A knight was meant to stand at the front.

Not hiding behind others, not striking from safety, but charging forward where the danger was thickest. Close combat was not merely a knight’s responsibility. It was their pride, their proof of existence on the battlefield.

"Attack!"

With a fierce shout, Marcus stepped forward together with Pebble. The moment the remaining monsters closed into striking distance, he surged ahead without hesitation, meeting the incoming tide head-on.

"Hundred Phantom Strike!"

Steel screamed through the air.

The blades in Marcus’s hands and Pebble’s mirrored movements blurred into motion, their swings accelerating until they became a storm of overlapping afterimages. Countless sword shadows erupted outward, engulfing every monster within three meters before them.

Bam. Bam. Bam.

Critical hits detonated across the battlefield. Yellow damage numbers burst above the monsters’ heads in rapid succession, each exceeding five thousand damage. The tightly packed enemies were shredded under the relentless assault, unable to withstand the overwhelming burst.

"Hundred Phantom Strike!"

Marcus instinctively prepared to chain another strike, eager to maintain momentum. Combat rhythm mattered, and once he entered that flow, he wanted nothing interrupting it.

But before his second activation could fully release, Goldie, Lyanna, and Camillo unleashed their follow-up barrage from behind.

Magic exploded across the front line.

The monsters’ remaining health vanished instantly. Bodies collapsed one after another like wheat cut cleanly at harvest, falling before Marcus’s second attack could even connect.

Marcus blinked.

’Seriously?’

His rhythm shattered completely.

"NOT COOL!"

Annoyance flared as he pushed forward with Pebble, raising the Mythic Artifact Bat Dragon Cloud Sword while charging at the remaining twenty or so monsters just beyond his reach.

"Hundred Phantom Strike!"

This time the attack landed perfectly.

The coiled power exploded outward like a storm breaking loose. Sword shadows swept through the enemies like a hurricane ripping through dry leaves, critical hits flashing across the battlefield once again. The last of the lesser monsters were erased almost instantly, leaving nothing standing in their wake.

In mere seconds, the fifty monsters Marcus had drawn away were completely wiped out.

Now only the true threat remained.

Seventy monsters surged forward alongside the three bosses guarding the passage.

"BRUTE FORCE!"

Marcus issued the command without hesitation. He, Sea Demon Soul, and Pebble formed a tight defensive line, shields and bodies creating an unbreakable wall that protected the spellcasters behind them as they charged directly into the incoming horde.

There was no retreat.

He could have waited defensively, letting the monsters crash into his formation first. That would have been safer, more calculated. But the rush of battle burned too fiercely in his veins. His killing intent was sharp, his spirit soaring, and at this intensity there was no room left for cautious strategies.

His mind settled on one simple truth.

Attack, overwhelm, and destroy.

He had the strength to do it. Hesitation only dulled momentum. Offense was defense, and victory belonged to whoever seized initiative first.

And when it came to taking initiative, nothing surpassed his Desperate Strike.

Marcus quickly assessed the battlefield.

The three bosses had originally stood behind the mob formation near the passage entrance, but their speed quickly set them apart. They pushed ahead of the regular monsters, rapidly closing distance.

The fastest among them was the Wailing Wandering Soul King. The ghostly figure floated forward at terrifying speed, now less than ten meters away. Its misty claws slashed through the air as it released its signature ability, Wailing Lament. Invisible waves of sound rolled toward Marcus, carrying debuffs meant to weaken his attributes.

But Marcus barely felt anything.

The Dragon’s Crest granted thirty percent resistance to negative effects, and after the Ten-Thousand-Year Peach Blossom Spirit acknowledged him as its master, his resistance had increased even further. The supposed debuff felt like background noise, little more than an irritating echo in the cavern.

Pebble and Sea Demon Soul shared his enhanced resistances, leaving the boss’s attack largely ineffective.

’Should I strike now?’

The Wailing Wandering Soul King had entered his ten-meter range. Technically, he could launch Desperate Strike immediately. Yet hesitation flickered through his mind. The boss possessed Drifting Loiter, an ability rumored to grant partial immunity to physical attacks. Wasting his strongest skill would be disastrous, especially with a thirty-second cooldown attached.

The other two bosses remained just outside range.

Marcus tightened his grip on the heavy two-handed weapon he had already prepared for throwing. Timing mattered. One mistake here could turn the battle.

’Damn it. No perfect option.’

He inhaled sharply, preparing to commit, and then everything changed. Behind the ghost king, a surge of yellow light erupted.

The Frenzied Digger Corpse King launched itself into the air.

Its four arms moved with terrifying coordination as it pushed off the ground, yellow battle aura blazing. One icy blue hoe and one blazing red hoe carved through the air as the monster descended toward Marcus like a falling meteor.

"Resentful Leap Slash!"

Marcus’s eyes widened.

"So fast!"

He had seen this skill before from normal monsters, but the difference between a common enemy and a boss version was staggering. The activation distance was longer, the leap nearly instantaneous. In less than a heartbeat, the boss overtook the Wailing Wandering Soul King and descended directly toward Marcus’s position.

Blue frost energy gathered along one weapon. Violent explosive heat burned along the other.

The attack aimed straight at him.

Sea Demon Soul activated Frosty Mockery, its powerful taunt attempting to redirect the boss’s aggression. Normally nothing ignored that skill.

But this boss did.

With frightening intelligence, the Frenzied Digger Corpse King bypassed the tank entirely and locked onto Marcus himself.

Instead of fear, laughter burst from Marcus’s chest.

"Ha ha ha!"

Watching the massive figure crash toward him, he felt exhilaration rather than panic.

"Beautiful!"

The timing could not have been better. Moments ago he had struggled to decide where to aim his Desperate Strike. Now the perfect target delivered itself willingly, charging straight into range.

A gift like this would be rude to refuse.

"DESPERATE STRIKE!"

The attack he had already prepared shifted targets instantly. Abandoning the Wailing Wandering Soul King, Marcus hurled his weapon forward with every ounce of fury and momentum he possessed, sending Desperate Strike roaring toward the airborne Frenzied Digger Corpse King.