Wizard: I have ten trillion nanomachines

It was now noon on the fifth day. During this time, servants who shared the same thoughts as Erich and Marcus had frequently returned here.

Most of them were servants of Wimbledon and the families involved in the operation. They often gathered together, conspired, and practiced how to exonerate themselves when the time came.

While discussing the matter, the group roasted the wild rabbit they had just caught, preparing to fill their stomachs.

As trained servants, they had no problem feeding themselves rabbits.

On the campfire at the campsite, wild rabbits were sizzling and dripping with oil, golden droplets falling into the flames and sparking tiny sparks.

"Just say that we were separated from the giant bear by its chains when we charged with the Earl, and that we were forced to hide in the woods to cover the retreat of our comrades," a tall, thin servant said, spitting as he spoke. "As for the camp being looted, just blame it on those peasants; it's not wrong anyway."

Marcus sat to the side, nodding frequently, occasionally poking at the campfire with his stick, but his eyes were somewhat unfocused; he felt that this matter was not so simple.

But seeing the confident looks on the faces of those around him, he swallowed back the doubts that were on the tip of his tongue.

Erich leaned against the tree trunk, listening silently, but in his heart he was calculating that when the family sent someone, he and his companions could just blame the scattered soldiers and the terror of the giant beasts, and mention their experience of "risking their lives to protect their comrades," and perhaps they could save their lives.

Just then, the sound of rapid hoofbeats came from afar, breaking the noise of the camp.

The crowd fell silent instantly, all looking up at the valley entrance. Five warhorses galloped towards them, the riders clad in bright silver armor, their chest badges bearing the emblem of the Wimbledon family.

"It's a knight from the family!" someone exclaimed in a low voice, their tone full of relief, as if they had seen a savior.

Erich also stood up, straightened his tattered clothes, and prepared to step forward to "plead his case".

The warhorses stopped in the center of the camp, and the lead knight dismounted, the clanging of his armor making a crisp sound.

He looked to be about thirty years old, with a cold and stern face and sharp, piercing eyes. When he swept his gaze over the people in the camp, he did so with undisguised scrutiny.

"What happened here?" he asked, his voice low. "Why has the camp been cut off from the family for three days? Where is the Earl?"

Ehrlich rushed forward, forcing a sorrowful expression on his face, and bowed, saying, "My lord! You've finally come!"

"On that day, we followed the Earl to hunt down the giant bear, but the beast was too ferocious and broke through the shield wall. The team was instantly scattered. A few of us were swept up by the chaotic soldiers and accidentally left the battlefield. We barely escaped back to the camp with our lives on the line."

"But upon returning, we discovered that those despicable deserters had taken advantage of the camp's weakened defenses, murdering the supply troops and looting everything!"

"Yes!" Marcus immediately echoed, his voice laced with deliberate anger. "Those bastards are rotten to the core! If it weren't for them, we wouldn't have been unable to even send out messengers, and this hunt would never have failed!"

The other attendants also chimed in, each one embellishing their own experiences, blaming all the blame on the fleeing soldiers, and portraying themselves as victims who escaped in a bloodbath.

Upon hearing this, the leading knight, William Wimbledon, looked at them coldly, his face expressionless.

When everyone had finished talking and their throats were dry, he slowly drew his knight's sword from his waist, the blade gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

"Are you finished?" His tone was flat, yet carried a chilling undertone. "If you're done, it's time to send you on your way."

Ehrlich's smile froze instantly, and Marcus took a step back in fright, his voice trembling, "Sir, what...what are you doing? We're on the same side!"

"One of our own?" William scoffed, his eyes filled with contempt. "From this moment on, you are all dead."

"Dying on the battlefield to annihilate the monsters—what do you think of that reason?"

"What?!" Erich's eyes widened in disbelief. "My lord, you can't do this! My grandfather was an old knight of the family, and I shed blood for the Wembley family!"

"Blood was shed?" William, too lazy to waste any more words with them, waved his hand and said coldly, "Make your move."

Before he finished speaking, the other four knights immediately drew their longswords and rushed towards the people in the camp.

The squires were no match for the knights; screams and pleas for mercy echoed throughout the camp in an instant.

Marcus tried to run, but a knight pierced his lower back with a sword. Blood gushed out, and he staggered and fell beside the campfire. The flames burned his clothes, but he no longer had the strength to struggle.

Erich drew his short sword to fight back, but his strength was like an ant in front of the knight. With one stroke of the knight's sword, he cleaved Erich and his sword in two!

A moment later, the camp fell completely silent. Corpses lay scattered on the ground, blood staining the soil around the campfire, and the air was thick with the stench of blood and burnt meat. William sheathed his longsword, wiped the blood from the blade with a cloth, and calmly said to his subordinates, "We're going to the battlefield now."

The five men rode their warhorses and galloped toward the battlefield.

When they stepped into the swamp, even the knights who were used to fighting couldn't help but frown.

Corpses were everywhere on the ground. Some had been trampled into mincemeat by the giant bear, while others had been twisted into a bloody mess by iron chains, so much so that their original human forms were no longer recognizable.

Soldiers' limbs, broken armor, and shattered weapons were scattered all over the ground, and dark red blood mixed with the black mud of the swamp, emitting a nauseating stench.

The giant bear's carcass lay silently in the center of the swamp, its massive body already cold, while several knights' corpses lay scattered around it.

William dismounted and walked to the body of Earl Wimbledon, kicking it with his foot. His tone held no grief, but rather a barely perceptible excitement: "I never imagined my uncle would die, and that old geezers like Farman and Rhodes would be gone too!"

His father, Oro, was the younger brother of Earl Wimbledon. He was also a mid-ranking knight, but because he was born two years later, he could only be subordinate to others and spend his life as a retainer assisting his elder brother.

William himself had watched his uncle's family enjoy titles and wealth since he was a child, while his own family could only get scraps.

A true man is born between heaven and earth; how can he remain subservient to others for long!

But unless he can become a legendary high knight with overwhelming power, he will forever remain a retainer.

But now, the opportunity has arrived.

In an effort to hunt down this giant bear, the family dispatched three mid-ranking knights, all of whom have now perished in battle.

In other words, apart from his father, there was no other mid-level knight in the family who could rival him.

As long as his father seizes power, William will be the future heir to the family business!

As for the loss of the family's fighting strength? William's gaze fell on the giant bear's corpse, and greed flashed in his eyes. The corpse of this magical beast was the best compensation!

If we can bring this corpse back to the family, it will be more than enough to make up for the loss of combat power.

Thinking of this, William turned to his trusted knights behind him and ordered, "Two of you go back to the family immediately and tell them, 'We encountered an accident while attacking the giant bear; the entire army was wiped out, and the Earl was unfortunately killed in action.'"

This was clearly a blatant lie. The corpses on the ground clearly showed signs of being stabbed with swords and knives. Anyone with eyes could see that the count and his men did not all die at the hands of the giant bear.

William didn't care. He knew perfectly well that someone who could kill three mid-level knights was most likely also a mid-level knight, and a powerful one at that.

To investigate a mysterious knight of unknown strength for the sake of a dead man is simply insane.

The most important thing right now is to quickly inform the father to seize power and bring the priceless bear carcass back to the family.