"I'm so pissed! Why couldn't you wait until I was ready before attacking?"
After climbing up from the ground in a disheveled state, Rocky couldn't help but roar at Liliya.
It turned out that Liliya had acted too quickly just now, and Rocky hadn't been prepared at all; he had been flattened before he could even activate the runes on his armor...
This outcome had nearly infuriated Rocky to death!
The reason he had challenged Liliya to a spar was partly to test how powerful the enhanced Void Magic Armor was after its upgrade; he knew Liliya was the highest-ranked and most experienced warrior in Thunderhawk City, and only by fighting her could he truly evaluate the strength of the enhanced Void Magic Armor.
On the other hand, Rocky actually wanted to show off in front of Liliya.
In Rocky's view, Liliya was perfect in every way; if he had to point out a flaw, it was that she was too dominant. Not only was her personality assertive, but her strength was formidable as well. Having such a strong woman by his side all the time almost constantly bruised his ego, so he also wanted to prove himself in front of Liliya, even if it meant wearing the Void Magic Armor.
But the result... turned out to be a thorough thrashing from the get-go, which was nothing like what Rocky had anticipated!
"This..."
Hearing his words, Liliya showed a rare expression of embarrassment; she genuinely hadn't expected things to turn out this way. Looking at Rocky, who seemed to have suffered a great injustice, she had no idea what to say.
"Wait until I'm ready before you attack this time!"
After muttering sulkily, Rocky tried to calm himself down. Then he began to harness his magic power to connect with the runes on the Void Magic Armor, activating the mana within them and truly enhancing the armor in the intended way.
Time ticked away second by second. During this process, Liliya didn't dare to move an inch, afraid of disturbing Rocky, and remained standing opposite him.
After a while, she couldn't help but ask, "Are you, are you ready yet?"
"Ready!"
This time, Rocky finally nodded his head. Now he had connected to every rune on the Void Magic Armor with his own magic power, fully activating them all!
"Really?"
Seeing him nod, Liliya still hesitated to act because she didn't notice any change in the Void Magic Armor from before.
Although Rocky claimed to be ready now, he still looked as disheveled as before, making Liliya reluctant to make her move. She didn't want to hurt Rocky's pride again.
"Come on!"
Seemingly discerning her hesitancy, Rocky was significantly more confident than before, nodding firmly at Liliya.
"Are you sure?"
"Sure, come on!"
Seeing how certain Rocky was, Liliya took a deep breath, and when she looked at him again, her eyes were razor-sharp!
Liliya's nature was such that once she got serious, she would show no mercy. Since Rocky claimed he was genuinely prepared this time, she gripped her longsword tightly and dashed toward him like an arrow!
In the blink of an eye, she reached Rocky and swung her sword in a sweeping strike aimed directly at his chest.
Previously, it was this very strike that had forced Rocky to retreat, and she used the same move this time, with undiminished strength.
Faced with the same attack as before, Rocky didn't react in time, or for some other reason, he didn't dodge, allowing the sword to land on him!
A loud clang resounded as the longsword struck heavily against the armor!
"How, how could this be...!"
Having struck Rocky with her sword, Liliya was stunned because the strike, which was identical in technique and force to the previous one, resulted in a completely different outcome!
Before, her single strike had made Rocky retreat uncontrollably, backing up four or five steps before stopping.
But this time, Rocky, having been hit, didn't budge an inch, not even a sway!
How could there be such a big difference?!
This result, far beyond Liliya's expectations, left her astonished, as she knew her strike was without reservation, a genuine full-force attack. How could it have no effect? It wasn't like this before!
The astonishment on Liliya's face finally brought a smile to Rocky's lips, his heart swelling with pride.
He had deliberately not dodged just now, wanting to see what kind of defensive power the combination of Void Magic Armor and mana runes could produce.
The result was unexpectedly good, easily blocking Liliya's attack, which meant that Rocky's enhancement of the Void Magic Armor had been a success!
He had successfully used mana runes to enhance the Void Magic Armor, significantly increasing its defensive power, convincingly proving its ability to withstand Liliya's attack without budging!
"Unimaginable..."
While Rocky could hardly contain his triumph, Liliya couldn't help but marvel. She truly hadn't expected the enhanced Void Magic Armor to improve so much.
Normally, Rocky's set of Void Magic Armor would only raise his strength to the level of a fourth-level warrior and a third-level mage, but Liliya's own strength was already at the pinnacle of a third-level warrior. Combined with her rich combat experience, her fighting power wasn't much different from that of a fourth-level warrior, which was why she had been able to suppress Rocky wearing the Void Magic Armor before.
But now, Rocky's Void Magic Armor had clearly been upgraded a notch in terms of defense. Liliya had extensive combat experience and knew well enough that even a fourth-level warrior couldn't effortlessly withstand her full-force strike, yet Rocky had done just that, and he hadn't even defended actively; it was the Void Magic Armor's own defensive power that had blocked her complete strike!
What did this indicate?
It meant that the enhanced Void Magic Armor had definitely surpassed the defensive level of a fourth-level warrior and might even have reached fifth-level capability!
This enhancement was a qualitative leap!
Perhaps even Rocky hadn't expected the Void Magic Armor, once enhanced by runes, would receive such an astonishing improvement!
To verify this possibility, Liliya flashed behind Rocky's back in an instant, delivering a ferocious kick to his back before he could react.
With a thud, Liliya put all her strength into the kick that squarely hit Rocky's back, yet he remained immovable as a mountain!
The enhanced Void Magic Armor had once again perfectly blocked her attack!
"How is it? Impressive, isn't it?"
Slowly turning around, Rocky was like a child eager for praise, impatiently asking.
Facing his demeanor, Liliya couldn't help but feel both helpless and fond, yet she seriously nodded, "It's very strong."
"Really?"
"Yes." Seeing Rocky's excitement, Liliya honestly said, "With the Void Magic Armor and the rune's reinforcement, your defensive power has reached the level of a fifth-level warrior. My attacks can no longer defeat you."
"It has reached the level of a fifth-level warrior? That's incredible. I didn't expect the enhancement effect to be so apparent."
Hearing Liliya's words, Rocky was surprised as well. He had truly not anticipated such a huge improvement in the Void Magic Armor after its enhancement.
"Attack me."
And just as Rocky was also amazed by the enhanced Void Magic Armor, Liliya took a step back to create some distance and then said to him:
"Attack me. Let me see if the Void Magic Armor has also reached the offensive power of a fifth-level warrior."
"Alright!"
Nodding, Rocky gripped his sword tightly and then charged towards Liliya with large strides!
Before the rune enhancement, the Void Magic Armor could bring Rocky up to the standard of a fourth-level warrior, so his speed was by no means slow. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of Liliya, swinging his sword down!
"So fast!"
As Rocky charged towards her, Liliya didn't dare to slack and quickly raised her sword to block. But in the next second, she inwardly cursed and gracefully dodged the strike.
"That's enough, no need to continue..."
Seeing Liliya dodge the attack, Rocky originally intended to keep on the offensive, but Liliya immediately called a halt.
"What's the matter?"
Not expecting Liliya to stop the fight, Rocky was a bit taken aback.
"There's no need to continue. The dual reinforcement of the Void Magic Armor and the rune has brought your offensive power to the level of a fifth-level warrior, too. I simply can't withstand it, and given that you have a rune on your sword, my ordinary sword would be sliced in two if it were to block."
As she spoke, Liliya helplessly shook her head. The dual reinforcement from the Void Magic Armor and the rune had brought Rocky up to the level of a fifth-level warrior both offensively and defensively, creating a gap that could no longer be bridged by experience and skill, so there was no point in continuing the fight.
"That's great! That means my enhancement was a complete success!"
Liliya's assessment finally put Rocky at ease, as it confirmed the complete and even beyond expected success of his enchantment on the Void Magic Armor.
"Rocky."
However, just as Rocky was reveling in joy, Liliya walked up to him, and couldn't help but speak up, "I have something I want to ask you."
"Oh? What is it?"
"Why the rush to enhance the Void Magic Armor?"
Looking into Rocky's eyes, Liliya voiced the question that had been on her mind for a while. She'd been curious why Rocky was so hasty in enhancing the Void Magic Armor.
It was something she couldn't figure out. The study of mana runes was indeed important, and Liliya admitted that, but let's not forget Rocky wasn't a researcher, he was the City Lord of Thunderhawk City, which was facing a significant crisis at the moment!
Winter was fast approaching, and they had yet to secure food for the season, which should be the top priority for a City Lord!
Yet, rather than focusing on these matters, Rocky had been devoting all his attention to enhancing the Void Magic Armor, something Liliya couldn't understand.
"Because..."
Rocky was well aware of Liliya's doubt. He hadn't explained in detail before because even he wasn't sure if his ideas would work, but now he could share his thoughts since he had completed the most crucial step.
So Rocky went on to say:
"I was in a hurry to enhance the Void Magic Armor because only in this way can we make money, money to buy food."
"Making money from enhancing the Void Magic Armor? How do you plan to make money?"
Liliya was even more confused by Rocky's explanation.
"I plan to... hunt demons!"
Looking at Liliya, Rocky revealed his long-held idea!