Kyle rushed out the door, his two appointed military leaders at his side.

"Just a minute, hero."

The man who had brought the message spoke suddenly as Kyle walked past him.

"Yes, brother? Is there something you wanted? I have somewhere I need to be, as you know."

Sylvester, the former Knight of the highest ranking within the Ruthobold Kingdom, held in his emotions which clearly showed on his face and spoke with a bitter tone.

"I cannot simply sit back and do nothing. Allow me to take part. I wish to fight on the front lines."

Kyle stopped in his tracks with a snicker.

"Heh."

Placing his hand on the shoulder of Sylvester, Kyle whispered into his ear.

"One man won't make a difference."

At this, Sylvester's expression became filled with anger as his hatred for Kyle was re-spurred.

"How can you say-"

"Except for me.", Kyle whispered, stepping away with a grin.

With this bombshell, Sylvester became indignant, looking up to Kyle with an expression of pure shock.

"Now sit back and watch. Let me guess. You wanted to go because you want to continue to make a name for yourself, even after all that's happened."

Closing his eyes and continuing to walk, Kyle exited the room.

"I'm telling you right here and now. If you head off to the battlefield, it won't make a difference unless you're at the head of a unit. And I'm not about to just give you back everything that I took so much effort to take."

'Kyle…'

'He is very harsh to those who were formerly in a good position'

The two at Kyle's side took note of his treatment towards Sylvester, however their opinion of him did not change.

As members of the military, they once served underneath Sylvester himself.

They understood well that while Sylvester was not an inherently bad man, that he was stubborn and hotheaded. He was a man that they could not find themselves respecting as a leader.

The three walked out, leaving Sylvester to bite his lips in remorse.

'Kyle….. just you wait. I'll take my revenge on you… just… not today.'

----

Kyle ordered Mackayla and Ryan to immediately gather the soldiers underneath their command, which they did with all haste.

Soon enough, 2000 Knights of the Kingdom were gathered within the Capital.

The Empire boasted the highest military strength in the world in terms of numbers and skillsets. With 5 legions making up 50,000 soldiers, and mercenaries that were skilled far beyond the average person, it would require a miracle for somebody to stand up to the Empire at it's full strength.

However Percius was not a man of war. He was a peaceful ruler and would only attack in situations where he felt was necessary.

The 4th Legion of the Empire was originally stationed at the border between the dwarven and elven Alliance.

This mountainous border that separated the two nations kept them out of one another's business for the most part, however Percius did not have full control over the actions of the 4th Legion.

For this reason, almost all dwarven civilizations within the nearby mountains had been looted, razed, and eradicated.

His own failure to keep tabs on the fourth Legion was perhaps the greatest blunder of Percius IV.

Even so, with 50,000 men at his disposal, Percius would not have had a difficult time taking on the rest of the world- especially given the number of mercenaries within the Empire.

However, right now, these men had been reduced from 50,000 to 20,000.

The number of Knights from the Capital of the Kingdom alone were 2,000.

This number did not consider the many warriors who were stationed throughout the other cities of the Kingdom.

Kyle fully intended to gather strength as he passed each city, and messengers had already been sent to those knights stationed in other cities to prepare to set out at any moment, joining the overall force as they passed.

Right now, Kyle and his two commanders stood before these men, who had gathered without question.

The men held serious expressions, prepared to fulfill their duties as Knights.

Standing forward, the men watched as Kyle took center stage, bringing attention to himself.

"Justice."

Kyle said a single word.

With a deadly serious expression, Kyle stared into the distance, as if declaring war on everything that lay beyond.

"Justice. What is justice?"

The Knights held their breath, looking up to the hero with respect and awe.

"What does it mean…. To be a hero?"

Grabbing his hat, Kyle laughed ever so lightly, pulling it over his eyes.

"I wouldn't know. But I sure as hell know what it isn't to be a hero."

The men before him were filled with discomfort, unsure whether to say something or not, yet they remained quiet, awaiting the explanation of the one who spoke.

"To attack other nations needlessly, throwing the lives of the innocent victims under the rug as if they are insignificant sacrifices for a worthy cause."

Kyle put his hands in his pockets and jumped down from the stage he stood on, approaching the Knights before him.

"To lie in the face of others, telling them that you are here to save them when you're actually taking from them, right underneath their noses."

Kyle's expression became one of distaste as he clicked his tongue.

"To play with people like they're your toys, trampling them if they get in your way and throwing them aside when you don't want to play with them anymore."

Turning his face to those before him, Kyle saw it in the eyes of the Knights.

The fire of hatred towards injustice.

The desire to stop those who were causing chaos and war.

"I killed the King myself. And the same goes for the Emperor. Does anyone understand… why I did that?"

Not a single person answered.

The men stared straight at Kyle.

They did not shy away, nor did they look at him with anger.

They patiently awaited a reason.

"It was because I saw injustice in both of them. A hidden injustice that nobody would ever dare to speak out against. An injustice that was so concealed that if anyone were to do or say anything, they would be silenced before anything came to the surface."

Pointing to the crowd, Kyle began to speak in a loud voice.

"None of you spoke out, or even noticed that injustice. Even if you did, you could not do anything about it. You were forced to continue living your lives as Knights, pretending like you were living honorably when in reality… you were serving a wretched politician who concealed everything about himself… down to his darkest secrets regarding the dredges of society."

Kyle shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't blame any of you. It isn't your fault. It was the entire system that was rotten. And do you know what happens when the entire system is rotten? If you go against it… you die."

Pointing to himself with a grin, Kyle spoke with confidence.

"And in that case… only a hero can stand up to such injustice."

The men began to smile, nodding at Kyle's assessment.

The only one who could change anything was one with power.

A hero.

"Therefore… i did that. I killed them. And I don't regret it. If needed, I'd do it a hundred more times."

Jumping back on the stage, Kyle smiled at his two commanders.

"The people of the Empire have invaded our lands. Whether they care or not, our people will suffer as a result. It doesn't matter if they have a good motive, or if they believed their Emperor to be a good man. The fact of the matter is, he was rotten to the core. But even worse is the fact that they are willing to discard the lives of our innocent civilians for the sake of revenge. By attacking us… they have made things crystal clear."

Kyle's expression once more became deathly serious as he stared off into the distance.

"They are no allies of justice."

At this the men shouted out in cheers.

"That is right, Kyle!!!!"

"They care not for the innocents!!!"

"We must put a stop to them!!!!"

Looking to his commanders, Kyle spoke to both of them quietly.

"We march now. Follow my lead, and we will protect as many people as we can."

The two nodded firmly, and Kyle then raised a fist in victorious manner.

"We will crush those who attack us!! We will rush to the scene and stop them from advancing any further!!!!"

"Yeah!!!!"

"Let us move, hero!!!!"

"We are with you!!!"

And with that, the armies of the Kingdom set off.

They were heavily outnumbered.

Even with the Empire in it's weakened state, they held a superiority in numbers.

The quality of soldiers was roughly the same, most men being of the upper 3rd tier on both sides.

Yet even so, Kyle was confident that with himself leading his soldiers, that the disadvantage in numbers would be overcome.

However Kyle did not realize that the presence of three figures would greatly tip the scales away from his favor.

The situation was one of despair before he had even set off, and if nothing changed, he was walking off to his own death- and those of all the soldiers who served him.

----

Vena and Repan were two medium sized villages that were about an hour march from the border between the Vythguard Empire and the Ruthobold Kingdom.

Given that these two locations were around the same distance from the border, Oscar had set up a base camp between the two villages where he and the other two heroes were stationed.

Along with these people, the soldiers directly underneath Troy were stationed here, however Darius had set out for the village of Vena whereas Larios had set out for the village of Repan.

Currently, Oscar was waiting.

"I'll know as soon as the hero comes close. I can tell the locations of each hero at all times, therefore I already know. He's on his way here.", Oscar stated.

"That's really creepy. I would prefer if you didn't know where I was at all times."

"Not like I have control over it."

Risa snapped with a short comeback, however Troy merely looked into the distance with concern.

He carried an enormous blade on his back, and unsheathed it, holding it forward.

Practicing a few swings, he nodded before sheathing it.

"I really am skilled with this weapon. It's so natural it's strange, almost as if I was born to wield it."

The other two nodded to the solemn words of the man who held a fire in his eyes.

"I'll use this power to defeat that hero. This is… perhaps what everyone wishes for."

Oscar and Risa were a bit confused at Troy's strange wording, but they shrugged it off quickly.

"Risa, I noticed that you were in the training yard this morning as well. Have you gotten accustomed to your abilities?"

Risa nodded.

"It's almost too easy. I mean… the mental stress is still here. My humanity is still here. My weakness… is still here. But when it comes to firing a bow, I don't even have to try. It's almost like…. I… I don't even know how to describe it."

"It's like clicking a button and having the character fire off auto aiming projectiles for you.", Oscar stated.

"Um… I have no idea what you just said, but sure. We'll go with that."

Troy waked out of the commander tent where the three were stationed, waving to the other two.

"I'm going to get some fresh air. I'll be around here so don't worry."

Risa and Oscar watched as the man left.

"He seems… off."

"You think there is something bothering him?"

"I don't feel like he's on our side. He is… but he isn't."

Oscar wondered to himself what Risa meant by this, however he knew one thing for certain.

He didn't know the hero of the Vythguard Empire too well, but he knew of Risa's distrust for everyone around her.

"Well of course he isn't on our side. He's probably on the side of the Emperor."

"Is that not supposed to be our side? I feel a strange… distance. He has the same goals as us, but…."

Risa shrugged.

"I suppose he has his own reasons. Whatever."

"Even if the Empire is allied with you and your people now, they might not be forever."

"Yeah. I know."

Oscar turned to the woman with a smile.

"But even if all the nations of the world turned against you, I would still pick whatever side you stood on."

"Why? That's very suspicious. Are you trying to stalk me or something?"

The continued suspicion of Risa irked Oscar, however his face didn't allow an ounce of this irritation to show.

"Haha…. You really are something else. My offer always stands if you need someone to talk to."

"And my foot always stands, and if you keep on telling me that it'll be your face that it's planted on."

'Why is she so obstinate? Hahaha…. It's… I can't tell… am I pissed? Am I excited!? I don't even know….'

Oscar held back the strange emotions and desires which overcame him, sitting back in his seat.

"At any rate, the two legions are off to attack the villages and it looks like the hero has actually responded. I didn't actually expect him to come, but it looks like he's bent on playing hero for the people.", Oscar stated.

With a nod, he looked to Risa to confirm her reaction.

"I just want to hurry up and defeat him so I can get back."

"To see if your people have received their food?"

"Tch."

"Don't worry. I told you, didn't I? The convoys were sent."

"And I can't trust your words. I have to see for myself. And I don't trust that Emperor to keep his word either. Even if he sends the grain now, soon as the war is over he'll probably retract his words and stop sending anything unless I keep fighting for him."

Oscar looked to Risa in surprise as she derived from her own suspicions a conclusion which was not too far off from the truth.

"And I said this before. If that were to happen… then I would kill the Emperor myself."

Risa looked to Oscar as he stated these words.

They were filled with conviction as if he meant them to the very core of their meaning.

"Are you… serious?"

"I'm the Indeterminant. If a scumbag were to pull such a low move, I would never find myself able to forgive him."

Risa was shocked to silence, unable to make a sly comeback.

Oscar turned to the door, placing his hand on his cheek as his blonde hair fell from his head.

"Give it another hour or so. The hero will be here quickly."

----

Darius marched forward through the plains of the Kingdom.

These green fields were ones which he knew well.

Darius was normally stationed at the border between the Kingdom for diplomatic and non military reasons.

He would often meet with nobles of the Kingdom in order to better relations between the groups, and it was his duty and that of the legion underneath him to oversee the transport of goods and people between the two nations.

Darius was a warrior through and through, but he was not so small minded as to be nothing more than a meathead with no other skills.

With both the sword and the pen he fought for his Emperor on whatever battlefield he was instructed to fight on.

However, despite his familiarity with these plains, Darius now encroached them as an enemy.

To say that he didn't have mixed feelings about such a thing would be a lie. Darius was not merely a stranger to the people he was attacking, though he was not known as an ally either. He was simply a man performing his duty.

Even so, Darius had a single goal.

To take the Kingdom by force and incorporate the nation into the Empire, and take revenge for the former Emperor in the process.

Darius held every intention to use overwhelming strength to force a quick surrender on as many as possible.

As Darius marched through the plains, he gained sight of the medium sized town which he had been directed to attack.

Darius did not ride a horse, for he preferred to fight on the ground.

Similarly, his entire legion was composed of infantry, whether they were warriors, archers, or mages.

"Men. Branch off into four units. Flank the town on the right and the left with 2000 men each, and another 2000 will follow me to meet them straight on. 4000 will stay behind in preparation to respond to any new forces or movements."

Darius gave his orders and the man next to him then shouted the same orders for all to hear. The message was passed through the ranks quickly.

"Yes, Legion Commander!!!", the men shouted in response, quickly organizing themselves as such.

The men marched forward, surrounding the city on three sides.

As Darius led the frontal force, he saw many women and children rushing into their homes with fearful looks from afar.

"The men should already know, but under no circumstances are you to attack those who do not fight back."

Thinning his eyes, Darius spoke with a deadly resolve.

"If I find that a single man has attacked a civilian, then I will kill him myself."

"Understood. I will pass the message to all camps, Legion Commander."

Darius stood outside the city, waiting and watching.

Minutes passed and the three units were now in positions to attack.

"Will nobody meet us!?", Darius shouted at the top of his lungs as he stepped forward, his arms raised.

The town was now almost empty. Many had gone inside and the few who had not were scrambling about.

It was then that a group of around 50 men dressed in silver armor stood forward, marching with an order to their movements.

These men were knights.

Yet before Darius, this force was nothing more than pitiful.

Before the 10,000 who surrounded them on all sides, they were powerless.

These knights stepped forward with bitter expressions, approaching Darius.

It was then that one made his way ahead of the pack.

He approached Darius, walking across the open field between them.

"Do you wish to duel me?", Darius questioned as the man approached him.

"Would it be unreasonable to expect your men to hold to your word if I win?", the man responded.

Darius laughed.

"If my men did not hold to my word, then I would return from the dead to slay them myself."

Darius drew his sword, and the man before him did as well as they walked towards each other in the open field.

"Shall we have a signal?", Darius asked.

The man picked up a rock, keeping an eye on Darius, ensuring that he made no attack in his vulnerable state.

"I will throw this rock up. When it hits the ground we begin. Ah, and I'm sure this is obvious, but any lawyer would ensure that the conditions were written down. Even so, there is no time here for something so luxurious, so they should at least be stated with witnesses on both sides."

Darius nodded in agreement.

"If I defeat you, your armies retreat with no questions asked. If you defeat me, the Knights of Vena surrender to your army."

"Agreed."

The two men stared each other in the eyes, nodding as they came to verbal agreement.

One bet much, and the other bet little- yet for both they bet all they had.

Their pride.

"Then, I will throw the rock now."

The young man threw the rock up and quickly grabbed his sword, posing to strike the moment the rock hit the ground.

Darius closed his eyes, breathing in.

He heard the sounds of the wind and the crunching of the grass beneath his feet. It was warm enough out to make him sweat, and the sun beat down on him from the North.

Pock.

The rock hit the ground, and in that moment Darius opened his eyes.

He watched as the young man thrusted forward, swinging diagonally.

Darius quickly blocked the swing, using skilled technique to twist the man's sword about.

Dodging underneath the raised sword, Darius now stood behind his back, however the two quickly turned around once more to face another, their positions having switched.

Darius swung this time, and this swing was met with a loud clang as he pressed the man back with brute strength.

"Do you understand, son?"

Shoving the man to the ground, Darius looked down on him, quickly thrusting his sword to the man's neck.

"This is what it means to carry the weight of 10 thousand lives on your shoulders."

The young man looked up in shock, unable to move without his neck being pierced.

He had lost, and in mere moments.

"I surrender. Kill me."

"Understood."

Darius swung his blade, taking the life of the young man without hesitation.

The lifeless and defeated head fell to the ground with the body, both forming pools of blood at the location of severance.

Darius then turned to the other men, who were watching with sad expressions as they watched their comrade die in such a heroic manner.

"A young man who lived with pride and died with pride. Even so, there is no reason for you all to follow in his footsteps. Lay down your weapons and there will not be a soul among you who is harmed."