Chapter 60: Chapter 48: Hero Knight! Human-Form ’Great Demon’ Reinhardt

CRACK—!

The crisp, grating sound of splintering bone and teeth.

The Dragonfolk soldier’s vision floated upward. It saw its own body below as the world spun upside down, before its head slammed heavily onto the ground.

Icy breath froze the fresh blood.

The headless Dragonfolk corpse dropped to its knees, the horrific, severed wound on its neck still spewing Dragon Breath and blood as it swayed and collapsed at Reinhardt’s feet.

Ethereal blue text from the system scrolled across Reinhardt’s vision.

[Slaughter Points +1]

[Current Total: 2]

As the vast clouds of smoke and dust scattered in the howling, cold wind, the very ground beneath Reinhardt’s feet began to tremble! The shrieks of the roaring Dragonfolk pierced the heavens!

A hundred meters away on the vast plains, the Scaya Dragon Race Army stretched as far as the eye could see, a monstrous torrent of flesh and blood surging to crush Baihe Town!

The Dark Gold Blood Knights and the Spirit Bone Knight Order, who had ridden out to engage the enemy, were like specks of dust falling into an ocean, instantly submerged within the tide.

Just then, the crunch of steel boots on gravel sounded from behind Reinhardt.

A tall, powerfully built figure, dragging the corpse of a Scaya Dragonfolk, came to a stop beside him.

He was Ernst, commander of the Dragon Fire Barrier Knight Order. Over two meters tall, his burly frame held a Shield Tower, making him look like a human bastion of steel.

His gaze was resolute, his brow tightly furrowed.

Following this figure were two full squads of Knights from the Dragon Hunter Battle Group. The Battle Group’s banners snapped in the wind, a reflection of their own soaring fighting spirit!

Their heavy armor, painted a blazing orange-red, seemed to burn like a roaring fire. The enormous Shield Towers were infused with Imperial Technology, and a dark Witchcraft Power flowed slowly through the arcane patterns etched upon them.

The hydraulic buffers fitted to their arms were purely mechanical creations, handcrafted by Imperial artisans.

In the center of each Shield Tower, a dark-gold insignia—a great spear piercing the skull of a Giant Dragon—declared to all enemies the Imperial Legion to which its wielder swore allegiance: the Dragon Hunter Battle Group.

Meanwhile, Dietlinde appeared on Reinhardt’s other side, taking her place shoulder-to-shoulder with him.

Having wiped out the Scaya Dragonfolk vanguard, her longsword still dripped with blood. The aura of her Destruction Force Field radiated outward, a searing wave of heat like the wind blowing across a river of lava.

Maxim clutched his weapon, standing silently behind Dietlinde. His face was deathly pale and drenched in cold sweat as he stared at the Scaya Dragonfolk army, a tsunami about to crash down upon the town.

A scar marred the surface of his chest armor where the metal had melted and re-solidified. One could even smell the pungent, chemical stench of lingering Dragon Breath.

Squads Seven through Fourteen of the Iron Blood Battle Group.

Forty Knights.

All had gathered behind Reinhardt, poised and ready for battle.

The clear sunlight of the Northern Lands pierced the thin clouds, creating curtains of light in the swirling dust, like the glory of the Empire that had not faded in a thousand years.

It was a glory that mirrored the darkest of times, when countless Hero Knights ignited the fire of their own lives to shatter the darkness—a Knight’s true honor!

It shone upon Reinhardt’s face.

It shone upon the Knights beside him—on all who were willing to fight at his side!

When the Scaya Dragonfolk army was mere steps away, Dietlinde gripped her sword with both hands, her brow furrowed as she roared at the top of her lungs.

"Iron Blood Battle Group! Brace for impact—!"

She took a step forward with her left foot and sank into her stance, adopting the standard Bull’s Horn opening form of Imperial Swordsmanship. Her sharp, two-handed greatsword was now poised like the deadly horns of a charging bull.

At the same time, Dietlinde’s voice, tinged with weariness and the weight of experience, reached Reinhardt’s ears.

"It is my honor to fight alongside you, Reinhardt."

If the Dietlinde of the past had admired the young Knight’s character and been infatuated with his powerful physique and rugged appearance,

then the woman she was now felt something more for Reinhardt: respect.

This was the highest form of respect one Knight could pay another.

It was not merely an acknowledgment of Reinhardt’s strength; she was utterly captivated by his tenacious and unyielding character—the sublime quality of a man who would burn away his very life to fight for his ideals and beliefs, even in the face of an invincible enemy!

In his battle against Heinrich, Reinhardt had not only earned the acknowledgment and respect of the Imperial Arena champion, but had also won over every single Knight who witnessed the fight!

This young Knight, standing alone amidst the ruins of the wall and facing the enemy’s advance without flinching, was just like the Hero Knights recorded in the grand history of the Radiant Empire.

A Knight’s glory.

Like a light in the darkness.

It united them as one, even in this hopeless war where death was a certainty!

"Dragonfire Barrier! By my command, form ranks! Raise shields—!"

Ernst’s powerful voice cut through the rumbling of the earth like the blast of a warhorn, and the Knights of the Dragon Hunter Battle Group roared as one!

The uniform aura of their Guardian Barrier Attribute felt incredibly solid and reliable in that moment!

The handle of the Giant Axe in Reinhardt’s hand grew hot, and as that searing heat flowed into his body, a faint Flame Barrier materialized around him.

Even the unhealed wounds on Reinhardt’s body began to slowly mend under the searing power.

At that moment, Reinhardt’s gaze met Ernst’s. This Earth Knight—unremarkable in appearance, but exuding the same solid, dependable aura as Vice Commander Erich once had—gave him a slight nod of acknowledgment.

The sharp shrieks of the Dragon Descendants were already ringing in their ears.