“Are you all right?”

“I am fine.”

Raven came to Isla’s side after knocking down two soldiers of the demonic army in an instant. Isla nodded in response.

The two observed the enemies approaching them from all sides, leaving the other to guard their back.

“The others…”

“Karuta and the friends from Ancona are leading them.”

Raven gestured towards the distance, where the rest of their forces were retreating along the riverside after breaking through the demonic army. Thanks to the thinly spread formation of the demonic army, it had been relatively easy to break through, and the Ancona Orc warriors proved most important in escaping the siege without suffering many casualties.

“That is a relief.”

“Don’t be too sure yet. That’s why our role is important.”

Raven spoke while looking at the closing soldiers of the demonic army with cold eyes. There were thousands of opponents, and only hundreds of remaining troops from the scouting party.

In addition, his troops were completely exhausted from the battle against the monsters, and if the demonic army pursued, they would quickly be caught.

“That means…”

“We become bait.”

Raven spoke while tightly gripping his hands around the pommels of his two blades. Nothing had happened like this in the past he knew of. It was none other than himself who was responsible for causing the deviation from the original events after he became Duke Pendragon.

The original Alan Pendragon should have been in bed unconscious, but now, he had come all the way to the South after encountering many incidents. His actions had caused a change in the course of history.

The Arangis Duchy was the arch-nemesis of the Pendragon Duchy, and the Arangis Duchy had a deep relationship with Baltai, the commander of the demonic army.

This meant,

‘Do they want to deal with me regardless of the consequences? Daring to take such action when it clearly illustrates their enmity towards the imperial castle…’

The fact was that Arangis Duchy was linked to the attempted assassination of the crown prince. However, there was no solid evidence to prove their involvement, just speculation.

Therefore, the emperor and Ian were unable to take any action, even though they were well aware that the Arangis Duchy held the South in their hands. In addition, the Arangis Duchy did not dare to provoke the imperial castle until they laid the perfect cushion.

But now that their influence in the South was decreasing rapidly, they would have been left with no other choice. In the end, their plan must have changed to prioritize the removal of Duke Pendragon, who had caused the entire predicament.

It was clear from the eyes of the soldiers that the enemies were willing to do anything to get rid of him. Their gazes clearly revealed that they had taken drugs to empower them. The demonic army took such actions only when dealing with powerful monsters or enemies.

Raven’s prediction was spot on.

***

“Motherfucker!”

Baltai cursed while watching the remaining troops of the scouting party flee after breaking through the siege. The wide formation had failed to act as a detriment in stopping the group of losers from fleeing.

Furthermore, as soon as they broke through the formation, the orc warriors returned to the rear to support the soldiers’ escape, and they were continuously causing damage.

“You fucking bastards! Leave them to run, we will kill them sooner or later! The little fucking dragon! Surround Pendragon!”

Eventually, Baltai screamed towards his men who were chasing the scouting party downstream.

The enemies were exhausted.

It was obvious that they would not be able to escape far, and he would be able to exterminate the remainder by sending a thousand-men battalion after capturing or killing Alan Pendragon.

“Push him in! We just need to take care of the dragon cub!”

The madness contained in the eyes of Baltai deepened as he shouted at his subordinates.

***

After confirming that the demonic army gave up on chasing the scouting party, Raven turned his head slightly.

“Elkin, we are going to pierce through the other way. We will draw their attention and make time for the rest of the troops to flee.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Facing the combined killing intent of countless demons, Isla answered without hesitation and readied his spear.

Fwoosh!

The two people stepped forward from each other’s backs, rousing their own spirits.

“You bastards…”

Even though the demonic army was famous for their ferocity and brutality, they could not easily approach the two people.

They did not know Raven and Isla very well.

They had been fighting here for more than a year, and they rarely heard any news from the mainland. Nevertheless, the spirits emitted by the two men were fierce and strong enough to deter the soldiers, who had been trained through countless killings and battles.

It was hard to imagine that the two people had been fighting against the monsters for nearly an hour. However, they were humans in the end, and humans did not possess infinite energy. The soldiers of the demonic army made a quick judgement.

“Attack!”

“Uwaaaah!”

Hundreds of soldiers reared up to charge towards them.

Then, two shadows sprang up at the same time.

“Kuwagh!”

“Gah!”

Whenever the two swords and the long spear cut through the air, red blood and menacing screams decorated the air. The soldiers’ poor leather armor were unable to stop the two men’s spirit-filled attacks.

Truncated limbs, punctured bodies…

The demons collapsed like straw, and dozens of bodies were quickly piling up on the riverbank.

“Keugh!”

‘John Mulum, killed six children.’

“Aaahk!”

‘One-eyed Roddy, two burglary murders.’

Raven knew the identities of the majority of the falling soldiers. He had served in the same army as them, but they were brutal, vicious criminals whom he never considered as colleagues.

They were vicious humans who were no different from mere beasts. Some of them were even happy that they could kill legally after joining the demonic army, and they loudly boasted their crimes.

‘Bastards who deserve to die!’

A cold light scattered from Raven’s eyes.

“Kuagh!”

“Kiek…”

They were destined to be used as scapegoats in the battle against the monsters anyways. It was a pity that their lives could not be used to save others, but that was it. Raven did not show any mercy.

Raven’s swordsmanship was reminiscent of a hot summer storm, and Isla’s cold, sharp spearmanship was like a snowstorm of the North. The two swept through countless demons.

Regular soldiers would have retreated or stepped back in fear, but the demons were different. They knew that there was nowhere to run in this area, which was filled with numerous monsters, and even if they did run away, an even more gruesome death would be waiting for them.

Most importantly, the drugs they took turned them into real demons who craved blood and death.

“Kuheeeh! Hehe!”

A soldier swung his blade, his eyes only filled with whites. Even though one of his arms was cut off, he was not aware of the pain due to the medication.

Clang! Slice!

Raven blocked the soldier’s attack with the scimitar and sliced with the Widow’s Cry. The soldier’s neck slit, and blood poured out.

“Kuhehehehe!”

Even though his colleague had his throat cut open, a soldier swung his axe like a madman while drooling from his mouth, clearly disregarding his own safety.

“Keuk!”

He also collapsed weakly after Raven’s blow cut open a hole in his heart. But another soldier quickly filled the vacancy and swung his weapon while stepping on the dead bodies.

If one of them collapsed, another filled his position.

Although more than a hundred demons had been sent back to hell, the number of people surrounding Isla and Raven kept increasing, and with the passing of time, the two people became more and more exhausted.

“Hoo! Hoo!”

With the effects of the drugs, the soldiers of the demonic army did not fall without suffering fatal wounds, and they did not give up easily. The two had no choice but to target the soldiers’ vital points by imbuing each movement with spirit.

It led to a greater decline in physical strength of the two men, who were already exhausted. In addition, trolls and lizardmen had reorganized themselves, and they were approaching from behind.

‘Strange.’

Even though he was tired, Raven pondered.

For some reason, the monsters were acting together with the demonic army.

Well, it had seemed strange since the beginning.

In the past, the monsters from the Great Forest had sometimes held crude weapons, but they were equipped with armor in the rarest of cases.

However, the lizardmen and the trolls behind him were wearing armor that was crafted by someone, perhaps by humans.

‘It can’t be…’

A thought popped into Raven’s head as he cut down a soldier.

The one who instigated Baltai and the two assassins to Leus.

‘Nameless Necromancer…’

He was certain.

The mysterious being was able to utilize Carnion, the cursed dagger of legends. He would easily be able to turn a few trolls and a couple of lizardmen tribes to his side.

In the end, the monsters that had attacked the scouting party today did not belong to the Troll King’s armies.

‘Then…’

Raven’s eyes started to shine with determination.

It was then.

“Kuhahahahahahaha!”

It was hard to distinguish if the sound was a laughter or a roar, but a certain area of the surrounding demonic army became noisy along with the sound.

Booom! Boom!

Demons flew into the air with various parts of the bodies crushed or missing.

As far as Raven knew, there was only one person who was capable of such a feat.

“Kuwooooh!”

“Karuta!”

Raven cried out. Karuta was rushing towards them while exuding a red energy – an energy far darker and deeper than the blood scattering in the air.

“Krrrr…”

The strongest Ancona Orc warrior smiled with blades and arrows sticking out of his body. Even though he had suffered countless, deep injuries only a month ago during their travels, the strongest warrior of Ancona still maintained his undying spirit. Raven felt worried and relieved at the same time.

“What are you doing here? What about the others?”

“The other orcs are taking them back. Strangely enough, these bastards stopped chasing after us. I came here just in case. Keheuk!”

After quickly answering, Karuta took a deep breath before pulling out blades and arrows from his thighs and shoulders.

“Well then, should I indulge in destroying them? Keheuu…”

“M, monster.”

The demons instinctively faltered after seeing Karuta’s fearsome expression.

“You fucking morons! Both the fucking dragon and the orc, they’re all exhausted! If you push a little bit more, we can kill them all!”

Someone’s frenzied voice rang out. For a certain someone, it was an unforgettable voice.

“…..”

Raven’s head slowly turned towards the voice. A large man was leading hundreds of troops towards them. Unlike the other soldiers, he was equipped with proper armor.

As soon as Raven saw the ogre skull helmet, a whisper escaped through Raven’s lips.

“Toban… Baltai…”

Woosh!

The desire for revenge flamed into anger, and it materialized into an intangible arrow that flew towards Baltai.

“Keuk!”

Only Baltai was able to feel the terrifying spirit, and he almost fell from the saddle.

“Keu…”

Baltai became terrified once more when he faced the flaming, blue eyes. For some reason, he got the chills whenever he saw those eyes, and the gaze was not unfamiliar.

Baltai gulped down a small bottle of drugs and spoke, forcibly mustering courage.

“A, Alan Pendragon! Today will be your funeral! Those beside you will accompany you on the way to the Death God! Oi!”

“Kekekeke!”

Hideous figures began to appear between the soldiers of the demonic army that surrounded the three. They were equipped with gruesome armor and helmets.

Raven recognized them as the Black Demons, a unit that was under the direct command of Baltai. They were composed of members that had survived longer than 5 years in the demonic army, and they were supplied with even stronger drugs every battle. They felt no fear.

In addition, most of them were either corrupted knights and mercenaries, which meant that their skills had allowed them to survive in the demonic army for so many years.

In the past, Raven almost became a part of the Black Demons as well, but Baltai, who hated him for some reason, did not select him.

“Keheheu! Even if you have the spirit of a dragon, you are only human! You better quietly prepare for your death.”

The powerful energy of the drug circulated throughout the body of Baltai, and his muscles swelled up massively. His five senses became elevated, and his eyes glowed red.

“…..”

Raven observed Baltai with an apathetic expression.

“Oi, Pendragon scarecrow. Are you just going to keep listening to that bullshit?”

Karuta grinned and erupted his Orc Fear again.

“Please give me your orders, lord. I will take his head and throw it for the griffons to devour.”

Isla spoke in an indifferent voice as he tore the hem of his clothes and tied it to the hand holding the long spear.

“You guys…”

At the two people’s words, Raven’s swelling anger subsided in an instant, and his heart calmed down.