The son of the God-Emperor in Warhammer Fantasy

People who awaken their professional talents will choose a profession. Among them, the four most common professions are warrior, rogue, ranger, and bard. Humans can directly transition into these professions by activating their talents. The same goes for spellcasters; with sufficient talent, they can directly transition.

Some professions require the assistance of divine power, such as paladins. Paladins can only transition in the Churches of Justice, Life, Moon, and Love and Beauty. These are the only churches with their own paladin systems, with the Church of Justice being the largest. In the southwest of the Empire, the holy city of Justice is solely dedicated to the Church of Justice, where several paladin legions are stationed, ready to counter the evil green tide from the Wasteland.

There are several other professions like this, such as druids, monks, and clerics, which require divine power to transition.

Besides these, there are many rare and unusual professions, which are even more complex.

When strength reaches a bottleneck, the original profession can advance. Boris's advancement path is warrior to berserker.

Ryan's adoptive father, Norman, advanced from warrior to knight to White Wolf Knight, with the latter requiring the blessing of the White Wolf God of War for successful transition.

Ryan's profession has always been a mystery. His base profession is undoubtedly warrior, but Teresa discovered that Ryan knows how to use magic.

Dual-classing results in significant penalties. The notion of a warrior-mage is a fantasy. Humans, a race not suited for using magic, can only either swing a sword or chant during combat.

Teresa had seen in the Garland Council's archives a legendary profession called the magic swordsman, which can enchant weapons. This somewhat resembled Ryan, but today's incident made her dismiss that possibility. Magic swordsmen only use magic superficially, unable to control magic as easily as Ryan. Moreover, magic swordsmen who dual-class lose their arm strength enhancement, leading them to choose lighter weapons like rapiers for agile combat.

Ryan's warhammer, which weighed dozens of pounds, was wielded with ease, ruling out the possibility of him being a magic swordsman.

"I'm a knight," Ryan said, seemingly surprised. Pointing to his knight badge, he exaggeratedly said, "Can't you see my knight badge? I am Ryan the 'Hammer,' a White Wolf Knight of the Nord Kingdom."

"I'm not asking about that; I'm asking about your advanced profession," Teresa replied impatiently. If she weren't still weak, she would've wanted to hit him with her staff.

"Would you be willing to tell me the spells you know and your daily casting limits, dear Miss Trovik?" Ryan still smiled. "Everyone has their secrets. Why should I share mine for free?"

Teresa gave up. Everyone has their secrets, especially spellcasters.

The priest in charge of Karlzenhaven's Church of Justice, Surt, finally arrived. This priest was over six feet tall and muscular, his robes straining against his biceps, making his white robes look like a tight shirt.

"Chivalric novels have misled many. I must say, most priests aren't the frail women they're imagined to be. Most priests are robust men who favor heavy hammers and flails."

—Imperial Altdorf Elector "Victory Horn" Roland-Otto-Feinbach

Ryan, looking at Surt's muscular build, couldn't help but smile.

The task handover was swift. After confirming their identities, Ryan and Teresa changed their pursuit of Belter from a short-term to a long-term task. Neither of them intended to give up, and after signing the new contract, they took their leave from Surt.

Leaving the Church of Justice, Ryan said, "I plan to visit Karlzenhaven's lord, 'Woodcutter' Villard. Feel free to do as you please, Teresa. I won't be accompanying you."

With that, Ryan started to leave.

Today, the weather was slightly clear, and Ryan's back walked towards the morning light. Teresa, watching him, gritted her teeth and called out, "Ryan!"

"Yes? What is it?" Ryan was a bit surprised.

"Can I go with you?" the sorceress asked, leaning on her staff, her mature and beautiful face showing a faint smile.

"Uh... sure." Ryan thought that since Teresa was his teammate and a councilor of the Garland Council, the lord would likely welcome the opportunity to meet a powerful spellcaster.

"Then let's go." Teresa followed, and Ryan shrugged as the two walked side by side down the street.

Teresa, not encountering anyone familiar, stepped closer and whispered, "I'll say this only once: what I said last night was wrong."

"Oh? What was wrong?" Ryan pretended not to understand.

"You know exactly what I mean," Teresa replied, seeing Ryan's slight smirk.

"Birds can fly not because they have wings but because they desire the sky. Fruits fall not because they are heavy but because they seek the earth." Ryan said suddenly, then gestured for Teresa to follow.

Teresa was momentarily stunned, but soon felt a ripple of joy in her heart.

This man.

Was he indirectly saying she had matured?

Ryan, as a renowned kingdom knight, quickly had his request for an audience with Lord Villard accepted. Villard agreed to meet him but had some matters to attend to first. The steward led Ryan and Teresa to a side hall, serving them warm apple cider. "Sorry, the lord is a bit preoccupied with some troublesome visitors."

"It's fine," Ryan replied politely, placing his hand on his chest in a knightly salute. Teresa merely nodded. Meanwhile, the sorceress began examining the room's furnishings.

The side hall was lavishly decorated. The fireplace provided warmth, a shield with a white bear's head painted on it hung above it, the wooden walls were painted white, and animal skins served as rugs on the floor. The long bench they sat on had thick cushions, and various animal head trophies adorned the walls—a wolf, a deer, a boar, and even a bear. It was clearly a display of martial prowess.

"May I ask who's causing the trouble?" Ryan inquired, noticing the steward glancing frequently toward the main hall.

"Those druids," the old steward said helplessly. "A druid named 'Tree Planter' Eldrad came to complain because the lord recently organized large-scale logging outside the city. He says the lord disrupted the natural balance. Those annoying druids are the least welcome people here."

Ryan and Teresa exchanged glances, the sorceress's mature and seductive eyes twinkling as she chose to remain silent. Ryan, however, chuckled. "If I could, I'd send them packing. But that's easier said than done."

"Exactly!" the steward agreed, launching into an explanation.

Karlzenhaven's lord, Villard, was a military noble known for his bravery on the battlefield. He wielded an axe and shield, and after numerous campaigns, he was granted the fief of Karlzenhaven.

Villard earned the nickname "Woodcutter" for his skill in felling trees. Over the years, to develop the town, he had organized several logging expeditions. The wood was used for construction and also exported, benefiting the local economy.

By Ryan's standards, Villard's actions were understandable. Living off the land was natural, and Karlzenhaven, with its dense forests, was better off selling timber than letting monsters like beastmen and goblins overrun it.

But not everyone saw it that way.

The druids of the Nature Church did not.

The origins of the druids are shrouded in mystery. The Nature God Tal is an ancient deity, and clear historical records only began after Emperor Charlemagne established the Empire. Earlier history was lost in the chaos following the fall of the pre-Wizard Empire. The druids emerged in that ancient period, advocating harmony between humans and nature, emphasizing balance.

It sounds similar to the Church of Life, doesn't it?

Actually, it's completely different.

The Church of Life's perspective is "human-centered," while the Nature Church's is "protect nature from human harm."

So, the druids constantly roam the continent, protesting any "disruption of the natural balance," such as logging, mining, or fishing. To them, even activities like farming and grazing disrupt the natural balance, though they reluctantly tolerate these due to their prevalence.

In reality, apart from wood elves, no one subscribes to their beliefs. Dwarves even ban druids from their towns. Humans are not much different. The only reason they aren't expelled is that druids are powerful. These nature guardians are at least elite level, capable of casting nature spells and transforming into beasts like bears, eagles, wolves, and ravens for combat.

A transformed bear druid could easily take on two or three elite human warriors.

Most lords prefer not to confront them. Inevitably, this protest would end with the lord diplomatically pacifying the druids. Ryan thought.

As expected, soon after, a tall druid, draped in wolf fur, wearing a flower crown, and holding a branch staff, descended the stairs. He sighed in frustration, seeing Ryan and Teresa seated. "Who are you?"

"Greetings, teacher of balance," Ryan greeted, noticing Teresa had no intention of speaking.

Hearing "teacher of balance," the druid's expression softened slightly before noticing Ryan's knight badge. "Just another human harming life. I am Eldrad the 'Tree Planter.' I warn you, continue destroying the forest, and you will be cursed. Your souls will..."

"Enough, you mud-covered wretch. Get out! You're not welcome here!" The old steward shouted angrily. The druid sneered at him before turning to leave.

"Mr. Ryan, Miss

, this way please," the steward quickly put on a smile and led them upstairs to meet the lord.

"You don't seem to dislike them," Teresa remarked curiously as they ascended.

"I never dislike those willing to give everything for their ideals," Ryan answered.

The second floor was the lord's office and living quarters.

The room where the lord usually worked was simply furnished. Wooden floors covered in animal skins, walls adorned with various collections—swords, paintings, and shields. A long wooden table was set against the inner wall. Lord Villard of Karlzenhaven sat behind it. On the wall behind him hung a musket and a battle axe, clearly his favored weapons.

In Ryan's previous life, this room might have been considered rural, but here it signified wealth.

Nord Kingdom was often mocked by the Empire as rustic. Apart from the Grand Duke of Nord (the King of Nord, who was technically a duke under imperial sanction) and a few remaining old Empire counts overseeing major cities, Nord's nobles were uniformly titled as lords, unlike the Empire or Bretonnia with detailed ranks of duke, marquis, count, viscount, and baron. This often led to imperial jests about Nord's inability to distinguish noble ranks.

"Come in, the lord is inside."

Checked: Both Warhammer and D&D druids hold rather extreme principles.