The clouds in the sky had gone thick, covering the moon with their lightless splendor. Occasionally being illuminated by streaks of lightning.
Hooves of horses struck the ground rhythmically as they sped down the dusty road.
Marcus inhaled deeply as the cold wind constantly grazed his face.
Was he worried?
Very much.
He just didn't voice it or show his worries on his face.
Something about this interception felt… odd.
Marcus couldn't quite place the feeling. He even wondered if he was overthinking because of what he had experienced with Reginald.
The mystery of the system… the gravity of his choices and how unassuming a decision could be until death arrived.
We might die… but at least I'll be able to come back prepared.
He consoled himself.
Even though there was a possibility of returning, Marcus didn't like the idea of wasting a redo point now when he hadn't figured out how to achieve more.
It was infuriating, but he could only let the wind hide his annoyance as it made his hair dance in the air.
Marcus silently clutched the bag that contained the mana crystals. At least he wouldn't be defenseless.
…
It didn't take long for Marcus's group to arrive at the end of the road which was a 'Y' junction.
One path led to what used to be the heart of the south in Agard, and the other led to the Eastern District.
In between these paths was a dead forest, a place that had trees, but no leaves.
Their branches stretched upward, meters into the air. Tall but empty shells.
It wasn't always like this, but it soon became what it was not long after Marcus fell ill.
"They should be coming from the Eastern District…"
But that was too obvious.
If they wished to hide their tracks and stay away from unwanted eyes, the dead forest was their best pick.
"Have the horse rest somewhere else. We'll wait by the edge of the dead forest for them."
"Yes, Milord." The knights answered.
Contrary to what Marcus was feeling, the knights sounded excited.
They didn't think that there was nothing to fear, after all, there weren't a lot of Tidal Wave Knights in Agard.
And even if there were, their abilities placed them above the average of their rank.
As everyone got off their horses, Brown made sure to stand close to Marcus.
Even if he was a mage, he wasn't invincible. One little mistake could cost them their leader.
"Let's hide in the trees. They should be here any moment." Marcus said.
And truly, not even 20 minutes later, more than twenty men dressed in black garbs and layered muslins were found coming from the other side of the forest.
The young lord was right.
Mercidin thought. He was already getting prepared to run and fetch the other team.
Even though they hadn't clarified the other party's identity, they didn't need to.
These men were dressed like people who were up to no good.
However, the young knight paused.
The level of Blood Force he could sense from these men was no different from that of a Flowing Knight's.
Was there a need to go and call the others? After all, this many Flowing Knights couldn't be their match.
"Halt!" Brown commanded after receiving Marcus's orders.
His voice caught the men off guard, startling them.
"What nefarious acts are you men up to?" Brown said and all the nights stepped out, including Mercidin. It was at this point that he left to fulfill his task.
"It's the men from the governor's office." One of the masked men said.
"We should kill them and be done with this mission. I keep getting this bad feeling that something will go wrong."
"Kill us? With what strength?" Joshua said, almost laughing at the incredulous statement.
"Hmph! Do you think you stand a chance against us? Stand aside or face dea–"
Before this man could complete his sentence, an arrow whistled through the air and shot through his mouth, sending him tumbling on the ground.
It was Joshua who made the shot.
A chilly silence graced the surroundings before it exploded with battle cries.
"Kill them!" The masked men shouted, unsheathing their weapons as they charged forward.
"Joshua, stay beside the young lord, Caleb and I can handle these guys," Brown ordered before shooting off.
His feet had just hit the ground, but Brown had already covered over seven feet in distance.
By the time he took the second step, he had arrived before a masked man.
Brown hadn't even mobilized his Blood Force and his raw physical abilities had surged to such a level.
Whipping his sword out, swung it at the masked man before him, slicing him in two.
The force behind Brown's sword was so strong that after it sliced through the masked man, it also sliced through a tree and the ground behind it.
His sword gave a sharp 'swish' that sounded as though a whip had lashed out.
The man's upper body fell to the side, leaving an unstable lower body wobbling for a few seconds.
None of the masked men could react in time.
In fact, their senses were only able to process the sight of their comrade falling, but not how Brown had crossed the distance.
First came shock, then realization, before the heavy countenance of fear gripped their hearts.
Has the young governor's head knight always been this strong!?
They thought to themselves.
But they weren't left to think much when Caleb appeared in their midst.
He was so silent with how he moved that it was uncanny. Even when his sword cut through the air, no noise came from the weapon.
It was as though the world around this knight was mute.
And this muteness dulled their other senses to a critical point.
They could see the blade coming, but couldn't hear. They thought of dodging the sword, but it was as though their body couldn't hear the commands of their minds.
Blood swished into the air as several heads and limbs rolled on the ground.
Caleb killed over 4 men in a second. Another 3 by the next second.
In barely 30 seconds, these twenty-something men were all dead.
Brown and the rest had a satisfied look on their faces, but the satisfaction dissipated.
None of them even had to use the Blood Force in this fight.
As for Marcus, he had watched all of this transpire from beside Joshua.
Even as all these men had been killed, the unsettling feeling in his heart still hadn't settled down.
In fact, it intensified with the return of silence.
Thunder clapped through the clouds, making him jerk a bit.
That was when it happened, two masked men had appeared in the distance.
Unlike the men with muslins for cover, these men had… faceless paper masks on.
Looking at these men, Marcus thought that they were the cause of his unsettled heart.
Seeing as their masks are different, are they the ones from the organization that wants me dead? They do match the aesthetic of an organization that kills for money.
He thought.
"More to kill!" Brown shot forward, arriving before one of the men, whipping his sword forward.
At the same time, the man targeted by Brown unsheathed twin daggers and slashed at Brown's neck.
Both sides went for the kill.
A life for a life.
Seeing this reaction, Brown changed the direction of his sword, blocking the daggers.
A crisp sound of metal hitting metal echoed out.
The force from the parry forced the masked man to take a step back.
But the fight didn't stop there.
The paper masked man pushed forward, going for the kill again, this time, he targeted separate vitals.
One stabbing at Brown's chest, and the other at his head.
Behind the stab were subtle infused Blood Force that carried the aura of a Tidal Wave Knight.
The moment Brown sensed this, he took the fight seriously and mobilized his Blood Force.
"Argh!"
His hand gripping his sword appeared to have lost its bones as it moved like a snake. Striking at the two blades in a second.
This time, their clash produced a shockwave that pushed the two combatants away from each other.
Their legs dragged through the ground for a few yards before they stopped.
Brown and the other knights were a bit shocked.
A Tidal Wave Knight had been sent to deal with them. If they hadn't broken through…
They dared not complete that thought.
As for the masked men, it was hard to tell what they were feeling from their stifled reactions.
But one thing was certain, at this point, both parties realized what they were up against.