young Adam." She reported. "The provisions, your luggage, and the necessary documents for the academy are loaded."
"Good." Adam replied as he approached the carriage door.
Just as he was about to get in, he looked back and saw Seraphine watching him from one of the second-floor windows. Her gray eyes met his for an instant.
They both gave a slight nod. ’Become strong.’ Adam recalled his sister’s words. ’That’s exactly what I’ll do.’
Without further ado, he climbed into the carriage and sat down while listening to the driver close the door. Adam recognized the soldier—it was Roderic. The same one he had met in that forest.
The soldier nodded respectfully before climbing onto the driver’s seat and taking the reins.
With a sharp motion, the carriage began to move, slowly pulling away from the mansion.
Adam looked out the window, watching as his temporary home over the past month grew smaller and smaller in the distance until it disappeared completely behind the trees and hills.
’Shadowfen,’ he thought as he recalled the original Adam’s memories of the city where he had grown up. It was a city that the Shadowend family practically led for being the most powerful in this part of the kingdom, although technically everything was under the king’s rule.
He had never truly visited the city beyond the inherited memories, but that didn’t matter much to him now.
His destination was another: Thornwick, the royal capital where the Arcanis Academy was located.
He leaned back against the seat, feeling the anxiety and excitement begin to build in his chest. Things were going to get interesting very soon. Villainesses, heroines, the protagonist... the entire circus was waiting for him.
Nox was at his side, sleeping comfortably, taking advantage of the carriage’s rhythmic motion.
The hours passed slowly as they traveled.
The entire journey would take two days, according to what Thessaly had informed him before departure.
There would be stops to rest and sleep at inns along the way, but most of the time he would remain inside the carriage.
He would arrive just in time, for the first day.
When night fell, Adam could see through the window how the landscape had changed from open hills to a dense forest. The trees rose high on both sides of the road.
They were a few kilometers from an inn, according to Roderic.
But it was at that moment that he felt something was wrong.
Nox suddenly woke up, clearly alert to something that Adam still couldn’t fully perceive.
And then it appeared.
The system screen:
[Tamer System]
[Emergency Mission: Survive]
[Defeat the Noble Hunters (0/30)]
[Reward: +100 XP]
[Penalty: Death]
Adam read the message twice before his mind truly processed what it meant.
Thirty enemies weren’t many. But...
They were noble hunters, surely assassins trained specifically to kill people like him.
’This will be interesting.’ Adam thought as his hand instinctively moved toward the sword at his side.
Nox hid himself, ready to come out when necessary.
The carriage, meanwhile, continued moving along the road as if nothing were happening.
But Adam knew that was about to change.
At any moment.
