NOVEL NEXT Chapter 1262
Chapter 100: The Might of Blood
The old voice that appeared without warning by his ear instinctively made Enrique’s hair stand on end. Without hesitation, he notched his short bow and swiftly shot both curved blades outward!
But in the next moment, his weapon rebounded as if it had struck an incredibly hard wall, leaving his hands numb from the impact of the Tree Bow.
A formidable enemy! Profound and inscrutable!
He didn’t dare be careless and immediately leapt back, releasing an arrow mid-air. The green energy arrow whistled sharply as it shot toward the terrifying foe whose face he couldn’t even see!
In the brief exchange, Tree Leech and Qionghua, who were already near Enrique, quickly reacted. Qionghua, breaking her usual shy demeanor, quickly retreated, creating distance while waving her staff, sending beams of light through the roof to fall upon her two teammates.
Meanwhile, Tree Leech took on the role of vanguard without hesitation, shouting as he raised his sword and shield to charge at the enemy!
Astrologers excel at applying both buffs and debuffs in team battles, and the starlight summoned by Qionghua fell upon Tree Leech, instantly boosting his already high morale to unprecedented levels, breaking through the legendary threshold as he swung his sword with rage!
“Furious Sword Strike!”
It was only at this moment that the Tree Bow finally caught a glimpse of the enemy who had materialized like a phantom beside him.
It was an older gentleman in a clean, simple tailcoat, sporting neatly combed short dark red hair. He wasn’t particularly large, but he stood tall and firm, resembling an aging noble butler.
Standing there, his presence was so faint it was almost undetectable, appearing to be an ordinary person at first glance. However, both Tree Leech and Qionghua had just witnessed him single-handedly block their captain’s full-strength blade attack without even using a weapon, which was certainly not something an ordinary person—or even a typical strongman—could accomplish.
So they wasted no time in taking action.
Almost simultaneously, Enrique’s green energy arrow whistled through the air, and Qionghua quickly waved her staff, chanting a spell at an astonishing speed, sending another beam of starlight hurtling toward the gentleman in the tailcoat!
“O shining stars that illuminate the night sky, cast your brilliance upon my foe, shaking their very soul—Star’s Howl!”
The three legendary adventurers coordinated with precision to unleash a fierce assault on the powerful enemy. In that moment, the combined might of their attacks equaled that of three legendary fighters fighting separately; even against the Blood Clan Duke wielding a massive axe, they might only be able to evade and deflect his might.
“Good coordination, but still a bit too inexperienced.”
The older gentleman with short dark red hair and a still robust build chuckled lightly. With just two fingers, he effortlessly caught Tree Leech’s fully powered sword strike. The weaken magic cast by Qionghua seemed to have no effect on him whatsoever. Then, he raised his other hand and casually grasped the energy arrow shot by the Tree Bow, preventing it from advancing even an inch.
“Using magic power to condense arrows is a nice idea, indeed it can take opponents by surprise. However, this also means you’ll find yourself powerless against enemies with high magical resistance. Little one, don’t underestimate the bow-making techniques your clan has inherited.”
Saying this, the older man tightened his long, powerful fingers, crushing the arrow into dust, and with a wave of his hand, sent Tree Leech, the heavily armored warrior, flying like a tossed ball, crashing into the hall’s wall, raising a loud boom and dust.
“This level of strength… you, you are…?”
Enrique landed on the stairs connecting the manor’s first and second floors, gazing dubiously at the suave old man in the tailcoat who had easily repelled their combined assault. Although the man hadn’t displayed any wings, the blood-like hue of his eyes and the streaks of white in his dark red hair made it clear he shared kinship with the girl.
The key point was the overwhelmingly horrifying power… it was no longer comparable to that of a legendary duke. Given the strength he demonstrated now, the Tree Bow had no doubt that without considering Miss Vilyric and her golden canine magical beast, even if everyone present banded together, they would likely be effortlessly crushed by him.
“The Blood Clan Prince! Is this a scheme orchestrated by your clan from the shadows?!”
In response to the shout from the legendary adventurer, the man who appeared to be the Blood Clan Prince merely smiled indifferently, brushing off some dust from his coat while subtly shifting his gaze toward a certain black-haired girl who hadn’t yet taken action, then slightly bowing as if greeting someone.
“Augustin Constans, that is my name, the last prince of the second generation of the Blood Clan. It’s a pleasure to meet all of you… Tree Spirit kids, you asserted that we Blood Clan are the culprits behind the events here, do you have any proof for that?”
“If you hastily conclude that merely because we meet here today, then we ought to deeply regret the loss of wisdom of the Tree Spirits.”
“…?”
Noticing Augustin seemed to have no intention of attacking further for the moment, Enrique glanced over at Sophie and the other three engaging in fierce combat with the Blood Clan girl, as well as Vilyric and her companions who were still on the other side, seemingly caught off guard by the sudden fight, and spoke in a solemn tone.
“If it’s not you guys, then why did your kin suddenly attack my teammates? If we hadn’t managed to defend ourselves there, we might have been facing casualties.”
“Heh… Clearly, this is just a misunderstanding.”
The prince-like older gentleman turned to look behind him.
“Alright, Afalyj, come back. You’ve been a bit impulsive, they aren’t from that side.”
The Blood Clan girl wielding the huge axe shot him a glance, looking somewhat puzzled.
“But Uncle Augustin, just a moment ago they clearly…”
“I said, return.”
“Che…”
Seeing the old man raise his tone, the one called Afalyj, the Blood Clan Duchess, clicked her tongue in mild reluctance but dared not defy him. She swung her axe back to fend off Sophie and quickly flew back to Augustin’s side.
The old prince surveyed those around him and humbly bowed again.
“Today’s conflict was entirely due to Afalyj’s immaturity and impulsiveness. In the name of the Constans, I apologize on her behalf. We are not enemies, at least not for now. I hope today’s incident won’t lead you to form a rude impression of the Blood Clan, ha ha…”
“So please feel free, we will take our leave now.”
With a grand gesture, Augustin and the Duchess beside him transformed into countless tiny bats as they flew up, vanishing through the hole they had just created in the ceiling.
“……”
Seeing them finally leave, Enrique relaxed his tense body and nerves, lowering his weapon and letting out a long sigh.
The power of this Blood Clan Prince Augustin was almost among the top few he had encountered in his hundred years of life… if the man insisted on fighting, it seemed that only if Miss Vilyric called forth that strong canine magical beast again could they possibly contend against him.
It was truly… too perilous.