Leonine Misbegotten

Lucian had been watching from afar before, but only now that he had come closer did he realize just how enormous the Leonine Misbegotten was.

Ordinary Misbegotten and Winged Misbegotten were extremely thin. Even standing upright, they were barely as tall as a person, and they usually hunched over so much that it was hard to tell.

Even the largest Scaly Misbegotten was only about the size of an ordinary person, with somewhat more muscle and scales on its body.

But Singh, the Leonine Misbegotten before them, was far taller than Lucian even without fully standing upright. He was probably two and a half meters tall.

His build was massive and his fur vivid. It was hard to imagine that he was related to those dull gray Misbegotten.

Raising the Ruins Greatsword with both hands, Singh brought it crashing down on Edgar at the front.

The countless blades embedded in the Ruins Greatsword tore through the air, their shriek like the wailing of vengeful souls.

Edgar did not dare take it head-on. He used Quickstep to evade.

The piled corpses on the ground were split in two, though not cleanly. Rather than being severed, they had been crushed apart by monstrous force.

The moment Edgar dodged, he took advantage of Singh's brief stiffness after the attack and thrust his halberd forward.

The spearpoint pierced beneath Singh's ribs, but Edgar's expression turned grim.

Singh's skin was far too tough. The sensation of striking it felt nothing like flesh and blood.

The spearpoint could not sink all the way in and was caught by his taut muscles.

Singh pulled the Ruins Greatsword from the flesh. Chunks of meat hung from the gaps between its dense blades.

After being washed in flesh and blood, the black rust on the Ruins Greatsword gradually faded, and it began to regain its former sharp, sinister edge.

Singh flexed his muscles tightly, preventing Edgar from easily pulling out his halberd, then unleashed a savage horizontal sweep.

If that strike landed, no matter how sturdy Edgar's Banished Knight Armor was, he would likely be cut in two.

At that moment, a cloud of orange powder was scattered in front of Singh, followed immediately by a violent explosion.

The explosion ignited his fiery red fur and awakened the instinctive terror of flames buried in Singh's genes.

He immediately halted his attack. No longer bothering to keep Edgar's halberd trapped, he dragged the Ruins Greatsword with one hand while frantically slapping at the flames on his head with the other.

Sure enough, in any world, anything furry was weak to fire.

Edgar pulled free his halberd and retreated to the side as Lucian charged in.

This was the tactic they had discussed earlier.

Lucian and Edgar would take turns fighting at the front, while the Perfumer Evan supported them from behind with perfumes.

Evan said that although Singh was a warrior among the Misbegotten, his nature still had an indelible influence on him.

Fire attacks not only dealt heavy damage, but also made Singh temporarily fear it like an ordinary beast.

Lucian slashed at Singh's sword-wielding hand. The blade bit into knotted muscle, nearly reaching the bone.

Lucian immediately pulled his sword free so Singh could not restrain it.

The cut was deep, but it was still not enough to stop Singh from swinging his sword.

Edgar swung his halberd again. Its axe blade chopped into Singh's shoulder, erupting with a miniature storm that tore at the wound.

Singh was thoroughly enraged. After extinguishing the flames on his body, he dropped to all fours and charged at Lucian.

He swung the Ruins Greatsword and used Spinning Slash against Lucian. Naturally, Lucian did not dare block it head-on and leaped backward to avoid it.

Seeing that his Spinning Slash had missed, Singh used the momentum of his rotation to leap high into the air and drove his sword downward.

Rather than dodging, Lucian stepped forward and rushed beneath Singh.

He raised the Lordsworn's Greatsword, waiting only for Singh to land so he could impale him.

But Singh was astonishingly agile. In midair, he used his thick tail to adjust his posture, planted his sword into the ground early, then used it like a pole vault to avoid Lucian's blade.

Lucian was stunned. Such a massive body had just performed such a nimble maneuver.

Evan scattered another handful of Spark Aromatic, but its effect was greatly weakened this time. Singh was only briefly disrupted by the explosion.

Yet in that instant, Edgar's halberd, carrying a storm, smashed heavily into Singh's back.

This was one of the Banished Knight combat arts: Storm Assault.

With Edgar's weight behind it, the halberd pierced Singh's back and slammed him directly to the ground, but the hand gripping the Ruins Greatsword did not loosen at all.

Edgar planted one foot on Singh's back and used Storm Stomp, continuing to pin Singh to the ground as he tried to rise.

Lucian slashed at the fingers gripping the sword. The feedback through his blade told him that he had indeed severed three fingers.

Yet Singh still held the sword, and the severed fingers did not fall away.

Lucian looked closely. That hand was wrapped in a dense black aura, fused tightly to the hilt.

The three severed fingers were also firmly stuck to the hilt.

A chill rose in Lucian's heart. This Ruins Greatsword was a little too sinister.

But his attacks did not stop, and he continued leaving fresh wounds across Singh's body.

As Edgar's magic gradually depleted, the storm began to lose its hold on Singh.

Bracing himself against the attacks, Singh slowly climbed to his feet.

Edgar jumped off Singh's back. If he stayed there any longer, he would probably be thrown off.

Now standing, Singh panted heavily, blood flowing continuously from wounds large and small across his body.

A large amount of black aura suddenly surged from the Ruins Greatsword again, enveloping Singh's entire body.

The thick aura filled his wounds, and the bleeding gradually stopped.

But Singh's body visibly shriveled, while his fiery red fur began to fall out and fade.

Seeing this bizarre scene, no one dared attack rashly.

"What exactly is the Ruins Greatsword?"

Lucian could not help asking Edgar. This Ruins Greatsword was far too different from the one in the game.

Edgar's expression was grave.

"The Ruins Greatsword is a weapon passed down from the distant past. It has had several masters, and even I do not know what power it contains."

"Its previous owner was once a warrior of Castle Morne, back when Castle Morne had not yet been completely conquered by King Godfrey."

"With vengeance in his heart, that warrior wielded this Greatsword against King Godfrey. Though he was defeated, he earned recognition, and a Sword Monument was erected to record his deeds."

"Since then, the Ruins Greatsword has been sealed in Castle Morne, guarded generation after generation. No one has been permitted to use it."

"Perhaps it was sealed because the power within it was too ominous."

While they spoke, Singh had already recovered. Gripping the Ruins Greatsword with both hands, he charged at the three of them.

He attacked with a disciplined three-strike sequence. This was a genuine sword technique, and what set him completely apart from ordinary Misbegotten.

No matter what weapon ordinary Misbegotten held, they only swung wildly. But Singh was a warrior with truly exquisite swordsmanship.

Lucian dodged the first two strikes, but there was no time to avoid the third.

Lucian raised his sword before him, preparing to block the incoming attack.

Evan scattered Uplifting Aromatic. Lucian and Singh were too close now, and using Spark Aromatic might injure Lucian as well. They could only pray that the boost from the Uplifting Aromatic would let him withstand it.

Edgar extended his halberd, crossing it before Lucian's sword, ready to help him bear the force.

Clang!

As the weapons collided with a crisp ring, Lucian and Edgar were surprised to find that the force transmitted through them was far below what they had expected.

It was still heavy, but it had fallen within a range they could withstand.

It seemed that while the Ruins Greatsword had healed Singh's wounds earlier, it had done so by draining his life force.

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