Leaving 2

If the rebels truly had overwhelming strength, then quietly gathering up valuables and leaving at once was also essential. No matter what, he had to go back immediately and see how things stood.

Anglie hurried back along the original route. Fortunately, a black horse that had been startled loose by the fighting between bandits and travelers burst out just as he arrived. Anglie simply leaped onto its back. After quickly calming it, he rode the black horse at full speed toward the castle of the territory, saving himself a great deal of stamina.

By the time he returned to the castle, it was already late afternoon.

Anglie rode along the main road and charged into the training grounds outside the castle. From afar, he saw that the drawbridge had been lowered. Corpses and bloodstains stretched all the way into the castle. There was no one in sight outside, but faint shouts of battle and clashing weapons could still be heard within.

"The situation isn't too bad yet!" Anglie dismounted with a grave expression. His left hand never dared leave the wound at his waist, and his face was growing paler from the injury, though it did not yet hinder his movements. Drawing his cross sword, Anglie strode swiftly across the drawbridge.

Some of the corpses on the ground were castle guards, while others were Apprentice Knight trainees. Dark red and bright red bloodstains were everywhere. Anglie even saw two Apprentice Knight trainees with their swords buried in each other's necks, having perished together.

It seemed that some of both the guards and Apprentice Knights had rebelled. They had split into two sides and begun slaughtering one another.

Anglie immediately reached that conclusion. Without slowing his pace, he rushed into the castle.

In the training grounds between several towers, guards and trainees were fighting each other in seven or eight separate clashes. Near the main tower, a blond young man was leading people down from above. He and his subordinates were carrying all manner of gold, silver, jewelry, books, and records in their arms. Wild laughter and intermittent screams blended into a single chaos.

On the other side, at the entrance to the residential quarters, several trainees were holding the doorway at all costs while soldiers outside cautiously tried to force their way in.

Anglie swept his gaze across the scene. His expression immediately darkened. Cross sword in hand, he charged straight into the training grounds.

Hearing his footsteps, a trainee who had just killed a soldier turned around. A savage grin spread across his face. With a low roar, he swung his sword at Anglie's neck.

Anglie sidestepped and casually flicked his sword across the trainee's neck. A jet of blood immediately burst forth. The man clutched his throat, staggered forward several steps, then collapsed face-first onto the ground.

To Anglie, these Apprentice Knights were far too slow compared to Dis, Ward, and Chris. They were practically moving in slow motion, as though deliberately slowing themselves down. As he walked forward, he nearly killed one with every strike. Every blow hit the neck, every strike was fatal.

If not for the time it took to distinguish the rebels, Anglie would have already charged through the entire training grounds and dealt with every enemy one by one.

But the successive screams quickly drew everyone else's attention.

"It's Anglie!!" someone shouted.

Pair after pair of eyes turned toward him. They watched him kill enemies one sword at a time, as easily as chopping vegetables. The trainees and guards resisting the rebellion immediately let out faint cheers.

Over by the residential quarters, gaze after gaze peered out from the upstairs windows. Among them, the sheltered women all recognized this young master who was powerful beyond all reason.

"He's too fierce." Maggie and Cilier stood with a group of stewards' children, looking down from a window. They wore the same expressions as everyone around them—mouths slightly open, faces full of shock.

Those trainees who had always looked down on Anglie also fell silent.

The battle lasted only a short time.

Once they realized that Anglie was actually a Knight Level expert, the remaining rebels abandoned most of their valuables and fled for their lives. Without large numbers of bows and crossbows, threatening a Knight Level warrior would take an unknown number of lives to fill the gap. The blond young man leading them decisively became the first to run. Without a commander, the rest swiftly scattered like birds and beasts.

The others chased after them and slaughtered a few more. Only after leaving behind over a dozen corpses did they return to the castle amid cheers.

Anglie immediately had the surviving apothecaries come treat his wounds. At that moment, the Baron also returned and immediately began having people sort through the castle's belongings. He generously rewarded the meritorious resisters with substantial silver and gold coins. After dismissing most of the people, only several core Lineage members and more than twenty soldiers utterly loyal to the Baron remained.

Anglie sat in a chair to one side, resting as he watched the Baron handle the affairs of the entire castle in an orderly manner.

Maggie and Cilier stood with their parents. They had also decided to retreat with the Baron and leave this place. There were also several of the Baron's children. As for the rest, they had either died amid the chaos or decided to leave on their own. Almost all had scattered.

There was also Cecilia. The girl had hidden inside a large water vat and successfully escaped being killed. Now, drenched from head to toe, she stood beside Anglie.

After dismissing most of the people, the Baron coldly swept his gaze over everyone before him. Only when his eyes passed over his son did they soften somewhat.

"Tonight, Saladin's people will attack this territory. We must leave here immediately—leave forever. Perhaps we may never return. If any of you wish to come with me, then come. If not, leave the castle now." His voice was low, yet it still carried an air of authority and solemnity.

The remaining people stirred uneasily at the news. Then another seven or eight chose to leave. After that, the rest made no further movement.

From a huge castle that had once held hundreds, only a dozen or so people now remained at the Baron's side.

Both the Baron and Anglie felt complicated emotions. Those who had chosen to remain were either the Baron's children and women or relatives who had come to seek shelter with him. Aside from the more than twenty utterly loyal soldiers, only around ten others remained.

Maggie's father gave his wife a look. She immediately understood and gently pushed her daughter on the shoulder.

Maggie hesitated for a moment, then immediately reacted.

Through a gap in the crowd, she saw Anglie seated in a high-backed chair, his expression cold and detached. One leg was crossed over the other, while his longsword rested at an angle against the chair, within easy reach.

The current Anglie was practically a different person from the former foppish young master, as far apart as heaven and earth. Maggie's heart suddenly began pounding. After hesitating, she was about to step forward.

Suddenly, a smaller figure ran out from the side and threw herself into Anglie's arms. It was Cilier.

Like a frightened little bird, the petite girl's eyes glistened with tears. She buried her head in Anglie's chest and began to sob softly, utterly dependent on him.

Maggie's heart skipped a beat. She hurried out and quickly walked to Anglie's side.

"Brother Anglie, is your injury all right?" she asked softly, her face flushed crimson.

Anglie's gaze passed over the two girls, then shifted to the young men and women who had remained nearby. The people around them all lowered their heads or looked at him with awe.

"Maggie, Cilier, are you willing to leave this place with Father and me?" he asked flatly.

"Yes, yes!" Maggie immediately declared her position. Her parents had long since instructed her, and she had already decided to stay close to this young master who had suddenly revealed such astonishing strength. Anglie's ferocious performance in the castle had delighted Maggie's parents, who had already held such intentions, as well as Cilier's mother, Lady Katyusha. They felt deeply that they had judged him correctly all along.

"We're willing too," Cilier hurriedly said, raising her face.

Meanwhile, the Baron was giving orders to the remaining guards, laying out their route of departure and preparing supplies. Fortunately, his physique was formidable. Even with one eye blinded, his Peak Knight Level body remained as sturdy as a bear. After drinking some medicinal broth, much of his strength and energy quickly returned. Once the apothecaries had treated his eye, he wore a white eyepatch over it, becoming a one-eyed man outright.

He remained as energetic as ever, loudly directing the soldiers in their preparations. At the same time, he sent guards out as scouts to observe Saladin's approaching forces from high ground.

Anglie, meanwhile, casually spoke with some timid half-brothers and half-sisters nearby. From the Baron's orders, he had also learned his father's plan.

He would take the remaining people and leave the storm-tossed Rudin Kingdom directly, heading for Maruya Harbor, a port of the Andes Alliance to the east. It was where Anglie's aunt, the Baron's younger sister Maria Leo, lived. Maria Leo had married a nobleman of Maruya Harbor long ago, and her relationship with Leo Territory had always been fairly good. They exchanged letters every year. This time, the Baron intended to seek refuge with his sister Maria first, settle down, heal his wounds, restore his strength, and only then make further plans. With their power greatly diminished, they could no longer remain in the Rudin Kingdom. The Andes Alliance was just the place to lie low for a while.