"What happened?!"
Seeing this, Razen quickly had the soldiers make way.
The next moment, the four of them saw the figure standing in front of Kingdom of Falmuth's five hundred elites.
She had brilliant golden hair, wore silver-blue armor, and sat on a rock, propping an unsheathed Knight's Sword in front of her.
Her entire presence seemed to merge with heaven and earth, mysterious and profound.
"She is?"
Razen's pupils contracted slightly.
He couldn't sense any aura from Artoria.
However, the inability to sense anything was even more terrifying.
"Who are you?"
"Why are you blocking the path of my army?"
Razen, still on horseback, questioned loudly.
Compared to his seriousness, Shogo and the other two were far more relaxed.
Because Artoria was a woman. A female knight, at that.
In the Otherworld stories they'd read, characters like her were always there to serve as eye candy and fanservice.
"You're mistaken."
Artoria looked up, her expression calm. "It's not that I'm blocking you. You are the ones who have invaded our territory."
"Our territory?"
Razen's unease deepened. He was about to continue questioning,
But Shogo acted first.
"You mean you've been here the whole time, and we're just in your way?"
Shogo snorted in displeasure. He leapt forward, landing right in front of Artoria, looking down at her with his chin raised. "You're actually pretty good-looking."
"Shogo!!"
Razen opened his mouth to rebuke him, but Shogo snapped back irritably, "When did you become such a coward, old man? It's just a woman. Are you scared?"
"Hey, woman!"
"Want to come with me?"
Shogo was crude by nature, but still a typical guy. How could he not be tempted upon seeing such a beauty?
"Shogo, what are you doing at a time like this! Seriously~"
Kirara complained. Her impression of Artoria was already poor.
It couldn't be helped. Artoria was just too beautiful.
Especially with that cold, aloof yet valiant temperament, it was exceptionally striking, which made Kirara quite jealous.
"Hmph..."
Artoria didn't answer Shogo.
She found him laughable.
However, Artoria was no longer the King of Knights who would erupt in rage over minor provocations.
In her eyes, Shogo was already a dead man.
And why would she care about the insults of a dead man?
Clang.
The King of Knights slowly rose to her feet, but she didn't draw her Sword of Promised Victory.
There was no need to draw her sword to deal with trash like him.
He wasn't worthy of dying by her King's Sword.
"Pfft hahahaha~"
"You... want to fight me?"
Her actions made Shogo laugh in contempt. He thought he should teach the arrogant female knight in front of him a lesson.
Moreover, the idea of conquering a woman like her only made him more excited.
"Can you leave these people to me, Artoria-san?"
Artoria's hand, which was gripping the sword, paused for a moment.
"Rimuru?"
She looked to the side and saw the blue-haired girl gazing coldly at the soldiers behind Shogo.
"This man, leave him to me."
Artoria pointed at Shogo. That guy, she absolutely would not let go.
He had insulted and humiliated a woman.
Even the righteous and composed Artoria was provoked, her killing intent surging uncontrollably.
"Alright."
Rimuru nodded slightly, then completely ignored Shogo, who was still stunned by her sudden appearance. She brushed past him and walked straight toward the Kingdom of Falmuth's army.
"Hey, when did you get here?!"
Only then did Shogo react, reaching out to grab Rimuru.
Whoosh.
But before he could touch the blue-haired girl, a King's Sword with a blue-gold scabbard smashed heavily into Shogo's abdomen.
Boom.
The young man flew back like a black meteor, smashing through dozens of rocks before finally crashing into the ground, embedded in the shattered earth.
"How is that possible!!"
At this moment, everyone from the Kingdom of Falmuth showed expressions of horror.
Especially Razen.
In that instant, he hadn't even seen Artoria move.
Not only that.
She didn't release even a hint of magicules.
This was what terrified Razen the most. This person definitely wasn't human.
Humans couldn't possess such power.
Just like Shogo. To gain a powerful physique, he had to activate his Unique Skill, Berserker.
And in the process, expending magicules was inevitable.
But what about Artoria?
Her attack looked like pure physical strength. No skills, no techniques.
But with just a simple movement of her hand, she sent Shogo, who had Berserker passively activated, flying.
"Monster..."
Before Razen could finish speaking, Kyoya had already rushed out.
He drew one of the swords at his waist and thrust it mercilessly at Artoria's face.
However, Artoria completely ignored Kyoya's attack.
She turned around and began walking in the direction where Shogo had landed.
"Don't ignore me, you rotten woman!!"
Kyoya was enraged by Artoria's complete disregard.
Don't be fooled by his usual laid-back appearance. In truth, his personality was twisted and cruel, and he held deep grudges against anyone who humiliated him.
Clang.
Unfortunately, Kyoya's sword technique was blocked by an incredibly terrifying force.
It was a finger.
Slender, fair.
Yet that seemingly fragile finger had become an impenetrable barrier, stopping Kyoya's sword tip completely, not allowing it to advance even a millimeter.
"How is this possible..."
Kyoya's expression twisted. The scene in front of him shattered his worldview.
"It's you, isn't it?"
Rimuru's fingertip pressed against the gleaming blade, her eyes ice cold. "The one who massacred all those magic beasts and animals in the forest."
Among the three, Kyoya's strength was actually the highest.
It was just that he had a fanatical obsession with the screams of flesh and blood.
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)