The evening remained eventful.
A possessed Eddy had been fighting and holding his ground against five of Marcus's knights.
Albeit they were his new knights who had recently begun cultivating an elemental aspect.
Marcus felt that this was a good chance for them to gain experience.
Though none of them had attacked with the intent of taking Eddy's life, to Marcus, being able to withstand their barrage was still a feat worth paying attention to.
But only in the case of his new knights. If it were the veterans under him…
As for Marcus, if he decides to take action, Eddy wouldn't even be an issue.
"My lord, should we change our approach?" Brown asked as he approached Marcus.
"No, continue this way until he's out of energy. What about Joshua's side, has he been able to capture that person?"
"No sir. But Caleb and Flocki have left to assist him."
"He's that strong?"
Brown nodded.
"Hmm," Marcus rubbed his chin as his gaze turned in the direction from which he sensed his knights' aura coming from.
Let them try to deal with this on their own first.
"Die!" Eddy bellowed as he punched forward with a fist coated in wisps of dark smoke.
Harey, who was in front of the attack, raised his shield, tanking the powerful blow.
Dun!
The metal vibrated, shaking the young Knight's hand violently to the point where he backed up a few steps before coughing blood.
Eddy jumped forward like a feral beast about to feast on his prey.
His mouth was wide open and his arms stretched out.
Harey was dazed, still trying to get himself when he saw a shadow over him.
His eyes widened and instinctively, he mobilized his Aspect energy.
A wall of water, the same shape and size as his shield, manifested over his head and shot towards Eddy.
The possessed man had a look of confusion plastered on his face as the shield struck him cold on his face, sending him flying towards a gutter.
Harey breathed heavily as he slowly realized what he had done.
"That move… it just happened on its own," he whispered to himself.
Even Marcus was stunned, but he hid his expression. "He manifested his Aspect attribute. Is this also possible? Isn't this like magic?"
Even though he had seen proof, Marcus couldn't help but ask himself this.
Whenever his Heart Pulse is open, the only thing Marcus could take note of is the immense strength that it fills his body with.
As for manifesting an element without the programming of magic, he didn't think it was as easy as Harey had displayed.
Though he recalled being able to start a fire with his punches, Marcus attributed that effect to the imbalance of his Will.
The other knights, both new and veteran, were amazed by what they saw.
"So cool!" Sonu uttered lightly before his gaze fell to his sword. "Can I do that too?"
"Though we cultivate a different attribute of Aspect, we should still be able to do so." His identical twin, Jonu, replied calmly.
Though he didn't show it, he too was excited by the possibility of being able to manifest his Aspect outside of his body.
"What are you all doing? Your target is already up and trying to escape!" Brown immediately began scolding. "If any of your seniors is forced to take action, all of you will receive punishment!"
His voice woke all of them up from their daydreaming.
Four of them immediately chased after Eddy, while Harey was still trying to catch his breath.
Manifesting his Aspect had drained him.
He managed to get on his feet, only for a hand to press him down. "Take a seat and rest. Also, try not to forget the sensation that led you to do what you did." Marcus said.
Harey paused, before acknowledging with a nod.
Seeing that the young man was doing his best to meditate, Marcus was pleased.
His attention turned back to the fleeing target.
Something is not right about him. It's like he's oscillating between sanity and insanity.
This thought kept Marcus confused.
"Mercidin,"
"Milord,"
"Stop the target for them. At this rate, I don't think they'll be able to catch up to him."
The knight nodded and his figure soon left dust clouds in his wake.
…
As for Eddy, he seemed to have regained his sanity after being hit with the water shield.
"What are you doing? Why are you running away? Is this the glory and honor you wish to take back to your father?" The whispers raged in his mind.
"We can't beat them! They are too strong." Eddy retorted. "Just those young knights giving off the aura of a Flowing-ranked knight are giving us a hard time. What will you do when those stronger ones step in?
"They are too strong! How is it possible for weaker knights to fight back so well against me, a Tidal Wave fighter!"
And truthfully, this feat was unheard of, even if he was ganged up on by five of them.
A Tidal Wave rank is known to be stronger than a dozen average Flowing ranks put together.
However, Eddy was fatigued and unwell. At the same time, his strength was achieved through extreme and unorthodox ways.
But he didn't realize these factors, let alone take them into account.
The thought of being overpowered by them was scary as well as maddening. But at the same time, it remained a cold awakening for Eddy.
That Marcus… he's not a force I can defeat.
"Coward!" The whispers cursed.
Right at that moment, a figure appeared before him. Faster than he could attack.
The figure's hand reached for his neck and Eddy quickly swerved to the side.
He had reacted well.
Just when he thought he had escaped, he felt the back of his neck being gripped by a hand.
The hand pressed his head downward, while twisting his direction.
Boom!
Eddy found himself lodged against a wall.
It had happened way too fast.
At that moment, the young knights caught up to him, with smiles on their faces, as though they were having fun with him.
This sight infuriated Eddy, subsequently, breaking the little control and sanity he had managed to regain.
Once again, his pupils became dark.
"You filthy things! You dare to treat us like a plaything!"
Reaching into his pocket and bringing out the silk pouch, Eddy poured its contents into his mouth.
Two round pills rolled out, catching the eyes of those around before Eddy swallowed them.
Suddenly, the energy and aura around the possessed man multiplied threefold.
Multiple wisps of dark smoke flowed out of his body.
Dark mana.
The smiles on the young knights' faces vanished, quickly replaced with fear.
They all instinctively felt that they couldn't face this opponent this time, despite their numbers.
Eddy pounced forward, much faster than he was when he attempted to escape.
However, he quickly met his match as Mercidin rushed to block his path.
A sharp sword tore through the air and moved towards Eddy's neck.
For the first time since being possessed, the entities in control of his actions felt the danger of death…