The World Is Mine For The Taking-Chapter 1261 - 193 - The End Of Normal Days (6)

Meanwhile...

Leon’s POV

I barely made it halfway toward the academy gates when the air shifted.

One second, it was just another afternoon with the students leaving, guards standing lazily at their posts, as well as the usual background noise of metal boots and idle chatter. The next second, I was boxed in.

Knights.

Not just a couple.

A lot.

And not strangers either. I recognized the crests on their chests, the way a few of them held their swords with the familiar stiffness in their posture. These were the same ones I had met earlier. Apparently, that first encounter hadn’t been enough for them.

They circled me in a wide arc, boots scraping against stone, forming a clean perimeter like I was some rabid animal that needed to be put down before I mauled someone important. Swords slid free from scabbards in near-unison, the metallic shhhk cutting through the courtyard noise. The blades caught the light, reflecting it in sharp flashes. Their armor was polished to an almost ridiculous degree. It gleamed like they had spent the entire morning shining it just for this moment.

The glare hit my eyes hard enough that I had to squint.

Honestly, if their plan was to blind me with reflections before attacking, it was almost impressive.

They were clearly trying to gang up on me.

At the center of it all stood their captain.

He didn’t shout. He didn’t move. He just watched.

He was old. There was no point pretending otherwise. Deep lines carved into his face, gray hair combed back neatly, and a posture that screamed experience. He had to be in his seventies, maybe pushing eighty. And yet... he didn’t look fragile. His shoulders were still broad with his stance firm. The kind of old man who probably trained before sunrise and could still break someone’s ribs without straining himself.

He didn’t look like someone ready for retirement.

If anything, he looked like a man who still believed he had something left to prove.

There were close to a hundred knights surrounding me. Maybe more. Earlier, it had only been a handful. Now? This was a full show of force. Backup had clearly been called in.

So this was their "going all out."

And they were doing it right at the academy entrance, blocking my way out like I was some criminal trying to flee the country.

All I had wanted was to leave with my hands in my pockets, maybe grab some air. Apparently, that was too much to ask.

Around us, a few cadets who were heading out slowed down. Some stared at me with unease, whispering under their breath. Others looked almost entertained. Nothing spices up a boring afternoon like a public arrest attempt.

I didn’t give them the satisfaction of reacting. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

My gaze stayed on the captain.

"Leon," he said, voice steady and carrying easily across the courtyard. "You are under arrest for conducting an unlawful investigation. That is vigilantism. Furthermore, you attempted to gather dirt on an individual without any official authority."

He paused just enough for the weight of his words to settle.

"If you do not wish to be harmed, I advise you to surrender."

The knights tightened their formation. I could see it in the subtle shifts of their feet as well as with the way their grips adjusted on their swords. They were coiled, waiting for a signal.

I tilted my head slightly.

"If you really want to catch me," I said, keeping my tone even, almost bored, "you should’ve brought more. What exactly do all of you think you’re going to do against me?"

A ripple passed through them.

The captain blinked.

Right now, he was probably trying to measure whether I was bluffing. Maybe he thought I was posturing. After all, this was a hundred against one. On paper, that math didn’t favor me.

One man doesn’t beat a hundred trained knights.

At least, that’s how it usually works.

But paper doesn’t account for everything.

My strength against people who were merely above average wasn’t just greater. It was overwhelming. One hundred thousand times greater. A million, maybe. The gap wasn’t a difference. It was a canyon.

Even if these knights were above average, even if they were disciplined and well-trained, it wouldn’t matter.

Not even a little.

The captain glanced around at his men.

Then he gave the signal.

They rushed me all at once.

Boots thundered against stone. Armor clanked. Dozens of blades angled toward me, cutting through the air as they closed in. It was almost impressive how synchronized they were.

For a normal person, this would’ve been terrifying.

I released my bloodlust.

It didn’t just seep out. It detonated outward in a massive wave, expanding in every direction. The air itself seemed to grow heavy, thick with invisible pressure. The temperature dropped. The courtyard felt smaller.

The knights felt it immediately.

Their steps faltered.

The confidence in their charge fractured. I saw it in their eyes. The sudden realization that something was very wrong. Their bodies reacted instinctively before their minds could rationalize it.

Then I moved.

In less than a heartbeat, I dashed forward.

To them, it probably looked like I vanished and reappeared.

I didn’t even need to swing hard. Precise strikes. Controlled force. Efficient. One after another, I passed through their formation.

By the time the echo of their charge faded, they were already falling.

All of them.

Almost at the same time.

It was like someone had cut the strings of a hundred puppets. Bodies hit the ground in uneven rhythms. Armor clattered. Swords slipped from loosened fingers.

Silence followed.

The captain and the few who hadn’t rushed in stood frozen, staring at the sea of fallen men.

"Kuh..." he clicked his tongue, the sound sharp in the sudden quiet.

Some of the remaining knights didn’t wait for orders.

They ran.

They didn’t even have pride, and they didn’t even plan for a regroup. Just survival instinct kicking in. They had felt my bloodlust. Their bodies knew what their pride didn’t want to admit.

I stepped toward the captain.

Slowly.

Each step echoed louder than it should have.

I stopped in front of him and met his eyes.

I didn’t need to say anything yet. The bloodlust lingering in my gaze was enough. It pressed down on him, invisible but suffocating.

His hand tightened on his sword.

He pointed it at me, but I could see the tremor. The flicker of doubt. His bravery wasn’t gone, but it was slipping, like sand through his fingers.

For a moment, he held his ground.

Then instinct won.

He tried to turn and run.

Time froze around him.

Mid-motion. One foot barely lifted off the ground.

"Guh..."

The sound came out strained, trapped in a frozen body.

I walked around him casually, observing him like a statue placed in a museum exhibit titled What Happens When You Miscalculate.

"Tell Sir Gaspard this," I said quietly. "If he wants me, he can come and get me himself. You understand?"

I allowed his head to move, just enough freedom within the time manipulation.

Slowly, stiffly, he nodded.

Good.

The moment he did, I focused my bloodlust into a single point and released it directly at him.

Not wide.

Not dispersed.

Concentrated.

His eyes rolled back almost instantly. Foam gathered at the corners of his mouth as his body collapsed the second I released the time hold.

He hit the ground with a dull thud.

The courtyard remained silent.

Knights scattered. Dozens unconscious. One captain twitching faintly on the stone.

I slipped my hands into my pockets.

Guess I could leave now.