During the rainy night, a group of cars have arrived at a run-down house before parking. Staring through the glass window, the Duke looked at the building with a frown from the passenger seat.
"Is this the house?"
The duke didn't mean to look down on the poor, but having lived a life of luxury, he does enjoy the state of cleanliness. His eyes couldn't help but twitch at the thought of how poor the living condition of his son-in-law was despite being the prince of the kingdom. What a tragedy, he thought.
But it could also be a blessing in disguise. How can a person become a great ruler without understanding the suffering and hardship of their people? A great nation is built by the collective efforts of its people. If the people's hearts is not with him, it would be difficult for it to prosper under his rule.
"Yes, My Lord." Sebastian answered from the driver's seat. A total of 6 cars had arrived at the scene. The trunks were loaded with firearms and cold weapons.
"Alright... We will head in to check. You stand guard outside with the rest."
The wealth of the Duke household was on a different level to the other noble houses. Not only do they have cars, they have multiple cars.
Being the closest friend and ally of the crown, it shouldn't come as a surprise. They have monopoly of all businesses with metal at the core. Car production was just one of them. Although there was some delay due to Rachel's relapse, they had all left together. The Duke's family of three arrived at the door and knocked.
Some hurried footsteps were heard from inside before the door was opened.
Lina was excited to answer the door as she had expected Leon to return, however she was disappointed and shocked to find it was someone else.
"Y-Your Grace, what brings you here?" Lina stuttered. She was intimidated by the Duke's overwhelming presence. If she could not even recognise the Duke, whilst living in the capital then she would have been living under a rock. Confusion struck her. What did the Duke come here for?
Duke Ignis was similarly dumbfounded. Did they come to the wrong house? He did not hear about Leon having a sister.
"Teacher Lina? Why are you here?" Rachel peeked out from behind her father.
"Rachel?" Lina was taken aback. "Why can't I be here? This is my house."
"Your house? Isn't this Leon's house?"
The Duke came to an understanding from the dialogue between the two girls and he flashed a glance at his steward, who was directing the servants to guard the perimeter. The information they got was incorrect.
Sebastian felt a chill and began alerted as if there was an enemy nearby.
"You came for Leon?" Lina seem to understand their intention, but had no idea how they knew. "What do you want from him?"
She wasn't sure if the Duke's family was a friend or foe. She became cautious after knowing they were looking for Leon.
"You don't need to be on guard against us. We came to protect him. We heard he was seriously injured." Duke Ignis interrupted.
Lina could not help but look at them with doubt. What kind of status does Leon have to summon even the Duke to protect him? But it didn't seem like they were lying to her either.
"Where is he?" Duke Ignis asked with some impatience. With Leon's situation still unknown to them, he was annoyed at Lina's sluggish reaction and wasting their time.
His imposing aura seeped out and Lina paled as she step backwards.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, Ignis? We haven't seen each other in years and the first thing you do is bully my daughter at my own house!?" Robert's voice rang out as his figure was slowly made known to the people outside.
"Robert?" Duke Ignis retracted his aura as he stared at his old friend's face with growing excitement. "So this is where you have been living all this time, old friend?"
"Hah? You got a problem with my home?"
"Hahaha...no problem...But seriously, where is Leon?" The Duke very much likes to catch up with his old friend, but important matters comes first."
"Haa... You just missed him. That boy went to check on his parents."
"Parents? Ahh..." Duke Ignis remembered Leon was adopted. "You let him leave in such a seriously injured state...? Where did he went?"
"Nonsense, he is the benefactor of my house. How can I let him leave in such a state? I already healed him. The boy went that way." Robert pointed in a direction and waved them off. He could naturally see the Duke's anxiousness.
Although he didn't know what relationship they shared, it wasn't the time to ask. The Duke's forces would be able to keep Leon safe from the Grey family.
"Oh? Thanks." The Duke was pleasant surprised as he knew exactly what had become of the Greene family years ago. It was evident by Robert's grey hair that speaks volumes of how much stress and depression he suffered all these years.
However, his friend did not show any sign of it in his eyes as it burned with new vitality.
Duke Ignis was prepared to leave with his family and men when Robert stopped.
"No... Ignis, wait. Take us with you. With your large movements, the other noble families are bound to be restless. It's best we stick together." Having lived in the lower district, Robert was more aware of the ongoing corruption and the possible spark of rebellion. Once it erupts into open conflict, nowhere would be safe in the capital.
"Alright, come in." Duke Ignis agreed. The car the duke arrived in was long and spacious compared to the other 5. There was no problem fitting them all.
...
Stand in the middle of the streets with a mixture of sweat and rain dripping down their faces, the remaining five servants continued to stay vigilant and did not dare relax their guard.
Leon's needle attack was too difficult to evade and the slightest slip-up could cost them their lives.
"We cant continue holding back, or else we will all die!"
"Agreed! Our lives are more important than others!"
Having said that, the servants no longer restrain themselves as the ground and buildings in the vicinity began to shake and crumble.
Leon felt a mixture of shock and anger at the servant's unscrupulous action as he retreated to another building.
With a resounding boom, all the residential properties and buildings within a 30-meter radius of the servants collapsed into debris.
Their surrounding view were cleared, but at a cost of all the people living in these buildings as they got buried underneath the rubble.
The rubble broke into smaller rubbles before circulating around the five like a protective barrier.
They were like cornered mouses clinging to life. Push them too far and they will commit unspeakable atrocity for their own survival.
"Bastards! You all deserve to die!" Leon cursed.
A whirlpool of flames erupted from his body involuntarily in his rage, before it was suppressed by the heavy rain and transformed into fog-like steam blowing off his body.
The scene was especially eye-catching as the servants immediately spotted his location. They turn to face him like they were facing their greatest enemy.
Leon gripped the sword in his hand especially hard as he glared at them hatefully.
He imbued his sword with fire elements as it glowed sizzling red, before similarly suppressed by the rain as well. It's silver lustre returned, but the heat emanating from it was retained.
"Die!!!!" Leon roared as he used the [Extreme Vanishing Step] to launch himself over from above, bypassing their barrier of rubble.
Like a silver flash of lightning, Leon dropped down with a downward slash at lightning speed.
The defending servant attempted to block with his own sword, but along with his body, it was sliced in half like hot knife through butter.
"Kill him!!" Another servant immediately roared after one of them their own was bisected in the blink of an eye.
Leon immediately entered a strange state when he was surrounded. His heart was raging, but his mind was experiencing an inexplicable sense of calmness and clarity as he dodged each attack with ease. He was gaining enlightenment through the battle.
Enlightenment could only be chanced upon and not sought after. He completely gave up on the offence and continue enjoying the feeling of enlightenment as he evade each attack.
His footsteps moved in a profound pattern as it looked like he was dancing in the rain from a bystander's point of view.
With each passing moment, his movements improved and became more refined and precise.
With a sudden opening, Leon lashed out with his sword and sent a head flying through the air.
"Shit! Stop the earth barrier!" The revolving rubble around them had quickly changed from being their barrier to a cage as they have locked themselves inside.
With a few steps, Leon sent out another slash and another head was decapitated.
His enlightenment didn't last long, but his gains were enormous. No wonder many divine practitioners walking the martial path were such senseless troublemakers. They're always seeking to gain enlightenment through battles.
Each step of Leon's became more meaningful and each slashes were swift and decisive. His wasted movements were minimized.
When his opponents started to panic due to their losses, more openings appear in their movements.
1... 2 steps... swoosh... another head flies... 3
The last two were also finished in the same manner. It was very anticlimactic.
Leon had expected a hard battle, but things happened contrary to his expectations.
A single martial enlightenment and a superior weapon was enough to dominate the battle. The servants of the Greys could not fight to their full potential due to fear of having their weapons broken by him.
Leon forgot to include the biggest deciding factor of his battle; speed. Offensive and defensive-type techniques and skills were great but only speed was unbreakable. He stood out on top because he was faster.
There was no joy on Leon's face as he stood in the rain and glanced at the destruction of their battle.. He proceeded to search the ruins for any survivors.