Episode 458
The Sultan herself took on the third trial, seated regally atop a golden fox, casting a haughty gaze down at Zeke.
At her feet, a black lion and a white tiger glared at Zeke with piercing eyes. Though they had once shown him affection as fellow spirit beasts, they now exuded a fierce hostility, reflecting their master Serazad’s will.
Zeke, facing Serazad and her three spirit beasts in battle, spoke up.
“Are you truly permitting me to raise my sword against Your Majesty?”
“Are you afraid you might actually kill me? If you can, I’ll gladly hand over the Sultan’s throne to you.”
Her voice brimmed with an almost arrogant confidence.
The golden fox landed gracefully, and Serazad slid down its tail to the ground. She turned to Saladin, who still held his greatsword.
“Saladin, I’ve seen your loyalty. You’ve paid for your transgressions. Why not return to your position as commander?”
Despite her offer of forgiveness, Saladin remained silent, his head bowed.
Serazad regarded him quietly before speaking again.
“How stubborn you are. Very well, step aside for now. Watch this duel closely.”
Obeying her command, Saladin left the arena, kneeling with his sword laid before him, a paragon of steadfastness. The nobles nearby trembled with unease, but Serazad paid them no mind.
Surveying the damaged arena, she shook her head.
“Hmm, this won’t do for a proper match.”
With a gesture, the bracelet on her wrist glowed brightly. Miraculously, the broken ground of the arena repaired itself, returning to its original state.
Zeke realized that Serazad’s bracelet was a powerful artifact, likely containing a sealed spirit.
‘If each of those trinkets holds a different spirit…’
It meant Serazad could wield a variety of abilities, rivaling Zeke’s own skills, bolstered by the power of her spirit beasts.
‘This won’t be easy.’
In the Central Continent, knights were ranked by color and mages by circle, but warriors from the Eastern Continent had different abilities, making their attacks unpredictable.
As Zeke stood with his sword, Serazad smiled.
“You cannot forge a pact of sincerity without defeating me.”
Her taunt spurred Zeke into action. To fulfill the conditions for the pact, he had to succeed.
Adopting a dragon-slaying stance, he advanced, unleashing a crescent-shaped aura blade toward Serazad.
Whoosh—
Serazad watched the attack with a bored expression.
“Kaplan.”
At her command, the white tiger leapt forward, baring its fangs.
Roar!
A fierce wind erupted from the tiger, enveloping Zeke’s aura blade and shredding it with its claws and teeth.
A feat only a spirit beast could achieve.
Serazad addressed Zeke.
“Exploratory attacks are meaningless to me. Show me your true strength.”
Zeke nodded, gripping his sword.
“Understood, Your Majesty. Then, here I come.”
He shifted his stance, raising a hand toward the white tiger.
Crackle—
A sudden storm of electricity engulfed the tiger, startling it into retreat.
Zeke seized the opportunity, using a wind technique to dash forward, stepping on the tiger’s back to launch himself toward Serazad.
“Kara!”
At Serazad’s call, the black lion charged at Zeke.
Roar!
The lion unleashed a torrent of flames from its mouth.
Fwoosh!
Zeke blocked the flames with his sword, Levatein, which absorbed the fire into its blade.
The sword shimmered, then erupted with white flames, engulfing the black lion.
Roar!
The lion countered with its own dark flames.
Zeke bypassed the lion, charging toward Serazad on the golden fox.
Serazad remained composed, even as Zeke leapt into the air, calling out.
“Bucephalus!”
The dragon steed Bucephalus appeared, catching Zeke on its back.
The nobles of the Murk Empire murmured in surprise.
“That’s a spirit beast I’ve never seen before.”
“It looks formidable. As expected of the Guide of Divine Beasts.”
Serazad recognized Bucephalus as no ordinary spirit beast, her expression shifting.
“Tilki, take flight.”
The golden fox soared into the air toward Bucephalus.
Electricity crackled from Bucephalus’s horns as Zeke pointed at Serazad.
“Bucephalus! Now!”
Crackle!
Lightning shot from Bucephalus’s horns toward Serazad and the golden fox.
The fox’s nine tails expanded, forming a protective barrier around itself and Serazad, neutralizing the lightning.
Through the tails, Serazad extended her arm, a ring on her finger glowing.
A swirling orange mist emerged, coalescing into a muscular spirit clad in ancient Eastern warrior garb, wielding a spiked club.
“Attack that knight.”
At her command, the spirit charged at Zeke, swinging its club with immense force.
Whoosh—
Zeke quickly equipped the Herseion of the Goddess Theia.
The Herseion, fully unsealed, automatically activated its defensive magic in response to the incoming attack.
Hum—
A plasma shield, stronger than any ordinary barrier, materialized before Zeke, deflecting the spirit’s club and retaliating with a plasma wave.
Argh!
The spirit, caught in the wave, cried out before dissolving back into mist.
Serazad watched with interest as Zeke not only defended against the spirit but countered, dispelling it.
‘He’s not just a swordsman.’
To her, Central Continent knights were strong but rigid, lacking flexibility. They stubbornly relied on aura techniques, despite having access to magical artifacts.
Yet they were undeniably powerful.
Blue-ranked knights could be matched by Eastern warriors, but red and black ranks were a different story.
These transcendent knights wielded power beyond even spirit artifacts, contributing to the Murk Empire’s defeat in the invasion war.
Serazad had since been fascinated by Central Continent knights, especially the black-ranked ones with their extraordinary strength.
She had established a research lab in the palace to study aura techniques, but the secret of the black knights’ power remained elusive, differing fundamentally from Eastern methods.
Facing Zeke on Bucephalus, Serazad sought to understand the strength of a black knight firsthand.
She addressed him.
“Guide of Divine Beasts, show me more of your power.”
Her eyes turned golden, and a golden aura from the fox enveloped her, concentrating on the bracelets on her arms.
Crackle—
An ominous energy emanated from the bracelets.
At that moment, Hades, who had been watching from the VIP section, jolted upright in surprise.
“This energy…?”
Zeke also sensed the aura emanating from Serazade’s bracelet, his eyes widening in disbelief.
“Is this… dragon energy?”
Though it felt slightly different from the dragon energy he was familiar with, its essence was unmistakable.
Serazade’s eyes began to change.
Moments later, her eyes transformed into dragon eyes, glowing with a golden hue.
Crackling sounds filled the air as scales, akin to those of a dragon, started to emerge on her skin.
Zeke watched in shock as Serazade transformed into a dragonkin.
“Is it possible to become a dragonkin without a pact with a dragon?”
While he was still processing this, Serazade raised her sharp claws and slashed at Zeke.
With a swift motion, Zeke raised his sword, Levatein, to block the incoming dragon claws.
Clang!
Though the claws were stopped, the force behind them sent shockwaves through the arena.
“Ugh.”
He hadn’t realized how formidable dragon skills were until he faced them directly.
Serazade, now fully transformed, looked at Zeke and spoke.
“What do you think, descendant of the dragon slayer? The dragon your ancestors despised stands before you.”
Zeke dismounted from Bucephalus, hovering in the air as he pointed his sword at Serazade.
He had underestimated the sultan’s prowess.
In that instant, Zeke’s aura shifted dramatically.
A deep hum resonated as he unleashed the power of the Black Knight, summoning his Astral Sword.
The atmosphere in the entire banquet hall changed, enveloped by his newfound intensity.
Serazade, her skin covered in dragon scales, smiled with satisfaction at the challenge.
“Yes, this is it. The transcendent strength that surpasses human limits. This is what I was curious about.”
She amplified her dragon energy even further.
Her hands fully transformed, claws extending sharper than before.
Sensing the energy concentrating in Serazade, Zeke charged forward with his sword.
Simultaneously, Serazade launched herself at Zeke.
Boom!
Zeke’s Astral Sword clashed with Serazade’s dragon claws, creating a powerful shockwave.
The collision of these transcendent forces produced a deafening explosion.
The shockwave spread from the center of their clash, rippling through the entire banquet hall.
“Argh!”
The spectators in the noble seats couldn’t withstand the shockwave, and the force sent them flying as if caught in a storm.
Fortunately, the VIP section was shielded by a barrier Hades had erected, sparing them from the impact.
Yellin, witnessing the clash between Zeke and Serazade, stood agape in shock. She managed to regain her composure and turned to Hades, who was maintaining the barrier.
“Lord Hades, is Sir Zeke truly human?”
Hades shook his head, responding with a hint of amusement.
“These days, even I’m not sure. But Zeke’s always been like this, so it’s not surprising. The sultan’s power, though, is astonishing. To draw upon a dragon’s strength through a beast’s power… Is this part of a bloodline ability? Fascinating, truly a subject for study.”
As Hades spoke, the shockwave subsided, revealing the arena once more.
The two combatants, who had been airborne, now stood facing each other on the ground.
Zeke, holding Levatein, and Serazade, who had reverted to her human form.
Suddenly, she shook her head and approached Zeke.
“It seems there’s no other way.”
Serazade looked at Zeke and spoke.
“Sir Zeke Draker, I propose marriage to you once more.”
Her eyes were filled with intense desire.
“It seems I’ve fallen for you.”