The villages of Moncha and Toro were not far away from each other. In addition, there was only one road that connected the two villages. Therefore, Raven and the men from the Ramelda family were able to encounter the Tylen family’s forces near an old monastery before noon.

Tylen seemed to have set off right after receiving news from his spy in Toro.

In the empty monastery, only the moss-covered statues of Goddess Illeyna were present to watch the two forces come to a face-off in the autumn breeze.

Ramelda’s forces numbered around fifty, including the vigilante and the mercenaries. They had tense expressions as they looked at their opponents, who numbered three times their own.

The distance between the two sides was about 100 yards.

Just the mercenaries that were recruited by Tylen matched up to the number of Ramelda’s entire forces. Furthermore, Tylen’s private army numbered around 30 soldiers and they were all armed with a metal chest plate. The aura they gave off was quite intense.

Baron Nobira’s soldiers had also joined them, and serfs were armed with wooden spears. All in all, over one hundred men were lined up in formation, which caused anxiety within Ramelda’s forces to grow.

But one man, Raven Valt, fixated his gaze on one place with an icy stare. His eyes did not contain any hint of anxiousness.

Although it was a far distance, Raven recognized the two people right away.

He had lived like a dog to survive through every battlefield. He lived for a decade with the goal of correcting the injustice that was brought on his family. He had lived until now to hear the truth from Ruv Tylen and Jess Tylen, and to judge them accordingly. And now, the two people who might be responsible for his family’s demise were standing in that place.

But he did not violently boil with anger. On the contrary, he felt more cool-headed than usual.

Raven now knew that Ruv and Jess Tylen were only the tip of the iceberg in exacting his revenge. The fall of the Valt family was closely related to the decline of the Pendragon Duchy.

Taking care of the Tylen family was just the first step in carrying out his revenge. The curtains to his first performance were finally unveiled.

“Father.”

Leo called out to Ramelda when he saw four horsemen slowly approaching from the other side.

“Let’s go.”

Ramelda nodded with a somber expression and rode his horse alongside Leo. The six horses came together next to the monastery.

Ramelda lightly bowed in front of his lord’s son and the High Lord’s daughter, then kept his silence. Then, Sophia raised her voice as if she had been waiting.

“Hmph! You seem to be over your head. Do you not know who I am?”

“I know who you are, Lady Sophia Bresia.”

“If you know who I am, then how dare you act in such a manner! Enzo! Why aren’t you doing anything about it?”

“Uh, that’s… Ehem! S, Sir Ramelda. A knight of my territory is also a knight of High Lord Bresia of Sisak… It might be good for you to show some r, respect…”

“I swore allegiance to Baron Nobira and Count Bresia, who are your fathers. Young Master, I’m afraid you aren’t the lord of this territory yet.”

“W, what…”

Sophia’s face turned bright red.

“How rude! Derek Ramelda! Watch your words!”

Ruv Tylen jumped in on the conversation with a roar. He had calculated that the situation might turn sour if the stupid pig and the spoiled girl kept talking.

“I’ve already heard from Young Master Enzo and Lady Sophia. How dare you take in a man who insulted the lady and Lord Bresia? As a knight serving under Baron Nobira, how could you dare commit such a heinous and abominable act? I’m ashamed to have called you my friend before!”

Enzo and Sophia’s faces relaxed slightly as they heard Tylen roar at Ramelda in their stead. However, Ramelda responded with a blunt voice without a change in his expression.

“Your acting skills haven’t changed, I see. But I do not know what you are talking about. I took in a man who insulted Lord Bresia?”

“Ha! You seem to be the better actor here. You hired a man named Raven Valt as a mercenary! Knowing very well that he insulted Lady Sophia and his excellency Lord Bresia in Elma!”

Ramelda’s eyes finally trembled after hearing Tylen’s accusation, and Leo became restless. If Tylen’s words were true, the Ramelda family had practically issued a head-on challenge to the High Lord of Sisak. It provided Tylen with justifications for attacking.

Ramelda turned his head slightly. He could see Raven sitting on a black horse the same color as his armor. Sophia also turned her head towards the direction of Ramelda’s gaze.

Sophia squinted her eyes, but she could not see the impudent man from yesterday. She could only see a person covered in black among the mercenaries. Feeling even more irritated, Sophia thrust her face forward and spoke with a commanding tone.

“Quickly! Bring that brute to me and have him kneel. Then I will overlook this matter and the mistakes of the Ramelda family. I will be generous and only confiscate your land. Isn’t that right, Enzo?”

“Uh, ye, yes. S, Sir Ramelda. If you bring in the brute, then I will end the matter and only confiscate your land.”

Ramelda listened to the two people in silence, then spoke with a grim expression.

“I think we should listen to the other person’s story too. Leo, bring Raven Valt.”

“Yes.”

Leo hurried back to the main group. Sophia, Enzo, and the two Tylens focused their eyes on Leo as he rode his horse back to the group. Before long, Leo stopped his horse, and Sophia’s eyes widened slightly.

“Huh…?”

The man that stood out amongst the mercenaries with his charcoal-black armor was following Leo back towards them on a horse. As he got closer, the four people’s eyes grew little by little.

When the man stopped in front of them, none of them could speak a word. This held especially true for Sophia. The ferocious look on her face had disappeared, and her mouth was held open in shock and surprise.

The rude man from yesterday was no longer here. The man in front of her now was a proud knight who was shooting a cool gaze from inside his helmet.

“E, ehem!”

Ruv Tylen broke the silence with an awkward cough which caused Sophia and Enzo to come to their senses. But Enzo was already intimidated by the appearance of the “black knight” that he had only read about in novels.

“Are you the one who dared to insult Lady Sophia and the Bresia County yesterday? How dare you do such a thing in the land of Sisak…”

Ruv Tylen spoke with a voice as deep as he could muster. It appeared to him that the man in front of him was still young and naïve. He had to pressure him with the atmosphere. Although, Tylen had no clue as to the true identity of the young knight in front of him.

“Do you have a higher status than the knight called Filmore?”

“W, what?”

Raven spoke to Tylen with a condescending voice. Tylen was taken aback.

“The whole issue was settled after the knight named Filmore acknowledged my identity. Since you are bringing up the matter again, I’m asking you if your status is higher than the man named Filmore.”

“You son of a…”

Tylen’s eyes furrowed in anger. But Raven turned his head from Tylen.

“Heuk…”

Enzo flinched and shriveled up at the gaze. Enzo had always been served by others due to his identity as Baron Nobira’s successor. He wasn’t used to receiving such intense gazes, which he had only seen in his father and Sir Filmore.

“I heard from Leo. You said you would overlook the matter if I apologize after kneeling before you and that girl? You will end the matter by only confiscating the Ramelda family’s land?”

“Yeah! Sir, ah, no, you! I can forgive you if you apologize.”

Sophia mistakenly addressed Raven as ‘sir’ due to his completely changed appearance.

Raven’s eyes turned to her.

Sophia trembled unconsciously, and it wasn’t just because of the cold eyes that reminded her of the abyss. She felt excited and thrilled that the manly knight, whom Enzo couldn’t even be compared to, would kneel before her in a moment. She felt an electrifying sensation run down her back at the thought of doing whatever she wanted to with him.

But Sophia Bresia’s expectations and excitement were soon shattered.

“Let me ask you one thing. Are you two here right now on behalf of Count Bresia and Baron Nobira?”

“What?”

“Uh…?”

Seeing Sophia and Enzo’s expressions of surprise, Raven smiled.

“I asked if you were becoming involved in the conflict between Tylen and Ramelda as representatives of Baron Nobira and Count Bresia.”

“T, that’s…”

Enzo hesitated. Even though his brain was only half-functioning, he knew that things might go wrong if he carelessly answered Raven’s question. As if mocking Enzo, Raven smirked and shrugged.

“So, you’re not. Then why do I need to apologize to you two? I am standing here at Sir Ramelda’s request, and you two are nobles who cannot even represent your family. It seems to me that two immature younglings that have nothing to do with the matter came over to watch a fight.”

“Uh…”

Enzo became embarrassed and turned his head. Sure enough, Sophia was trembling with a horribly distorted face. She let out a shrieking shout.

“I am the daughter of Count Bresia! My father is the High Lord of Sisak! He is someone that a person like you cannot even look straight at! Enzo! What are you doing? You will become the Lord of Elma soon, right? This is the territory of the Nobira family! That person dares speak like that to the wife of Elma’s future lord. Are you not going to do anything about it?”

“Uh… T, that’s right! I am the heir to the Nobira Barony! My words represent my family’s will, and this is the land of my family! Get off that horse, and k, kneel before me!”

Ramelda’s face turned even more grim at Sophia’s scream and Enzo’s words. Even Tylen was shaking his head. They were immature beyond belief, and even their brains seemed to be barely functioning.

But Tylen laughed. The words that had just come out of Sophia and Enzo were exactly the answer he was waiting for. This gave him the perfect justification for eradicating the Ramelda family and taking over Toro village. In addition, he could now take care of the leftover from the Valt family.

“Did you hear that! Young Master Enzo and Lady Sophia have spoken! Baron Nobira and Count Bresia stand with the Tylen family! Quickly, get off your horse and kneel down on… heuk?”

Tylen let out a gasp in the middle of his speech. The man named Raven Valt had suddenly drawn his sword. The two Tylens also rushed to draw their swords.

Raven glanced back at Derek Ramelda and Leo. The two of them were also surprised and looked at Raven in shock.

“Did you hear that? The lord that you serve, and even the High Lord wants to fight your family. Whether you win or lose, it seems like this is the end of the Ramelda family. What are you going to do?”

“…..!”

Ramelda’s eyes trembled for a moment, but then he proceeded to pull out his longsword from the scabbard on his waist.

“Even if I bury my bones here, I will kill that bastard with my own hands.”

Ramelda’s sword pointed towards the two Tylen men. A cruel sneer appeared around Ruv Tylen’s mouth at Ramelda’s words. But it existed for only a brief moment, and he soon gave a loud sigh with an expression of unparalleled regret.

“Ha… You have finally turned back on your way as a knight of our lord. You have sinned against our lords by drawing your sword against Lady Sophia and Lord Enzo. I, Ruv Tylen, will judge you as a knight of Baron Nobira and as the sword of Lord Bresia. Now, let us head back. Young Master, lady.”

“Y, yes. Let us do that.”

“You… I am going to pull your eyeballs out myself and make you crawl like a dog in front of me. You’ll see, I’ll make you serve me as a slave until the day you die!”

Sophia’s venomous eyes stared at Raven even as she moved further away. Raven looked back at her with a cold smile.

“You’re not a fortune-teller, but you seem to know your own future very well…”

The first step towards revenge had finally begun.