Imperial Crown.

Chapter 258 Is it worth it?
Many thanks to Qidian Dad [Xiao Pengzhan] for the 2 rewards!

……

Eric arrived at the preparation room of the arena early.

He sat quietly in the chair, his chin supported by his hands, his eyes staring at the ground, as if he was thinking about something.

Gradually, the outside room started to get lively with all kinds of noises buzzing around. Some spectators were communicating and discussing, some were selling goods, and some were placing bets.

Eric wiped his face with his hands, his eyes became determined, he stood up with a bang and tore off his coat.

His sturdy body is covered with strong and muscular muscles, with broad shoulders and back, a strong back and waist, arms as thick as rafters, and legs as thick as beams. He is as perfect as a marble sculpture painted by an artist.

Taking a deep breath, Eric said in a deep voice:
"Come here, put on your armor!"

Eric's son Thor came with his followers and first put on close-fitting cloth clothes for Eric, then cotton soft armor, and finally put on the second-level enchanted armor piece by piece.

Combat boots, leg armor, waist armor, chest armor, arm armor, shoulder armor...

With each additional piece, the magic light would become brighter. When Eric held the helmet with both hands and put it on, the azure magic light suddenly exploded and turned into stars falling down.

Thor's eyes were full of admiration and envy: "Father, this armor... is so handsome!"

Then he looked a little panicked, because Eric was strict in disciplining, and he would usually be scolded for saying such things. He was a little too excited today.

But this time, Eric smiled and said, "One day, it will be worn on you."

"However, you must practice hard, otherwise, you will never be worthy of this armor!"

"I've been practicing every day recently, you see!" Thor rolled up his sleeves and raised his arms. The muscle lines were thick and thin, and very clear, showing the result of long-term training.

"Being a knight requires more than just brute strength." Eric patted him on the shoulder: "Watch today's game carefully and learn from it."

"This will be the most important lesson you will learn in your life."

"Go and take care of your mother and sister."

Although Thor didn't quite understand, he still nodded vigorously: "Yes, father!"

Shortly after Thor said goodbye and left, Ingra's voice was heard.

"Ladies and gentlemen."

"From May 5th to today, a total of nearly four months of competition, we have watched hundreds of games together, witnessed the bravery of the Nordic knights, met many people, and listened to many stories."

"This is the first time that Nord Province, or even the entire empire, has held such a grand competition."

"And today's match will bring this competition to a close!"

"Next, Eric Dyson, the third-level Iron Knight representing the Griffith family, will face—"

"Gul'dan Fox, the third-level fire knight representing the Fox family!"

The fence was raised with the sound of hinges creaking, and Eric raised his sword and stepped into the arena, cheering and shouting.

He looked around and saw his wife and children in the stands, waving at him excitedly.

Eric waved in response and continued walking toward the center of the field.

With a snap, his weapon collided with Gul'dan.

"Use all your strength." Gul'dan said condescendingly: "Let me see what kind of power Raven's strongest subordinate has!"

Eric responded in a muffled voice: "Please give me your guidance, Mr. Guldan."

Both parties returned to their original positions.

Ingra shouted: "The duel begins!!!"

Gul'dan was calm and composed. He didn't think Eric could pose any threat to him.

But he soon paid the price for this contempt.

Eric roared wildly, and silver fighting spirit gushed out. Everyone thought that this would be the prelude to his iron giant form, but Eric exerted force with both feet, leaving a deep hole in the ground. He hit Gul'dan like a cannonball, and slammed into the ground three meters in front of Gul'dan!
boom--

A huge amount of soil, accompanied by silver-colored fighting spirit, gushed out from the ground like a fountain, and then fell like raindrops. Then a silver storm suddenly arose and wrapped Gul'dan.

Gul'dan's expression suddenly changed and he immediately held his breath, because he saw the dark silver smoke that was blowing in was burned by his own protective fighting spirit. Even though it turned a little red, it had not completely melted.

"Level 3 combat skill, Iron Storm!" Ingra shouted loudly, "Player Eric has hidden his Level 3 combat skill until now, and he actually used it right after the battle started!?"

The steel storm swept the enemy with iron fighting spirit, as if countless knives were cutting through the air!
Dense sparks burst out from Gul'dan's body, and blue flames continued to rise, but they could not withstand the wind, and dense metal scraping sounds continued to be heard.

Gul'dan was about to withdraw, but the next moment, Eric, transformed into an iron colossus, rushed out from the storm dust, and the long sword in his hand turned into a door panel and smashed down on his head. Gul'dan stepped aside to avoid the giant sword, but also stopped his pace of retreating.

The sword in Eric's hand changed from slashing to sweeping, heading straight for Gul'dan's waist. Gul'dan bent his knees and jumped up, stepping his legs on the sword's spine, and stabbed the sword with his right hand towards Eric's forehead.

A silver light flashed on the helmet, and the mirror shield was quietly activated. The feedback of the fighting spirit dispersed the green flame on the rapier. The surging power that followed knocked Gul'dan out. Although the iron fighting spirit was eliminated by the flames, it still left several marks on his gauntlet.

As soon as his feet landed on the ground, Gul'dan took two steps back, but Eric had already caught up with him, raising his greatsword from bottom to top, as if to split Gul'dan in half!
In Gul'dan's opinion, Eric's movements were extremely slow and he only needed to move slightly to dodge it. However, as soon as he moved his feet, he suddenly felt a black screen in front of his eyes!
Under the steel storm, the air was filled with blades. He had been holding his breath for a long time and had gone through intense exercise, so the oxygen in his lungs had long been exhausted.

Just as he was distracted, Eric's giant sword had already slashed into his left leg from bottom to top. The sword edge wrapped in iron fighting spirit suppressed the flames, tore open the armor, penetrated the flesh with a muffled sound, and broke the bones with a thud. Blood splattered, and the whole person flew into the air like a rag doll!
In the stands, the gamblers’ cries pierced the sky: “It must be a fake match—”

Someone immediately refuted: "What a fake match, if it was a fake match, how could he be injured to this extent!?"

In the box, Montreal's brows slowly knitted together: "When will you change your temper of underestimating the enemy and being careless?"

He knew very well that this only happened in the arena. If it were on the battlefield, Gul'dan, as the target of concentrated fire, would not be seriously injured but killed by this attack!

There was a hint of joy in Raven's eyes, but his expression did not relax much, because this attack did not make Gul'dan lose his ability to resist. Next, Eric would most likely face a counterattack.

In mid-air, Gul'dan's face under his armor turned purple, partly because of lack of oxygen and partly because he was hit so hard by Eric.

In terms of fighting spirit, combat skills, and battle instincts, Eric is far inferior to Akori, but now, he is firmly suppressed by Gul'dan and suffers serious injuries that even Akori could not inflict!
He opened his mouth and took a deep breath. The air, full of blades, cut his mouth and throat. Blood and flesh gathered and flowed all the way, filling his chest and abdomen with the smell of rusty blood, but his mind also became clear.

"open!"

Blood spurted out from the gaps in the visor, turning into a thick blood mist. The green flame fighting spirit evaporated and flowed, forming a phantom behind him that was no different from himself!
The martial spirit has been activated!

Boom—the blue flames spread out with him as the center, burning and dispersing the silver steel storm surrounding him, as if a dense firework exploded in the air!
"E.R.K!!!"

Bloody flames flowed out of Gul'dan's helmet, and his body slowly descended from mid-air. He stepped into the air and pointed his sword directly at Eric.

“Now, it’s my turn!!”

With a bend of his wrist, flames surged on the rapier, and the next moment the blue flame turned into a line of fire that pierced Eric directly!

Eric raised his sword to block, but the line of fire was not only as hot as fire but also as sharp as a blade. It pierced through the giant sword and penetrated into Eric's shoulder!

Even though he had transformed into a steel giant and was protected by a second-level enchanted armor, the armor on Eric's shoulders still melted away, and flames exploded, burning his body from the inside out, causing Eric to groan in his throat and his body shaking.

Eric roared and charged with his sword raised, but Gul'dan smiled contemptuously, and the sword in his hand left a cross mark in the air, and then he pushed lightly, and the flaming sword mark with a light mark went straight to Eric's chest and abdomen.

Gathering his fighting spirit and raising his hands high, Eric raised his sword and slashed fiercely. The sword tip collided with the sword mark, and a loud flame exploded!

The sword mark was broken, and the giant sword in Eric's hand had a deep flaw, almost breaking in the middle. The blue flame spread, igniting Eric like a torch!
"Phew - I was so scared, I thought Gul'dan was really going to lose, but now it seems that Eric is still not up to it!"

"It's good enough to suppress Gul'dan for a short time. But now that Gul'dan has activated his martial spirit, there is no suspense in this battle."

"What is Eric waiting for? Why doesn't he admit defeat?"

In the box, Montreal's brows relaxed.

Just as the outside world commented, the outcome was determined when Gul'dan used his martial spirit, and the next thing was how to end the battle.

I hope Gul'dan won't make the scene too awkward. After all, this is Raven's wedding, and Eric is Raven's man.

Gul'dan did not lose his mind, and after two attacks to vent his anger, he lowered his body, his fighting spirit burst out, and with flames shining, he rushed in front of Eric and swung his rapier to slash him down!
This attack was deliberately blocked by Eric, and Gul'dan whispered in a voice that only the two of them could hear: "That's enough, admit defeat!"

Eric's voice was hoarse, but his answer remained unchanged: "Please give me some advice, Mr. Guldan!"

Gul'dan's breathing hitched, "Okay, then I'll teach you!"

Before he finished speaking, he raised his right foot and kicked Eric in the lower abdomen, leaving a clear shoe print on his armor and kicking him back repeatedly.

Before Eric could stand firm, Gul'dan thrust his sword forward again. On the slender sword, blue flames burned brightly like a flag!

Eric swung his sword and wanted to attack, just like the battle between Gul'dan and Akori, to end in a draw, but Gul'dan was too fast, so fast that Eric could hardly catch up. The greatsword kept slashing and smashing the ground, but it could only create cracks and raise large amounts of dust, but could not touch Gul'dan at all!

Gul'dan kept swinging his sword, piercing through the armor and drawing blood. Occasionally, it was blocked by the mirror shield, but the force of the counterattack would be turned into nothing by Gul'dan.

Eric's fighting spirit was still running, and every gap in the armor would be filled by the fighting spirit. The appearance of the iron giant was still perfect, but blood had already begun to flow out from under his feet!

"Dad--" Eric's daughter jumped and shouted in the stands, her eyes were swollen from crying and she was sobbing uncontrollably.

Her brother Thor bit his lips hard, forcing himself to see every detail on the field. He gradually understood the meaning of what his father had said to him before.

From the moment he stepped onto the field, Eric had no intention of living!

Thor understood this behavior, but respected his father's decision and teachings.

Montreal's expression was somewhat gloomy, and he looked at Raven with some surprise.

As a count, he had met many people in his life, but there were very few people like Eric.

He is not only Raven's retainer, but also devoted to Raven, practicing a knight's oath - to defend the honor of his lord at the cost of his own life.

What kind of magic power does Raven have that he can gain the loyalty of such a knight?

Raven's face was as gloomy as water, showing no emotion, but his body was sitting straight at this moment, and his eyes never left Eric.

Inside the arena, Gul'dan began to become irritable and restless. He had obviously inflicted enough damage on Eric. Looking at the blood flowing on the ground, even a bull would have fallen down!
But Eric kept attacking, attacking, and attacking!
It was as if that blood and that body were not his own!
"Are you confused?!" Gul'dan's throat moved: "Surrender quickly, don't force me to kill you!"

Eric's mind had never been so clear, he knew what he was doing.

Before meeting Raven, he was just the captain of the guard of a border baron, an unremarkable first-level extraordinary person, and his life was ordinary and predictable.

He lived and died in silence, and his greatest goal in life was to buy a God-given potion for his son.

But now, in just less than 4 years, he has become a third-level transcendent and all his past goals have been achieved.

He has stepped onto a bigger stage.

Now, he is a knight of the Griffith family and a third-level extraordinary person.

Now, he wants to make the Nord Province remember his name in the most brutal way!
He wanted to let the Nord Province know that the Griffith family must not be violated and the reputation of the Griffith family must not be blasphemed!

Never admit defeat, never surrender!
Eric screamed, "I just want to die!"

Resolute and cold, without the slightest confusion.

Gul'dan's heart was shaken. He didn't understand Eric's choice. Why would a third-level transcendent with a bright future do so for a mere—

Thinking of this, he suddenly realized that Eric held the same belief as he did in the previous game.

But Gul'dan did it for his family, Eric, does he really want to sacrifice his life for Griffith?
"does it worth?"

Eric's giant sword moved as fast as the wind, carrying with it a silver-colored fighting spirit, like a huge folding fan, chopping down at Gul'dan's head!
"Strong...you can't take away his will!!"

Gul'dan crouched and retreated to the left, then thrust his sword in his right hand like a snake. The blade broke through the heavy armor, pierced into Eric's chest with a clang, and then went out from the back!

Eric's body suddenly froze.

Gul'dan drew out his rapier, shook off the blood on the blade, and looked at the white marks on it caused by the friction of bones: "Bones are hard enough."

After saying that, he turned around and left.

puff.

Eric fell to his knees, his head lowered and his helmet rolled to the ground.

……

(End of this chapter)