Chapter 36: Chapter 31: Tearing a Demon Apart

Death Butcher Dortmund’s sudden change in battle strategy caught Reinhardt completely off guard.

Even as he kept Reinhardt at bay to prolong the fight, he didn’t forget to issue a new command to the Convicted Demons as he passed them: "Go and stop that Human Knight."

Had this been a few days ago, they would have accepted the order with excitement, scrambling over each other to declare their power and terror with Reinhardt’s blood!

But at this moment.

The Convicted Demons, once fearless in the face of death and known for their savagery, heard only one voice echo in the depths of their minds upon receiving Dortmund’s command: ’...Me?’

If it were an evenly matched battle, they would have gladly sacrificed their lives to prove their Loyalty to the Abyss and Lord Avernus!

But.

Reinhardt’s aura was now like that of a vicious fiend. The crimson haze emanating from him was reminiscent of the blood mist that perpetually hung over the dismemberment slaughterhouses of Tigessos on the third layer of the Abyss—a place of piled bones and rivers of blood, horrific and terrifying!

The intensity of his Power could even rival that of Commander Dortmund!

Their reverence for the strong and absolute worship of violence made this group of warlike and savage Convicted Demons hesitate.

But the command was undeniable.

After a brief hesitation, they roared in complex Demon Language and swarmed forward! Their cries even carried a tragic heroism reminiscent of the human defenders of Frostfire Fortress holding the line upon the walls.

To the Imperial Infantry Corps, a Tier Two Demon was the ultimate nightmare! Each one of these Abyssal Creatures, built like a steel tower, possessed the terrifying strength to annihilate a ten-man elite squad from the Imperial Infantry Corps!

But when faced with a Knight wielding Extraordinary Power—especially a powerhouse like this New Recruit Knight, whom they had already come to fully acknowledge—their bodies of flesh and blood couldn’t withstand a single blow!

The first Convicted Demon opened its cavernous maw. Roaring, it charged toward Reinhardt like a steel chariot on heavy feet. And Reinhardt—once the smallest squire in Frostfire Fortress’s training camp—met the charge head-on, propelled by his high-pressure air sacs!

One man, one demon, collided fiercely with an exceptionally dull thud.

Speed is power.

The three-meter-tall Convicted Demon was sent flying like a battered wooden door; the immense force of Reinhardt’s charge was more than it could bear!

Its scales, once as hard as steel, cracked apart as a terrifying crater caved into its thick chest. On the brink of death, it sought to sacrifice its life and use its Abyssal Fire to take Reinhardt down with it. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

But the Reinhardt of today was no longer that reckless new recruit from the fortress walls.

This was not only thanks to the first Convicted Demon revealing its abilities and trump cards, but also to Death Butcher Dortmund’s hands-on instruction.

Although Reinhardt had the worst physical aptitude in the Steel Knight Order’s Squire Training Camp, neither Instructor An Jie nor Vice Commander Erich had ever said his combat talent was lacking.

On the contrary, his abnormal Self-Healing Ability, incredible capacity for learning, and combat instincts comparable to a wild beast were the reasons Instructor An Jie had gone against all opposition to keep him in the program.

In his fight with the Fear Knight, Reinhardt had learned and comprehended more than in three years of constant practice at the training camp!

Combat Techniques and Body Techniques were entirely different from simply honing one’s physique and spirit.

Actual combat is the best teacher.

When Erich had spoken with Reinhardt in private, he had intended to personally teach him practical combat skills. But with the fall of the fortress and his own death, that intention and goodwill had become a mere memory, scattered to the winds.

Before the Convicted Demon could spew its Abyssal Fire, Reinhardt’s large hand clamped onto its lower jaw like an iron vise.

Even though he had to look up to see the Convicted Demon’s eyes burning with Abyssal Fire, the creature’s terror and dread reached their peak at this very moment!

The high-pressure air sacs fired in reverse, and Reinhardt jerked the Convicted Demon’s body to a sudden halt. Just as the almost tangible Abyssal Fire was about to spill from between the demon’s fangs, Reinhardt grabbed its chin with one hand and its neck with the other.

The young man’s somewhat immature roar echoed across the skies of the Northern Lands!

Scalding Demon’s Blood gushed from the Convicted Demon’s severed neck! The dark red spine, still trailing nerves and blood vessels, was visible where its massive, hideous head had once been.

Its massive body swayed for a moment before crashing heavily to the ground.

Afterward, the Demon Skull slipped from Reinhardt’s grasp, fell to the ground, and rolled to a stop.

This horrific scene of a man tearing a demon apart with his bare hands was even more bloody and brutal than the actions of the Convicted Demon itself!

With every breath taken by the figure standing beside the Convicted Demon’s headless corpse, the blood mist surrounding him rhythmically contracted and expanded.

When Reinhardt turned to face the swarm of Convicted Demons chasing him from behind, his deathly gaze, wrapped in the aura of his Power, was utterly terrifying!

The cold wind swept across the land, and the unspoken silence was the most potent warning.

The strong must be met by the strong. Even with a command, the Convicted Demons dared not continue their pursuit. Their strength did not permit it. They were afraid.

This fear was not just because of the crushing difference in strength, but even more so because of the unique aura of Reinhardt’s Knight Power. If the young Knight’s previous unyielding and fearless presence was something worth remembering...

...then today, at this very moment, the terror that seemed to have crawled out from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood was what they truly feared! It was something even more insane than the champion of the Slaughter Death Arena.

The Human Empire may have had many Knights who struck fear into the hearts of Abyssal Demons, but today, their number had just increased by one.

An unforgettable sight.

It was like witnessing the birth of a new Legend.

They would never forget the winter of 1442 in the Radiant Calendar of the Human Empire, in the fourth millennium: the story of a New Recruit Knight who tore a demon apart with his bare hands.

And this story would eventually become a legend, passed down for generations in the Abyss and across countless other worlds.

...

Reinhardt had no time to deal with these Convicted Demons. By maintaining two different attributes of Knight Power, his stamina was depleting at an extremely rapid rate.

But the Fear Knight hadn’t truly fled. Just as Reinhardt expected, he had stopped a short distance away, maintaining the gap between them.

Stalling tactics had nothing to do with bravery or fearlessness, but they were simple and effective—a fact the Fear Knight knew well.

He was waiting for the New Recruit Knight’s stamina to be completely exhausted. Then he would defeat him, capture him, inject Abyssal Fire into his veins, and use the power of Avernus to corrupt his mind and soul.

He would make him accept his master’s power, become a Fear Knight, and transform into a pure killing machine to fight for the great victory of the Abyss Faction!

The Fear Knight had been stripped of all common human emotions, but he appreciated Reinhardt’s unyielding spirit and madness. In the eighty-three years since he had left the Slaughter Death Arena, this was the first time he had encountered an opponent who could set his blood ablaze!