The Adventures of an Overpowered Knight in Another World Chapter 730- The Divine Oath, the Fall of a Hero and the Truth (2)

"If you cherish that woman, you will come alone. This is my challenge to you. Whether you accept it or not depends on you. But you only have till sundown. If by then you don’t show your face, then be prepared to lose her forever."

The messenger finished speaking. A cruel smile spread across his face once more.

"That is all. Our lord... will be waiting."

Reinhardt stood perfectly still. The snow continued to drift through the air, but the world around him felt frozen.

For the first time in a long while, the knights beside him could not tell what he was thinking. The messenger’s words had clearly hit something deep, something dangerous. The faint tremor in Reinhardt’s eyes had vanished, replaced by a stillness far more frightening.

Drystan glanced at him once, then at the demon messenger. His jaw tightened.

"Commander," he said carefully, "don’t tell me..."

But Reinhardt raised a hand, stopping Drystan from saying anything further.

His gaze remained locked on the demon, who was retreating with swagger. His posture was completely different from the fearful atmosphere he had shown earlier. Reinhardt looked at the messenger one last time before turning around.

"Return."

With that, he walked back toward the fortress.

Seeing their commander remain as calm as ever, the tense expressions on the surrounding knights eased considerably. Since Reinhardt didn’t react, they believed that it was just a bluff, a demon scheme to shake their morale. The speculation gradually ended as everyone returned inside the fortress.

Of course, there was one exception, Drystan.

He quietly walked beside Reinhardt, matching his pace.

Others might not be in the know. However, as one of the parties directly involved, he knew exactly who the demon was talking about.

Seeing that the others were a fair distance away, he finally spoke in a low voice that only the two of them could hear.

"Reinhardt, you don’t actually believe that demon... do you? Aurelia is in Blueberry Town. Besides... Sir Silas is there. There is no way..."

Before he could finish, Reinhardt raised a hand and spoke in an unnaturally calm voice.

"There is no need to continue. I understand."

That was all.

He continued walking and entered his tent.

Drystan watched his back profile. For some reason, that back, which always gave others assurance, was at this moment slightly hunched.

.

The sun slowly set and the fortress quieted.

Most of the knights were busy preparing for tomorrow’s withdrawal. However, no matter how hard he tried, Drystan could not calm the uneasiness in his heart.

Something... felt wrong. Very wrong.

Unable to endure it any longer, he headed toward the command tent, wanting to talk it out with Reinhardt. But when he pulled the flap aside and saw that the tent was empty, his expression changed. The foreboding feeling became stronger.

Immediately, he closed his eyes and let his senses spread through his surroundings. Breathing, conversation, movement... every minute action happening in the fortress and the surrounding area appeared in the mind of the Level 9 Extreme Knight.

Countless presences entered his perception. Sleeping knights, patrols, guards.

Within seconds, he found the aura he was searching for.

"There."

A gust of wind swept across the fortress.

By the time it settled, Drystan had already appeared atop the northern watchtower. From here, one could see the entire battlefield. The endless darkness beyond the mountains. The countless demon campfires stretching beyond the horizon. And standing quietly at the edge of the lookout, gazing at the horizon, was... Reinhardt.

He was fully equipped, donned in his Holy Armor and sword.

As if he felt Drystan’s presence the moment he arrived, he sighed and then, without turning around, he spoke.

"So... you found me."

Drystan slowly walked over.

The two men, no, brothers, stood shoulder to shoulder. Neither spoke for several moments. Only the cold wind marked the passage of time.

Finally, seeing that the time was nigh, Reinhardt broke the silence.

"I’m leaving. I’ll head to the other side of the mountain."

Hearing this, Drystan’s expression became complex.

"Have you thought this through? This is exactly what they want. It sounds like a trap from beginning to end. There isn’t even any proof Aurelia is really with them. Everything that demon said could simply be meant to lure you into their trap. You should know that once you fall, there is no one who can stop the demons from marching into the kingdom of Solaris from the northern borders."

Reinhardt remained silent.

Drystan continued.

"I know that you are worried about her. But Sir Silas is there. If anything truly happened, he wouldn’t simply stand by. There is no reason for you to throw yourself into danger over uncertain information."

Suddenly...

"What if she really is with them?"

Reinhardt, who had been feigning calm all this time, suddenly raised his voice.

It was not loud, but it carried an emotion Drystan had almost never heard before.

The Divine Paladin, who was like the nightmare of all demons, was at this moment... afraid.

His usually calm eyes were wavering intensely and made even Drystan momentarily speechless.

"What if... Sir Silas was defeated and she really got captured?"

Silence descended once again, with no one speaking.

Reinhardt slowly lowered his gaze. Whether what that demon said was true... or false. Whether this was a trap or not. He had to go.

If... if Aurelia truly fell into their hands... and he chose not to believe it, he would regret it for the rest of his life.

He did not voice those thoughts.

Instead, he calmly looked toward the demon territory once more.

"The Northern Alliance has reached its limit. Our knights are wounded and cannot continue like this. The headquarters is conspiring against us... me. So our supplies are also running out."

That’s right, he already knew that some conspiracy was at play. It was either the Council of Elders or the demons who were deliberately making things difficult for their side. He knew, however, so as not to let their morale falter, he had no choice but to stay optimistic.

"We cannot fight another large battle. Too many will die."

Saying that, he looked directly at Drystan.

"As my Vice Commander, Drystan, you’ll take command now. Lead everyone through the western pass. Secure supplies from the wild and preserve what remains of the alliance."

Hearing the command that could not be refuted, Drystan clenched his fists.

"And what about you?"

Reinhardt smiled and raised his thumb. It was a gesture that Reinhardt made often, but at this moment it somehow made Drystan’s chest tighten even more.

"What are you worried about? This is me we are talking about. I’ll catch up soon. I’ve already defeated the Seventh Heavenly King once. This time... will be no different."

Reinhardt spoke with confidence and lightly patted Drystan’s shoulder.

"Even if it truly is a trap... don’t underestimate your Commander. I’m a Level 10 Hero. The Divine Paladin. There are very few beings in this world capable of stopping me. I’ll return alive. Just like I promised."

Drystan found himself unable to say anything.

He wanted to argue. He wanted to stop him. He wanted to knock this stubborn fool unconscious if necessary. But he knew this man too well. Once Reinhardt made a decision... not even the King himself could change it.

Besides, as a brother, he too was extremely anxious about his sister. But his position as a knight was stopping him from doing anything foolish.

They were like invisible chains binding him.

So at this moment, he could only pin all of his hopes on Reinhardt, hoping that he would save her if she was really captured.

After a couple of seconds of silence, Drystan asked, "When are you leaving?"

Reinhardt looked at the setting sun.

"Right now."

He took a step toward the edge and then stopped. His voice turned serious.

"Don’t tell anyone. The fewer people who know... the safer this operation will be."

Drystan said nothing.

Reinhardt smiled one last time.

"Thank you."

Just as he was about to leave...

"Make sure you bring her back."

.

.

Not long after Reinhardt left, the Holy Knights sensed that their Commander was absent. They couldn’t find him anywhere.

The atmosphere inside the command tent was suffocating. Every high-ranking knight of the Northern Alliance had gathered. No one spoke. Their gazes were all fixed on the Vice Commander, Drystan Benedict.

Bang...

Marcus slammed both hands onto the table, his voice filled with fury and disbelief.

"You let him go? You actually let the Commander leave alone?"

Drystan remained silent for a moment before answering. Faced with the questions of the Holy Knights, he had no choice but to reveal the relationship between Reinhardt and his sister Aurelia.

"I didn’t let him. I couldn’t stop him."

Bargo, one of the hot-headed ones, immediately stood up.

"What nonsense. You’re his Vice Commander. If even you couldn’t stop him, who could?"

Drystan laughed bitterly.

"You really think Commander Reinhardt is someone who can be stopped once he has made up his mind?"