Hidden Truth

After a period of rest, Chen Mo prepared to continue expanding his territory.

His caravan had not yet found the person he was looking for. He could only continue to expand his power and increase the size of the caravan. He believed that the person he was looking for would appear sooner or later. Chen Mo, who had been injected with the Super Soldier Serum and whose lifespan had been greatly extended, had enough time and patience.

However, Chen Mo noticed that Andrew, the leader of his Knights, was acting strangely lately. Others might not have noticed, but with Chen Mo's keen senses, he could often sense a worry and unease emanating from him.

This feeling intensified after they learned that their next target was Marquis Leonard, who was located on the outskirts of their territory, and they became distracted during their daily training.

Chen Mo could tell that Andrew's emotions were definitely related to the Marquis Leonard's territory.

As one of the earliest followers of Chen Mo, and now the leader of the strongest and highest-ranking Knights under Chen Mo, Andrew's performance has always satisfied Chen Mo.

He was persistent, brave, and incredibly loyal, unconditionally carrying out all of Chen Mo's orders. Under his leadership, the entire Knights remained steadfast in their loyalty to Chen Mo. Even when they were about to smash the city gates with their own flesh and blood, no one was afraid or timid. They all charged forward with a death wish, and of course, Chen Mo did not disappoint them.

The original hundred-man Knights has expanded to more than five hundred after a year of fighting, and all of the original hundred-man knights have been Knight by Chen Mo through their own efforts.

Due to the large number of Knight under his command, in order to distinguish different ranks and clarify subordinate relationships, Chen Mo simply divided the formal Knight into four ranks, distinguished by gold, silver, bronze, and iron.

The highest-ranking Gold Knight has not yet been appointed.

As the leader of the Knights, Andrew is also the strongest warrior who has killed the most enemies. He is currently the highest-ranking and only Silver Knight under Chen Mo's command, and he is in charge of the entire Knights.

The eight people who were rescued by Chen Mo along with Andrew, and Victor, who had recently joined Chen Mo's ranks but had distinguished himself Knight Victor, each leading a squadron of several dozen Knight.

The Black Iron Knight numbered over a hundred, most of whom were originally members of the territory's guard. Each of them led four squire Knight, forming a small squad as the most basic combat unit.

These four hundred-plus squire Knight were selected by Chen Mo from former noble Knight who had either volunteered to join him or had been captured, and were added to the Knights.

Upon arriving in Chen Mo's territory, everything had to start anew; the original Knight title was no longer valid.

Some of them have already become official Black Iron Knight again through their own efforts and bravery in fighting the enemy, while the others are all putting in their best efforts, hoping to reclaim their honor as soon as possible.

Chen Mo was fair in rewarding and punishing his subordinates. He was never stingy with rewards for meritorious soldiers, including gold coins, land, and even titles. As long as you made enough contributions, it was not impossible to become a baron.

Therefore, the morale of the entire Knights was extremely high, and they were eager to fight, to fight for their Lord, and to accumulate merits.

Everyone hoped that one day they could acquire their own territory, establish their own Knight family, or even become a true hereditary nobleman, and Andrew was the most determined among them.

Not only is he brave and fearless on the battlefield, fighting valiantly against the enemy, but even though he is the strongest in terms of martial arts after Chen Mo, he has never relaxed his training and seizes every opportunity to improve his strength.

Under his leadership and example, the Knights did not slack off in their daily training despite being equipped with excellent armor and weapons. Everyone trained very hard, especially the Knight who joined later. They treasured the Holy Cross Swordsmanship and practiced it diligently every day.

But now their Knights is acting out of character, absent-minded and lacking any fighting spirit. Chen Mo has to personally investigate why his brave and trusted general is behaving so strangely. There must be some hidden reason behind this.

Blackrock Castle, the Lord's study.

A portrait of a charging Knight hangs on the wall, majestic and domineering. Soft and luxurious wool carpets cover the floor, and heavy and exquisite solid wood furniture is placed around the room. The entire study is decorated in a noble, elegant and grand style.

Chen Mo sat behind his dark solid wood desk, flipping through the latest intelligence sent back by the Chamber of Commerce.

The firewood crackled softly in the fireplace, making the study warm and tranquil.

Suddenly, heavy footsteps sounded outside the door, followed by a gentle knock on the study door.

"My Lord, Knight Andrew has arrived."

The sound of the Castle butler's announcement came from outside the door.

"Come in."

Chen Mo's authoritative voice rang out.

With Chen Mo's permission, the butler outside opened the study door, bowed slightly, and gestured for Andrew to enter.

Andrew, dressed in armor and carrying a helmet, strode into the study, his face serious, and stood ramrod straight in front of Chen Mo.

As the Knights expanded, the original manor was no longer sufficient to accommodate the large number of Knight and warhorses. In addition, the secret workshop was of great importance. So Chen Mo simply moved the Lord's manor from the original baron's manor to the Blackrock Castle, which originally belonged to Count Valen.

This ancient Gothic Castle is built entirely of hard black stone. It is vast, ancient, and features towering towers, pointed arched roofs, and a majestic, mysterious, and slightly eerie atmosphere.

In the study, Chen Mo put down the intelligence in his hand and looked at Andrew, who stood proudly in front of him. Although he tried to hide it, Chen Mo could still see the worry in his eyes.

Under Chen Mo's sharp and insightful gaze, which seemed to see through everything, Andrew felt as if he had been completely seen through and had no secrets left.

"What are your thoughts on this attack on Marquis Leonard's Fief?"

Chen Mo looked into Andrew's eyes and asked slowly.

Under Chen Mo's gaze, sweat gradually beaded on Andrew's forehead. Finally, as if he had made up his mind, he gritted his teeth and spoke.

"My Lord, I am actually from the territory of Marquis Leonard. My father was once a Knight under Marquis Leonard."

Seemingly having completely let go of his concerns, Andrew blurted out everything.

It turns out that back then, because Andrew's family could not afford the huge expense of him and his brother becoming Knight, Andrew, as the youngest son, resolutely joined the Marquis Leonard's territory guard in order to realize his dream of becoming Knight and fought for him for many years.

With his strong strength and extraordinary talent, thanks to the rigorous Knight training he received from a young age, Andrew has repeatedly made meritorious contributions in battle. Logically speaking, even if he could not become Knight, he should have been appreciated by the Lord and at least become a squire Knight or the leader of the guard.

However, years have passed, and Andrew has even personally killed two werewolves, yet he has not received any promotion and remains an ordinary soldier.

The reason, surprisingly, was because of the Marquis Leonard's daughter.

On one occasion, Andrew and several dozen soldiers, along with two Knights, were ordered to escort the Marquis's daughter on an outing, when they unexpectedly encountered two terrifying werewolves.

Dozens of soldiers were slaughtered, and the rest scattered and fled. The two Knight fought desperately but managed to kill one werewolf and wound another.

Just as both Knight were killed and the soldiers were slaughtered and fled, and the noble lady was about to be devoured by wolves, Andrew, who was the last survivor, picked up a longsword dropped by one of the Knight and stood in front of her. In the end, he killed the werewolf at the cost of serious injuries and saved the young and beautiful noble lady.

Having lived in Castle since childhood and never having been exposed to the outside world, the noble lady, after experiencing this thrilling crisis, secretly develops feelings for the brave and strong Andrew.

Andrew gradually developed feelings for this beautiful girl who was simple, kind, and had none of the arrogance or haughtiness of a noble lady. The two would secretly meet and date from time to time.

Having narrowly escaped being devoured by werewolves, this delicate noblewoman developed a keen interest in swordsmanship. After witnessing Andrew's prowess, she frequently asked Andrew to teach her.

After learning that his dream was to become a Knight, she said that she would also become a female Knight and fight werewolves with him.

The two continued to secretly date and practice swordsmanship. The noblewoman's swordsmanship improved, and their feelings for each other deepened.

A few years later, the noble lady reached marriageable age, while Andrew, despite his efforts, remained an ordinary soldier and had no chance of marrying the daughter of a noble marquis.

In the end, Marquis Leonard arranged a marriage for her, but she, who was usually docile, was unusually stubborn and would rather die than marry him. To show her determination, she even put on armor and infiltrated the Knights, and followed them to the battlefield to fight against the enemy.

Ultimately, the Marquis had to annul the engagement, but then he found Andrew and discovered that he had known about their affair all along.

The two of them never overstepped any boundaries; they simply chatted, played, and practiced swordsmanship. Marquis Leonard assumed that his daughter trusted his abilities because he had saved her, and that she had asked him to escort her on her outings. He also assumed that she had taken a liking to swordsmanship and was learning from him. Therefore, he did not interfere much, but simply instructed his trusted subordinates to keep a close eye on them.

Marquis Leonard didn't take Andrew seriously. He had nearly a hundred powerful Knight under his command, and the infantry were just cannon fodder in his eyes. He didn't pay much attention to them, even though Andrew was much stronger than the other soldiers.

In his view, Andrew was just a servant who played with his master. As for saving his daughter's life from the werewolves, that was what he was supposed to do as a servant. If they hadn't protected their master, they should all have been put to death!

Upon discovering their relationship, Marquis Leonard was furious. However, due to his daughter's strong personality, the Marquis did not execute Andrew outright. Instead, he banished him and asked him to leave her a letter so that she could finally give up on him.

According to Marquis Leonard, you, a commoner, are not worthy of the noble Marquis's daughter. Don't even dream about it. Only nobles are worthy of his beautiful and noble daughter.

Andrew felt that he had no hope of becoming Knight, let alone a nobleman. He felt that he was not good enough for her and could not give her a better life. Disheartened, he left a letter as requested by the Marquis and left the Marquis's territory in despair. He came to the small village where he had first met Chen Mo and settled down, intending to forget the past and live an ordinary life.

But how could he possibly forget? He would always remember the beautiful girl who wielded the longsword alongside him.

Her name is Amelia!