Slaying (3K! Seeking Follow-up Reads!)

"Roar!"

A deafening roar tore through the battlefield. The Winged Kobold suddenly threw its head back, letting out a chilling howl.

Before the mercenaries and adventurers could react, it swung the rusty great axe in its hand, its blade reflecting a cold, sharp light under the sun.

"Swish!"

The sound of air being torn apart erupted as the Winged Kobold suddenly flapped its wings, diving down like the Grim Reaper straight for the most densely packed area of the crowd.

The great axe swept out, as if carrying immense force.

"Gurgle! Gurgle!"

Fountains of blood erupted, and severed limbs flew.

In just one exchange, a pile of shattered corpses lay on the ground.

From a high-altitude perspective, the Winged Kobold was like a farmer harvesting a wheat field, and the mercenaries and adventurers were merely stalks of wheat waiting to be cut, utterly defenseless.

A few quick-thinking mercenaries and adventurers instinctively raised their weapons to block, while several others ducked and weaved, attempting to counterattack.

However.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

Their weapons struck the scaled body of the Winged Kobold, only to spark a few times, not even leaving a scratch.

Despair spread like a plague.

"This… this isn't a monster we can handle at all!"

"Its scales are harder than steel! Our attacks are completely ineffective!"

"Retreat! If this continues, we'll all die here!"

"Damn it, did this thing crawl out of hell?"

Witnessing the brutal slaughter by the Winged Kobold, the fighting spirit of the mercenaries and adventurers instantly collapsed.

They dropped the spoils of war they were about to obtain and fled in terror, turning the battlefield into chaos.

The Winged Kobold hovered low in the air, its single wing slowly fanning behind it, its blood-red eyes flashing with a bloodthirsty light.

Like a raptor toying with its prey, it leisurely hunted the fleeing humans, each dive accompanied by shrill screams.

And the monster legion, which had originally been suppressed by the humans, was now greatly emboldened.

They howled excitedly, brandishing crude weapons, and joined in the one-sided massacre.

As for Roland…

The moment he saw the true form of the Winged Kobold, he calmly put away his short bow and retreated quietly.

His steps were light and swift, and in a blink of an eye, he was far from the center of the battlefield.

He turned a deaf ear to the screams coming from behind him.

He had saved Darko in the forest before because the other party was a noble young master, the only son of Baron Foslin.

His life or death directly concerned Roland's own.

But what about these mercenaries and adventurers now?

They were just a bunch of greedy opportunists; their lives or deaths had nothing to do with him.

With Roland's current strength, if he used Momentum Slash, he might indeed have a chance to kill the Winged Kobold in one blow.

But what about afterward?

Could he really expect these desperadoes who lived by the sword to be grateful when he was in a weakened state?

The answer was obvious.

Therefore, staying away from this trouble was the wisest choice.

"What a shame, I'm only three kills away from the kill count required for the Warrior job change…"

Roland's footsteps didn't stop as he quickly calculated in his mind.

He deliberately minimized the sound of dry branches snapping under his feet, each step landing precisely on the most stable spot.

"But it doesn't matter."

"Master Hawk's leave is still long. At worst, I'll stay in Pine Wood Town for a few more days. With that Kobold around, the nearby monsters are bound to be restless."

As his thoughts raced, his pace quickened.

Suddenly, the ringing sound of metal colliding pierced through the wails.

Roland frowned.

Someone could actually hold their own against that Winged Kobold?

And judging by the frequency of their exchanges, they didn't seem to be at a disadvantage?

It wasn't that he underestimated those mercenaries.

After fighting the Blood Scale Kobold, he knew too well how terrifying this monster was.

The impenetrable scale armor, the monstrous strength far beyond ordinary humans, and now, the added maneuverability from that wing.

Back when they faced the Blood Scale Kobolds, even seasoned regular soldiers like John had trouble dealing with them. How could this motley crew of hastily assembled fighters possibly...?

The clashing sounds of metal suddenly intensified, faintly interspersed with the pained roars of monsters.

But Roland's footsteps didn't slow down out of curiosity.

Whoever was distracting that monster was buying him precious time to escape.

"Boom!"

A deafening explosion suddenly erupted from behind him, and Roland instinctively turned his head.

He saw a black silhouette whistling through the air like a cannonball, its speed so fast it even left afterimages in the air.

Seeing this, Roland's body instinctively dodged to the side.

The black silhouette brushed past the edge of his clothes and slammed heavily into a tree ahead.

The thick trunk groaned under the immense pressure, and splinters of bark flew everywhere.

"The Executioner?"

Although it was only for a moment, Roland still recognized his identity.

At this moment, the Executioner's signature black robe was torn in multiple places, revealing a slender figure clad in leather armor underneath. His pale fingertips still tightly gripped that iconic rapier.

Before he could even steady himself, a bone-chilling coldness suddenly came from behind his neck.

His keen combat instincts made Roland crouch and roll without hesitation.

"Clang!"

A rusted great axe grazed his hair and sliced through an oak tree, as thick as two men embracing, standing beside him.

Amidst the flying wood chips, Roland got up smoothly, his iron sword already drawn from his waist, cutting a cold arc in the sunlight.

But the next moment, the Winged Kobold suddenly changed its target.

The Executioner, who had just been sliding down the tree trunk, had now stood up and was rapidly attacking its single wing from behind.

"Clang!"

With the sound of the great axe cleaving the air, the Winged Kobold suddenly spun and swept its weapon sideways.

The Executioner's slender figure leaned back like a falling leaf.

The axe blade grazed his nose, then suddenly changed its trajectory mid-swing and collided with the rapier.

"Cough!"

A muffled groan came from beneath the black robe.

The Executioner knelt on one knee, the rapier digging into the ground and creating a long gully before his momentum was halted.

When he looked up, the Winged Kobold was already lunging again!

"Swish swish swish!"

The rapier instantly transformed into a rain of silver light.

The sword tip precisely targeted weak points like the eyelids, ear canals, and wing membranes, but all were blocked by the scale armor.

The Winged Kobold grinned and took all the attacks head-on, forcefully swinging its weapon.

"Boom!"

The axe blade smashed into the ground, instantly creating spiderweb-like cracks.

The Executioner hastily rolled to the side to dodge, but the fierce shockwave tore half of his black robe open, revealing a pale jawline and a few strands of scattered silver hair.

Before he could steady his staggering figure, the Winged Kobold raised its battle axe again, the second chop descending upon him with a piercing sound.

There was no escape.

The Executioner's sapphire pupils suddenly contracted, reflecting the cold, sharp axe blade.

"Get out of the way!"

At the critical moment, Roland's roar suddenly exploded.

He darted out like a leopard, his iron sword cutting through the air, trailing a cold, sharp light, and thrusting directly at the single wing on the kobold's back, unprotected by scales.

However, the Winged Kobold reacted extremely quickly. It twisted its wrist sharply, and the downward-chopping great axe suddenly changed direction, transforming into a fierce horizontal sweep!

"Bang!"

Axe and sword collided, sparks flying.

Roland felt a tremendous force travel up his sword, his entire arm instantly going numb. He was shaken back several steps.

"Its strength is greater than the Blood Scale Kobold's, and its speed is also faster."

He gritted his teeth, inwardly alarmed.

"Fortunately, [Adaptive Training] has raised my Agility to seven points; otherwise, it would have been difficult to keep up with its movements!"

On the other side, the Executioner also slowly stood up, leaning on his rapier.

Pinned from both sides, the Winged Kobold didn't press its attack. Instead, it cautiously flapped its wings and retreated rapidly.

Its crimson eyes scanned back and forth between the two figures until it was sure both were within its sight. Only then did it abruptly halt its steps, assuming a defensive posture.

"That's."

Roland's gaze locked onto a white object clutched in the Winged Kobold's left arm. A sense of vague familiarity welled up in his heart.

But he instantly cast aside this irrelevant information, his mind focused on the present. Facing such an unusually cautious enemy, he couldn't help but feel a sense of difficulty.

Earlier, when The Executioner was fighting the Winged Kobold, Roland had had a chance to escape.

But it was clear that The Executioner was no match for this monster.

If he hadn't intervened, The Executioner would likely have been dismembered by now.

And if The Executioner died, even if Roland ran, he wouldn't be able to escape far given the Winged Kobold's flight speed and maneuverability.

Weighing his options, teaming up with The Executioner was the best choice, rather than fighting alone.

It's just that...

The Executioner had just killed mercenaries, adventurers, and monsters indiscriminately.

Roland had to confirm that this temporary ally wouldn't suddenly turn on him.

"We'll take care of this monster together. You won't attack me too, will you?"

Roland stared intently at the kobold and asked in a deep voice.

The Executioner's silver hair fluttered lightly as he shook his head.

The next second, his rapier was unsheathed, and he lunged at the enemy like lightning, exposing his back completely to Roland.

Seeing this, Roland immediately followed with his sword.

"Attack its wings from behind! Create an opening for me!"

This confident declaration made The Executioner pause for a moment, but he quickly adjusted his pace, nimbly dodging a sweeping blow from the great axe and appearing behind the monster.

Roland seized this fleeting opportunity. His iron sword transformed into a silver streak.

Instantly, the dense forest echoed with the continuous clang of metal on metal.

Perhaps due to their equally high combat proficiency, Roland and The Executioner displayed astonishing tacit understanding in their fight, despite having never met.

However, perhaps due to his previous injuries, The Executioner's footwork gradually became more erratic as time went on.

The Winged Kobold keenly noticed this opening, but due to Roland's perfectly timed distracting attacks, it repeatedly missed opportunities to strike a killing blow. Rage grew in its crimson eyes.

And at the moment the monster, disregarding everything else, swung its axe blade to clash with The Executioner's rapier...

"Opportunity!"

Roland's eyes flashed with brilliance, his [Focus] trait activating instantly.

He stomped forward and leaped into the air, his longsword held tightly in both hands, cutting a sharp, cold arc through the sunlight.

Seeing this, a hint of mockery flashed in the Winged Kobold's crimson pupils.

With a powerful strike, it collided with The Executioner's rapier.

After seeing the opponent spit blood and collapse to the ground, it quickly turned around and brought its rust-covered great axe horizontally before its chest.

In its eyes, this human who had leaped into the air was a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.

A slight twist of the axe blade would be enough to bring him down!

"Clang!"

However, the moment the axe and sword met, the monster's contempt froze in its eyes.

A terrifying force surged from the axe handle, making its claws tingle. It let out a hasty shriek.

Feeling the power surge into his arms like a tide, Roland gritted his teeth and pressed down hard with his sword-wielding hands.

"Momentum Slash!"

Accompanied by a roar from within, the previously impenetrable blood-colored scales now seemed as thin as paper.

The longsword cut down without obstruction, slashing diagonally from the axe handle, straight towards the Winged Kobold's left flank.

"Bang!"

With a muffled thud as his feet landed heavily.

The Winged Kobold remained frozen in place, as if unharmed.

But in an instant, a crimson line of blood slowly appeared on its body.

"Puchi!"

Blood gushed out like a spring.