The sky was dark and filled with dark-gray clouds.
The rumbling of thunder reverberated throughout the gloomy night sky and the flashing of lightning became the sole lanterns of the night as it illuminated the world.
Rain was being unleashed upon the earth with ferocity!
It was as if there was a super typhoon that was raging upon the earth. However, this was peculiar since there was no sea or ocean in the span of tens or even hundreds thousand kilometers of land.
In a town surrounded by trees, there was a house located near the edge of the town. The house was large as it had five floors and covered nearly forty square meters of land.
But, it was abandoned and broken down. The ceiling seemed to have been fixed using different sorts of wood from trees that have great water absorption properties.
The paint from the house has long been removed either by the rain or the moss that grew all around the house. But there were signs of the walls of this house being cleaned every now and then.
The glass of the windows have long become shallow and the gates were long consumed by rust.
But upon closer inspection, one could see that all windows were just recently wiped and that the rusty gates are being scratched to remove the rust around it.
This house looked like a good place to build a new house or building after being demolished. The spacious plot of land would surely attract many people so that they could live here or start a business here.
However, the inhabitants of this town did not dare to go near this house. This was due to the local folktale that this house is haunted by fox spirits that were entirely made up of flames.
These fox spirits appear at the dead of the night. It sometimes flashes by the numerous windows, sleeps in front of the front door, or rests on the ceiling of the house.
There were numerous sightings of these fox spirits that led to creation of this folklore. There had been many real estate businessmen who tried to take this house but they were still chased out right after they tried.
They were so horrified that all of them would say after their visit, "We will never come near that house again!".
They would soon leave the town and go to the nearby city.
However, inside that very house, there was a young man who looked like he was 15 or 16 years old inside a large bedroom.
He had long dark hair that was tied to his back and drooped down to his nape. His face was rather plain but it contained the determination and impulsiveness of a teenager that would daunt the spirits of those who dared look.
He stood at a high stature for his age standing about 1.8 meters. But the most notable thing about him was his well-defined muscles from head to toe!
It showed the results of intense daily training he had to have gone in order to achieve such a body
The strange thing about this young man was his eyes!
His right eye was deep blue as though it was reflecting the vast ocean and his left eye was crimson orange as though it contained the burning hot magma of a volcano!
This man had an alarmed expression as he concentrated all his attention towards the girl who was lying on the bed in front of him.
The seemingly thirteen year old girl in front of him was insanely gorgeous. Her beautiful scarlet hair was like the auburn sunset exuding its crimson beauty. Her lashes were long and her nose was like porcelain.
Her skin was as fair as nose as it complimented her soft pink lips. Although she only looked like she was twelve or thirteen years old, she already exuded an air of elegance comparable to that of royalty.
But the pressing matter was that her entire face was flushed red and her expression was in pain. It seemed as though she was having a fever.
The young man who was sitting down was constantly dipping the damp cloth and placing it on the forehead of the beautiful girl.
The young man balled his fist and said, "Damn it, Scarlet's fever is back! And, she's really burning up! This is even worse than last time! The rain is extremely strong! How can I go to the city and steal some Cooling Water Pill like this?!"
Suddenly, he felt something tug his sleeves. He saw that there was a delicate hand grabbing onto his sleeve. He soon noticed that Scarlet's crimson red eyes that resembled rubies were open.
The red-haired beauty said weakly, "Big Bro, you're back..."
"You're awake! How are you feeling?" The young man held Scarlet's small hand and inquired. 'Shit, even her hand is burning hot!'
"I'm good... I feel a bit hot, that's all... Just a little bit under the weather I guess." Scarlet meekly said.
"Are you sure? You should drink some water first. Here." The young man grabbed a glass of water and gave it to Scarlet.
"Mhm." Scarlet nodded and drank the water obediently.
"Good. You should lie down and rest. Tell your friends to guard you while I'm gone." The young man smiled and ordered.
"Hm, why...? Are you going somewhere? But... it's raining hard." Scarlet said worriedly.
"You have a fever and you're still worrying about me? You should worry about yourself and focus on your recovery. You should be resting now. I'll be going out to get you some medicine. I'll be back in a jiffy!" The boy smiled and assured with a smile before opening the door and leaving.
Suddenly, the door opened again and the young man's head popped out and said, "Don't forget to sleep! Drink lots of water! Have your friends guard you!"
Scarlet was shocked and chuckled, "Alright. I know. You can go now, Big Bro Dylan. Bye, be careful."
The young man called Dylan smiled and left after locking the door, "I will!"
Dylan descended the flight of stairs quickly and arrived at the ground floor.
Before he left and opened the main gate, he turned around and loudly said, "Fox spirits, I know you're there! Please guard my sister like you always have! Thank you!"
After saying those words, he opened the door and dashed out of the house.
"Such an admirable young lad"
...
Meanwhile...
Inside the forest, there were explosions that could be heard and sparks of weapons clashing could be seen even with the veil of the torrential rain.
There were several figures that were dashing across the forest. They were all wearing cloaks and seemed to belong to the same faction. These people were all surrounding a certain person at the center.
"Damn it! They are gaining on us!" One of the cloaked people cursed after he looked back.
"Who are the bastards who would go to such lengths and hire a group of 'Evil Cultivators' with a 'Malevolent Magnate' as the leader?! What's more they hired ones at the Mortal Severing Realm! This means that they somehow know our general strength!" Another person howled in anger. When the lightning flashed, it was revealed that this person was a woman.
"The mastermind took into account the fact that we would also be bringing Mortal Severing experts! They must have known that we were escorting Lady Victoria! To think they had designs of assassinating our Lady!" A man gritted his teeth as they continued forward.
Suddenly, they were attacked by countless earth spires that were spouted by the ground.
*Duuuuuuzhh*
"You think a puny attack like this would halt our advance?! You are severely underestimating the Sword Knights of the Cross Clan!" The person in the front unsheathed a sword from its scabbard and slashed it very naturally as though it was an extension of his hands.
*Shing* *Shing* *Shing*
The earth spires were slashed into rubble while the group of people continued their advancement.
However, in front of them, there were eight people who exuded terrifying strength and gave off the feeling they were monsters clod in human skin. With a flash of light from the sky, there appearances were shown.
"Hehe, don't even think of getting away from us." A man who wore a small vest that did not even cover his lean body. This man had one large tattoo written all over his chest that stretched towards his belly button.
The tattoo resembled that of a demon's head with a castle on his forehead. His colleagues also had a similar tattoo, albeit, in different parts of their body. Some had it on the back of their hand, on their shoulder, or on their neck.
"Tch, we're going to be surrounded by them at this rate." A middle-aged man discerned their situation. He seemed to be the leader of the group.
He thought, 'We only have fifteen Sword Knights here... There are eight up front and nine on our back. They already outnumber us... Their leader is still somewhere. I can't let Lady Victoria get captured or the Clan Leader will have my head!'
Then, his gaze arrived at Victoria's profile. Victoria was a mesmerizing girl about fifteen years of age. Her brunette long hair was guiding the raindrops to its hair ends as they glistened.
Her amber brown eyes were shining even in the dark of the night. These further emphasized her glowing white skin.
She possesses a likeness that is structured beautifully so that it would attract the adoration of men and even women. Her body, despite her young age, has already developed wonderfully.
But her frail and scared look made those who were near protect her with all their might.
'My niece is trembling... She must have been scared all along being chased by these people who are trying to kill her. Anyone would be scared much less the shy and sweet Victoria.' The man saw her niece who looked like a scared kitten.
With a determined look, he commanded, "Knights, we will hold the enemy right here and now! I will lead six to attack those at our front while the rest of you will defend against those at our rear. Understood?!"
"Understood!" The rest acknowledged and immediately went to battle mode. They all unsheathed twin longswords and assumed their battle stance.
"Skybreaker formation!" The middle-aged man commanded. The five lined up a column in front of him.
The five men on the front soon attacked and charged forwards. They all yelled the same phrase, "Skybreaker Quadra-slash!"
All five men executed the same motion in perfect sync. They all first slashed their two swords diagonally forming an 'X' and the next instant, they followed the same path their swords previously took and formed another "X".
The last motion they did was a straight sword thrust in the middle of the X. In a matter of milliseconds, all three of these actions were skillfully executed! The attack formed a cross-bolt ammunition of a crossbow.
All five Skybreaker Quadra-slash were lined up in a line. The identical power of all five attacks seemed to have connected and formed an even larger Skybreaker Quadra-slash that was three times bigger and stronger than its previous form!
"Skybreaker Starstrike!"
"Hahaha, they're all so eager to die! I can kill'em all, right?!" The man with the tattoo on his chest excitedly asked. His eyes reflected madness in it.
A sexy woman who wore a dress and had a tattoo on her neck answered the question, "Yes, Jaken. You can slaughter them."
"Yahaha! Fight me, you fuckers!" Jaken wildly laughed. A large golem creature made from dark shiny stones emerged from his body. When he punched forwards, the golem also punched.
Jaken howled with madness, "Mountain Shaker Fist!"
The golem's fist became larger and larger until it became five times its previous size. The power of the strike also increased in magnitude!!
The Mountain Shaker Fist clashed with the Skybreaker Starstrike!
*Boooom!!*
A strong shockwave resulted from the clash. However, the Skybreaker Starstike seemed to have managed to win over the Mountain Shaker Fist. The resultant force of the attack sent Jaken flying backwards.
Jaken coughed up blood as he was thrown into the air, "Amazing!!"
...
Hawks was just going to join the fight when he felt something nudge his back.
"Err... U-uncle Hawks..." A trembling voice resounded. When Hawks turned around, he saw that it came from Victoria Cross.
"Yes, milady? Is something the matter? If it isn't too important, then I will answer it later." Hawks wore a solemn expression as he respectfully replied.
"I... Er... Ne-nevermind..." Victoria stuttered and stepped backwards and said.
Hawks looked at Victoria with one last look of concern before he faced forwards and joined the fight!
Victoria looked sad and down. Then, someone approached her. She recognized this person, " Big Bro Kai, it's you."
Kai was a nickname that Victoria came up with when they were young. His real name is Kaiden Knight. He is her personal guard and have known each other for ten years now.
Kaiden was a tall young man who seemed to be eighteen or nineteen years old. He was muscular yet lean. He also had a handsome face as his aura reflected a strict and serious knight. There was also a sense of immaturity and stiffness that came from his youthly aura.
Kaiden also spoke, "Milady, you wanted to say to Captain Hawks that you wanted to fight, right?"
"Y-yeah... Big Bro Kai still knows me best. But I suddenly thought that I might just disappoint him if I did. If I made a mistake, I... I might put all of you in harm's way." Victoria smiled wryly.
But even so, her smile was even prettier than the spring bloom of a garden of flowers.
Kaiden was stunned and was somewhat flushed. But he was able to quickly hide his expression but his heart was beating faster than when he was fighting 'Evil Cultivators' earlier.
He said in the same tone he used earlier, "Milady, you should be more confident in yourself. If you put your heart into it, even I might have to concede defeat. After all, you are recognized as the Clan's strongest genius, a talent that may not appear even in a thousand years."
Then, Kaiden turned around and joined the rear guard who was already fighting the Evil Cultivators who were chasing them.