Chapter 382 - 345: You Thirst for Battle Too? Traitor.

He faced the charging Purple Armored Knight.

Reinhardt stood his ground and called out in a loud voice, "Urus! Stay out of my fight."

Although Franz’s Electric Field Perception hadn’t detected any anomalies, he was clearly aware of what had just happened. The Night Demon hiding in the shadows had been about to strike him but was stopped.

But when Reinhardt’s words reached Franz’s ears, blood rushed to his head, and veins bulged on his forehead!

The Thunderlight Battle Group was a native Battle Group of the Ash Soil Star Zone, with no subordinate relationship to the thirteen Main Battle Corps.

Franz had started as a Knight in a Mercenary Corps during the Old Empire Era. Step by step, he had risen to where he was today, establishing the Thunderlight Battle Group and carving out his own territory as one of the Knight Warlords. On Thrace World, he enjoyed the treatment of an Emperor.

No one had ever dared to show him such contempt when it came to his strength!

As he sprinted forward, Franz’s furious gaze remained fixed on Reinhardt’s every move. ’So what if you’re one of the Emperor’s Vengeful Angels? I’ll make you pay for this—!’

The moment he was three meters from Reinhardt, Franz saw that his opponent was still just standing there. He sneered, unleashing the full Special Ability of his Earth Ring·Thunder Step!

A terrifying peal of thunder suddenly erupted!

A blindingly brilliant electric current propelled his body, abruptly accelerating him to over ten times his running speed!

Turning into a human cannonball, he brought his Knight’s Broadsword down violently toward Reinhardt’s face!

Franz could already picture the scene: Reinhardt, dead by his sword due to his own carelessness. He was even fantasizing about becoming an Administrative Region Lord, indulging in the luxurious life of a man holding ten fief worlds.

He would never have to bow his head again.

After this, those ’great figures’ who had once trampled him underfoot would have to raise their heads and look up at him in awe!

Look up to the Thunderlight Grandmaster, Franz!

The thoughts of an Earth Knight moved as fast as lightning.

Before his Knight’s Broadsword had even landed, Franz’s face twisted into a savage snarl as he roared, "Your life is mine, Reinhardt—!"

At that moment, the right index finger of Urus, who was hidden in the shadows, twitched slightly. It was a sign that he wanted to act, but in the end, he followed his orders and restrained himself.

As a Vengeful Commander, he had a duty to protect Reinhardt.

A Knight who could advance to the Four-star Earth Military Rank was by no means weak, even without Legendary Power. And with the enhancements of Knight Power, their methods were strange and varied.

He had seen far too many strong men fall to careless mistakes born from arrogance.

The explosive final burst of speed from this boarding Earth Knight as he attacked Reinhardt sent a lethal threat rippling even through Urus!

If he were to face the man head-on without any prior intelligence, he couldn’t guarantee that he could effectively resist or retreat from such a sudden acceleration.

In a flash, Franz’s Knight’s Broadsword, wreathed in high-temperature currents generated by his Knight Power, swung down on Reinhardt with heavy, violent force.

The latter remained rooted to the spot, completely motionless.

The instant Franz’s Knight’s Broadsword descended, an incomparably powerful surge of Knight Power suddenly appeared within his Electric Field Perception.

At the same time, in the corner of his eye, he saw a mass of dark purple living matter seeping out of Reinhardt’s Power Armor. Like perfectly interwoven, powerful muscles, it enveloped the point of impact.

The next second.

BOOM—!

The Knight’s Broadsword, like a speeding train, struck Reinhardt squarely in the face without deviation!

The aftershocks from the collision of Mighty Power vibrated through the corridor floor, echoing endlessly.

Franz’s expression was first one of absolute ecstasy. He knew how terrifyingly destructive his strike was; no Imperial Knight could withstand it with just Power Armor and their physical body.

’One of the Emperor’s Vengeful Angels? Not so impressive after all.’

But the immense force that fed back from the blade instantly wiped the ecstatic look from his face, replacing it with shock!

Because in his Electric Field Perception, Reinhardt, who had taken the blow head-on, suddenly raised his left hand and gripped the blade tightly. The force was so immense, so terrifying, that Franz couldn’t resist it even with both hands on the hilt.

Before Franz’s horrified eyes, Reinhardt, gripping his Broadsword with a single hand, moved the blade aside with raw power, like a strongman in a test of strength.

Then, that same iron-willed, cruel voice sounded in his ear.

"Do you also hunger for battle, traitor?"

When the dust settled, the immense pressure of Reinhardt’s gaze, amplified by his terrifying strength, became even more daunting!

Franz tried to pull his Knight’s Broadsword back, but he couldn’t break free no matter how hard he tried. He gave up, letting go of the hilt and stumbling back five steps like a frightened rabbit!

"This is impossible—! How did you..."

The lightning of his Thunder Step still crackled, but the confidence and arrogance Franz had felt when he initiated the attack were now utterly shattered.

He couldn’t believe that a Knight powerful enough to withstand a direct hit enhanced by his Earth Ring could actually exist in this world!

He thought back on all the powerful enemies he had faced in his century-long career as a Knight.

Before this Vengeful Angel of the Emperor, those so-called powerful enemies seemed laughably weak!

’This is an enemy far beyond my league!’

This scene left not only Urus in a state of profound shock, but also the Battle Sisters who had just arrived!

They knew, of course, that this Vengeful Angel had torn the Fear Knight Du Ma apart with his bare hands on the Eternal Battlefield. But with their limited strength and perspective, they could never truly imagine what a terrifyingly powerful existence even a gravely wounded Flayer Du Ma still was!

Urus emerged from the darkness, appearing silently beside Lu Jia.

His sudden appearance so startled the three Battle Sisters behind her that they almost drew their swords and attacked on instinct.

At the same time, Urus gained a concrete understanding of just how powerful Reinhardt truly was for the first time.

The full-force strike of a Four-star Earth Knight couldn’t even breach the defenses of his Extraordinary Armament...

Lu Jia’s expression was calm and composed. She spoke in a low voice, "Lord Urus, is there anything we can do to help?"

Compared to the naive Battle Sister she once was, Lu Jia now saw things with a much clearer perspective.

She knew that she and her three sisters were no match for these boarding traitors, but shrinking back was not her style. She had to start with the most basic tasks, so she adopted a very humble tone.

If any other Four-star Official Knight had asked him this question, Urus wouldn’t have bothered to answer. But Lu Jia was, after all, one of Reinhardt’s trusted confidants, so he couldn’t be too dismissive.

"In the storage room to your right, there are two Knights who are not quite dead yet. Take them to the bridge and see if Koller can extract anything useful from their memories."

Lu Jia and her companions acknowledged their orders.

Reinhardt tossed the Knight’s Broadsword back to the indecisive Franz as the Aikacia Nozzles unfurled behind him like Angel’s Wings.

He beckoned to Franz with a finger and said coldly, "Pick up your weapon and fight me, Knight."