Lord of Rot

The drawbridge was lowered, and the main gate swung open.

Yi Lin was there to welcome Leech, but this time she was followed by four Knights in ornate plate armor.

Leech raised an eyebrow slightly. ’Transcendent!’

’And all four of them are Transcendents.’

”Good day, my lord!” Yi Lin said.

”Good day.”

Leech nodded. ”I’m heading to Green Forest Castle in Linta Bay. It’s getting dark, so I’d like to rest here for the night.”

”I have already informed the Lady of your arrival. I trust she will be very happy, as will Lord Lieder,” Yi Lin said. ”They should be waiting inside the castle to welcome you.”

Leech swung himself to the ground. Rocket let out two cries and soared into the sky.

It much preferred flying to having to carry Leech.

The Soldiers of Longship Castle, having witnessed Rocket in the great battle before, all looked up excitedly at the beast in the sky. Some were even recounting how they had brandished their longswords during that fight, slaughtering the enemy until they fled in disarray.

The new recruits, meanwhile, looked on with awe, imagining the scenes of carnage and victory.

Once inside the castle, Lady Jie Lin was nowhere to be seen.

Leech found a random chair and sat down.

”I will go find the Lady.” Seeing that her sister was not present, Yi Lin apologized to Leech and asked him to wait before hurrying off.

Jonney stood at Leech’s side. The other four Extraordinary corpses, under Jonney’s control, fanned out in a line behind him like a menacing backdrop.

The five tower-like figures in their Lobster Armor exuded an intensely oppressive presence.

However, now that Leech had a deeper understanding of power, he was better at concealing their auras, making them look like nothing more than formidable Knights.

”My lord.”

A Transcendent Knight with long, curly hair and a bright feather tucked into his shoulder pauldron stepped before Leech. ”I am Luk, a Knight sworn to Lord Lieder. Thank you so much for your timely aid in saving Longship Castle.”

Leech rested his cheek on his right hand, tilting his head to observe the Knight and his calm, composed smile. Without a word, he simply let his gaze drift away.

The Transcendent Knight’s expression didn’t change, and he continued to smile. ”Lord Lieder is still young. As a Knight sworn to him, I can host you on his behalf. I have already arranged for a room to be prepared for you; you will be able to rest shortly.”

”Sir Luk!”

Lady Jie Lin appeared, sharply cutting the Knight off.

”Lord Leech,” Lady Jie Lin said, ”Luk and the others are loyal Knights who follow Lieder. They are merely worried about Lieder’s position. Please, don’t take offense.”

Leech’s eyes narrowed slightly.

’Weakness breeds friendship; profit breeds animosity.’

’Luk is just a Knight. For him to dare to strut around like that in front of me, someone must have put him up to it.’

He laughed, then walked over and swept Lady Jie Lin into his arms, lifting her by the waist. ”Let’s go. We’re going to see Little Lierde.”

”Put Lady Jie Lin down!”

Luk gripped the longsword at his hip, and the other three Knights quickly reached for their own blades.

BAM!

Luk’s upper body, along with his magnificent armor, vanished.

A CRASH echoed from a distant wall, followed by the terrified screams of maidservants. The Knight’s upper body slammed into the wall, a mangled mess of blood and flesh.

His lower body slowly crumpled to the floor.

The faces of the other three Knights changed drastically. They spun around to face Jonney, who was completely encased in Lobster Armor. It had happened so fast they hadn’t had time to react.

”Don’t kill them!” Leech said. ”They are all Little Lierde’s Knights.”

”Yes, my lord!” Jonney replied in a muffled voice, and he truly did freeze in place.

He then looked at Lady Jie Lin with an apologetic expression. ”He’s a big fellow, but not the sharpest. He must have thought Sir Luk meant to harm me. I will take responsibility for killing one of your Knights.”

The color drained from Lady Jie Lin’s face. ”You three, stand down at once!”

”He drew his sword on you; he should have known the risks!” she said, tightening her arms around Leech’s neck. ”Let’s go see Little Lierde, my lord.”

”Hahaha, let’s go!”