Chapter 45: Battle on the Ice (Part 3)

Taulos was closing in, and to the Doombull's eyes, it seemed that Ryan had given up resisting. Whether it was due to blood loss or its relentless attacks clouding Ryan's mind didn't matter.

What mattered was that victory was within reach.

So, it quickened its pace, savoring the impending triumph.

Watching the Four-Armed Bull Demon approach, Ryan carefully calculated Taulos's steps, gathering the last of his strength.

The massive hooves cracked the ice wherever Taulos stepped.

Closer and closer, the giant shadow loomed over him, the sun obscured by its form, casting Ryan into shadow.

Five meters. Four meters. Three meters.

When the Four-Armed Bull Demon was within two meters, Ryan finally moved.

The White Wolf Knight's right fist slammed into the ice beneath him, creating a web of cracks. With gritted teeth, Ryan rolled away, enduring the pain.

The multitude of cracks connected with those under Taulos.

The fragile ice could no longer support the beast's massive weight. Just as Taulos raised its axe, the ice gave way, and half its body plunged into the freezing river. The sudden cold and the feeling of weightlessness paralyzed it momentarily.

Now! The psychic blade on Ryan's right wrist flared to life as he lunged forward, slashing in a cross motion.

"Raaaargh!" The two bone-bladed arms on the Doombull's back were severed by Ryan's psychic blade. Enraged by the loss of its new limbs, Taulos swung its remaining arm wildly. Ryan quickly dodged and ran in a different direction.

"Smart move." In the void, a graceful figure nodded slightly. Her waist-length golden hair and nearly perfect tall figure were obscured by a thin mist, her features indistinct. Seeing Ryan retreat after wounding the Four-Armed Bull Demon, her eyes shone.

"Foolish!!" Conversely, Ulric let out an angry roar, deeply disappointed. "That boy disappoints me! As a White Wolf Knight, he should fight to the death!"

"He hasn't given up, Ulric!"

"What?"

Ryan clutched his right shoulder, limping to the abandoned caravan. He lifted the canvas, revealing two sealed barrels of fire oil. The White Wolf Knight nodded, grabbing one of the barrels.

Meanwhile, the Four-Armed Bull Demon finally climbed out of the river. Just as it looked up, a large wooden barrel flew towards it. Taulos roared, smashing the barrel. "Do you think this can defeat me? Human... What is this?"

The barrel shattered easily, but the thick, black liquid inside doused it.

"It's over!!!" Ryan grabbed a torch left by the caravan. With a swift motion, he lit it and, after a short run, threw it. The flaming torch spun through the cold air, the red flames touching the black liquid on Taulos.

What is this? What is this human doing?

This was Taulos's last thought.

"Boom!!!!!!!"

An earth-shattering explosion echoed from the peak of Scarville Mountain, the shockwave reverberating through the valley, shaking entire swathes of pine forest, and dislodging snow everywhere. The explosion left a scorched area over ten meters wide, and the ensuing smoke and dust forced Ryan to cover his eyes and nose.

After about ten seconds, the smoke began to clear.

At the explosion's center, the Four-Armed Bull Demon was charred black. Its remaining arm had been blown off, its rock-hard skin shattered, exposing white bone. Its abdomen was blown open, entrails spilling out. Half of its bull face was destroyed, revealing teeth, creating a horrific sight.

Even so, Taulos was still alive, moving painfully towards Ryan, its face twisted into a crazed, bloodthirsty, hateful smile.

"Human... you are strong, truly strong... Raaaaargh!" Taulos spat venomously. "Perhaps you win today... But I will return from the Warp someday. Then I'll peel your flesh from your bones, chew your brain, and make you taste true pain!"

"I curse you... your wounds will heal, but your pain will not. The injury I left on your shoulder... will haunt you for life! You will always suffer from it," Taulos's remaining eye glowed blood-red, staring at Ryan.

"Oh? Is that so? I don't think you'll get the chance!" Ryan's body swayed, but his indomitable will overcame the pain. The White Wolf Knight charged at Taulos.

"In the name of Dorn!" Ryan poured all his remaining psychic energy into his left hand. Pale blue psychic power gathered, gradually bursting into a bright, silver-gold light.

Ryan turned his body slightly to the left, quickly twisting his upper body, his left foot pushing off the ground, his left fist following through, downward, forward, and upward.

His fist struck Taulos's chin squarely.

The Four-Armed Bull Demon's nearly four-meter-tall body was lifted off the ground, spinning through the air. Its jaw deformed, teeth shattered, blood spraying from its mouth.

Taulos's soul, still laughing wickedly, left its body. It didn't die; it was about to return to the Warp. "This is your last victory, human!"

"Heh, you think you can escape?" The White Wolf Knight smirked.

Bright psychic light radiated from the mountain peak, forming a massive vortex. Taulos's soul was drawn towards it, away from the Warp, closer to the psychic vortex.

"No! No! This can't be! You... Ah!!! Nooooo!!!" Taulos's soul wailed in despair. For the first time, fear appeared on its face. "No! No! No!!!"

The psychic storm engulfed Taulos's filthy soul, the white energy scorching it. The tainted red soul struggled futilely within the vortex.

"No! This is impossible! This is impossible!!!" The Four-Armed Bull Demon's soul was completely shattered by Ryan's psychic power. With its final form dissolved into nothingness, the legendary, invincible abomination finally fell before Ryan.

It was over. Ryan grabbed the massive bull horns, cutting off Taulos's head as a trophy. He collected all the knightly badges on Taulos's body before finally allowing himself to feel the pain from the battle.

The agony nearly overwhelmed his consciousness, but Ryan knew he couldn't pass out now. He crawled to the river, using the ice water to clean his wounds. The cold penetrated his bones. After washing his wounds, he roughly bandaged himself and leaned against a nearby tree, panting heavily.

After evolving into a Four-Armed Bull Demon, Taulos was no longer a mere "creature" but a demon from the Warp.

Demons are notoriously hard to kill. One can defeat them repeatedly, destroy their corporeal forms, but their essence isn't physical. They are collections of negative energy from the Warp.

Normally, demons can't enter the material world unless certain beings in the material world fall further into corruption or under special circumstances, allowing demons to pass through the Chaos Gates into the material world.

Once a demon's corporeal form is destroyed, its soul returns to the Warp, taking a long time to recover and re-form, awaiting the next opportunity to invade the material world.

But Ryan is different. As his father's child, he could completely obliterate a demon's soul. A demon or undead creature killed by him would never revive; death would be absolute.

Leaning against a pine tree, Ryan noticed a faintly glowing coin on the ground. He instinctively reached for it, revealing a coin with the goddess of wealth and trade embossed on it.

A divine coin!!! I'm rich this time! Goddess of luck, thank you for this fortune! Ryan's eyes widened in delight, a smile breaking out despite his injuries.

Divine coins are a universal currency on the continent, issued officially by the Church of Wealth. Each divine coin contains a trace of the goddess's divine power. They were created because large amounts of golden dinars were cumbersome to carry—transactions involving thousands of gold coins often became a huge burden, complicating transport and storage, leading to frequent disputes. Thus, when the merchants prayed to the goddess, she created these divine coins.

One divine coin is worth a thousand golden dinars, though their actual value is higher due to their versatility in various major spells and alchemical processes. On some black markets, they could fetch up to twelve hundred dinars or more!

The grievously injured White Wolf Knight beamed, his pain seemingly lessened.

In the void, the discussion continued.

"Beautiful!" Ulric finally laughed heartily. "Hahaha~ See? I knew he would win. I'll inform all the White Wolf temples of what happened here, showing the world what an outstanding young man I have!"

With that, Ulric left, swaggering.

The remaining figure gazed at Ryan, eyes gleaming with divine light. "I've seen that energy before."

The figure recalled encountering an endless army of demons in the Warp before arriving in this world. A human clad in silver armor, surrounded by blue flames, fought them. This human's energy was similar to Ryan's, though clearly not the same person. That human was incredibly tall and powerful, single-handedly driving an entire demon army into retreat. Even demon princes fled before him.

"A red horse. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth, to make people kill each other. A large sword was given to him." The beautiful figure remembered a prophecy obtained with great effort. "The Knight Kingdom will be engulfed in flames, leading to its ultimate destruction."

"There remains a glimmer of hope. A gray horse will confront it. Its rider will bear a sword, and the crown will be granted to him. He will emerge victorious, driving away the darkness."

"…No matter what, leaving this young man in Ulric's hands is a waste. Perhaps I should intervene..." 

The figure didn't tell Ulric that her appearance here was not because of Ryan, but because her knight happened to be passing through this area.

After several minutes, or perhaps hours of rest, Ryan finally managed to stand up. He didn't choose to descend the mountain immediately. Instead, he approached the abandoned caravan supplies and found some discarded ham and pickled vegetables, starting a fire to cook.

The sun gradually set. Thanks to his extraordinary physique and the abilities inherited from his father, Ryan's fatigue and injuries began to heal. Although the wound on his shoulder would take some time to fully recover, it was no longer a significant hindrance.

After consuming an entire ham, Ryan fetched another large ham. The caravan had prepared enough rations for several weeks, so he was making the most of it. He cut the ham into pieces, placed it in an iron pot, and began boiling a stew.

Ryan didn't worry about the beastman warband making a return. With Taulos's head here, the beastmen were now just a disorganized mob. His only wish now was to fill his belly and find a place to rest. After two consecutive days of fighting, he was utterly exhausted.

Reflecting on the arduous pursuit of Bert and the substantial casualties incurred with little to show for it, Ryan sighed deeply. Despite inheriting his father's genes and believing he could achieve great things, the reality of his quest had been harsh. In eight years of combat since he started fighting at sixteen, he had participated in countless battles, slaying over two thousand marauders, greenskins, and beastmen, yet all he had earned was a knight's title.

Though he had achieved much as a noble foster son, it was far from enough.

From the moment he arrived in this world, his father had told him a secret that could upend everything.

According to his father's prophecy, the world would face destruction in several decades. The world would collapse, mountains and rivers would shatter, and a terrifying Chaos Storm would sweep through the material world. All gods would be cast down to the mortal plane, and the four Chaos Gods would personally descend to deliver the final blow.

Despite humanity's desperate resistance, the End Times would come, and the Chaos Gods would ultimately destroy the world.

"How ridiculous it is that I can't even capture a fallen hunter, yet I hope to change the fate of a world?" Ryan stirred the stew, smiling wryly. Stories of invincible transmigrators are just that—stories.

He had to keep pushing forward. Ryan reminded himself that his father's mission was crucial. Only by completing his father's commission, or at least part of it, could he help his father free up his hands to assist him.

As the sun set, the stew began to boil, and the potatoes in the firepit were cooked.

At that moment, a knight appeared from the mountainside, riding a barded warhorse. He wore an ornate bascinet helmet adorned with colorful plumes waving in the cold wind, and his body was covered in a full suit of plate armor. In his left hand, he held a single-handed sword burning with white flames, and his right leg bore a kite shield.

Behind him was a large wooden box made up of many smaller boxes. His armor bore his family crest—a leaping lion on a red and blue quartered field.

"Pardon me, good sir, but may this traveler join you by the fire?" The knight spotted Ryan from a distance. Recognizing the knightly badge and warhammer beside Ryan, he confirmed Ryan as a fellow knight. "Have you just come from battle? I have medicine if you need assistance."

"And where do you hail from, Sir Knight?" Out of courtesy, Ryan stood and returned the greeting.

"I am a knight of the Lady, from Bretonnia, in pursuit of the Grail." The knight approached, his features becoming clearer. He had a broad face, thick eyebrows, and sharp eyes. A neatly trimmed goatee framed his face, giving him a striking appearance. In his early thirties, he seemed full of vigor, his armor adorned with golden tassels and ribbons. Noticing the bloodstains and severe damage to Ryan's armor, he sheathed his sword to show no ill intent. "You're wounded? Were you in battle?"

"…Impressive, Sir Knight!" Ryan was about to respond when he noticed the knight's horse trailing a large net filled with beastmen heads—at least thirty to fifty.

"Is that the head of a Doombull? You killed the Beastlord?" The knight also noticed the large bull head beside Ryan. "Killing a Beastlord is no easy feat. Was that the explosion I heard from the mountaintop?"

"Indeed, I vanquished this abomination for the White Wolf Lord. It took a lot of effort," Ryan replied, eyeing the knight closely.

Yes, from their conversation, Ryan confirmed this man was a Questing Knight, following the Lady of the Lake's vision, embarking on the Grail Quest.

While Grail Knights were known for their virtue, the caliber of Questing Knights varied. Some were nearly as noble as Grail Knights, embodying the Eight Virtues, while others barely surpassed errant knights. However, those who succeeded in their quest were invariably virtuous.

"That's unfortunate." The knight shrugged. "I had hoped to offer the Doombull's head to the Lady. Now, I'll have to seek another worthy prey."

Relieved by the knight's demeanor, Ryan smiled. "Sit, please. On a winter's night, nothing beats a warm stew. Don't you agree?"

"Ha! Wonderful, thank you. By the way, White Wolf Knight, I don't believe I caught your name?" The Questing Knight dismounted. Ryan noted the horse's size and its calm demeanor under heavy armor. It moved leisurely through the winter mountains, eyes full of affection for the knight—and longing for the stew.

A warhorse like a person, undoubtedly a Bretonnian pureblood elven steed, never exported from the knightly kingdom.

"I am Ryan, 'The Hammer' Ryan, son of Norman, Lord of Ortne, and a White Wolf Knight." Ryan extended his hand.

"So it is you! I am Lorne, Lorne de Lyon-Connaught, son of Duke 'Upright' Louis of Connaught, and now a Questing Knight."

Ryan smiled, his hand meeting Lorne's in a firm shake.