[Insert your HTML content here]

It didn’t even seem as though Cedric was fighting with his full strength.

He moved through every attack with remarkable precision, avoiding blades by the narrowest margin before countering with ruthless efficiency. One soldier clutched his stomach as Cedric’s sword pierced straight through him. Another screamed after losing his arm. A third collapsed with blood pouring from a wound across his throat.

Yet Cedric never paused.

“Master One of Griswold’s remaining men hurried to his side, his breathing ragged as fear filled his face. “We have to leave. It’s no longer safe p>

Griswold’s expression darkened. “I’m not leaving,” he answered coldly. “Not until Cedric is mine p>

But his confidence was beginning to crack. How was this even possible?

Dozens of trained men had surrounded Cedric, yet none of them seemed capable of bringing him down. They continued falling around the Lord Commander like leaves in a storm, and although a handful managed to leave shallow cuts across Cedric’s arms and side, every one of them paid for it with their lives moments later.

Cedric seized one attacker by the hair before dragging him forward and drawing his blade cleanly across the man’s throat.

Blood sprayed across the stone floor and the body collapsed.

Silence gradually settled over the platform.

One by one, the last of Griswold’s guards had fallen. Only their master remained.

Cedric slowly raised his sword, its edge stained crimson as he fixed Griswold with an unwavering stare.

“Surrender p>

Griswold let out a bitter laugh before tightening his grip around his own sword. “You’ll have to kill me first p>

Without another word, he lunged forward, and the clash between their blades rang throughout the abandoned fortress.

“None of this would’ve happened if you had simply accepted my offer,” Griswold snarled as their swords scraped violently against one another, sparks bursting between them.

“Look around you, Cedric. Your men are dying because of you. Every life lost today is the price of your stubborn loyalty p>

Cedric’s jaw tightened, yet his grip never weakened as he forced Griswold’s blade away. “They followed me because they chose to,” he answered coldly. “Unlike your men, they know exactly what they’re fighting for p>

Griswold’s eyes darkened, and he struck again with greater force, desperate to break Cedric’s defense.

“And does that make their deaths worthwhile?” he demanded. “Tell me, Lord Commander… do their lives truly mean so little to you p>

Cedric met his attack head-on, the force of the collision echoing through the fortress as neither man gave an inch. His eyes remained fixed on Griswold’s without the slightest trace of hesitation.

“My men fight for peace,” he said steadily. “Yours fight because you filled them with lies. That alone is the difference between us p>

Then Cedric’s fist slammed hard into Griswold’s face, making him stagger backwards as blood burst from his split lip and coated his mouth. Griswold lifted a hand to wipe it away before his eyes drifted down to the battle below. A crooked smile slowly spread across his face.

“You’re willing to let your own men die just to carry out his orders,” he said mockingly. “Tell me, are you even a good knight p>

His words were meant to provoke, and as Cedric instinctively glanced down at the men still fighting below, Griswold saw exactly the opening he had been waiting for.

Cedric’s soldiers were barely holding their ground against the overwhelming numbers surrounding them.

“You should have gotten them out of here instead,” Griswold sneered.

In that single moment of distraction, he lunged forward.

There was a sickening squelch as his sword drove straight through Cedric’s chest.

Cedric’s body jerked violently, and blood immediately filled his mouth, staining his lips crimson. The pain ripped through him like fire, but instead of collapsing, he clenched his teeth so hard that his jaw trembled.

Fury burned through his eyes as he turned back toward Griswold… The traitor had expected him to fall.

Instead, Cedric struck him with such terrifying force that the slap sent Griswold crashing to the floor.

Before Griswold could recover, Cedric surged forward, grabbed him by the throat, and forced him onto his back. Pressing the edge of his sword firmly against Griswold’s neck, he stared at him with bloodshot eyes that held nothing but murderous rage.

“Tell your men to retreat,” Cedric growled, his voice rough with pain. “Or you die p>

At that moment, he no longer cared whether Griswold was meant to be captured alive. As far as Cedric was concerned, the man was nothing more than a monster who deserved a swift death.

Dragging Griswold by the collar, Cedric hauled him toward the open platform where everyone below could see them.

“Tell them!” he barked, coughing as more blood spilled from his mouth.

Griswold felt the cold blade press harder against his throat, and for the first time genuine fear flashed across his face. Retreat,” he muttered reluctantly.

They heard him p>

One after another, they slowly lowered their weapons, their expressions twisted with frustration and disbelief. Cedric’s own soldiers, exhausted and bleeding, did the same. The battle finally came to an end, although victory had come at a terrible cost.

Bodies littered the fortress floor.

Some would never rise again.

Cedric’s men hurried up the staircase. “Lord Commander One of them called but his voice faltered the instant he saw the sword still buried in Cedric’s chest.

“Arrest him,” Cedric ordered hoarsely as he shoved Griswold toward the knight.

The soldiers immediately forced Griswold to the ground, bound his hands behind his back, and secured him tightly.

Only then did Cedric finally grip the sword lodged inside him. His breathing became ragged.

With a pained grunt, he pulled the blade free.

The instant it left his body, blood burst from the wound, soaking the front of his armor and tunic. His legs weakened beneath him, and he dropped to one knee, struggling to remain conscious as another mouthful of blood spilled onto the stone floor.

The others rushed toward him in alarm.

“We have to stop the bleeding p>

“Remove his armor p>

“Quickly p>

Several of them carefully loosened the blood-soaked armor while others pressed cloth firmly against the wound, desperately trying to slow the flow of blood.

Cedric’s vision had already begun to blur.

His ears rang, still, he forced himself to remain awake. “Let’s… go back he rasped weakly.