The battlefield was filled with wails of misery, agonized cries rising and falling without end.
The hero knight snapped out of his daze, his gaze fixed on the back of the Golden Needle Knight standing at the center of the carnage, looming there as if a god had descended, looking down upon all beneath him.
In that instant, his emotions surged like crashing waves.
This was the kind of battlefield a hero was meant to face. What meaning was there in spending every day doing nothing but bullying civilians?
He drew the straight sword at his waist, raised his shield, and charged. Each step he took sank into the solid ground, leaving deep impressions behind.
Nolan abruptly raised his hand. He had always trusted his instincts. Looking up, he saw sparks burst forth as a greatsword ground against a straight sword.
Strong. And more than one.
The blood-soaked knight abandoned his shield and pressed forward with both hands on his weapon. At the same time, several figures emerged from the crowd.
Straight swords, greatswords, warhammers, spear-shields. Knights wielding all manner of weapons appeared, moving far faster than ordinary soldiers.
These heroes were smart. If one couldn't kill him, then they would attack together.
Nolan moved at once. His left hand surged with force as he slammed the two-handed swordsman aside.
The others followed immediately, their attacks coming in a relentless chain. Weapons screamed through the air, striking straight for Nolan's vital points.
Boom!!
The ground seemed to shudder as an extremely heavy impact rang out. Dust erupted upward, forming a vast gray-yellow curtain that blotted out the sky and obscured all vision.
Nolan appeared behind the first hero knight, his greatswords crossed in front of his chest. Without the slightest pause, he swept them outward.
The blades overlapped like a massive pair of shears, cutting the knight down on the spot.
Clang!!
Almost at the same moment, another knight wielding a spear and shield slammed into him.
Nolan snapped his arm back and slashed twice in quick succession, each strike carrying tremendous force.
Blade and shield collided, sparks flying as a crisp impact rang out. The sheer power of the clash forced both sides to stagger back half a step.
After steadying himself, the spear-shield knight shook his numbed wrists, awe rising unbidden in his heart.
Such terrifying strength. No wonder he's the legendary Golden Needle Knight.
He cautiously craned his head out from behind the edge of his shield, scanning the battlefield, only to see the knight who had just regained his footing vanish amid the surrounding attackers.
As he was still thinking of how to respond, a piercing pain suddenly struck. Something sharp tore through his body, relentlessly assaulting his nerves.
A greatsword drove in from behind, stabbing diagonally through the back of his neck. His helmet was blasted off in an instant, spinning several times in the air before dropping lightly to the ground.
Nolan flicked his wrist, twisting the greatsword and yanking it free in one smooth motion.
Killing intent surged within him. His gaze turned icy as it locked onto another enemy.
Just as he was about to sweep the greatsword sideways and send the opponent's skull flying, a massive warhammer fell from above, smashing into the ground with explosive force.
Earthshaker!
The warhammer sank into the earth, which cracked open instantly. Shockwaves burst outward from the impact point, sending Nolan flying back.
He skidded several meters across the ground as the greatsword knight and the sword-shield knight charged in with fierce momentum.
The two moved in perfect coordination, closing in from left and right with longswords raised, pinning the Golden Needle Knight between them.
A powerful, invisible gale surged from their blades, making the hems of all three warriors' garments whip violently.
Storm Blade!
A storm rose around Nolan's greatsword as well. Four raging tempests collided head-on, like four ferocious dragons crashing together.
The wind howled, sand and stones whipping through the air, even his silver hair swept up by the gale.
As the storm gradually dissipated, blade met blade, sparks bursting forth in blinding brilliance.
At this moment, Nolan stood tall and imposing, pressing the two half-crouched opponents beneath him, when his gaze suddenly lifted.
He turned his gaze toward another knight advancing step by step with a massive warhammer raised high. Fierce lightning and crushing wind pressure gathered beneath his feet.
Lightning Storm!
Brilliant golden light intertwined with surging, riotous winds, forming a terrifying torrent of energy. Serpentine arcs of lightning coiled through the flow, writhing upward like living things.
Faced with such a horrifying onslaught, the warhammer knight blanched. Standing slightly farther away, he relied on quick reflexes to leap backward, narrowly avoiding the strike.
The other two sword-wielding knights were not so fortunate. They were completely suppressed by the overwhelming force pouring from Nolan's greatsword.
Their bodies refused to move, locked in place as that vast power washed over them like a raging tide.
A dull crash of armor rang out. Nolan lowered his head, flicked a glance at the fallen knight, then suddenly spun and swept his greatsword back.
Clang, clang, clang—
Several crossbow bolts shrieked through the air, only to be knocked aside. Nolan glanced at the soldiers flooding out from the camp and casually swung his greatsword again.
Before they could even react, golden and blue sword energy plunged into their bodies. They collapsed straight to the ground, not a single scream escaping their throats.
From the corner of his eye, Nolan caught sight of archers firing from afar. Fear was written plainly across many of their faces. Then a massive warhammer came crashing toward him.
Boom!
The warhammer smashed into the ground, splitting the earth apart with a thunderous impact.
Nolan swept his greatsword sideways. The hammer knight's vision went black as his body was flung backward uncontrollably.
He took another step forward, and once again a dense rain of arrows poured down.
The arrows filled the sky, choking the already cramped main tent area and leaving nowhere to dodge.
Yet Nolan's expression did not change. His greatsword spun like a gale, batting every arrow from the air.
Five knights fell beneath his blade in succession. Nolan felt, for the first time, that intoxicating thrill of cutting down heroes as easily as slaughtering livestock.
Each sweep of his blade carved long scars into the ground. The soldiers had no ability to fight back at all.
They could only retreat again and again, gradually backing toward the prison used to hold the so-called "enemy spies."
Perhaps the battle had grown too intense, or perhaps Nolan's technique slipped for just a moment.
With a single careless strike, the Golden Needle Knight shattered the prison door.
"My lord, this is bad! The prisoners have escaped!"
More than a dozen soldiers crowded around the duty knight, eyes wide, faces frozen in disbelief.
They watched a group of prisoners flee in panic, the sight leaving everyone present stunned.
This was a military camp. Who would dare break prisoners out here?
As hesitation set in, the charging figure of the Golden Needle Knight snapped them back to their senses. They saw him wrench a spear from the ground and hurl it straight at them.
The spear screamed through the air like a great arrow fired from a golem. They hurriedly raised their shields to block it.
But the spear's speed was simply too great, far beyond the limits of their reaction.