Chapter 172 The Soldier widened their eyes

The Soldier widened their eyes, watching the strange horse that had crossed the obstacle in an instant.

Torrent landed like a rabbit, making almost no sound, and then, they headed straight for the palace without looking back.

“Sound the alarm!” The infantry captain shouted: “Someone is breaking through the checkpoint, sound the alarm quickly!”

The Soldier looked at each other, but some also looked at the galloping horse.

They suddenly felt an unusual movement.

The Soldier saw the pebbles at their feet jumping inexplicably, trembling like drumbeats.

Dust falling from the city wall sprinkled on their head.

The Soldier swore loudly and patted their dusty helmet.

When they looked up again, they found that everyone around them had turned to face one direction.

“?”

Thump, thump, thump.

A slow and rhythmic sound, like drumbeats, came from the thick earth.

They turned their head in confusion, looking in the direction everyone was staring at.

The forest was burning, thick smoke was rising, and the Stone Giant revealed its figure from behind the hills, advancing toward the city, accompanied by the drumbeats of the earth.

— —

She didn’t know how much time had passed.

The forest was already on fire.

Mia stumbled as she ran through the woods, repeating the process of being caught up to, exchanging a few rounds, being outmatched, intentionally getting knocked away, and then taking the opportunity to escape.

Billowing thick smoke rose, and she coughed as she ran.

For the animals in the forest, this was undoubtedly a catastrophe.

First, the black mud that could swallow everything, and then the fire that scorched all things.

This was no ordinary fire.

The flames reached ten meters or even higher, and the blaze surged toward the sky.

The entire forest was swallowed by flames; trees, grass, and bark were all ignited.

The fire spread rapidly, already forming a sea of fire.

Thick smoke and ash danced in the air, and visibility was already very low.

Everything she could see was a crimson red, and the fire spread faster than her footsteps; Mia didn’t even know which direction she was heading.

The girl saw a stag run past her, quickly disappearing without a trace in the sea of fire.

‘Sorry, but I have no other choice…’

As long as she could achieve her goal, such a price was acceptable.

Although the fire could not stop Vortigern’s pursuit, it greatly interfered with the accuracy and frequency of his attacks.

Mia pursed her lips tightly.

The ground in front of her suddenly cracked open, becoming a bottomless abyss.

Mia used Stardust to jump up, crossing the cliff to continue fleeing.

This was probably the first time in her life she had suffered such a setback.

Her attacks couldn’t hurt Vortigern at all.

That layer of shadow could swallow anything.

It was practically cheating!

During the chase, Vortigern never again used an attack comparable to the one that destroyed the castle.

Although Vortigern followed her closely, mocking her wantonly, Mia could feel that this was all Vortigern could do.

It was like a girl catching a mouse… although comparing herself to a mouse wasn’t very appropriate, Mia couldn’t think of another metaphor for the moment.

It was like a girl catching a mouse; she tried every method to corner and intercept the mouse, but she never had the ability to deliver a fatal blow to it.

At least at this stage, Vortigern could not use another world-destroying attack to wipe her out.

Vortigern was not as powerful as Mia had imagined…

He seemed unable to continuously use attacks capable of destroying the castle.

“Cough, cough.”

Thick smoke accidentally choked her lungs.

But correspondingly, as the disadvantageous side, Mia could not hurt Vortigern at all.

The black shadow on Vortigern seemed to be some kind of protection; no matter what kind of attack, it would be swallowed by it.

With the blessing of this ability that could be called cheating, even if Vortigern couldn’t finish Mia off in a short time, Mia had no way to deal with Vortigern either.

Lifting her head, amidst the crimson-covered environment that was like hell, she couldn’t see the sky at all.

Above, there was nothing but billows of thick smoke.

But, should night be arriving soon?

A tree not far ahead collapsed with a roar.

The sudden obstacle made her lose her footing, and she rolled once amidst the embers.

Just as she was about to change direction, the tentacles of the black shadow struck towards her.

She hurriedly raised a barrier in front of her to block the momentum of Vortigern’s attack, but Mia, who was maintaining the barrier, was forced backward.

Her feet plowed two deep furrows into the ground, and the young girl’s back ruthlessly slammed into a still-crackling burning tree trunk.

“…”

If an ordinary Soldier touched a still-burning tree trunk, their skin would sizzle in an instant, right?

But Mia’s fire resistance was relatively high.

“If that’s all you have, then you disappoint me.” Vortigern seemed unaffected by the flames as well.

Black mud surged around him, carrying flames with it, as if he were walking out of hell itself.

“You’re not much stronger yourself,” Mia said with a smile.

Two more Fluorspar Meteors.

As expected, they caused no substantial damage to him.

“Heh…” Vortigern let out a cold laugh.

His attacks followed one after another, and Mia instantly leaped up lightly.

Another attack, attempting to predict her trajectory, struck out; stardust vanished beneath her feet in an instant, and she quickly landed.

“Only capable of running? A battle like this cannot be called that of a King of Humanity.”

“What kind of king I become is not for you to judge.”

She shook her staff, scattering Glintstone Crystals toward Vortigern, but only those that made contact with him were swallowed by the black shadow.

The Glintstone Crystals that fell to the ground displayed comical humanoid shapes.

Boom, boom, boom—in an instant, all the crystals exploded, a magnificent explosion like scattering countless jewels that engulfed Vortigern.

“Useless, useless!”

Vortigern swung his hand widely, and the entire fan-shaped area around Mia was encompassed within his attack range.

With a flash of blue light, Mia disappeared from where she stood.

“Hiss—” The sound of Vortigern’s breathing came through his helmet.

“Angry? Hmm?”

Mia asked flippantly.

As a veteran Souls-like player, your damage can be low, and your health bar can be small.

But you must know how to dodge!

As long as you can dodge, even small fists can slay gods!

“Win~ win~”

Glintstone Crystals flew toward Vortigern tirelessly.

Mia wanted to see just how thick Vortigern’s health bar was.

“I have said it before, you cannot hurt me!” The black mud surged like ocean waves, and wherever they flowed, only the flames merged into them.

Pitch-black mud, flashing with crimson light.

“Accept destruction, accept extinction!”

The black mud suddenly contracted; he was gathering vast energy capable of destroying city walls.

“It is time…”

Mia’s breathing slowed until it almost stopped.

In the instant the black mud was about to strike like a tsunami, Mia turned into stars.

“Tricks and trifles—”

Vortigern’s power was restrained.

Before it was released, he could not judge where Mia’s teleportation would appear from.

This strange magic was treacherous and changeable, but the fluctuation of that instant could indeed be sensed by him.

Vortigern thought with disdain in his heart.

As long as she appeared, that would be the time of her destruction.

Yes, he felt it.

Behind him!

The moment that aura appeared.

Vortigern, as if having anticipated it, did not hesitate for a single moment and blasted that strike toward the rear.

That was power capable of moving mountains and filling seas.

The sea of fire was severed, hills were collapsing, and magic power sufficient to destroy a castle, or even a city, in a single strike surged out.

“Be destroyed!”

Let Britain return to hell.

However, just after his attack was released.

That detestable aura vanished.

Not behind him?

But clearly just a moment ago?!!

It was too late.

The strike that parted hills and shattered giant rocks had achieved nothing other than what was mentioned above.

The anger of being toyed with instantly rushed from his heart to his brain.

When Vortigern turned his head, that figure in black clothing, holding a staff, was standing right where she had been before.

“Well done, Melina.” Mia nodded.

As a semi-spiritual entity attached to Mia’s soul, Melina’s materialization and dematerialization did not require a cooldown time; she was an existence that could appear or disappear at any moment.

She had successfully deceived Vortigern into unleashing his strongest attack thus far.

In this area, whether it was the flames or the thick smoke, everything had been dispersed by the magic power fluctuation accompanying that attack.

The sky appeared once again above Mia’s head.

“It’s dark.”

As expected.

Magic power that did not belong to this world, that did not belong to this land, howled like a gale.

The wind carried blue crystal shards.

On the scorched earth, brilliant Glintstone Crystals broke through the soil like bamboo shoots in spring.

A pitch-black night sky twinkled.

One star, two stars, four stars, ten million stars.

In the span of a breath, the entire starry sky was lit up; they twinkled from countless light-years away.

Magic power was flowing, and that pattern was forming a musical movement.

Suddenly.

In the night sky.

A golden light rose from the surface of the earth, piercing toward the night sky.

That was not Mia!

That was a golden light in the distance, containing vigorous magic power not inferior to her own.

The starry sky was twinkling.

They were resonating for that golden light.

“That is… guh…”

The forcibly interrupted magic caused a backlash; the arm Mia was using to hold her staff turned into glintstone, and then exploded with a bang.

That golden one, what on earth is it…

Mia swayed in pain and staggered backward to the ground.

“Damn it—”

Just at a time like this, and Vortigern was still there…

Vortigern, Vortigern also saw that light.

Mia could feel Vortigern’s shock; he glanced at Mia once, then darted toward the direction of the golden light like a cannonball.

“Ah, ah…”

So that’s how it is.

Mia knew what that golden light was.