Clang, clang, clang...
The sound of steel greaves stepping on the ground grew clearer. Faust held his breath, focusing all his concentration. The moment the Hollow knight appeared in his field of vision, he struck immediately, thrusting his sword toward the opponent's neck with speed and precision.
Clink—!
The instantaneous attack was blocked as the Hollow knight shifted his body, catching the blade on his shoulder plate. After a shower of sparks flew from the friction, the knight retaliated with a backhand swing of his sword.
Faust instinctively raised his shield to defend, but the Hollow knight's movements were simply too fast. Before the shield was even halfway up, the heavy sword had already descended.
Suddenly, the shield in Faust's hand deformed under the sheer force of the impact. He was sent flying, crashing into a dirt mound not far away.
“Hahaha! Now this is interesting! It would be boring if it were too easy.”
Despite being easily swatted away, Faust laughed out of sheer frustration and excitement. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and climbed back to his feet.
“...Again.”
Challenge after challenge, Faust tried every trick in the book. Whether it was a sneak attack from behind or a head-on duel, he cycled through every weapon he could find. The result was always the same—a narrow defeat after a bitter struggle.
【It was not a narrow defeat, nor was it a bitter struggle.】
【You seem to be having a difficult time. Perhaps you are simply unwilling to show your true strength, or maybe you should just take pity on this poor opponent and let him be.】
“Hey, who are you mocking with that sarcasm?”
Faust couldn't stand being looked down upon by Mephistopheles. He immediately coughed twice.
“It's nothing but plain, unadorned stats! Such an impure thing... Just watch me use technique to bridge the gap!”
The prince was confident that his path of the 【martial saint】 would provide a solution.
Once, twice, three times...
He had intended to learn the enemy's patterns through constant trial and error. At worst, he could just resort to memorizing move sets; there was no shame in that.
But Faust soon realized he had overestimated his strategy.
This guy wasn't someone you could deal with just by figuring out a pattern. The Hollow knight's attacks followed no fixed routine. Depending on Faust's state and equipment, the opponent could counter every move, displaying a level of cold, meticulous precision that was terrifying.
On the other hand, if Faust showed even a sliver of an opening, the Hollow knight would seize it with pinpoint accuracy and end the match.
Thus, Faust continued his cycle of falling and resurrecting. Compared to before, the only difference was between being kicked to death instantly and struggling for a while before being kicked to death.
A chance encounter on the battlefield with a Hollow sword saint—master of a hundred martial arts, strong as a monster, impossible to defeat even with one's full strength!
...And yet, he was not truly impossible to defeat.
Faust did not lose heart, dying over and over again. Through his persistent efforts, he could feel his abilities steadily improving.
With his mind completely immersed in combat and slaughter, Faust finally felt the “curse” Mephistopheles had mentioned. The improvement was instantaneous and undeniable.
When he resurrected once more, fueled by the fury of his repeated failures, Faust's mind—which had grown slightly sluggish from the frequent deaths—suddenly became clear and vibrant. His blood surged, his muscles roared, and his bones and internal organs emitted crisp, crackling sounds.
Faust stretched his body, listening to the explosive pops within and the surge of power that rose naturally. He couldn't help but let out a low hum.
As he familiarized himself with the changes surging through him, the Hollow knight actively sought him out, leading with a spear throw as his opening move.
Previously, Faust found these miraculous throws the hardest to deal with. They were essentially a death sentence; he simply couldn't react in time.
But now, Faust actually felt that it was... too slow.
It was as if the flow of time in the world had slowed down several times over. Faust could clearly see the Hollow knight's movements as he threw the short spear—how he exerted force, how he aimed. Even the trail of the spear as it streaked through the air was burned into his retinas.
He didn't even have to make a large movement to dodge; with a slight tilt of his head, he avoided the spear that was aimed straight for his face.
【Do you feel it? This is the curse of mutual hatred and slaughter. The more you immerse yourself in it, the more power you gain to slaughter life. For you to have such a significant effect, it means your hatred and killing intent toward your enemy have already surpassed its intent toward you.】
“Mephisto, you really are wicked, laying down a curse like this.”
Faust smiled. “So the one with more malice is the one who is stronger? Talk about a total collapse of etiquette and morals!”
Despite his words, the prince's movements were anything but hesitant. He snatched up a double-edged axe and sprinted forward. With a massive swing, the broad face of the axe slammed directly into the Hollow knight's head. Amidst a dull shockwave, the knight was sent flying like a ragdoll.
The Hollow knight crashed through a wall of shields and tumbled across the ground several times before finally coming to a halt.
Should've known, stats are what matters in the end.
Realizing his stats had already surpassed his enemy's, Faust walked forward, swinging the double-edged axe in a series of heavy smashes and cleaves without any reservation.
Thud—!
Thud—!
Thud—!
One heavy blow after another forced the Hollow knight into a desperate, pathetic guard. He wasn't even allowed to dodge, because Faust was now faster.
The tables had turned!
Under the storm of violent strikes, the Hollow knight's arm guards were soon shattered into pieces. Flesh, along with protruding white bone, was pulverized. He lay flat on the ground, having lost all capacity to fight.
“Phew—”
Only now did Faust have the time to look closely at the fellow who had defeated him dozens of times.
The knight's plate armor was exquisitely styled. Despite being covered in countless bloodstains, scorch marks, and wounds, its defensive power was still not to be underestimated—a fact Faust had already fully experienced.
The broken helmet exposed his true face. The pale, withered features of a living corpse held not a trace of life. Crimson eyes bulged from their sockets, filled with a crazed, bloodthirsty killing intent.
Even though he was currently unable to move, he still glared at Faust with a savage, murderous gaze.
Faust, however, simply wiped the blood from his lip and smiled.
He placed a hand over his chest and gave the Hollow knight a deep bow, imitating Irithea's mannerisms.
“That was a very fulfilling and pleasant battle. Truly... I am most grateful!”
Then, Faust stepped on the Hollow knight's waist. The sharp, terrifying force snapped the knight in half instantly. He followed up with a punch that pierced through the knight's chest cavity, shredding the withered heart.
Combat is exhilarating!
“Phew, good thing my skill was superior.”
After killing the enemy that had blocked him for so long, a spirited Faust climbed a small mountain made of corpses. He wanted to see which direction to head next, but the sight that met his eyes made his heart stop.
Thump—thump—
The scale of this battlefield was far beyond his imagination. As far as the eye could see, there was only a sea of corpses and bones. And atop these remains wandered the Hollows.
Some, like the Hollow knight from before, still maintained a human shape. Others had mutated beyond recognition, twisting into nauseating, hideous monsters.
A chaotic dance of demons—the Hollows slaughtered one another, each one the picture of absolute madness.
From the horizon to his very feet, everything was shrouded in a layer of blood-red.
“Heh.”
Faced with this scene, Faust should have felt discomfort or fear, but at this moment, he didn't feel the slightest trace of cowardice.
On the contrary, a boiling battle intent flowed through his blood, making him so excited he could hardly contain himself. The effect of the “curse” left only one thought flashing in Faust's mind.
“Come on, you lowly bastards! I'm going to kill every last one of you! I'll slaughter you all!”
Sprinting down the mountain of corpses with great strides, Faust's movement immediately caught the attention of the surrounding Hollows. They hunched their bodies and turned their crimson gazes toward him.
Faust's response was to hurl a Sunlight Spear, which impaled the skull of one Hollow.
Using that as his declaration of war, all the Hollows let out raspy roars and lunged toward Faust.
Rate on N.U.
