A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

He crouched down and touched it, only to find that it was armor.

"May you rest in peace, brother..."

But as Bray said that, he felt his face flush.

"The blood in the eye sockets..." Bray wiped his hand with blood, the smell of blood making him feel helpless.

The bleeding finally started.

If this continues, I might bleed to death.

Bray tore his prison uniform and wrapped it around his missing left eye.

"... "

The dirty prison uniform made the wounds hurt even more.

It could even lead to infection...

However, compared to dying from excessive blood loss, infections are nothing.

A large amount of blood instantly stained the cloth red.

Bray touched the piece of cloth and couldn't help but sigh.

"Sticky..."

A pair of dead fish eyes... no, one dead fish eye drooped its eyelids, making Bray look like he was about to die at any moment.

The pain did not subside in the slightest with time.

The excruciating pain caused Bray to break out in a cold sweat, his face turning deathly pale.

But I was surprised that I could remain so calm...

So, I do have the talent to be an adventurer?

"BOOM!!!" A deafening roar came from beside me.

Something smashed through the buried prison.

Dust billowed up, making it even harder for Bray, whose eyesight was now failing, to see what had smashed through the prison.

However, because the prison walls had been breached, outside light had shone through, allowing Bray to find his way more easily.

Dragging his body, Bray struggled to approach the hole that had been pierced.

"Yo..." Bray was stunned when he heard the greeting.

"You're not dead?" It turned out that the one who smashed through the wall was his former cellmate, the older man.

"What a coincidence, you're not dead either?" The uncle smiled, seemingly unharmed.

"Black Iron Seed, you damned ant! Come out here!!!!" The terrifying roar from outside made me sit down on the ground.

Then purple flames erupted around Bray and the uncle.

Bray was startled and quickly stepped back, only to find the same flames behind him.

But the next moment, the uncle climbed out of the rubble and brandished his knife.

The flames went out silently.

"Bronze-type beings are such a troublesome bunch..." the uncle muttered.

Terms like "black iron" and "bronze," which had never appeared in the Bray worldview before, suddenly emerged.

There might also be gold and silver.

"Well, we humans are the Iron race, and the big guys outside are the Bronze race."

"Sorry, sorry, I think I said something I shouldn't have." The middle-aged man tapped his forehead and laughed a few times.

"However... it seems you're actually qualified to know these things."

The man shrugged and answered casually, finally uttering a single word so muffled that Bray couldn't understand it.

A detailed explanation would take time, but the old man doesn't think there's any need for extra time. At the beginning of this world, there existed countless extremely powerful beings, also known as gods in religions. The era in which these gods existed is called the First Era, and these gods are known as the Golden Race.

However, many years later, in the war of the gods, countless gods fell, the world was shattered, and the world could not even bear the existence of gods. The remaining gods were banished to various other dimensions by the great will of the world.

The remaining, weaker creatures, such as giants and dragons, then went on to rule the world.

These beings, second only to the gods, are called the Silver Race.

Unfortunately, as times changed, the number of silver coins gradually decreased, eventually hiding in various corners of Kapras.

In a world where gods, dragons, and giants have vanished, three powerful races with divine bloodlines—angels, demons, and sea creatures—dominated the world. However, the three races weakened through constant warfare, and in order to preserve their races, they each retreated to different places.

Angels went to the sky, far above the ground, and established Heaven; demons lived in the abyss, a place far below the ground; and sea creatures multiplied in the deep ocean.

Thus ended the era of the three races, and this era is known as the Second Era, while the three races are referred to as the Bronze Races.

Then, thousands of years ago, several weak races rose to power: humans, elves, and orcs, also known as the Dark Iron races.

Such secrets have been buried in the long river of history.

Only a tiny minority understand the truth of this world.

Most people, just like Bray is now, are completely bewildered.

"What did you say?" Bray was interrupted by the uncle before he could finish speaking.

"Well, I'm sorry, I don't have time to chat with you right now."

"The big guy is here..." the uncle said in a deep voice, his expression extremely solemn.

"What's the meaning…"

Then Bray understood what "big guy" meant.

"BOOM!!!!!!!!!!" The prison walls collapsed instantly, like paper, sending bricks and stones flying everywhere.

Then Bray finally saw clearly the source of the roar.

Its massive, clock tower-like body had clearly visible reddish-purple muscle fibers.

The rusty, black iron armor was as thick as a wall, covering this enormous body.

A face that resembles a mixed beast—

It possesses characteristics of a lion, a sheep, and an eagle.

Thick, black chains were wrapped around the monster's arms, binding it to the ground.

The ground was covered with strange patterns, filled with a bewitching purple.

Although Bray really wanted to ask what it was, the uncle didn't care about Bray.

A salted fish should do what a salted fish should do, and Bray decisively found a seemingly safe place to hide.

"Hey, you bronze-type demon fatso." The uncle lightly leaped in front of the big guy.

The being referred to as a demon by the older man didn't say a word, but instead slammed his hammer into the ground.

The chains made a loud "clang" sound, and the ground that was hit quickly cracked, turning the floor into countless bricks.

"Roar!!!!" the demon roared, frantically destroying the surrounding buildings.

Watch your tone.

"Standing before you is the Great Demon. And you are but an ant of the Black Iron race."

“Yes, yes, you are a great demon, and I also know that your name is Garuda,” the uncle said casually.

Without saying a word, Garuda opened its hand and slapped at the arrogant uncle, the chill spreading outwards.

Upon seeing this, the uncle's pupils contracted, and he quickly retreated.

But the uncle was still a beat too slow.

The uncle, who should have retreated, froze in place as the frost froze him and the ground in front of him.

"..." The uncle remained frozen on the ground, gripping the knife and backing away, like an ice sculpture.

“I know you. You’re a fool from the ‘Great Enemy of God.’” Garuda grinned maliciously.

"Too bad, I'm not some laughable clown who wields demonic power and calls himself a 'Demon King,' nor am I the trash demon you usually defeat."

Garuda held the old man's head, but controlled its strength well and managed not to crush it.

The chains restricted Garuda's movements, which made him very unhappy.

"It's rare for an idiot to summon me, I was in a good mood, but ugh, these annoying chains..."

Garuda gave a sudden tug, tightening the chains and making a "clang" sound.

But it just wouldn't break.

Demons, being beings that dwell deep in the abyss, usually find it very troublesome to come to the surface.

No matter how powerful a demon is, it must pay a price to break through the abyss.

The fastest shortcut is to be summoned.

Some people who have learned about the secrets of the world will arrogantly try to summon beings that they cannot control, attempting to obtain power surpassing that of the Black Iron race.

The appearance of Garuda this time was truly a self-destructive act by some arrogant sorcerer.

The sorcerer summoned a great demon at the cost of mutilating the bodies of everyone within the magic circle.

Desiring to obtain forbidden knowledge belonging to the Bronze rank…

"What interesting ants."

Garuda opened his palm, revealing a delicate female mage with a tattered body in the center.

With a whoosh, the female mage's body turned to ashes in the purple flames.

However, just as Garuda was distracted, the ice sculpture began to behave strangely.

"Crack." A short, strange sound rang out—

"Since you know I am one of the 'Great Enemy of God'."

"You should know how many ways we have to deal with non-Black Iron species." The frost broke through, and the old man's voice came from behind the ice shards.

“We are the guardians of the Black Iron race, and the nemesis of you higher races.”

"The Great Enemy of God." He held the long sword in reverse grip in front of him, the blade radiating a chilling aura.

"Our organization's name is pretty good, isn't it?" the uncle said to the demon with a smirk. "Hahahaha!" Garuda laughed wildly, mocking the uncle's words.

They didn't panic at all when the uncle broke free of the frost.

The racial disparities are there for all to see—

There are ways in this world to completely eliminate racial disparities.

But this tiny Black Iron species in front of me does not possess it.

The frost spread across the ground at a visible speed, and as Bray saw the frost about to reach his feet, he quickly retreated.

After running back to the prison, he finally managed to hide at the very edge of the frost-covered area.

Cold sweat dripped from the corner of Bray's forehead, down his chin, and onto the ground.

Bray was also familiar with battles between powerful adventurers; they seemed to be epic, earth-shattering fights.

However, it is definitely not as exaggerated as the battle in front of us.

Even the most powerful mage cannot unleash such terrifying magic without chanting incantations.

Even renowned S-class adventurers are no match for this uncle's skills.

“You not only make me laugh, you also anger me,” Garuda said in a low voice.

All spells had no effect on this man; his slow movements allowed the other to toy with him.

“That’s truly an honor—” the uncle said in a flippant tone.

"Sizzle—" The blade pierced the demon's body for the first time.

A large wound appeared on the demon's body, running from his neck to his waist.

Garuda roared in anger, the intense pain fueling the demon's fury.

How could someone of only the Black Iron type injure himself, a great demon?