Crack!
A sharp cracking sound echoed through the battlefield. Following Damien's attack, spiderweb-like fractures began to spread rapidly across the Stone Hearted Knight's chest, centered around the heart.
Relief washed over the soldiers. Even Devrok was about to exhale a long-held breath—when the Knight's body suddenly glowed with a violent silvery light.
Roar!!
The Knight howled like a deranged beast, unleashing a soul crushing shockwave that spiraled outward with terrifying force.
Damien, who stood closest, was hit squarely. The blast slamd into his body like a tidal wave, launching him backward like a broken arrow.
"Hold on! Don't let the monster break free!"
"What do we do, Prince? This thing is beyond us..."
The soldiers holding the massive ropes scread in panic, their voices strained as they struggled to maintain their grip. The ropes creaked under pressure, the horses pulling against the Knight's renewed fury.
Devrok coughed violently, forcing himself to stay standing as he planted his sword into the ground for support. His expression was grim—ashen even.
The Stone Hearted Knight's strength... it was beyond his imagination.
Only soone who had reached the First Rank and cultivated Iron Mana stood a chance against such a foe.
But none among them had reached that level.
Or so he thought.
It was at this ti his gaze landed on Damien—who now lay on the ground, slowly rising to his feet, his expression indifferent even a little cold.
At that mont, a subtle, grayish aura began to radiate from Damien's body. His skin shimred faintly, hardening like reforged iron.
Devrok's eyes widened in shock. His breath caught in his throat.
For a mont, even the looming threat of death was forgotten.
"...First Rank Warrior..."
He muttered in disbelief.
That aura—there was no mistaking it. The telltale sign of soone who had crossed the threshold and stepped into the First Rank.
Devrok blinked rapidly, then pinched himself hard. The pain was sharp, real. Not a dream.
"How is this possible...?"
His words echoed the thoughts of every soldier present.
The pressure Damien now released struck them like a rising storm. It rolled over the camp in heavy, undulating waves.
"I-Is this for real...?"
"The Crown Prince... he's a First Rank Warrior?"
Gasps of disbelief spread like wildfire.
The rumors had claid Damien failed to awaken. Yet here he stood—not just awakened, but having advanced to the First Rank in a matter of days.
It was mind-shattering.
No one could wrap their heads around it.
...
But Damien wasn't paying attention to their reactions.
His eyes remained fixed on the Stone Hearted Knight, now thrashing wildly beneath its restraints, trying to break free.
He clenched his fists, feeling the power coursing through his veins. Mana surged violently around him, responding to his will like a raging tide.
"I have to end this... quickly."
The longer the fight dragged on, the more risks would surface—unknown variables that could spiral out of control.
Taking a deep breath, Damien whispered in a voice only he could hear:
"Co out."
From deep within his spiritual space, the purple marble trembled.
A mont later, a flash of purple light erupted—and Damien's soul weapon appeared in his hand.
It was a cold, smooth piece of steel, its two-foot-long barrel etched with ancient runes that glowed faintly with pulsating violet energy.
The mont his fingers curled around the grip, a wave of confidence surged through him.
This was his true strength.
Devrok's eyes narrowed as he watched from afar.
"What... is that?" he murmured in confusion. He had never seen such a weapon before, nor had he seen anyone summon one out of thin air.
Snap!
One of the ropes holding the Knight's arm snapped with a sharp twang, and the monster's limb broke free.
Damien's gaze sharpened.
"No more delays."
Without hesitation, he raised the silver barrel and pointed it downward toward the exposed heart.
His finger curled around the cold, tallic trigger.
A glint of bone-chilling resolve flashed in his eyes.
Click.
In that mont, the soul weapon roared to life.
Roughly ten percent of Damien's mana vanished instantly, absorbed into the weapon as the glowing runes along the barrel flared to blinding intensity.
Mana condensed. Accelerated. Compressed to its limit.
BOOM!
The weapon howled, and the air in front of the barrel exploded with a deafening blast.
A bullet of grayish mana erupted from the muzzle, tearing through the space between them in a blink.
The mont it struck the Knight's heart, a sound like shattering glass echoed across the battlefield.
Crack... Boom!
The heart shattered into a thousand glittering fragnts.
But the bullet didn't stop.
It tore through the Knight's body and burrowed deep into the earth beneath it, leaving behind a scorched trail.
The Stone Hearted Knight's body froze.
The madness in its eyes flickered... then dimd.
Its massive fra collapsed, lifeless.
Silence fell.
The soldiers stood still, unable to process what they had just seen.
The sound of the gunshot still echoed in their ears like distant thunder.
A cold breeze swept through the field, and Damien's hair fluttered in its wake. He stood tall, gun still in hand, his face an expressionless mask.
Devrok, usually quick to speak or react, remained speechless. His mouth opened but no words ca out.
He was stunned.
Completely, thoroughly stunned.
Damien glanced at him from the corner of his eye and sighed inwardly.
He's still in shock!!
He resisted the urge to smirk and turned his attention to the battlefield.
"I'll take charge, then."
His voice rang out, calm and commanding.
"Extract the beast core. We leave in five minutes."
"Yes, Crown Prince!" the soldiers responded in unison, their morale surging.
They surged forward like seasoned butchers. Knives, axes, and hamrs worked in sync as they dismbered the Knight's corpse.
Unlike most monsters whose beast cores were embedded near the heart or abdon, the Stone Hearted Knight's was hidden within its skull.
It took ti and effort, but eventually, with a crack and squelch, the core was retrieved—gleaming and dark, pulsing with residual energy.
Damien watched the extraction in silence.
His eyes flickered silver as his mind processed every movent, every technique, and filed it away for later—improving, optimizing, evolving.
Then—footsteps.
Devrok approached.
His expression had changed. The shock had faded, replaced by a complicated joy... and confusion.
He was happy—truly happy—that Damien had awakened.
But questions clouded his mind.
He had been there during the ceremony. Heard the formation master's words. Witnessed Damien's failed awakening with his own eyes.
So how?
And more importantly why hide it?
And when... had Damien advanced to the First Rank?
The questions burned in his chest, but now wasn't the ti to ask them.
The situation in the forest was very wrong.
There were too many monsters.
More than they'd ever encountered in this part of the forest.
And all of them... looked tensed afraid, seemingly as if they were running for their lives.
As if sothing deep within the forest—sothing far worse—was pushing them outward.
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