That's right, that's what adventure is like!

Chapter 108 Taking Office

Between time slots.

Roland finally got a clear look at his opponent. Last time, he was too far away to observe him properly, but now he finally had the chance.

She must have recently been in a fierce battle.

The black armor was no longer as shiny as it once was, and was covered with crisscrossing cracks. The deepest crack ran from the left shoulder to the waist, revealing the lining underneath, which was stained with dried blood.

Her face had strong features, yet it possessed a unique feminine elegance. Her light gray pupils held a hint of dark red, like embers about to be lit. Her lips were tightly pressed together, but now they were slightly upturned, outlining an excited curve.

The spear, held tightly in his right hand, was about the height of a person and was dark red all over. However, it did not look like it was originally forged. Instead, it had been repeatedly stained, soaked, and congealed by blood, which covered all the intricate patterns. Only some uneven rune grooves could be vaguely seen.

Two lines of writing were etched on his chest with strange ink, still shining brightly amidst the bloodstains, like some kind of indelible mark.

Vilslthorn, vanguard officer of the Imperial Seventh Legion.

The observation period ends, and the time slot terminates.

Sizzle—

Turn to the side, twist your waist, and shake your head.

The crimson chain grazed Roland's neck, its barbs tearing his skin and leaving deep bloodstains. It was just a hair's breadth away from an artery. Warm blood trickled down and seeped into his collar, leaving a sticky sensation.

Before Roland could retaliate, the gun was already sweeping across his blurred vision.

when!!!

The silver blade stood upright, bending into a twisted arc under the impact, emitting a creaking sound as it could not bear the weight. Roland staggered half a step to the side, his arm feeling sore and numb, and his wrist trembling uncontrollably.

Verra's gunfire didn't pause for a moment; the second shot came right after the first.

The spear tip traced a dark red trail in mid-air, the powerful wind pressure tearing through the air, accompanied by a piercing shriek that made one's eardrums ache, as it thrust straight towards the target.

Roland instinctively dodged to the side.

Too slow.

puff--

A bloody hole was pierced through his waist and abdomen, and the cold spearhead pierced through his back before being withdrawn by Verra. The three-edged blood groove swept across it, hooking out small pieces of flesh and fragments of internal organs.

Roland felt a sharp pain, and the surrounding environment slowed down again.

The second time slot.

It is still triggered passively.

The pain stretched on endlessly, three blood grooves slicing across the edges of the internal organs, accompanied by a soft, grinding sound, like sandpaper polishing old leather, or like something sticky being torn apart.

He could feel his internal organs trembling and contracting, trying to avoid the attack, but he was completely unable to react.

Roland's vision was blood red, his ears were ringing, but his mind was perfectly clear.

He realized what the problem was.

This Verra's strength far surpasses that of most formal professionals. At close range, just by standing there, his invisible pressure can make people react slowly. This is the suffocating feeling of being suppressed by rank.

The fact that I was able to hold my own for two moves is due to two factors: the time gap and the fact that the sword is made of a very durable material.

But what happens next?

With Verra blocking the way and others lurking behind them, it's impossible to obtain the Blue Crystal Heart easily.

Then the only option is to fight to the death.

boom-!!!

As a deafening roar echoed from the other side of the cave, and sharp lines of blood struck, Roland's timeline came to an abrupt halt once more.

The source of the explosion was the Bloodstain Guardian.

He was forcibly killed by the mage, which triggered the dark red blood pattern hidden in his heart. The blood pattern turned into countless fine threads that swept across the surrounding area, cutting out grooves.

Rock fragments flew everywhere, and dust filled the air.

Vera paid no attention; she didn't even glance back. The dark red runes on her fair wrist flickered slightly, forming a dense diamond-shaped shield that blocked the incoming threads.

But because of this, her movement of swinging the spear was a beat slower.

Roland seized on this pause.

Before the shockwave from the explosion knocked him over, he reached into his dimensional bag, took out two vials of potions, and stuffed them into his mouth without even looking at them.

Snap—

The glass bottle was bitten open and shattered; sharp shards grazed the inside of the mouth, drawing blood.

The warm liquid mixed with shards of glass rolled into my throat, traveling down and bringing a sharp, stinging pain, as if every inch of it was being scraped by a knife.

The effects are as significant as the pain.

The first bottle was a life-saving potion. As the familiar taste spread across the tip of my tongue, the edges of the blood hole in my waist and abdomen began to itch. Countless buds of flesh emerged, intertwined, and wriggled. The blood stopped flowing out, and my scattered consciousness began to re-coagulate.

The second bottle was a berserk potion. The moment it was drunk, it felt like a flame ignited in the stomach, rushing through the blood vessels and flowing through the limbs and bones, bringing a surge of power like a tidal wave.

The shockwave struck, blood streaks lashed out, but Roland remained motionless, allowing countless wounds to be left on his body, because his pain receptors had been numbed.

The pupils shrank to pinpoints in an instant, then suddenly dilated, and the previously blurry, blood-red vision became clear, and perception became exceptionally sharp.

This is the effect of the berserk potion, lasting for ten minutes, but at the cost of being unable to move for an hour.

Vera dispelled the diamond-shaped shield in front of her and looked at Roland, noticing a hint of dark red in his eyes, which surprised her.

In her perception, Roland's aura had changed; it was violent, chaotic, pure, and carried the ferocity of a deadly battle.

It's probably a berserk potion?

The moment this thought crossed my mind, a silver-white blade swept towards me.

Heavy Strike!

Vera's pupils contracted slightly. The speed of this sword strike was faster than she had expected. The potion had not only increased her strength but also given her a leap in reaction speed!

when-!!!

The sword blade struck the spear, sparks flew, and Verra's arm sank. Just as she was about to draw her spear, she suddenly noticed something amiss.

The sword blade propelled the gun barrel, sliding over in a strange arc, unleashing a silvery-white sharpness!

Parry and counterattack!

After Roland used this combat technique countless times, he had mastered it to perfection. Now, he could not only counterattack after blocking, but also counterattack by taking advantage of the opponent's force even if the opponent blocked!

Sizzle!

The sword light flashed out, slicing across the black armor. The sharp blade tore through the already damaged metal, cut into flesh, and poured into the body!

Blood is seeping out.

Vera's expression changed. This was the first time she had been injured in front of Roland. Although it wasn't fatal, it was enough to make her take it seriously!

So she stopped holding back.

The spear was retracted and then thrust out.

Without a trajectory, without warning, Roland could only catch a blurry afterimage of the movement before he saw a streak of crimson blood pierce through his peripheral vision. This speed had already surpassed the limits of human capability!

when-

He parried entirely on instinct, the force from the sword making his arm numb, blood gushing from his tiger's mouth and dripping down the black leather hilt.

But he had no time to pause, because the second shot had already been fired!

Each shot was as fast as lightning, as heavy as the sea, and every collision between the blade and the gun sparked dazzling sparks.

Roland kept parrying and retreating, his boots carving deep grooves into the gravel, leaving messy marks.

This was no longer a probing attack, but a deadly strike, every shot aimed at his vital points!

Five shots, ten shots, twenty shots —

He lost count of how many attacks he had blocked; he only knew that his arms were numb, his breathing was becoming heavy, his speed was decreasing, and he didn't even have a chance to launch another block and counterattack.

The effects of the berserk potion were no match for such an offensive and were rapidly fading. It was only thanks to his long-honed combat instincts and the experience of struggling on the verge of death that he was able to stay alive!

Another shot came.

Roland turned to the side, but this time he was a beat too slow.

The tip of the gun pierced his left shoulder, the sharp metal shattering his scapula, protruding from behind, and as it recoiled, some bone fragments and muscle tissue flew out.

He grunted and gritted his teeth as he looked over.

"How much of the potion's potency remains?" Vera's voice was soft, yet piercingly loud. "Three minutes? Two minutes?"

Without waiting for a reply, she thrust out another spear as soon as she finished speaking.

This time, Roland neither dodged nor blocked.

He knelt on the ground, watching the gun getting closer and closer, looking at the three-edged blood groove on the tip, and the patterns soaked in blood.

Then, he took the initiative to go to meet her.

Thud!

The gun tip pierced through his right chest, penetrating his body. The cold metal pierced his muscles, scraped through his lungs, and emerged from behind. He could even feel his heart pounding against the gun.

At the same time, Roland's sword also slashed out.

Heavy Strike!

The blade struck Verra's body, cutting through the crack in her armor and slicing into her flesh with almost no resistance.

"you-

'

Vera stared coldly at Roland, who was standing close by, her eyes flashing with surprise, anger, and something else too complicated to describe.

She suddenly kicked out, and at the same time, blood-red runes appeared on her wrist, turning into chains that stretched towards his neck.

Available in the next second.

Before the chains even touched his skin, a slight smile had already appeared on Roland's lips.

That smile looked eerie and incongruous on the battlefield, yet it also carried a sense of relief, as if he had finally waited for something, or as if he had completely let go of something.

"It's finally here."

The murmurs echoed between the two. Verra sensed something was wrong and tried to pull back the chains, but it was too late.

Roland reached out and grabbed the blood-red chain.

Then, a surge of azure energy erupted within his body!

That energy wasn't magic floating in the air, nor was it the intricate construction of a supernatural artifact; rather, it surged from every inch of skin, bursting forth from every wound, like a blue full moon rising.

Wherever the azure light passed, torn muscles began to tremble, shattered bones began to reshape, and broken wounds began to heal.

Wherever the azure light passed, it swirled around his fingertips, meandering up the chains and shattering them!

Wherever the azure light passed, his heart began to beat again, steady and powerful. Each beat infused and gathered invisible energy into his body, pumping it into his own being.

Roland stood up.

His clothes were tattered and he was covered in blood, yet he stood ramrod straight.

He officially took office.

He finally crossed that threshold.