With an audience watching, the guards' morale rose a little more.
Remembering the system's prompt, Lin Ke glanced at the sunlight behind him and barked at the guards:
"Everyone, about-face!"
The guards turned around reflexively.
Although Lin Ke thought their about-face was barely passable, to the servants it looked perfectly synchronized, drawing waves of astonished cries from the crowd.
Even the men under their master, Viscount Garros, were not this orderly!
The guards puffed out their chests a little more.
Young men always wanted to show off in front of young women.
And showing off their looks or their chests could never compare to showing off their valor and courage.
"I, Lin Ke Azan, the future heir of this family... hereby promise!"
Unfortunately, I don't have many titles yet. I should try to get a whole string of titles and accomplishments in the future. That would sound much better.
Lin Ke's voice was solemn and dignified. "In this battle, whoever kills a Giant Tiger will receive not only the copper coins I promised earlier, but also an opportunity I will grant him in the future!"
At this point, Lin Ke paused.
The guards, servants, and slaves, including his mother, John, and Nix, were all captivated.
Then Lin Ke continued, "An opportunity to become a Professional! If two people do it, I will give both of them the chance to undergo Bloodline Enlightenment!"
Bloodline Enlightenment! Becoming a Professional!
To Lin Ke, this was like getting into a prestigious university in his previous life and unlocking a life with cheat codes.
However, he did not yet know the requirements for Bloodline Enlightenment or how to become a Professional, so he had only promised a method and an opportunity in the future.
After all, if hiring an [Enlightenment Teacher] even once was outrageously expensive enough to cripple their finances, they would be better off not hiring one.
But even an opportunity... was enough!
This was a chance to become a Professional!
The guards' hearts burned with excitement, and they silently tightened their grips on their weapons.
Once they became Professionals, they could gain opportunities to become pioneers from the kingdom's various nobles, become honored guests of noble houses, and even possess great power in the future...
There were so many benefits!
The guards rallied.
But it was not long, only a few minutes, before two tremendous beastly roars came from the forest.
"ROAR!!!!"
"ROAR!!!!"
"On guard!" Lin Ke immediately shouted, his body tense as he tightened his grip on his sword again.
No sooner had he spoken than two enormous blue figures emerged indistinctly at the edge of the forest.
They were two blue tigers, each standing over a meter and a half tall even on all fours, with muscular, powerful limbs and two long fangs protruding from its mouth.
They looked extremely ferocious!
"Grrr..."
The two Giant Tigers sniffed where they stood, then stared at Lin Ke atop the wagon and growled low, crouching as though ready to pounce.
That simple crouching motion made the young men, who had just been puffing out their chests, involuntarily take a step back.
This was the natural dominance of predators over prey.
Seeing this, Lin Ke frowned. "Watch the Giant Tigers' front legs! When they bend their front legs, they're probably preparing to jump! When they leap into the air, aim your swords at their bellies and mouths!"
Lin Ke could only judge the situation by their movements.
After all, he had never fought a tiger in his previous life and did not know how to win. Surely he could not use a sliding tackle?
Still, he guessed that their weak points were probably their bellies and faces, since those were the vulnerable spots on most animals.
Just as the two sides stood locked in a tense standoff...
Suddenly, one tiger raised its chest and unleashed a tremendous roar. "ROAR!!!!!"
The sound erupted like a thunderclap.
In an instant, Lin Ke felt dizzy, his vision swimming as he staggered.
A few seconds later, alarm jolted through him, and he hurriedly shook his head, clearing it a little.
"Kill them!"
"Aah!!"
"Run! Run!"
Below him, everything had descended into chaos. Several scrawny men clutched their heads and rolled on the ground.
Some were wildly swinging their swords at the two tigers, but they could only leave faint bloody scratches.
Others had surrounded the tigers but stood frozen, not daring to advance.
The servants were crying and screaming, while others were trying to calm the Gula Cattle, some of which had been frightened by the tiger's roar.
One guard was actually preparing to flee, and others looked ready to do the same.
Someone wanted to run!
"Aah!" "It's terrifying!" "Get back!"...
The entire caravan fell into chaos, with many people trembling in fear.
They've only just made contact!
This can't go on!
Once the dizziness passed, Lin Ke steeled himself and gritted his teeth.
Holding the Iron Sword, he jumped straight down, the impact sending pain through his feet.
Then he caught up with the guard who was trying to flee and, with all his strength, thrust his sword through the terrified man's throat.
The rust-covered sword was actually still very sharp!
Squelch!!!
Blood sprayed. The guard tried to turn around, but his body slowly collapsed, gurgling sounds escaping his mouth as blood poured out, terror still lingering in his eyes.
For a moment, the scene went silent. Everyone was stunned.
Lin Ke's heart was pounding, and his face was covered in blood.
But he did not hesitate. He yanked out the bloodstained sword, turned around, and roared, "Anyone who deserts, I'll kill!"
His voice was childish and immature, yet it stunned everyone into submission.
Over on the battlefield, not only the guards but even the two tigers froze for a moment.
Why was this human... killing his own people first in a fight?
Lin Ke did not remain standing there. Dragging the Iron Sword, he strode toward the battlefield. "Groups one and two, deal with that one! Group three, deal with this one! Hold out until groups one and two finish!"
He pointed at the two tigers. Groups one and two would handle the one whose roar had made him dizzy, while group three would first handle the one that did not seem to possess any additional supernatural powers.
Three hundred people milled about noisily on the broad dirt road. At Lin Ke's words, they immediately began to move.
"Hurry up, George!"
"Trondon, Trondon, you idiot, get up!"
"Use your swords! Your swords!"
The group leaders immediately remembered Lin Ke's words. If they did not fight, the Giant Tigers would kill them!
And so, the battle suddenly became easier again.
More than a hundred and eighty men surrounded one Giant Tiger in layers, while another sixty-odd dealt with the other.
"Aim for the tigers' eyes and mouths! And their bellies! Watch out for their claws and tails!"
Lin Ke reached the edge of the battlefield and once again climbed onto the cattle wagon's roof using both hands and feet. Then he drove his blade into the wagon canopy, crossed his hands over the hilt, and watched the battle.
Three hundred people was already a considerable number. In his previous life, a class had only fifty or sixty students, and smaller classes had even fewer.
The three hundred attackers surrounded the Giant Tigers in layer upon layer, but the two beasts were incredibly powerful.
A single sweep of a paw nearly as large as Lin Ke's body could send an adult flying, and their pounces were astonishingly fast.
"Damn it, is this the power of undergoing Bloodline Enlightenment and gaining a profession...?" Lin Ke frowned.
Three hundred people!
Forget three hundred. Even thirty people armed with sharp blades and clad in armor probably would not have struggled this much against two ordinary tigers.
And that first roar had thrown their ranks straight into disarray.
Crack!!!
Just then, a guard actually landed a sword strike on one Giant Tiger's tail.
The Giant Tiger's tail snapped off and fell to the ground.
"ROAR!!!"
The Giant Tiger instantly turned and swatted the stunned guard's head clean off, leaving only a headless corpse spurting blood.
Fortunately, before Lin Ke could give a warning, the other guards drove and slashed a mass of blades into the Giant Tiger's body with a series of wet squelches.
"Roar! Awooo..."
The Deep Blue Giant Tiger cried out in pain, swung a forepaw, and smashed straight through three or four ranks of guards before fleeing toward the forest.
Seeing this, the other one also leaped with all its might and fled.
Before you continue