The weapons I forge are absolutely flawless.

No longer caring about anything else, nor whether the arrowhead could withstand it, he simply gathered every strand of demonic essence refined by the Asura Blade in his body onto the tip of the arrow without reservation.

Since it uses arrows, calling it "One-Sword Asura" is clearly no longer appropriate.

It is called—

"One Arrow to Devastate!"

"boom!"

With a hum, the bowstring vibrated, and the arrow, imbued with all of Vener's power, shot out like a cannonball, hurtling toward the largest rock worm on the battlefield.

-----------------

No one knows how many trump cards the mysterious emblem master named Lucien still has.

However, when he confidently appeared within Samif's firing range, believing that Sain posed no threat to him in the short term, all of that became irrelevant.

Even so, the First Company was still in a tough fight.

After Gunnis chased him underground, apart from occasional tremors, he did not show himself until Lucien's death.

They were clearly held back by Sain.

Although it's unclear who has the upper hand, in this situation, no news is the best news.

But the situation on the ground is not so optimistic.

The rock worm that carried Lucien onto the scene was already the strongest among the group of rock worms. After devouring Lucien's corpse, its aura became even stronger, and it actually stepped into the seventh rank.

It may seem like there's only one level difference, but it's actually the most difficult watershed to cross when evolving from the intermediate level to the advanced level.

After breaking through the limit, the magical barrier on the surface of this rock worm became several times stronger, and even special weapons designed to counter large magical beasts could hardly leave a mark on it.

In contrast, the giant rock worm, even when lying on the ground and rolling around, still possessed astonishing destructive power.

Even after the third and fourth squads dealt with the scattered thieves, they quickly joined the battle and helped kill all the small rock worms.

Even a large group of people still couldn't find a good way to deal with this last giant rock worm.

As long as the magic barrier on its body cannot be broken, the knights' attacks will be greatly reduced in effectiveness. A round of slashes will not even be as effective as the magic barrier's recovery.

Sain, who was supposed to be the one to break the magic barrier, is still in danger.

As an alternative, combined spellcasting is also difficult to unleash a spell capable of breaking through the magic barrier in one go without causing collateral damage.

Just when they were at their wits' end, a dazzling light suddenly streaked across the sky, accompanied by a deafening roar, and crashed heavily into the massive body of the rock worm.

The arrow that Wiener shot, though inherited from Samif, was in a completely different style.

If Samif's arrows are unpredictable assassination arrows, then Vener's arrows are pure arrows that prove the Way through force.

The "One Arrow Asura" hit like a heavy cannon, and with its enormous impact, it knocked the rock worm to the ground.

Even the seemingly indestructible magic barrier was pierced by a small hole.

Don't underestimate this small opening.

Even a tiny tear signifies that the magic energy cycle has been disrupted, a symbol of the collapse of the magic energy barrier.

"Don't let Captain Samif's cover go to waste!" the squad leader shouted.

He clearly considered this arrow as Samif's masterpiece as well.

Two arrows, one in front and one behind.

The first arrow was so fast that neither friend nor foe had time to react.

The second arrow came at just the right time, helping them break through the most troublesome magic barrier on the giant rock worm.

Samif rarely appeared in public, but his archery skills were more convincing than anything else.

At the critical moment when Saiin's life hung in the balance, Samif's precise sniping from a kilometer away was like a shot of adrenaline, completely igniting the fighting spirit of the Knights.

After they each used their methods, the giant rock worm finally collapsed due to its severe injuries.

Just as everyone was about to breathe a sigh of relief, the already riddled ground shook again, keeping everyone on high alert.

Instead, it was their squadron leader, Sain, who emerged from the ground.

Sain returned to the surface with one hand still locked around Gunnis's throat.

And the previously arrogant Gunnis, whether it was his arms or legs, was bent into strange angles.

"Heh heh heh, so what if you win? In the time I keep you occupied, Lucien could kill all your men... huh?"

Gunnis, who was still stubborn even on the verge of death, did not see the scene he had expected when he saw the light of day again.

Not only did they not see Lucien, but even none of the rock worms they cultivated survived.

"Where is Lucien?! Where is he?!"

Gunnis found it hard to accept.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who won."

Sain, too lazy to listen to his incessant chatter, threw him to the ground.

Soon, the left and right knights came up and suppressed him.

Chapter 191 Two Choices

"call--"

This arrow used all of Vina's strength.

The original "One-Slash Asura" technique, which could be sustained for three minutes, was compressed into a single strike, increasing its power by more than tenfold.

As the arrow left the bowstring, Venere swayed slightly.

Seeing this, Little Ma quickly jumped to Vina's side, providing a support for Vina who was about to fall, to prevent him from collapsing.

Animals have a much more acute sense of perception than humans.

The power of this arrow led Little Ma to place Vina at the same level as Samif.

If it was out of gratitude that Wiener had shown him kindness that he allowed him to ride on his back, then he was simply giving him some face by letting him ride on his back.

Only after witnessing this arrow did it willingly acknowledge Venere as its master.

"You actually did it."

After confirming the results of the battle against Vina, Samif said with some surprise.

She was actually prepared to take the third shot herself.

Samif couldn't fire the deadly arrows consecutively. But if she had just half a minute to recover and squeeze out some of the magic energy in her body, she could still fire a second arrow.

However, the power and concealment of this second arrow were far inferior to those of the first.

"So you made me try on the premise that I couldn't do it?" Viner was taken aback.

“Yes,” Samif said frankly, “you did very well, exceeding my expectations.”

Although it only had the power of a single strike, the fact that it was able to break through the magic barrier of the mutated rock worm proved that its power had reached the threshold of the seventh rank.

Skilled archers are more adept at condensing magic essence than warriors of the same rank.

Creating an arrow that can hold a large amount of magic energy is simpler than creating a sword that allows a high-level emblem to unleash its full potential.

The penetrating nature of arrows allows archers to pierce through the barriers on monsters by targeting specific points.

If it were another weapon, it wouldn't be a matter that could be resolved with just one shot.

However, high-level archers are even rarer than mages.

Even the Knights of St. Freya, whose members are all skilled riders and archers, cannot find another archer who can rival Samif.

"Never mind, I did learn one trick after all."

Wiener gently patted Little Ma, indicating that she had recovered and didn't need any help.

He used the Asura Blade again, but it only depleted his magic power and temporarily weakened his body; he did not fall unconscious immediately.

That alone was enough for Wiener.

"Here's your bow back."

Wiener returned the bow to Samif.

After all, it belongs to someone else.

As the saying goes, if you borrow and repay, it's easy to borrow again.

"Ah."

The moment Samif's fingertips touched the longbow, a crisp snap was heard, and the bow handle broke in two.

“…Can I say I didn’t do it on purpose?” Wiener quickly explained.

"I believe."

Samif casually tossed aside the longbow, which was now completely unusable.

"When your emblem is activated, it doesn't consume much of your own energy, but it actually transfers that energy consumption to your weapon. That's why the weapons that end up in your hands break down very quickly."

"How about I pay you back?" Wiener asked tentatively.

Someone kindly taught me a skill, but I ended up breaking their weapon; I feel a little guilty about it.

Blame Felix, for always using such high-quality weapons that Viner got used to them and almost forgot about the side effects of Gondorav.

"No need, it's just a mass-produced product that's been issued anyway, we can just replace it if it breaks."

Samif shook her head, not minding at all.

Then she held up two fingers.

"After we go downstairs, I'll give you two choices."

"First, I'll introduce you to Captain Sain of the First Company. When he was unable to free his hands, it was you who broke through the magic barrier and helped the First Company defeat that rock worm. He owes you a huge favor, both morally and logically."

Although it was Samif who dealt with the more dangerous Lucien, she was already a member of the Knights, and assisting her allies was simply her duty.

The same thing done by Wiener has a completely different meaning.

"Sayin will report your achievements, and you will definitely be included in the summary and commendation after this internship ends."

"I choose option two." Without even thinking, Viner gave up on this choice.

"You made a decision without even knowing what the number two is, and you think you're so smart?"

Samif sneered.

Both in terms of ability and reputation, Sain is the best candidate to succeed the three captains of Aloy.

If you can do him a favor, it will be like having an extra powerful backer when you join the Knights of St. Freya in the future.

“There has to be a reason for the commendation, right? If everyone knows that I broke through the magic barrier of that rock worm, then this move won’t be usable,” Vena replied.

Although the arrows he shot were so powerful that he seemed afraid others wouldn't notice them, and had absolutely nothing to do with concealment, no one would complain about having too many trump cards up their sleeve.

As for gaining some advantages within the Knights, that's even less meaningful, since that's not what Vena's ambition lies in.

He's just a future captain, nothing to worry about.

Look at him, spouting nonsense everywhere. Does he really have connections with Gerald, the Grand Master of the Holy Knights?

The Knights of St. Freya remain steadfast, while heroes come and go.

The things the Holy Knights did cannot be said to be meaningless.

Saving those in front of you and punishing evil is the sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of all villains.

But their abilities are ultimately limited; even if they do their best, they are merely patching up the world.

Only the brave have the chance to turn things around.

“If that’s what you think, then it’s acceptable.” Samif reluctantly agreed with Vina’s reasoning.

"The second option is to go back and act like nothing happened. If anyone asks you, just pin the blame on me." I will report this matter to the dean separately after my internship ends.

"Which dean?"

"Dean of St. Freya Academy"

Wiener was taken aback.