Chapter Summaries

Vic abandoned his attempt to reach Princess Trellinka and targeted Punk, the innkeeper, and Iron Tower, but their distrust kept them from attacking together. After Blood Claw’s complaint broke the stalemate, Vic launched a furious assault aimed at Punk.

• Vic tore off his ruined War Song armor and turned his killing intent toward Punk, the innkeeper, and Iron Tower.
• Punk, the innkeeper, and Iron Tower hesitated to attack, each fearing Vic’s lethal counterattack and watching their supposed teammates.
• Punk decided the innkeeper was the safest person to maneuver into making a sacrifice, while Blood Claw complained that Vic might attack him again.
• Iron Tower threatened Blood Claw, and Vic shouted “Gale Stab” before leaping toward Punk with a Leaping Slash.
• Iron Tower dodged instinctively and blocked Golem Unit Two’s path, while Vic gathered his Fire Battle Qi into Wind Punisher and unleashed three Greater Stun spells at Punk.

Punk used the Any Door spell to escape Vic’s full-force attack and redirect the charging Sword Saint into the landlady’s path. He emerged safely at the edge of the battlefield, leaving Vic facing the landlady.

• Vic shattered Punk’s Chaos Cloak with three Greater Stun spells and charged in with the Wind Punisher, preparing to use Annihilation.
• Punk opened an Any Door behind himself and stepped through as Vic’s greatsword closed in.
• Punk positioned the first doorway before the landlady, then opened a second doorway to escape and closed both doors before Vic could follow.
• Vic emerged from the first doorway in front of the landlady, mistaking her green shapeshifter form for a gigantic slime.
• Punk concealed how composed he was by appearing exhausted and weakened after his escape.

Vic the Sword Saint struck the proprietress, but she used three Master Level potions to corrode Wind Punisher and destroy its embedded spell, leaving both combatants gravely wounded. Punk watched as the proprietress survived with only half her body and Vic was left badly injured, then prepared to act.

• Vic continued his Charge after Punk escaped through the Any Door and brought Wind Punisher down on the proprietress.
• The proprietress threw three emerald bottles of Energy-Melting Acid at Vic's sword, corroding Wind Punisher and destroying the Annihilation spell within it.
• The acid splashed back onto the proprietress and Vic, corroding away half of her body and nearly half of his.
• Punk examined the damaged Wind Punisher and realized the proprietress had sacrificed much of her body to survive the attack.
• Punk watched the half-formed proprietress on the ground as magical radiance began revolving in his eyes.

Iron Tower destroyed Vic the Sword Saint after Punk’s corrosion ruined the Wind Punisher, while Punk’s Golem Unit Two kept the wounded Proprietress from escaping. The chapter ended as Punk prepared to finish the Proprietress.

• The Wind Punisher’s energy circuits collapsed under the corrosive effects of the potions, destroying Vic’s weapon and interrupting his Obliteration spell.
• Iron Tower charged at the badly wounded Vic, reshaping into a spinning drill and striking him down.
• Princess Trellinka watched as Vic disappeared beneath Iron Tower’s attack, reflecting that she felt both sadness and happiness, or perhaps neither.
• Punk saw Iron Tower’s battle end while Golem Unit Two repeatedly stopped the half-sized Proprietress from fleeing.
• Punk bid farewell to the Proprietress and made the dark-gray sphere of energy in his hand vanish.

After defeating Vic the Sword Saint, Punk, Blood Claw, and Iron Tower argued over the spoils and discovered that Vic had left almost nothing behind. They avoided fighting over Princess Trellinka’s valuable necklace for now, leaving it with her under Blood Claw’s watch as they considered the Doran family’s promised payment.

• Blood Claw brought Princess Trellinka to Punk and Iron Tower, and she explained that she had bitten her own lip rather than been injured.
• Punk identified Trellinka’s Tears of the Spring necklace as valuable and found that Iron Tower’s Dawn’s Illumination crystal was nearly useless to them.
• Blood Claw emptied Vic the Sword Saint’s spatial ring, revealing only a handful of gold coins and no worthwhile spoils.
• Iron Tower claimed the necklace, and Punk prepared to oppose him until Blood Claw warned that a fight could jeopardize their payment from the Doran family.
• Punk and Iron Tower agreed to postpone their dispute, leaving the necklace around Trellinka’s neck and trusting Blood Claw to guard it.

Punk, Iron Tower, and Blood Claw brought princess Trelinka to Green Vine City and demanded three Master Level treasures in exchange for her return. The Green Vine Family surrendered its ancestral items, and the group released Trelinka after Punk verified the exchange.

• Punk accepted the destruction of Wind Punisher and resolved to demand compensation from the Green Vine Family.
• Punk, Iron Tower, and Blood Claw brought princess Trelinka to Green Vine City and demanded three Master Level pieces of equipment.
• Doran Green Vine agreed to trade the family’s three ancestral treasures for Trelinka’s life to avoid betraying her and risking the family’s noble status.
• A Formal Level warrior brought out a scroll, ancient parchment, and feather pen while Punk examined their auras and verified their authenticity.
• Blood Claw released princess Trelinka after Punk confirmed the treasures were genuine, and he took Tears of the Spring from her neck.

Punk, Blood Claw, and Iron Tower claimed one Master Level item each before leaving Green Vine City, while Princess Trellinka refused Doran Green Vine’s suggestion to pursue them. Punk and Iron Tower soon began their long-anticipated fight, and Punk opened with five compressed Kinetic Cones.

• Blood Claw took Tears of the Spring, and Punk snatched the old parchment while Iron Tower seized the dangerous scroll and Blood Claw caught the feather pen.
• Blood Claw left first, while Punk and Iron Tower departed Green Vine City in opposite positions and followed at a distance.
• Princess Trellinka rejected Doran Green Vine’s suggestion to attack the departing group, prioritizing the announcement about the Church of Dawn’s attempted massacre.
• Punk and Iron Tower stopped several thousand meters from the city and launched into combat, while Blood Claw fled farther away.
• Iron Tower escaped Punk’s Kinetic Crush by spinning and drilling out of the ground, and Punk attacked him with five Mana-Compressed Kinetic Cones.

Punk tested Iron Tower’s liquid-metal defense, then tried to exploit its weakness with Any Door. Iron Tower anticipated the tactic and launched a surprise attack, but Punk remained composed as Iron Tower tore open a stolen Master Level spell scroll.

• Punk struck Iron Tower’s iron sphere with five enhanced Kinetic Cones and learned that its liquid-metal defense depended on battle qi, though it consumed little of it.
• Iron Tower transformed into a spinning cone and charged Punk, who raised a Kinetic Shield as a feint while preparing to use Any Door.
• Iron Tower dispersed into metal threads, bypassed Punk’s expected escape route, and reassembled behind him after leaving a shriveled corpse falling in front of Punk.
• Iron Tower revealed that he had anticipated Any Door and tore open a Master Level spell scroll to attack Punk.
• Punk answered Iron Tower’s attack with an expressionless face and called him an idiot.

Punk survived Iron Tower’s Disintegration Spell with the Improved Ruby Shield, killed him with the reflected attack, and forced Blood Claw to surrender the Tears of the Spring. After leaving the forest, Punk discovered that he had advanced to Level Fourteen.

• Punk used the Improved Ruby Shield stored in the Haitzita Magic Casket to withstand Iron Tower’s Disintegration Spell and reflect it back, disintegrating Iron Tower.
• Punk confronted Blood Claw, who handed over the Tears of the Spring and fled into the forest.
• Punk confirmed that the necklace was safe, put it on, and departed with Golem Unit Two.
• Punk discovered during a routine soul inspection that he had advanced to Level Fourteen Formal Mage.

After escaping Blood Claw, Punk examined an ancient parchment and discovered it contained a rare Alchemy Food formula with a tiny chance of improving the odds of reaching the Legendary tier. As he reached the main road of the Kingdom of Dilon, he spotted a distant banner approaching.

• Punk confirmed that Blood Claw had left, then traveled through the jungle toward the Kingdom of Dilon’s main road.
• Punk analyzed the parchment and learned the formula for Stewed Fragrant Mushroom Cluster, which required rare ingredients and years of regular consumption.
• Punk considered the formula’s potential to improve the chance of advancing to the Legendary tier and asked the system to watch for information about Mushroom People tribes.
• Punk reached the edge of the jungle and saw a faint banner approaching along the road.

Punk spotted an unusually imposing envoy delegation from the Kingdom of Kamos traveling toward Green Vine City and secretly followed it. The delegation’s ambassador, Cullen Lyla, was eager to meet Princess Trellinka, though the purpose of the mission remained unclear.

• Punk recognized the convoy’s flags as those of the Kingdom of Kamos and a marquis’s family, and wondered why it had come to the Kingdom of Dilon.
• Punk decided to follow the delegation and used an Aura Concealment spell on himself and Golem Unit Two.
• Cullen Lyla, the sole heir of the Lyla family, traveled as the Kamos ambassador to negotiate with Princess Trellinka.
• Cullen resented the journey’s delays but continued toward Green Vine City, eager to discover whether Princess Trellinka was as beautiful as rumored.

King William sent Cullen to exploit Princess Trellinka’s desperate position and bring the Glory Army and western Dilon under Kamos’s control. After the Glory Army’s defeat left Trellinka grieving and without options, she was summoned to meet the Kamos envoy.

• King William planned to pressure Princess Trellinka into accepting Kamos’s protection and marrying Cullen, while preparing to use her refusal as a pretext for invasion.
• Cullen arrived in Green Vine City convinced that Trellinka would become his wife and the Glory Army would fall under his family’s control.
• Princess Trellinka mourned the Glory Army’s defeat as the Church of Dawn and the Noble Allied Army captured much of western Dilon and burned captured soldiers.
• A maid told Princess Trellinka that Doran had summoned her to meet an envoy from the Kingdom of Kamos.

Princess Trelinka received Kuren Lyla, an envoy from Kamos, who offered asylum to the Glory Army while pressuring her to marry him. The chapter ended with Kuren assuming Trelinka would accept his proposal.

• Trelinka steeled herself to meet Kuren while worrying about the fate of the 150,000 Glory Army soldiers.
• Kuren greeted Trelinka with an inappropriate hand-kiss and dismissed her discomfort with a shameless apology.
• Trelinka demanded to hear Kamos’s message, but Kuren mocked the Glory Army’s desperate position.
• Kuren offered the Glory Army asylum in Kamos as auxiliary troops, provided they followed Kamos’s military assignments.
• Kuren proposed that Trelinka marry him and presumed she would not refuse.

Kullen pressured Princess Trellinka to accept a political marriage and let the Kingdom of Kamos absorb the Glory Army, using the looming Church of Dawn and Noble Allied Army attacks to make her fear further losses. Trellinka broke down and agreed, while Kullen privately felt relieved that she had yielded.

• Princess Trellinka rejected Kullen's marriage proposal and accused the Kingdom of Kamos of trying to take control of the Glory Army.
• Kullen argued that the Glory Army would face devastating attacks from the Church of Dawn and the Noble Allied Army if Trellinka refused his offer.
• Trellinka imagined the deaths of her soldiers and questioned whether continuing the war was worth their sacrifices.
• Kullen grabbed Trellinka and accused her of sending her soldiers and their families to their deaths.
• Trellinka collapsed in tears and agreed to Kullen's proposal, and Kullen secretly relaxed his grip on his ring in relief.

Kullen left Green Vine City believing he had won Princess Trellinka and secured his safety with a powerful family heirloom. Punk discovered the ring and decided to ambush Kullen, who remained unaware of the danger as his carriage traveled into the winter countryside.

• Kullen persuaded Princess Trellinka to agree to a treaty and accept the identity of his fiancée, then departed Green Vine City.
• Punk secretly watched Kullen’s meeting and spotted an ancient ring with an exceptionally powerful magical aura.
• Punk decided to kill Kullen and take the ring, trusting the Haitzita Magic Casket to shield him from divination.
• Kullen traveled in a slowed carriage, confident that his ring could unleash powerful attacks and teleport him to safety.
• Kullen’s father had secretly given him the ring to protect him from the dangers of the diplomatic mission, but Kullen’s arrogance made the heirloom bring about his death.

Punk ambushed Kuren’s convoy, using Golem Unit Two and a series of spells to kill its Formal Level guard before rushing toward Kuren’s carriage. Just as Punk reached the carriage to seize Kuren and his ring, an unexpected change occurred.

• Punk watched Kuren’s ostentatious convoy approach and prepared to ambush it.
• Punk opened an Any Door beside the leading warrior, and Golem Unit Two attacked and seized his sword.
• Golem Unit Two restrained the warrior with three Steel Binds, allowing Punk to kill him with a Kinetic Cone.
• Punk cast Greater Haste and rushed toward Kuren’s carriage, intent on taking Kuren and the ring before he could react.
• An unexpected change occurred as Punk reached the carriage.

Punk’s attempt to claim Kuren’s ring was interrupted when Blood Claw used his concealed Blood Ray to snatch it from the carriage. Punk launched after Blood Claw by applying a compressed Kinetic Projectile spell to himself.

• Blood Claw’s Blood Ray pierced the carriage and revealed his attempt to steal the ring while Punk was focused on killing the group’s leader.
• Punk recognized Blood Claw’s escape technique and realized he had attacked the carriage because his speed and concealment weakened his defenses.
• Blood Claw emerged from the carriage carrying the ring after killing Kuren, then fled toward the forest.
• Punk tore open the carriage, saw the ring in Blood Claw’s grasp, and vowed to catch him.
• Punk cast Mana Compression with Kinetic Projectile on himself to pursue the fleeing Blood Claw.

Punk relentlessly pursued Blood Claw after the rogue stole the Black Hawk Ring, matching his speed despite Blood Claw’s secret technique. Blood Claw tried to outlast him with Dokraina Man-eating Fruits and offered his treasures in exchange for his life, but Punk kept gaining strength, leaving Blood Claw convinced he was nearing death.

• Punk abandoned Golem Unit Two and used kinetic force to catch up with Blood Claw, who had expected his secret technique to leave Punk behind.
• Blood Claw realized he could not escape or fight Punk, so he decided to compete in endurance and ate a Dokraina Man-eating Fruit to restore his life energy.
• Blood Claw offered Punk the quill pen and Dokraina Man-eating Tree in exchange for the Black Hawk Ring and his life, but Punk ignored him.
• Blood Claw ate another fruit and kept fleeing as Punk pursued him without showing signs of fatigue.
• After several minutes, Blood Claw had eaten three fruits and feared that Punk’s mana was inexhaustible and that he would soon die.

Punk pursued Blood Claw after he stole the Black Hawk Ring, whose ability to help warlocks break free of their bloodlines made it immensely valuable. Blood Claw tried to escape by throwing the ring one way and fleeing the other, but Punk had prepared a countermeasure and refused to let him go.

• The chapter explained that warlocks had to break free of their bloodlines before their power took over their minds and souls.
• Punk realized why Blood Claw had stolen the Black Hawk Ring and swallowed an Activation Potion to pursue him at high speed.
• Blood Claw panicked as Punk kept closing in and regretted provoking a much stronger opponent.
• Blood Claw threw the Black Hawk Ring to his left and fled to his right, hoping Punk would stop to retrieve it.
• Punk continued his pursuit, having prepared an unfamiliar metamagic technique to counter Blood Claw's escape plan.

Punk recovered the Black Hawk Ring with Mage Hand while continuing to pursue Blood Claw, who realized he could not escape and prepared to fight. Punk’s Mana Storm was close to ending, but Blood Claw did not know that as the two faced their final confrontation.

• Blood Claw threw the Black Hawk Ring away to distract Punk and gain time to escape.
• Punk used Multiple Casting to retrieve the ring with Mage Hand while continuing his pursuit of Blood Claw.
• Blood Claw swallowed another Dokraina Man-eating Fruit and pleaded with Punk, but Punk declared that he would kill him.
• Blood Claw realized his body could not endure the chase much longer and decided to fight instead of using his final three Dokraina Man-eating Fruits to flee.
• Punk saw Blood Claw prepare to fight and warned him that he was doomed, though Punk’s Activation Potion was about to wear off.