Betrayed By The Hero, Loved By The Lord-Chapter 291: Loyalty (2)

Andre moved his hand from the dagger before Phillip turned around and misunderstood what he was doing.

Even if his body would listen, Andre knew well that he would not succeed at questioning Phillip while he was surrounded by the others. No one would dare question Phillip when he was seen as the one leading them toward a better future.

Andre looked to his right at his peer, who also got the mark placed on his hand. There was an emptiness to his old friend’s eyes which led Andre to believe something sinister was done to them.

Andre just couldn’t figure out what it was. The attacks happened before Andre could properly look into what had changed about Phillip.

"Andre," Phillip said.

The sound of his name coming from Phillip startled Andre. For a moment, it crossed his mind if Phillip had the power to read his mind and was going to punish him just like the others were punished.

"You need to be close when I go after the king. You will take down his guards," said Phillip.

Andre sighed in relief that Phillip was still focused on the plans. "I will be right by your side. I must ask, will the God you speak of be present to aid us? We will need them now more than ever."

"They have always been by our side. They have never abandoned us, and tonight, they will appear to silence those who do not believe. Just do as you were told," Phillip advised Andre.

Andre was curious about who the God Phillip spoke of was. The church only worshipped one God, yet Phillip spoke of another. Phillip was losing sight of his faith, something Phillip would punish others for doing.

It pained Andre to realise that something was wrong here, and Phillip might not be as he presented himself. Luckily, Andre had to stay close to Phillip. Should the time ever come for them to be alone, Andre would question Phillip.

Phillip glanced over his shoulder at Andre. He had to keep an eye on Andre since he would be able to rile up the others.

While the church followers blindly followed Phillip, they respected Andre as well. Now was not the time for the church to be divided.

’We are close,’ Phillip thought, seeing the fire in the distance.

Still, Phillip continued to travel slowly to reach where others needed his help. Loss would make everyone in town turn to his side and follow his lead.

Phillip smiled, seeing families fleeing to the trees to escape the palace guards.

"Do not run. Stop them!" Phillip ordered his followers. "We must fight. We must all stand together and fight."

Andre stepped up. "It is only women with children. We should let them run and join their husbands to fight."

Phillip grabbed a young child’s hand, stealing it out of the mother’s arms. "Anyone who cannot fight for their future does not belong in it. We must all fight for our town. Fight or be burned."

"I will give you the power to fight," Phillip said, releasing the child to grab his dagger.

Phillip cut his hand with the dagger, intending to use his blood to make the mark.

"No!" The frightened mother pulled her child away from Phillip. All she wanted was to get away from the vampires taking everyone, and now she had to worry about her kind forcing her to fight.

"Phillip," Andre said, grabbing Phillip’s hand. "We might miss the king if we wait any longer. We should send them to the old church, where it would be safe and then return to tell them of how we saved the town."

Phillip didn’t like Andre interrupting, but upon looking back, he noticed the others questioning his order. They were all still so weak. This showed even more that they could not survive without his leadership.

These people needed to be saved.

"Follow the path we have made to the old church. You shall be safe there. We will return anyone who has been taken from you. All that we ask in return is for your family to follow the church. Go!"

Andre nodded his head so the reluctant mother and others would run along. He wouldn’t blame them if they were to run far beyond the church to get away from Phillip.

Andre was thinking of doing the same thing, but before he would leave, many others needed to be saved from Phillip. Phillip had a crazy look in his eye like he would slaughter his own kind tonight, though the goal was to save them.

"Carry on," Phillip ordered the others. "Kill every vampire in your sight. Not you," he said, holding his hand out to block Andre’s path. "You will no longer fight alongside me. Go with Cassandra’s group. See to it that she succeeds, and if you find Bryce, kill him."

Phillip pushed the tip of the dagger against Andre’s side. "Either you bring Bryce’s head to me, or I will have your head for questioning me. Do not disappoint me, Andre. I had such big plans for you."

This was Phillip’s final way for Andre to prove his loyalty.

Phillip pulled away the blade and moved to follow the others. He could not wait any longer to drive his sword into the heart of the king.

Phillip headed to the town where screams and orders were muddled together. He searched for where the king would sit like a coward, while the palace guards did all the work.

True to what he imagined, Phillip found Darius sitting on a horse surrounded by guards. The guards were of no concern to Phillip.

Phillip smiled, preparing the dagger for the long-awaited fight to remove the person who claimed his seat.

Phillip left his followers and made his way up to where Darius sat. He took on every vampire who got in his way in an attempt to drag him off with the weak humans they managed to get hold of.

The more blood on his hands, the more Phillip smiled. There was an excitement he could not explain from seeing so many die before him. From seeing the deaths, hearing the cries and feeling the fear all around him, Phillip felt even more powerful.

The town had never been so beautiful.

"King Darius, we have trouble," a guard said, bringing Darius’s attention to the madman taking down the guards.

Darius looked ahead at the priest fighting his guards. "Kill him. Why did you need me to say it? Kill him and all the other priests. Slaughter anyone who steps foot in a church and brings their weapons to me."