Hell's Actor-Chapter 94: Vampire Knight

On the night of the 87th anniversary of the kingdom, word reached the capital that the Alieth dukedom had invaded and occupied the southern region.

They were claiming it as their own and looked to be prepared to continue their invasion inland.

While the palace scrambled to prepare defenses, Princess Elizia asked Allaryx a simple question.

"Will you do it on your own?"

Quietly, he took his glaive and made his way towards the southern region of the kingdom.

After three days of travel, he came face to face with the encroaching army.

A line of cowering farmers and warriors of country nobles had formed a line to stop their advance.

Allaryx walked past them and waited for the army of thousands to reach an appropriate range.

When they were close enough, he lowered his posture and threw his glaive as if it were a javelin.

It ripped through the air and blasted open a hole in the line of caravans. Hundreds died as blood danced in the air.

He charged at the enemy in his daunting black armor, and the rest became a legend.

His name spread through the land as he slaughtered thousands all by himself.

He took part in vital conflicts and returned victorious despite the odds. His countless exploits gained him glory and a mythical status.

To warn the opposing armies, he would drag the large glaive behind him as he would enter the bloodied battlefields.

Scratching the surface, it would cause a harsh sound that served to announce his entrance. This was named Death’s Shrill by the scarred survivors.

As if that sound wasn’t distressing enough, his armor would draw attention. The sighting of a black helmet on the battlefield was enough to enliven the allies and unsettle the enemies.

He was quick, ferocious, and ruthless as he danced on the battlefield. He was like a demon of war, and nothing could hurt him.

Once the battle was over, he would drink the blood of his enemies to satiate his vampiric thirst.

He single-handedly won the kingdom’s wars, becoming the most feared man in the land.

Once, he hunted a dragon on a snow-capped mountain peak for 77 days without resting. After a long fight, he injured the ancient beast and stole one of its eyes before it escaped.

With his show of strength, the princess’s political influence grew. If before she had a voice, now she had immense authority.

While honing his skills, Allaryx continued to gain strength and notoriety.

He earned names like the Black Knight, the Dread of the Living, the Widow Maker, and many more.

His Dark Elf origins were kept secret from the world.

No one would have approved of a Dark Elf gaining so much power. But the word had gotten out, and some whispered about it nonetheless.

Not many believed it, though. After all, how could something as lowly as a Dark Elf demand such fear and respect? Why would the princess trust him?

When the high priests of the Faith and some officials in league with Trellise arrived at his door wanting to confirm the rumors, Allaryx slayed them all. He tied their mutilated corpses to a horse and dragged them through the streets of the capital.

Trellise ordered his men to arrest him for breaking the law, but no one dared to approach Allaryx. It was well-known that standing before him was the experience closest to death.

The years passed.

Princess Elizia earned the right to succeed her father, superseding her brother as the heir to the crown.

At her crowning ceremony, as the large crowd gathered to see her, Allaryx remained by her side. It was daunting indeed to see the strongest weapon of the kingdom by the side of the princess.

For years, he defended Queen Elizia by her side.

But as the threat of an invasion by the belligerent Scousi Empire grew, Allaryx was needed elsewhere. The queen sent him to a keep near the imperial border.

It was a castle on a cliff overlooking the sea.

The Dead Keep, it was called.

It was his latest office and new home.

Without any servants, guards, or company, he dwelt there alone for over a decade. His presence alone deterred the empire from launching an attack.

The place, which already had rumors about it, became infamous among the citizenry. Children were told overly horrific stories about it to deter them from venturing far from home. Before, they spoke of ghosts; now, they whispered about a demon.

The invasion from the empire did not come from the border that Allaryx protected. It came from within.

Seeking the throne, Trellise had rebelled with the backing of the empire.

When Allaryx received the word, he rushed to the capital. Seizing the opportunity, the imperial forces at the border captured the Dead Keep and flew their flag high.

When Allaryx arrived, the palace had already fallen.

The princess had barricaded herself in a small, sturdy room with only a few dwindling guards protecting her. The old order was falling apart.

At that moment, as her very soldiers turned on her, Allaryx destroyed half of the palace with a single swing of his glaive. Men flew like debris, and debris flew like birds.

Tens of thousands of terrified army men surrounded him. In that grim moment, he walked up to the princess and asked her what she wanted him to do.

He assured her that he could kill them all while protecting her if that was what she wished.

But she decided against it and accepted her defeat.

There was no point in fighting. There was no saving her rule.

She could not possibly afford to lose tens of thousands of her soldiers, even though Allaryx could reliably overpower them.

If they were all dead, who would protect the kingdom from the threat of imperial invasion?

"And if they are so scared of a woman ruling them that they would side with my brother, then I, too, do not wish to lead them to a better future."

No one stopped Allaryx as he escorted her away from the capital. But there was one man who tried despite the warnings from his advisors.

Trellise stepped forward and ordered Allaryx to put her down.

"I need her head."

That was the wrong choice of words.

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