Chapter 27: Rescue Mission Part 2
"Alexius Demetrios Leo…" She looked at the young man kneeling before her and trembled.
"The one and only rightful heir of the Leo Principality… the Crown Prince, and the future Grand Prince of this nation."
She pulled her two daughters tighter against her chest.
"Why are you here? You are not our friend. My husband's forces are marching against yours. We are your enemies!"
Alexius: "I am here to rescue you to honor a contract I made with your husband."
"But you are our enemy!" she argued, shaking her head. "This is a trick."
Instead of arguing further, Alexius reached inside his dark leather coat. He pulled out a heavy gold signet ring—the unmistakable crest of the Avarus family—along with a folded, wax-sealed parchment. He placed them gently into her trembling hands.
The Countess snatched the items. Her eyes scanned the familiar, hurried handwriting of Count Ares. Tears immediately welled up in her eyes as she read his desperate plea for their safety and the details of his surrender. She clutched the letter to her chest, letting out a stifled sob.
"Okay."
"Take me and my children to my husband. Please… save us."
"Stay close to us,"
Alexius ordered, rising to his feet. "Vane, take the rear. Aelrue, guide the Countess and hold the children's hands. We move fast and quiet."
They slipped out of the cell, leaving the dungeon behind. The underground corridors were eerily quiet, the unconscious guards still slumped at their posts. Alexius used his control over shadows and space to mask their presence as they ascended the spiral staircase back to the surface.
They reached the main courtyard. The freezing rain was still falling. They were nearing the outer gate when they entered the courtyard.
The youngest daughter, shivering and terrified by the lightning, slipped on a patch of slick ice. As she fell, her flailing hand brushed against a decorative stone gargoyle.
BZZZZZT!
A magical siren alarmed. The courtyard instantly flashed red with the light of alarm crystals.
"Intruders in the courtyard!" a voice boomed magically from the battlements. "Lock down the gates! Kill them all!"
"Damn it," Vane cursed, drawing his daggers. "So much for the quiet way."
"Carry the kids! Run!" Alexius shouted.
They ran toward the main gate, but the heavy iron gate was already closed by the time they arrived. From the barracks and the inner keep, heavily armed Dukedom soldiers poured out, cutting off their only exit.
Within moments, their escape route was completely blocked. Over a hundred elite guards formed a tight, multi-layered circle of steel, shields, and spears around the group.
From the front ranks stepped three massive figures, their auras flaring brightly through the rain—heavy pressure radiating from Rank 6 Commanders. They wielded a greatsword, a heavy battleaxe, and a spiked mace.
"The Crown Prince himself," the lead commander sneered, resting his battleaxe on his shoulder. "Duke Vetus will pay us unimaginable rewards for your head."
"Aelrue, Vane. Protect the Countess and the children. Do not let a single drop of blood touch them," Alexius commanded.
He drew his sword.
There was no time for restraint. If he held back now, the Countess and her children would die.
Alexius released his [Sovereign's Aura]. The sheer pressure of his willpower cracked the ground of the courtyard beneath his boots.
"Omni-Element Release."
He vanished using [Flash Step], reappearing directly in front of the Rank 6 axe-wielder. Before the commander could even blink, Alexius infused his right blade with blinding [Light Magic] and his left with [Space Magic].
He swung. The spatial distortion bypassed the commander's heavy armor completely, acting as a portal through the steel, while the light blade severed his head instantly. One Rank 6, dead in less than a second.
The courtyard erupted in chaos as the remaining guards charged with a roar.
Alexius unleashed [Wind Magic] to accelerate his movements. He stomped the ground, using [Earth Magic] to summon jagged stone spikes that impaled a dozen charging guards at once.
He spun, releasing a localized shockwave of [Fire Magic] and [Lightning Magic] that incinerated the second Rank 6 commander and scorched the ranks behind him into ash.
The third commander tried to sneak up from his blind spot, bringing a heavy mace down toward Alexius's skull. Alexius used [Water Magic] to instantly freeze the rain into a shield of solid ice that shattered the mace on impact, then backhanded the man with a burst of [Darkness Magic], decaying his armor and flesh into dust.
In less than three minutes, over a hundred elite guards and three Rank 6 commanders lay dead, their blood washing away into the drains.
Alexius stood panting slightly. He flicked his sword, clearing it of blood, and sheathed it.
Suddenly, a profound, burning warmth spread through his chest. The mana core inside him pulsed violently, expanding and condensing in a split second. The mental and physical barriers holding his martial and magical paths shattered simultaneously.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[Conditions Met. Experience Threshold Exceeded.]
[Level Up!]
[Sword Path advanced to Rank 7: Sword Master Candidate]
[Magic Path advanced to Rank 7: Grand Mage Candidate]
Raw, unadulterated power surged through his veins. His senses sharpened to a terrifying degree. He could feel the individual raindrops striking his shoulders, the flow of mana deep in the earth, and the frantic, terrified heartbeats of the Countess and her children behind him.
And then, he felt something else.
The air in the courtyard suddenly grew so heavy it was hard to breathe. The freezing rain hissed and turned to steam before it could even hit the ground, evaporated by a suffocating, blood-red aura that washed over the walls.
From the shadows, a massive figure stepped forward, his boots crushing the stones beneath him. He was clad in dark red armor, and the black greatsword in his hand pulsed with chaotic energy.
Der Gnadenlose. The Merciless. The Rank 8 Imperial Sword Master.
"So,"
"The Crown Prince himself graces the audience. What an honor."
(Continue....)