The men before Darius looked over to the body of their comrade.
His head was no longer attached to his body.
Dead.
In the single swing of a sword, he had been killed.
Darius had proven to all the results of his experience, and the weight of all 10,000 lives which he carried on his back.
These men were knights. To simply surrender here would go against everything they believed in.
Yet their comrade had died in a pointless struggle to defend the people.
Even so, would their surrender mean anything?
Would their surrender not invite the thousands of men before them to raid the city of Vena, without even the slightest bit of resistance to hold them back?
Wouldn't dropping their weapons here and now result in the total annihilation of each and every person- including themselves?
They could not simply put their trust in the good will of the man before them.
"We cannot win this fight.", one man stated, stepping forward.
"It is beyond hopeless. Fighting back will without a doubt result in nothing but our own slaughter."
However, the man gripped the handle of his sword, unsheathing it.
He looked Darius directly in the eyes, not dropping his sword.
"But is there any meaning in surrendering here? Even if you hold to your words and stay your hands from us, will the same go for the people of this city? For the people of this country? Who is to say that you will not simply turn your blades on us the moment we drop our weapons?"
"I can assure you with every fiber of my being, and on the very life of the Emperor, that I am not telling you falsehoods."
Darius stood forward as well, meeting the man's verbal challenge.
"It would be beyond pointless to fight back here. Your lives would be lost in meaningless battle. We will not attack you nor the civilians of this village, so long as you peacefully surrender."
The man became conflicted, doubting his own convictions.
He didn't know whether Darius was telling the truth, but he sensed a great dedication in his voice.
"Alright."
The man dropped his sword.
In turn, the men around him dropped their weapons, putting their faith in their attacker.
"We could not have done anything if we had fought back. However, we might have been able to buy enough time..... for some people to escape with their lives."
"It is because you have dropped your weapons that no more lives will be lost.", Darius responded, waving to the men behind him.
The soldiers quickly stormed into the city, however they did not invade any homes or destroy any property.
Darius approached the knights before him, who had dropped their weapons, with a smile.
"We are not brutes like those in the fourth legion. I serve one Emperor- Percius IV. I will carry his own standards within me until the day I die."
----
A thin man with unhealthy appearance and long black hair, wearing the armor of a Roman Legionnaire stood at the head of 10,000 men.
Each of these men were excited, with a gleam of bloodlust in their eyes.
The legion marched through the plains of the Kingdom as the man snickered to himself.
'Heh heh.... I see that the Indeterminant is a man of culture as well. This was an unexpected surprise, to receive his approval to our own operations... however it is not an unwelcome one.'
The man rubbed his hands together, a terrible grin showing his yellow teeth.
'I can see it all now..... hahaha..... to think that we were stuck on the dwarven front for so many years, faced with only brutes of women. Once in a while an elven beauty would appear, however that would be a one in a hundred fortune. However, now that we are here.... they will all be human. Their worth won't be as much as an elf, however there will be beautiful women in abundance.'
This man was Larios, the Commander of the 4th Legion.
The stain of the Empire, a man who obtained his position and kept his activities a secret with the support of Brutus.
'But..... why would the Indeterminant support us like that? He spoke into our hearts.... it was certainly his voice, without a doubt, and I don't believe that such a thing would be difficult for the Indeterminant. However.... would the man known as the savior of humanity truly support my actions so readily?'
Even Brutus, the Senator who was corrupted beyond belief, was reluctant when forming an Alliance with Larios.
Larios himself was the one who proposed such an alliance, and it took much convincing for Brutus to accept.
'They all have such high standards and honorable methods. However.... at the end of the day, a human is nothing more than a sack of flesh with an ego behind it.'
Larios grimaced as he recalled the large number of disturbed glares that came his way by many.
'Especially Darius.... he's been onto my trail for the longest time now!! What a stickler. He's the type to say something like 'the spoils of war do not exist. There is only death and destruction caused by those who slaughter others to take everything they have. How can you even think of a reward when you have destroyed the most precious thing in existence- a human life?'
Larios walked forward with a chuckle.
'But I'm the one making all the money. I'd bet if he were to witness the upgrade to my mansion after this war, he'd reconsider. Heh.'
As the army marched, a town came into the distance.
It was the medium sized village of Repan.
"Oh.... there it is. My dear little village!! Hahaha!! Just what beautiful women and adorable little children do you contain? I am about to find out!"
Giggling to himself in disturbing manner, the men following Larios did not seem disturbed in the least from the horrible words of their Commander.
As a matter of fact, they grinned.
They smiled for themselves, chuckling alongside him.
They were excited.
However, there was one being among the 10,000 who followed Larios who was more excited than anyone.
'Keh heh..... I love it when they're batshit crazy. It makes them all the more fun.... to play with.'
----
"Mama! Papa! Look! I did it myself!"
A young girl stood by a clothesline, the wrinkled clothes hung up in a haphazard and childish fashion.
Beaming with pride, she called out to her parents who looked over with delighted smiles.
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"How wonderful!"
"You're such a hard worker, Annabell."
The kind mother, who was currently sewing together a torn shirt, and the hardworking father who was currently performing carpentry work on a wooden table, looked over to their daughter as they praised the girl.
These three sat outside a small and humble home, happily living their tough yet satisfying lives.
They had hardly been affected by the recent actions of Kyle Ruthobold, and as such were not worried in the least about their nation.
As a matter of fact, news of his ascent to the throne had barely reached this town, and even when it did, many shrugged their shoulders and continued about their lives.
'A new set of rulers, a new set of faces, the same old set of laws.'
This was what the people thought at first.
And up to this point, they were correct.
Having hardly been affected by the shift, almost all the people in this city had not deviated from their peaceful way of living.
Until a demon arrived.
In a moment, dozens of soldiers rounded the corners of the surrounding buildings.
The father looked around, in shock of the massive amount of legionnaires.
"Haha!!! Found two right here!!!!", one man shouted as more rounded the corners.
"Wha- what are you doing!?!?", the father exclaimed.
The men quickly grabbed hold of the man's daughter and wife and surrounded him, putting him at the point of their spears.
"Sorry bud. These two look like they'll fetch a high price on the market. We'll be taking them for ourselves. After all, what was the saying?"
One soldier mocked the man, walking around him from behind.
"What the hell do you think you're doing!?!?"
The man stood up, preparing himself to fight, even as he was surrounded by ten armed soldiers.
"Get your filthy hands off my family!!!!"
The man rushed forward, only to be stabbed in seven different locations.
"Agh!!!! Stop this!!!! Get..... your..... hands....."
The man fell to the ground, his eyes rolling back behind his head.
"Off..."
First falling to his knees, then plopping to the ground, a pile of blood formed as it spurted out of the many wounds which he had suffered.
"AGH!!!!!"
"Papa!!!!!"
"Darling!!!!"
The two were now in the hands of at least three men each, who were holding them still as they struggled.
"Come calmly or we might have to get a bit rough."
"That's right."
"LET GO OF MY DAUGHTER!!!! LET GO!!!!"
The woman struggled furiously, causing the men to lose their grip on her.
"Oi. We just said not to.... struggle."
One man bashed the back of the woman's head with the end of his spear, causing her to go unconscious.
She fell forward with a blank expression, plopping head first into the muddy ground.
The young girl merely watched, her eyes filling with tears as she witnessed the bodies of her parents, both having fallen.
"Mama..... papa....."
"You be quiet as well. We've already lost value on that one. If we lose value on you too, then it will be a pain in the ass."
"Heh.... even so, the Commander will be pleased with these two."
"Looks like our unit will be getting paid a lot today!"
"Too bad I can't have a turn first.... the young one looks pretty cute."
"You're creepy as hell man. Why do you like going for the braindead innocent ones?"
"I like the dead look in their eyes..... it makes it all the better."
"I'd rather go for the lively mother. I prefer them to give me a shitty glare when I go at em."
"Aren't you just as messed up as me?"
"Nah, no way. You're the messed up one here."
"Hahaha!!"
Many of the men joked among themselves, however the young girl was now limp, her own limbs unwilling to respond.
Her eyes were filled with tears which flowed to the ground, and she could no longer process the situation.
She reached out her hand, however this was met with the grabbing of her hair.
"Let's go, twerp. If you can please the legion commander then he might sell you to one of the more reasonable ones. Although.... to call anyone in this market reasonable would be a stretch."
The men laughed as they dragged the girl away. Others grabbed hold of the unconscious mother, taking her as well.
"Ah.... I just remembered the saying.", one man stated.
With a sinister smirk, he grabbed something from underneath his own armor.
It was a torch.
The man dipped the torch in oil, and then held it over to one of his comrades, who was carrying a lit torch.
The flames lit up on the unlit torch, and the man threw it over to the small tent where the man had been working.
The flames quickly spread to the nearby homes, and as if it had been planned, not only these buildings, but a number of others around the village went aflame simultaneously.
The horizon became orange, and flames doused the landscape.
The man walked off with his comrades, leaving behind the scene of chaos and destruction with a sly grin.
"To the victors..... go the spoils."
----
Sylvester had been humiliated over and over since the appearance of Kyle Ruthobold, and his rising to the throne.
First was the reveal that his father had been a customer at a low class brothel in the slums- a place in which even the lowest of the low would stray far from.
Second was the slaughter of said father, and the stripping of Sylvester's title as the highest ranked knight in the Kingdom.
Third was the continuous humiliating scenarios which Kyle put Sylvester in, including marching through the streets as a mere footsoldier and the entering of such a classless establishment.
Finally, Sylvester had been denied the very right to fight for his Kingdom and people on the front lines, throwing his own prowess as a warrior to the side for no reason other than to keep him ostracized.
Sylvester was furious, and currently was marching towards the kitchen.
Bursting open the door, he saw a man wearing a white apron, with long golden hair and a calm expression as he cleaned the dishes.
"Brother!!"
"Why are you so loud? What if the hero were to hear you?"
"He has left!! He left to go off to war with the Empire. They've attacked our lands!! I lowered myself to ask if I could be granted permission to assist in fighting them off, however..... he denied me even the right to protect our people from attackers...."
The man stopped scrubbing the dishes, closing his eyes with bitter expression.
"Why did you ask to go?"
Sylvester was taken aback by the words of his brother, Reginald Ruthobold.
"What do you mean?"
"Would there be any purpose to heading off to a war with him?"
Sylvester grinded his teeth, his own face becoming red with anger.
"This is not about purpose!!! It's about honor!!!! The fact that I am not to not show up to defend the people in their time of need.... this will only serve to confirm the lies about the nobles and royals that the hero is trying to spread!!!!"
"Calm down, brother. You are too impatient as always."
"Grr..."
Placing a glass in the drying rack, Reginald took off the apron with a sigh, hanging it up.
"You've grown awfully accustomed to living like a slave, haven't you?", Sylvester slipped.
At this, he was met with a deadly glare.
"If that is what you believe, then that is the reason why you were born second."
Reginald walked past his brother, exiting the room as the door shut.
Sylvester was left alone in the kitchen, breathless.
Never before had he witnessed his reserved brother say something with such malice.
'Brother..... you are perhaps just as angry as I am?'
----
2000 Knights made their way through the Kingdom, passing numerous cities and growing in number as they did so.
2000 grew to 3000. 3000 grew to 5000.
Eventually, 7000 men of the rank of Knight had gathered in a single army, led by none other than the hero of the Ruthobold Kingdom, Kyle Ruthobold.
With this many men of the upper 3rd tier and the hero himself to fight alongside them, the spirits of all who gathered were high.
"We will push back the invaders!"
"Without fail, we will show those Empire dogs what it means to go against this Kingdom!!"
"How long have they believed to themselves that they hold superior military strength!? It is time to show them that they've finally crossed the line!!!"
Without hesitation, the Knights shouted out in order to rally one another, preparing to face this enemy.
However, these rallying cries were nothing more than a facade.
They were excuses.
Each and every Knight gathered understood that this was not a matter of proving themselves.
It was a matter of life and death.
A force of 20,000 men had gathered, and in the time it took to assemble this force and travel to the location of attack, hundreds or even thousands of people were dying.
Such was warfare.
Their people were suffering.
Their innocent, blameless people, who were doing nothing more than living their own peaceful lives, were being slaughtered at this moment.
And for the knights of the Kingdom, a second too late was no different than if they didn't show up at all.
This heavy burden weighed inside the hearts of the gathered Knights, hastening their steps.
Even though they held smiles and shouted cheers, the true purpose of these cheers was to force themselves forward.
They knew.
There was no time to spare.
Even another second meant another death.
Yet the clock did not stop. Time continued pressing forth, second after second, death after death.
"Come now, brothers!!! Let us hurry to show those Empire bastards what we are made of!!!!"
"Hero, stand firm with us!!! We will drive them off!!"
Kyle rode at the head of these 7000, all of whom rode horses that sped across the lands.
"Drive them off?"
Kyle clicked his tongue as he stared forward, firmly addressing the cries of those around him.
"There will be none who attack my people who are merely driven off."
----
Kyle sensed something as he began to approach the villages which were under attack.
Three groups.
There were two medium sized towns which were currently saturated with men.
Kyle could not do much more than sense the gathering of people as a form of energy, therefore he held no other information on the current states of the cities, yet even so, this filled him with deep concern.
'They are currently being attacked.... yet there is something else.....'
Kyle thinned his eyes, looking straight forward in a direction between the two cities.
'There..... is a grand amount of power concentrated in that area. Far more than everything in the cities combined.....'
Taking a deep breath, Kyle kicked his horse, riding faster.
'Could it be? Could two heroes have gathered against me?'
With a snort, Kyle had to refrain from spitting in disgust.
'So that's how you're going to play this, Indeterminant? You run away to the Empire and bring back enough firepower to kill me. Is that how it is? Hahaha..... fine. I'll accept your challenge.'
"Mackayla. Head to Repan with 3500 men. Ryan. Head to Vena with the other 3500. Those two cities are under attack."
"Understood, hero."
"Understood. But where will you be headed?"
The three rode side by side, their horses speeding through the planes.
Kyle grinned ever so lightly, replying with a slightly demented smile.
"It looks like they've gathered a whole lot of firepower for this attack. I'll be taking on the main force."
The two nodded in understanding.
The hero was off to save the day.
Taking on the greatest threat, he would leave the secondary threats to his commanders.
"I'm counting on you two to defend your respective villages. Save as many people as you can. As for me..... do not worry."
Kyle snapped his reins, driving himself forward.
"I'll return after destroying the villains who came up with this scheme."