Leo and Henry now set out on horses into the forest.

  The mercenary band was at the edge of the Nocturne Barony. They were mixed with some barbarians.

  Leo had prepared a plan. He would challenge the leader, defeat him, and take control.

  It sounded so easy, yet it loomed heavy in his mind.

  Suddenly, a bunch of arrows aimed toward Leo and his horse.

  The horse jumped up, avoiding the arrows.

  The horse then kicked one of the mercenaries in the face.

  "Yep, they are close," Henry said as he unsheathed his scimitar.

  He then rushed and slashed the remaining men in the trees.

  He then screamed, "Come out, pussies!"

  The leader came out. He was a huge, muscular man with a Zweih?nder.

  It featured a long hilt for two-handed leverage and included Parierhaken (parrying hooks) below the main guard to protect the wielder's hands.

  It was a masterpiece designed to harness momentum and attack with power and speed.

  "Oh, Henry, interesting. Why are you hanging around with a noble brat bitch?" the leader, Steve, said in his loud voice, booming in the dense forest.

  "Shut up, you bitch," Leo said, shocking Henry and Steve.

  "What did you say, little noble brat?" Steve said, charging his Rift energy into his Zweih?nder.

  "You heard me," Leo said, rage-baiting Steve to attack blindly.

  Steve rushed in with a downward slash.

  Leo dodged, then, using his shield, he grabbed Steve's hands and pulled him in.

  Leo then unsheathed his sword and ignited it with his flames.

  Leo then slashed at his arm.

  Suddenly, Leo felt a great resistance blocking him from going all the way.

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  Leo tried to push his blade deeper, but Steve's sheer muscle mass and Rift energy control blocked the attack, leaving his sword stuck in him.

  Steve then punched Leo away, sending him flying.

  "You'll regret calling me bitch, you noble brat!"

  Leonidas stood up relatively unharmed. He had broken his fall using his shadows to pick him up.

  He then wrapped his shadow around his hands and feet.

  "Womp womp, cry about it," Leo said as he rushed in.

  Steve punched Leo.

  Leo dodged to the side, then he punched Steve. Then he unleashed a torrent of flames while raining down sunbeams.

  Steve punched forward with his raw strength, dispelling all the attacks.

  Steve then raised his sword above his head before crashing down on him like a wrecking ball.

  Leo quickly dodged while recovering his blade.

  "Wow, I'm impressed, kid. You got some guts, but you are still a kid," the mercenary leader said. Then suddenly, water started to form in his hand.

  The water kept growing and growing, then it shrank to a marble-sized ball.

  Though it was small, Leo could sense the immense energy compressed into a tiny orb.

  "Die, puny boy," Steve said as he launched the orb at supersonic speeds.

  Suddenly, the system that had stayed silent until now rang.

  [USER HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO COPY TALENT GREAT WAVES USING SHADOW DEVOUR. WOULD THE USER LIKE TO USE IT? Y/N]

  Leo smirked before pressing Y.

  His shadow rose larger than before, sliding across the floor, then wrapped around the water orb, and began to shrink.

  The shadows then disappeared into nothing.

  [GREAT WAVES TALENT ACQUIRED. WOULD YOU LIKE TO SWITCH TO IT? Y/N]

  Leo tapped yes without hesitation.

  A flood of information about the talent washed over him all at once.

  "What did you do?" Steve asked, frustrated.

  Leo didn't respond. Instead, he pointed at Steve. Then, making his hand like a gun, he fired a water beam at Steve. The beam hit him with great speed.

  Steve's ear got hit with the water beam.

  The mercenary leader bowed down in fear.

  After some explanation, the mercenary band, the Mad Dogs, now rode out to the Nocturne with some food for the bandits.

  They arrived at Nocturne in a blaze of glory as Henry distributed the food to everyone.

  The people roared out in happiness.

  "Now, Mad Dogs, we shall conquer the monster forest tomorrow, so get ready while we import some food for the campaign, and make one promise: do not die," Leo said before heading to the castle.

  He prepared to put on his father's armour, which he had given to his friend and ally, and now he would wear it.

  "Father, please let Richard, my dad, comfort and fuel my strength," Leo said, touching his dad's armour.

  The morning was fueled with excitement and happiness, but a bit of fear as Leo walked into the forest with the Mad Dogs in his father's armour.

  He would have his revenge, but not now.

  Not when he was weak.

  As they walked into the forest, the trees closed in behind them, and Henry and Steve instantly became alert.

  Suddenly, a scream was heard as someone got stabbed by something that moved in the shadows.

  It tried to stab Leo, but his shadow manipulation made him sense them, and he cut them down using the annihilation flame infused in his blade.

  "Guys, stay behind me," Leo said as he shot out several fireballs to light the forest in flames.

  The flames revealed the horrible, grotesque monsters. Their arms were long and sharp. Their legs were weird leg things.

  The Mad Dogs quickly took care of the shadow beasts with ease.

  They kept trekking through and decided to make camp in a clearing.

  The monsters of the forest were angry, really angry, and they wouldn't take kindly to outsiders.