NOVPUBThe two of them were extremely exhausted. It had only been a short while, but they had fought against more than 200 enemies.
Although they had easily defeated them due to the difference in skill, their physical condition was deteriorating as they continued to use more mana.
Honestly, they wanted to go home now. The situation was becoming dangerous.
"Now... it feels like too many enemies are coming, doesn’t it?"
The guards at the mansion had all moved, and even the city’s defense forces were rushing toward them.
The number of soldiers had increased drastically compared to the previous battles. And knights were among them.
It would be quite difficult for the three of them to break through.
"Still, we have to go. We can’t leave a single person behind."
Even if they couldn’t rescue them, Dominic would understand. He wouldn’t expect there to be no casualties.
But Ghislain didn’t want that.
He knew better than anyone the pain of losing family.
"If I go alone, it will be harder to rescue the hostages. Hurry and follow me."
Dominic’s family consisted only of his elderly mother and two sons. To clear the way easily, someone had to safely carry the hostages while moving.
Without saying more, Ghislain dashed forward.
The fight was all about momentum. When facing many enemies, you had to show overwhelming strength from the start.
Boom!
"Ughhh!"
As Ghislain swung his sword, the front-line soldiers were instantly torn apart.
Of course, they didn’t just stand still. They used their numbers to attack Ghislain with their spears all at once.
But Ghislain neither dodged nor blocked.
Thud, thud, thud!
It felt like steel was being struck, and the soldiers were shocked. No matter how skilled they were as knights, they couldn’t help but be injured when attacking head-on like that.
However, a red light flashed at the points of impact, and their weapons couldn’t penetrate.
"What... what is this?"
The soldiers froze in confusion. They were stunned by the impossible situation.
And that became their last words.
Boom!
Mana exploded from Ghislain’s sword, blowing everything around him to pieces.
"You bastard!"
A knight charged forward, swinging his sword at Ghislain. It seemed like he put all his power into the attack, with mana swirling around the blade.
Even Ghislain couldn’t take a hit from a sword filled with mana. But instead of dodging, he didn’t move.
What he needed to show was his overwhelming aura—he could kill everyone here, even alone.
Crash!
When Ghislain met the knight’s sword with his own, the knight’s blade shattered.
The knight’s eyes trembled at the overwhelming disparity in strength.
Slice!
Ghislain’s sword drew a red line, and the knight’s head fell.
Ghislain continued cutting down numerous enemies, breaking through the center.
Gordon and Lucas, following behind, exchanged stunned looks.
"Somehow... doesn’t he seem stronger than before?"
"Do we even have a chance?"
It really seemed like he could wipe out the entire city’s military forces by himself.
But the two knew the truth: Mana wasn’t infinite. Even the immense defensive power Ghislain displayed was sustained by consuming mana every time he was attacked.
It lasted longer than theirs, but even a lord like Ghislain couldn’t keep using such explosive power indefinitely.
The mana cultivation methods of knights and Ghislain’s were fundamentally the same. The only difference was that the knights had reduced side effects to allow for safer training.
So, both Gordon and Lucas quickly joined the fight.
Boom! Boom!
"Ahhh! What the hell are these guys?!"
When the three attempted to break through, the soldiers simply couldn’t stop them.
Gordon and Lucas sustained some injuries, but with Ghislain smashing through the front, they had to face fewer enemies.
The enemy knights fought back fiercely, but they were too weak to stop the three of them. They were inferior to the rough northern knights.
While individual talent and effort played a part, the environment in which they were raised had a significant impact.
Boom!
Ghislain didn’t hesitate to explode his mana, and the hundreds of soldiers were easily wiped out. In no time, Ghislain reached Martin’s mansion and charged inside.
"Stop them!"
There were far more knights inside the mansion than outside. There were at least twenty visible.
Indeed, as expected from the son of the wealthiest family in the west.
"Hah, so he's still the son? To have this many knights at his disposal..."
A mere noble wouldn’t be able to command this many knights directly. It must have been his father, Lord Rodrick, who supported him.
"Take care of the soldiers!"
After speaking to the two behind him, Ghislain immediately engaged in battle with the mansion’s knights.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
In the blink of an eye, dozens of clashes occurred. These knights were clearly different from the ones he had faced so far.
These were likely knights personally sent by the Marquis’ family to protect Martin.
Ghislain immediately activated his third-level core.
Boom!
"Ugh!"
The first knight to face Ghislain was pierced through the chest by Ghislain’s explosive power.
Two knights, attacking from the sides, had their necks severed as a red light flashed.
"Wh-what?"
The knight at the back, caught off guard by Ghislain’s sudden surge in strength, froze.
All he could see was a zigzagging red line approaching. He couldn’t even predict the direction of the sword.
Slice!
The red line instantly sliced through all the knights around Ghislain, even cutting down the knight at the back.
Half of the knights blocking the three of them disappeared. Ghislain had no intention of continuing to fight them.
He had already activated his third-level power. To endure until they returned, he needed to manage his strength carefully.
"Ignore them and follow me!"
As Ghislain broke through the remaining soldiers blocking the path, they climbed to the upper floors. Gordon and Lucas also followed, avoiding as much as possible.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Every time Ghislain swung his sword, soldiers couldn’t even respond before exploding. After breaking through several more walls of soldiers, Ghislain finally met Martin.
The rugged-looking Martin pointed at Ghislain, shouting.
"You! You! What the hell do you think you’re doing, barging in here?!"
Next to him, two soldiers were holding swords to the hostages’ necks.
The remaining knights all stood in front of Martin, trying to protect him.
"Hah..."
Ghislain, now covered in blood, took a breath after finally halting the battle.
Gordon and Lucas, who arrived shortly after, stood guard beside him.
Thud, thud, thud!
The remaining knights and soldiers from the mansion rushed in, filling up the space completely.
They surrounded Ghislain with weapons drawn. The defense forces, who couldn’t get in because the mansion was packed, set up camp outside, waiting.
The overwhelming numerical advantage gave Martin confidence, and he scowled.
"You! How dare you rescue the hostages and prisoners? You must be one of Dominic’s men! How dare you rebels oppose me?! How dare you bite the hand that feeds you?!"
Ghislain smirked at Martin.
"How many times are you going to say 'how dare you'? Do you really think you’re that great?"
"Shut up! You trashy mercenaries! Do you even know who I am?!"
Martin couldn’t hide his boiling rage.
The Drake Mercenary Corps was one of the important military forces he could control. He was planning to use them to quickly expand his power.
But to Martin, the mercenary group was just a disposable tool. The more pawns he had, the less he had to risk using his own knights or soldiers.
It was a shortsighted thought, but Martin didn’t believe he was wrong. In fact, the Drake Mercenary Corps had helped him gain immense profit in a short time.
Pointing at Ghislain, Martin raged.
"Do you think you’ll be safe after rescuing the hostages? The Drake Mercenary Corps were a gift from my father! Their lives are mine to control! How dare you betray your master? I’ll kill all of you!"
Lord Rodrick had given various powers to his children, and the Drake Mercenary Corps was one of those gifts.
But with the hostages gone, Martin could no longer control them as he wished.
Ghislain couldn’t help but chuckle at Martin, who was fuming with rage.
“If it’s that important, you should have treated it with more care.”
“What? Are you daring to lecture me now?”
“Yes. The more important a person is, the more they deserve to be treated with respect, don’t you think? I’m that kind of person.”
At those words, Gordon and Lucas exchanged looks, their expressions filled with discomfort. If anyone from the domain had heard that, they would have had their necks in their hands.
Especially Claude.
Seeing Ghislain so calm only made Martin explode in fury.
“You! If you take one more step, I’ll kill the hostages! You know who they are, right? Dominic’s mother and his two sons? Throw down your weapons, now!”
Ghislain had already killed countless soldiers up until this point. He couldn’t be sure that Martin himself would be safe if a fight broke out here.
So, he resorted to holding the hostages hostage and threatening them.
The hostages were trembling, terrified. But in their eyes, there was a steely resolve. They were the family of a mercenary leader, after all.
Dominic’s mother, in a trembling voice, spoke.
“Please... don’t worry about us, just run away. Please tell my son... that he should live freely now... he doesn’t need to live like this because of me anymore... Please, let him live as he wants.”
She then looked at the boy beside her and gave a sad smile.
“Sorry, my child... But we can’t keep living like this. Let’s go with grandma now...”
As she spoke, tears streaming down her face, the boy tightly shut his eyes.
After a brief moment of sobbing, the boy suddenly spoke toward Ghislain.
“Please tell my father that I’m okay... and... and...”
The boy then glared at Martin with bloodshot eyes and shouted loudly.
“Please tell him to kill this bastard!”
The hostages were already prepared for death. Martin was incredibly displeased by this.
“Shut up! How dare you lowly scum!”
As Martin yelled in anger, the soldiers pushed the swords deeper into the hostages’ necks. The skin was barely cut, and blood began to trickle out.
Ghislain, who had been silently watching the hostages, slowly lowered his sword and raised his hands.
Martin’s face brightened. Seeing that Ghislain had lowered his sword, he assumed he had given up on resisting.
However, he couldn’t let his guard down. Those with mana skills could kill a person with just a punch.
He suddenly had an idea and grinned maliciously.
“You seem to be quite skilled. How about joining my side? I’ll give you the best treatment. What do you say?”
Despite the numerous soldiers he had lost, Martin didn’t seem to care. He looked at Ghislain for a moment, then turned his head toward the boy.
And with a smile, he said, “Well done. I’ll make sure your words reach him.”
That’s how a mercenary leader’s son should act.
But that didn’t mean Ghislain planned to let him die here easily.
Ghislain’s hands, which had been slightly hovering in the air, suddenly clenched into fists.
Clang!
“What?”
The soldiers holding the hostages suddenly found themselves unable to move, shocked.
Creeeek!
“Graaah!”
The soldiers’ bodies twisted, and the hostages were freed. The soldiers couldn’t even think of recapturing the hostages and screamed in pain.
As Ghislain pulled his hands back, the hostages were instantly drawn to him, flying toward him in an almost effortless motion.
Gordon and Lucas immediately caught the hostages in their arms. They had finally rescued them.
“What... what is this?!”
Martin was stunned. He couldn’t understand how the hostages had been taken away with just a gesture from Ghislain.
But the knights around him, sensing the flow of mana that had completely surrounded them, stiffened.
They had never seen a technique like this before. The opponent in front of them was someone far beyond their expectations.
“Kill him! Kill them all, right now!” Martin shouted desperately.
But the knights and soldiers couldn’t approach Ghislain so easily.
Ghislain, surveying the nervous faces around him, casually picked up the sword he had dropped earlier.
“Gordon, Lucas. Keep the hostages safe.”
“Understood!”
“Let’s make it easy when we go back.”
With his eyes glowing red, Ghislain charged forward, heading straight for Martin, who was surrounded by countless knights.
“Attack!”
The knights, shouting loudly, swung their swords at Ghislain. They, too, seemed to be putting all their strength into it, as a bright blue light radiated from their blades.
Slash!
But Ghislain didn’t meet them head-on. In an instant, he leaped into the air, soaring past the knights and landing right in front of Martin.
“Ugh...!”
Martin froze as he saw Ghislain standing before him. It was like facing a blood-drenched demon.
The knights, realizing the situation, turned around in a panic, but Ghislain’s movements were slightly faster.
“Stop.”
With a sword pressed to Martin’s throat, Ghislain gave a warning, and everyone immediately froze.
He glanced around with a satisfied expression before speaking to Martin.
“Now, you’re the hostage.”
