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Chapter 43: Heroic Feat
"Mikoto, I'm the Captain. If anyone stays, it's me!"
Ouka, whose injuries were mostly healed by Hyacine's magic, picked up his battle axe again and moved to step forward.
"Apologies, everyone, but it is now our Captain's prey."
However, Robin reached out and calmly stopped them.
"Are you joking? Look at the situation!"
Ouka and Yamato Mikoto looked at Robin in disbelief, glaring at her. They couldn't understand how she could say such a thing in this desperate situation.
Could she not see the gap in strength?
It was no longer a question of who claimed the prey; they were all the monster's prey.
Even though Robin had just saved them, this attitude of seemingly disregarding her companion's life instantly enraged them.
"No joke," Hyacine said, holding Little Ica, speaking with the same serious tone. "Right now, it is Aiden's adventure time. None of us can interfere."
Hearing even the gentle healer speak this way, Mikoto, Ouka, and the others were completely stunned. They looked at each other, unable to comprehend the logic of the team before them.
Under everyone's gaze, facing the monster as majestic as a mountain, Aiden didn't shrink back in the slightest. Instead, the corners of his mouth curled into a slightly wild grin.
"I was just worrying about lacking a 'Feat.' Now one delivers itself to my door?"
Before the words even settled, he leveled his longsword, his expression turning solemn. The chanting of his spell echoed clearly through the empty cavern.
"Ride upon this wheel of flame!"
In an instant, a majestic wave of magic power erupted from his body.
Golden-red flames ignited out of thin air, wrapping around him like a living raiment of feathers.
The fire flowed over the surface of his body without harming his clothes in the slightest, emitting only a heart-palpitating heat.
The longsword in his hand was completely devoured by the flames, the blade turning a translucent crimson. The air twisted from the extraordinary heat, looking as if it would melt at any second.
Enchantment Magic—[Everlasting Flames], activate!
Aiden's entire aura changed drastically. His parameters across the board received a massive boost under the enhancement of the flames.
He moved.
Stomping violently on the ground, he transformed into a streak of fire tearing through the fog, rushing toward the Blazing Axe Mitachurl at a speed the naked eye could barely track.
"ROAR—!"
The monster also sensed an unprecedented threat. Roaring, it hefted the burning giant axe and strode forward with heavy steps to meet Aiden.
Each step fell like a heavy hammer smashing the ground. The entire cavern vibrated under this mad charge, resembling an out-of-control heavy tank.
"Alise..."
In the distance, seeing that figure wrapped in flames charging with such resolve, Ryu's body trembled violently. She stood frozen in place.
Her emerald eyes grew uncontrollably moist in that moment.
Memories spanning across time flooded her mind like a broken dam.
It was as if she were seeing that passed friend, dazzling as the sun—her former Captain, Alise Lovell.
"Enchantment Magic!"
The executives of the Loki Familia were also stunned. They all subconsciously looked at Ais, who was staring intently at Aiden.
Enchantment Magic—a rare ability, few and far between in all of Orario.
Adventurers who possessed it were strong without exception.
And now, a Level 1 rookie was using this rare magic right in front of them.
BOOM—!
One large, one small; one red, one black. The two figures collided with a thunderous crash.
Everyone on the scene held their breath, staring blankly at the two figures in combat.
The fog was torn apart by the violent airflow, creating a vast circular arena. The only sounds in the field were the ear-piercing roar of colliding weapons, sparks flying like festival fireworks, and the deafening bellows of the Blazing Axe Mitachurl.
Sword and battle axe—swung at speeds so fast only blurry afterimages remained.
Everyone knew that even with the boost from Enchantment Magic, Aiden was still at an absolute disadvantage in basic abilities like Strength and Endurance.
That was an axe strike from a monster close to Level 3, strong enough to split mountains and crack rocks. It was absolutely not something a Level 1 body could withstand head-on.
However, the flow of the battle completely exceeded their expectations.
Facing the giant axe capable of smashing a person into meat paste, Aiden's figure moved like a sprite dancing in the fire.
He didn't block; he didn't tank. Every time, at the very moment the axe blade reached him, he would side-step or slide at an inconceivable angle, letting the heavy attack whistle past his body.
His swordsmanship was heavy with killing intent, pursuing clean and efficient slaughter.
Every swing of his sword precisely targeted the weak points in the Mitachurl's defense: joints, neck, eye sockets.
These were combat techniques branded into his soul after being pushed to the limit during Alfia's inhuman torment and sparring sessions.
Clang!
The giant axe swept horizontally. As Aiden ducked to dodge, the flame sword in his hand slashed upward, tracing along the axe handle straight toward the Mitachurl's wrist.
The Mitachurl roared in pain, twisting its wrist to chop the axe back down at a tricky angle.
But Aiden seemed to have anticipated this. Sinking his wrist and pressing the sword tip down, he accurately tapped the flat of the axe blade. Borrowing the force of the opponent's downward chop, he sprang backward, instantly opening up several meters of safety.
The entire process was smooth and flowing, filled with suffocating beauty and fatal danger.
A Level 1 adventurer was engaging in an evenly matched deathmatch with a monster close to Level 3.
This scene, which broke all conventions and made people question reality, deeply shook the minds of everyone present.
Not just the Loki Familia, Ryu, and the Takemikazuchi Familia.
Further away, other adventurers attracted by the noise also discovered this shocking battle.
But due to the fog and the massive gap in strength given their lower levels, they could only see two blurred masses of light colliding violently in the mist. Not daring to approach, they could only watch from a safe distance with awe.
"So... so amazing! It's just like the heroes in the Argonaut!"
Tiona's eyes were practically glowing. She stared excitedly at Aiden in battle, almost seeing stars.
For her, who had been obsessed with hero stories since childhood, wasn't the scene before her a genuine, living heroic epic?
Even if she could perhaps punch that Blazing Axe Mitachurl to death with her own strength, it didn't hinder her heartfelt admiration and worship in this moment.
To challenge a top-tier Level 2 monster with a Level 1 body.
If this wasn't a miracle, if this wasn't an epic, if this wasn't a "Great Feat" worthy of the history books, then what was?
Bete was also completely dumbstruck.
He stared blankly at the flame-like figure in the field, his mind a total blank.
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