Chapter 325 - An Unknown Saviour
"You are monsters!" Queen Theodora yelled.
"Perhaps, but remember, we are monsters that Megaris created."
The remaining two knights were captured and injured by the rebels as well so they could do nothing but helplessly watch the leader of the rebels humiliate their queen.
The leader looked at his subordinates. "What are you waiting for? Let the Queen see more deaths before she herself faces it."
Just as his subordinates were about to behead the two knights who were forced to kneel on the ground, two daggers flew from behind the trees and pierced the hearts of the rebels who were about to behead the knights.
"Sneak attack! Everyone, defend yourselves!"
"Damn, our archer is probably dead and we didn't realize it."
The rebels turned alert as they gripped their swords, ready to face this sudden attacker.
The leader held his sword in front of him as he looked in the direction from where those daggers were thrown from. "Come out if you don't want the Queen of Megaris to die."
A person in a hooded cloak appeared from behind the trees whose face was covered with a strip of cloth. One could not tell if the newcomer was male or female, but he was considerably short among the people gathered in the forest.
Looking at the person with a seemingly thin physique, the leader of the rebels realized it was not a royal knight, but rather an unlucky passing busybody, probably a young hunter with an inflated sense of justice.
"Hey, kid! Don't you love your life? Are you sure you want to meddle in our matters? Doesn't seem like this is any of your business."
"It is not, but you still have to let them go," replied the voice muffled by the cloth covering his mouth. It was not a rough manly voice and neither was it delicate like a female's, further convincing the leader that this busybody was probably an adolescent boy.
"Playing hero, aren't we?" The leader of the rebels, a tall and robust man, laughed as he removed the cloth covering his face, revealing his scarred face sporting a cruel smile. "And why do you feel like I will listen to you?"
"I can only say what I want. It is up to you to listen or not," said the newcomer without an ounce of fear.
"I wonder what you got up your sleeves to be so brave in front of us."
"I am sure you would not like to know," the newcomer replied, his tone indifferent to the danger the grown men pose to him.
"Then let's see what you got," the leader said. He stepped towards the newcomer, brandishing his sword with the intention of attack.
The young hunter pulled out two long daggers, the type used to skin animals of the forest, from under his cloak and fought the leader head on. The newcomer's attacks were fast, but the skills of the leader of the rebels was nothing to scoff at either. Not to mention that the leader of the rebels had survived a war and thus had more fighting experience, he was also physically stronger, and thus his attacks were getting heavier with each passing second. They were not easy to handle, but the newcomer didn't give up and remain steadfast in defense.
When he saw an opportunity to counterattack, the young hunter managed to wound the leader in his leg by slashing one long dagger in his thigh.
"I will kill you, you meddlesome kid!"
The injury angered the leader, and his subordinates marched to help him. This weak-looking new person was not easy to deal with, and the leader figured that an unknown element like him might jeopardize his mission of killing the Queen of Megaris.
"Damn this. Kill that woman! Kill everyone! We don't need to leave an eyewitness!"
While this young hunter was dealing with the leader, could the Queen and her two knights remain idle? They also grabbed their swords back and fought against the other rebels with all their might.
While dealing with the leader and his men, the newcomer could surprisingly afford to look at Queen Theodora who happened to be staring at him at that moment. The newcomer's gaze seemed to be telling the Queen to run away, but Queen Theodora did not bother with that unspoken warning and brandished her sword towards one of the remaining rebels. The Queen had no intention of running anymore. This young hunter who had nothing to do with this was helping her with his life at stake; wouldn't she really be a hypocrite as the rebel claimed if she was to leave now, especially if there was now a chance that they could win?
With the young hunter keeping the leader and a handful of his men plenty occupied, the Queen and her knights managed to take down the remaining rebels, but by then, the three of them were exhausted. The leader, who was still not ready to give up, pulled out one metal instrument from his pocket and blew air into it, causing it to emit a bird-like sound.
He laughed. "None of you are going to live! Finally, I can avenge my comrades! Queen of Megaris, die! I want you to die!"
It did not take long for more rebels to appear. Seeing a number of them with bloodsoaked bodies, Queen Theodora's tired body grew icy cold in fear. It seemed like Sir Alexis and the other knights, her ladies-in-waiting and her servants, all of them were no longer living. Was her entire entourage wiped out? Was this truly the end? Will she die by the rebels' hands?
Surrounded by the rebels, Queen Theodora, the two knights and the young hunter could only gather to protect each other's backs. However, they were exhausted, not to mention the knights were injured earlier. It was a hopeless situation. Desperation gripped the Queen's heart, and she felt sorry for her people.
While trying to catch her breath, the Queen whispered to the cloaked hunter, "You have nothing to do with all this. I will try to divert their attention and you should run away. Don't look back and focus on surviving."
The newcomer didn't answer as he eyed the rebels surrounding them. He was sure they could not win against them now and sighed inwardly.
Just then, they heard the injured rebel leader shout, "What are you waiting for? Kill them all!"
The rebels stepped towards them with the killing intent, brandishing their swords to stab the trapped group. A second later, screams could be heard—-
The most surprising thing was that those screams came out of the rebels' mouths.
Each and every rebel on that encirclement were thrown out in the air as if they slammed against something heavy, and their limp bodies fell on the uneven ground several feet away from the Queen's group.