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Chapter 18 - Grand knight
Lucien's brows furrowed as he sped through the thick undergrowth, leaves slapping against his face and arms. He had left behind a trail of bodies and shattered armor, but that wouldn't stop Reynard. If anything, it would only provoke him to send someone stronger—much stronger.
"A Grand Knight could be next," Lucien thought grimly, scanning the forest ahead for the safest path. "If that happens... I might not be able to protect her."
He turned to Selene, who was panting and barely keeping pace. Her legs trembled beneath her dress, her strength nearly spent. She wouldn't last much longer if they kept running like this.
"I'll carry you," Lucien said, his voice steady. "We need to move faster. Is that alright?"
Selene's eyes widened, a mix of hesitation and embarrassment flashing across her face. But she saw the urgency in his expression and gave a resolute nod. "Okay. I trust you."
Lucien gave her a small, grateful smile. Then, without ceremony, he scooped her up into his arms. She let out a startled yelp as her feet left the ground, her arms instinctively wrapping around his neck.
Before she could even say another word, Lucien launched into a blur of motion, sprinting across the forest floor at breakneck speed. Trees passed them in streaks of green and brown. The wind howled in Selene's ears, and she instinctively curled against his chest like a kitten seeking warmth.
Lucien's focus was razor-sharp. Every step was calculated to avoid broken branches, thick roots, and anything else that could give away their trail. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop himself from noticing Selene's body—warm, soft, and pressed tightly against him. Her ample chest pressed against his torso, and her thighs rested against his arms. Her delicate scent clung to him like a teasing whisper.
Focus, he told himself, shaking his head to dispel the swarm of inappropriate thoughts. Now is not the time.
But that fragile calm shattered like glass when he heard it—swift, thunderous footsteps, growing louder with each second. The rhythm of the steps told him all he needed to know. Whoever was following them wasn't just fast—they were powerful.
Their speed and the way they moved confirmed Lucien's worst fears, a grand knight was after him, and they were not playing around.
Lucien made a decision he hadn't wanted to. The direction he had been running toward was away from the depths of the forest, skirting the center and depths of the forest. This was because that was the place with a high concentration of magical beasts, strong and fierce.
However now, Lucien made a turn and headed into the depths of the forest, aiming straight for the center. He was left with no choice but to seek for a chance in there, hoping against hope for a chance to survive.
He heard the sound of the approaching steps pause before they started after him again, even fiercer and faster. They raced into the forest , one after the other, Lucien doing his best to shake the chasing knight.
He could sense fierce bestial auras as he ran, and he did his best to avoid them, not intending to be drawn into any fights. That would be suicide.
This didn't always work though. As they passed by, Lucien felt a fierce aura start after them, luckily, Lucien passed by quickly and the magical beast met the knight. Lucien could hear the sounds of a fierce fight erupting, causing joy to rise in his heart.
However, that didn't last too long. He could feel the fierce aura fade quickly before the sound of chasing started up again. Lucien felt his stamina fade quickly, his body couldn't handle the strain of increased speed without stamina to back it up.
He couldn't run anymore. He had to fight it out fiercely with the chasing foe.
He stopped abruptly, placing Selene behind a thick tree trunk.
"Stay low. Don't move unless I say so," Lucien ordered, eyes narrowing as he turned to face the threat.
From between the trees, a hulking figure emerged—clad in gleaming black armor trimmed with silver, each footstep cracking the forest floor beneath him. A scarred helmet concealed his face, but the oppressive aura he radiated was unmistakable.
A Grand Knight.
Lucien activated his Appraise instinctively.
Name: Caldus Bravane
Race: Human
Rank: Grand Knight
Aura: 2000Strength: 1780Agility: 1540Vitality: 1895Intelligence: 500
"He's a monster," Lucien thought, jaw clenched. Almost every attribute dwarfed Lucien's own by several times.
Caldus drew his massive greatsword, the metal singing as it slid from its sheath. "You're fast for a disgrace," he said, voice like gravel. "But it ends here."
Lucien's eyes narrowed as he watched the knight attentively. He looked at his balance, and hoped against hope that this would work.
He activated surge and instead of the normal 1 gold coin per second the system demanded 100 per second. Lucien's heart dropped, disbelief and anger rising in his heart.
Of all the times to do this, the system was choosing now. He bore the pain and agreed. He had 4 seconds.
A burst of energy exploded around him, flooding his limbs with power. Muscles tensed. Blood raced. The trees around him bent from the sheer pressure of the sudden aura shift.
His strength surged to 1600 and his speed raised to greater than 2000.
The Grand Knight was taken aback, but he lunged first, the ground rupturing beneath his boots as he closed the gap in a heartbeat.
CLANG!
Their blades collided in a shriek of metal and power. Lucien parried the attack, sparks dancing between them. The impact rattled his bones—but he didn't fall. Instead the grand knight was pushed back from the force of the strike, his eyes widening in disbelief.
Lucien, on the other hand, felt his body almost burst. His vitality was letting him down.
Instead, he twisted, sidestepping the next heavy blow and slashing upward, scoring a line across Caldus's chestplate. The older warrior grunted, impressed.
"Not bad, boy."
Lucien didn't answer. His mind was focused solely on survival. He ducked under a swing that could have cleaved a tree in half, then retaliated with a flurry of rapid slashes empowered by Surge. The speed difference was in his favor, so he rained a flurry of attacks on the knight. The knight withstood one strike, then the next then no more.
With a roar, Lucien feinted left, then kicked off a tree trunk, spinning in mid-air. His blade flashed and pierced through a gap in Caldus's shoulder armor. Blood sprayed.
The Grand Knight stumbled back, roaring in pain. Lucien was too fast for him to resist, the speed advantage was totally Lucien's.
Lucien didn't hesitate. He launched forward, blade raised for the killing strike.
But then—
A shadow fell across them.
An immense pressure descended like a mountain crashing from the heavens.
Lucien's instincts screamed.
He couldn't even turned just in time. He only felt his instincts scream before he felt a huge impact force crash against him.
BOOM!
Pain exploded in Lucien's side. A single punch, swift and precise, sent him flying through three trees before he slammed into a boulder with a sickening crack. Blood spurted from his mouth as he collapsed, barely conscious.
"Lucien!" Selene cried out in horror from her hiding spot.
Lucien forced his eyes open, every nerve in his body aflame. He coughed, his vision swimming, and Appraised the new arrival through the haze.
Name: UnknownRank: WardenStrength: ???Agility: ???Vitality: ???Mana: ???
The system asked for gold coins to read his stats. That meant one thing.
Too high.
