"Damn it!"
The fatal wound sent blood vessels bursting across Morais's eyes, crimson threads spreading through the whites as rage overtook him. The two lightning swords in his hands flared with blinding brilliance, and he swung them down at Kurose Akira in a frenzy.
The force of that thunderous strike compelled Akira to evade at once, his massive dragon-armored body twisting aside to narrowly avoid the cleaving arc of lightning.
Having forced him back for a moment, Morais lowered his head and looked at his chest.
A gruesome, gaping hole yawned there—flesh torn open, blood spilling freely.
As an enforcement knight, he had long been prepared to die in the line of duty.
But he had never imagined—
—that he would fall to someone so young.
"Cough… cough! To think I would fall… because of arrogance…"
He coughed up another mouthful of blood. Even the most exalted high priest of the Starlight Kingdom would not be able to save him now.
Only death awaited.
The moment those words left his lips, dazzling golden light burst from the wound in his chest.
Akira's expression instantly turned cold.
Knight's Whisper.
He had seen this before.
A technique capable of restoring a grievously wounded body to its peak condition in an instant.
But the cost—
Was absolute.
It signified that the user's life would soon reach its end.
"…Well, I've lived long enough."
Morais murmured to himself.
"If I can take you back to Lord Tyles… it will repay the debt my family owes him."
As his voice faded, the golden radiance within his wound shifted into crackling blue lightning. It surged through his body, sealing the injury, mending flesh with violent flashes of electricity.
His aura skyrocketed.
Even stronger than before.
"You won't get that chance."
Akira's tone was calm.
He snapped his fingers lightly.
In the sky above, dozens of magic circles manifested in an instant, surrounding Morais from every direction.
He hadn't stood idly by while Morais regenerated.
The Super-Tier Spell—Elemental Eruption—had already been silently chanted.
Under the triple blessing of the Elf Queen, his elemental damage had received a 500% amplification.
Add to that the fire-element boost from his Thunderflame Staff, plus the 200% elemental damage increase granted by the baptism of the World Tree—
The destructive power of the spell he was about to unleash had reached a terrifying, unprecedented level.
In the blink of an eye, the dozens of magic circles flared in brilliant, multicolored light. Vast elemental forces gathered within them, compressing to a suffocating density.
The violent fluctuations drained the color from Morais's face.
He had never imagined—
That this human could transform into a half-dragon.
Wield the power of a vampire.
And now—
Unleash magic of this magnitude.
He had assumed Akira specialized in close combat.
He was wrong.
"Disappear."
As Akira's voice fell—
The magic circles detonated like ignited fireworks.
Flames.Gales.Roaring torrents of elemental force.
Every element erupted simultaneously, engulfing Morais completely.
"NO—!"
His unwilling roar tore through the chaos, hoarse and desperate.
But it was quickly drowned beneath the violent storm of elements.
When the last flare of magic subsided—
Morais was gone.
Erased as though he had never existed.
Only a lightning-shaped crystal, glowing with mysterious blue radiance, remained suspended in midair.
[Star Knight Morais defeated. EXP +200,000!]
"Fuuu…"
Akira exhaled deeply.
He had burned through every trump card he possessed.
And at last—
Without catastrophe—
He had slain the Level 78 Star Knight.
The moment victory was decided, Mare Rhine separated from his body, the dragon-scale armor dissolving away as she returned to her original form.
She crossed her arms proudly beneath her chest, eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Human! My power was magnificent, wasn't it?"
"Yeah…"
Akira tried to force a smile in response.
But the next second—
As his attributes returned to normal and his magic reserves bottomed out—
An overwhelming wave of weakness crashed into him.
His vision swam.
His body pitched forward uncontrollably.
"Guildmaster!"
The elf sisters rushed in from either side, catching him before he collapsed.
Loserin also stepped up beside him, those starlit eyes fixed on him in open disbelief.
So strong.
She had never imagined her guildmaster could erupt with such power.
It shattered every prior impression she had of him.
The once somewhat frail image of her guild leader in her mind—
Was gone.
In its place stood a warrior of overwhelming presence and might.
"Was the consumption too much?"
After a few seconds of hazy confusion, Akira's mind gradually cleared.
"Human, it's only natural you can't withstand my power!"
Mare Rhine declared smugly, flashing a proud grin.
"I am no ordinary dragon. My power of destruction far exceeds your imagination! And what you just witnessed was merely my weakest form. If the opportunity arises, I shall show you my other, far stronger combat forms!"
"Oh? I'm looking forward to that."
Akira raised an eyebrow, genuine interest flickering in his gaze.
[Multiple Combat Forms] could be used like this?
That had caught him off guard.
Under his expectant stare, Mare Rhine lifted her chin and puffed out her chest proudly, thoroughly enjoying his attention.
Of course—
She didn't tell him that these powers were something she had only obtained after her rebirth.
In other words, the root of that strength actually came from him.
She was merely the vessel.
"What's that?"
Akira's gaze shifted to the lightning-shaped crystal Morais had left behind.
He walked over, bent down, and picked it up for inspection.
[Thunder Crystal (Epic): A crystal containing the might of thunder. Can be embedded into a weapon to increase lightning-element power by 100%! Absorbs 50% lightning-element damage!]
"Not bad."
He nodded in satisfaction and stored the Thunder Crystal in his inventory.
It was a perfect match for his Thunderflame Staff.
However, embedding an Epic-grade crystal into a weapon would likely require the craftsmanship of a high-level blacksmith.
Which meant—
He would have to seek out that player named "Red" again.
Now that he thought about it, "Red" had been the very first friend he added after entering this game.
They had never met face-to-face.
Yet Akira couldn't help but feel curious about this mysterious acquaintance.
"Let's head back."
After securing the crystal, he began activating the teleportation array to return to the guild.
He had killed two Star Knights here.
He needed to leave before Prince Tyles's forces discovered the scene.
"Clap. Clap. Clap~"
The sudden sound of crisp applause made his body stiffen slightly.
But he did not interrupt the teleportation process.
He couldn't risk cutting off his escape route.
Accompanied by the slow, rhythmic clapping—
A familiar, clear female voice echoed leisurely through the air.
"How truly astonishing, Guildmaster Su Xuan."
"I never expected you to defeat Morais, the Thunderlight Knight ranked tenth in the Starlight Kingdom."
"It would be such a waste… if you could not be used by me."
Akira stopped his hand mid-motion and turned.
There—
Once more—
Stood the princess whose eyes shimmered with eerie golden light.