"You're dressed like that and not feeling cold?" Alexander asked the only berserker captured.
"Ahu!"
The berserker's eyes widened in fury, revealing a ferocious expression as his veins bulged, attempting to break free from the ropes binding him.
"Smack!"
A crisp slap landed on his face. "What are you grunting for? Can't you speak?" Alexander's slap immediately subdued the berserker.
How hard was that slap?
Alexander lifted the burly man as if he were a chick, then slapped him so hard that even his teeth fell out, demonstrating the immense force behind it.
In an instant, the berserker deflated, realizing that even if he didn't accept it, he could only submit in the face of absolute strength.
Just as Alexander was reprimanding these captives, another troop appeared on the horizon.
At the same time, the system's voice sounded again.
[Detected Lord Alexander encountering an unknown knight's order, triggering mission - Duel of Knights]
[Defeat the knight's order, replace their ranking, and receive rewards based on the knight's order leaderboard ranking]
[Triggered Knight's Order Leaderboard]
[Current Redemption Knight's Order ranking: 530, Unknown Knight's Order ranking: 497]
Alexander's eyes lit up. He hadn't expected that defeating another knight's order would come with special rewards.
The opponent was indeed a knight's order, hired by the Kingdom of Veed. This was evident from their blue flags and cloaks, the colors of the Veed Kingdom.
However, an important point was that a knight's order didn't necessarily equate to a cavalry unit.
Most of the opponents didn't have warhorses, and there were only about thirty of them.
Knight's orders were different from regular armies. Essentially, they were high-end mercenaries, and as mercenaries, they naturally had differences in wealth.
The opposing knight's order seemed to be on the poorer side.
Moreover, their equipment wasn't the standard Veed Kingdom gear; it was haphazardly assembled, indicating their makeshift equipment.
Except for a few leaders.
Their attire resembled iron cans, and their warhorses were robust and muscular, accompanied by several infantrymen dressed similarly to them.
Alexander recognized at a glance that the several infantrymen without horses were the veteran foot soldiers of the Veed Kingdom, also known as Veed Kingdom Soldiers, as rumored.
These Veed Soldiers, clad from head to toe in iron armor, were the elite among the Veed Kingdom's warriors, arguably the second-best infantry on the entire continent. The first were the Royal Guards of Veed.
(Veed Recruit—Veed Fighter—Veed Soldier—Veed Warrior—Veed Soldier—Veed Royal Guard)
Of course, these Royal Guards rarely appeared on the battlefield, as they were highly valued. However, once they did appear, they were a nightmare for the enemy, especially in siege and defense situations.
As reserves for the Veed Royal Guards, Veed Soldiers naturally excelled in infantry combat.
Unfortunately... the Kingdom of Saint Martin's fiercest were their cavalry, and unfortunately for them, cavalry happened to have the upper hand over infantry.
"I will pursue this path!"
"Until the end!"
The voices on the horizon reached the ears of the Oak Knights' leader.
Originally a Veed Kingdom fisherman (and part-time pirate), the leader had been recruited into a lord's army due to his strong physique, becoming a qualified Veed warrior. After several decades and with the support of a few nobles and merchants, he had established his own knightly order.
Normally, they mainly performed tasks such as protecting merchant caravans, eliminating competitors to wealthy merchants and nobles, and engaging in armed looting.
Now, with the Kingdom of Saint Martin and the Veed Kingdom at war, the Oak Knights naturally were eager to venture south to plunder.
Just after entering the borders of the Kingdom of Saint Martin, they stumbled upon their old peers—yes, it was the Redeemer Knights.
Should one say their luck was good? Or was it bad?
Their luck was good in that the Redeemer Knights had just gone through a major battle, with significant casualties.
Their luck was bad because even in this condition, the remaining Redeemer Knights were not something the Oak Knights could easily chew through.
However, in the eyes of the Oak Knights, they only saw a knightly order laden with spoils of war but severely damaged.
The gazes of the two knightly orders simultaneously turned greedy, especially on a particular dandy in magnificent armor, whose eyes locked onto the Oak Knights, fearing they might flee.
He raised his lance high and shouted loudly:
"I will pursue this path!"
"Until the end!"
The others closely followed Alexander's charging pace, and dozens of them managed to muster the momentum of a thousand-strong army.
"Big enough! Hard enough! Thick enough!"
"Only then can one stand tall in the storm!"
The Oak Knights also shouted their battle declaration. However, this declaration made Alexander, who was charging ahead, unable to hold back, almost falling off his horse.
You said it best, Oak...
As the two knightly orders collided, Alexander felt that the Oak Knights were indeed tough. Especially the Veed Soldiers, they were completely different from the berserkers, their combat skills were simply outstanding.
They could agilely rely on their agility and blocking to evade deadly lances. Even if they couldn't dodge, they could try their best to avoid vital points.
And the leader of the Oak Knights was also quite skilled. In the midst of the cavalry charge, his lance instantly killed one of Alexander's Saint Martin light cavalrymen. Then, with a lightning-fast reaction, he discarded his lance and drew his sword, engaging in close combat among the cavalry.
The two sides quickly became entangled.
Although the Oak Knights' leaders were indeed fierce, they couldn't match the overall strength of Alexander's side.
In just the first wave of the charge, most of the Oak Knights' warriors were taken down.
And, do you think your knightly order has strong fighters?
While the two sides were entangled, Alexander also discarded his lance and drew his sword. With each swing, a warrior from the Oak Knights was cut in half, easier than cutting vegetables. After all, have you ever seen someone wield a two-handed sword single-handedly and with such ferocity?
Alexander could!
At this moment, he was like a war god in the center of the battlefield. Around him, the others were equally formidable.
Otto wielded his giant hammer, and no matter how thick your armor was, one blow would shake you to death.
Victor wielded a double-handed sword directly, attacking so fast that you couldn't see with your eyes, only seeing the sword light connecting into a whole, let alone blocking.
Geoffrey was even more ferocious. He could fight back and forth with Veed Soldiers in one-on-one duels, even gaining the upper hand, already gaining the advantage.
It couldn't be said that the Oak Knights were weak, but their opponents this time were indeed a bit abnormal.
The Oak Knights were finally reduced to just seven or eight people, and Alexander led the Redeemer Knights to surround them.
"Veed men never surrender!" The leader of the Oak Knights, with red eyes and blood all over, roared angrily. His warhorse had already fallen, and he could only stand within the protective circle formed by the remaining warriors of the knightly order.
"It's meaningless to continue like this, only adding unnecessary sacrifices," Alexander said, riding his horse, standing gracefully in the center of the battlefield, looking down on them from above. "I have a proposal, I hope the honorable leader agrees. How about a one-on-one duel between us knights? If I win, your people will surrender willingly."
The leader of the Oak Knights asked in return, "And if I win?"
Alexander sneered as if mocking, "If you win, I'll let you go."
The question is... does the leader of the Oak Knights have any hope of winning?