[Support me here:- https://bmc.link/punisher87 ]
The hood of the Black Knight's robe was drenched in blood as it spilled outward. The venom in her fingernails was so intense that the wound on his side was already turning black.
The Black Knight was no ordinary martial artist despite his carelessness. Among the countless Runcandel Guardian Knights, only ten were allowed to wear the black helmet, and he retaliated immediately even in his injured state.
However, his claws, jutting out from his robe sleeves, failed to reach Zephyrin. He swung for her throat, but the claws left only an empty trail in the air.
Ssaaak! Once again, the Black Knight's claws clashed with Zephyrin's nails as she lunged.
Black knight's body, weakened by extreme poison, did not respond as it normally would. The Black Knight staggered back after a single strike, and then spitting blood once more while retreating further.
If the Black Knight had been alone, the battle would have been decided at that very moment. He was already grievously wounded, so he had no chance of withstanding Zephyrin's next assault.
Jin, Murakan, and Valkas stepped forward at the same time.
'What's happening...?'
Their reactions were unbelievably swift, but all three were confused.
Most shocking of all to Jin was the fact that the 'Black Knight' had been defeated in a single blow.
'This is impossible even if he had been careless. Unless she has the abilities comparable to elder sister Yona or the Nameless King or battle prowess that surpasses the Black knight.'
Ability and strength. Zephyrin might have only one of the two, or she might possess both.
One thing was certain: she was a formidable adversary for them to handle.
"Oh my, the Black Knight of Runcandel is quite remarkable. I had no idea you could avoid this."
The lips of the Black knight were now turning pale blue, and he could only lick them and offer no response.
He had no time to answer, as he struggled to suppress the extreme poison coursing through his entire body.
"Zephyrin, you scoundrel! Don't tell me you did the same with the 2nd captain…!"
Originally, the 2nd captain decided to bring the Black Knight.
Valkas was primarily concerned about himself and his subordinates.
The worry stemmed from the judgment that with the force that Zephyrin had just shown, it was quite possible to assassinate them before arriving here.
Valkas glared at her with a piercing gaze, and Zephyrin responded with a wide smile.
"I told you that there's no need for you to know, leader. I intended to kill you peacefully, considering the bond we've built, but I have to kill you if you keep asking pointless questions."
Murakan snorted upon hearing this.
"Cuicantelle was right. Hey, hey. You're a demon dragon, right? I was going to ask you anyway, so thanks for revealing your true identity first."
Hwooong...!
Murakan transformed into his true form, and a dense shadow force spread in the entire reception room.
[The reason you're acting so cocky right now is probably because of that demon from the Rontelgius family... And yes, it's because you're confident enough to charge in despite knowing that Murakan is here, right?]
In the past, before the demon society vanished from the human world, Murakan had fought numerous demon dragons who had betrayed their kind.
He had never once been defeated. Even against demon dragons known for their strength, he consistently achieved overwhelming victories, to the point that the best demon dragons of the Four Duke families no longer dared to cross paths with Murakan.
Murakan's reputation extended far beyond just the human world. His name was equally revered in the demon society.
However, Murakan did not recall any powerful demon dragon who used the name 'Zephyrin.'
'Is it because of my memory issue, or is she someone I've never encountered before? Hm, even the most renowned demon dragons of that time took a beating from me at least once. Where did she come from?'
He couldn't make a quick judgment.
Zephyrin calmly turned her head to look at Jin and Murakan.
"Haha, you're still quite arrogant, Mr. Murakan."
[You speak as if you know me. I have no memory of someone like you.]
"Memories... Well, that's possible. Is there a dragon in the world who doesn't know you? You were the one and only dragon capable of ruling the azure and beautiful sky of the human world."
[That's why my attitude isn't arrogant. Reveal your true name.]
"I won't have to kill you unlike the leader. Instead, you'll fall into a deep slumber with a shattered heart once again. When you wake up again, you'll see a world different from what you knew. Just like this time."
Zzzap!
Suddenly, a purple energy emanated from Zephyrin's grasp.
'Mana? No, it's different. It feels somewhat similar to when the deceased demon of Rontelgius family casted some inexplicable magic, but this is much deeper and darker.'
Jin thought while reacting to the spreading purple energy.
What Zephyrin had released was not mana, but demonic energy. And it was on a massive scale, enough to make even Murakan flinch.
Demonic energy swiftly engulfed the entire reception room, and Jin could instinctively sense that it was forming some kind of 'subspace.'
The demonic energy expanded, and Jin and Valkas lunged at Zephyrin.
Within the purple darkness, Sigmund's pale blade and lightning bolts flashed, and Valkas's massive aura surrounding his fists shook.
Valkas was known not only as one of the Three Great Mercenaries but also classified as one of the world's greatest 'martial artists.'
Whoosh!
Zephyrin struck Valkas's thrown punch with the axe-sword she had on her back. A shockwave erupted the moment the fist and axe-sword collided.
If it weren't for demonic energy covering the space, this single strike would have devastated most of the reception room.
The subspace made of demonic energy appeared as an entirely different and empty place, not the reception room.
Jin seized this opportunity, and thrust his blade toward Zephyrin's side, but she easily deflected it by snapping her axe-sword to counter his move.
Both Jin and Valkas felt an immense shock transmitting through their forearms.
Zephyrin's seemingly effortless swing of the axe-sword gave pain and shock to both the blessed body of Runcandel, and the 10-star martial artist's strong body.
Whoa!
Jin and Valkas instinctively stepped back after the attack, and Murakan exhaled a shadow force breath. His breath had the potential to obliterate something as significant as a small fortress in one strike, yet Zephyrin easily withstood it.
She wore a face filled with laughter.
"It's as warm as I've heard, Mr. Murakan."
Murakan didn't respond but instead formed black awls using his shadow force on both wings and hurled them at Zephyrin.
Jin and Valkas go back and forth, darting through these awls, each time launching an attack against Zephyrin.
As Jin was watching the gracefully moving axe-sword, he felt like seeing Luna.
Zephyrin remained composed and showed no signs of distress, despite enduring attacks from Jin, Valkas, and Murakan,.
She was the mightiest of the mighty opponents.
Ahaha, she laughed with amusement while wielding her axe-sword as if she thoroughly enjoyed the situation.
Swoosh! Clang! Thump!
The two swords, fists, and shadow force intertwined, disorienting the dark subspace.
To outsiders, it might have seemed like they were fighting on equals.
'We are at a disadvantage even if it appears to be neck to neck.'
The Black Knight was on the brink of death behind them.
Of course, he was one of Joshua's men and had been sent to the Black King Mountain Hideout to hinder Jin. But the Black Knight was undoubtedly one of Runcandel's top forces.
Losing the Black Knight in such a manner would directly affect the clan's power. From a very strict perspective, he wasn't solely Joshua's man; he was a person of the 'next patriarch' of the clan.
'He needs immediate treatment from the Holy queen and her healers, or a skilled venom master like Kuzan.'
The black knight would be dead the moment he was stabbed by Zephyrin's fingernails if it weren't for his 10-star robust body,
Even Jin, who had the thousand-poison antidote, could sense that he couldn't be completely immune to that dreadful poison.
How long will the black knight last? Judging from his trembling and foaming at the mouth indicated that he wouldn't last for long.
Jin picked up the pace. The leader of Black king mercenaries was also on high alert because the Black Knight's death on his turf could pose a significant problem.
[From whom did you hear that? Every single demon dragon that confronted me at the time is dead.]
"That's true. However, maybe I was friends with some of the ordinary dragons at some point, right? Anyway, you may have been arrogant once, but now, you are weakened and just an old man who can't forget his prime. You better fight properly unlike how you fought in the sword emperor castle."
In response, Murakan chuckled again.
[Properly? I couldn't fight as I pleased back then because I had to protect those humans. I will send you wherever you wish, to hell.]
"Oh, I'm looking forward to it!"
Zephyrin's sword aura, infused with the demonic energy radiating from her axe-sword, and tore through the surroundings erratically as she swung it around.
Murakan's shadow force curtain was ripped apart, and Jin and Valkas hurriedly stepped to the side and fired their sword energy.
To any observer, it was undoubtedly a powerful and great swordsmanship.
However, Jin and others had noticed that Zephyrin's swordsmanship was strangely sloppy.
'It's undeniably fierce, but for some reason, her swordsmanship feels unnaturally awkward.'
'It's like she's wearing clothes that don't fit properly.'
She excelled at blocking, parrying, and striking, yet there was something unnatural about the way her sword moved.
Of course, this was apparent to Jin and Valkas, who had reached a high level of mastery. It was almost impossible for anyone below the 8-star level to notice this.
Suddenly, an unpleasant and unsettling thought crept into their minds.
'Could it be... the axe-sword isn't her main weapon?'
Initially, they were too caught up in the heat of battle and her physical abilities were outstanding to realize that Zephyrin was using a rather sloppy "axe-swordsmanship."
The intuition turned into certainty, and a shiver ran down their spine.
All three of them suppressed their disconcerting thoughts, but Zephyrin seemed to see right through them.
Then, as if saying, "Did you finally figure it out?"
She shrugged her shoulders and spoke, "Well, it seemed interesting and I was curious, so I tried using it. Still, it is quite lame, isn't it? Haha."
She acted as if she were pretending to be a human.
Zephyrin had never properly trained with the axe-sword in her entire life. She was just curious about what kind of weapon was used to cut down one of the demons whom she had to protect.
Boom, boom!
Zephyrin playfully swung the axe-sword into the air as if she lost interest.
She seemed to think it would be difficult to kill them all with it. So, nonchalantly, she tossed the axe-sword onto the ground, creating a heavy thud.
"No matter how you look at it, using something like this to destroy your heart would be disrespectful, Mr. Murakan. Still, I'll make sure to send you into a deep slumber with a bit of respect."