Ethanial saw the monster reach to Leila while he helplessly fell back to the ground. He could no longer bear to watch the sight. He closed his eyes. Anger, disappointment, regret; all kinds of emotions swooshed into his mind. He hated that this was how his life would end. He hated how he failed to protect another woman he held dearest after his mother.

Suddenly a hand pulled him up from his clothes and made him stand. Then a potion was forced to gulp down into his mouth.

"My friend, drink this. You shall be back on your own feet in a while."

The voice itself was soothing to his pain. It was full of confidence and heroism. He could feel strength flowing back to his legs and entire body.

Suddenly an arrow flew through nearby his face and hit the mantila. It nearly grazed him. He looked behind and saw a group of men, five of them, walking past his feeble body. The archer immediately nocked his bow again and released a second powerful shot. It flew straight to the monster and hit where the pain was. The shock made the monster stop on its track.

"Did you seriously shoot on its ass?"

A man with a battle axe was amazed by the shot.

"You monster. Have some mercy on the poor creature."

The spearman said while smiling like a maniac. It was clear he enjoyed the show too.

"Fucking perverts. Show some decency."

A big man with a big broadsword said in disgust.

"Hey! Less talk more work. Don't you see a lady is waiting to be saved?"

The man supporting Ethanial with his arm shouted to his friends. He had a large fan on his other hand.

They all looked relaxed. Not a single ounce of fear could be seen in them. They even enjoyed making fun of the monster.

On the command of the Templer with the fan, the Templers charged at the monster, roaring battlecry. The monster fought back with its own cry but theirs easily overwhelmed and frightened the monster.

Their experience, combat ability and coordination were top-notch. They encircled the monster while it was stunned by their cry, and their positioning was just perfect. The archer shot the arrow only when it was necessary to distract the monster. The big man made himself a target and parried all the attacks with his broadsword. The spearman used its range to attack the mantis body, hindering the monster's attack. The battleaxe man used the chance to station himself behind the monster and chopped the legs.

"It seems you are back on your feet. Why don't you join them, my friend?"

"What? But I have never fought alongside them."

Ethanial knew it was a great honour and a rare opportunity to fight alongside them but he was afraid he might mess up the coordination of the group. But his concern seemed irrelevant to the man. The man picked up the sword for Ethanial and handed it over.

"You know how to use the flame, right? It is the only way to pass through its sticky hairs."

The experienced Templer instructed the way to defeat mantila and after the instruction, Ethanial felt like an idiot.

"Right. How the hell did I miss this? I am an idiot." Ethanial thought to himself. He chanted the spell and a flame grew out from the sword.

"Flameno!"

This time every slash Ethanial made dipped into the hair and cut the flesh with barely any resistance.

Soon Ethanial together with four others defeated the monster and brought its greeny head to the ground. Ethanial used his sword to chop off its head. But even with divination, it took three slashes to completely cut it off.

"Oof... What a mess! That's why I use broadsword."

"Axe is best. Everyone knows 'want to chop, use the axe'."

"It doesn't even rhyme you blockhead. 'wanna chop, use the broad'. That's how it goes."

Till the end, they were arguing themselves without a single care to anything.

What a strange bunch of men_ Ethanial noted.

The strangest one, the man with the fan, walked over to Leila. She was stunned by a shocking miracle. She thought it was over for Ethanial and her.

"My lady, don't worry. You are safe now. We have defeated the evil monster for you."

The man smiled and gave his hand to help her get off the horse. But Leila jumped off herself and ran toward Ethanial instead. She threw herself into his chest.

"Ethan! You did it. Thank God and bless the lord Mordu'. You are alive. You know how much did I worry? I was so scared. I thought I had lost you. I couldn't even breathe."

Leila was caught in the moment and made a mistake. Her sudden affection threw the Templars and Ethanial in surprise. It warmed his heart, however, Ethanial pushed her away quickly.

Although it was not strange for a girl to be embraced in a man's chest in the face of danger, it was still unusual for a miss to hug a man in wary of strangers' eyes, especially when that man was no family.

Leila noticed the situation and collected herself back. She turned to Templers and said her thanks.

"And err... thank you for saving me, sir Templers."

"You are welcome, my lady. I am happy to see the lady well and unhurt. Let me introduce myself. I am Faün from Temple, a High Templer, and this is my hunting team," said the man with the fan.

Ethanial tried to intervene in the conversation. However before he could, Leila replied quickly, unaware of the intention.

"I am lady Leila Longbart, daughter of Atkinson Longbart from Gambit."

After hearing her answer, the man smiled as if he got what he wanted. And Ethanial noticed that. He knew that Faün was luring her into his trap. He tried to interrupt their conversation before she fell deeper and told everything she ought not to.

But the Templers were not unaware of Ethanial's intention either. They decided to split Ethanial and Leila apart.

"Say Ethanial, that's your name, right? Have you ever fought a mantila before?" The archer and axeman abruptly placed their arms around his shoulders and forced him away from Leila, saying gibberish while their leader took on Leila.

"Ah! Longbart! The one who sells eastern spices!"

"Yes. That's my father."

"I do buy a lot from your father. They give such exquisite scent and taste."

"Thank you, sir."

"So, why a fine lady like yourself is in this dangerous place, alone?"

"I am not alone. Ethanial is my escort."

"Let me rephrase it, my lady. Why are you in such a dangerous place with a single pathetic escort?"

Out of the blue, the High Templer changed his tone and attitude toward Ethanial, or so she felt. She saw the man's eyes when he first looked at her and thought his hostility was perhaps misunderstanding or rather jealousy as she favoured Ethanial over him. He must be thinking a weak man like Ethanial did not deserve her interest.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"Ethanial is a Templer and he protected me all so well throughout my journey though I have to admit you saved us with mantila. I can't thank you enough for it."

Leila attempted to change the view on Ethanial. Though she did notice their intention, she did not grasp the actual motive from him and gave him enough answers he needed.

"It is our job. To protect. This is indeed why, to be sure of the safety of clients, the temple provides a full team in every escort. Anyway, where are the rest? A Templer and six others?"

He asked her nonchalantly but Leila did not answer quickly like before. She noticed something was off. She checked Ethanial to see what she should answer. But she was late. They were parted when she unnoticed. She contemplated and answered inconspicuously, "I don't know."

"You don't know?" Faün questioned her ridiculous answer. "A Templer and six warriors guarding you disappeared and you don't know."

"It's...it is more like I am not sure." She thought for a while. Lies would get her nowhere and make things better. It was best to speak in honesty with some sugar added for Ethan.

"It was in Mount Raza. We were attacked by wyverns. Ethanial saved me from death by a split of hair. Without him, I would have met an untimely death. The rest are scattered or in perils, I do not know. Ethanial took me away from danger and we waited for them for a day in safety. They did not come."

"I see."

"For you to know, Ethanial, even though alone, did his mission loyally and splendidly. Without deserting his mission, he protected through bandits and monsters, clearly now a mantila, alone."

"That's enough miss. I do not need to hear more."

The man got what he wanted and stopped Leila. She saw him smiling as he left her and called back his men. His menacing smile shrugged her in cold.

"Archili! Alexel! Bring him here."

As the archer and axeman brought him back, Ethanial looked at Leila. Her face did not look good. Her eyes were full of worry. They must have gotten something out of her he concluded. But in times like this, it was best to show confidence.

"I have not said my thanks to you yet. Thanks for the potion. It saved me."

"You are welcome, my fellow warrior from the Temple. And truly it pains my heart to do this in our first meeting." He spoke sweetly but there were hints of threat in it. He put his fan back in his pants and retrieved his sword. On the hilt was the symbol of the Temple in gold. Faün masked his sword over the head of Ethanial when Alexel and Archili hit the back of Ethanial's knee and dropped him to the ground. Then he recited,

"Ethanial. You are suspected of breaking the values and moral codes of the Temple; as such you are charged with desertion and impersonating. By the power invested in me by lord Mordu', the son of God; in his name, I arrest you the."

The sudden declaration shocked Leila. She could not understand what was happening. Why a group of Templers would abruptly arrest Ethanial, her saviour and protector?

"What do you mean, sir Faün? Why are you arresting Ethanial? What crime did he commit to be treated like this?"

"Desertion, miss. The biggest crime in the code of army."

"What nonsense! He was the one who was protecting me all this time."

"Do not speak of what you do not understand, woman. This is the Temple business."

"But as he, my protector, I deserve to be explained why."

The man was out of patience but it was best to end the ruckus so he decided to explain.

"Fine. I shall explain in the simplest manner. In the face of imminent death, the soldiers must lay their lives for the gifted warriors, for Templers are the sons of Mordu'. I am sure every man and woman in Midland knows this fact."

She did hear such infamous stories of soldiers who ran away for their own lives by leaving the Templers to die. Those deserters were punished by Lord Mordu' and be damned in hell later. Will Ethanial face the same fate_she shuddered.

"But Ethanial is a Templer."

"You are either mistaken or lied by him. He is a captain, a rank above soldiers. Look at the hilt of his blade. You shall see a bronze symbol."

Leila looked at it as told and to her surprise, the man was right. There were silver symbols on the weapons of other Templers while Ethanial's was bronze.

She thought Ethanial was a Templer. Only the Templers were allowed to wield spells, so. When she asked Ethanial in the cave, he did not deny either.

She looked at Ethanial and asked for the truth. But he swayed his eyes to the other side as he could not meet her eyes any longer from shame and guilt.

"You lied." She murmured.

It contained a tinge of anger and sorrow. When she said he lied to her, Ethanil tried to explain but his conscience did not allow him. He knew all of this could happen yet he fell too comfortable in the fake happiness he had with Leila.

"Alexel, take him with you to the Order of Temple. The rest of us shall go to Mount Raza which my lady speaks and destroy the nest. Let's move."

High Templer ordered his men. Alexel tied Ethanial's arms to the back and placed the other end of the rope in his hand. He then got on his mount and dragged Ethanial. The others waited till Ethanial was completely tied so that he would not escape, and then they left for Mount Raza immediately.

"My lady, you may follow me with your own mount."

Before they left for the Temple in Gambit, Leila gazed at Ethanial. She was angry at him but she did not hate him. She could not. A Templer or not, he did save her and protected her with his own life.

All the love and shared happiness she experienced on the trip were not fake even if he lied about his identity.

"You save my life and the gratitude I return is 'this'? I should have kept my mouth shut." She felt guilty. She blamed herself. "If I was a little more attentive earlier, lied my name and pretended to be his wife as I did at the inn, he would not be arrested."

Watching Ethanial, who was once her saviour, now treated like a criminal broke her heart. He might have lied about his identity but their memories together stayed true to her. Even this ugly reality would remain precious as a bad memory with Ethan in her heart. She just could not hate him.

"Sir Templer, I need to get to my home by tomorrow."

"So?"

"It would be great if all of us were on the horse. Can you put him on your horse?"

Alexel thought for a while and accepted her idea. But changed a little bit to his liking. He gave his horse to Ethanial while he got on the horse with Leila. As he sat on the horse behind her, he intentionally touched her waist and brushed her bottom while pretending to be accidental. Time and time on the road with rough pavement he would purposely dash-stopped in the mean to unstable her. Then he would put his arm around her chest as if he were taking care of her. The degenerate man took pleasure in her flesh with petty foul tricks.

It was pure hell. From behind Ethanial could see the bastard taking advantage of Leila. He wanted to call out the bastard's indecent behaviour and put him on trial. But could he really do that? He was now a criminal and a liar. Leila probably hated him now. The reason she did not complain might be that she accepted it. The thought itself corrupted his soul. He hated himself. He hated his eyes. He would gauge them out rather than watch. It would be better if he could stab his heart to stop the pain.

But what he suffered was not real hell. It was the illusion formed by his feelings for Leila. The one who suffered was Leila. She felt like cutting off the bastard's balls and fed them to a dog. She gritted her teeth and held her tears.

"At least Ethanial was on the horse now."