Everyone's eyes widened.
The Werner family was a lineage of guardians that had protected Rehinar for generations.
Unlike the Guardian Knights, they protected Rehinar from the shadows. They had no need for names.
They were simply known as "Ghosts."
Even if individuals had names, they were fated to be forgotten forever.
But there was one exceptional person in the Werner family who left a name.
Anna Werner.
She protected the matriarch of the Guardian family during the Hatzfeld family attack.
She had also saved Duke Carl's life several times.
She had achieved incredible feats since she was young.
But at some point, she disappeared from the world.
Ghosts were always beings without a trace.
It was their mission to exist like shadows for their masters.
"The head maid is a Ghost!"
"Then, that head maid… no, that lady is as strong as the commander?"
"She might be quite rusty now, but still, she would be at the level of a Beginner-Tier 7th Class Warrior."
"Ohmahgahh!"
"7th-class!"
Everyone was astonished again.
Cedric was a Mid-Tier 7th-class Knight, so she was almost at his level.
The head maid was stronger than Fabi, who was a Mid-Tier 6th-class Knight.
"But Commander, why did you reveal such an important secret?"
Fabi asked Cedric.
Cedric answered willingly.
"His Grace didn't want Anna to live the life of a Ghost. I also hoped she would return to the world through the lady, which is why I revealed the head maid's secret to you."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Knowing that such a head maid existed, there was no need to worry about the north.
"What about the south?"
"We'll have to watch how the Young Master handles it."
"The damage could be significant."
"But our priority is His Grace's safety. The enemy already knows we haven't gone to the border, so they'll think His Grace is vulnerable. This is the most dangerous time."
To the enemy, Duke Carl was a thorn in their side.
He was like the last hope of the Fresia Empire.
To bring down the Fresia Empire,
Hatzfeld Royal Family wanted to eliminate Duke Carl.
"Only the youngest members should go out to the territories and observe the situation. That's all."
Cedric gave his orders and then went back into the mansion.
* * *
Kane leisurely went to the southern gate.
Unlike the western territory,
The southern territory was filled with fear.
"Why haven't the Guardian Knights appeared?"
"Hurry and stop those monsters!"
"I can't sleep because of the anxiety…"
The southern territory had always been the safest.
It was also where many wealthy individuals resided.
Kane listened to all their voices.
The more he listened, the colder his smile became.
Meanwhile, some showed different reactions.
"I must go out and fight."
"It's driving me crazy. What's the point of the war alarms if we move so slowly? Those mutant monsters will climb over the walls."
"Let's gather our weapons and head to the southern gate."
"If the forces are insufficient, we must help!"
Some territory residents gathered their weapons and emerged from their homes.
Their appearances were incredibly shabby.
With torn leather armor and chipped swords and spears,
They seemed hardly helpful for the fight.
They lived on the border between the west and the south.
And, they had always protected Rehinar.
"This miserable situation ends today."
As Kane was about to head out alone through the southern gate,
A resident armed with a weapon called out to him.
"Young Master, we will help."
"You all might die."
"We cannot allow Rehinar to be trampled by mutant monsters."
"Haha, cute Fools."
Kane chuckled.
Their eyes were full of determination.
They seemed ready to lay down their lives.
"It's only because of you all that Rehinar still exists today."
Kane said something cryptic to them.
"Open the gate."
Once outside, the armed residents and the southern gate guards followed him.
"I will remember your resolve."
Kane's eyes glowed purple.
At that moment, explosive energy emanated from his body.
"Annihilate the enemy."
His voice echoed in the air.
At that moment!
A Dark Tribe Goblin sprang from the ground and lunged at Kane.
But the goblin failed to achieve its goal.
"Roar!"
A Blood Tiger that had been hiding roared majestically.
They started tearing into the goblin's neck.
The difference in power was stark.
The Blood Tiger swiftly snapped the goblin's neck.
Then, through its fangs, it drained the goblin's blood completely.
After consuming the blood, the Blood Tiger's ferocity exploded.
Slash-!
Its steel-like claws ripped through the goblin's torso.
"Growl…"
The Dark Tribe Goblins had the advantage in numbers.
However, they seemed terrified of the Blood Tiger's ferocity.
Moreover, the Blood Tiger had grown larger after absorbing blood.
Soon many blood tigers came out.
They exuded an overwhelming aura of intimidation.
Their red, glowing eyes were nothing short of menacing.
"Squawk!!!"
The goblin chieftain waved his staff, it used a dark spell.
The moonlit visibility quickly dimmed.
"Even mutant monsters are just as dumb. Picking a fight with Blood Tigers in the dark."
Kane folded his arms and smirked.
The Blood Tigers' mana detection abilities were exceptional even among monsters.
No wonder they were considered the nemesis of assassins.
Before long, strange noises were heard.
"Screech!"
"…Squeal…."
A naturally terrifying atmosphere was created.
About 20 minutes later,
The darkness spell that the goblin chief cast was lifted.
Instead, the surroundings were now filled with a bloody mist.
"It's over."
Kane summoned his mana.
With a wave of his hand in the air, the blood mist cleared.
A gruesome scene unfolded.
Horribly torn goblin corpses.
All 300, including the chieftain, were dead.
It just took 20 minutes.
"Holy Mother!"
A territory resident standing behind Kane fell back in shock.
The Blood Tigers' mouths were drenched in blood.
Their red eyes made the resident's knees buckle.
As they crouched down, the tigers took one step closer.
"Eek!?"
"D-Don't come closer!"
The resident retreated, pointing his weapon at the Blood Tiger.
The tiger's eyes started gleaming red.
The murderous intent pressed down on the resident.
"They're allies."
"Roar!"
Kane patted the creature's massive head.
Feeling pleased, the Blood Tigers rubbed their heads against Kane's hand or tried to lick him.
"It might hurt your pride to retrieve the corpses, so just collect the Mana Stones."
At Kane's command, the returning Blood Tigers roamed the battlefield.
In their mouths were fist-sized Mana Stones.
[You have acquired a Mana Stone (★).]
[You have acquired a Mana Stone (★).]
[You have acquired a Mana Stone (★).]
...
...
...
[You have acquired a Mana Stone (★).]
"It's about time to root out all the traitors."
Kane turned around.
The first wave of mutant monsters wasn't completely over yet.
More would continue to come.
He had only given the residents a brief glimmer of hope.
"Leave your weapons here and head to the western territory. It will be safer there until the wartime situation ends."
"We, we can fight too…."
"The Dark Tribe Goblins are Beginner-tier 3rd-class monsters. You might manage one or two at best. It's pointless."
Despite Kane's words, the residents stood still, lost in thought.
Then, as if making a decision, one pointed ahead.
"Then, we will at least collect the corpses."
"If we sell the pieces, it will bring some small benefit to Rehinar, won't it?"
"Please let us help with this."
The resident pleaded.
Kane couldn't help but laugh softly at their determination.
"Finish within an hour. It'll be dangerous to stay outside the gate any longer."
"We will gather the corpses quickly… Hey you, Go inside and bring more people."
"I'll fetch them. Please wait a moment."
"You're stubborn."
Kane left five Blood Tigers behind as a precaution and headed back to the territory.
"Guards, move to the central area."
"What?"
"Didn't you hear me?"
"That would leave the residents at the south territory vulnerable."
"It's a strategic retreat."
It was a method of giving hope and then immediately delivering despair.
To survive in this game, sometimes one had to be ruthless.
Now was precisely that time.
He planned to deal with the traitors.
Using the mutant monsters, of course.
* * *
Ponytailed Yannick breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Did you see that? The Blood Tigers are listening to the Young Master!"
"Is he taming monsters too?"
The youngest members of the Guardian Knights were watching Kane from the rooftop.
"But with that kind of power, do we really need to do a strategic retreat?"
"I overheard the Young Master muttering…"
"What did he say?"
"I think he said something about killing all the traitors."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"No way!"
"Is he planning to kill them under the guise of coincidence?"
"That's highly likely."
"How?"
"By using the mutant monsters to kill them."
"What?!"
Despite having sufficient power, they were pulling back the front lines. It was madness.
If there were a second defensive line, it might be understandable. But beyond the city gates was the village.
Row after row of residential houses. Most of them were mansions of the wealthy. Quite a few belonged to the nobility as well.
However, none of them had amassed their wealth through legitimate means.
They had either sucked the lifeblood out of the honest residents or betrayed Rehinar by aligning with external forces.
They were nothing short of a cancer.
But who would dare to think of cutting them off all at once?
"Shouldn't we stop him?"
"Who?"
"Obviously, the Young Master."
"Have you gone mad? Didn't you see the Blood Tigers next to the Young Master? If you irritate him, you'll be sucked dry."
No one was willing to step forward.
As Yannick had said, Kane had transformed into a completely different person.
"Should we just pretend we didn't see anything?"
"That might be for the best."
"Yes."
They nodded to each other and moved towards to southern gate to check the damage.
"This is horrible."
"The fights between monsters are even more brutal."
"But what's really going on?"
"You mean how the Blood Tigers are following the Young Master's commands?"
"Yes."
Everyone fell silent.
Among monsters… only slimes, red wolves, and black bears could be tamed.
However, mutant monsters couldn't be tamed.
Their bodies contained demonic energy, evil energy, and mana stones.
To tame them, all three energies had to be subdued.
Only the previous generation, now lost to history, had managed to do that.
To the current inhabitants of the continent, they were forgotten figures.
"If the Young Master has truly tamed them, it's a monumental event."
"Oh!"
"The Young Master might become an All-Master, mastering construction magic, swordsmanship, spearman ship, and even taming."
Their expressions grew serious.
But soon, their faces were filled with excitement.
"Is Rehinar finally being revived?"
"If what was said is true, it will be more than just a revival. Other noble houses will have to start paying attention to our guardian family."
"We need to observe the Young Master even more closely."
"You know what we have to do now, right?"
Ponytailed Yannick nodded.
"I won't miss a single thing. I'll observe everything."
The youngest members of the Guardian Knights resumed following Kane.
* * *
Mutant monsters kept flooding towards the west, north, and south gates.
The first direction to be cleared was the west.
Kane was single-handedly slaughtering the Dark Tribe Goblins.
Swish—
With every swing of his sword, a Dark Tribe goblin fell.
Thud!
As the blade pierced it's heart, the blood of the Dark Tribe goblin surged towards Kane's palm.
—
[Bloodlust has reached 100 stacks.]
[Attack power has increased by 100%.]
[At your current level, 100 stacks is the limit.]
—
Having personally killed 100 goblins, Kane's bloodlust had reached its peak.
"Die."
Kane used his next combo skill.
—
[Skill 'Blood Dance (SSR) – Blood Wave has been activated.]
—
The blood mass gathered in his left hand was released in all directions.
A destructive force radiated outward.
Hundreds of Dark Tribe Goblins surrounding Kane exploded,
The mix of demonic energy, evil energy, and bloodlust created a nauseating stench.
Corpses littered the ground, numbering well over 600.
Although they were all Beginner-tier 3rd-class monsters, they were mutants.
Such a massacre was beyond ordinary comprehension.
"Alright, this is done."
Kane sheathed his sword and took out an egg from his cloak.
—
[Egg's Status: Anticipating]
—
The egg absorbed all the surrounding energy.
Demonic energy, evil corrupt energy, and bloodlust—all were consumed.
—
[Egg's Status: Thrilled by the abundance of food]
—
"When will you come out?"
—
[Egg's Status: Not to be disturbed while eating]