"I'm afraid I can't grant your wish, Duke Qinghui."
Kaplan replied after some thought.
"Perhaps slowly humiliating you all would be most pleasing to His Highness, but I'm not greedy for extra rewards. I fear delays might bring trouble."
BOOM—
The words had barely left his mouth when a sonic boom erupted. Several overlapping vapor cones appeared where the War Knight had just been standing.
The fragile ground beneath his feet shattered, the pieces sent flying by the immense shockwave. A roaring gale accompanied the blade's edge!
"Brother, be careful!"
Yolanda cried out and charged forward to meet him. From Westheid's perspective, all he could see was the flash of a pristine blade.
"River of Qinghui: [Bright Fire]."
As the young woman whispered in a cool, clear voice, a pale blue flame erupted from nothing, carving a deep trench across the ground. The scorching, daybright Light Blade enveloped Yolanda's sword, allowing her to firmly block the War Knight's charge.
CLANG—
The violent clash of metal erupted along with a shockwave that kicked up dust. Kaplan, who had briefly vanished from sight, was now locked in a standoff, his blade against the platinum-blonde girl's.
"Hm?"
His all-out charging strike had been blocked, drawing a soft, questioning hum from the War Knight. He looked at Yolanda, whose eyes were blazing, and asked:
"Little girl, have you ever been on a battlefield before?"
Yolanda replied, "If you mean a real, proper battlefield, then no."
"So young and promising. This must be what they call a genius..."
Kaplan pressed down on Yolanda with his blade. Gazing at her face, as beautiful as a Fairy's, he sighed with admiration.
"If you had advanced to the [Exemplar] Tier, I doubt I'd be able to withstand a single exchange with you. But as it is... you're no match for me."
The War Knight took a step back to disengage, then raised his longsword and brought it down in a swift, vicious slash, intending to break through Yolanda's defense with sheer stats and the gap in their Tiers.
"River of Qinghui: [Bibo]."
Faced with a ferocious strike powerful enough to cleave her in two, Yolanda simply spoke the words with calm composure. The Light Blade in her hand immediately began to vibrate violently. The platinum-blonde girl even grabbed it with her other hand, bending the Light Blade into two segments before meeting Kaplan's slash.
The vibrating Light Blade disengaged the instant it made contact. The resulting ripples and waves shook the very air, neutralizing the War Knight's terrifying force. In a clash that lasted but a flash, she intercepted every one of Kaplan's attacks, completely halting his advance.
"The Combat Techniques of the Purity People? You think you can defeat me with just that?!"
Kaplan growled, quickening the rhythm of his attacks.
"I never expected to, but getting past me won't be so simple."
Yolanda continued to parry his attacks at a steady pace, her focus entirely on coordinating the [River of Qinghui] and using its wide array of Combat Techniques to neutralize his offensive.
'Yolanda should be fine holding him off for a bit.'
Westheid nodded as he watched the two become locked in a white-hot struggle.
He had considerable faith in Yolanda; after all, she was a classic technical genius.
The special class [Glowing Guard], available only to those of the Qinghui Bloodline, possessed a remarkably flashy and versatile skill set: the [River of Qinghui].
It was a powerful skill set that integrated shields, bursts, crowd control, mobility, healing, AoE, DoT, support, and more—it had practically everything.
Yolanda had trained diligently in the [River of Qinghui] since she was a child. Exceptionally talented, she had already mastered all its schools. If she continued to specialize and reached the master realm, she would achieve the Legendary Celestial Rank.
Unfortunately, for all its strengths, the [River of Qinghui]'s one drawback was its high skill requirement. It was unsuitable for a "Noxus Dog" like Westheid, who only knew how to kite using sprint.
'I have some skill, but just a little.'
'Besides, with a gem like a Tier T0 Talent, I have no need for some flashy ancestral method.'
'Anything requiring skill and technique is impure! True power is overwhelming stats and mechanics!'
'Fighting an Exemplar Tier War Knight is a bit out of my league right now. I enjoy challenging the strong, but I don't enjoy getting crushed.' Westheid turned his head to look at the other approaching Trial Takers. "And you all... are just right."
This skirmish wasn't a one-on-one duel between Yolanda and Kaplan. The other seven Trial Takers had closed in after seeing the War Knight get stalled. They certainly weren't going to just stand by and wait.
Reiya was still memorizing her words, so Westheid gestured for her to continue and not get distracted.
Westheid then pointed to a tall, burly Trial Taker. The man wore thick, sturdy armor of fine quality, which shimmered with the faint light of Runes. A single glance told you he was the scion of a wealthy noble family.
"You! Yes, you! Come and be my sparring partner."
"Does Duke Qinghui think I'm a pushover?"
The targeted noble Trial Taker flew into a rage. In their circles, Westheid was widely considered a joke. To be looked down upon by a joke—wasn't that the ultimate insult?
Raising his sword, the noble Trial Taker charged straight at Westheid, intending to kill.
But to everyone's astonishment, Westheid made no attempt to dodge or parry. He simply met the blade head-on, allowing the enemy's longsword to pierce his side before clamping his hand firmly around the blade.
"You?!"
SCHLICK—
Before the noble Trial Taker could even register his shock, Westheid swung his straight-bladed sword in a backhand motion and decapitated him.
It was a clean, decisive cut, easier than splitting a head of cabbage.
CLANG—
The moment the head hit the ground, the Trial Taker's body went rigid for an instant before toppling sideways.
Having eliminated the first Trial Taker, Westheid clutched his wound and took several deep breaths. The large, grievous wound healed at a visible rate. Within a few breaths, the bleeding had stopped, and he could move freely again.
The surrounding Trial Takers who witnessed this were all dumbfounded.
"Something's wrong... fucking wrong! That's not the strength and regeneration an [Elite] Tier should have!"
"Let's go together! Forget the half-breed for now, take out Duke Qinghui first!"
Facing the siege, Westheid just laughed and charged forward to meet them.
"Good, good, good! You dogs! Come at me together!"
Fortunately, this batch of Trial Takers were all at the [Elite] Tier, with only one or two at the [Prominent] Tier. And Westheid, under the enhancement of the [Withered Glory Sun], was fully capable of fighting above his Tier. Moreover, none of them were Transcendents specializing in Techniques; nearly all of them were melee fighters.
'This is good. Very good.'
After the high-intensity training he'd undergone with Yolanda, dealing with a few run-of-the-mill opponents was no problem for Westheid.
CLANG CLANG CLANG—
The crisp, frequent sound of clashing steel sent out visible ripples with every strike. The storm of blows raining down from all sides made Westheid's arms go numb, filling him with an unparalleled excitement.
"Hahahaha! Now this is satisfying! This is what I call a real fight!"
Westheid had exhausted himself raising his strength for this very reason—all he wanted was a battle this exhilarating!