Being a knight is not easy

Chapter 225 Gathering
Robin stepped over the still convulsing corpse, his boot crushing a fallen fang.

“Keep going.” His voice was eerily calm. “Let these beasts know who the real hunter is.”

Will then noticed that there wasn't a single drop of blood on the twelve warriors' spears.

Their movements were so synchronized that they were like one person, each swing of their spears with mechanical precision.

What's most terrifying is their eyes; they don't have the fanaticism of warriors, but the indifference of butchers handling pieces of meat.

The howls of wolves echoed from the depths of the mine, but this time, their voices were clearly tinged with hesitation and fear.

With Robin, an archer of the Order level, there would be no barbarian warriors who were not at the Great Knight level. They would be shot dead immediately.

Ordinary barbarian warriors were no match for the warriors. Taking advantage of the narrow passages in the mine, any barbarian warrior who encountered them was destined to be slaughtered.

The faint light at the end of the mine tunnel was already visible.

Just as the survivors were about to breathe a sigh of relief, the rock wall in front of them suddenly burst open.

Stone fragments flew like rain as a giant shadow covered in blood-red totems burst through the stone wall.

The double-edged battle axe in his hand was shrouded in a visible chill, and with each step he took, frost flowers condensed on the ground beneath his feet.

“Asawa…” Will’s voice instantly went hoarse, and the great knight instinctively took a half step back, “The Frost Tribe’s ‘Bonebreaker’…”

A low laugh rolled down the throat of the legendary barbarian warrior.

His tattooed face looked like a demon under the torchlight, and the ice crystal embedded in his left eye reflected an eerie blue light.

When he raised his battle axe, the temperature in the entire mine plummeted, and frost instantly covered the rock walls.

“Human insects…” Asawa’s voice was like the friction of a glacier, “I will destroy your spines…”

"Whoosh-!"

A streak of purple light pierced through the darkness.

Robin's arrow didn't even need to be nocked; the arrow, wreathed in an earthy yellow light, seemed to shoot directly from the void.

The arrow tip pierced Asawa's icy left eye with pinpoint accuracy, bringing out a clump of ice shards mixed with brain matter as it penetrated his skull.

The barbarian legend's expression froze between ferocity and astonishment.

His battle axe was still raised high in the air, but his burly body had already collapsed to his knees.

The head, pierced by an arrow, slammed heavily to the ground, and the embedded ice crystals shattered with a "crack".

The mine tunnel fell into a deathly silence.

Will stared blankly at Asawa's headless corpse, the legendary warrior who had slaughtered dozens of knights in the territory, now lying in a pool of blood like a dead dog.

Robin slowly and methodically put away the compound pulley bow, as if he had merely swatted a fly.

"Go." He stepped over the corpse without looking back. "Don't let these bastards waste our time."

The surviving citizens followed, trembling, each one unable to resist taking a second look at Asawa's body as they passed.

An expression of disbelief still lingered on the head that had been shot open.

Ironjaw grinned, casually cleaving Asawa's battle axe in two with his giant axe. Feeling quite pleased with the result, he picked it up: "Legendary? Heh."

The light at the mine's exit grew closer, while the howls of the barbarians faded into the distance.

As the first rays of dawn pierced the mist at the mine's exit, the survivors stood frozen in place like sculptures.

A little girl with a face covered in coal dust suddenly let go of her hand covering her mouth. Her lips trembled, but she couldn't make a sound.

Three days of fleeing had left these people hoarse from crying. She could only cling tightly to her mother's clothes, her fingernails digging into the flesh of her palms through the rough cloth. The old miner knelt down in the mud with a thud, his trembling fingers digging into the damp soil.

This tough guy, who hadn't uttered a sound even when his leg bone broke in the mine, was now curled up like a baby, his forehead pressed against the ground, twitching silently.

Behind him, a dozen surviving miners knelt down one after another, their blood-stained hands slapping the ground, the mud splattering like tears of joy.

Will staggered out of the cave entrance, his tattered armor reflecting dappled light in the morning glow.

He suddenly turned around and raised his broken sword towards the deep mine tunnel.

That place holds the memories of most of his life's glory and shame.

The sword snapped in his palm with a "crack," and as blood dripped down his palm lines, the great knight's knee slammed heavily to the ground.

"Your subordinate," his voice sounded as if it had been sanded, yet every word was as firm as iron, "is willing to follow Your Majesty!"

Andysu's crossbow bolt was nocked instantly, and the giant axe of Ironjaw hummed as it was held horizontally in front of Will's neck.

The same flame burned in their eyes, the fierce glint of a wild beast guarding its prey.

Robin's fingertips lightly traced the patterns on the Dragon Slayer Spear, the amethyst ring dazzling in the morning light: "Very good." His voice was soft, yet it instantly silenced all the sobs. "From this day forward, you are knights of Wilke Territory."

Morning mist shrouded the ruined territory, and the air was filled with the stench of blood and scorched earth.

Robin stood on the crumbling city wall, his boot crushing a piece of rubble bearing the Alfonso family crest.

After a night of searching, they rescued dozens more people, including a member of the Alfonso family. However, before he could even feel relieved, Andy Sue chopped off his head with a sword.

What they need is the unclaimed Baron Alfonso, not a territory with an heir.

“The land is still here,” he murmured, the amethyst ring gleaming eerily in the morning light. “The mines are still here, the farmland is still here.” His gaze swept over the hundreds of survivors kneeling before the ruins. “More importantly, the people are still here.”

Will knelt on one knee, the bloodstains on his armor already dried: "My lord, there are still rich, unexploited mines deep within the crystal iron veins of Alfonso's territory, enough to arm an army."

Robin's lips curled into a cold smile.

He bent down and grabbed a handful of soil, the purplish-black fertile earth slipping through his fingers.

This is a treasure trove where purple melons can be grown for three seasons.

“Twenty-three knight apprentices.” His gaze swept over the group of ragged but determined young men. “Seven full knights.” Finally, it settled on Will. “And one grand knight.”

Iron Jaw was brutally testing the apprentices' aptitude, and the cold gleam of the giant axe made several teenagers turn pale.

Andy Sue stood to the side with her arms crossed, a dangerous glint in her eyes.

These fresh faces are all bargaining chips in future factional struggles.

The most concerning are the surviving children.

They were unusually quiet, their eyes filled with a deep longing for power.

"Prepare for relocation," Robin suddenly ordered. "Take all these people back to Wilke territory."

Will looked up in surprise: "My lord, shouldn't we retake this place first?"

The blade of the Dragon-Slaying Spear sliced ​​through the ground, leaving a trail of burning purple flames: "What's the rush?"

Robin looked north, where more territory awaited conquest. "Our strength is not yet enough to drive out all the barbarians; we need to advance step by step."

"When we drive all the barbarians out, the entire western region will be ours."

(End of this chapter)