A pile of knights awaited me in front of my master and Lionel. The pair clearly hadn’t worried about the difference in level between their opponents and themselves. In fact, they must have seemed like the perfect opponents to practice their counters on.
I couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for the knights. They were the protectors of the Church, and I knew firsthand that they had the skills to live up to that title. Opposite them were my master and Lionel, two insanely powerful fighters. This mock battle would’ve served as training for the knights to subdue and restrain strong opponents, while giving Brod and Lionel a chance to face off against multiple adversaries at once—something they didn’t get to do very often these days.
It should’ve been a great experience for both parties. “Should” being the keyword here. Because as soon as I returned to the training grounds and healed the knights, the pair decided to change their strategy. Despite having sustained some injuries, they completely brushed them off and shifted their offense to a more aggressive approach.
The knights managed to hold their ground and fight back, successfully wounding the duo. Unfortunately for them, they couldn’t have known that this would turn the two battle-crazed lunatics into battle-crazed demons.
The demons in question asked me for some healing, which I readily provided. Then, once their wounds were closed, they broke into ferocious grins and charged back at their opponents. The knights must’ve felt the shift in their demeanor, as they began slashing at them for real to end the training as fast as possible.
After that, it felt like I was watching a combat scene straight out of a movie. The two demons (my master and Lionel, that is) evaded, warded off, and repelled attack after attack. However, at their current level, they couldn’t dodge every single hit, and the number of wounds on their bodies quickly multiplied. I genuinely began to think they might lose.
Overwhelmed by knights on every side, they found themselves standing back-to-back. Without exchanging a single word, they began rotating on the spot to shield each other from the knights’ relentless assault and counter with swift strikes. They would occasionally allow themselves to take hits if it meant that they could deal more damage in return, slowly chipping away at their opponents’ numbers. Soon, some of the knights began backing away from the fight, cowering in fear. The sentiment quickly spread through the rest of their ranks, and hesitation began to ripple through the group.
Unfortunately for them, my master and Lionel weren’t generous enough to overlook that weakness. They took control of the fight, forcing their opponents to attack in ways that were easier for them to handle, and managed to isolate duels wherever they could. Knowing that friendly fire was more likely to happen when fighting one-on-one battles, the knights quickly tried to regroup, but it was too late. They soon found themselves crushed—both physically and mentally—and Brod and Lionel began knocking them out one after the other, as if to say they weren’t interested in such weak opponents.
“D’you really think you can protect the Church with those weak muscles and pathetic willpower? Luciel’s a million times more fun to fight than you,” Brod said.
“Hard agree,” Lionel chimed in. “You’re all in a miserable state. What do you hope to accomplish like this?”
The two of them tried to rile the knights up by taunting them, but the knights got cold feet and wouldn’t budge. Brod’s and Lionel’s expressions soured, disappointed and frustrated that their opponents wouldn’t fight back.
But then, two figures approached them.
“From now on, we shall take over the fight,” the first said.
“We got it, you’re strong. So we’ve gotta step in before you damage the Knights of Shurule’s reputation too badly.”
The voices belonged to none other than Elizabeth and Saran, two members of the Valkyries. The other members of their squad were standing alongside them, weapons at the ready. It seemed they had finished throwing the demonized knights into the cells.
“Oh? The Church’s strongest paladins have come to challenge us?” Brod said.
“I’ve sparred with them before,” Lionel commented. “They’re the cream of the crop of the Church, for sure.”
When the Valkyries were first established, they were frequently dispatched to the battlefield or tasked with dealing with thieves—assignments their superiors labeled “routine tasks.” The true intention was likely to undermine the Church’s only female-only regiment before they could make any significant impact. However, the outcome was quite the opposite. These adverse circumstances had helped the Valkyries grow tremendously, both by raising their levels and skills and by building trust between the members. As a result, they had become the Church’s strongest regiment. Some even claimed that Lumina, the Valkyries’ leader, was stronger than Catherine, the Captain of the Guard.
Six months ago, the Valkyries had faced off against Lionel, Ketty, and Kefin and lost miserably. Since then, Ketty and Kefin had only gotten stronger, and I was positive they would be able to easily defeat the Valkyries on their own. But my master’s and Lionel’s skills and levels had been completely reset after the pair had died. They had started building their stats back up again, but I genuinely had no idea if they could hold their own against the Valkyries yet. As such, I was quite curious to see how the fight would unfold.
Unfortunately, it seemed I’d have to wait to find out. Why? Well...
“Luciel. I’m hungry,” Pola said.
“Mister Luciel, when can we go to that artifact store you mentioned?” Lycian added.
Dhoran was next. “Luciel, I’m tired of watchin’ these blokes brawl. I reckon it’s high time we head back to the airship and get that magic artillery installed.”
It seemed that the members of Luciel and Co.’s research and development squad had finally gotten bored with waiting around. I couldn’t blame them. We’d arrived in the city when the sun was still high in the sky, but after the whole demonized knights debacle, the ensuing fight, and the cleanup that had followed, it was already getting dark.
My master and Lionel had been training with the knights for almost three hours now. I had no doubt that the two battle-crazed demons could continue, but all the knights—minus the Valkyries—were exhausted, both physically and mentally. If they continued to push themselves, they wouldn’t be able to do their job to the best of their abilities tomorrow.
Besides, although Lycian wouldn’t cause me too much trouble, I had a feeling that Pola and Dhoran would be a pain to deal with if they got cranky. With that in mind, I decided it was time to wrap up the mock battle.
“Master, Lionel, let’s stop here for today.”
“But, Luciel, we don’t get this kind of opportunity too often,” Brod argued.
Yeah, I’d had an inkling he wouldn’t give up so easily. Good thing I had a plan—one that might just ignite some motivation in the knights as well.
“Take a look around,” I replied. “You’ve beaten up the knights so thoroughly, they don’t have an ounce of fighting spirit left in them.”
“Yeah, that’s why we’re going to fight the Valkyries now,” my master retorted.