Devourer's Legacy: I Regressed With The Primordial Crest
Chapter 64: Back to Draemir (1)

Chapter 64: Back to Draemir (1)

Only Marcus was left now.

The valley that had been full of hired mercenaries was now a graveyard. Bodies lay everywhere, torn apart by the old man’s weapons. The smell of blood was so thick it was hard to breathe.

Marcus still held his sword, but his hands were shaking so badly he could barely grip it.

Hobbren turned to face him, wiping blood from his hands on a dead man’s shirt.

Marcus instantly felt pure terror wash over him!

But he didn’t run. He had no thought of running.

The only thought that filled his mind was that of a cold winter night seven years ago. He had been just a scrawny kid then, maybe sixteen years old, stealing bread from a merchant’s cart. His stomach had been empty for three days, and the pain was driving him crazy.

The merchant had caught him, of course. Had beaten him with a stick until he couldn’t move, then left him bleeding in an alley to die.

That’s when she found him.

Lady Elenor had been just a child herself back then, but she’d seen him lying there and ordered her guards to help. She could have walked past like everyone else did. Could have let another street rat die in the gutter.

Instead, she’d taken him to the castle. Fed him. Gave him clothes and a bed and a purpose.

She’d saved his life when no one else cared if he lived or died.

Marcus tightened his grip on his sword. No matter what happened here, he couldn’t repay her kindness. Not in a hundred lifetimes.

’Maybe this is fate,’ he thought. ’If I have to die for her sake, then so be it.’

But what really frustrated him was that his death would be useless to Lady Elenor. All those years of training, all that loyalty, and he was going to die here without helping her at all.

If only he could somehow kill Renard before the old man cut him down. At least then his death would mean something.

’Forgive me, Lady Elenor. I will not be able to return to your side.’

He already knew he couldn’t win against the old man. Marcus was a Master Zone fighter himself, yet he couldn’t even comprehend the old man’s level of power.

From start to finish, Hobbren hadn’t even used his Blood Crest or any special abilities—he had killed all of them with pure technique and skill!

Marcus wondered how such a strong person had ended up by Renard’s side, but even thinking about that was useless now.

He was going to die soon!

Even knowing that, he didn’t run. He stood his ground and held his sword tighter. For him, dying for Elenor’s sake was better than running away like a coward.

Renard had never seen his face, nor had any of the other mercenaries revealed their connection to House Grace. Even if he died here, there would be no trail leading back to Lady Elenor. As long as he kept his mouth shut, everything would be fine.

Renard would still be a problem, but Marcus had faith in his lady. She would find a way to deal with him eventually.

Just as he was preparing for death, Renard climbed down from the carriage, completely calm. He walked through the field of bodies like he was taking a stroll through a garden.

"Your title does justice to your skills," he said to Hobbren casually.

The old man shrugged, picking up his weapons. "They were sloppy. Too much confidence, not enough real skill."

Renard smiled and walked closer to Marcus, with Zain and the old man standing behind him.

For a moment, a desperate thought flashed through Marcus’s mind.

’Maybe I could eliminate Renard. Even if I die, if I could just take him with me, then it would all be worth it!’

He was about to move, to make one last desperate attack, when Renard spoke.

"Don’t even think about it."

A cold gaze fell on him as Renard looked directly into his eyes. Those weren’t the eyes of a fourteen-year-old boy. They were the eyes of someone who had seen countless deaths.

"The moment you draw that sword against me, you will die. But that won’t end there." Renard’s voice was completely calm and matter-of-fact. "I will hunt down Eleanor and everyone related to you. Every friend, every family member, every person who ever helped you. I’ll make sure they all pay for your stupidity."

There was no anger in his words, no emotion at all. Just cold certainty.

Marcus flinched, and his grip around the sword loosened. The threat wasn’t made in anger—it was delivered like a simple statement of fact. That made it infinitely more terrifying.

"Don’t worry, I’m not going to kill you," Renard continued, his tone almost friendly now. "Lady Elenor would be very sad if I did that to her loyal dog."

Marcus’s face burned with shame, but he said nothing.

"Go back and tell this to Elenor," Renard said, gesturing at the carnage around them. "When I give my word, I mean it. If she tries anything like this again—even if I just get a whiff of another plot—I’ll come back. But next time, I won’t be satisfied with just money and some dead bodies."

He looked at the bloodied mess scattered throughout the valley, corpses sprawled between rocks and hanging from tree branches.

"I hope you understand the message clearly."

Renard turned his back on Marcus dismissively, showing complete confidence that the broken man wouldn’t try anything.

"Let’s go," he said to Zain and Hobbren. "We’ve wasted enough time here."

The three of them climbed back into their carriage and continued their journey toward Grim territory, leaving Marcus alone among the dead.

Marcus knelt there in the blood-soaked dirt for a long time after they left, surrounded by the bodies of men he had led to their deaths. His sword fell from his numb fingers as the reality of what had just happened sank in.

Twenty-eight skilled mercenaries. Dead in less than fifteen minutes. Killed by one old man who hadn’t even seemed to be trying very hard.

And Renard—that boy who everyone thought was weak and useless—had orchestrated it all. He had known exactly what would happen and prepared accordingly.

’What kind of monster have we crossed?’ Marcus thought, staring at the carnage around him.

He had a long, lonely walk back to Gia’s Castle ahead of him. And an even harder conversation with Lady Elenor waiting at the end of it.

But at least he was alive to deliver the message.

’Someday... I will pay you back for this shame I have endured!’ he swore, watching the carriage disappear ahead of him.

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