A horse and its rider galloped through the road, steering off the normal path and cutting into the dead forest as though they were hoping to evade the moon's light with this maneuver.
Right behind them, figures like shadows danced through the air, trailing them like wild wolves.
And closely behind, was Marcus, contemplating his next action.
"The option I chose this time, from the Edge of Death, said that I should tail the dog to find its master… However, I already know who the master is," He raised his head and stared at the back of the rider.
"That should be the dog. I can't wait for them to get close enough to Maney's place before attacking. That's just putting myself at a disadvantage."
Marcus clicked his tongue.
"And these shadows, aren't they underlings of the Darkness order?"
Seeing them didn't necessarily bring any surprises to Marcus, after all, he was aware of Cassir's involvement with Maney.
However, rather than protectors, they all looked like they were chasing after the horsemen too.
"Only one way to truly find out." Marcus turned his focus ahead.
Even in the darkness and the subtle light provided by an almost full moon, his eyesight was good enough to see so far away.
Burn!
It was just a thought for Marcus, however, this thought was no different from a level 1 spell.
Like fire fueled by oil, a large patch of the dead forest ahead was engulfed by towering flames that seized every dead tree from its roots to its very tips.
Even though it was only a simple level 1 spell, Marcus poured in more than three hundred points of mana into it, making it bigger than it normally was.
Almost immediately, the sound of a horse whinnying loudly followed.
The path was blocked off.
Nonetheless, the horseman remained calm even as his steed jittered around nervously.
Heat, a mix of the night's breeze and the burning flames, blew the horseman's hood lightly.
Just as he looked over his shoulder, around a dozen shadows appeared, lining up horizontally.
All of them were dressed in black cloaks, radiating dark vibes that would make a normal person chill all over.
They were all at the Tidal Wave level.
The horseman saw them, but he didn't even act like they were there and continued to observe the space behind them.
A few seconds passed and nothing happened, however, none of them moved.
"Aren't you going to take off your hood, dog?" Marcus's cold voice, cut through the chaos of wood snapping under the blazing warmth of fire.
Tracking the voice, many heads looked to the side, atop a tree.
There, Marcus stood with a stern look. The yellowish glow of the flames reflected in his eyes, making them seem colder than usual.
The desire to kill was so evident in his gaze that it made these cultists a bit apprehensive about making a move even after Marcus's position had been revealed.
The horseman, although his expression was hidden underneath his hood, his hand tightening the reins of his horse didn't go unnoticed.
For a few seconds, no one said a word, no one moved.
Snap!
Another tree gave way to the flames, and that was when it happened.
All the shadows vanished, and so did Marcus.
Six came from his left, and five more from his right.
Mid-air, Marcus unsheathed his sword and rotated his body slightly, making an arc.
The six that came from his left came prepared to block this simple and even crude move, with their weapons.
But none of them could have anticipated the sharpness of Marcus's sword.
Coupled with the force of the slash, the sword sliced the weapons, alongside the midsections of their wielders.
After that, Marcus opened his Heart Pulse and coated his free fist with element energy.
He waved his hand so quickly that his enemies couldn't even tell what he had done before a strong wind that seemed to command the fire burning in the forest, hit them.
Followed by a wave of flames that engulfed them.
All five of the attackers were struck at the same time.
By the time they all landed, six of them were dead, with their bodies sliced in two, while the remaining five were struggling to put out the fire on their bodies.
"Argh!!" They cried painfully.
But Marcus didn't even pay attention to them.
No matter how much they struggled, they couldn't put the flames out as Marcus continued to fuel them with his mana.
In seconds, their painful cries came to a stop.
It was at this point that he sheathed his sword and began walking towards the horseman.
"It's just you and me now." His voice carried some excitement in it, however, it was a furious excitement.
The type one would have when they've been given the chance to avenge.
"Won't you unveil yourself, or do you want me to help you do that?"
The horseman came down from his steed and paused. He looked as though he was ready to give in, but the second, he ran towards the fire.
Sending Blood Force to his feet, he jumped into the air, scaling over the towering flames.
One obstacle had been crossed, but that wasn't enough to make him feel at peace.
As soon as his feet touched the ground, he ran as though his life depended on the distance he put between himself and Marcus.
And it did, as Marcus was already pursuing him.
Running through fire as though it wasn't even there in the first place.
When the horseman looked over his shoulder, what he saw almost made him trip.
Not only did he see Marcus chasing after him, but even the fire followed.
With each step Marcus took, flames burst from underneath, trailing him like a tsunami that wished to drown everything in its path.
It was as if Marcus was determined to burn everything in his path.
With each second that passed, the distance between the two of them shortened.
The horseman didn't check over his shoulders anymore, not until he felt as if the heat waves from behind were going to burn through his clothes.
That was when he revealed a short stick that quickly extended into a long spear that resembled a needle.
He jumped forward, and at the same time, turned and placed the spear in front of him.
Boom!
Right at that moment, Marcus's fist, wrapped in flames, struck the spear.
The horseman was sent flying and crashed into the branches and trunks of many trees.
Not giving the opponent any chance to recoup himself, Marcus appeared before him once again and punched downwards.
Boom!
Sand from the crater, with flames, alongside blood splurting out from the horseman's mouth, flew up.
And then Marcus struck again, hitting the opponent's abdomen so hard that his spine broke.
"Argh!"
"P-please, spa-spare me. I'll do anything you want.!"
Toiling in agony, he spoke for the first time.
Marcus stayed silent as he stood over the horseman.
"I didn't want to assume, but, who would have thought that you were the dog Maney was talking about… Zach."
Marcus had an idea of who the dog was when he began the chase.
He was almost certain after casting his flames spell and got close enough.
After all, his Pulse of Seeing made it a bit easier for him to recognize people's auras.
However, he wanted to see his face before concluding.
Marcus didn't want to make another mistake as he had done with Eddy.
At this point, Zach's hood had already come off.
"I can be your dog, please, L-lord Marcus, spare me." With a broken spine, Zach couldn't move his legs anymore.
So he used his hands to pull his body, still trying to put some distance between himself and Marcus.
He was absolutely terrified.
"Why?" Marcus asked.
The memory of seeing Zach charging forward bravely at the humanoid puppets in one of his previous lives, flashed in his mind.
Because of this memory, because Zach lost his life fighting side by side with him in the past, it didn't even cross Marcus's mind to suspect him.
Now the failure they faced in that life, the reason became even clearer to Marcus.
However, he couldn't understand why Zach would do this.
According to what Marcus knew of him, he was a promising knight in training with a bright future.
He felt more confused than betrayed.
"Why do this? What will you gain from assisting the Faceless Order?"
"I can be useful to you, I can make you money, get you support from the Royal Council."
Zach continued to ramble, it was as if he had been terrified to the point of insanity.
The sight of this, put a sour taste on Marcus's tongue.
Right, his story isn't important. He has long lost that right.
As soon as he had this thought, he drew his sword and beheaded Zach in one swift move.
Marcus stared at the cloth bag hanging around Zach's shoulder.
He could tell what was in it, but at the same time, he was hesitant to pick it up.
After a few seconds, Marcus picked it up, making sure not to loosen the cloth one bit.
Contrary to what Marcus thought he would feel once he caught the dog, his heart remained unsettled.
It wasn't regret, but something close to it.
Looking up at the still, witness in the sky, Marcus let its light wash away this feeling.
The night doesn't end here. There's still more to do. We must strike while the iron is still hot.
A resolute sheen shone in his eyes as his figure vanished under the coverage of the flames.