Chapter Eighteen: The Shadow Caverns (4)

At this moment, Artoria was already surrounded by several troglodyte guards. Despite hearing Lainis’s warning, she continued to dispatch the monsters around her with unhurried precision.

Fully equipped and with attributes that could rival Zhao Tianhe himself, the troglodyte guards were still no match for Artoria. Each fell with a single stroke of her sword, without exception.

Zhao Tianhe listened to the flurry of notifications from the system, enjoying the sound but unable to suppress a trace of worry for Artoria.

“What’s going on? Didn’t we just clear the elites two days ago?” Zhao Tianhe looked at Lainis with some confusion.

Kentor had only managed his first job change by killing the last wave of elites, but those were supposed to respawn in about five days.

“I don’t know. There shouldn’t be any stragglers... You know as well as I do, monsters aren’t afraid of death,” Lainis replied, equally puzzled. “But does it matter? With Miss Saber’s skills, even three or more of them at once shouldn’t be a problem.”

“True,” Zhao Tianhe nodded.

Not far away, Artoria was already facing off against the troglodyte champion.

The champion raised its head and roared, causing the surrounding guards to fall back. Though unafraid of death, they knew they weren’t the main force here and made way.

Yet two of the troglodyte guards suddenly turned and charged toward Zhao Tianhe and Lainis!

“Zhao, can you handle this?” Lainis swallowed and shot a glance at him.

“I can hold them off for a while,” Zhao Tianhe answered with a somewhat forced laugh, raising his sword to meet the attack.

Clang!

The invisible greatsword clashed with a warhammer, sparks flying in all directions.

One guard hurled a spear at Artoria, but she didn’t even look—she simply raised her right hand and deflected it.

The punch seemed casual, but struck the side of the spear’s tip with perfect precision.

And with just one hand, she blocked the champion’s full-force blow!

Seeing Zhao Tianhe and Lainis in danger, Artoria decided to end her fight quickly.

Artoria abruptly withdrew her sword and stepped back, almost causing the champion, locked in a test of strength, to stumble. At the same time, she dodged thrown daggers and axes.

She stepped in and thrust her sword at the champion’s throat, only for it to block with its arm. Yet how could chainmail withstand the sacred edge of the Sword of the Lake? Even though her holy sword was not at full power, it pierced through the arm regardless.

Just as the monster’s throat was about to be run through, a guard wielding a spear rushed in to save it at the last moment.

Artoria retreated to her left, beheading the guard in a single stroke.

Blood sprayed as the champion lived up to its name, ignoring its wounds and raising its warhammer for another attack!

Meanwhile, two guards flanked her, ready to strike.

Confronted with the champion’s heavy blow, Artoria did not block with her sword but sidestepped at the last moment!

The champion, swinging with too much force, struck the ground. At that instant, a boot stepped down on the hammer’s head, rendering the weapon useless.

Artoria had seized the opportunity, and although she appeared petite, her strength far exceeded her opponent’s—a single stomp made it impossible for the monster to retrieve its weapon.

Now, the champion faced a difficult choice: retreat and abandon its weapon, or grapple and hold Artoria in place, allowing the two guards to attack.

But the invisible greatsword offered a third option:

Death.

The champion tried to pull its hammer free, exposing a glaring opening—Artoria beheaded it with a single stroke!

Then, pivoting on the foot planted on the hammer, she spun and swung her sword, slicing through both guards and their weapons in one sweep.

As blood splattered, Artoria turned to look toward Zhao Tianhe and Lainis. Two more guards, armed with longswords and sabers, charged at her.

She appeared to ignore them completely, powered forward with explosive speed, drove her sword through one’s skull, punched the other flying, and then advanced toward the two guards facing Zhao Tianhe.

Though only seconds had passed since Zhao Tianhe engaged the two guards, his left shoulder was already wounded by a longsword. Of course, one of the guards had also been stabbed in the chest.

But these monsters were far tougher and hardier than the lesser creatures on the first and second levels—a sword wound was not enough to stop them.

“Hah... I’m still too weak...” Zhao Tianhe forced one guard back with a swing, while a cool sensation flooded his left shoulder—Lainis’s healing spell had taken effect.

He had no time to thank her. Twisting aside, he dodged another charge and struck the attacking guard on the back of the head with his sword’s hilt!

The monster staggered and fell, but Zhao Tianhe dared not pursue—another guard could attack at any time. Though his body was strengthened by the Hero System, a serious wound, especially to the head, could leave him dazed and helpless, an easy target to be chopped into pieces. Healing magic would be useless then—only resurrection magic could help.

“With healing, I can ignore minor wounds and blood loss and wear these two down!” Zhao Tianhe focused intensely, retreating to keep his distance. He couldn’t take on both at once—he needed to separate them and strike at the right moment.

From a distance, Artoria watched him with a thoughtful look, then turned and charged back into the fray.

Three minutes later, Zhao Tianhe collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. The mutilated corpses of two troglodyte guards lay nearby.

Artoria stood beside Lainis, her magical gauntlets fading as she calmly munched on a biscuit.

She had taken just two minutes to dispatch the remaining dozens of guards, then leisurely returned to Lainis’s side to watch the action. Of course, she would not have stood by if Zhao Tianhe had truly been in danger.

“Well done,” Artoria said, approaching and pulling Zhao Tianhe to his feet. “The journey is still long. Just in case, let’s get back quickly.”

“All right,” Zhao Tianhe replied, so exhausted he could barely speak.

“You’re still too anxious—too many unnecessary movements, which is why you’re so tired. For instance, there’s no need to keep circling...” Artoria sighed, letting Zhao Tianhe lean on her as she guided him toward the second level, offering corrections and advice on his combat mistakes.

“Mmm... she smells so nice...” Zhao Tianhe struggled to focus on her words instead of the girl beside him.

Watching them, Lainis suddenly felt their relationship was rather odd.

“Is she a summoned creature or a teacher? Hm... I can’t figure it out. The talent systems of otherworldly spirits are truly strange! And... I wish Miss Saber would lecture me too...” Lainis looked at Artoria’s beautiful face and Zhao Tianhe leaning close to her, feeling a strange mix of envy and jealousy...