The black-scaled snake tail, covered in scales, whipped against the ground like a thick whip, causing a solid wall to crumble into scattered bricks as if made of paper.
Shuma leaped backward in silence, dodging the strike of the snake tail, while simultaneously drawing her sword with her right hand and launching a continuous series of attacks, with scattered sparks of chi swirling around like stars in the sky. However, even with her powerful knight-level chi, she only left shallow scars on the scales of the massive monster, which seemed trivial in comparison to its more than twenty-meter-long body.
At this moment, a huge shadow enveloped Shuma as the giant snake above opened its enormous mouth and fiercely bit down, its two fangs as sharp as the finest blades, with the tips oozing a deadly venom.
Fortunately, it didn't manage to bite down.
"Get away from me!"
Beinrich quickly stepped in front of Shuma, drawing his sword with two swift steps. The well-crafted enchanted greatsword emitted a faint purple light and, bolstered by the blazing chi, he fiercely swung it, smashing the attacking snake head hard on the ground.
This man truly deserved to be called a berserker, possessing such strength even without transforming into one.
The giant snake didn't recover immediately from the blow, its crimson eyes narrowing as it attempted to strike again, but Beinrich blocked it with his horizontal sword.
"Hey, shouldn't we retreat? This creature is probably the strongest monster in the labyrinth... Aren't you supposed to go find the young prince?" Beinrich raised his voice without turning his head, as the pressure on his sword increased little by little while the enormous snake struggled against it.
"The prince won't have any trouble for the time being. The Anlaman Giant Snake has the highest score for rewards in the labyrinth. Taking it down increases our chances of victory." Remembering the reward points listed in the guidebook for this monster, Shuma looked at Anlaman with determined eyes.
Beinrich's face sagged. "Hey, girl knight, get it straight. We don't have the initiative anymore, and dealing with a creature like this is not as easy as you think! Haven't you seen it? Your attacks are completely ineffective!"
Take it down? Easy for her to say. As a mercenary who had spent years battling in the Warcraft Forest, Beinrich knew very well the combat capabilities of such creatures. Even with his leadership, it would take at least one third of their main force to defeat a opponent like Anlaman without any casualties.
Although they were naturally at odds with each other as members of different factions, they were temporarily on the same front. Beinrich truly hoped this knight would listen to him. Big knights were a dime a dozen in the mercenary world, and many of them were just individuals who hadn't bothered taking the knight association's assessment. There were also many who lost their lives every year while hunting monsters.
However, Shuma simply ignored him. With a leap, she landed on Anlaman's body and ran towards its head along its spine.
Close-quarters combat was a tried-and-true method against large monsters. Many clumsy creatures had no way to deal with a knight landing on their bodies. However, this didn't mean that all large monsters were helpless.
"You fool! Get down quickly--"
Beinrich didn't even care about the snake head in front of him that he was still blocking with his sword. He quickly shifted his sword, slipping past the smooth scales of the snake's head, and immediately created distance, shouting at Shuma.
Upon hearing Beinrich's shout, Shuma momentarily diverted her attention, only to find that the ground beneath her feet had suddenly become scorching hot, as if she were walking barefoot on a blistering beach... and the temperature was still rising.
Suddenly, strange red patterns all over Anlaman's body emitted a brilliant light, and a terrifying wave of heat surged towards the female knight without restraint.
"Can you make it through? Are you sure?"
Upon hearing the voice, Hermes raised his head alertly. In the field of vision of the Magic Puppet, there was a white-haired girl wearing a light robe standing right in front of him, looking at him with a sneer.
What's going on? He had just used a scouting spell to search the surrounding area... Hermes glanced at the Magic Radar again and found that it still showed that the area was safe.
"Those scouting spells can easily be fooled by hiding one's presence. Did you really think they were invincible?" Aya's gaze seemed to penetrate the armor and directly hit Hermes, making him suddenly feel a sense of danger.
Unlike the previous person who was fooled by the organizers to hunt him down for points, Hermes could almost confirm that the girl in front of him had simply come to cause trouble for him, whether there were any points rewards or not.
"Who are you? We shouldn't know each other. If you're here for points, I can share some of the spoils with you." After hesitating for a moment, Hermes decided to be cautious. The points he had just gained were very rich, so giving away some was not a big deal.
Moreover, although the white-haired girl looked young, none of the people who came to participate in this competition were kind-hearted. The Magic Puppet had just finished a big battle, so it was better to avoid fighting until its magical power recovered.
The person in front of him seemed to completely disregard his words. After forcefully punching both fists in front of her, she took big steps forward.
"Don't know me? That's right, you don't know me, because I'm just someone's mother!" Aya grinned.
"Somebody's mother?" Even with Hermes's nerves, it took him a few seconds to... still not understand.
Golden Qi, like a small sun, illuminated the underground ruins. Under the protection of Dragon Scale Power, Aya's speed reached a level that was beyond the detection system of both the naked eye and the Magic Puppet. When her figure appeared again, a brilliant firework had exploded in the chest and abdomen area of the Magic Puppet, causing its massive body to lose balance and fall backward.
"How is this possible!"
Amidst the intense vibrations and the alarming sounds of the surrounding instruments, Hermes had an expression of disbelief. At first, when Aya mentioned hiding her presence, he thought she was a Magic profession... but she actually threw a punch as soon as she came forward? And her punch was even strong enough to knock down the Magic Puppet with one hit?
Hermes was truly worthy of being a magitech master. He knew the limits of the Magic Puppet he had personally constructed. Although Aya's punching power was terrifying, it was still within the manageable range.
Ignoring the excessive depletion of the core, Hermes increased the magical power output three times and one by one, the mechanical joints of the Magic Puppet loosened and tightened again. The ten-meter-tall metal giant stood up again with the support of its mechanical arms.
"Hehe, let's see who's stronger! I'm confident that my fists won't lose to anyone!" Aya's fighting spirit soared.
The Magic Puppet remained silent, looking down at the Mecha Dragon with golden flames exuding from her body on the ground. It also maintained three times the power and after a moment, it reached behind its back with its huge palm, one by one, the iron claws tightened and pulled out a sawtooth war blade that was about six meters long...
Upon seeing that giant blade, Aya's expression suddenly became uncomfortable, as if she had been whipped. Coach, this is not what we agreed on. When did this thing gain close combat capabilities?
"Dear audience, welcome to the special program of Hand-Tearing Gundam... Speaking of which, Aya, do you really plan to consider that child, Chirp, as your daughter? Otherwise, how about the two of us getting married another day?"
"Go away!" Aya's frustrated voice came from the communication device. She just thought it would be cool.
Tiran and Aetras were still inside the previous two-story building, watching the battle. With their ChiMagic at its peak performance against opponents below the Holy Rank, they were confident in their ability to win. Plus, Chirp had not been found yet. They could deal with that old pervert after making sure Chirp was safe and sound.
..........
"Cough, cough..." The female knight coughed repeatedly, leaning on her sword with one hand.
Shuma was in a bit of a mess now. He was eager to quickly defeat the giant snake, but ended up getting hit by its attack. Fortunately, he released Chi in time to block more heat, but his clothes still ended up with a few burnt holes.
After forcing Shuma back, Anlaman twisted its body and pounced again. It was hard to imagine that such a large snake could turn 180 degrees and directly attack the female knight from behind. During the attack, venom glands in its mouth shot out venom like high-pressure water guns, faster than its own attack.
Double attack, and Shuma was injured. There was no way to dodge this time.
Shuma's mind went blank for a moment. As the chief knight of the underground organization and skilled in assassination, intelligence gathering, she hadn't experienced something like this in a long time.
The previous time... seems like when she got lost in the woods as a child and was chased by a gray wolf. Then what happened? It seemed like her brother, that seemingly cold and unemotional idiot, bravely swung the axe he used for chopping wood and cut off the wolf's head without hesitation.
The memory of that elusive figure suddenly overlapped with reality. The sturdy figure of the mercenary roared as he raised his giant sword and struck the ground, causing a wave that disrupted Anlaman's attack trajectory. However, the remaining venom unavoidably landed on Shuma.
Chi evaporated some of the venom, but the remaining part immediately corroded through her armor and the clothes underneath, reaching her skin.
Using his hands that were not tainted by the venom, he pulled Shuma and hid her behind a partially destroyed building, breathing heavily. Fortunately, he had activated Berserk in advance, gaining the fast healing ability of a Berserker. The corroded wounds quickly healed, and all that was left was to use Chi to evaporate the venom that had contaminated her skin.
"Listen, little girl, don't act without understanding. I know you have some strength, but dealing with monsters is not your specialty. Even a level-nine knight would have a hard time if they aren't familiar with monster abilities. Don't expect me to save you every time."
Beinrich's face was full of disdain, instantly destroying the slight goodwill Shuma had developed towards him.
"Don't give me that expression like you want to eat me. I did save you..." The mercenary muttered, turned around to confirm safety, and cautiously continued, "Take this opportunity to leave. That thing probably won't find this place for a while. Damn it, I jinxed it!"
Before he could finish speaking, the building behind them collapsed with a loud rumble. The familiar snake head rose high, spewing scarlet venom. It was about to release another dose of venom.
Beinrich cursed and tried to step back, but he accidentally let go of the knight girl who had been tightly gripping his hand.
"Hey! Can't you understand me?"
The mercenary was dumbfounded. Could it be that the girl's brain wasn't working properly?
And then he shut his mouth.
Activating Chi again, Shuma turned into a stream of light and charged into the giant snake's wide-open mouth, instantly stopping the snake's triumphant hissing.
A few seconds later, the snake's tail exploded with a bang. The female knight, enveloped in the radiance of Chi, slowly landed on the ground, shaking off the blood stains.
"A little girl who knows nothing, but she can also learn." The female knight said lightly, glancing at Beinrich.
Mercenary: "..."
What else can I say? Impressive!
