Chapter 63: Retreat!

The moon, round and pale, cut across the black sky where no stars dared to shine. Its silvery light, cold and penetrating, bathed the landscape, lengthening the shadows of the trees.

A harsh breeze, laden with the damp moss of the night, crept through the undergrowth, making the stems rustle.

Crickets scraped their legs frantically. Owls hooted from the highest branches, and something, perhaps a wild boar or some smaller animal, scratched among the bushes.

Entonces, gruñidos apagados resonaron a su alrededor.

Dorian, who was about to deliver the final blow to Adam, paused and frowned as he heard the sounds getting closer.

Adam sighed with relief.

One more second and he would have been dead.

He quickly took several steps back as he retreated into the forest.

“Retreat!”

The knights of the Hall family did not hesitate for a moment. They all moved immediately to follow their young master. They had accomplished their goal.

Moving quickly through the trees, Adam sighed again as he tried to control his breathing.

His plan had worked.

When he took the eggs from the Demon Crocodile, he had also entered the territory of the Giant Spiked Wolves.

There, he killed one of their young and stole several more. He also killed some females before leaving.

Meanwhile, the enemy knights took care of the Demon Crocodile.

Adam took advantage of that moment to scatter the blood of the stolen cubs around the camp.

It was only a matter of time before the wolves picked up the scent.

He had calculated that it would take them about thirty minutes to arrive.

But they appeared much faster than expected…

Saving his life.

Adam put those thoughts aside and quickened his pace.

He had no intention of getting caught up in the fierce battle that was about to break out between the two beasts.

…

Dorian was taken aback by the sudden retreat of Adam and his men. It had all happened so quickly that he barely had time to react.

But his attention was soon drawn to something else.

The sounds.

More precisely… the ones coming from the forest.

Frowning, he focused his gaze on the darkness between the trees.

Little by little, the gloom revealed a disturbing image.

Several corpses of Giant Spiked Wolf cubs lay tied up among the bushes. Their small bodies remained motionless, rigid… their eyes still open, frozen in an expression of pure panic.

Then he understood.

“That bastard…”

“Grrrr…!”

A cold growl forced him to turn his head sharply.

And then he saw them.

An entire pack of Giant Spiked Wolves emerged from the forest.

His fangs were bared.

And his eyes burned with rage.

Dorian clenched his teeth so hard that they began to bleed, and he shouted as the monsters attacked.

“Attack!”

Both the knights and the soldiers lunged at the monsters.

The largest one advanced first. Its golden eyes glowed, and thick saliva dripped from its jaws. The others followed, moving eagerly.

The first bite tore off the thigh of a soldier who was defending himself from another. The flesh was torn; the tendons were broken. Blood spurted in a dark arc, mixing with the mud.

The soldier writhed with a muffled scream, tearing through his throat. A comrade quickly came to his aid.

But as he helped his comrade, he was attacked from the side, and a wet sound was heard. Warm entrails spilled out of the wounds.

The soldier fainted.

A knight who used up most of his mana moved quickly among the monsters, destroying them; since they were only rank II, they posed no problem for them.

…However, it was very different from the soldiers who were dying.

While the knights dealt with most of the monsters efficiently, the soldiers died horribly and let out heart-wrenching screams.

A wolf grabbed a soldier’s arm and shook it as if it were nothing. The skin tore with a viscous snap, and the splintered humerus bone peeked out from between the shreds of flesh.

Another giant spiked wolf lunged at his chest. Its teeth sank into his left side—a tug. Flesh tore away from his torso with a sticky sound.

Dorian’s expression didn’t change in the slightest.

His eyes remained cold as he moved among the monsters with a speed that the soldiers could barely keep up with. His figure appeared and disappeared among the shadows cast by the moon.

The first rank II monster didn’t even finish raising its claws.

Dorian’s sword descended in a clean arc.

The creature’s head rolled through the mud.

The second one tried to lunge from the side, growling furiously.

A flash of steel.

A precise cut sliced through its throat.

Blood spurted out, splattering the damp earth.

The other monsters lunged at him at the same time, drawn by the smell of blood and the chaos of combat.

It was useless.

Dorian advanced like a beast trained only to kill monsters.

Every movement was efficient. Every step was measured. He wasted no mana and made no unnecessary attacks.

The creatures began to fall one after another, like sacks of potatoes thrown to the ground.

A severed leg fell near a destroyed camp. A body slumped against a tree with a thud. Another monster was pierced through the chest before it could even roar.

Within minutes, the clearing was silent once more.

The corpses of the monsters lay scattered on the ground, twisted into grotesque positions.

The dark blood mixed with the mud, forming small puddles that reflected the pale moonlight.

Dorian shook his sword once.

The drops of blood flew in a dark arc before disappearing into the earth.

Then he looked at the soldiers who were still standing. Because he knew that the knights were in perfect condition,

“Leave the wounded and let’s go!”

He commanded in a firm voice.

“So much blood and noise may attract higher-ranking monsters. We must report this to our Lord.”

The soldiers exchanged tense glances, but none argued with the order.

They all knew he was right.

Staying there any longer would be a death sentence.

As they began to retreat, Dorian turned his gaze toward the city of Arkham.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

His expression was dark.

And bitter.

Behind them, the first screams began to be heard.

“No…! Please!”

“Don’t leave us here!”

“General!”

The wounded soldiers, too badly injured to walk, crawled desperately through the mud, trying to follow the retreating group.

Some held out their hands in supplication.

Others wept.

But no one stopped.

The shadows in the forest began to move.

Among the trees, pairs of eyes glowed with a faint silver reflection.

When Dorian and the others had gotten far enough away, screams of horror and agony began to echo through the night.

A roar.

Then another.

Flesh being torn apart.

Bones breaking.

The sounds of pleading soon turned into screams.

And then…

Only the silence of the forest remained.

…

A few hours and minutes later, Adam finally arrived in the city of Arkham with the knights. Some of them were injured, but with a glance, he could see that he would have to find a doctor.

Upon entering the city, he gave some orders and went straight to the mansion, where his mother and fiancée were still awake. He spoke with them for a while and then went to clean up.

After doing all that, he went to his father’s room, where his father was still fast asleep, but his condition had not deteriorated, which confirmed even more strongly that the traitor was still in the mansion.

Adam was sure that the traitors were neither Lucas nor Alaric, as they had had the opportunity to make his father’s poisoning worse.

And only his butler remained, who had been with his father all this time.

…Alfred.

Adam closed his eyes and sighed, then sat down next to his father.

“Father, come back; we managed to drive Migzar’s forces from our lands… but it won’t be for long.

He waited for a response from his father, but got none; he could only feel his steady breathing, with a bitter expression, and continued.

“The method I used was quite simple: first, I prepared some traps for them, and then I made use of the monsters. If I hadn’t done that, we might all be dead by now, and this land would have become part of Kamelot.”

Adam lowered his head and remained silent for a long time; he had intended to go to the land of the elves… but the current situation prevented him from doing so. He also has to find allies to resist the coming attacks.

So, before long, he will have to leave Arkham to find people; he already has a few people in mind. But before that, he has to buy enough time.

He set his thoughts aside and continued talking to his father, knowing he would receive no response.

“Oh? I hadn’t told you, but the enemy general told me that if I joined them… Can you believe it? Me, your proud son, becoming part of Kamelot? What did I do wrong in this world to receive such an offer?”

Adam continued telling his father what had been happening in the territory, how it had been rebuilt, and more.

Until the first rays of sunlight filtered through a crack between the window and the curtain.

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