Era of Players: Death God-Chapter 297: The Black Rune Knight

The moment their blades clashed, the ruin itself trembled.

CLANG!

Black steel against crimson-forged rune-metal, the sound was like thunder tearing through the night. Sparks burst between them, scattering across the moss-coated stone like dying stars.

Noah skidded back several meters, boots carving trenches in the dirt. His arms tingled from the force, the sheer weight of the knight's first strike.

"…Strong." His lips twisted into a grin. "Good."

The knight's hollow helm turned slightly, its crimson eyes narrowing like a predator locking onto prey. Then it moved again—faster than something clad in such heavy armor should be able to.

BOOM!

Its greatsword carved through the air with terrifying speed. Noah twisted aside, the blade missing his shoulder by an inch and slamming into the ground. The earth erupted in a shockwave, debris exploding outward.

Before Noah could counter, the knight's gauntleted fist shot forward like a piston.

BAM!

The punch caught Noah in the chest, hurling him backward. He slammed against a cracked pillar, stone shattering around him. Blood dripped from his lips, but his grin never wavered.

"This is more like it…"

Noah blurred forward, shadows curling beneath his feet. With Lord of Night active, his speed doubled, his senses sharpened to the extreme. Every shift in the knight's posture, every flicker of rune-light, he saw it.

He met the knight head-on.

Their blades collided again and again, each clash exploding in a burst of sparks and shockwaves. Noah weaved between the knight's monstrous swings, slashing in precise arcs aimed at the weak points of its armor—joints, gaps, the glowing lines etched into its steel.

CLANG! CLANG! SHHHK!

His blade scraped across the knight's chest plate, cutting shallow marks but failing to penetrate. Its armor was no ordinary steel—it was layered with runes, regenerating faintly each time it was damaged.

The knight retaliated with an upward swing. Noah leapt back, flipping in midair. The greatsword whistled past his torso, carving a massive scar through the ruin wall behind him.

Landing, Noah clicked his tongue. "That armor… it won't fall to shallow cuts."

The knight's runes pulsed brighter, almost mocking him.

Noah exhaled, lowering Nemesis to his side. Shadows writhed up the blade, thickening into a black mist that bled into the air.

"Fine then… let's see if you can withstand this."

He invoked his exclusive skill again, but deeper—Night of Death. The darkness around him expanded, swallowing the battlefield whole.

The world dimmed. The ruin fell under an artificial midnight.

In the void-like darkness, Noah could see everything—the knight's glowing runes, the subtle cracks in its stance, even the vibrations of its mana. But for the knight, it was blindness, its crimson eyes flickering uncertainly.

Noah vanished into the dark.

SHHHK!

He struck from the left—then the right—then above. The knight spun, greatsword sweeping in massive arcs to block. Sparks erupted where steel met steel. Each strike Noah landed chipped deeper into the rune-etched armor, shadow energy corroding its defenses.

"Faster…" Noah whispered, darting in again. "Faster!"

BANG!

The knight roared—a hollow, mechanical sound—and slammed its greatsword into the ground. A wave of crimson runes exploded outward, shattering Noah's darkness. The false night cracked and fell apart, dispersing like broken glass.

Noah's eyes widened. "…So you can erase it."

The knight raised its blade once more. Its crimson aura flared brighter, steam hissing from its armor.

The battle had only just begun.

The duel escalated.

The knight's movements grew sharper, its swings heavier. Each attack carried the weight of an avalanche. Noah parried and dodged, but each clash rattled his bones, each miss gouged craters in the earth.

One swing missed him by inches, splitting a tree clean in half. Another cleaved through three stone golems' corpses still lying around, obliterating them into dust.

"Monster…" Noah muttered, sweat rolling down his jaw. His body burned, but his eyes blazed brighter.

He pressed harder, shadows enhancing every strike. Nemesis met the greatsword again and again, each collision louder, heavier. Blood dripped from Noah's knuckles where the vibrations split skin. His lungs burned. His legs screamed.

Still, he fought.

CLANG!

SHHHK!

BOOM!

Minutes stretched into eternity.

Finally, the knight caught him off guard.

A feint—its blade swung left, then reversed mid-swing unnaturally fast. Noah barely raised his sword in time, but the force sent him flying. He hit the ruin wall, coughing blood.

The knight loomed forward, runes pulsing like a heartbeat.

For the first time, Noah's expression hardened.

"…If I hold back any longer, I'll die."

He pulled himself up, raising Nemesis. But before he could charge, he felt it.

The egg in his item box.

It pulsed violently, siphoning his mana in waves. His golden eyes widened as shadows thickened unnaturally around him. The air vibrated. The knight itself froze briefly, as if sensing the shift.

"What are you…" Noah whispered.

The egg's glow flared inside the box, and Noah felt a surge—not draining, but feeding. Mana poured back into him, stronger, heavier, wilder than before. His veins burned with it, his aura exploding outward.

The knight's runes flickered uncertainly.

Noah's lips curved into a feral grin. "So you're lending me strength now, huh?"

He raised Nemesis, darkness spiraling around him like a hurricane.

"Good. Then let's finish this together."

The battlefield erupted.

Noah shot forward, faster than before, his body reinforced by the egg's unnatural mana. His blade became a blur of black arcs, each swing heavier, sharper. The knight staggered under the onslaught, its greatsword struggling to keep up.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Cracks spread across its rune-etched armor. The crimson glow faltered.

The knight roared, slamming its greatsword down in desperation. A massive rune circle burst beneath it, pillars of crimson flame erupting skyward.

Noah didn't flinch. He darted straight through the fire, shadows shielding his body. His blade rose high.

"Fall!"

SHHHHHK!

Nemesis cleaved downward, slamming into the knight's chest. The armor split, black energy tearing through runes like paper. The knight convulsed, crimson light exploding from its body.

For one heartbeat, the world froze.

Then—

BOOOOOOOM!

The knight shattered, fragments of black steel raining across the battlefield. The greatsword fell, embedding into the ground like a monument, its runes flickering out.

Noah stood amidst the wreckage, chest heaving, Nemesis dripping black energy. His golden eyes glowed with victory—and exhaustion.

"…It's over."

The ruin fell silent once more.

The crimson glow faded from the walls. The chains reformed across the gates, sealing themselves shut.

A system prompt appeared before Noah's eyes.

[Hidden Dungeon Guardian Defeated.]

[Reward Granted.]

A black chest materialized before him, glowing faintly. But Noah's eyes weren't on it.

They were on the egg.

It pulsed softly now, calm again. But different. Stronger. The bond between them throbbed deeper, like it had awakened a new stage.

Noah exhaled, a tired grin tugging at his lips.

"…You really are extraordinary, aren't you?"

He sheathed Nemesis and stepped toward the chest. The night was silent but for the steady beat of his heart—and the faint glow of the egg, still watching, still waiting to hatch.