Chapter 8

Belial, still in the same spot, stood with his hands poised to attack the captain in front of him, but suddenly:

"Kill him!"

The voices of the knights startled him, and he quickly stepped back to create some distance as the knights began running towards him. He wasn't afraid of them; he kept his distance because of his centuries of battle experience.

He was simply being cautious, taking precautions. Even though he was strong, very strong, he still needed to be vigilant. Who knew among the knights could be capable of harming him?

Belial watched as they all ran towards him, raising their weapons. Not all of the knights charged at him; only those with close-range weapons approached him, while the others stayed behind, wielding bows and preparing to shoot arrows at Belial.

As for their captain, he also rose and lunged at Belial:

Swing!

"Heh~"

The knight captain swung at him, but Belial managed to dodge in time, and the swing only grazed his cheek. Yes, the captain's attack was strong enough to leave a scratch on his cheek and create a small wound:

"This is getting more interesting~"

For some reason, Belial became incredibly excited, perhaps because he finally encountered a fairly strong opponent after spending days in this world.

Thud!

"Gah!"

Even so, he still didn't use half of his strength to strike the knight captain:

"Tch, so only his swing is strong."

The knight captain, punched in the stomach by Belial, collapsed to the ground while clutching his agonizing belly.

The soldiers under the knight captain witnessed what Belial did to their captain, and in anger, they all immediately attacked him:

Swing! Slash! Swish!

Many attacks were launched at him, ranging from swings, thrusts, arrows, and magic. They all converged on Belial at once.

"Power of Sword."

Since it was impossible for him to evade all of them in his current state, he reluctantly activated his Power of Sword and swiftly deflected all of the attacks with the blood-red sword in his hand.

"...!"

One of the knights, Celestia, was astonished by the movements of the human who had become their opponent. She thought it was impossible for a human to move like that.

"Who are you really?"

She decided to halt the battle that had only lasted for a minute and asked the seemingly unscathed human in front of her.

No, Belial was actually injured due to the onslaught of the knights' bombardment, but thanks to his Power of Healing ability, he could heal all those wounds in an instant.

In response to the question from the knight in front of him, whose voice sounded feminine, Belial spoke with a smile:

"My name is Belial, you can call me Bell."

He introduced himself in a noble-like manner.

"... I didn't ask for your name, I asked who you are?!"

Celestia's blood boiled, and she became angry hearing the human's statement, but she still refrained from retaliating. She needed to gather useful information from this human. Who knows, maybe by asking like this, Celestia could discover the human's weaknesses.

However, it seemed futile:

"Haish, you're really rude for a woman. I politely introduced myself... Well, that's not important now, right? Come on, attack me again." Belial's words carried arrogance and mockery.

"Tch, attack him!"

Celestia gritted her teeth and angrily resumed her assault.

A battle of 1 vs 49 unfolded in that place, with Belial effortlessly taking down one knight after another. He had no intention of killing them; he merely wanted to teach them a lesson as an outlet for his frustration of being unable to leave the Great Megálos Forest.

Swing!

Tang!

Slash!

Whoosh!

Boom!

The sound of clashing swords, the air being slashed and pierced, arrows flying at high speed, and the explosions from fire magic could be heard in the relatively narrow battlefield.

Belial continued to dodge and parry all the knights' attacks using the blood-red sword in his hand. He didn't forget to strike and render unconscious the knights who attacked him.

Tang!

"Sigh... This is boring, you know? All your friends have fallen."

Belial, engaged in a sword fight with Celestia, said while looking back at the Elven woman. He seemed to urge her to look behind, to see her fellow knights.

"...?!"

And, she was half-surprised after glancing back:

'Everyone... Have we all been defeated?' She was truly confused, and in an instant, she panicked, cold sweat began to trickle down her face.

Yes, Celestia, known for her fearless attitude, was now frightened and desperately fell to the ground, her trembling body supported by both knees:

"No... It can't be..."

Seeing the trembling knight woman kneeling on the ground, Belial suddenly couldn't bear to watch her. The anger inside him had disappeared, and he was satisfied with beating them up. He approached the Elven woman.

Fwish...

The red sword in his hand disappeared as he walked closer to the Elf woman:

"Sigh... I'm sorry. I admit, I went too far... Well, it's also your fault, you know? I wanted to leave this forest, but you wouldn't allow it, and that made me angry. So... I apologize for what I've done."

As he reached the woman's side, he awkwardly apologized and tried to explain to the Elf woman that he was not at fault here.

(Note: Belial is using Rune language, the language of the Elves, here.)

Celestia, currently in despair, ignored the human's explanation. She suddenly became angry and immediately stood up, still holding her sword.

Wiiing...

Her sword suddenly emitted a green light. Yes, it was 'Mana Energy,' but it wasn't pure 'Mana Energy' as it was mixed with the energy of spirits, the inherent energy of the Elves.

"...?"

Belial tilted his head, confused by the events before him:

"What do you intend to do?"

"..."

Celestia didn't answer and immediately removed the helmet, revealing her beautiful face. However, at this moment, her lovely face was blushing. It was anger, a fierce anger.

"Tch, so you don't want to listen to me... Fine, Power of Sword. In that case, come at me."

Sling!

Sensing the immense anger emanating from the Elf woman in front of him, Belial knew that she wanted to kill him:

'Yes, her killing intent has suddenly become incredibly strong. It wasn't visible at all before..." He smiled, ready to fight with the sword of Power of Sword already in his grasp.

On the other hand, Celestia's mind was empty, with only the word "KILL" echoing inside her head. She was no longer the same Celestia.

She took a step forward, approaching the human in front of her.

"Celes..."

Isolde, who had regained consciousness but was still unable to stand, looked at her friend who was no longer the person she knew:

"What should I do..." She didn't know, she could only hope that Celestia, her friend, wouldn't become a corpse in this place.

* * *

In the depths of the Great Forest of Megálos.

The footsteps of dozens of people could be heard in the depths of the forest, and upon closer inspection, it was a group of Adventurers, Knights, and Magic Casters walking together, led by someone at the front.

That person was wearing golden armor with green patterns and a symbol of two leaves on the chestplate.

Yes, it was The Wise Elf Queen: Glorieux eta Dotorea, who was currently riding a wingless unicorn-like creature. And at this moment, she was nearing her destination, the northern part of the Tier 10 Magic: Absolute Divine Protector that protected the Great Forest of Megálos and her kingdom, Glorieux Kingdom.

"Your Majesty, we're almost there."

Suddenly, a voice resonated in Queen Dotorea's mind. Yes, it was telepathy from the assassin who had gone ahead and seemed to have seen the intended location.

"...!"

"What is it?" Sensing the surprise in her assassin's voice, Queen Dotorea instantly panicked and asked.

"It's... Your Majesty... They... The knights, they're lying on the ground."

Upon hearing the answer, Queen Dotorea became even more panicked, but she maintained her composure.

"We must hurry." She immediately ordered the dozens of people following her to move quickly.

'What could my knights be facing...? Oh, Mother of Megálos. Please protect them all.'

She silently prayed in her heart, her worry growing stronger.

In the end, the group continued to move forward, with an uncomfortable feeling that couldn't be explained lingering in the hearts of everyone.