Knight: from Apprentice to the Almighty

"It seems..."

Roland’s eyes narrowed, his body instantly tensing.

’This... living corpse? It must be the one Graham mentioned, the one he fought before.’

There were three sources from which Magic Elements were converging and being channeled toward the towering spire.

Reggie needed to stay and command the army, continuing the fight against the Magical Guide Structures.

Meanwhile, they had temporarily lost contact with the Assassin, Jia Xiu.

To prevent any further complications and quell the anomaly in this area as quickly as possible, Roland had volunteered to take on the task of clearing out one of the magic convergence points.

But this was no rash decision.

According to Graham’s intelligence, the enemy had only one Extraordinary Professional among them—the Witch Demon.

Moreover, Roland had been extremely cautious upon arriving here, not delving in immediately.

He waited patiently, only leading his companions to sneak in after the roar of battle between Graham and the Witch Demon erupted in the distance.

And as it turned out, the pressure emanating from this bizarre-looking living corpse before him was far from the level of an Extraordinary Professional.

However...

’Something’s strange,’

Roland took a deep breath, slowly drawing the Secret Silver Longsword from his waist.

The enhancement that Spiritual Energy provided to one’s Perception was completely different from other abilities.

It was far deeper, reaching straight to the very source of the soul.

For example, he could clearly "see" it.

Among his team, Avril’s Soul Energy was the most abundant, like a torch burning brightly in the Darkness.

The Witch, Vanessa, had a comparable Soul Strength, but her energy was unusually mixed and far less pure than Avril’s.

As for the living corpse before him...

With the enhancement from [Material Synesthesia], Roland could "hear" the very materials making up its body groaning as if under an unbearable load.

And yet...

The creature’s Soul Energy was abnormally vast and immense.

If Avril’s soul was a torch in the darkness, then this living corpse’s soul was like a boundless ocean.

In this regard, not even Graham could compare.

"Well?"

The living corpse’s voice held a hint of mockery.

"To show your respect for this ’ancient relic’ before you, which of you will accept this honorable duel?"

"Oh, and my name is Holland. And you are?"

The somber atmosphere didn’t last long.

Because in the next moment...

"Oh! He said a duel, Roland!"

The Minstrel, Galvis, strummed his Harp, his voice suddenly rising.

"An epic of heroes! Here and now! A fated enemy has appeared!"

"A symphony of fate! The clash of twilight and shadow! Oh, what a magnificent prelude to a grand poem!"

But Roland paid no mind to his companion’s clamor.

He took a deep breath and barked his command.

"Teresa! Freddy!"

No more words were needed.

Before his voice had even faded, Teresa’s Foil was already unsheathed.

Her figure flickered and she shot forward, so fast that she left a blurry Residual Shadow in the air.

Though a half-beat slower, Beastman Freddy roared as he followed, his heavy weapon whistling through the air as he charged the enemy.

Surprisingly, however, despite facing a pincer attack, the seemingly decaying body displayed extraordinary agility and resilience.

"CLANG!"

A muffled impact.

Holland sidestepped Beastman Freddy’s powerful, heavy attack while raising his Silver Round Shield to steadily block Teresa’s thrusting Foil.

"Tsk!"

The resurrected Priest clicked his tongue, his arm suddenly erupting with force.

In the next moment, Teresa’s expression changed as an immense force traveled up the blade of her sword.

Her slender body was sent flying by an irresistible force. Her leather boots scraped a long, white mark across the hard, black flagstones before she managed to halt her retreat.

"You little whelp!"

Holland used the same method to knock Beastman Freddy back, his voice thick with clear annoyance.

"Didn’t I just say? A duel! An honorable, one-on-one duel! Do you have no knightly spirit to speak of?"

Roland’s mind was as still as a frozen lake, unmoved by Holland’s question.

’A duel?’

’The situation is urgent. Something unexpected could happen at any moment.’

’We have the advantage in numbers.’

’Going one-on-one with him at a time like this?’

’Only an idiot would do that!’

"Avril! Cover me!"

Before he had even finished speaking, Roland had already yanked the last few Enchanted Arrows from the Quiver on his back and hurled them like javelins.

Driven by his Spiritual Power, the Spell Patterns on the arrow shafts instantly glowed with a dangerous red light.

Before the explosion could occur, a pouch on his waist flickered with a faint light. A dazzlingly white-hot fireball, its core temperature high enough to melt gold and steel, suddenly coalesced at his fingertips, searing the surrounding air until it warped.

"WHOOSH!"

With a piercing shriek, a [Flaming Arrow] shot forth like a falling white comet, precisely meeting the Enchanted Arrows that were radiating an ominous red glow in mid-air.

The two converged a few feet in front of Holland...

"BOOM!"

A deafening explosion tore through the air as a violent, ring-shaped shockwave expanded in all directions.

The weathered stone house took the brunt of the blast. Its sturdy stone walls cracked and crumbled, Giant Stones were flung into the air and pulverized, and a mix of wood splinters and rubble kicked up a sky-blotting cloud of dust.

The hard, black flagstones cracked and buckled inch by inch. A shallow, scorched-black crater was melted into the center of the explosion, its edges sizzling.

As for the faintly glowing Array behind Holland, it shattered like fragile glass, leaving behind only a few lingering crimson traces.

A searing heatwave followed, the air scorching hot. In the distance, ruined walls trembled, and dust rained down.

But Roland didn’t stay put to wait for the outcome.

His sharp Perception, like a sword, pierced through the rolling dust, which was thick with the acrid stench of sulfur and burning, and clearly captured the enemy’s condition.

The decaying body had been torn to pieces in the core of the explosion, its fragments sent flying everywhere.

However, after just a moment, those scattered, scorched fragments began to squirm unnaturally. As if pulled by invisible strings, they rapidly converged at the center, re-fused, and stubbornly stood once more upon the scorched earth.

"Back from the dead... Hmph!"

Roland snorted coldly and stomped his feet hard on the ground.

"BANG!"

The flagstones beneath his feet shattered on impact, leaving two clear, sunken footprints.

In almost the same instant, the piercing shriek of metal grinding violently against metal erupted.

"CLANG! SCRRRAAPE!"

For a few short breaths, the clash of steel rang out repeatedly from within the thick smoke.

The brief exchange was enough for Roland to get a measure of his opponent.

His Power was formidable, his speed swift, his experience seasoned, and his Combat Skills had reached a state of perfection.

Even with the enhancement of [A Knight Does Not Die Unarmed], Roland had to admit he was slightly outmatched.

The moment the two clashed, Teresa and Freddy also rushed forward to join the fight.

The melodious tune of the Harp rang out at the perfect time, imbuing his companions’ weapons with a faint fluorescent glow while simultaneously piercing deep into Holland’s mind.

But even so, Holland still appeared to be handling it with ease, not losing any ground despite being surrounded.

"CLANG!"

The ear-piercing sound of metal striking metal rang out again.

Although he had an Undying Body and felt no pain,

the immense force traveling up the blade still made Holland feel as if his very bones were about to be shaken apart.

Yet his face showed no trace of panic.

"Interesting, truly interesting..."

Catching the surge of searing Fighting Spirit within Roland’s body, a hint of amusement appeared in the Priest’s eyes.

"Little one..."

The Shield and Longsword crashed together, the two forces wrestling like a tug-of-war, locked firmly together.

"What is your relationship to Rudolph? The way you practice this Breathing Technique is even purer than that of the Knight I met before."

’Rudolph?’

The familiar name made Roland frown slightly, but the assault from his hands did not pause for a moment. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

"Such a discourteous fellow!"

After being ignored again, the Soul Fire in Holland’s eyes flickered violently.

He forcefully pushed everyone back and suddenly raised his free left hand, wisps of ominous gray Energy gathering and twining between his fingers.

However, it was as if someone had been waiting for this exact moment.

Three sharp Arrows tore through the air and struck with precision, interrupting his Casting.

"Damn it!"

Holland cursed under his breath.

Sensing the abundant Elemental Energy coming from the Arrows, he had no choice but to sidestep and dodge. The price for doing so, however, was...

"SHLICK!"

The blade, glinting with a faint golden light, swept through his shield-bearing right arm without any resistance.

"THUD!"

The dull sound of it hitting the ground echoed.

Holland’s right arm, along with the Shield, slammed heavily onto the scorched ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Unlike its bizarre reassembly after the explosion, the severed arm now lay quietly on the ground, completely still.

The next moment, wisps of gray-black smoke suddenly rose from its surface, accompanied by a faint "TSSSSS" sound. Finally...

it turned into a pile of lifeless ash.