Hemlock took several deep breaths. His hands were shaking uncontrollably as the lavender vapor from his body seeped into the air. He felt the icy rain land on his armor and the exhaustion pull him back. It was the first time he had manifested his will into the world, and the toll was unbelievable. As the rain fell, the violet knight’s aura behind him dissipated, leaving only darkness. Even though it had only been in the world for a few minutes. It had used nearly every fiber of his being to summon, and the aching pain in his muscles nearly caused him to collapse.

  His last attack left nothing but devastation, and the only thing standing between him and total victory was the watchman, who was barely holding his ground. Hemlock lifted his visor and spat out a mouthful of blood. Looking at the old man, he grinned. The watchman had a long gash down his chest that painted the ground with his blood. It might not have been a fatal wound, but it was severe enough to settle the battle.

  A sense of joy filled his heart, and he couldn’t help but grin. He had done it. Hemlock watched Alex stab his sword into the ground to support himself and felt his hands tremble with excitement. The old man had split his aura knight’s blade in half as it came down at him, but it wasn’t enough to fully stop his attack. It still left a devastating wound. All he had to do was deliver the final blow, and his life would be over. Then, the empire would etch his name into history as the hero who killed the devil of the kingdom.

  Yet, despite everything, a sense of unease crept down his spine. Hemlock remained fixated on his prey. The old man staggered with each subtle movement yet remained unfazed. It was that unyielding attitude within each soldier from the Kingdom that made Hemlock utterly disgusted. His hands tightly clenched his sword as he pointed it at the Watchman. Even in the records, when the Empire cornered the Kingdom of Aurora, they remained stubborn and caused unnecessary causalities. It was pointless to do anything else. The watchman had already lost, yet that smirk on his face made Hemlock’s blood boil.

  Hemlock’s frown deepened as he observed Alex’s smug expression. He couldn’t understand what was going through the old man’s head. If it was him, he would be devastated. Broken. Yet…that will which never seemed to fade remained.

  “What’s so funny?” Hemlock raised his guard and glared at Alex.

  The old man chuckled and focused his gaze on Hemlock. “It’s just funny to see how much you bastards have copied us.” He had poured a healing potion over his wounds as the dust was settling. It wasn’t enough to heal his wounds, but enough to stop the bleeding. Now, all he had to do was stall.

  “So what? We merely adapted to the times. Besides… why does that matter when you’re already dead?”

  Alex chuckled at Hemlock, who lowered his visor. He gazed back at the corpses of enemy agents who chased him. “Really? All this to kill some old man who’s nearing retirement?”

  “You’re not just some old man,” Hemlock shot back.

  The veteran watched as a violet aura surged forth once more from Hemlock. He couldn’t help but laugh at his predicament. There was no point trying to stall anymore, as the person in front of him was determined to kill him. Even if he had an abundance of spirit essence left, it wouldn’t help. The only thing he could do was reinforce his sword with whatever leftover aura he had.

  He endured the stinging pain in his chest and pointed his blade at Hemlock. The icy rain numbed his body. After applying the mid-tier healing potion, his condition improved but was nowhere near its ideal state. Alex’s vision faded in and out with each fleeting moment. He felt lightheaded, and no matter how much he tried to focus, his body failed to listen. In a span of seconds, Alex felt the world spin around him and fell to his knees as if the world came crashing around him. His sword plunged into the mud, and he inclined his head towards Hemlock. Grasping the mud between his fingers while trying to steady himself.

  Move god dammit!

  Alex gritted his teeth and helplessly watched as Hemlock approached him. No matter what he tried to do, his body failed to listen. The embers on his blade slowly faded, causing the knight to reveal a vile grin. His mind raced as he desperately tried to think of a solution to his current predicament. Yet a lingering sense of doubt filled his head. He had already bought enough time for Tucker, so what was the point in pushing himself? His body hardly listened to him, and even if it did, there was little he could do.

  He had accomplished his task and life goal of raising several new generations of watchmen, and no one would blame him if he died here. No one would care. But… at the same time, he felt like there were still many things he needed to do. There were still members of the Order that needed his guidance, and a feeling of regret grew in his heart as he recalled those he owed.

  Alex glared at Hemlock, who stood before him and raised his sword. The blade glistened in the moonlight and drew the watchman’s attention. His muscles ached as he tried to move them, but the poison that crept into his veins and the physical exertion on his body restrained him. He could see the triumphant grin behind the knight’s visor, and there was nothing he could do. Yet he kept his head up and welcomed death.

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  As the sword drew a crescent arc down towards his neck. He felt a hand grab his shoulder and throw him back. A dark green cloak fluttered in the wind as a figure stood before him. Their hood fell back, revealing dark strands of brown hair that swayed with the wind.

  “Tucker?” Alex’s eyes widened in shock as the ground beneath Tucker caved in.

  “The one and only.” Tucker forced the words out of his mouth as his arms violently trembled. Their eyes met for a second before the rookie focused back on Hemlock. Sweat dripped down the side of his face as he locked eyes with the knight who cornered his mentor.

  Their blades grinding and shrieking against one another as the two foes battled in a contest of strength. Unleashing sparks of emerald and violet energies into the surroundings. This was the first time Tucker had ever directly encountered a knight, and from their current exchange, he could tell the person he was facing was a bastard. A weakened bastard, to be exact.

  “You fucking vermin just keep coming.” Hemlock‘s arms shook as their blades repelled each other. Clumps of wet earth scattered across the ground, leaving a trail from where he once stood.

  The violet knight stared at his chipped blade. He felt bitter losing in a contest of strength, but there was nothing to be done about that. He had already used most of his strength in the fight against Salamander, so it was within expectations that fatigue would build up in his body. However, he didn’t expect for it to be so soon.

  Tucker slowly exhaled, releasing the cold air from his lips to ease his racing heart. A single droplet of sweat trailed down his chin, and his hands were shaking uncontrollably. It was the first time in his life that he had seen such a sharp killing intent permeate through the entire forest. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t scared, but seeing how Alex was still alive buried one of his worries.

  “What the hell are you doing here?!” Alex forced himself to stand and coughed up a mouthful of blood as Tucker caught him.

  “To rescue you, of course.”

  “By yourself?” Alex spat out. “I knew you were an idiot, but I didn’t think you would be stupid!”

  “Relax. Did you really think I would come here alone?” Tucker revealed a smirk that made Hemlock’s face contort with anxiety. “I might be dumb, but I’m not suicidal.”

  The words that came out of Tucker’s mouth caused Hemlock to take a step back, crunching the blades of grass beneath his boots. He briefly scanned the treelines, but it was impossible to tell if anyone was lurking in the shadows. The only way would be to manifest his world and lure them out. A feat that wasn’t possible in his current state.

  His chest rose and fell in quick successions, as if each breath were trying to claw its way out. It was impossible to gauge how many were lurking in the darkness. One mistake was all it took to end his life, and he couldn’t help but curse the situation he was in. All Hemlock could do was wait for them to make the first move, then react accordingly.

  Tucker grinned upon seeing Hemlock’s dire expression. “Seeing how he couldn’t even notice them means they’re just a half-baked knight after all. I’m surprised you struggled so much, old man.”

  Hemlock flinched. “You fucker…”

  Tucker raised a brow at the enraged knight. “Am I wrong? I mean, if you were anything special, you wouldn’t be struggling so much.”

  “Struggling? If it was just you two, I would easily skewer you.”

  “What did you expect? You came into our backyard. Of course, we would have reinforcements just like that.” Tucker followed the end of his sentence with a quick snap. “You’d have to be delusional to think otherwise.”

  “This land was originally ours to begin with,” Hemlock snapped back.

  “Not after you lost the war.”

  Hemlock’s voice was low, each word strained from rage. “We only lost because of the crimes you Watchmen committed.”

  “Crimes? Alex, do you hear the bullshit this guy is talking about? You lost because—” Tucker’s words fell short at the conflicted expression written on the veteran’s face.

  Hemlock raised a brow upon hearing this, but soon pieced together the puzzle once he saw Salamander’s expression. “Oh? He doesn’t know.”

  Tucker’s voice dropped. “Know what?”

  “Seems like they kept you in the dark.” Hemlock sneered. “About what you did. About what they did.”

  “What does he mean?” Tucker stared at Alex and watched as he averted his gaze. “Alex, what the hell is he talking about?”

  Alex broke his silence. “There’s a reason I told you that there was nothing heroic in what we do. During the last war, we had to make difficult decisions.”

  “Difficult decisions?” Hemlock erupted in a furious laughter that echoed throughout the entire forest, sending chills down Tucker’s spine as the bloodlust penetrated deep into his soul. “Is that what you call it when you massacred innocent women and children? The men I could understand since I would’ve done the same, but even those who couldn’t even feed themselves? Even I wouldn’t do that!”

  Alex kept his head down in shame. It was a tale that was still fresh in his head, as if it had happened the day before. The innocent lives that were lost because of their actions were necessary for them to win the war. That much was clear, and the weight of his regret consumed him for the rest of his life. Back then, he was nothing more than a young man blindly following orders, but that was only an excuse. Maybe if they had more time, the administrators of the Order could have devised a better plan. A plan that would have reduced the amount of causalities for both sides, but they were desperate. And that desperation shattered their line of morality.

  The rookie’s body froze when he heard those words. He knew that right now, Alex needed to be brought to safety, but he couldn’t shake the lingering questions in his mind. His blade still pointed at Hemlock, and with a quick glance, he could see the defeated light in the veteran’s eyes. There were so many things he wanted to ask, but it had to wait. Right now, they needed to deal with the problem in front of them.

  As Hemlock stood there, the air around them grew cold. He felt the breeze creep in through the gaps of his armor and the leaves sway around him. The wind filled the surroundings, and in a split second; he saw a silver light soar towards him. In one swift motion, he swung his sword with all his might to meet the object, deflecting the dagger into the air. Its blade spun in the moonlight, but Hemlock ignored it. His attention focused back on the Watchmen behind him, yet the moment he turned back, his anger erupted. They were gone.

  I shall go back to the word mines and craft another.

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