Chapter 2: New Century (Epilogue)
This giant hammer had accompanied the North Wind Duke for over twenty years.
It started as an ordinary master-class weapon of no particular significance. Through repeated repairs, as the North Wind Duke’s strength grew, precious materials were added during these mends. It had endured countless battlefields.
Having killed innumerable foes, it had been upgraded through blood and death to a quasi-heroic weapon.
The only thing separating it from a true heroic weapon was a soul core embedded within.
A weapon possessing its own consciousness and capable of amplifying the user’s attributes throughout their entire body could be called a heroic weapon.
Before the heroic grade, no matter how sharp, all weapons of lesser grades were merely ordinary mortal weapons.
Today, the North Wind Duke would behead Polvert!
Then, he would engage an undead mage to strip Polvert’s soul and place it within his giant hammer.
This would be a tribute to the soul of his son!
“Roar!”
He let out a roar, the giant hammer clutched in his hand. Ignoring the attempts of the old soldiers around him to stop him, he leaped from the city wall, descending like a shooting star towards Polvert below the watchtower.
The wind whistled past his ears.
He could no longer distinguish between the shouts of the old knights and the roar of the gale!
The North Wind Duke’s personal strength was that of a Champion Knight.
Although he was old now, and currently suppressed to the Sky level by the Moonlight Sacred Well, the fact that he had held the Narvit Bastion for 28 years was testament to his extraordinary capabilities.
Polvert dared not directly receive this blow.
He had never intended to engage this old knight in a straightforward one-on-one duel.
His objective had always been to lure the North Wind Duke’s army down and, little by little, consume them with sheer numbers.
“Slay the enemy with the Duke!”
“Charge!”
“Slay the rebels, defend the bastion!”
Seeing the North Wind Duke leap from the city wall.
The loyal veteran soldiers under the North Wind Duke’s command also had their eyes turn red with fury.
Following the North Wind Duke, they fearlessly leaped from the watchtower wall, engaging in combat with the rebels from Karari.
“Boom—!”
Bricks flew, and the ground cracked.
The North Wind Duke’s giant hammer missed Polvert, instead smashing a large pit into the ground.
This was, after all, the very sturdy Elemental Obsidian ground.
Witnessing the astonishing power of the North Wind Duke’s blow.
Polvert completely abandoned any thought of confronting the North Wind Duke head-on.
He dodged the North Wind Duke’s pursuit while scanning his surroundings.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up. He raised his sword to parry the giant hammer.
Then, using the momentum of the hammer’s impact, he rolled several times and arrived beneath a supporting pillar of the Narvit Bastion.
“Old geezer, don’t you have a lot of strength? Smash here if you dare!”
Polvert sneered coldly, shouting provocatively at the North Wind Duke. He stood beside the supporting pillar, his long sword wavering, filled with defiance.
“Using the terrain to restrict my weapon?”
The North Wind Duke straightened his body, planting his giant hammer beside him with a “thud.”
His gaze fixed on Polvert, who was hiding by the supporting pillar, filled with extreme disgust and hatred.
“Everything you’ve done is a disgrace to being a knight. A person like you could never forge a Champion Heart in their lifetime.”
“And do you think I can’t fight without my giant hammer?”
With that, the North Wind Duke released his grip on the giant hammer, then reached to his waist with his right hand and drew a long sword.
He was not particularly skilled with a sword.
But that did not mean he feared Polvert.
As the North Wind Duke, bearing the title “North Wind,” he naturally possessed his own pride.
It was the north wind that brought endless chills to his enemies.
Now, facing his own kin, this wind began to blow.
“Boom—!”
This was the sound of air explosion.
In the next instant, the North Wind Duke’s figure moved like a ghost towards Polvert, his long sword simultaneously sweeping upwards.
Without the heavy restraint of the giant hammer, the North Wind Duke’s agility greatly increased.
The attack surface of a long sword was much smaller than a hammer’s, but it was more agile. Combined with his footwork, he had no fear of hitting the supporting pillar.
Polvert was no less daring, his greatsword meeting the incoming attack. However, he was also prepared to retreat to the supporting pillar at any moment to evade the North Wind Duke’s fierce assault.
He truly lacked the righteous, invincible mindset of a knight.
He had grown up an orphan.
His sole guiding principle was to survive by any means necessary.
“Clang, clang, clang—”
“Boom!”
In less than a breath, the two had exchanged blows several times, the clash of swords and greatswords creating an ear-splitting din.
Dust flew everywhere. The dust that had settled for a thousand years was whipped up by the strong winds generated by the two, gradually forming a hazy area.
“Duke, do you want to know how your son died?”
Polvert wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
He had momentarily exposed himself, but the battle-hardened North Wind Duke had instantly seized the opportunity, striking him in the abdomen with his sword.
Although his Qi Shield had protected him, this blow had only caused a superficial wound. However, the residual force transmitted into his body was quite uncomfortable.
“Are you trying to disturb my mind with these words?”
The North Wind Duke emerged from the dust, his stern gaze shining brightly even through the haze, unable to conceal his killing intent.
“You know? Son of the North Wind, Quainite, your only son, your most beloved son, I smashed him into a meat patty with my sword!”
Polvert laughed wildly, stepping back two paces to the supporting pillar, his eyes warily fixed on the old knight, who was as ferocious as a lion.
“I will avenge him.”
The North Wind Duke’s withered face twitched, his killing intent deepening. However, he did not lose his reason from Polvert’s taunts.
“Oh? Is that so?”
Polvert straightened, a smile playing on his lips. He intended to shatter the North Wind Duke’s last bastion of defense. Then, he sighed:
“Alas… but do you know? Killing your son and attacking the bastion were the Emperor’s orders. I was merely a pawn acting on command.”
The air in that moment instantly turned cold and heavy.
Much like the old knight’s heart.
The death of his son had not broken the North Wind Duke, but Polvert’s words now were like daggers piercing his heart.
“This… this is impossible…”
The North Wind Duke shook his head, his words of disbelief squeezed out from between his teeth.
He had harbored such suspicions for a long time but had never dared to believe them. Until Polvert spoke them aloud and confirmed them, his last remaining faith finally crumbled.
“Clang!”
The long sword in his hand dropped to the ground.
The North Wind Duke stood there foolishly, his calloused hands trembling. His already aged frame stooped further, as if his spine had been broken by an unbearable weight.
Dark clouds obscured the sunlight that had just risen in the early morning.
And they obscured the last glimmer of light in the old knight’s eyes.
He had dedicated his entire life to his country.
And now, that country had betrayed him.
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