Beside the scorched mountain of corpses, the winged misbegotten saw Nidhogg in his Vagabond Knight Set and naturally considered him a member of Castle Morne—their enemy.
Therefore, they roared like a troop of baboons in the mountains and forests, leaping and charging at Nidhogg, holding their bloodstained iron knives high, ready at any moment to cut off Nidhogg's head and make him part of this mountain of corpses.
In an instant, over a dozen winged misbegotten surrounded Nidhogg, glaring at him with fierce faces.
Jingle—!
Nidhogg shook the bell in his hand again, summoning the two Lost Knights—Ingvall and Oleg—and asked them to share the firepower for him.
He stayed put, drinking Cerulean Tears from his Flask to replenish the focus he had consumed.
CRASH—!
Before the winged misbegotten could react, both Ingvall and Oleg started with their spinning step attacks, raising a strong wind and crashing into these winged misbegotten. The halberd and twin swords instantly began a massacre!
Where were those winged misbegotten a match for the two Lost Knights? One after another, they were cut down like melons and vegetables. They could barely hold on by relying on their numerical advantage, though their formation was completely destroyed.
The winged misbegotten leader, standing by the bonfire at the top of the mountain of corpses, heard the commotion. He no longer looked at the bonfire but turned and gazed at the battlefield below.
When he saw his people being pursued and killed by the two knights, and another man, apparently their leader, standing at the base of the corpse pile, he knew something was wrong.
The winged misbegotten leader raised a great axe in his hand, called a "long-handled cleaver," roared at Nidhogg, and leaped down from the top of the corpse pile in big strides, charging at him.
Nidhogg was in no hurry and not panicked at all. He slowly put away his Flask. This time, he drew Bloodhound's Fang in one hand and his brass shield in the other, waiting for the winged misbegotten's attack.
The winged misbegotten leader didn't care. He held his long-handled cleaver high and swung it at Nidhogg!
CLANG—!
Nidhogg immediately raised his brass shield and used Iron Wall. In an instant, the brass shield was enveloped in a layer of white light, demonstrating strong defensive power.
The long-handled cleaver struck it fiercely, only making a dull thud, and then rebounded!
Nidhogg felt almost nothing, standing firm as a mountain.
The winged misbegotten leader couldn't help but show a surprised expression. He strangely turned his head to look at his long-handled cleaver, which had rebounded, unable to understand why his weapon couldn't even shake the enemy's shield.
This shouldn't be. He had killed so many of Godrick's soldiers in Castle Morne and seen their brass shields. None of them could do this!
Nidhogg had already seized the moment. He thrust with Bloodhound's Fang and, with a sharp sound, easily pierced the chest and abdomen of the winged misbegotten leader!
He withdrew the blade and kicked the incredulous winged misbegotten leader!
The winged misbegotten leader was stabbed and kicked onto the mountain of corpses. He managed to look up at Nidhogg, then his whole body went limp, and the long-handled cleaver in his hand slipped from his grasp.
After killing the winged misbegotten leader, Nidhogg wondered whether he should help the two Lost Knights when he suddenly heard a loud roar from the side, followed by fast, heavy footsteps.
He turned his head and saw a huge, humanoid monster in a pumpkin helmet, holding a great hammer, running towards him!
「Mad Pumpkin Head」
"A tall, powerful mad soldier."
"The darkness created by the helmet suppresses panic. But when they bleed or hear the flapping of insect wings, they go mad and lose control. The mad soldier is the ultimate fate of the mentally broken swordsman."
According to the information provided by his Spectral Sight, the predecessor of the Mad Pumpkin Head was a mentally broken swordsman who had to wear a special pumpkin helmet to suppress mad panic.
He was probably also one of the guardians of Castle Morne. But the massacre in the city had directly triggered his madness. Even the pumpkin helmet couldn't suppress it. He began to attack everyone he met, friend or foe.
Unknown winged misbegotten and Godrick's soldiers had died under his pumpkin head. His great hammer still bore undried blood.
Nidhogg looked at the Mad Pumpkin Head charging towards him. He didn't expect to awaken the opponent's sanity. He silently put away his brass shield and moved forward.
"GRAAH—!" The Mad Pumpkin Head roared, swung his great hammer, and lunged at Nidhogg, but only swept through the afterimage Nidhogg had left behind!
Bloodhound's Step!
Nidhogg stepped onto the thick arm of the Mad Pumpkin Head, like a swallow. He stepped on his wrist and leaned towards his head. As his whole body spun in the air, the blade of Bloodhound's Fang also carved an arc!
FWOOSH—!
Bloodhound's Fang precisely cut the throat beneath the pumpkin helmet. A fan-shaped arc of blood sprayed out. Nidhogg landed gracefully at that moment.
No matter how mad this Mad Pumpkin Head was, he instinctively covered his bleeding throat with his left hand, swung his great hammer with his right, and stepped forward, trying to chase Nidhogg to his death.
However, Nidhogg had calmly retreated after the fatal strike, completely ignoring the Mad Pumpkin Head's dying movements. He watched as he crashed to the ground with a gush of blood.
CRASH—!
The Mad Pumpkin Head fell onto the mountain of corpses, becoming part of this terrifying altar's composition.
「Quest」 Golden Tree (Growth: 25%)
This time, progress had increased by 10% at once. It seemed this was due to the fallen winged misbegotten leader and the Mad Pumpkin Head. At this rate, the quest progress reaching 100% was not far off.
Nidhogg turned and looked around. The two Lost Knights had also finished clearing out the winged misbegotten around the mountain of corpses. One stood with his halberd, the other with his twin swords sheathed. Both were majestic.
He looked again towards the city center and saw that Azan and Serpico had kept their promise, guarding Irina's side without retreating an inch.
Before them lay the corpses of over a dozen hungry dogs. Lhutel the Headless Knight stood to the side, occasionally stabbing with golden spears and retreating.
Azan and Serpico both looked up with emotion, just in time to meet Nidhogg's gaze. They couldn't help but be stunned again by surprise.
They had just dealt with this group of hungry dogs, and Nidhogg had already killed over a dozen winged misbegotten, plus the winged leader and a Mad Pumpkin Head?
Is this the world of the strong?
Nidhogg nodded to them, then turned to leave, the two Lost Knights following behind him.
He climbed the mountain of corpses, passed the burning bonfire, turned right, and saw a room hidden behind two thorned horses.
With a creak, he opened the door. Nidhogg nimbly looked left and, sure enough, saw a heavy, simple treasure chest placed in an inconspicuous corner.
When he opened the chest, he saw an unassuming greatsword quietly nestled inside.
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