Lord Evolution: Starting With SS-rank Skills

At the northern border of Winterseed, the small battle was already on the verge of ending; the soldiers of Glenwood had already been taken down, their corpses sprawled across the border, blood dripping from them.

But the clanging of swords still continued as Rowan and Stanis engaged in intense combat. Nevertheless, unlike in the beginning when Stanis had the upper hand, Rowan had the upper hand now.

"What!!" Stanis' voice cracked in disbelief.

Just a few minutes ago, Rowan couldn't block his half-assed attack without taking several steps backward to maintain balance. But now, even his all-out attacks seemed to be nothing before him. In fact, it looked like Rowan wasn't taking him seriously anymore.

'How did he suddenly get stronger?' Stanis wondered as he focused all his attention on defending.

'If it continues this way, I will surely die!' he yelled inwardly.

He struggled to sneak a look at his soldiers that he had ignored since the beginning of the battle but was shocked to see all of them lying dead on the ground. He was even more surprised when he saw that none of Winterseed soldiers was on the ground!

'This can't be! That bastard told me they were nothing compared to my soldiers! Was he lying all along? Was he plotting everything to his advantage?' his mind wandered.

Gritting his teeth, he pushed back with all his strength and tried to create a gap between himself and Rowan before launching an all-out attack.

"You think that would work?" Rowan's taunting voice reached his ear.

Stanis didn't reply and glared at him, but Rowan looked really composed. He kept walking closer towards Stanis, who took several steps back in fear while lifting his sword in a defensive position.

"If I were you, I would surrender," Rowan continued taunting him.

"Surrender? Never!" Stanis let out.

"Do you still think you stand a chance? Even if you manage to kill me, do you think you will be able to escape the hands of my soldiers? There are more than a hundred of them and only one of you, so think carefully," Rowan continued taunting him.

Rowan had decided against killing him instantly as he needed more info on Glenwood. He believed in the strength of his men but at the same time he couldn't overlook the fact that Glenwood had more than six times his army.

Meanwhile, Stanis considered his options.

'He is correct, I can't win against him or his soldiers and I can't die without completing my goal. What if I use his men to take over Glenwood? Then I can kill him later for the death of my men.' Stanis' mind immediately came up with a plan.

"Fine," he let out in defeat, tossing his sword to the ground and lifting his hands in surrender.

"I will help you wage a good war against my village as long as you promise not to kill me," he offered.

The captains and soldiers exchanged looks before turning to Rowan with varying emotions on their faces.

"Lord Rowan, we can't trust this guy." Bryce immediately reacted with a furious expression on his face as he looked at Stanis.

"I agree. He might betray us when he gets the chance, we can't risk that at this moment," Roland let out as well.

The other soldiers chattered about their agreements too.

'Damn it, these geezers are going to ruin my plan if this goes on.' Stanis was worried.

He turned to look at Rowan to see what he had to say.

Based on the information he had, Rowan was naive and weak. He believed Rowan would make the wrong choice by believing him.

On the other hand, Rowan let out a sigh and withdrew his sword. He signaled to the soldiers behind Stanis, and they immediately ran to restrain him.

"We need all the information you can give. If you tell a lie, I will know, and you will be killed immediately," he let out in an authoritative tone.

The soldiers reacted equally. None of them agreed with his decision, but they had no choice but to accept it.

Stanis grinned inwardly, 'He is just as naive as they said.'

"I will give you all the information I have and help you win," he agreed.

Rowan only shook his head. Time was running out, and he didn't have time to waste here. He signaled for the soldiers to force Stanis onto his knees and tie his hands.

Stanis wanted to refute getting tied up, but then Bryce stepped forward and slapped him across the face. With bitterness and helplessness, he let himself get restrained.

After he was restrained, Rowan asked them to bring the overly pummeled Oliver and the handless Judus to the same spot, and they did.

Oliver's face at this moment was unrecognizable, swollen, and bleeding all over his body. Even his crotch area was bleeding profusely.

"Oliver... Judus?" Stanis was shocked to see both of them in that state.

Oliver's eyes were swollen, so he couldn't see clearly when he arrived.

However, hearing Stanis' voice, he forced his eyes open and they widened. Why was the great Stanis sitting on the ground? The great swordsman who could wipe out a hundred soldiers, kneeling before a naive Lord? How could that be possible? His mind ran amok.

Rowan smirked as he observed their expressions. Oliver was confused and frustrated that his hope had shattered, and Stanis was devastated because he knew his plot was bound to fail at this point.

"Oliver, you said this guy could deal with all our soldiers, right?" Rowan asked mockingly.

Oliver's head was bowed to the ground, and he couldn't reply.

"The man who is supposed to save your life is now living solely on my mercy. What can you say about your previous boasts now?" he continued taunting him.

His every word was like a bullet that shot deep into Oliver's head. Even Judus was embarrassed and ashamed on his dad's behalf.

"Now I am going to ask both of you questions, and you better answer me truthfully, or else one of your limbs is coming off," Rowan threatened and brought out his black dagger.

Oliver and Judus were traumatized at the sight of the black dagger. Judus began shivering and tried his best to crawl back, but there was no way as he was handless.

"I will start by asking you two some simple questions, and if you are bold, lie to me." Rowan smirked.

He started with Stanis, asking him a few questions, starting with simple ones and moving to tedious and more personal questions. With [God Eyes], Rowan could observe the changes in his emotions, and he could tell when he lied.

Stanis tried to answer all his questions as sincerely as he could, but then Rowan asked a question that he wanted to deny with all his strength.

"Have you ever tried to force your way with Elara and Liara before?" Rowan asked.

Stanis' eyes widened at once. 'How did he know?'

Meanwhile, the young soldiers began to discuss among themselves. They talked about Elara and Liara, how they were very beautiful, and what they would do to Stanis personally if it were true that he had forced his way with them.

Hearing their reactions, Stanis had no choice but to deny. "Of course not! Why would I do that? I can do anything with any woman of my choice in Glenwood. Besides, they are with Lord Fagin!" he answered immediately, trying his best to sound as truthful as he could while looking at Rowan.

The captains and soldiers believed immediately; his voice and reaction were too genuine to be false.

"You lied," Rowan grinned, and his dagger moved following his words.

"It was the..." Stanis tried to lie even more, but he couldn't finish his statement when his left hand went off.

"Ahh!" Stanis cried out in pain.

"I warned you not to lie to me, but you did."

Stanis kept crying as he stared at his hands.

"You are lucky I sliced your left hand instead. I know how important your right hand is to you as a swordsman," Rowan continued.

"Now I want you to divulge everything, and remember, one more lie and you will be handless forever," he concluded.

With tears dripping from his eyes, Stanis divulged all the information he had.

With the new information, Rowan didn't waste any time and gathered his men.

He brought out the weapons he had purchased from D'andre and distributed them to the soldiers. He only shared the swords and armors, as those were the most important weapons for the current situation and the only ones the soldiers had experience with.

Rowan called for Riela, Brandon, and the two middle-aged cooks who used to cook for him before Riela took their place. He then brought out enough food supplies for one week and left them under their care.

Before Rowan departed, he shared a brief pleasant moment with Riela and assured her of his pending victory.

With food distribution settled, Rowan went to the soldiers and selected 400 men. The other hundred stayed behind in Winterseed to guard the village in case of rare monster attacks.

As he marched out with the four hundred soldiers, the people of Winterseed gathered around the southern border, cheering for them while some blessed and prayed for their success. This earned Rowan a few points.

The young soldiers felt emotional, seeing the villagers' reactions, especially the young beautiful maidens with their bouncing chests who waved cheerfully. Witnessing the "bouncy creations of God," their motivation soared, and they all swore to return alive.

Just like that, the final preparations for the first battle under the reign of Rowan Winterseed the First ended, and the soldiers stepped out to conquer!

.....

AUTHOR NOTE: This will be the only chapter today sadly because I wrote a long one. THANKS FOR READING!

BTW, I will start leaving AUTHOR NOTE in the right section to avoid messing with chapters price from now on so do well to check.