"Tsk! Too tough," Ethan grumbled, wincing as he managed to connect a round kick with the undead knight's helmet.
The impact left Ethan's leg throbbing, forcing him to pause his assault briefly.
At least the attack had jostled the undead knight, rendering it momentarily unsteady.
Ethan hadn't initially anticipated this tactic to yield results.
Aware of the risk posed by the undead knight's potential counterattacks, Ethan exercised caution in drawing too near.
A single strike from the opponent could spell disaster.
Such an outcome was unacceptable.
Ethan's strategy revolved around methodically targeting specific areas of the undead knight's body to weaken its stance.
Given the humanoid nature of the undead knight's physique, attacking vulnerable points that could destabilize a human might also impact the creature.
Should this plan succeed, Ethan had a secondary strategy up his sleeve—one he hadn't employed since arriving in this world.
Thankfully, Ethan's repeated strikes finally began to pay off.
Seizing the opportunity without hesitation, Ethan launched a palm strike directly at the undead knight's helmet.
This was not Ethan's big attack though.
"{{Mana ball}}"
This was.
As Ethan's palm drew closer to the undead knight's helmet, a football-sized ball of blue light materialized in his hand.
Disregarding the sensation of something being siphoned from him, Ethan's palm made contact with the undead knight's head.
Applying force, Ethan harnessed the mana ball that had formed in his palm to forcefully drive the undead knight's head into the ground.
BOOM
A resounding noise reverberated in Ethan's surroundings, though this time the cause was Ethan himself.
However, Ethan's attention wasn't focused on the sound as he observed the undead knight's skull crumple under the impact of his attack.
A moment later, the undead knight's body disintegrated before Ethan's astonished eyes.
Ethan hadn't anticipated that combining his attack with the mana ball skill would yield such potent results.
It was only afterward, upon contemplating the lethality of targeting the skull, that Ethan realized he had utilized the skill wrongly.
'Mana ball is a long-range skill, not for close combat!' Ethan's inner voice screamed before exhilaration set in.
'I used magic,' Ethan acknowledged within himself.
'I actually used magic!'
The surge of adrenaline that accompanied Ethan daring use of magic during the confrontation with the undead knight continued to course through Ethan's body, even after the battle's conclusion.
Yet, before addressing anything else, Ethan turned his attention toward RageHeart's location, seeking to ascertain if his teammate had completed his own fight or was nearing its conclusion.
As expected, RageHeart appeared to be nearing the end of his own battle.
However, unlike Ethan, who grappled with the undead knight's formidable strength, RageHeart seemed to engage in a power showdown against his opponent.
RageHeart didn't appear to be succumbing in the contest of sheer power either.
Yet, this wasn't the entirety of the situation.
Ethan also noticed a shimmering blue light enveloping RageHeart's arms.
It seemed RageHeart wasn't the only one resolved to employ his skills in combat.
RageHeart, too, had chosen to unleash his skill.
RageHeart's situation paralleled Ethan's to some extent.
Just as Ethan was unarmed, RageHeart's gauntlets had met their match and were now shattered.
Thus, RageHeart found himself battling with bare fists, an endeavor that inflicted substantial pain.
Luckily, RageHeart increased constitution due to leveling up played its role in healing his injuries sustained from his bare-fisted clash.
Contrary to healing in other games where injuries vanish entirely, healing in this world merely amplified one's natural healing capacity.
In simpler terms, even if a healing skill was cast on someone here, it only accelerated the healing process, leaving scars just like any normal healed wound would.
This was exactly what had occurred with RageHeart.
However, despite coming to terms with this reality, RageHeart didn't find himself disheartened by the multitude of scars that adorned his fists.
They were reminiscent of his initial experiences upon arriving in this world, but they also stood as evidence of his survival.
They were a testament to his will to live.
These scars, Ethan felt, added a rugged and manly charm, which both he and RageHeart agreed upon.
Yet, Ethan and RageHeart vowed to themselves to protect their faces from injury.
Ethan, especially, wished to maintain his handsome appearance rather than adopting a more rugged look.
RageHeart concurred with this sentiment.
However, such thoughts weren't racing through RageHeart's mind as he relentlessly pummeled the undead knight's body with overpowering strength that the creature could hardly withstand.
Three times the physical strength of an average human wasn't to be taken lightly.
Observing the undead knight's inability to keep pace with his onslaught, RageHeart decided to employ his skill.
"{{Strong arms}}"
A level 0 skill that adds 15% of the caster's total strength for 5 seconds.
RageHeart's strength stat was exactly 30 points, three times the average human stat.
When RageHeart cast this particular skill out of the two he obtained from choosing the warrior class, it granted him an additional 4.5 points in strength.
While it might seem small, this increase temporarily amplified RageHeart's power for 5 seconds.
RageHeart noticed something while inspecting his skill information, which Ethan had not done before casting his skill: both skills had no cooldown time.
This realization led RageHeart to understand that even though this world followed game-like rules, it wasn't exactly like the games he played.
Things could be even more unpredictable here.
Not wanting to squander the five seconds he had to deliver a solid punch, RageHeart immediately assumed a punching stance and struck the chest area of the undead knight.
At that moment, Ethan spotted three more undead knights in the distance, heading in their direction.
These creatures seemed to have been attracted by the commotion in their vicinity.
One was advancing toward RageHeart, while two were approaching from another direction.