Chapter 37: The Young Fox's Outburst

Nevertheless, tsunami remained a spell of remarkable value and efficiency.

The Ultimate Knight swung his greatsword, cleaving the torrent apart, and strode steadily toward Wenigo. At that moment, young Honey cast another spell to quell hostility, leaving him suddenly bewildered and hesitant.

Should he attack? It seemed... there was no urge to strike.

The Ultimate Knight halted, while Wenigo rolled to his feet, stepped back, and lowered his gaze to the battle-axe in his grip, staring at the cold gleam upon its blade and murmuring softly to himself.

Sophie surged forward, her two-handed sword drawn diagonally at her side. As she closed in on the Ultimate Knight, she flicked her blade upward, using the sword’s swift momentum to brake sharply.

Her strike, slow in appearance yet imbued with immense force, was like the tusk of a mighty elephant—a single lift!

Though the Ultimate Knight’s aggression was subdued, his defensive instincts were etched deep within his soul. He raised his sword almost absentmindedly, parrying Sophie’s blow with a tremble.

Even the strongest knight, blocking so casually—how could he withstand Sophie’s full-force attack?

After Sophie’s assault came Wenigo’s tsunami again, the powerful rush of water destabilizing the Ultimate Knight, forcing him to step back, bracing himself.

Sophie’s greatsword swung once more with ferocity.

Beneath the fully enclosed helmet, the Ultimate Knight’s lips curled in a mocking smile. He leveled his sword and lifted his hand slightly.

Kriegus School Greatsword Technique—Thunderclap!

Like an explosion, the greatsword spun at astonishing speed, crashing into Sophie’s blade and sending it flying. Stubborn Sophie, gripping her vibrating sword, was pulled off balance and stumbled aside.

Wenigo advanced a few steps and stomped his axe—Super Lightning!

Honey’s hostility removal spell appeared once more, but this time, it failed.

Yet Wenigo’s most powerful lightning forced the Ultimate Knight to pause for half a second.

Blood trickled from Sophie’s mouth as she slowly rose.

“In the name of Sophie—Forbidden Spell, Soul Unleashed!” she whispered. An invisible force surged between her hands, swelling them as if inflated. Through her translucent skin, veins and vivid red blood could be faintly seen.

Whoosh... The greatsword danced; Sophie’s strength and speed had doubled, but the burden on her hands had more than doubled as well.

Such was the forbidden spell.

“Released to the clouds, blossoming in the sky, with the blade in my hand…” Sophie murmured, raising her two-handed sword overhead, which flashed suddenly.

It was as if lightning streaked across the sky—fleeting, silent.

After the flash, thunder followed a moment later.

“Cloud’s Radiant End?” Wenigo whispered.

With one stroke, the Ultimate Knight failed to defend. He seemed overawed by Sophie’s sword, lost in its force, dazed for an instant.

A single strike left a deep gash across the front of the Ultimate Knight’s breastplate.

He was stunned; he knew well the quality of his armor.

The Ultimate Knights almost universally favored two-handed weapons. They never used shields—not for lack of skill, but because their exceptionally heavy alloy armor provided such formidable defense that shields were unnecessary.

Shieldless armor was not a myth.

Yet now, on the most fortified front of his thick armor, a sword had cleaved it open!

Had the opponent’s defense been weaker, he might have been split in two.

Wenigo followed up, swinging his axe at the Knight’s chest.

His aim was not to wound, but to test the Viking’s special skill—Plunder.

The Vikings’ most notorious trait as robbers was not just seizing gold and items, but even armor...

If defense was your strength, he would strip you of it!

Alas, the Ultimate Knight’s power far surpassed Wenigo’s, making the success rate of armor plunder exceedingly low. Yet Wenigo was undaunted, withdrawing at once.

Honey—hostility removal!

Sophie—Cloud’s Radiant End!

Wenigo—Armor Plunder!

Sophie’s hands soon grew too weak to bear the strain. She stepped back, thrusting her greatsword into the ground, and drew two slender blades from her pouch, flicking them straight. The coiled swords snapped taut, darting toward the Knight’s visor like swift bee stings.

With Honey’s mind magic and Sophie’s swordplay covering him, the Ultimate Knight never managed to unleash his full might. Wenigo cast armor plunder twelve times, at last stripping the Knight of his entire suit.

Staring at the impossibly heavy, steel-solid, flawless armor now lying before him, the Ultimate Knight stood in shock.

“Without its protection, how much strength can you muster now… Ultimate Knight!” Wenigo sneered, casting Super Lightning.

The accumulated magical power erupted, thunder and lightning engulfing the Knight.

“Role adjustment, magic power increased… Now, reveal your strength! Let the strongest lightning reduce all to nothing!” Wenigo declared.

Role adjustment elevated the Viking’s magical abilities, raising the character’s rating. Though maintaining this mode would cost Wenigo more mercury, the boost was evident.

Presently, Wenigo was not short on funds; he had prepared ample mercury for the task.

In his small pouch, a sealed, flat silver flask held enough mercury for extended use. Wenigo believed victory always favored the well-prepared warrior.

Another saying: victory belongs to the soldier whose spare magazine is full…

Thus, Wenigo always kept a small flask of mercury close at hand.

After the lightning, the robust man still stood, his skin blackened by the current, eyes vacant, yet unmoving, blocking Wenigo and Sophie.

“Magical modification… Only by surpassing human limits could you wear such heavy armor and fight so nimbly,” Wenigo murmured.

“Even if I abandon my humanity, there are things I must protect…” the Ultimate Knight replied in a hoarse voice. “So, even without armor, I will not let you pass.”

Kriegus School Greatsword Technique—Gate of Hell!

The greatsword crashed down. For a moment, Wenigo felt as though the earth beneath him had been split, swarms of demons pouring from the fissure to consume him… He bit his tongue, the pain snapping him from the sword’s crushing mental force, and dodged aside.

The greatsword sliced just past Wenigo. Sophie intervened, her slender blade piercing the Knight’s right hand, throwing off his aim. Otherwise, Wenigo would surely have been severely wounded.

Terrifying power! Even at such might, to maintain speed and precision—truly the Ultimate Knight, the warlord’s best guardian and killing machine.

Kriegus School Greatsword Technique—Skyward Tower!

Wordless, the Knight changed his downward chop to an upward sweep. Invisible force spiraled from the blade, rising skyward, threatening to draw Wenigo and Sophie into its vortex—once caught, they would surely be torn to shreds.

Quick-thinking, Wenigo kicked Sophie. She understood, punching the sole of Wenigo’s foot. Both flew backward, evading the Knight’s devastating sword.

Counterattack! Wenigo leveled his axe, conjuring a torrent to surge at the Knight. Enhanced as his magic was, at Wenigo’s current level, the tsunami spell still could not force back the Ultimate Knight.

But it was enough.

Sophie!

With her greatsword, she was a tiger. Now, wielding two slender blades, she became a lithe, dangerous jaguar.

Those who underestimated this elegant feline often met death.

Sophie’s blades whistled, stabbing rapidly at the Knight’s back. His greatsword, massive and heavy, served as a narrow shield, fending off Sophie’s relentless assault with only a hair’s breadth to spare.

Wenigo caught his breath and struck again.

The Viking’s physical attacks were merely above average, but the battle-axe’s innate lethality compensated. The Knight dared not meet the blow with muscle alone, forced to counter with his sword.

Kriegus School Greatsword Technique—Duke’s Wine!

Without question, Wenigo was sent flying by that sword.

He gritted his teeth, crushing the tri-colored jelly held under his tongue. A mix of coolness and heat exploded through the capillaries beneath his tongue, flooding his body.

Instant healing—the medicine worked faster than the world’s usual red potions, though its strength was less, able to heal only minor wounds.

But it sufficed.

As long as he lived…

Wenigo immediately reset his role, abandoning the Viking template and becoming an ordinary human once more. He withdrew, watching Sophie and the armorless Knight battle to the death.

“Sophie, now’s the time,” he reminded her.

She nodded imperceptibly, biting down gently.

Item use—Athena’s Water; Elixir of Strength.

The muscle damage from the forbidden spell healed quickly under the medicine’s effect, while another potion would, for several minutes, let the drinker unleash more than double their usual power, boosting both strength and speed—though afterward, weakness would often follow.

But it mattered not; now, defeat meant death, and neither Sophie nor Wenigo would accept failure.

Victory! Towards victory!