Harvest

Flames roared forth at astonishing speed. The searing heat made hair curl as the moisture in the body evaporated rapidly.

Not a single Knight Squire dared to take an attack-type Seal head-on.

At least...

Karl hadn't encountered one so far.

"Hmm!"

Iron Fist Abe gave a muffled grunt. He leaped nearly three meters straight up, dodging the incoming flames before lunging through the air.

A second ball of fire greeted him.

Fire Seal!

"Ah!"

Iron Fist Abe roared at the sky, clenched both hands into fists, and punched straight at the oncoming flames.

"Bang!"

The flames scattered.

The smell of something scorched filled the air.

"Iron Fist?"

Karl's gaze lingered on his opponent's fists for a moment. Then he pushed his left arm forward again, activating Fire Seal.

At his current strength, he could activate six Fire Seals in one go.

His opponent's fists were unnaturally strong, strong enough to shatter the flames outright, but his arms lacked protection. They surely wouldn't be able to take much more.

"Whoosh!"

The figure ahead blurred. Iron Fist Abe suddenly accelerated, dodged the flames, and charged toward him.

Battle Skill—Roar!

This was a special battle skill.

By letting out a beastlike roar, its user roused himself and set his life force surging, briefly increasing his speed and attack power.

The sudden turn of events made Karl's eyes narrow. At the same time, he lightly snapped his raised left hand.

"Snap!"

A flash of light suddenly appeared.

Light Spell!

At the same time,

an invisible force field enveloped the area around them.

Zero-ring Witchcraft—Lesser Force Field!

"Pfft!"

Iron Fist Abe's fist broke through the force field. The air rippled like the surface of water, slightly hindering his speed, and Karl's heart sank.

What was going on?

Why was the force field's suppression so weak?

A witchcraft spell's power was closely tied to the strength of its user's mental force. With Karl's mental force now nearing that of an Intermediate Wizard Apprentice, Lesser Force Field should have suppressed a Knight Squire's strength by thirty to forty percent.

In other words, it should have made a Knight Squire only slightly stronger than an ordinary person.

But now...

Iron Fist Abe's speed and strength had been affected to some degree, but nowhere near that much.

Even so,

he had been affected.

"Clang..."

Karl held his greatsword across his body.

Fist and blade collided, and both men staggered backward.

The earth burst beneath Karl's feet. He used the force to surge forward, his greatsword sweeping up four afterimages.

Battle Skill—Gale Slash!

His opponent's vision had yet to recover, so Karl went all out.

"Clink..."

"Clink-clang-clang..."

The clashes came in a rush like a sudden downpour. Though Iron Fist Abe couldn't see, he roared and struck out with both fists, left and right. Yet he couldn't stop himself from being driven back again and again.

"Pfft!"

A blade flashed across his calf. He cried out and dropped to one knee.

"Die!"

Karl's eyes narrowed as he brought his sword down with all his might.

Rage Strike!

"Clang..."

A fist blocked the blade. The tremendous impact sent Karl reeling backward.

What incredible strength!

The force behind that sudden burst was probably over one. Without the force field's suppression, Karl knew he wouldn't have stood a chance.

Iron Fist Abe's boxing was also remarkably skilled. Even unable to see, he could rely on his solid technique to withstand the greatsword's blows and even its battle skills.

"Whoosh!"

Just then, a figure flashed past. Wielding a dagger, she lunged at Iron Fist Abe from behind.

It was Aya.

The dagger in her hand was extremely sharp. It could easily cut through iron armor, and flesh was even less capable of resisting it.

"Ah!"

Xiao Nan also roared as he charged over, gripping a heavy wooden shield and hunching behind it as he desperately picked up speed.

"Whoosh..."

Karl took a deep breath, steadying the turbulent energy inside him, then swung his greatsword and joined the fight.

"Pfft!"

The dagger sliced through Iron Fist Abe's flesh.

"Bang!"

The tremendous force shattered the wooden shield in Xiao Nan's hands and sent him flying.

Karl's figure collided with Iron Fist Abe's in midair. Sword shadows scraped against fists, sending sparks flying everywhere.

Even with the three of them fighting together, they still couldn't gain a decisive advantage.

But the battles elsewhere were already nearing their end, and more and more people joined the encirclement.

"Aya!"

"Boss!"

"..."

"Kill him!"

A moment later.

"Pfft!"

As Karl swung his greatsword, Iron Fist Abe, covered in blood, swayed on his feet before finally collapsing to the ground.

His heavy body kicked up a cloud of dust.

"Phew..."

Karl let out a long breath and urged them on:

"Grab the stuff. Move!"

They weren't far from Laka Market, so they might have attracted the City Guard. If they heard the commotion and came over, they'd be in trouble.

"Yes."

Aya had been wounded in the shoulder. Grimacing in pain, she nodded and called on the others to search the battlefield before they hurried away.

No one noticed the few mice scurrying past the corpses in the corner of the manor, disappearing into a hole.

"Uncle."

Aya hurried over, brimming with excitement. When she saw Karl's expression, she paused in surprise.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Karl shook his head.

"I just didn't expect Iron Fist Abe to be so strong. I guess I'd been... ignorant of the wider world."

He had thought that, with his witchcraft, Seals, and Breathing Technique, he would have few rivals among Knight Squires.

He hadn't expected that even the leader of a small group in Black City could nearly leave him helpless. He couldn't help feeling a little bitter.

"Ignorant of the wider world?"

Aya blinked. She had never heard that phrase before, but understood what it meant, and smiled.

"Iron Fist Abe was a skilled Knight Squire. Otherwise, the Brotherhood wouldn't have recruited him. Besides, he used a battle skill to unleash his potential—that's how he managed to contend with you for a short while."

"You're still stronger, Uncle."

Karl shook his head gently.

He had only had the advantage of more tricks at his disposal.

Iron Fist Abe's martial skills were extremely refined. His moves weren't complicated, but he executed them with great skill.

He had also used his battle skill with consummate ease.

That was probably the norm in Black City.

Take Red Hair, for example...

He had also been able to rely on a solid foundation to withstand Karl's battle skills. Even Dina might not have been able to do that. Nothing honed martial skills like a fight to the death.

"Maybe it's the environment in Black City that makes the warriors here so formidable."

"Iron Fist Abe might be a skilled Knight Squire in Black City, but he definitely isn't the strongest. There are plenty of people stronger than me."

After steadying himself, Karl smiled again.

He was being a little thin-skinned. A setback had left him dispirited. Still, it was better to recognize the truth early. That way, he wouldn't grow blindly overconfident, and if he ever met a true expert, he wouldn't be caught unprepared.

Besides...

Iron Fist Abe had made a name for himself many years ago, yet he was still a Knight Squire. That suggested it was already difficult for him to become much stronger, while Karl still had plenty of room to grow.

"Right."

Thinking of something, Karl asked,

"Iron Fist Abe should have had a Seal on him too, right?"

"He did." Aya nodded.

"I think it was called 'Steel Body.' It could increase the body's defenses, but the Seal was already destroyed when he died."

Karl understood.

If someone was badly wounded, or the flesh where their Seal was located became damaged, the Seal could be destroyed.

There were even secret techniques that could destroy the Seals on one's body, so they wouldn't fall into an enemy's hands.

Steel Body?

"The force field's effect on Iron Fist Abe was weak. It was most likely because of his Seal."

"Seals can resist spells!"

"Right."

Aya remembered what she'd come to say and clapped her hands.

"We found a chest at Iron Fist Abe's base. It had eighteen portions of Exotic Beast Meat inside."

"There were also several hundred Black Stones and some collectibles..."

Karl didn't hear anything after that. His attention was entirely fixed on those eighteen portions of Exotic Beast Meat.

"Really?"

"It's true." Aya nodded.