For almost everyone within Marcus's estate, today was a day of reunion, sadness, and melancholic nostalgia.
Many of which were cut short by the weak state of the people that stirred up these emotions in them.
As for Marcus, this was the second time he had witnessed such a scene.
Although it wasn't exactly the same as what he had first experienced, the fundamentals remained the same.
It was almost a bittersweet feeling… and at the same time, damning.
While the view sprouted some feeling of achievement, it also served as a reminder that he could lose all of them again.
Marcus frowned as he watched the healthy ones tend to the weak.
What is going to be their next move?
An all-out battle?
He wondered, pacing around the entrance of his mansion slowly.
"If that's the case, then I might as well accept my loss now." He muttered.
Marcus was well aware that, while he and his men had killed a lot of cultists last night, the cult Order still had numbers on their side.
Not only that, they could summon Devilish Mutants to their ranks, further outnumbering him.
At the moment, Marcus felt like he hadn't thought through the consequences of the actions he took.
He drew a line between himself and the students, subsequently pushing out all willing allies. Due to time constraints, he hadn't had the chance to expand the number of knights under his banner since his return.
While he had grown stronger upon his return, the progress that his men had made in their personal strength, even the experiences that his apprentice knights acquired from the battles they fought, had all vanished into nothing but silent tales that only he was aware of.
But what was he to do?
As debilitating as his current situation is, despite his fear for what was to come, Marcus felt that he had taken the best action.
Time passed merrily, guiding the sun across the sky. In what felt like a long time to Marcus, it was already noon.
That was when he sensed it.
Several threatening auras were quickly approaching his estate.
His brows shot up as his eyes widened.
In particular, he had sensed a few familiar auras, two of which filled him with dread.
"They're coming here at the same time?" His mind churned as he tried to think of what to do.
Marcus's grip tightened on the cloth bag that was still sitting over his shoulder.
"They might be here for Aethera's Casket." He gritted his teeth as the thought of giving to them if it came down to that, crossed his mind.
But that was no different from suicide.
At the same time, an all-out battle was no different from the former option, just an earlier death sentence.
Marcus's eyes darted around slowly as a wry smile appeared on his face.
As stubborn as he wanted to be, he didn't have many options.
"Perhaps, I've been too rash." He sighed. "Giving it to them might be able to buy us some time. Will I be able to think of a way around this?"
While Marcus steeled his heart for what was to come, the rest of his estate began moving
Without needing to call out for his knights, every one of them present in the estate began rushing towards the gate.
They too had sensed the powerful auras approaching their location.
The colors on their faces changed as they felt oppressed by it, even when it was coming from quite a distance.
Nonetheless, this oppressive feeling didn't do anything to dampen their courage or thoughts.
"Knights! Gear up! Everyone else, retreat to the farmlands!" Brown shouted as he rushed through the oblivious crowd.
"Move, move, move! We're under attack!" The rest of the knights announced as they made their way to the estate gates.
In a stir of shock and belated panic, shrieks and screams came from the crowd as they quickly began retreating.
Because of this panic, some people were pushed to the ground unintentionally by the movement of the crowd, quickly resulting in some injuries.
A child screamed as her mother was separated from her. At the same time, an old man fell to the ground. He held his elbow, letting out a painful grunt.
Seeing this, Marcus frowned.
Nothing had happened yet and some of his people had already been injured.
"Retreat orderly! Don't push the weak, young, or old! Don't panic, I'm still here!" Infusing some mana in his throat, Marcus's voice was able to cut through the panicking crowd and reach their ears.
Upon hearing the young lord's voice and order, the crowd slowly, and subconsciously calmed down.
"Move in groups, organize yourself, and await my orders!" He added as he too began making his way towards the estate gates.
There was no avoiding this confrontation.
Lined in front of the gates were his knights. Fully armed and alert.
They too allowed their auras to flare out, while slowly circulating their Blood Force through their bodies.
The juvenile, yet threatening auras of Tidal Wave Knights, mixed with Flowing rank knights, stood against the incoming danger.
Marcus saw this and a resolute thought formed in his heart.
These knights were loyal, and they were unafraid of dying. Why should he be any different?
Though this wasn't enough to ward off the worry in his heart, it helped to calm his nerves.
Currently, what Marcus was afraid of wasn't dying, but failure.
Failure here would eventually mean death, furthermore, it would leave him down with his last redo.
With no concrete solutions yet, that was a scary thing he didn't want happening.
Just before Marcus reached his lined-up knights, from the corner of his eye, a flash of light that transformed into words appeared before him.
His steps paused for a second as he realized that it was his system interface.
However, unlike usual, time didn't come to a stop.
…
Edge Of Death Bonus Mission: A chance to be unprecedented in history.
A mere mortal pushed against the wall by multiple Tier 1 Beings, but refuses to give in.
In all of history, mortals have feared such beings. Be the first to stand firm against them. They will not dampen your resolve, they will not hamper your progress.
What is taken is yours, and what they want cannot be taken without your permission.
As a lord with a will, resist them and reap rewards.
[Rewards: +25000 Achievement Points. New Title. Battle Art (Special, Physical Path), Blood Bane Arts. +1000 days.]
[Penalty: None.]
…
The moment Marcus read through this, he audibly gulped for breath.
This was the first time the system was presenting him with a clear-cut path to take, at the same time, a clear reward if he was successful.
It almost made him forget the straits that he was about to face.
The rewards were tempting, however, a tinge of disappointment robbed him of this temptation as he didn't see a reward that had to do with redo.
A thousand days added to his lifespan would have been a good thing on a normal day, but in this case, his lifespan didn't matter as much as another chance in life if he died.
This disappointment didn't last long though. The moment Marcus began thinking of what decision to make, the owners of the auras appeared in front of his estate gates.
Standing on the other side of the closed gates were more than a hundred cloaked figures.
Every one of them gave off a baleful vibe that seemed to make one feel nauseated.
Not even a minute later, these cloaked figures opened up, creating a path through their middle.
Walking down this path were two men who had gentle looks on their faces.
One with a walking cane and a bucket-shaped hat. He had a friendly smile on his face as his gaze fell upon Marcus.
That was Cassir.
By his side was Maney, who unlike Cassir, had a more stern expression painted across his face.
Both of them stopped right in front of the gate, not making any moves to open it up or break it down.
It was at this point that Marcus too stepped forward, facing the oppressive gaze of these two Tier 1 Beings.