Kingdom Building Game: Starting Out With A Million Upgrade Points!

Lionel froze.

The weight of his superior's words sent a chill down Lionel's spine. He wasn't afraid of killing—he had seen plenty of bloodshed—but this was different. This wasn't an enemy knight or a bandit. Ian was barely more than a boy—desperate, furious, and not yet hardened by war.

But before Lionel could decide, a thunderous voice echoed.

"GET AWAY FROM MY SON!"

Adrian charged in atop his wolf, his sword flashing as he swung it in a furious diagonal arc.

Lionel barely had time to react. He leaped back as Adrian's blade carved through the air where he had just stood, a gust of wind created by the force of his swing slamming into the frozen earth with bone-shaking force.

A shower of ice and dirt erupted from the impact, and Ian seized the opportunity. The younger noble scrambled to his feet, his hands grasping at the nearest fallen weapon—a spear torn from a slain knight's grasp.

He twirled it as he got into a defensive stance, his breath ragged, his eyes burning with defiance.

"Tch." Garik clicked his tongue in irritation. "You're wasting my time, Lionel."

Without another word, he moved, trying to end the boy himself.

A knight tried to intercept him.

Nearly a challenge.

Garik's blade swung through the air, slicing the rider's wolf's head clean off in a single stroke.

It happened in an instant… a blur.

The beast's body collapsed instantly, its severed head rolling across the bloodstained snow.

The knight barely had time to react before Garik's sword plunged through his chest. A single brutal thrust. Blood spurted as the man gasped, his eyes wide in silent horror. He slumped forward, falling atop his lifeless mount.

Another knight lunged from the side.

A fatal mistake.

Garik's greatsword whirled in a deadly arc. The wolf's head went flying, its body stumbling forward before collapsing in a heap.

The knight managed to stand up and steady himself, then attempted to land an attack with his sword.

Garik swung his greatsword again, instantly slicing the knight's arm from his shoulder.

The man screamed in agony as he attempted to use his other hand to cover the stump.

He barely managed that for even a moment before Garik stomped on his chest with his right foot. As the knight fell into the snow on his torso, Garik instantly plunged his blade through his back.

A third knight rushed from behind, hoping to catch Garik off guard.

Garik grabbed the fresh corpse before him and hurled it forward. The attacker's blade cut deep into the dead knight's body, slowing his strike just enough.

Garik spun, his greatsword a blur, and in one savage stroke, he bisected both knight and mount in a single cleaving motion.

The gorge fell silent, except for the wind howling through.

Blood painted the snow.

The last of Adrian's knights lay scattered, their bodies lifeless, their weapons buried in the frost.

Adrian's heart pounded. He knew Garik was strong, but this… this was something else. This wasn't a battle. This was butchery.

Clenching his jaw, he yanked at the fur of his mount. His wolf snarled, its powerful muscles tensing as it lunged, closing the distance in a blur as he swung his sword forward. But Garik didn't flinch.

He sidestepped at the last moment.

One clean motion. One decisive strike.

His greatsword plunged downward, splitting through the fur, flesh, and bone of the wolf's abdomen.

The wolf howled in agony as its guts spilled onto the snow, its body convulsing violently. Blood fanned out in a steaming spray, painting the ice in deep crimson.

Adrian barely had time to react. He rolled as his mount crashed, springing to his feet, his sword gripped tight. He locked eyes with Garik. There was no escape.

And Adrian knew it.

His voice was firm. "The five of you should leave without me. I can handle myself."

"No!" Evelyne's voice broke. "Adrian, no! They'll kill you!"

"Enough, Evelyne!" He turned to his son. "Ian! Take your sister and ride!"

Ian's head snapped up. "What?! No! I won't just leave you—"

"GO, YOU FOOL!" Adrian's command echoed across the battlefield. "NOW!"

Ian turned toward his sister Elyse, prepared to run to her side, but—

Shunk!

A wet, sickening sound split the air.

Time seemed to slow.

Blood sprayed across the snow. Ian's head severed clean from his shoulders, his expression still frozen in shock as it tumbled through the air.

It landed with a dull thud at his mother's wolf's feet.

For a moment, silence.

Then—

Evelyne screamed.

A raw, soul-wrenching wail tore from her throat as she clutched Lysara tighter. The little girl shrieked, burying her face in her mother's chest, her tiny body trembling.

Adrian's breath caught. His hands trembled. His legs refused to move.

Then—

"You—"

His sword was already swinging, his grief and fury igniting like an inferno.

But Garik stood there, unfazed, his greatsword resting against his shoulder. Blood still dripped from its massive blade, staining the pristine snow at his feet.

"One down." His voice was casual, almost bored. "Four more to go."

Adrian roared, his blade flashing in a furious arc. Steel met steel in a deafening clash, the force sending a shockwave through the battlefield. Adrian pressed forward with all his might, his blue mana crackling like lightning around him. His fury burned, his muscles screamed, but Garik…

Garik didn't even flinch.

Adrian struck again. Harder. Faster. Desperation in every blow. But each strike met Garik's sword with effortless precision. Step by step, Adrian was forced back.

Then—Garik moved.

A brutal twist. A counter. A strike too fast to see.

Adrian's sword was wrenched from his grasp, plunging into the ice.

Before he could react, Garik's fist slammed into his gut. Adrian choked, pain shooting through his ribs. Another strike followed—a crushing blow to the side of his head. The world tilted violently, his vision swimming as he crashed onto the snow.

Dazed. Defenseless.

Adrian barely registered his arms being pulled behind his back until the rough fibers of a rope tightened around his wrists. Garik secured the knots, binding him.

"Stay down, Lord Adrian." Garik's voice was almost kind. "I'll make this quick."

Then—

A roar of fury ripped through the battlefield.

"DIE, IMPERIAL SCUM!"

Darius.

Adrian's eldest son tore through the snow, his mountain wolf thundering forward. His sword gleamed with raw mana, a silver arc of power trailing behind him as he aimed for Garik's neck.

Garik sighed. His own blue mana surged outward.

"To wield an aura blade at such a young age…" he mused. "If your father hadn't betrayed the emperor, you might have had a future."

"WAIT—!" Lionel shouted.

But Garik did not wait.

The world blurred around him.

A sidestep. A clean slice. The wolf's front legs severed in an instant.

Darius barely had time to react before Garik's greatsword thrust upward—

Steel met flesh.

And the snow below was drenched in blood.