Out of Alexis 10,000 troops, only 2,000 reached Kursand. 

There was no time to rest. In order to report on the matter, Leonard takes some knights with him and travels to the imperial capital. 

The crowd roared, welcoming them at the northern gate of the imperial capital. 

It was not the kind of warm cheers. It was curses and booing voices. 

“You bloodsucking prince Nosferatu!” 

They curse at him, and there was even a child who threw a stone at him. 

Listening all the abuses from all direction, Leonard realize the rough circ.u.mstance. 

For them, it seems he was someone who drinks people blood and even his own comrades, then survived by himself. 

Such was the kind of rumor that got exaggerated. 

Or maybe someone had intentionally spread such a rumor, that was what he questioned. 

Alan and the others could speak loudly to defend themselves but, in front of such crowd, their voice would only get drowned… 

Leonard closed his mouth tight and let the crowd do whatever they liked. 

If he closed his eyes, he still could recall his aunt's last will. 

She told him to be happy. 

But how could he feel happy, when he lost his beautiful, kind yet strict aunt, Alexis, and most of his comrades? 

He could not find the answer. However, this was what he thought. There were things that cannot be regained anymore, but there were also things that still could be saved. 

Leonard hope lies in his second home, Alexis. 

That place alone, he still got back the land. Or at least… 

There was no going back for him, and the only thing left for him was to step forward. 

He vowed that he would never let his tears flow once again. 

Since then, two years had pa.s.sed, and now Leonard had become eighteen years old. 

By the way, it was year 211 in Claude history. 

The Empire of Dawn was about to sink, just like the name. 

And the name of the man who started all of it was not recorded in any history book about Claude history. 

Only his muscular appearance and confident strength were described. 

It was also told he had little wisdom in him. 

Due to circ.u.mstance, he was called the Great Chief. 

At present, he had led 400 bandits and rampaged in the territory of Zaan. 

Zaan was a province located northeast of Imperial capital, in the middle of the province there was gentle mountain range run across the north to south of the province, and a highway run through it connected both sides. 

Those men had a base in the abandoned mountain village, they would occasionally raid the highway connected east and west, and attacked the caravan. 

They would rob, kill, and commit all kind of evil deeds. 

There was no one cracked down on them. 

The citizen had asked the Lord to crack down on them but, the young man who inherited the house five years ago was a coward who easily terrified by just thinking about fighting. Let alone doing something, he was an idiot who indulges in excessive luxury. He was a perfect model of a corrupt n.o.ble. 

Due to that, the Great Chief was increasingly impudent. 

His attack becomes more brutal, he would start to attack post-town and burn it to the ground. 

That day, the great chief was in a very good mood. 

Claude's spring was early, it was in the mid-second month of the year, but the insect had already come out from the ground. 

The woman he had kidnapped from the town and brought her to his bed had scratched his face and bite his arm. 

He was impressed by the woman strong spirit. 

After all, he was a bandit with a scary strong face, not many women would dare to raise their hand against him. 

“I like a strong woman like you, you know?” 

Great chief smirked, he then told his seven followers to play with her. 

In the open s.p.a.ce of the mountain village, everyone watched her being a.s.saulted while eating dinner. 

“Everyone, bet on how long this woman would last, how about it? How about it?!” 

He then laughed heartily trying to stir the others. 

There was no one responded to him. 

Though they had gathered there because of great chief told them, everyone still averted their gaze from the rape scene. 

Aside from the seven men, the close aide of the great chief, who happily abused the woman, they were people who could not help it but become bandits. 

Some of them were tempted by the great chief, some of them were people who could not endure the increased tax every year. 

To be able to eat by taking it from the rich people was good enough for them. 

To kill was something they need to do. But it was up to the individual whether or not they wanted to a.s.sault the women. 

Even though they thought that no one dared to go against the great chief. 

Once, a courageous young man had voiced his opinion, but the great chief didn't even reply and just pulled his sword. Of course, the young man also fought back, but he was no match against the great chief. Not only that, the great chief also didn't kill him immediately, the great chief tortured him by cutting his limbs one by one before killing him. And it was a lesson to the others… 

“Come now, do it more!” 

The great chief also clapped his hands to make a musical sound. 

This was the hand that had forced people to do bad things and make them unable to return back. 

“Emm… Great chief.” 

“What. Oh, you. How much are you going to bet?” 

“No, not that… It was about today when we attacked the town…” 

It was a blatant off-topic, but great chief decided to listen… 

“I heard on behalf of the coward feudal lord, a knight unit from the imperial capital was ordered to subjugate us…” 

The great chief also had heard of that story… 

At the time they were about to behead the town mayor they attacked, he had shouted at them before dying saying ‘All of your crime is going to end soon!'. 

the great chief then sneered at him by saying, ‘I'm not afraid!'. ‘He is not that coward Zaan feudal lord or government forces. Though he is only someone who had the province of Alexis being taken and being made to give up to take it back…” 

Half of them was his true opinion, and a half was to intimidate his followers. 

He also had heard that a group of a knight had come to subjugated them, of course, he didn't ignore it, and tried to get information from the officials of the post town they had attacked. 

“They are only a group of 200 knights. Do you think they could win against our 400 men?” 

“But I heard, he's a brutal man known as the bloodsucking prince of Nosferatu.” 

“Hahahaha, to be expected for that coward representative. He was just someone who survived alone by sacrificing his comrades after being defeated by Admov.” 

“I-Is that really true? I heard that he had been subjugating bandits everywhere, and every time he did it, he ma.s.sacred everyone…” 

“Oi oi, the information you and I have seem different, huh?” 

Great chief twisted his head, looking serious… 

But soon he concluded that it was only a rumor. 

“They told the people to make it more exaggerated. All of you no need to think about such useless thing..” 

The great chief then laughed and deinked his alcohol, but his followers unable to do the same. 

‘Well, fine,' he thought. 

‘If we fight, I could prove to them that it that he is no big deal,' That was what inside his mind.