The Last Incubus with The Vice and Valor System

Seeing that the silhouette remained silent, the older guard yelled with authority again, "This is the respectable carriage of the Deathbringer Mercenary Squad. I repeat, who are you?!"

Leon sighed, his soft exhalation reverberating in the silent night air. The older guard, hearing the sigh, frowned deeply. To him, such a sigh spelled trouble; the other party clearly didn't hold the mercenaries in high regard. That was a red flag.

His grip on the hilt of his weapon tightened at the thought of the other party making things difficult for them.

"Do you have any idea who we are?! Our mercenary group, the Deathbringer Mercenary Squad, is the top squad of this region! Don't try anything funny lest you attract the ire of Lord Deathbringer!" the older frontal guard said coldly, issuing his warning with a hint of pride.

Leon sighed again and began walking forward, aiming to pass by the carriage and continue on his journey. But the guard, misinterpreting Leon's response as a threat, half-drew his weapon, the metallic sound cutting through the tension in the air. The other carriage guards followed suit, their weapons gleaming in the moonlight.

Leon scoffed at their actions, a silent, mocking sound that sent a shiver down the spine of the older guard.

Shiiiiiing-!!!

A sharp metallic sound rang out in the night as the older guard, now angered, completely drew his weapon.

Shiing-!

Shiing-!!

Shiing-!!!

Shiing-!!!!

…

Following the older guard's lead, who turned out to be the head guard, multiple metallic sounds rang out as the rest of the guards drew their weapons, moved from their respective posts, pointing their long swords at Leon.

Leon raised an eyebrow, his katana still sheathed but ready.

But then…

"STOP!" a cold authoritative voice resounded from deep inside the carriage. This voice sent shivers down the spine of all the guards. The fact that the Lord was forced to reveal himself showed that they'd handled the situation quite badly.

Despite knowing that they'd messed things up, they all froze, remaining in their positions and not daring to lower their weapons pointed at Leon. Now that their Lord had taken action, they would not dare to lower and sheath their weapons until the situation was cleared and their Lord instructed them to do so. This was common sense.

Meanwhile, the doors of the carriage slowly creaked open. A middle-aged man with sleek black hair, a masculine jaw, and a calculating gaze stepped out. Behind him was a younger man, who was the spitting image of his father.

The calculating gaze of the father first landed on Leon, who stood a few meters away from the carriage, acting casually as if nothing had happened despite the multiple guards pointing their long swords at him.

Sensing a peculiar aura from Leon, the middle-aged man lifted the corner of his lips in a sly smile. As for his son, standing behind him, his gaze was filled with disdain the moment he saw Leon.

Walking towards the elderly guard, the man placed his hand on the blade, lowering it. "Branton, you're the eldest in this small group of guards. I kept you in charge because of your experience. Placing my trust in you, I hoped that you would be able to handle trivial problems like this effectively."

The elder guard, called Branton, shivered upon hearing that. He bowed, his voice heavy with remorse. "Forgive my oversight, Lord Deathbringer!"

While the situation could have been easily handled by letting Leon simply pass the carriage, Branton's pride had been wounded by Leon ignoring his questions and the subsequent loss of face under the watch of the rest of the guards. The final straw was Leon's mocking scoff, which Branton perceived as a blatant disrespect to Lord Deathbringer. For this, he couldn't let Leon pass so easily.

After that, Lord Deathbringer's gaze moved to the rest of the guards, sending a cold shiver coursing down their spines as they felt the slight pressure from his gaze.

"Lower your weapons," he said in a cold voice.

The guards gulped, lowering their weapons and then sheathing them. His command was what they had been courteously waiting for the entire time.

"What's your name, young lad? I see you're headed for the nearby settlement," Lord Deathbringer said bluntly, his gaze moving to Leon.

"You're right. And I'm Leon," Leon replied calmly, his voice just as blunt as the man in front of him. From what he had heard and seen so far, Leon didn't see Lord Deathbringer in a favorable light.

Upon hearing Leon's name, the young master standing silently behind his father released a bit of his killing intent.

Meanwhile, Lord Deathbringer chuckled softly. "Oh, so you're Lady Amelia's lucky fiancé. It's all starting to make sense… I would've loved to stay and watch your match with Euwen, but something urgent at the mercenary base needs my attention."

Leon sighed, walking past the group, leaving Lord Deathbringer standing mid-sentence. The young master immediately whispered to his father, "Father, he dares act so bold and disrespectful, not giving you some face. We should kill him. With that, I can easily claim Amelia for myself!"

To the young man's surprise, his father meekly shook his head in disapproval. The young master's eyes twitched, his brows furrowing as his gaze moved to the departing Leon. This was unlike his father.

Before he could voice his complaint, his father raised a hand to stop him. "Let's go back inside."

Returning to the carriage with his son, the man signaled the rider to start moving again.

Before entering the carriage, Lord Deathbringer's gaze lingered on Leon's departing back. "You're quite lucky, Leon."

Once the Lord had re-entered the carriage, the guards heaved a sigh of relief before quickly returning to their respective posts. They were relieved their Lord did not take any action against Leon, or they would have had to face unpleasant consequences.

***

A/N:

How was the chapter guys... Hope things are in the right pace... The new privilege tier has been filled...