Realm of Myths and Legends

"Even looking at this guy from far away, I already knew he was strong, but facing him like this—what a ridiculous pressure he's giving off." Champion thought to himself as he felt cold sweats run down his back the closer he got to Menkar.

"Still, compared to enduring the pressure that our Captain gave off during the entry test, this much... Is nothing at all!" Champion yelled as he pushed down his instinct to retreat and continued to charge ahead.

It did not take long for Champion and Menkar to arrive within melee range of one another. But, surprisingly, Champion was the first to make his move.

Champion disregarded all defense as he swept outward with the greatsword in his hands.

"Narrow Impact!" Champion cried out as a dense concentration of mana instantly gathered around his greatsword.

In the blink of an eye, the Champion's greatsword seemed to shrink in size until the edge of its blade became thinner than the point of a needle.

Narrow Impact was an attack-type skill unique to Champion's class, Wayward Gladiator. It momentarily lowered Champion's defense stat and increased his attack while focusing everything to a single point at the edge of his greatsword.

Woosh!

Menkar halted his momentum and leaned back just enough for Champion to narrowly miss his attack.

In addition, Champion could not stop his blade mid-swing in the middle of his attack. This, paired with his complete disregard for defending, left Champion in an incredibly vulnerable state.

Menkar did not miss this opportunity as he raised his battle axe and, in one smooth motion, swung downward at the defenseless Champion with a terrifying force.

"Damn, he actually dodged?!" Champion silently contemplated as he was taken aback by Menkar's actions.

Champion was not surprised by the fact that Menkar was able to avoid his strike. It was just that with his towering stature, haughty attitude, and obvious advantage in terms of strength, Champion believed that Menkar was the type of person to meet his attack head-on. Instead, the great warrior decided to evade the strike and immediately set up a counterattack in the process.

Champion inwardly sighed, "It's a little disappointing. But, with this..."

〈Battle Alert: Champion is being targeted by «(Sandstorm Walker Great Warrior)Menkar».〉

〈Battle Alert: Champion's passive skill «Meadow of the Wayward» has been activated!〉

〈Battle Alert: «(Sandstorm Walker Great Warrior)Menkar» has been affected by Champion's passive skill «Meadow of the Wayward»!〉

"I guess I'll just have to leave the rest up to him," Champion said to himself as Menkar's battle axe arrived at his face.

Zeeeeut!

All of a sudden, Champion vanished in front of Menkar as a tide of blue flames burst forth from where he previously stood.

Boom..!

The sound of a soft explosion could be heard as the sand within five meters of Menkar jumped from the ground as a result of the impact before raining down.

Menkar narrowed his eyes as he observed the blue flames that held back his battle axe not once but twice.

"That attack wasn't part of the plan. I guess he couldn't help himself. Nonetheless, you carried out your task well, Champion." Niflheim said as he now stood face to face with Menkar.

"Hmph, I suppose you aren't just a lucky coward, after all," Menkar commented as his muscles bulged.

The next moment, Niflheim's feet sunk slightly further into the sand.

Niflheim maintained an unwavering expression as he endured the sudden increase of force pressed down upon him.

"I'm glad I haven't disappointed you," Niflheim stated with a sharp gaze.

So far, everything was going just as Niflheim envisioned.

At his current level, naturally, Champion was no match for someone like Menkar. Under normal circumstances, sending him charging head-in first was no different than sentencing Champion to certain death.

Of course, Niflheim never intended to let it reach that point.

Just now, when Menkar attacked Champion, Niflheim utilized a high-ranked skill called Safeguard Exchange.

This let Niflheim swap positions with any ally who was under attack in his field of vision as long as they were within a certain range of him. It also automatically blocked the incoming attack and gave Niflheim a temporary buff to his defenses.

As for why Niflheim sent Champion in first, it was so that his passive skill, Meadow of the Wayward, would be activated. This would impair Menkar's ability to correctly judge distances and make it increasingly difficult for the great warrior to display coordinated movements as the battle progressed.

Since taunt-type skills did not work on NPCs in the same way as monsters, Niflheim understood that if he were to engage Menkar, it would be tricky to get the great warrior to shift his focus to Champion without taking some risks.

By doing things this way, Niflheim was not only able to bring Menkar under the effects of Meadow of the Wayward but also ensure that he was the main priority of the great warrior's blows.

"Compared to that woman, these blows feel as light as a feather." Niflheim thought to himself as he was reminded of his battle with Tal'Nis.

Suddenly, Menkar released a chilling breath as an icy frost formed upon his exhale.

"Hm? What is this?" Menkar said to himself as he glanced down at his hands.

Without warning, the temperature in the atmosphere dropped several degrees. Simultaneously, Menkar saw that his hands were slowly being engulfed in frost, along with various parts of his arms, legs, and face. However, Niflheim seemed to be completely unaffected by the drop in temperature. Though this was to be expected, seeing as how it was the doing of one of his own allies.

Bellum, "For some reason, I'm unable to directly manipulate the sand in the vicinity. It limits my ability, but I still have a few tricks left up my sleeves."

Bellum communicated over voice chat while she maintained a safe distance.

Niflheim, "It can't be helped. Just do what you can, and I'll try to handle the rest on my end."

Niflheim did not know exactly how Bellum's skills worked; however, he knew that it needed a proper catalyst to display its full potential.

"Does it have to do with the sand being a part of his Domain? Speaking of which, it's strange. There haven't been any noticeable changes since he used his Domain besides the appearance of the sand itself. Is there another secret behind it?" Niflheim contemplated.

"Ha!" Menkar unleashed a mighty cry as the frost on his face shattered and dispersed.

However, it appeared that the great warrior was not able to completely get rid of all the frost that formed on other parts of his body.

Since Bellum could not manipulate the sand, she changed the air itself around Menkar, which caused the drop in temperature, as well as the appearance of the frost.

Unfortunately, it was not easy for Bellum to constantly manipulate air due to its physical intangible state compared to more solid forms of matter, which is why she did not typically resort to it.

"Worthless tricks," Menkar growled as the sand beneath his feet began to grow restless and shift about.

"?!"

When the sand under Niflheim's feet moved, he was thrown off balance.

Niflheim managed to quickly regain his footing. But, in that split moment, Menkar struck out with his battle axe.

This blow was different from the others that came before it. There was no mana contained within it; however, the overwhelming power it gave off was obviously many times higher than Menkar's previous attacks. This did not go unnoticed by Niflheim.

BANG!

Niflheim's foot slid back as he blocked as the blue flames intercepted the Menkar's battle axe. However, this time, the blue flames trembled as Niflheim lost nearly 15% of his HP despite his successful block.

"What's going on? There's no energy or mana behind it, yet it's clear that his power suddenly spiked." Niflheim thought to himself.

Right when the sands started to shift around, Menkar's power exploded to a new level. Niflheim did not think it was just a simple coincidence. He figured that, somehow, the two were related.

"You're enduring well. But how long can you persist? Try not to die too fast." Menkar said with a frighteningly enthusiastic grin.

Clap!

"Hm?" Menkar's gaze moved off to the distance on the east side of the encirclement.

The sound of a thunderclap rang from the distance. And not long after, out of nowhere, a swirling vortex of dark clouds appeared in the sky above the battlefield.

This was swiftly followed by yet another loud thundering boom as a second swirling vortex of dark clouds appeared in the sky over the south side of the encirclement.