Fierce Battle 2

Dis's face filled with disbelief. He could not believe that a mere teenager had the nerve to trade blows with him. The longsword had plunged deep through his right eye and pierced out through the back of his skull, carrying flecks of white brain matter with it. Anglie had poured every ounce of his strength into that strike.

Anglie's left shoulder had been slashed open by a deep, vicious wound. Though his speed had allowed him to evade the sword originally aimed at his head, a large chunk of flesh had still been carved away, exposing the stark white bone of his shoulder. In that instant, he had noticed Dis's intention to retreat. The man had already prepared to throw out his chains, clearly intending to use their pulling force to escape quickly. And with most of his attention focused on the chains, Anglie knew that if he did not step forward and keep him here now, the man might truly escape—and would certainly return for revenge later. Moreover, the force behind the incoming sword strike had been less than half its usual strength. The Chip's warning had let him brace himself completely for the blow. In the end, Dis died, and he won.

"I won." Anglie could not help laughing. He jerked backward and pulled out the cross sword. Blood stained the silver Thorn Eagle family crest upon it.

Dis staggered back two steps, then dropped to his knees with a bang before pitching face-first onto the ground.

"Recommendation: Leave the area within five minutes. The scent of blood will attract forest beasts." The Chip promptly alerted Anglie to his current predicament. He had set it up beforehand so that the Chip would automatically warn him of anything that might threaten his safety.

He had not yet come down from the joy of victory when the prompt made his heart sink. He hurriedly cut off a strip of cloth with his sword and pressed it against the wound on his shoulder, then staggered over and began searching Dis's body.

"I won... cough, cough... I should get some reward, shouldn't I?" He gave a low chuckle, forcing down his discomfort with the corpse as he carefully searched Dis.

One remaining throwing knife, an old emerald ring whose gemstone was already covered in cracks, and a small money pouch. That was everything Dis had on him.

Anglie gathered the items, coiled up the two chain claws, picked up the cross sword, and then limped swiftly away.

He had barely taken a few steps.

"Awooo!!!" A violent gust suddenly blew out from the woods behind him, and the roar of some savage beast spread through the entire forest like ripples across water.

Anglie's expression changed drastically. His feet did not dare pause for even an instant as he raced toward the castle. The beast's cry had come from where he and Dis had fought just moments ago. If he had been even a little slower, he would probably have met his end here today.

Judging from its roar and aura, this unknown beast vastly surpassed the White-Scaled Boar he had encountered before. It was clearly likely to be on the same level as a Mountain Black Bear. If a beast of that level encountered him in his current severely injured state, the outcome needed no explanation.

"Roar!!!" Another savage roar came from behind him. Great flocks of birds were startled into flight, scattering in every direction.

Anglie did not dare stop at all. At the fastest speed of his life, he swiftly left the forest. As for Dis's corpse, there was no need to think about it—it had surely been dealt with directly by the beast. Now he did not even need to dispose of the body himself.

The moment he emerged from the woods, Anglie ran straight into two guards standing outside the forest. They seemed to have been worried for his safety and had specifically come to wait at the edge of the trees. Seeing their expressions now, they must have heard that wild roar as well, which was why their faces were filled with anxiety.

"Young Master Anglie!! Heavens!!" The two stared blankly as Anglie ran out of the forest covered in blood.

Anglie gulped down breaths of air.

"Get me back, quickly!"

His body went limp. The two caught him from front and back, and the three hurried away from the forest.

The cavalry squad training off to one side also seemed to notice the commotion. Two men broke away and ran over.

Then several people escorted Anglie back to the castle together. The cavalry squad also temporarily stopped training because of that savage roar and returned with them.

*****************

Anglie had been injured while hunting. Rumor had it that he had encountered wandering bandits—and even the legendary Mountain Black Bear.

This rumor quickly spread through the castle.

The maids, the servants, and the future knights sitting idly at tavern tables were all discussing it.

That afternoon, Anglie lay in his bedroom while the castle's chief apothecary personally came to treat his injuries. After bandaging all his wounds, the apothecary gave Anglie a long list of precautions before taking his payment and slowly leaving.

In the afternoon, Anglie reclined half-upright on his bed, his body wrapped in layer upon layer of grayish-white bandages. He looked somewhat like a mummy. Dim yellow sunlight streamed in through the open window, brightening the entire room.

The little girl Cecilia sat beside the bed. She had volunteered to come and care for Anglie. At that moment, Cecilia was carefully peeling the skin off a pear-like fruit.

After returning, Anglie had gotten a proper rest. Now that he was awake, he felt refreshed, and the pain from his wounds had eased considerably. He had also hurriedly asked Cecilia to remove the iron balls in his bedroom one by one, place them in a corner, and cover them with black cloth. The spoils he had brought back had likewise been carefully wiped clean with a damp cloth and placed on his bedside table.

"By the way, did anyone else come by after I fell asleep?" Anglie asked casually.

Cecilia blinked her large eyes a few times. "Lord Ward came once. Seeing that you were resting, he did not disturb you. He asked me to tell you to rest well these next few days, then he left. Miss Maggie and Miss Cilier also came by."

Anglie nodded.

By the usual pattern, the Baron had gone to the silver mine. Including the trip there and back, it would take at least four or five days. After all, this world had no telephones or other long-distance communication methods; for news to travel elsewhere, someone had to go deliver it in person. So the Baron probably had not yet learned that he was injured.

The Leo Family's silver mine lay on the outskirts of Audis Knight Territory. Audis Knight Territory sat in the middle of Leo Territory in a roughly circular shape, while the silver mine was located at the very edge of Leo Territory. Though it was not especially far away, the road was difficult to travel, deep in the mountains, making entry and exit highly inconvenient.

"Oh, right. Lord Ward said that the beast you encountered was likely an adult Raging Mountain Bear. It is an even fiercer beast than a Mountain Black Bear and the king of this forest," Cecilia said softly.

"A Raging Mountain Bear?" Anglie licked his lips. He knew that name; it had been recorded in the miscellaneous books in the library.

The Raging Mountain Bear was a close relative of the Mountain Black Bear. It possessed boundless strength and did not share the Mountain Black Bear's weakness of relatively slow speed. Its hide was exceptionally tough, and it had strong resistance to most toxins. It was one of the most renowned ferocious beasts in the entire Rudin Kingdom. At minimum, its combat power equaled the combined strength of two to four Peak Knight Level experts. Once it went berserk, its combat power would rise even further.

One had to know that even the Baron back then had only killed an ordinary Mountain Black Bear. It was clear that if Anglie had truly encountered that ferocious beast, he likely would not have had the slightest chance of surviving.

"I really was lucky." Anglie felt a lingering chill of fear. According to the story he had fabricated in advance, he had encountered people fighting a bear. A flying sword had slashed his shoulder, and a wildly thrown throwing knife had nearly taken his life. In the end, he had picked up a few things from the side and brought them back. Even so, he had already been seriously injured.

According to the chief apothecary's assessment, some expert had probably been fighting a Mountain Black Bear when a weapon knocked away in the battle happened to injure Anglie. Fortunately, he had been lucky and had not suffered overly serious injuries. This was also the earliest version of the rumor in the castle.

If he did not put it that way, there would be no way to explain how he had become so much stronger in such a short time. He had grown stronger by eating One-Eyed Snake eyes and laxative Blue Bamboo Shoots? How had he discovered that?

And what about his swordsmanship? Swordsmanship capable of fighting an assassin from the Dark Chapter?

One had to know that both the Baron and Ward Audis occasionally tested Anglie's progress in swordsmanship. They knew his level very well. Just the day before he fell off his horse, Anglie had even practiced swordsmanship with his father, the Baron. Growing so much stronger in such a short time was no longer something talent could explain. To avoid seeming abrupt, Anglie needed a longer transition period, allowing the people in the castle to adapt to his strength.

Lying on the bed, Anglie reached out, took down the spoils from the bedside table, and placed them on the white blanket.

A silver cross sword, two coils of chain claws, a throwing knife, a ring, and a leather money pouch.

He opened the money pouch first. Inside were a few scattered gold coins and some silver coins. This was nothing to Anglie, who received an allowance of dozens of gold coins each month. Because of the Baron's favor, his gold allowance was the largest in the castle aside from the Baron's own. Since ten silver coins could only be exchanged for one gold coin, silver coins were even less attractive to Anglie.

He tossed aside the money pouch and picked up the chain claws for a look. They were entirely black, making them well-suited for use at night. He did not know what coating had been applied to them. Their claws were also extremely sharp; merely placing them on the blanket had already sliced a tear into it.

There were no markings on the blade of that longsword, but the entire sword was as smooth and pristine as new, and its edge was exceptionally sharp. One glance showed it was no ordinary item. Anglie noticed that there was not even the slightest nick on the blade. Despite their earlier fierce exchange of blows, it had not suffered the tiniest trace of damage.

He stretched out a finger and flicked the blade.

With a clang, it gave off a crisp and pleasant ring.

"Fine material." Anglie praised it. He decided that this sword would be his personal weapon from now on.

Last came the ring.

Anglie gently picked it up. He was certain that something carried close by an expert of that kind could never be a simple object.

The ring was a band made of brass-colored metal, without any patterns. It was merely a brass ring, its surface slightly uneven and its color a dark yellow, evidently worn from being frequently rubbed. In the center of the band was set an oval emerald. The gemstone's surface was covered in cracks.

"It looks like it might be broken?" Anglie examined the ring.

Cecilia, sitting beside him, watched curiously, her gaze resting on the ring in his hand.

"You should leave first." Anglie frowned slightly.

"O-okay." Cecilia was slightly startled. She quickly stood, placed the fruit in her hand onto the plate on the bedside table, bowed, and then hurried out of the room.

With a click, the door closed.

Only then did Anglie feel at ease as he examined the ring in his hand. He had a feeling that this ring was absolutely not as simple as it appeared.