Chapter 501: You Messed With The Wrong Family

Barking sounds echoed through the forest.

A hundred men, alongside their war dogs, were currently in hot pursuit of Edward Frontera, whom they had to capture no matter what.

The Blue Dragon General’s finest scouts received a clear order. Track the eldest son of the Frontera Family and bring him back alive, if possible.

"It’s fine to break his arms and legs if he resists," the Blue Dragon General ordered. "But he must be alive. Do I make myself clear?"

"""Yes, sir!"""

Edward had a head start by nearly half an hour, but that wasn’t enough.

His pursuers were hot on his trail, and one mishap could lead to him being captured. He knew that it was only a matter of time before the Generals, looked for him too after securing his father.

If he hadn’t been spying at them from the start, he would have also been captured, and sent to the capital city of Britannia.

Edward’s face turned solemn as he thought of different ways to throw off his pursuers.

He had no idea what method they were using to track him, but all of his attempts to hinder them proved futile.

It was then that he heard the sound of running water, making him remember that they had passed a river on their way to the gathering area where the generals of the Britannian Army were stationed.

In that split second, Edward made a choice.

"Run in the opposite direction, Myr," Edward ordered his trusted steed. "Then, do your best to return home. I hope to see you again."

Myr neighed, accepting its Master’s command.

Edward jumped off its back and flew toward the river.

As one of the most powerful psionics of the Kingdom, flying was very simple for Edward.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t fly over long distances, for it consumed a lot of mana. Thinking that he might be followed by scent, he decided to wrap his head in an air bubble before submerging himself in the river.

The rivers in this part of the Kingdom were deep, so he could remain undetected if he swam underwater to escape his pursuers.

Fortunately, he didn’t have to swim against the current, so he didn’t expend too much strength during his escape.

He also made sure to take out a handful of Whisper Wings from his storage ring and had them monitor his surroundings.

Just as he expected, the scouts rushed in the opposite direction, following his horse.

Edward had tied his shirt on the saddle as a precaution. If the enemies were truly tracking him by scent, that was the best method to trick them.

His horse, Myr, was very smart. Unburdened by the weight of a rider, it ran faster to be of help to its Master.

Edward believed that if he followed the river, he would be able to arrive near the Frontera Viscounty after half a day.

Little did he know that the King had already ordered the Shadow Guards to capture the rest of the Frontera Family.

By the time Edward arrived at his destination, he wouldn’t find anything aside from the ashes of what remained of their home.

———————

Meanwhile, inside Stoneguard Fortress...

The Commander stationed in the fortress, Armand Brook, had just finished dinner.

When the Kingdom of Britannia was invaded, half of the soldiers garrisoned in the fortress were forcefully drafted to help defend their lands.

Armand didn’t hesitate to send his people to aid their countrymen. Although he couldn’t go personally because his duty remained in defending the fortress, he had sent his eldest son to lead his soldiers to battle.

Because of this, he also became aware of what was currently happening in the main camp of the Britannian Army.

"Are you sure?" Armand asked his son in a serious tone. "Viscount Frontera was branded as a traitor and was sent to the capital?"

"Yes, Father," Armand’s son, Stellan, replied in a serious tone. "I saw the viscount in chains while being escorted by the Black Tortoise General. We weren’t told why he was branded as a traitor, though."

For the time being, the King of Britannia planned to keep the news of Leone being the Chieftain of the Aslan Tribe confidential.

The only ones who knew about this were the four generals and their vice commanders. Stellan tried to get the answers from his connections, but they also didn’t know anything.

Armand thought this might just be another ploy of their King to bring down the Viscount of Frontera a peg.

While he was stationed at the southern tip of the Kingdom, he was still up to date with the latest news because of his connections in the capital city.

For some reason, the majority of the nobles hated the Frontera Family because they planned on staying neutral, not supporting any of the three princes of the Kingdom.

Armand didn’t find anything wrong with a noble family being neutral. However, others didn’t think the same way as he did.

"There’s more, Father," Stellan said. "Viscount Frontera’s son, Edward, is also missing from the camp. I heard that they sent a team of scouts to capture him."

"Poor Marco." Armand sighed. "It seems that the King is carrying a grudge against him and his family. I feel sorry for them."

Suddenly, the alarm bell of the fortress began ringing, making Armand stand up abruptly.

His son, who also heard the bell, looked at his father in shock.

"Father, what’s happening?!" Stellan asked.

"I don’t know," Armand replied. "I’ll talk to you later!"

The Commander of the Stoneguard Fortress ran outside of his room and went to the nearest window to check what was happening.

It had just passed midnight, with the majority of the people inside the fortress already asleep.

Armand himself was just about to go to bed after talking with his son. But the scene he saw outside the window made his body subconsciously shudder.

"By the Gods..."

Hundreds of flying monsters had infiltrated the city and were one-sidedly killing the guards on duty.

He even saw what looked to be a serpent-like dragon circling above the sky, throwing rocks at anything that moved.

Suddenly, Armand saw something golden flash in the darkness.

And to his surprise, this golden flash was headed in his direction.

His instinct told him to run, and his body listened right away. Unfortunately, that golden flash of light was faster.

Before Armand could even escape, something hit his chest and sent him crashing toward the wall behind him.

"Argh..." Armand groaned in pain as he tried to prop himself up from the floor.

It was then that he saw something that looked like a squirrel, whose cheeks and claws were emitting electric currents.

*Squeak*

Blitz looked at the Commander of Stoneguard Fortress, ready to shock him if he did anything stupid.

Truth be told, Blitz was also very angry after hearing that Leone’s family was in danger. It wanted nothing more than to tear every enemy apart. But Hassan told him that Armand shouldn’t be killed... unless he proved to be a nuisance.

Suddenly, the shadow under the squirrel’s body expanded, rising to the height of a man that made Armand press his back on the wall as if he was seeing a ghost.

"Armand Brook," Hassan said coldly. "As of today, I am relieving you of your duty as the Commander of Stoneguard Fortress."

"W-Who are you?!" Armand asked despite the fear that was rising in his chest.

"One of the vanguards sent by my Master to destroy the Kingdom of Britannia," Hassan replied. "Tell me, do you want to die or not?"

Armand’s body shuddered uncontrollably. He knew that if he said no, he would die on the spot.

In the end, he chose the only thing that would allow him and his family to survive.

He knelt and bowed until his forehead touched the floor and then begged for mercy.

Outside the commander’s residence, the Aslan Tribe had finished off every soldier who chose not to surrender.

High above the fortress, Dominic and the Gryphon Battalion watched this with a complicated gaze as the Stoneguard Fortress fell into the hands of the barbarians.

They had heard the reason for this night raid from Kael, and frankly, Dominic felt that the King of Britannia had truly made the biggest mistake of his life by targeting Leone’s family.

The King hadn’t witnessed the battle of Eden.

If he had, he would have thought thrice before touching even a single strand of hair of Leone’s family members.

He watched as the Shanlong, Lord Azar, activated the teleportation gate exclusively used by the Commander of Stoneguard Fortress, Armand.

The teleportation gate began to glow faintly. A moment later, Troy passed through the gate.

More warriors continued to emerge from the teleportation gate, quickly securing the fortress as they established their control over its defenses.

Dominic and the Gryphon Battalion watched in silence as the banner of the Aslan Tribe rose above Stoneguard Fortress.

The King of Britannia had wanted to make an example of the Frontera Family, but he had clearly underestimated the consequences of his actions.

Dominic could only imagine what Leone would do once he learned that his father had been imprisoned and his family was being hunted.

The young man might be unconscious right now due to exhaustion. But he had already demonstrated that he was not someone who would quietly accept injustice against those he cared about.

"Your Majesty... you messed with the wrong family." Dominic sighed in his heart.

Unfortunately for the Kingdom of Britannia, their King had just given Leone a reason to stop holding back.

Dominic even thought that if this matter wasn’t handled properly by his former King, the Kingdom of Britannia would truly... cease to exist.