98 – Episode 98. Annihilation for Real (5)
Moon Rabbit Knights.
A knight order formed by knights who were part of the Order Maintenance Army.
Even though they were called renegades, they were personally selected by the Sword Master Jade and led by the knights themselves. It’s unbelievable that they would attack such a place.
During the time of the “Black Bull,” Maximos would have responded to such nonsense with a dismissive remark.
But the “Ninja” Maximos was different.
On this side, there was a high-ranking wizard who had forgotten his own name due to the overpowering nicknames given to Maximos, himself, and the runaway ninja by Lunox.
Furthermore, all the ninjas in Yongjugal were mana users. Except for the newly initiated Choker and Hook, as well as Heidi, the warriors all had some knowledge of mana manipulation.
The fact that numerical superiority did not apply to knights was only true when the enemy they faced was not a mana user.
Even if it was just one knight against five ninjas, they could hold their own. If an exceptional skilled warrior appeared, Lunox and Maximos could handle it.
Having finished his calculations, Maximos agreed with Lunox’s opinion.
“Let’s do it.”
You can’t just let a ninja like Ayasayo pass by without a second thought. That’s what they had heard hundreds of times in Yongjugal.
If they hadn’t encountered her, it would have been a different story. But since they had directly confronted her and witnessed her involvement in human trafficking, they couldn’t just pretend not to know.
“Choker and Oculius, guide the people to a safe place. The rest of us will take on the Night Rabbit Knights.”
Maximos gathered the ninjas of Yongjugal and explained the way to the Night Rabbit Knights headquarters. It was fortunate that he had informed Celine as a precaution.
“Most of the knights stay at the headquarters unless it’s a special day or a weekend.”
“So, there’s a high chance they’ll all be there.”
The wizard, who was observing the staff’s condition, received his words.
“Yeah. Two knights have already died here, and they have no idea. Let’s finish this quickly.”
Some gulped nervously.
The fight against the knights. The Yongjugal ninjas, who had their fair share of battles in their own territory, were tense enough.
“Well, wasn’t everyone here prepared for this?”
A middle-aged man with a bandit-like appearance broke the short silence.
“Let’s take care of a few low-level monsters and these gangster bastards. We didn’t become ninjas for nothing. Are there even scoundrels like that?”
“Of course not.”
“If there were, they should have gone home during training.”
“After enduring for six months, we’ll finally see some results.”
“Yeah, since we’ve drawn our swords, let’s do more.”
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The ninjas, as if they had never been tense, spoke confidently, with a relaxed expression. It was quite natural for them to regain their composure as if turning over the palm of their hands.
“We have to tear apart those worthless guys.”
Except for Hook, who mumbled something, everyone else seemed to have relaxed.
Maximus nodded satisfactorily. From the start, Yujugol was a group of half-baked individuals who lived off their own superiority.
They were a group of people who had gathered for various reasons, but their ultimate goal was the same.
The elimination of villains and the protection of the people.
Following the metaphor of the runaway ninja, they were individuals who had gathered to achieve the completion of a ‘world where no one gets hurt’.
People who lived in this harsh world with such a fairy tale-like goal did not easily give in.
No, it must be because they had survived until now that they had such resilience.
“We’ll finish everything before tonight is over.”
Maximus declared as he watched the Yujugol ninjas preparing.
***
The headquarters of the Night Rabbit Knights was a two-story mansion surrounded by a large garden.
Since the second floor was used solely by the knight commander, all the knights were supposed to be on the first floor.
The guards stationed there were two knights and fifteen men and women wearing light armor, who seemed to be apprentice knights.
“What should we do about the kids? Are they the targets for elimination?”
One ninja cautiously approached Maximos and conveyed his words through sign language. “Kids” referred to the apprentice knights.
“Just subdue them.”
Maximos lowered his head. It was unlikely that the apprentices had collaborated in the secret misdeeds of the Night Rabbit Knights.
“Move as I mentioned earlier.”
As Maximos’s signal dropped, the ninjas who had cast the illusion of shadows slowly began to move. The shadows swayed and spread slowly.
The first to cross the garden and arrive in front of the headquarters was Lunox.
“Eup-“
She cautiously approached and slashed the throat of one knight with her rapier.
Assassination was one of the most dishonorable acts among knights, but Lunox didn’t pay much attention to it.
“Eliminate one samurai.”
Lunox had already adapted perfectly to the brainwashing training of the renegade ninjas.
Samurai. It meant a sinister and wicked warrior of darkness who collaborated with the Yakuzas and yokais to threaten humanity.
In Lunox’s worldview, this knight was no longer human.
The only thing she regretted at this moment was that she couldn’t deliver a cool line.
Soon, the ninjas who followed Lunox began to subdue and bring down the apprentice knights one by one. They threw their bodies towards the bushes in the garden, making almost no sound.
“Intruders! Intruders!”
However, a problem arose from the other side. The ninja assigned to the opposite samurai had failed in their surprise attack.
“Clang!”
The samurai, who let out a whale-like sound, fought against seven ninjas simultaneously but met his demise in the hooks of their grappling hooks. However, the situation was not favorable.
The lights in the Night Rabbit Knights headquarters turned on, and the protective magic circle engraved on the wall was activated. The constantly active magic circle is rarely used unless you’re a royal who doesn’t care about maintenance costs.
With a eerie sound, the wall covered in geometric patterns became as solid as metal.
“This is the Iron Turtle Matop’s… Wait a moment.”
The high-ranking mage quickly bypassed the magic circle, but there was enough time for the samurais inside the headquarters to regain their senses and prepare for the attack.
“Quick, enter!”
Maximus broke the window and entered the headquarters. The sharp spear that awaited him greeted his arrival.
“Ha!”
Maximus defended against the attack with his axe, mitigating the impact of the fall.
“You madman, attacking the Knights?”
A grim-looking female samurai swung her spear to block Maximus’ approach. It was an attempt to gain the advantage by utilizing the weapon’s range.
Seizing the opportunity, Maximus quickly dodged and threw a small axe. Although it was a small axe, it was a weapon that could easily sever a person’s neck.
“Tsk!”
The samurai, judging that it would be difficult to defend against the next attack, twisted her body to avoid the attack. That was the ‘opportunity’ Maximus had been aiming for.
With a clink, the lantern behind shattered, and Maximus’ body disappeared into the darkness.
“Damn it, can’t see anything with all these shadows…!”
The samurai, sweating, aimed at the spot where Maximus had been. But she couldn’t see anything.
Continuing to confront the black darkness, she couldn’t even see Maximus’ white fangs revealing themselves behind her.
Maximus’s camouflage technique was perfect. Yes, it was as if he was born for stealth.
“Ugh-“
Maximus lightly grabbed the samurai’s hair and swung his axe, striking her neck. It was only at the last moment that the samurai realized it and turned her body, and Maximus and her locked eyes.
The samurai’s eyes were filled with surprise and fear.
“Sayonara.”
Maximus, confirming the enemy’s death, grabbed a small axe and left the room.
“Who are you all? Assassins?”
“Go ask the Jade in hell!”
“This bastard!”
In the corridor, ninjas and samurais clashed. It seemed as if the ninjas who had broken through the windows were being pushed back to the corridor after fighting the samurais.
“They’re still a bit lacking.”
Nevertheless, it was fortunate that they were fighting well without any casualties.
Among the ninjas engaged in close combat, there were those who were covered in blood, but Lunox intervened appropriately, preventing any danger.
It was a moment when the six months of combat training and cooperative training paid off.
“It’s here! You scum from the Order Maintenance Army!”
Maximus swung his axe and charged. The samurais slightly backed off from his threatening attack.
“You, are you the ‘Black Bull’?”
Among them, there were samurais who recognized Maximus. It wasn’t anything strange.
Maximus, wearing a hood, had a noticeable build and skin color.
“Do you know me?”
“I can’t not know you. Moreover, we fought together ten years ago.”
“…I see.”
Now Maximus, who remembered the samurai, was one of the members of the Order Maintenance Army who had come to support Jade during the civil war in the Erugal Kingdom.
The middle-aged samurai recognized Maximus and was impressed.
“Under whose orders are you doing this? Are you a hunting dog for the kingdom?”
“Think of it that way.”
It was just before a fierce battle broke out.
“The Black Bull.”
Everyone’s attention turned to the woman’s voice coming from the end of the corridor.
A woman in underwear appeared with an armed man. The armed man wore a badge symbolizing leadership.
It was clearly the leader of the Night Rabbit Knights. But what about the woman?
“Just a useless mercenary scum.”
The woman, who had a thin cloth draped over her shoulders, raised the sword in her hand with a bored expression.
Goooooo…
Sinister black flames flickered from the sword.
“Magic Sword, Kyung…!”
Maximus realized her true identity and let out a sigh.
He knew that she was the leader of the Night Rabbit Knights and his lover, but he didn’t expect to meet her at this moment.
It was simply a matter of bad luck.
“Since all the fun has been drained because of you, take responsibility.”
Sending a chilling gaze to the ninjas, she chuckled softly as she took one more step forward.
Swish!
A residue of black, brown, yellow, and green strangely mixed together passed by Maximus. It moved swiftly like the wind, leaving an afterimage holding onto the Magic Sword, Kyung.
Crash-!
“Kyaa-ahhh!”
The Magic Sword, with a strange scream, pierced through the ceiling in an instant and flew away.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
With the sound of something bursting into chaos, it fell silent.
“…”
Everyone stood still, looking up at the sudden event.
From the pierced and blood-dripping ceiling, a hand suddenly emerged. The gesture of raising the thumb upright was eerie in some way.
“The balance of power has been maintained.”
As soon as those words were spoken, the man’s thumbs-up disappeared.