Chapter 606 – Time To Wake up.

Sounds of battle filled the grand chamber, but most eyes were drawn to a scream that was not entirely human. After a cultist’s mask split apart, his body convulsed violently. The half-formed limbs snapped back into his torso as if dragged by invisible hooks. His flesh writhed and then collapsed inward, leaving behind nothing more than a smoking husk of blackened meat. Arthur staggered back, gasping for air, his rapiers trembling in his hands. The heat of aura still burned against his palms, and his arms felt like lead.

‘I did it…’

The ground beneath him quaked. Across the chamber, Roland and the spider-witch collided once again, their strikes leaving holes in the stone floor. Sparks and acid flew as Roland’s maces hammered against her twisted exoskeleton. His weapons slammed down like falling pillars while his golemic limbs shielded him and the nobles from stray strikes.

For a brief moment, Arthur allowed himself to breathe. His gaze was fixed on his first victory after attaining the tier three class. The aura on his blades still blazed as he watched the defeated foe crumble into dust. Yet the battle was far from over. From the side, another enemy rushed toward him, this one also wearing a mask and already twisting into a strange insectoid creature.

“Ugh!”

Arthur had no time to recover and had left himself open. He raised his swords in a cross and caught the stinger aimed for his chest. At the same time, he leapt backward, letting the momentum carry him away from the brunt of the strike. The force hurled him across the chamber, and he crashed into one of the massive pillars.

His back slammed into the stone, his breath leaving him in a sharp grunt. Cracks split the marble, dust spilling down as his shoulders scraped against the surface. He tightened his grip on the rapiers, refusing to let them fall. The insectoid cultist screeched, mandibles clicking in grotesque rhythm as it lunged toward him again.

His instincts screamed at him to fight and not to be distracted by Roland’s struggle. The Duel Meister’s ability was still active, and his aura flared with renewed force. The monster charged. Arthur rolled aside, boots scraping on the polished stone as the creature’s stinger slammed into the pillar he had just left. The entire column shook, flakes of marble raining down as though an earthquake was taking place.

‘I cannot keep relying on others. I am not the same as I was before.’

Time seemed to slow as Arthur’s vision blurred from the impact. The monster was momentarily stuck, its stinger lodged in the pillar. His aura swords burned crimson once more as he struck. One pierced the creature’s chest, and the other drove into a malformed eye.

This monster was faster, stronger, and already almost fully transformed. The mask the cultist wore had fused with his flesh, and the single eye had split apart into several insect-like orbs. The man had become a grotesque mixture of scorpion and mantis.

Arthur’s strike sank deep, his aura cutting through the chitin that had merged with the cultist’s ribs. The creature let out a shriek that rattled his eardrums, then lunged forward with mantis blades that sliced just millimeters from his throat. Arthur twisted his wrist and dragged one blade sideways, severing the arm at its base before leaping back.

‘I hit the face, but the reaction is different.’

Even though the monstrosity had lost an arm and been pierced twice, it was still alive. It was now clear that once the transformation took hold, the mask was no longer a weak point. Fortunately, this monster was not invulnerable, and although the wounds in its chest were healing rapidly, the severed arm did not regenerate.

Arthur frowned at the realization and pressed on. His aura flared brighter as he lunged again. His footwork was sharp and fluid, carrying him around the monster as he pierced its body again and again while slipping past every counterstrike.

He was like a blur, a streak of crimson light weaving between slashing claws and stabbing limbs. His instincts surged within him, guiding his motions as though invisible hands pushed him into the right angles, the right strikes, the right tempo. The monster’s screeches rose in pitch as its stinger was slashed and flew to the side.

The blades traced lines of red through the air and cut into the hard carapace. Each strike left sizzling wounds that piled upon one another until the monster collapsed and Arthur stopped. Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead as he felt his aura waver. He had won again, but his breath was short and more enemies were already approaching.

Text appeared before him, yet he had no time to look at it. His gaze shifted instead to two more transformed cultists lunging toward him. Their robes were torn and their bodies were fully twisted by corruption. One resembled the creature he had just slain, while the other bore an elongated head tipped with a mosquito-like proboscis.

The message from the world system echoed in his mind. His skill only functioned when facing a single opponent, and this reminder made it clear that it was no longer active. His swordsmanship felt dulled, the perfect flow of battle that he had enjoyed only moments earlier fading away.

‘I wanted to save it for later but…’

He still had not used his new ability, High Lord’s Aura, a skill that would strengthen his aura-based combat for a short time. These cultists were too strong for him to hold back. His class granted him power, yet he lacked combat experience and the knowledge to wield his skills properly. His stamina, already drained by constant aura use, had dwindled to half. It seemed he had no other choice.

‘I do not have a… huh?’

Arthur was about to trigger the skill when a massive surge of golden light flooded the chamber, drowning out the insect-like cries of the cultists. He flinched and raised an arm against the brilliance as a radiant pressure swept across the battlefield. The corrupted cultists were struck by a wave of power that burned through their unholy flesh in an instant. A heartbeat later, the source revealed itself. Lady Bernadette of the Dawn had awoken.

Her eyes blazed like twin suns, irises suffused with golden fire. The bracelet Arthur had clasped onto her wrist now shone with runic light. In her hands rested a massive two-handed sword, a weapon she had not been carrying before. It was clear that knight commanders were permitted to take their arms into the hall, yet Arthur felt no resentment. If anything, he was relieved, for this woman was likely their strongest weapon in the battle ahead.

“You dare defile this palace with your filth?”

Her voice rang out, clear and commanding, echoing through the grand hall. The insectoid cultists shrieked as her holy aura swept over them. Arthur watched in awe as the golden radiance burned straight through their bodies, slicing them apart with terrifying precision. It was not merely light but a divine force that cut as cleanly as any blade.

Lady Bernadette raised her greatsword high. The runes carved into its steel flared with brilliance that rivaled the sun. A halo of golden radiance burst from her form, expanding outward in a blazing circle. Arthur shielded his eyes for an instant before lowering his arm. The cultists no longer looked his way; every one of them now hurled themselves against her.

‘Julius seems fine too now.’

Arthur’s gaze shifted to his eldest brother standing behind the paladin. A shield bearing Solaria’s sun emblem gleamed in Julius’s left hand, while his right already held a longsword. With both Julius and Bernadette awakened, Arthur knew he could press forward and focus on rousing two more allies. His third eldest brother remained still, and beside him his wizard guardian also awaited awakening.

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Without uttering a word, he moved forward with the remaining bracelets. Roland had only given him these few, and it was up to him to decide who would receive them. Most of the people here were incapable of fighting at a tier three level. Although many nobles went to great lengths to obtain powerful battle classes, very few actually advanced beyond a tier two class. They usually left the fighting to their knights, but none of them were present at the moment.

The most powerful fighters were the knight commanders who had come with his brothers, along with the guards that surrounded his father. Ivan could not be trusted, and his knight had been injured in the previous duel. That left only his brothers and their guards. He had already decided to avoid Theodore, since he simply could not trust him. It was better to keep the giant man from taking orders from Theodore, as he was certain his brother would choose retreat and prioritize his own life over everyone else’s.

Tybalt, on the other hand, was also a mage, and with the help of his wizard companion, he could be relied upon to provide supporting fire. He soon made his way toward them while radiant aura swords clashed against the enemy. The paladin lady fought fiercely, and thanks to her efforts, he was able to head over towards his brother.

To aid him in his mission, one of the golems Roland had sent out concealed his presence. He felt the weight of a concealment spell settle over him, and with his enemies distracted he managed to reach his brother. The golem then ascended into the sky as though it were keeping watch, although it was more likely serving as an additional set of eyes for his ally. Once both bracelets were clasped in place, he waited for their clarity to return before speaking about what was taking place.

“What, abyssal cultists?”

“Indeed. Keep the bracelets on. They are the only thing preventing you from falling under the illusion. Once I awaken Father, we must destroy the relics that are creating this magic. Protect the other nobles in the meantime.”

Arthur was already running while shouting to his fourth brother. Not far away, he saw Lady Bernadette cut down another twisted cultist. Her greatsword blazed with golden radiance as she swung in a wide arc, and the sheer force of her aura attack split the polished marble beneath her feet.