Sparks flew, landing on the ground and exploding into clusters of small flames.
They landed on Linde's armor, blossoming into fiery lion's manes, as if draping him in a coat of fire.
More sparks rained down on the Ghoul Queen, illuminating her wrinkled, leathery skin.
Crack. The sword broke.
The longsword in Linde's hand, engulfed by "Crowley's Fury," shattered upon its initial impact with the Ghoul Queen's arm-bone blade.
Even though the flames ultimately succeeded in scorching his opponent, the fact that his weapon was as fragile as tofu didn't sit well with Linde.
He twisted his body, bent his knees slightly, and slammed his feet into the ground like wedges.
Linde casually discarded the broken blade.
He was able to use his superior body control to force himself to stop, but the lunging Ghoul Queen Boss didn't have such control over her momentum and continued to charge forward.
The lunge ended with the Ghoul Queen's front claws digging into the earth.
With a violent jerk, she spun around.
Using the coordination of her front claws gripping the ground, she forcibly stopped her momentum after sliding several meters.
Her claws tore at the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
The ground was gouged with trenches. The damage to the terrain far surpassed the impact of the dozen or so Ghouls charging together earlier.
Linde reacted swiftly. He realized that the Ghoul Queen's arm, wounded by the broken sword, couldn't exert much force. While the embedded sword made her attacks ferocious, it was also that sword that caused her injury.
This was his chance.
The core concept of fighting is to kick a cripple's broken leg as hard as you can.
"Crowley's Burstfire."
The ring on his chest orchestrated the power within his body.
As Linde's thoughts raced, the power within him, 100% under control, followed his subconscious and gathered at his feet.
"Understanding is Key," who was watching from the sidelines, widened his eyes.
"Holy crap?!"
Flames erupted, and the explosive recoil propelled Linde high into the air. Compared to Linde using all his strength to kick off the ground and relying on reaction force to jump, the thrust from this Burstfire had more push and speed.
This is not good; I'm gonna overshoot.
The force of the power propelled Linde to a height far exceeding the Ghoul Queen's position, reaching the space directly above her head.
He braced his hands against the sky.
"Crowley's Burstfire – roughly 30% output."
Even Linde himself didn't understand why this "micromanagement" (fine control) could be so effortless.
Frequent bursts of flame helped Linde adjust his angle in the air.
And in the players' eyes, Linde flew into the air and then, like Iron Man, used hand thrusters to adjust his angle.
"Is that how you're supposed to play this game?" The surviving players stared at the figure in the sky, utterly stunned.
Skipping steps, showing off skills... aren't those supposed to be our things, the players' domain?
How can an NPC be this good? Are we supposed to be copying your homework?
So, uh, could we see your notes?
The Ghoul Queen, having just stabilized herself, sensed Linde approaching. She raised her arm to try and grab him, but Linde suddenly twisted at the waist, stopping his descent in mid-air.
Burstfire!
His body shifted its angle of descent, carried by the thrust of the burstfire, and slammed sideways into the Ghoul Queen's right side.
Leaving only a blast of scalding hot air behind.
At this moment, the Ghoul Queen's right arm was raised high, still trying to grab Linde, leaving her with only three legs supporting her.
Perfect, now her defenses are wide open!
Linde leaned forward. This time, he didn't use "Crowley's Burstfire." Instead, he built up power in advance, readying himself while simultaneously putting force in his legs. With a great leap, he pounced beneath the Ghoul Queen.
Her arm tried to retract, but it was too late.
"Crowley's Fury."
The flames clung to Linde's arm armor, but only brought a slight warmth.
It wasn't that the flames were too cool, or that the armor had superior defense or insulation. It was that Linde's control over the ability had surpassed his own expectations.
The ring on his chest acted like a central control, making the energy within his body fully integrated with his being, not something foreign, but a third hand.
No one wonders why fingers can make so many subtle movements, or why fingers know to pick an ear and not a nostril. This is because it can be done innately.
Now, the energy within his body was entirely Linde's instinct.
So... praise the sun!
Like a lion's claw reaching upwards, Linde had no sharp blade, but the flames were his blade.
With pure strength, Linde was capable of tearing a horse apart.
The Ghoul, roughly the size of a horse, was therefore a candidate for being torn apart.
The flames carved through flesh, and the reek of burning flesh flew out like a dart, stabbing into nostrils.
As the Ghoul Queen suffered a major blow, her arm finally came around. But just before, Linde's flame-engulfed left hand stabbed its five fingers into her neck, using it as a pivot, while his right hand exerted force diagonally downwards.
Burstfire!
The flames pushed Linde in a semicircle, straddling the Ghoul Queen's neck.
With one hand grabbing the chitinous crown on the Ghoul Queen's head to stabilize himself, Linde charged up a fist with his right hand.
Each punch sank into flesh.
A calamity more ferocious than a lion, Linde straddled her neck and beat her with three punches, staggering her.
Wrapping both hands around the Ghoul's neck, Linde suddenly jumped off, driving his feet downward like a thousand-pound weight slamming into the ground.
"Boom!" The Ghoul Queen was directly toppled and smashed into the ground.
A perfectly executed suplex with a massive size difference?!
The series of operations Linde performed in a very short time stunned not only the Ghoul Queen but also the players.
So, this game can be played with such skill?
Slurp, I'm drooling for those abilities.
Linde hadn't seen what other potion-enhanced Great Knights were capable of, but in terms of body control, Linde felt he was very talented, although that talent probably came from the ring on his chest.
Absolute control allowed him to obtain the greatest benefit with the least amount of effort.
Seeing that even his rage-fueled flaming fists couldn't kill the Ghoul Queen, Linde retreated to second best, preparing to find a suitable and wieldy weapon to try to deliver a killing blow.
Then, he saw the broken sword stuck in the Ghoul Queen's arm.
"Broken sword" is relative to which race is wielding it.
The broken sword on the Ghoul Queen was a long-handled, palm-width greatsword in Linde's hands.
He estimated the length to be 1.5 meters. If the sword weren't broken, its length would surely exceed 2 meters!
This sword that could penetrate the Ghoul Queen's body could certainly take her life.
He seized the hilt while the Ghoul Queen was down.
There was noticeable resistance. He braced his feet against the Ghoul Queen's arm and yanked with force.
"Aargh!" the Ghoul Queen howled in agony.
The sword was in his hand.
Linde paused, because the instant he gripped the sword, a vision flashed through his mind.
Hands gripping the broken sword, body moving fluidly, the massive sword becoming light and agile in his hands.
This was a power similar to "Crowley's Burstfire," something a player might call a "skill."
The difference was that "Burstfire" and "Fury" were learned by Linde after taking the potion and relying on Crowley's diary.
But this strange sword dance originated from the sword itself. Perhaps if he took the sword away, the "knowledge" in Linde's mind would disappear along with it.
The next instant, the broken sword emitted a cloud of purplish-gray smoke.
A Ghoul Queen, with an appearance almost identical to the Ghoul Queen before him but entirely composed of purplish-gray smoke, appeared. The front half of its body extended out, while the rear half remained connected to the broken end of the sword.
The smoky Ghoul Queen reached out and slapped the BOSS Ghoul Queen, then collapsed and dissipated.
The Ghoul Queen, just about to get up, was slapped back down to the ground, her head smashing a crater in the earth.
"Hiss," Linde felt a jolt of pain in the ring on his chest, as if it were reminding him that his power was nearing depletion.
This sword, taken from the Ghoul Queen, was draining him to an unsustainable degree.
The Great Knight power within him was running low, but his physical strength remained. In other words, his mana bar was empty, but his stamina bar still had some left.
He raised the broken sword high.
Fury reignited.
From the broken end of the sword, flames re-coalesced, forming the missing blade.
Then, he aimed for her head... and brought it down!