Edward

Staggering out of the hall, he saw several guards approaching in the distance.

When they saw Cadiz emerge from the hall covered in blood, they were shocked and hurried forward, a hint of wariness in their eyes.

Before they could reach him, several flashes of sword light appeared around them. A few figures charged out at once and swiftly took the guards down.

They were all tall men. Though dressed like guards, their auras were entirely different, and they looked far more elite than the guards.

At the very front of the group was a tall knight in full armor. Seeing Cadiz's injuries, he cried out in alarm, "Lord Cadiz!"

"I'm fine."

Looking at the knight before him, Cadiz endured the pain and discomfort wracking his body and asked, "How are things?"

"Everything is going smoothly!" Seeing Cadiz's condition, the knight quickly replied, "We've bought off most of the remaining knights in the castle. And with you keeping Count Polia occupied, there's chaos everywhere around the castle."

Hearing this, Cadiz nodded in satisfaction, then asked, "What about Arcadia? Has he arrived?"

"Lord Arcadia secretly brought his men into the castle. He's now leading his Black Knight Order in an attack, but Flar's personal guards have held them off," the knight replied quickly.

"Flar..." Cadiz's expression grew complicated.

He had once served under Flar and received a great deal of kindness from him. They had also been on good terms for years. Now, however, they were about to stand against each other.

As an old friend of many years, Cadiz knew Flar's nature all too well. He would never betray Count Polia and join their side, so there was no choice but to kill him.

"Rest in peace. After you're gone, I'll take care of your family for you."

He sighed faintly, the thought passing through his mind. Then a cold look crossed his face. "Tell me! Where is Edward?"

After what had happened today, Count Polia, the absolute ruler, was as good as dead. But if Edward, his heir, escaped, he would become a major problem.

House Falkus had ruled the North for nearly a century and had long since put down deep roots. Most of the northern nobles supported them, and many were members of House Falkus themselves. Arthur's father, for instance, was one of them.

If Edward escaped and used his status as heir to House Falkus to unite the remnants of their forces in the North, it would affect who controlled the region and create further complications.

At the thought, his eyes turned cold. Ignoring his injuries, he strode in a certain direction.

War was raging throughout the castle.

By now, the castle that had once been peaceful and secure had been utterly transformed. Fighters clashed everywhere, throwing the whole place into chaos.

Edward was hiding in a narrow corner.

He held a longsword in his hand. Sweat soaked him from head to toe, and he looked utterly disheveled.

The situation around the North had been tense for a long time, but Count Polia had always kept it outside the castle, so none of it had affected him.

When the turmoil suddenly broke out, he had been resting with a female companion in his room. Several hardened fighters burst in and tried to seize him.

If his loyal guards hadn't appeared at the crucial moment and held them back, he would already have been taken away.

Standing still and listening to the clear sounds of fighting all around him, Edward was terrified. His right hand, gripping the longsword, trembled slightly.

Compared to his father, Count Polia, when he was young, he was clearly far inferior.

He was born into privilege: his father ruled the North, and his mother came from a distinguished family. But his talent and personality were both unremarkable. Though he had some aptitude for knighthood, he hated the grueling training. Even with Count Polia forcing him to practice, he was now only a little stronger than an ordinary person and probably couldn't even beat an elite fighter.

Over time, Count Polia had more or less given up on training him to become a knight. He had only planned to assign him a few talented relatives as aides. Arthur was one of them.

Count Polia had only two sons. His eldest had left, and as the sole remaining child, Edward had been the count's heir from birth. He had never faced any danger growing up, much less fought anyone himself.

To him, this experience was like a nightmare. Even now, he felt dazed and hadn't recovered.

"They haven't searched over there yet!" A shout rang out in the distance, startling Edward.

Several fighters in black leather armor approached from outside, weapons in hand. They looked ready to search the area.

"What should I do?" The approaching footsteps drew closer and closer to where he was hiding. Fear rose in Edward's chest, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

The sounds in the distance grew nearer. Though the area was spacious, there weren't many places to hide someone. They would soon reach where Edward was.

Taking it all in, Edward gritted his teeth and simply stepped out of his hiding place, running into the distance.

"There he is! That's Polia's heir!"

An excited shout came from afar. The fighters spotted Edward and quickly chased after him.

They were fast, and there were more of them. Working in unspoken coordination, they gradually blocked off every possible escape route before closing in on him.

Thud!

As he fled in a panic, Edward twisted his ankle and fell hard to the ground.

As the fighters slowly approached, despair filled his eyes. He could hardly bear to imagine what would happen if they captured him.

Suddenly, the fierce sound of a sword cutting through the air rang out. A massive sword swept across, slicing the men before him in half.

"Lord Edward!" someone called from ahead.

At the familiar voice, Edward looked up in delighted surprise. A tall, imposing middle-aged knight stood before him.

Flar wore full armor, and the greatsword in his hand looked heavy. Standing there, he had easily taken down the black-armored fighters.

Dried red blood stained his armor. Edward couldn't tell whether it belonged to his enemies or to him. Flar quickly came over and helped him up.

"Knight Flar, where's my father?"

Looking at the tall knight before him, Edward felt as if he had found someone he could rely on. He hurriedly asked the question.

"I don't know."

As Edward looked at him in disappointment, Flar shook his head. "Things have turned very bad, but Lord Polia still hasn't shown up."