After I died, my personal maid rebelled.

What exactly is life?

If it were him two years ago, Lucas would have given a calm smile and said, "I don't know, I've never thought about that."

But now he can't laugh anymore.

He is still him, still prone to overthinking and complaining about fate, but those days of sadness and joy will never appear in his life again.

What am I doing now that I'm grown up? I'm being a lackey of a god with a cute girl, then I lose everything and wander aimlessly, searching for a place to call home.

No one cares where the future lies, but at least one person will care where he goes, even if it's just a brief encounter of a few months.

In the city ablaze with flames, Monet, covered in blood and running in a disheveled state, trembled as she climbed over a wall and instinctively slipped into a deep alley.

Her parents and guards left her with the final chance to survive, while the raiding party composed of adventurers and veterans dismantled the city lord's mansion's defenses in just three minutes.

"Teacher, you're right..."

Monet's illusions were shattered, and the heavy, cold reality weighed down on her every painful breath. The Northern Army didn't care about their arrogance and conceit; the ending would be the same anyway.

A sudden click, the sound of armor rang out.

At the end of the alley, a Northern Army soldier holding a long spear slowly walked towards Monet after noticing her.

Monet encountered none other than Aureon, who had come to purge the remnants of the nobility.

Losing all his strength and pride in an instant, Monet collapsed to the ground, unable to run any longer, his tightly clenched lips wet with tears.

Thump, thump...

Another set of footsteps came from behind her, the rhythm of which felt strangely familiar.

Their eyes met, and Erian paused briefly, while Lucas at the other end of the alley drew his longsword.

The energy fluctuations generated by the two converged in the narrow space. The two, who were immediately alert, sensed each other's power and both unleashed terrifying speeds at the same time.

Clang!

Monet, who was lying face down with his head in his hands, saw the soldier in front of him suddenly disappear. Then, directly above him, metal clashed violently, tearing through the gale. A series of sparks, like a bay, bloomed and withered along the deep alley.

The spear coiled like a dragon, while Lucas grew stronger with each battle. The slashes of his sword formed a massive, arc-shaped wall, causing the air to explode. Under the high-speed impact, the surrounding houses collapsed one after another. The dense attacks were like short, rapid drumbeats, and the two quickly distanced themselves after exchanging blows for only a few seconds.

Stepping onto the tilted, collapsed wall, Ereon quietly watched Lucas, who had used the momentum to escape the battle. In a flash, he appeared in front of the girl, completely blocking her view.

Adjusting his breathing, Erian did not launch another attack, but silently twirled the spear in his hand.

The opponent was a powerful force capable of matching him, but the city had already fallen, and Eryon could call for reinforcements from the Northern Army at any time, a fact the opponent was equally aware of.

So he drew his sword solely for the noblewoman lying on the ground.

Having understood the other party's purpose, Arian silently looked away. It was just a little time for conversation; he could afford to give that much.

"teacher?"

Monet looked up in disbelief, about to say something, when he noticed the blood dripping from Lucas's arm.

"you……"

"Don't speak. The enemy is a general from the Northern Territory. I'll keep him occupied. You run back immediately and don't look back!"

Lucas looked solemn. He had expected to make a grand entrance, but his first opponent was so formidable.

If things go wrong, he might end up dying here tonight.

"General, enemy reinforcements have arrived outside the city. The High Priestess is in dire straits. The commander orders you to proceed immediately to her aid!"

An unexpected turn of events occurred. The moment the messenger finished reporting, Lucas immediately picked up the still-unresponsive Monet and disappeared into the night in a few steps.

Glancing in the direction the other party had left, Ereon turned away without a word. He didn't linger either, but instead gathered his troops and headed to the next battlefield.

The night wind carried the neighing of warhorses. On the chaotic battlefield, a woman draped in a black cloak obscured her face, revealing a few strands of long, withered hair.

She watched the departing figure from afar, then turned around and spoke in a low, hoarse voice.

"War between the Northern Territory and the Demon Kingdom is about to break out. We must stop the Northern Army's southern offensive during this period. I'm entrusting this task to you. Don't let me down."

"Yes……"

The chosen nun was excited and trembling as she accepted the bright red potion bestowed by the rotting bone hand. Several minutes after the group left, the nun raised her head and turned to look at the Northern Territory's High Priestess on the other side of the battlefield.

Arabella, calmly directing her cavalry to maneuver and intercept the retreating enemy, unleashing a barrage of light spears in one hand and wielding a short sword in the other, continuously using her immortal magic to erode the enemy army over a wide area, fell into deep thought as she watched the peasant army that ran faster than horses.

We finally managed to force the enemy to take the initiative, and then this bunch of weirdos showed up?

Blood Hunters – that's the new name that High Sister Arabella just gave to this group of mutated peasant soldiers.

The battlefield is still in a state of constant back-and-forth, creating a chaotic situation where each side is intertwined with the other.

A Blood Hunter leaped and charged from a height of four meters toward the High Nun, only to be shot down by the guards' cavalry with crossbows.

The withered, shrunken body struggled violently in the mud. The Blood Hunter, with a face like withered tree bark, stuck out its dark green tongue. Even though it was severely injured, the Blood Hunter did not forget to absorb blood. After obtaining blood, its whole body would convulse wildly.

A single spear of light brought the Blood Hunter to its end, shattering its twisted body.

The High Priestess calmly observed the battlefield situation. The soldiers of the Second Division led by Eryon had already left the city and would arrive at the battlefield in about ten minutes.

"Take cover! Retreat towards reinforcements!"

Despite their incredible speed and superior attack and defense compared to ordinary soldiers, Blood Hunters are not without weaknesses. Almost every fifteen minutes of combat, they experience a strange phenomenon of a significant decline in their physical functions.

At this point, they have to rely on feeding on corpses or the bottled blood they carry to restore their fighting strength. The Great Sister, who is keenly aware of the enemy's weaknesses, will take advantage of this time to order her cavalry to retreat quickly and increase the distance between them and the enemy.

After firing three volleys of arrows, Arabella, having stopped casting her spell, mounted her horse and led her cavalry to quickly join the arriving Second Division.

Only by personally leading a battle of the Northern Army could Arabella truly understand how powerful the Northern Territory was now.

The soldiers' combat skills were exceptionally high; their courage and sense of honor made them unafraid of any powerful enemy and utterly unafraid to sacrifice themselves.

Because they knew that even if they died on the battlefield, the Duke would take good care of their families and help them avenge their deaths.

With these resources, after suddenly encountering the high-speed rushing Blood Hunter army, High Sister Arabella, with the help of her soldiers, quickly stabilized the battle line and held out until the arrival of the main force, the Second Division.

Having obtained intelligence about the enemy, Ereon dared not be careless. Since the enemy could launch a massed attack comparable to cavalry, he would deal with them in the same way he dealt with cavalry.

After receiving the light cavalry, Ereon quickly arranged for paladins to harass the Blood Hunter army, which was recovering its strength. He then ordered his soldiers to form a spear formation to form the first line of defense, swordsmen and shieldmen to form the second line of defense carrying Molotov cocktails, and light cavalry to provide ranged attacks.

After the enemy's offensive was broken, the entire army launched a counterattack.

Orders were issued swiftly. At the same time, Sister Arabella, who had just dismounted, did not linger for a moment. She quickly took out the Philosopher's Stone and used a mixture of bone powder and slime to inscribe a magic circle on the ground. The halo on her back suddenly burst forth with intense light.

A surge of magical power erupted, and halos of light shone behind the soldiers of the Northern Territory, granting them the power of the Duke and the Saintess once more.

Looking towards the high nun at the center of the magic circle, Erión's eyes, which were surging with an undead aura, gradually turned pitch black.

Now, it's time to compete with the goddess's new toy.