Whoa—three huge figures wrapped in layers of heavy cloth were advancing toward them!
Crimson spirit bodies, rigid armor covering every inch of their skin, eyes gleaming with pure battle intent—there was no mistaking it. These were top-tier Darkwraith.
Each invader wore an animal mask, their faces completely concealed. Their names were nothing more than codenames; their true identities were impossible to discern.
Black Hound. Slug. Goat.
These three were absolutely going to give Leon's group one hell of a surprise.
"Speak of the devil," Leon muttered as he drew his sword, then motioned for Drew to help him conjure a mana shield. Against people, proper defense was still necessary.
He carefully sized up the trio.
All three wore armor somewhere between light and medium. Their weapons varied—greatsword, hammer, dagger, and more. Their waists bulged suspiciously, likely packed with hidden tools.
They carried none of the standard equipment used to fight monsters.
Just from their posture alone, it was obvious—
Their entire loadout was designed specifically to kill people.
The difference between Leon and them felt like the Survey Corps fighting Titans versus humans killing humans in Attack on Titan.
"Get lost," Leon said coldly.
His golden hair flared like a lion's mane, his presence overwhelming.
Hound—the apparent leader—only shrugged, spreading his hands and shaking his head, refusing to speak.
It seemed they understood that invading others was a shady business. They hid everything—faces, names, even their voices. As for why they weren't using voice-altering magic—
Almost simultaneously, red magical light flared across the battlefield.
Low-tier Frenzy. An attack power buff.
Drew's gaze snapped upward.
Slug, holding a magic staff, waved mockingly with his free hand.
They had a mage too?
Then what came next was obvious.
"Silence!"
Drew reacted instantly, casting a spell to prevent magic usage. Slug was a split second slower—but he didn't need to chant. He tore open a magic scroll.
Its name was—
Mass Silence!
Magical waves surged outward, engulfing both sides. For the next stretch of time, magic was completely sealed.
"Tch."
With no other choice, Drew switched to the iron hammer he carried for self-defense. His melee ability wasn't great—his strength was above average, sure, but technique-wise…
In short, he'd been severely nerfed.
The clash between the two mages ended in an instant. In that brief window, Hound and Goat had already charged in.
Enough talk.
Sending these bastards back to respawn was the only truth.
Hound's greatsword slammed heavily into Leon's shield. Thankfully, Silence couldn't dispel a magic shield that was already active.
Leon knocked him back—but in the same moment, Slug swung a spiked mace pulled from who-knew-where straight at Drew.
Knowing Drew was weak in close combat, Leon turned to help—
Snap!
A powerful whip suddenly coiled around Leon's ankle and yanked hard. His balance vanished instantly.
Hound again.
His off-hand weapon was a whip?!
"Maru! Help Drew!" Leon shouted as he was flung into the air.
On the other side, Terl faced Goat head-on.
Both were massive—perfectly matched.
Goat casually tossed aside his weapon and provoked Terl with empty hands.
Terl glanced at him, then at the hammer in his own grip, and burst out laughing.
"You think I'm stupid?!"
He brought the hammer down with full force.
Goat caught the hammerhead bare-handed.
A muffled grunt escaped him as the ground beneath his feet cracked.
Slightly weaker than Terl—but definitely no pushover.
Meanwhile, Drew and Maru together could barely keep Slug in check, though they held a slight edge thanks to Maru's speed.
Still, they couldn't break his defense.
Beneath those heavy robes was armor hard as hell—it felt like smashing a block of iron.
And Slug was clearly a fake mage anyway. He handled that spiked mace far better than any spell.
One clean hit would mean injury, forcing Drew and Maru to fight with extreme caution, their movements tightly restrained.
Combat between people could end in an instant—or drag on endlessly.
Leon had already exchanged dozens of blows with Hound. The invader's armor was cracked and shattered in multiple places, while Leon, aside from heavy breathing, was practically unharmed.
This was the true value of PK—the team.
Some Darkwraith crawling out of a back alley had no chance against him.
Yet Leon didn't look pleased.
Something felt wrong.
The opponent was disturbingly familiar with his fighting style—countering, dodging, and reacting with uncanny precision.
So these invaders…
"Did you train specifically to counter me?" Leon asked coldly.
Was this an individual—or an organization—targeting him?
Hound still didn't answer. Instead, he twisted his waist in an irritatingly provocative motion.
"Tch. I'm sick of fighting you."
The magic shield reached its time limit and dispersed into shimmering dust. As it vanished, Leon tossed aside his sword and drew his reverse-blade sword.
"I wanted to beat you properly," he said calmly, "but I still need to explore the dungeon. I don't have time for this."
The moment his hand closed around the reverse blade, a profound calm washed over him.
This was his second phase.
Once Swift Slash was unleashed, no one escaped.
Hound clearly knew how terrifying Swift Slash was. Where that information came from didn't matter.
What mattered was—
He wasn't afraid.
As Leon surged forward with Swift Slash, Hound foolishly spread his arms, attempting to grapple him. His armor shimmered with a dim, eerie glow.
But that only meant—
Sword energy straight to the face!
He took nearly full damage. The reverse blade shattered his prized armor into fragments.
A bone-deep gash split his chest, blood pouring out. Before he could collapse, Leon struck him again with Swift Slash.
Boom!
Hound crashed into the ground, forming a Yamcha-style crater, completely incapacitated.
Leon didn't pause for even a second.
He charged toward the remaining two.
Slug and Goat rushed him head-on without hesitation. They quietly patted their armor, which immediately glowed faintly.
Wherever Swift Slash passed, armor fragments scattered.
Both invaders fell.
[Darkwraith "Slug" has died!]
[Darkwraith "Goat" has died!]
Leon walked up to the barely conscious Hound and stepped on his head.
"Talk. What's your objective?"
Hound suddenly raised a hand and punched Leon's shin—
Only for his wrist to be pierced straight through, armor and all.
"Don't play tricks," Leon said coldly.
"Speak."
"Heh… heh…" Hound deliberately pinched his voice, making it shrill and grating.
"You fell for it."
Leon frowned deeply.
Fell for what?
He had clearly defeated all the invaders—
Thunk.
Something fell to the ground with a dull sound.
Leon looked down.
A corroded blade lay there—thin, twisted.
It looked exactly like his reverse-blade sword.
He hurriedly checked his hand.
Only the hilt remained.
The blade had been completely corroded away.
After corrosion… could the Swift Slash ash of war still exist?
No—what mattered now was how they'd done this.
"You—"
[Darkwraith "Hound" has died!]
Hound's body began to dissipate. The reverse blade lodged in his arm corroded entirely, leaving only the hilt, which clattered to the ground.
Leon stared at the ruined weapon, stunned.
If Sword Saint Gapar were here, he would immediately recognize it—
The invaders' armor was crafted from dungeon monster shells.
Only one monster could corrode weapons.
The Rust Monster.
They had used Rust Beast shells to forge armor, preserving its corrosive property and turning it into an activatable equipment skill.
The trade-off was brittleness.
No wonder Leon had felt the fight was easier earlier.
Hound and the others knew exactly how powerful Swift Slash was.
They had deliberately set a trap.
But why?
They destroyed Leon's blade—
Yet died in the process.
The mental penalty for dying as an invader was severe. Three deaths in a single day already skirted the danger line.
It wasn't as if they could continue invading Leon afterward.
"I… my blade…"
Leon murmured, grief spilling across his face. He didn't scream. He didn't rage.
But sometimes, silent sorrow hurt the most.
And this time, it cut even deeper.
"Boss…"
Maru walked over and gently patted his shoulder.
"My condolences."
"I… I…"
Leon panted, memories tied to the reverse blade flooding his mind. Sorrow ignited into rage.
I'll blow them all apart.
I'll invade them too.
Just don't let me find out who you are.
He straightened, wiped his face, and forced his usual warm smile into place.
"I'm fine, Maru. Don't worry."
"…Are you really?" Maru shivered.
The smiling Leon felt even scarier now—like a lion lurking behind human eyes.
"Completely."
Leon ruffled her hair and said cheerfully,
"Let's go. We still need to explore the dungeon today. I'll ask the blacksmith later—maybe it can be repaired."
Maru wanted to suggest going home first, letting him cool off.
But the pressure radiating from Leon made the words die in her throat.
I should just keep an eye on him…
Don't let him get any more stimulated.
That was what she thought.
However—
Not long after following the Death Knight route—
New notifications appeared.
[Invaded by Darkwraith "Old Horse"!]
[Invaded by Darkwraith "Hick"!]