Nolan had once crossed paths with Merlo and regarded her as a mortal enemy.
Now, what he intended to do was use this competition to exact his revenge.
The next moment, under his command, the item master behind him named Alice immediately took out a strange horn. Pressing it to her lips, she blew it hard!
Powerful sound waves overflowed from the horn, instantly filling the entire canyon and vibrating through every cavern where magical beasts might reside!
Then, as if in response to the horn’s call, the roars of monsters erupted from all directions of the canyon!
The massive noise was loud enough to nearly tear everyone’s eardrums. Even the pigeon reporter flying above to capture footage was affected, almost falling out of the sky.
Aside from Arlette and Merlo, the other two members of the Crystalline Thorn adventure group immediately covered their ears. Fluff, who was particularly sensitive to sound, nearly fainted on the spot.
Meanwhile, Arlette stood firm, relying on the high resistance provided by his armor. He immediately drew the greatsword from his back.
He did not understand the effects of magic items; he only knew that the other party harbored ill intentions toward Crystalline Thorn. He fixed his gaze on them and took a combat stance.
“Heh, you’d best accept this grand gift,” Nolan said with a contemptuous smirk.
He knew exactly what would happen next.
A moment later, the beings from the depths of those caverns began to reveal themselves.
They looked like jackals or similar beasts, but they lacked even an inch of fur or flesh. Their entire bodies were composed of glowing, orange-red, scorching rock, with burning flames spewing from every crack in their forms.
Low, raspy growls gradually emerged from the mouth-like fissures.
“Flame Rock Beasts…”
As an expert on monsters, Arlette identified them immediately. Even on the sixth floor, these creatures were considered high-risk organisms.
Immediately after, Nolan ordered the item master in his team to take out a purplish-red magic crystal.
In the next instant, she manipulated countless threads of mana, connecting them to the bodies of the Flame Rock Beasts. The creatures, which had been roaring to protect their territory, were instantly controlled by the crystal. They began to act according to the orders of the Monster Hunter squad.
The Monster Hunter squad’s intention was clear. They were determined to have a life-or-death confrontation with Crystalline Thorn right here.
“A bunch of rabble.”
“Arlette.”
Merlo didn’t even want to spare those people a glance, calling out Arlette’s name immediately.
“I am here, Lady Merlo.”
“I’ll take Fluff and Dela and keep moving. You handle these guys immediately, then catch up.”
“Clean it up thoroughly. I don’t want to see them again.”
“Yes.”
After receiving Merlo’s instructions, Arlette nodded without hesitation.
Fluff was startled when she heard Merlo telling Arlette to fight several opponents alone. But before she could speak up to stop him, Arlette had already moved.
He turned and drew his greatsword, walking toward the Monster Hunter squad. His massive, metal-clad body looked like a ferocious, terrifying steel beast, radiating an intense pressure. It seemed as though he might rush forward and tear everyone apart at any second.
“Conflict has broken out! The Monster Hunter squad has actually used an item capable of controlling monsters — this is not a common tactic!”
“And facing a full three-man team plus three Flame Rock Beasts, Crystalline Thorn’s choice is…”
“To let that heavy knight deal with them alone! The remaining members are continuing their progress!”
“What kind of trust and confidence is this?!”
“You have to remember, they are facing elites capable of descending to the seventh floor of the dungeon!!”
Even the parrot-headed youth serving as the announcer grew excited at the sight. The audience could no longer sit still; spectators who had been seated stood up one after another, watching the impending battle with bated breath.
“Didn’t that heavy knight look really weak just a moment ago?”
“Who knows? Maybe he was faking it? Was it to make the enemy let their guard down?”
“That’s an entire elite team! Even if the whole squad fought together, it would be a tough battle, right? Not to mention there are three monsters.”
“I don’t see how he can win.”
Controversy erupted instantly. The combat power on both sides seemed far too lopsided. Even though Arlette had previously demonstrated high-level skill, most of the audience remained pessimistic about his chances.
However, while everyone was still debating, Arlette’s next move struck them all silent —
As Arlette approached, the first Flame Rock Beast pounced at him!
These monsters were composed of high-temperature rock; not only were they extremely hard, but the intense heat they radiated was another layer of danger.
However, such a terrifying monster…
Arlette smashed it with a single swing.
More accurately, he used the large shield held in his left arm to crush it. He didn’t seem to use much force; he simply struck a specific spot on the Flame Rock Beast’s body with the shield, and the creature naturally fractured and crumbled, turning into a pile of lifeless rubble.
The second beast met the same fate. He used the same technique, though the point of impact was slightly different. It was like watching a magic trick.
In an instant, two living monsters had been reduced to two heaps of stone.
Just as the audience watched with wide eyes, wondering what had happened, the announcer finally noticed the clue.
“This… this…”
“This heavy knight is striking according to the patterns on the Flame Rock Beasts’ bodies!”
“Although Flame Rock Beasts have life, they are still essentially stone!”
“There are many cracks and unstable structures inside their bodies, and these are connected to the patterns on their exterior!”
“As long as you find the right pattern and apply force to a single point, you can theoretically destroy a Flame Rock Beast’s structure directly!!”
“I’ve heard rumors about this, but I never expected to see it today!!!”
“Incredible, simply incredible!”
After a few seconds of silence, Dice Town turned into a sea of noise.
Flame Rock Beasts had hundreds or thousands of patterns on their bodies, and every individual’s structure was different. To find the single line that connected their entire body in such a short amount of time and deliver a precise strike to shatter it was a feat that challenged the impossible.
Yet, this heavy knight had done it. And he had done it right before everyone’s eyes.
Nolan’s heart tightened instantly upon seeing Arlette’s monstrous display. However, he didn’t panic too much. After all, he still had a trump card in his hand.
Nolan immediately commanded the last Flame Rock Beast to breathe fire at Arlette.
A scorching tongue of fire rushed toward him. Arlette instinctively raised his arm, intending to block it with his armor.
However, when Nolan saw this move, he burst into loud laughter.
“One step short, Sir Heavy Knight!”
“You’ve fallen for it!”
In the next instant, he threw out the Iron-Eating Sand he had prepared!
*Crunch!*
The small glass vial containing the Iron-Eating Sand shattered the moment it touched Arlette’s iron armor. The gray dust inside instantly clung to his plate.
In a flash, the armor that was supposed to withstand the flames began to corrode and crack!
The entire rerebrace and vambrace section was nearly destroyed, and the magical circuits within immediately failed. Arlette’s defenseless arm was now exposed to the flames!
Next, Arlette was completely engulfed by the fire, with not even a shadow left visible.
‘Everything is going according to plan!’
A cruel smile bloomed on Nolan’s face as he saw everything proceeding as intended.
“Without magic resistance and armor protection, those flames will instantly seep inside your suit and consume you entirely!”
“Die!”
However, just as Nolan was happy enough to declare victory, the man he had already sentenced to death stepped out of the sea of fire, one step at a time.
“What? How is that possible? Wasn’t his armor destroyed?!”
“No one should be able to survive that temperature!”
Nolan’s face turned pale. He immediately looked toward the gap in the heavy knight’s arm armor, hoping to see charred, blackened flesh.
However, what he saw was nothing of the sort.
Beneath that opening… was a glow like quartz.
A moment before being swallowed by the flames, ‘Quartzification’ had already been activated!