Chapter 185 Vengeful Knight

I had crushed her humerus, which left her hand hanging limply at her side, and I could see the agony pulsing through her body.

"However, I will be satisfied with breaking a different bone of yours each morning, only to heal it back to health by noon" I told Clara, my voice cold and unforgiving. "Do we have an agreement?".

"Yes... Yes, we do" She gritted those words out of her teeth.

Without realizing it, I let chortled. "Excellent. You can head off now to attend to whatever you have been doing" I shooed her away with my hand. "I need to talk with the other intruders".

With a sudden urge, I craned my neck and pivoted on my heel, taking a deep breath of the salty ocean air. The sun was setting, casting a warm glow across the horizon.

I mentally sent a message to Toothless, calling her from the depths of the sea. In a matter of seconds, she rose up with a powerful 'Growl', sending waves rippling out around her.

Without hesitation, I kicked my leg on the floorboard and ascended a few feet in the sky, before coming crashing down with full force. As Toothless came into view below me, I used my mana to lighten my landing and gently landed on her back.

Without hesitation, Toothless shot forward, already guessing who our next prey was. Her sleek furs glistened in the sun as she cut through the water, leaving a trail of foam in her wake.

"Bones, stop them!" I commanded, gazing ahead at two small dots on the horizon.

With a sudden burst of power, Bones' magical energy erupted into a blinding swirl of whitish fog that enveloped him. Suddenly, it propelled forward until it vanished into the vast expanse of the atmosphere.

In mere moments, the previously placid waters below the two ships had frozen solid, trapping them in place with no hope of escape.

Well, that was the information that Bones had sent to me through our connections.

Within minutes, we immediately arrived, and stopped in front of the two pirate ships.

"ARE YOU CAPTAIN WYATT?!"

The man's sharp call caused me to whip my head in his direction, my eyes locking onto his. With a quick nod, I confirmed my identity, my voice amplified by the power of my magical energy, booming louder than his.

"Yes!".

Immediately, he responded with urgency "LET US GO! DO YOU NOT REALIZE THAT YOU ARE BLOCKING THE CRIMSON BLACK EYE CREW FROM THEIR PATROL?!".

I couldn't help but snort in derision at his words. "Patrols?" I scoffed. It was painfully obvious that Captain Crimson Eye hadn't sent his crew here for any peaceful purpose, considering they were far too close to my ship when I first sensed them.

However --

"FREE US AND GET OUT OF THE WAY! OR ELSE YOU ARE DECLARING WAY AGAINST CAPTAIN CRIMSON EYE FOR ATTACKING HIS CREW ON THEIR OWN SEA!" The man's words reverberated across the water, a mix of fear and false bravado ringing through the air.

"Unfortunately, I can't do that!" I shook my head, my tone calm and measured. "I just want to ask you guys a few questions!" I paused, my eyes flicking over to the other ship. "Maybe we can have a little chat!".

"WE WILL NOT TALK TO YOU UNLESS YOU RELEASE US!" The man spat back, his voice laced with anger and frustration.

"I don't think you have a choice!" My hands rose, stretching sideways as I summoned forth a surge of mana.

My magical energy flared. The air around us grew thick and suffocating, pulsing with power and menace.

"WHAT…..WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" The man's voice wavered as he watched my actions with trepidation.

"We need a little privacy if we want to have a reasonable conversation!" I replied, a grin spreading across my face as I summoned even more potent magical energy.

"ARE YOU DEAF? WE ARE THE CRIMSON BLACK EYE CREW, RELEASE US---".

"Let there be light!" I proclaimed.

My voice rang out across the water. And, with a sudden burst of energy, a blinding flash of light erupted into existence, temporarily blinding everyone on board both ships.

…....…..

Knight Boris was no stranger to death, nor the cruelty of the Moonlight's ice. Yet, the state in which the wretched phenomenon left the corpses in front of him, unsettled him.

In this wretched world, be good.

Multiple enchantments fortified with an unknown substance made of ice shards had been hastily erected by the Miracle Queen to prevent the icy scourge from spreading further and wreaking havoc on the remaining parts of the kingdom. While he acknowledged the swiftness and efficacy of her actions in safeguarding the living, Knight Boris couldn't shake off the sense of despair that enveloped him, for the damage had already been done.

In this wretched world, be good.

That was his motto. A motto that he now found incredibly hard to follow.

The corpses, frozen solid like sculptures of ice, stood in eerie silence before him. Without a flicker of emotion, Knight Boris drove his sword into the frozen earth, tearing through the icy ground to bury their lifeless remains.

"Ding!" Thud!"

As he finished covering the soil, Knight Boris knelt down with his sword resting solemnly on his lap. Bowing his head, he paid his respects to the graves of the fallen orphans, innocent little boys and girls whose hearts had been pure as gold under his guidance, yet they had been subject to pain, misfortune, and untimely death, even though they were still unaware of the cruel world around them.

"Rest in peace".

He whispered softly, his voice filled with a profound sense of sorrow. Soon after, he gripped the handle of his sword, stood up and moved over to the frozen corpse.

In this wretched world, be good.

But why?

Why does his sword feel heavier than it should?

Why does the weight of his sword increase with each pit he digs?

Why are tears falling from his eyes as he buries the last remnants, the last generation of his kingdom?

Why?

"Ding!" Thud!"

Knight Boris drove his sword into the ground once more, his grip quivering under the weight of his blade. Salty tears spilt from his eyes, mingling with the soil below, as he mourned the loss of the fallen.

"Res--t i--n peace" He whispered, his voice barely above a whisper.

With a deep breath, he stood up and walked over to the next grave, resolution etched on his face. The sound of his sword ringing against the icy earth echoed through the now secluded frozen region as he continued to bury the last remnants of his once-beautiful kingdom.

"Ding!" Thud!"

"R---es--t i--n peace".

"Ding!" Thud!"

"R---es--t i--n p----eace".

Each time he spoke those solemn words, it felt as if he was saying goodbye to a piece of his soul. And as time progressed, he found it extremely difficult to firmly utter a word.

"Ding!" Thud!"

"R---es--t i--n p----ea----ce".

He collapsed on his knee, the sound of his armour clanking against the icy ground filling the air. He lifted his gaze and saw the faces of the two children before him, Melta and Jeriq, their names etched into his memory. They were siblings, a brother and sister who had shown remarkable potential for mana. He had planned to train them in the Kingdom's techniques and sacred arts, so that they could lead by example and inspire those who had lost hope.

They were meant to be beacons of light, but now they too had fallen, joining their parents in death. Their final expressions were frozen on their faces, a haunting mixture of curiosity and terror. Knight Boris couldn't help but wonder what thoughts raced through their minds in their final moments, what last words they may have uttered.

"Thud!" "Thud!"

He laid their corpses in the pit.

"R---es--t i---"

His voice caught in his throat, as if his words were trapped by the same icy grip that had claimed the lives of so many. Tears cascaded down his cheeks in a ceaseless torrent, a river of grief that threatened to consume him whole. With every ounce of strength he could muster, he forced himself to speak, to give voice to the depths of his sorrow.

But there was nothing!

Not a single syllable emerged from his lips, only the desperate, choking sobs of a defeated knight who slowly came to the fact, understanding that from here on out, this was his final chapter of the Eser Kingdom.

"I failed all of you" Boris spoke, softly.

In a fit of rage and despair, Boris slammed his head against the ground with a deafening ---

'BAM!'

The force of the impact shattered the icy crust beneath him, sending splinters of ice flying in every direction. But even as blood trickled down his face, he could not silence the deafening echoes of his own failures.

"I failed you all!" He spoke, albeit a bit louder.

He raised his head again, and --

"BAMM!"