Interlude

|Phineas Frederick POV|

I look at the report in front of me with a frown on my face. The report in front of me said that the people I sent to raid the Lionheart Duchy have gone missing. There has been no sign of them for the past two weeks.

What matters worse is that there is no report of raiding in the Lionheart Duchy. Meaning that the people I sent have failed in their mission. What makes matters worse is that someone leaves me a present. What kind of present? It was the head of the knight I sent to raid the Lionheart Duchy.

The worst of them all is that the head I receive is inside my bedroom. Inside the place that should be my most secure place in the world. A place where I can forget about all poison and dagger business.

However, after that day, I don't know if I am even safe in my own bedroom.

I sigh a little and put away the report before taking another parchment. I read what was written on the parchment and frown once again.

"Another crops failure. Another ship gets attacked by a pirate after buying some food from the Eastern Continent."

Damnit! Can something go right for me?!? If it continues like this, the food I stored will soon be depleted. Not only that, but the commoner also begins to protest, and I even hear a rumor there will be a rebellion against me.

Ungrateful bastard! I already give them space to sleep, and they have a gall to rebel against me?!? I guess I need to make an example to those ungrateful bastards.

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|3rd POV|

Screaming, crying, and a shout of rage rings through the night. The scream of the innocent, the crying of a mother that just lost her son, and the shout of the rage of a husband that sees his wife get raped.

"Kill them all! They are nothing but a worthless commoner who dares to oppose our lord!"

This is what Phineas means by setting an example. Purging village after village in the northern side of his territory. The reason for purging? He thought that those villages are the people that want to rebel against him and his family.

He thought that those villages are the allies to the Lionheart Family even though they are not.

"Burn! Burn this village to the ground!"

While the knight of Frederick's family busy burning and raping, there is a group of people on the opposite side of them. They are Richard's Shadow. With a cover of powerful illusion, they move the surviving villager away from the knight.

"Come on! We must go!"

"My mother! My mother is still in the house!"

"Just go. I will rescue your mother. Tell me which one is your house."

"The first house near the exit we just passed."

"Go! We will rescue her."

"Thank you! Thank you!"

"Just go!"

Two shadows nod their head and begin to run toward the location given to them. After a few seconds, they arrive in front of the house; the young man pointed out, but someone else is standing in front of the house.

It was the knight captain, and he is intended to have some fun tonight as he already sees his prey running inside the house in front of him.

"What should we do?"

One of the shadows asked his partner. However, instead of answering, another shadow takes out her dagger.

"Very well. I will be looking out for other knights. Make it quick."

"Roger"

After saying that, the woman shadow sneaks toward the knight captain, who is shouting to the people inside.

"Come on now! Come out! I will spare you a painful death and grant you a quick death. I will count on three! One! Two! Three… Urgh…"

Before the knight captain could kick out the door open, one of the shadows already arrived behind him and slit his throat with her dagger.

The shadow sneers at the body of the knight captain. She then cast a powerful illusion around the house before knocking on the door.

"Please come out! The knight captain is dead!"

The shadow can see someone peeking out from the window, and when the people inside see that the knight captain is dead, they open up the door. As the door opens up, a young girl comes out from the door and hugs the shadow in the legs.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

"It is no problem. However, we need to hurry up. There are still many knights around."

"But grandma is injured from rescuing me."

"Don't worry. We will carry her. Show me where she is."

"En"

The little girl leads the shadow inside her house, and lying on the bed is an older woman with a wounded leg. The shadow walks toward the older woman and kneels on the ground. The older woman looks at her and says.

"Who are you?"

"Friends. We come here to get you guys away from this hell."

"I see…. Take Tania with you and leave me behind. I'm nothing more than baggage to you. By leaving me behind, you can save her and without unnoticed by the knights."

Tania tears up when she hears what the older woman is saying.

"No! You can't leave me, Granny Popol! I already lost my mother and father! I don't want to lose you as well."

"It's okay, dear. I'm nothing but an older woman. I have already passed my time in this world. I'm happy leaving this world knowing that you are surviving. I don't know what happened to my son and good daughter, but by knowing you are safe, I'm happy."

Before Popol and Tania say more, the shadow puts her hand and says.

"O sun, give us your blessing! Soothing Ray."

Suddenly a light starts to dance around Popol's injured leg and closes the wound.

"That should do. Come on. No one here will be dead in my watch tonight."

Without hearing what Popol is saying, the shadow carries her away from the house, followed by Tania from behind. The other shadow sees his partner coming, picks Tania up, reinforces his body, and starts running away.

They did not look back at the village that was burned to the ground by the knights.