Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1917, 1889. The End of the Hundred Elephants of the Crucible
The difference in this turning motion lies mainly in the difference in the body's center of gravity.

When an ordinary person turns around, their center of gravity is inside the body, most likely along the spine.

However, when an animal with a tail turns around, especially when it turns with the purpose of flicking its tail, the center of gravity of the movement must be on the tail outside the body.

This will make the tail swing out more powerfully.

And now, the movements of this Forge Knight on the ground perfectly capture that feeling!

It's as if his body, which is no different from a normal person except for its size, has suddenly grown a tail!
This situation seems illogical, but think about it again, didn't a pair of wings just flash by behind the Forge Knight?
Moreover, the "furnace" in the so-called Furnace Knights refers to the Furnace of Life. It is the original form of the golden tree in this world, where all the hundred forms and characteristics of life are fused into one furnace.

And just as Lann had predicted—a thick tail had indeed appeared on the back of the Forge Knight, at the location of his tailbone!

The thick tail was made of golden light and looked like the tail of some kind of reptile, perhaps a dragon?
It was covered with scales and bristles growing from the gaps in the scales.

【The End of the Crucible】!
The thick tail swung around the Furnace Knight's tailbone as he turned.

At this point, it was only about two meters long and about the same thickness as a normal person's waist.

However, this lap seems to be just the buildup for the tail swing; the real tail swing comes out in the second lap that follows!

With a whoosh!
The golden tail has expanded, thickened, and lengthened!

It stretched to over twenty meters in length! Its thickness was enough to match half the body of a normal person!

The golden tail lashed out in mid-air with a tearing crack and a surging roar of power.

The most powerful point at the very end of the long tail was aimed at Lan En, who had jumped into the air a step ahead and was now unable to change direction!

As the [Tail of the Hundred Elephants in the Forge] was swung, the brilliant golden light left a radiant afterimage in the air where the tail swept, like an illusory golden disc.

At the very edge of this disc, the brilliance of the golden tail was reflected in Lan En's eyes.

His eyes, however, remained calm and deep.

In those eyes, he could clearly see how the power within the Forge Knight's body operated.

He saw the emblem that flashed past the Forge Knight beneath the gold and red armor when [Tail of the Forge] was activated.

That emblem shares similar elements with the current Golden Law emblem of the border region: a lush golden tree, and multiple nested rings prominently displayed at the center of the tree.

However, the current Golden Law Badge has its golden tree shape standardized into a near-circular outline, making the entire badge nearly circular as well.

However, as the life furnace of the [Original Golden Tree], the emblem it displays cannot be so orderly, just like the nature of its own power.

In the emblem of the Forge of Life, the canopy of the golden tree is still so lush that it forms a semicircle, but its roots spread out and grow wildly downwards, making the composition of the entire emblem appear very divergent.

From the initial Golden Tree to the current Golden Law Golden Tree, the shape of the emblem alone reveals a trajectory from primitive chaos to gradual regulation by civilization and order.

[The Initial Golden Tree]... Upon seeing the power unleashed by the Forge Knight, Lann's eyes lit up.

But he didn't have time to think about anything else.

That thick, golden tail covered in scales was almost slapping his face!
Just as the end of the long, golden tail lashed out with a whistling sound...

"Crack!"

The sound of mechanical parts meshing together seemed incredibly abrupt amidst the surge of golden power.

As the Furnace Knight was spinning and wagging his tail, a grappling hook suddenly grabbed his shoulder armor!

Beneath the unique axe-shaped helmet, the Forge Knight looked up at the grappling hook with surprise.

He saw a golden rope behind the grappling hook, a flexible cable made from the mane of a great jackal and the tail of a golden lion that had been cut off after it entered a state of frenzy, tanned and woven together.

Looking further up... there was a ferocious figure rapidly descending, pulling on a rope!
Lan En faced the golden tail that was whipping towards him in mid-air, but he made no attempt to retreat.

Instead, he charged straight at the Furnace Knight's main body!

"Varied……?!"

For the first time since they met, the Forge Knight spoke.

And there was disbelief in the voice.

Because Lan En descended from the sky and pulled a heavy and ferocious greatsword from the alchemical leather pouch at his back!

【Turbid Current - Extinction】!
A fierce aura spread out in an instant, as if it had permeated the air.

At the same time, "Boom!" A light red aura burst forth from Lan En's body!

Greatsword Technique: Aerial Charged Slash!
Thanks to the reputation of the formidable King Gofrey, whom they have never met, and the power and qualities that the Forge Knights had just displayed.

Lann had no intention of holding back against the Forge Knights.

The knights who fought alongside the king in the great wars at the beginning of the Age of Gods would probably be considered mythical heroes in any other world.

The reason they didn't become mythical heroes in the border region is simply because the Age of Gods still exists, and mythology remains a reality, not a distant past.

If Lan En hadn't intervened beforehand and forced the force of his initial upward strike, the impact of that attack would have been immense.

That sword strike could probably slice through the entire plaza, including the magnificent steps leading to the inner city walls!
so now……

"Bang!!!"

A huge and unique sound erupted! It was like the heavy tolling of church bells!

【Turbid Flow - Annihilation】The dark, heavy sword body and the bone-white blade pressed and cut towards the upper edge of the red-gold shield that the Furnace Knight had just barely managed to lift!
In an instant, the ground beneath the Furnace Knight's feet, despite his best efforts to maintain his position using skill, was completely crushed by the sudden burst of impact!

In the spiderweb-like depression, the Forge Knight's legs were crushed into the rubble and soil, buried up to his thighs!
The large, red-gold shield could not withstand the fierce and brutal sword blade.

The Forge Knights' armor and equipment were certainly high-class items from the Golden Dynasty, but they were ultimately just the Royal Guard of King Govre.

As for the [Turbid Flow - Annihilation] in Lan En's hands... putting aside everything else, this sword was reinforced with wedge-shaped stone discs by a giant blacksmith in the world of fire.

The metal was squeezed and deformed, then torn apart at its limit, all within a very short time after the collision.

As a result, a series of metallic deformation sounds were squeezed together, turning into a sharp, piercing bang that made one's eardrums ache!
The golden-red shield was torn in half by the ferocious, enormous sword blade!
Finally, the impact force was broken off the large horns embedded in the shield, and it was stuck in the middle.

And this was only the middle section of the greatsword blade, which wasn't the most powerful. When swung up, it was accompanied by a light red aura of battle qi, and the most perfectly curved tip of the blade bit directly into the Furnace Knight's shoulder!

The pale, broad blade squeezed and tore apart the golden-red shoulder armor.

【Turbid Flow - Extinction】The wounds inflicted on the body are highly distinctive.

Those were gruesome wounds caused by the not-so-sharp blade tearing the flesh apart after it had been smashed and crushed.

The sight of blood, flesh, and bone fragments splattering after such an injury should be quite shocking.

However, due to the 'greedy' nature of [Turbid Flow·Extinction], after this sword cuts something, it actually makes the scene appear very 'clean'.

Logically speaking, the Forge Knight should only have had a large sword, as big as a door, smash into his shoulder.

Warriors of their caliber shouldn't have their fighting spirit significantly affected even after being cut in half at the waist.

However, after [Turbid Stream - Annihilation] struck, the Forge Knight's shoulders visibly trembled.

This wasn't a problem with his fighting spirit; it was a physiological and neurological reaction in his body.

The shoulder wound, which should have been gushing blood, now only produced the sound of blood spurting from the blood vessels due to blood pressure, but no actual blood could be seen flowing out.

On the contrary, it was as if some ferocious beast was currently inside the wound, greedily sucking and biting at the Furnace Knight's body!
The force of the devouring caused the Forge Knight's shoulder to twitch involuntarily, as if the flesh inside was being constantly pulled and stuffed into the beast's mouth!
But that ferocious beast didn't just eat... "Crackling!"

Black mist crackling with red arcs of electricity emanated from the blade, accompanied by a hissing sound.

The corrosive nature of dragon-attribute energy is not actually an unbearable pain for the Forge Knight.

But the key is the color of this energy!
At border regions, the color of a power and the emblem that appears when it is activated are important characteristics and evidence.

Clearly, the red and black appearance of the dragon-attribute energy secreted from [Turbid Stream - Annihilation] led the Forge Knight to mistake it for something else.

"【Destined Death】?!"

An incredible sound came from the Forge Knight's axe-shaped helmet.

His surprise left him with no room for resistance.

"Creak~ thud!!!"

Lan En, suspended in mid-air, gripped the hilt of his greatsword with a twist, the Nergigante hide on the hilt providing excellent grip.

The sword blade, already halfway through the shield, smoothly wedged itself into the crack, and with a sharp metallic scraping sound, pried the shield aside! The Forge Knight's front was completely exposed!
Immediately afterward, the Witcher's feet stomped down from the sky and landed on the front of the Forge Knight's breastplate and helmet!

Having just completed a tail sweep and with his golden tail disappearing, the Furnace Knight's entire upper body seemed to be folded over as he crashed backward into the ground!

(End of this chapter)