The fiend's bicep bulged, and it smirked.
But—
SLASHHH!
Just as it was about to purge the innocent soul, a searing line of light sliced through its cranium, tracing a path straight to its groin. Before it could even react, a violent follow-up explosion tore the two halves of its body apart.
Reneal's eyes widened, then hooded warmly. "Impeccable timing, as always. I'm again in your debt."
Daisuke allowed a sidelong glance and a cool smile, an exquisite greatsword clutched in his own hands. "Be sure to extend your gratitude to Tiphanna as well—I wouldn't have been able to cut through this bastard's tough hide without this new sword she made."
[Voltbreak +2]
[Rank: Unique
Type: Sword
Melee Attack Power: 7353~8107 » 3677~4054 | Magical Attack Power: 9811~10519 » 4906~5260 | Durability: 235/235 | Attack Speed: +6%
A massive two-handed greatsword forged by the blacksmith Tiphanna Eryndoril from the femur of the Demon General Zar'ignar and the tail of Volturax. The fusion of these materials grants the blade exceptional resilience, allowing it to regenerate when damaged and maintain its lethal edge even in prolonged combat.
The demonic essence bound within the sword grants each impact a chance to erupt in a violent explosion, while Volturax's lingering power courses through the blade as volatile energy. This energy sharpens its cutting edge and can discharge into enemies, paralyzing them on contact.
▪︎ 35% chance of inflicting «Stagger»
▪︎ 25% chance of inflicting «Paralysis»
▪︎ 20% chance of triggering an explosion that deals 35% of the weapon's Melee Attack Power
▪︎ Critical hits have a 25% chance of bypassing the enemy's defense
Conditions of Use: Lvl 200+ | Strength 610+ | Stamina 520+]
…Voltbreak, Daisuke smirked. This thing is absolutely insane! It doesn't have as many options as the daggers, but its monstrous attack power more than compensates for that. And although it got nerfed because of the level difference, it still easily outclasses any other weapon.
Reneal glanced up at the greatsword that was adorned with golden trims along both the blade and hilt, evidently wondering how it was even possible for him to hold it upright.
"Are you certain that's big enough?" he teased.
Daisuke's smirk stretched into a cool grin. "Oh, I don't know… I think it could be a few much inches."
Reneal grinned back before pressing his back firmly against Daisuke's. With a steadying breath, he leveled his sword at the advancing spawns, ready to cut a path through the onslaught.
Daisuke's expression hardened. I can do this, he vowed, his gaze locked onto the towering fiend. As long as I avoid taking any direct hits, I should be able to bring it down.
His eyes flicked briefly toward the building where the girls were resting, then his jaw tightened. I won't let their sacrifices be in vain.
Engrossed in the rush of adrenaline, dopamine, and serotonin, he didn't notice that they weren't alone. In the shadow of a nearby building, a sinister figure watched, feeding on his own twisted cocktail of excitement and anticipation.
Armored from head to toe, with finely crafted sabatons gleaming in the faint light, the phantom observed the homunculus. Both of its massive arms were pinned to the ground like props, holding the creature's halves upright—but what came next was far more unnerving.
Blood, flesh, and sinew began to knit together between the severed halves in a grotesque spectacle. From its head downward, the monstrous frame reformed as though it had never been split at all, mending itself with horrifying effectiveness.
Daisuke wasn't impressed, nor did he allow his concentration to waver. That extreme focus yielded immediate rewards—rewards in the form of a reassuring plan to take down their enemy.
"Reneal—you rally the soldiers to get rid of the small fry," he commanded.
"And you?"
Daisuke's eyebrows descended like ominous storm clouds. "I'll deal with the ugly giant."
"Right!"
"UAAAAAAAAK!"
The creature's ferocious battle cry culminated with a fully mended body, then the palace grounds became an even fiercer warzone.
Prince Reneal fought shoulder to shoulder with the kingdom's soldiers, his blade flashing as mantis-like spawns poured forward in screeching waves. Chitin split. Limbs flew. Still they came—too many, too relentless—forcing the prince to grit his teeth and hold the line.
But Daisuke faced something far worse.
The homunculus loomed like a death omen, both heads snarling in disharmony as it dragged its greatsword along the stone. The weapon pulsed ominously, its length shifting as if breathing—one moment compact and dense, the next stretching monstrously wide, eager to reap its prey's very soul.
"…Impressive weapon," Daisuke muttered, tightening his grip around his own greatsword.
Tiphanna's masterpiece thrummed in his hands. Bone-white and ridged like a relic torn from hell itself, the blade exuded a menacing power. Volturax's lingering energy crackled along the edge, while the demonic femur hummed, alive and hungry.
The homunculus wasn't deterred.
Without hesitation, it charged.
Stone detonated beneath its feet as it swung, the greatsword expanding mid-arc into an executioner's cleaver meant to bisect the courtyard.
Daisuke met it head-on.
The clash rang out like a thunderclap.
Shockwaves rippled outward as blade met blade, pulverizing stone and flinging debris skyward. Daisuke slid back several feet, boots carving trenches into the ground, arms screaming under the force—but he didn't yield.
"Come on," he growled. "Is that all you've got?"
He twisted his wrists and struck again.
Each impact detonated with unstable force. One blow erupted in a fierce explosion, blasting chunks of the homunculus's hide away. Another discharged crackling energy that ran along the creature's arm, muscles locking as Paralysis seized it. A third sent the titan stumbling—Staggered—its balance briefly broken.
Both heads roared in fury.
The greatsword shrank abruptly, then snapped outward like a lance, thrusting toward Daisuke's chest with terrifying speed. He barely twisted aside, the blade shaving past him close enough to sear the air, then answered with a swift upward slash.
The cut bit deep.
Bone met flesh. Volturax's energy surged, lightning-like, and the blade exploded against the creature's torso. Armor-like skin and flesh ruptured, defenses bypassed as the demonic edge tore straight through.
The homunculus reeled.
And for a moment, Daisuke glimpsed it again.
There.
Buried within the ruined mass of its chest—pulsing faintly like a malignant heart—was a core.
His eyes narrowed. Found you.
The homunculus roared and raised its sword again, but Daisuke was already moving. He poured everything into a single, decisive strike—one last cleaving blow that ripped the creature open from shoulder to hip.
The greatsword screamed.
Flesh split.
And the core was laid bare—a spherical mass of condensed energy, glowing violently as if aware it had been exposed.
Daisuke didn't hesitate.
The greatsword vanished in a flash of light as he switched weapons mid-motion. His Dark Upheaval daggers slid into his hands, fully restored, edges pristine and humming with restrained power.
"End of the line."
He crossed the blades—and activated a new skill.
"[Thermal Shock]!"
[Thermal Shock]
[Rank: Epic
Classification: Active Skill
Unleashes both searing flames and piercing frost simultaneously, forcing the elements to collide in a volatile explosion. The impact creates a violent surge of steam, scalding mist, and shockwaves, devastating everything within range and dealing 120% of Magic Attack as damage.
Skill Effect:
▪︎ 30% chance to fracture enemy armor, weapons, or magical barriers, lowering defense by 25% for 10 seconds.
▪︎ Shockwave deals simultaneous Fire and Ice damage in a wide radius, inflicting 50% of Magic Attack as AoE damage.
▪︎ For 6 seconds after activation, generates a Dead Magic Zone, preventing all Fire and Ice spells except the caster's.
Mana Cost: 120
Skill Cooldown: 2 Minutes
Skill Requirement: Both Dark Upheaval Daggers Equipped]
Fire and frost erupted simultaneously.
Searing flames and piercing cold collided at the core's center, compressing into a nexus before detonating outward in a catastrophic explosion. Steam screamed into the sky. Scalding mist and razor-edged frost shredded the air as shockwaves rippled in all directions.
The core shattered.
The homunculus convulsed, both heads frozen in silent disbelief before its body was torn apart from within, fragments disintegrating into ash and light.
The shockwave didn't stop there.
It surged across the battlefield, ripping through the mantis-like spawns assaulting Reneal's forces. Dozens were annihilated instantly—chitin flash-frozen, then incinerated—bodies bursting apart as fire and ice claimed them in equal measure.
For six terrifying seconds, the air itself went dead. Fire and ice answered to but one master. Daisuke stood untouched within the dead magic zone, daggers still crossed, steam curling around him like a crown of war.
When the light faded, the battlefield was silent.
And only fragments of the monster remained.
Daisuke—a hint of pity stirring in his golden eyes—spared the felled fiend but a momentary gaze before shifting his focus to the swarms of spawns that still remained.
Just as he was able to throw himself into the fray to aid Reneal and the soldiers, he heard a frail voice calling out to him in the distance. It was Lyndoria—she was weakly lumbering across the courtyard toward him, her body covered in fresh bruises and lacerations.
Just before she collapsed, Daisuke darted across the distance and scooped her up into his arms.
"Lynn! What—"
"It's… the princess," she wheezed, her expression chagrined. "She was taken."
Daisuke's eyes widened in alarm. "Huh? By whom?"
The girl shook her head slowly, her breathing shallow. "I don't know… he was fully armored and wearing a helmet. I tried to stop him but—"
"Dammit!" Daisuke cursed beneath his breath. "And Tiphanna? What happened to Tiphanna?"
"…Josephine took her to the infirmary."
Daisuke felt but a modicum of relief.
Lyndoria's eyes widened with dread. "Y-You don't think they've harmed her in any way, do you? If anything were to—"
"If their intention was to dispose of her, they wouldn't have gone through the trouble of sneaking her out of the courtyard," Daisuke reassured, even as he took note of a curious pillar of light outside the city walls. "So do me a favor and pull yourself together; helping you is my priority right now."
Lyndoria pursed her lips, a treacherous blush staining her cheeks at his unexpected words.
As though she were made of glass, Daisuke carefully knelt with her cradled in his arms and summoned both an HP potion and an MP potion.
Popping out the cork from the vial with his thumb, he gently rested the spout of the glass bottle against her thin lips and carefully fed her the contents.
Within moments, her wounds healed and her mana was replenished, but only time could remedy her fatigue.
Lyndoria's lips parted slightly, then she glanced up at her savior with a look of vulnerability—a shameful display she had refrained from ever showing to anyone.
"Princess Lumielle… she's the most extraordinary person I've ever known," she whispered, her voice steeped in reverence. "She's unfailingly kind and compassionate—maternal in a way that makes you feel seen and safe. Empathetic, gentle… and her music—" Her breath caught. "It's beautiful. Otherworldly. Like nourishment for the heart and soul.
"But," she paused, her eyes dimming, "it's also a curse."
Daisuke's gaze narrowed.
"…Those with troubled hearts are always drawn to her," she said softly. "Bewitched, almost. And more often than not, that fascination festers into something unhealthy—an obsession. They stop seeing her as a person. All they crave is her validation. To possess her. To keep her for themselves."
"Lynn…"
She gently pinched his sleeve like a desperate child, tears pooling in her copper eyes. "I've also been bewitched," she confessed without shame. "Please… I'm begging you, Haxks. Find her and bring her back home. I don't know what I'd do if anything were to happen to her. I—I'd never be able to forgive myself."
Daisuke's chest tightened at her confession. He couldn't help but remember how Lumielle had gently comforted the elven children at the orphanage, soothing their fears and effortlessly lulling them to sleep when they struggled to adjust.
"Consider it done," he vowed solemnly.
All of a sudden, the toll of a bell from a distant belfry rippled across the castle, pulling the attention of both the soldiers and monsters alike.
"Dammit!" Daisuke exclaimed with evident frustration. "Don't tell me there's another monster attack?"
Lyndoria shook her head in denial. "No, that's coming from the gallows," she informed with a hint of confusion. "But why now? Why at a time like this?"
"You go and look into it," Daisuke suggested, gingerly helping her to her feet. "In the meantime, I'll go after whoever took Lumielle."
The girl nodded, a rare blush blooming in her cheeks as he relinquished his touch. "R-Right. Please be careful."
Daisuke nodded.
No sooner had he departed than the court mages and knights arrived, joining Reneal and the soldiers to bring the remaining deadly spawns under control.
Meanwhile—since the drone couldn't keep up with Daisuke's incredible speed—the viewers were left to gush over his epic battle against the homunculus.
Of course, there were also those who were simply grateful the stream offered even a rough idea of his location, giving them a starting point for their next hunt.