<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Day 6: Palaugrim - Rayitas</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/>Guilford's purple eyes stared fiercely at the rising sun over the east. His knights were all ready, the cavalry had mounted their steeds, the infantry already in marching formation, the detachment to Gramhold also set to ride out, plus the two suppression forces tasked with capturing all of the island's docks. The only ones not ready to go was his own squad. They were behind him, waiting for answers.<br/><br/>With a look of satisfaction in his eyes, he gave the knights a few words of encouragement before ordering the gates to open. The ground rumbled at the marching of numerous men off to see to their assigned tasks. Purple eyes spanned the entirety of his forces, three thousand knights for the main force, five hundred knights for each of the suppression forces, twenty squads and ten large supply caravans headed to Gramhold. Guilford and the rest of his squad watched them all disappear into the morning horizon.<br/><br/>"Okay, remind me again why we're staying behind Captain? I thought we were supposed to split up and join the suppression forces and help capture the docks?" Alfrei asked, one hand scratching the back of his head.<br/><br/>Hyuga turned to face the rest of their team and smiled confidently. "Elites always have special roles my dear Lieutenant, we are no different. Knowing the Captain, we're going to be on the hunt."<br/><br/>The Dreamer was right. Guilford couldn't stop thinking about the message ever since he laid eyes on it. Lillith, that abomination, she will get what's coming to her soon enough. Clenching his fists tighter, Guilford looked back to his team.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"That message I received last night... was from Lillith."</span><br/><br/>The expressions in all of his team's faces darkened upon hearing the name. Natalia's ruby colored hues were almost like they were aflame. He could feel the rage from his team under tight control. None of them spoke but clearly all of them wanted the same thing, Lillith's head.<br/><br/>"When do we leave?" Georg asked, the rage in his tone well masked by calmness.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Before that, I want you all to know that I do not wish to lose another knight. If Lillith's powers have been restored as I suspect, none of you are to charge in recklessly. We fight as a team and watch each others backs. Understood?"</span>he received a nod from his team.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"I know all of you want her dead, but anger clouds your judgment. I will only say this once... All of you I have considered my family, I know I don't show it too often but you guys are very important to me. Should anyone of you thinks about sacrificing their life for the sake of mine, I ask you to throw away those thoughts. Because if you do think that way, Light forbid it but I will drag you down from the Divine Light's hands just so I can kill you myself. Do you understand?"</span><br/><br/>There was silence but everyone's eyes showed understanding of their Captain's desires. His conditions were simple yet tough, 'don't die'. They don't know how but everyone of them will do everything in their power to make sure he gets what he wants.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Good. The scout should be arriving shortly with information. We'll depart after we get his report."</span><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">_________________________________________________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Day 6: Palaugrim - Tiamat Pass - Eastern Suppression Forces</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/>The rest of their forces lie in wait, hidden within the pass. Scouts were surveying the nearby dock Ereck for enemy formations, threat level, and possible traps. There were several packs of Sinners running the docks, defenses were light and there weren't that much activity. The scouts reported back to the knight commander and after several minutes of preparation, the order to strike was given.<br/><br/>The battle broke out, the knights stormed the docks with haste, not allowing any of the Sinners time to call for reinforcements. Though the Sinners fought fiercely, at the end the knights claimed victory. Their suppression forces were composed of veteran knights that specialized in siege and capture operations after all, an operation like this was a walk in the park. The knight commander sent out word that Dock Ereck is ready for knight control.<br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">_________________________________________________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Day 6: Palaugrim - Grasslands - Western Suppression Forces</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/>Having the disadvantage in terrain which made stealth next to impossible, the Western Suppression Force opted for a classic blitz maneuver. Splitting their forces into three, the Knights surrounded Dock Rieds and sealed all escape routes. They stormed in and a battle broke out but ended just as quick as it started. Lucky for the knights, resistance was light and they were able to claim Dock Rieds without a single casualty.<br/><br/>Among what they found in the dock were several crates with the mentioned runes engraved on them. Having been instructed how to handle these crates, the knights gathered every crate they could find and began containing the taint coming from within. It was an arduous process but they were able to do it. With everything taken care of, the knight commander sent out word for another regiment to establish and maintain control of the dock.<br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">_________________________________________________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Day 6: Palaugrim - Rasova Trail - Main Forces</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/>Their task was to sweep the hostile territories from Rayitas over to Rasova while acting as a decoy to keep the suppression forces from being noticed. They were to leave no stone unturned, cleanse the land, find any clue they can regarding the God of Sin's commanders as per Abel's instructions, and to draw the enemy's attention to them. It will be a grueling task but these knights were the best front liners they had. With their faith and devotion to duty, no hardship will stop them from moving forward.<br/><br/>Rasova is quite the distance away and their path is already riddled with fighting. The main force encountered dens, caves, small villages, even open field encampments all under the influence of the taint. The valiant knights worked to the best of their ability to fulfill the duties assigned to them. They swept the lands like a fierce storm, subduing Sinners, clearing out the nests, and freeing villages from the hands of Sin.<br/><br/>Tiresome as it may be, this day was long overdue. In the hearts of each knight, this was all for the good of the people.<br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">_________________________________________________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/>Thanks to the information they were able to gather from the Faith necklaces sent to them, the scouts were able to pinpoint where the knights who owned them were last stationed. Guilford and his team rode out on horseback to the said location, though it took them a while to actually find the exact location. Upon getting there, Guilford and his team could not believe what their eyes saw.<br/><br/>Before them lay numerous bodies of dead knights. Guilford and his team's horses reacted unfavorably to the thick stench of death all around them, refusing to move forward and bucking in place. It took them several hours to find locate them and all that greeted them were the now decaying corpses rotting away on the land. Guilford noted that the bodies all had their chests torn open, hearts gouged out and the look of fear each knight had in their eyes an indication that their death was a painful one.<br/><br/>Calming his horse down with his holy presence and a pat on the neck, Guilford and the rest of his team willed their steeds forward, marching slowly across the sea of dead bodies to continue on. With a hand signal, one of the scouts came jumping out of the high treetops and landed beside the Seraph.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Send word to the nearest knight outpost of the tragedy here. I want the bodies of these knights taken back and given proper burial. I believe Kaiser Outpost is the closest, they should have enough manpower to spare for a retrieval operation."</span><br/><br/>With a closed fist snapping to his chest, the scout took a mighty leap back into the treetops and went on his way headed to Kaiser Outpost. Guilford's eyes then turned towards the dead. For a battalion of knights to fall so easily, it could only mean one thing, Lillith has recovered. Turning his head to the side, Guilford called for Alfrei to ride closer.<br/><br/>"Yes Captain?" his Lieutenant asked.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"What's the nearest knight controlled town from here?"</span><br/><br/>Taking out a miniature version of Palaugrim's map, Alfrei studied it for a few moments before turning back to his Captain. "We're currently in Silverknife Trail close to Stallard Swamps to the east of here. There aren't that many towns nearby but if I were to look at the closest, its Hiribah."<br/><br/>Guilford's eyes sharpened. Hiribah was where one of the battles against Sin's minions took place. If he recalled correctly, the knighthood was able to defeat Syndra and sealed her there inside a labyrinth beneath a church. Hiribah has also been one of the more heavily fortified towns since then. Guilford's thoughts were then interrupted by Alfrei's voice.<br/><br/>"If we are to go further than Hiribah, there would be Acier Terres, but we have to cut through the marshlands and cross several plains and rivers before we get there. It's about half a day's travel thanks to the relatively flat terrain on horseback. To the west would be Fleur Terres, then again, we'd have to cross the intersecting valleys and climb mountain passes to get there too. Probably a day or more before we get there from here."<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Any other towns?"</span><br/><br/>"Uhh... there's Shining Ash. If I remember correctly, that small town for unknown reasons, has never seen battle, not even once. They say the taint doesn't even dare go near it. Shining Ash easily fell into knight control and serves as a focal point in trading between other towns, it's relatively close to Acier Terres, Hiribah and Sharen as well as a few small villages."<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Alright, it's decided. We're headed to Hiribah. If I were Lillith, I would seek out my comrades given that we have been on a large scale movement as of late. I want everyone to ride like the wind! We're only going to stop to give our steeds a break. Let's move!"</span>