1 Fall of the Tatum Kingdom
It was a deathly and lonely night, with a person standing at the top of a castle in the Tatum Kingdom. Standing above the castle, clad in full black armor and a longsword decorated with skeleton skulls, was the final commander of the army: Lawrence Von Carrion.
Lawrence Von Carrion looked to be in his sixties and had grown an old, white beard on his chin. Despite being in his sixties, Lawrence had the physique of a youthful man. The mana that filled his body had helped him retain his vigorous strength and stamina.
However, he still had an exhausted look on his face when he watched the flames of war flare up on the frontline. Corpses laid side by side with disgusting and hideous-looking creatures chomping on the dead limbs of humans.
"Is this really the end of the world?" Lawrence Von Carrion asked himself. Sorrow and grief hit his heart deep, causing him to cough up a mouthful of blood.
"Commander Lawrence," A guard behind Lawrence said.
"Please take care of your health, Commander Lawrence. Our Tatum Kingdom's fate relies on you." The guard said in a respectful tone, his face filled with sincere loyalty.
Throughout the years, it was thanks to Lawrence that their kingdom had managed to survive the onslaught of the demonic race. Without Lawrence, the kingdom would have fallen long ago, just like the rest of the kingdoms spread across the world.
Lawrence Von Carrion held a bitter smile as memories of his youthful days flashed by his mind. He recalled the death of those who had sacrificed themselves to defend the kingdom. He regretted not trying harder in his life as he had only started training when the Tatum Kingdom was embroiled in chaos.
"Everything is too late…" He muttered in a bitter tone. He clenched the hilt of his longswords tightly as he turned around and faced the ruins of the kingdom. Most of the buildings were now being overrun by demons and demonic beasts.
Screams of panic could be heard every few minutes. Just now, with his vision enhanced with magic, Lawrence saw a mother having her body sliced apart by a demonic beast.
However, instead of giving up on life, she still wrapped her hand around the baby in her arms. Lawrence wanted to save her, but the same scene was happening everywhere.
Their last line of defense had finally fallen. The Tatum Kingdom had been overrun, and all he could do was witness its downfall.
"Pass on my order, slay all the demonic beasts and retain the blood and glory of our Tatum Kingdom." Lawrence Von Carrion raised his longsword up high, shouting his last command.
With that final outcry, Lawrence Von Carrion boosted his legs with a spell, [Swift Boots]. It was a common spell that everyone learned at a tender age, but it was also the most efficient in battles.
Within a few seconds, Lawrence closed the gap between a demonic beast as he raised his longsword up, and in a swift motion, the demonic beast's head was sliced apart.
Blood started splattering everywhere, including on his face, but Lawrence had no time to care about his appearance when two more demonic beasts appeared in front of him.
There was nobody available to help him since the other soldiers were fighting on their own. They were simply far too outnumbered and had no resources to defend much longer. All the people here knew this was their final fight.
"Hmph, I'll kill every single one of you bastards for stepping foot into my kingdom." Lawrence Von Carrion screamed, boosting all of his stats and ability with magic spells. He had used up every last bit of his mana to put up his final glorious moment.
As a soldier, not giving it his all would be his greatest regret. "To hell with all you demonic beasts."
Within 10 minutes, Lawrence had slain numerous demonic beasts, his longsword drenched in blood. Despite the many beasts he killed, the demonic beasts continued to charge forward until Lawrence was out of stamina.
He was exhausted as he crashed to the ground, staring at the bloody moon in the sky.
'It seems like even God has given up on us.' He thought. Without any mana left in his body, coupled with the fatigue that had been building for the past months, Lawrence finally succumbed to his fate.
Demonic beasts trampled on him, stomping on his stomach, crushing the internal organs inside of him.
With a final breath, Lawrence could only reminisce about the peaceful and beautiful Tatum Kingdom of the past that had been full of vibrant life.
'I can finally sleep now.' Closing his eyes, Lawrence accepted his defeat in grief.
BZZZT!
Just when Lawrence thought he would be meeting God and be on his way to reincarnation, he suddenly heard a familiar and delightful sound.
"Young Master, wake up already. It's time for your entrance test today."
'What is this familiar voice?' Still having his eyes closed, Lawrence Von Carrion felt like he had heard this voice before, but it's been so long.
"Young Master, wake up already! The Marquis had ordered that if you fail the entrance test today, then he will disown and cut off your relationship with him."
'Disown me? Didn't that happen years ago when my father was too disappointed in me and my behavior? Why would someone suddenly bring that up when I'm already dead?' Lawrence Von Carrion was filled with confusion as he struggled to open his eyes.
He didn't know what life was like after death, so with all his strength, he finally opened his eyes.
The moment he opened his eyes, a blinding light flashed him and when he got a clear look at who was talking to him the entire time, his eyes were wide open in shock.
The woman in front of him was dressed in a maid-like outfit, with long blonde hair.
Her eyes were green in color, making her look unique and beautiful. Her waist was extremely slender which could cause men to pounce on her at first glance. Her large breasts with the cleavage exposed were nearly on the verge of ripping her clothes off and to top it off, she was wearing black stockings.
"Tristina? H-How are you still alive and looking extremely young?" Lawrence Von Carrion exclaimed in shock, showing a look like he had just seen a ghost.
