Kingdom Era

Chapter 2 Wolf Knights

"Nothing, Gossen. It's stuffy inside the carriage. I'm just getting some fresh air." Alan smiled at the middle-aged man. From the memory of the original owner of this body, he knew that Gossen was a knight of glory who had been officially conferred the accolade of knighthood. As the leader of the guards, he was in charge of the whole team.

"We will arrive in three days. We’ve already entered the wasteland, Your Highness, please bear with it for a while longer," Gossen said in a flat tone. Obviously, he didn't like and respect a profligate like Alan very much.

"It’s been tough on you, Gossen..." Alan forced a smile. Suddenly, he saw several dark spots the size of ants far away along the ends of the horizon of the wasteland.

"Enemies!" Gossen reacted faster than Alan did. He roared and the troop that was originally advancing stopped at once. The 50 royal guards immediately got into position and organized themselves into a simple defensive formation, aimed at the direction of the black spots.

Every single one of the 50 royal guards had the skills of a chevalier and had all undergone strict training. Wherever they went, they were a force to be reckoned with.

"Don't worry, Your Highness. Ser Gossen is the knight of glory! He doesn't even need to draw his sword to kill those thieves!" Derya said as he rubbed the ends of his mustache with a fawning smile on his face. They had encountered many ignorant bandits ever since they set off from the imperial capital, and he was confident that this time round, it was just a r****e that they were experienced in dealing with.

"O-orcs!"

All of a sudden, someone yelled. The faces of the guards, which were initially relaxed and casual, turned grey with shock at once, and a commotion began breaking out within the formation.

The borders of the north of the Athenian Empire was adjacent to the Orc Wilderness - the territory of the orc tribes. Every year, the Athenian Empire suffered from the orcs’ harassment. Everyone was well aware of how cruel the orcs were. Those dirty, vicious creatures had no idea what peace was.

"Orcs?" Derya, who had just been comforting Alan with a flattering smile a moment earlier, yelped in a voice contorted with fear. He dodged behind Alan like a frightened rabbit, popping his head out to see what was going on with his shifty eyes.

"They're the wolf knights!" Someone outside cried in a frightened tone after recognizing the troop coming toward them.

The voice of fear spread like an infection, and the troop that was initially in slight disarray descended into utter chaos.

An ordinary orc was as powerful as a strong man; given the guards’ skills, they were naturally not afraid of one. However, the wolf knights were the elites among the orcs and they could move as fast as the wind. Coupled with the wolf-mount, a wolf knight was as powerful as a first class knight!

Usually, they would only appear on the battlefield!

"There're twenty of them." Alan saw clearly for himself those spots of black rushing towards them. There were twenty wolf knights - a standard small troop.

However, what was a troop of wolf knights doing here?

This place was a thousand miles away from the defensive line at the borders!

"The wolf knights! We're done for...we're done for!" Derya, who had been hiding behind Alan, suddenly collapsed on the ground murmuring to himself, as if he had seen something extremely terrifying.

No one knew what had happened to him in the past. This sleazy-looking fellow had come from a village from the north which was massacred by a group of wolf knights when he was at a tender age of five. Fortunately, he managed to survive by hiding in a small underground cellar.

Derya's mind went blank for a moment before he suddenly jumped up. "Y-your Highness, run, let's run!"

He retrieved his luggage prepared from long ago out of nowhere, grabbed Alan, and got out of the carriage. Wasting no time at all, he ordered two royal guards near their carriage to hand their horses over.

It turned out that he had had been preparing to escape since a long time ago.

"That’s enough, Derya. I'm not leaving. They're just some wolf knights. I believe Gossen and the others can protect us."

Alan, feeling both angry and tickled at the same time, held Derya back and returned the horses to the guards as he shook his head.

He turned solemn at once and exclaimed loudly, "Besides, the Romans are brave soldiers who would rather die on the battlefield than run away like cowards!”

Somehow, he gave off a majestic and dignified vibe despite his young, immature face.

"Well said!" Gossen, who was not far away, exclaimed approvingly as he looked at Alan in surprise.

He did not expect that a profligate who only knew how to fool around would speak such courageous words, instead of peeing his pants out of fright and fleeing in fear.

Truth be told, Gossen was now rather impressed by Alan.

The surrounding guards who were initially all worked up into a turmoil also calmed down because of Alan's words.

The bravery of a young boy made them feel rather ashamed of their own fear. Instead, they were now filled with both anger and courage, ready to fight the wolf knights out to death.

Unbeknownst to them, Alan's legs were slightly trembling as he wrapped up his courageous speech.

It was not that he was fearless, but that he was rational. He was well aware that if the guards were unable to resist the wolf knights, death would be a matter of time for him even if he tried to flee on a horse.

After all, few people could escape the wolf knights’ pursuit in the wasteland.

Gossen wasn't the only one who was surprised at Alan's determination to stay and not flee. Derya himself was even more surprised. In contrast to Alan, timid Derya grew even more nervous. He wanted to run, but he dared not. He was sure that if he were the first to flee, the guards in silver armor with eyes red with fatigue would hack him before Alan made a move.

In the blink of an eye, the wolf knights were a mere few hundred meters away. Alan and the others could even see their ugly, bloodthirsty faces in their full detail.

"Peter, you guys protect His Highness! The rest of you, follow me and let's kill those bastards!"

On the other side, Gossen had begun to take action. He gave up on the defensive formation and instead, charged decisively toward the troop of wolf knights.

“For the glory of the empire!"

Right behind him, the forty guards dug their heels into their horses and rushed into a triangular formation, charging toward their enemies.

"Kill all those humans!" (Beast Language)

On the other side, the gray-furred werewolf leading the pack sneered ferociously. He threw back his head skyward and snarled as he pointed his machete at Gossen and his men.

"Howl! Howl!"

The wolf knights behind their leader turned bloodthirsty with excitement. They thumped their chests as they roared and charged toward the insolent humans who dared to mess with them.

"Go wild!"

When they were less than 100 meters away, the wolf knights suddenly let out a roar that was a mix of pain and excitement. Immediately after, the bodies of the strong werewolves swelled up mightily, thicker hair covered their bodies, and their eyes turned blood red, making them look like beasts that had gone out of control.

Gossen, who was charging forward speedily at the forefront, saw their physical changes right before his eyes. He frowned slightly but remained calm as before.

He reached out his right hand and, at the next moment, drew the giant sword from his back and pointed it forward with ease. He swung the sword gently downwards and a ray of dazzling white energy burst forth.