Chapter 46

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Chapter 46: Salute

The stalemate in the north continued, the two armies completely entangled like two types of beans in a pot, difficult to separate, and long-range units could hardly play a role. Most traps had fulfilled their duties, consuming warhorses and soldiers, destroying the enemy’s heavy weapons, traps and pits filled with corpses. Amazon warriors shuttled on the battlefield, obtaining new arrows and potions from hidden supply points.

Mavis had made many strong potions before today, and her pharmacy was still producing potions non-stop. The potions temporarily relieved the warriors’ tiredness, healed the soldiers’ wounds, and helped those who were almost giving up to keep on fighting. The dungeon transport network continuously delivered supplies made by the Craftsman Dwarf and the elf potion maker to the battlefield. Tasha controlled the opening and closing of several supply stations, and this adaptable battlefield was an indispensable ally to the army in the southeast corner.

In Red Gum County, the patrol team captured troublemakers in the city. The outsiders took off their disguises, revealing their well-trained true identities, which did not belong to the military but to cunning mercenaries. These scattered people did not engage in direct combat with the patrol team; their mission was to cause chaos, delay the mobile forces, using any means necessary. Here, the home field advantage became a disadvantage; the patrol team had to pursue these villains, put out the flames in the city, maintain order, calm the frightened residents, and deter those who wanted to take advantage of the situation.

Tasha placed a ghost on the clock tower, using her "Military Atmosphere" skill to spread her voice from a high point in the county town, reaching all of Red Gum County. The simple command of "stay in a safe place and do not go out" catered to the fear in most people’s hearts, preventing the restless individuals from causing trouble. Even those with ulterior motives, most common folks did not have a strong will to join the fight. If there were any who did, the patrol team would treat them the same as the outsiders, eliminating them together.

Another ghost appeared in the dungeon, near the thief. The thief tried to sneak in, but the visible ghost revealed his position, forcing him to divert his attention to confront the threatening ghost. The attempt to ambush with the "Full Moon- Call of the Wild" skill failed; facing it head-on would be even less successful. However, before it could be fully released, the ghost’s threat was greater than when it actually manifested. As long as the ghost did not disappear, the thief could not focus fully on dealing with the Craftsman Dwarf. Tasha controlled the thief’s movements, allowing the Craftsman Dwarf to quickly set up the area.

Creatures in the dungeon that couldn’t help were moved deeper inside, following the most efficient plan for overall effectiveness. Jacqueline’s music continued to echo in the dungeon, and all creatures near her that could be affected had already been moved outside the range of the music. Gnomes were not living creatures and were immune to music, just like golems, constructs, and stone puppets. The minstrel could only inspire her rider. She would not play forever.

Ahuang infiltrated a group of gnomes, and if Douglas mistook it for being the same as the mechanical and rigid attacking gnomes, he would soon be at a disadvantage.

The old knight with an axe was heading towards the Dungeon Core, unstoppable.

All of the above happened at the same time.

The real siege was not like a simple battle; it was not a foolish approach with a cheerleading squad. Multiple battlefields were happening simultaneously, and Tasha’s will was against everyone. Controlling the overall situation at the same time was much more challenging than "patting your head and rubbing your belly at the same time". Tasha was like playing chess against several grandmasters and engaging in multiple strategic games simultaneously.

She has not lost a single game yet, and she doesn’t want to lose any either.

Tasha realized she had a problem.

She didn’t fully understand this world yet. Her past biases and everything she had encountered made her subconsciously believe that other races had extraordinary powers while humans needed tools. She hadn’t considered the current situation. However, this wasn’t the main issue. No one has a god’s eye view of the entire world. For example, which engineer on Earth would consider preventing Godzilla from walking on a bridge they built? Which police officer would plan for a suspect suddenly turning into a super saiyan and escaping? If they did, there would be endless preparation and a waste of resources.

Tasha’s issue was that her plans were too "tight."

Tasha’s plans were interconnected. While there were different backup plans for various scenarios, the whole system was closed. Each solution was tailored to a specific problem, lacking flexibility. If one part faced an unexpected event beyond control, the entire system would be impacted. Her seemingly perfect arrangements demanded precise execution, but she needed more room for error without severe consequences.

This could be a good lesson, provided Tasha makes it through today unharmed.

The remaining gnome was transforming the terrain in the hall, trying to add the final traps. The area around the Dungeon Core was already filled with the craftsmanship of the Craftsman Dwarves and separated from the other parts of the dungeon, almost like an impossible-to-reach floating island. However, as she looked at the Paladin charging fiercely towards them, Tasha wasn’t sure if these things could stop him.

The old knight named Alexander crushed the pendant around his waist, causing a burst of golden light to surround his body. As the dazzling light faded, his face, once wrinkled, became smooth and radiant, emanating visible vitality.

"Stop setting up those traps." Victor, witnessing the scene, suddenly became unusually calm. "Remove them. They won’t work on the templars with the burning soul fire."

"What else can I do?" Tasha asked sarcastically, "Charge at him with a knife and confront him openly?"

The wolf-headed figure stood with a knife, feeling the ground tremble slightly, with dust falling from above.

Bang! A sound of impact came from not far ahead.

"Remove the traps and bow to him," Victor said decisively, "Templars are very strict about morals, their power is based on this. ‘Dirty tricks’ will only make them ignore suicidal attacks. You can’t stop a templar who is determined to perish with the core. Bow to him, at least you will have a chance for a one-on-one battle."

"Bow to him for what?" Tasha looked at the cracks appearing on the stone wall in front of her, "Are you teaching me this now?"

"There’s still time," Victor said, as if he had made a decision, "Look at me!"

In the next moment, Tasha understood what he meant.

In the connection between Tasha and Victor, a single amber eye suddenly opened.

She locked eyes with the huge eye, with just a glance, something rushed out from it tumultuously. Tasha felt like she was standing in front of a hurricane and a tsunami, the powerful chaos of that moment could be compared to the last time she received part of the dungeon inheritance, no, it was even stronger. Tasha could try to pick out some knowledge from the last inheritance, but this time it was a completely one-sided infusion, a surging flood of information poured into her soul, landed heavily, and then began to be imprinted.

It was a moment when a huge amount of information was loaded in an instant, more like experiencing a long time in the blink of an eye. Countless images, fragments, sights and sounds related to the templars rushed into Tasha’s sea of divine sense.

She saw Saro’s templars preparing for a journey, saw their prayers, saw their devout training and organization. Their wooden staffs hid battle axes, spears, maces, clubs to fight against mortals, sharp weapons aimed at demons. In an instant, she learned many rituals of the templars, perhaps even more detailed than all the heirs in the world today. In the interaction with these templars, most of the time Tasha stood as an onlooker, they were completely unaware of being watched; occasionally, they shouted Saro’s doctrine loudly, adopting a standard posture against evil creatures, rushing towards Tasha.

The feeling of experiencing this situation was very real, the first time encountering it, Tasha saw Paladins surrounded by heavenly golden light covering the mountains, and she felt she couldn’t escape. Then, she realized her body was moving.

What happened next was… a one-sided massacre.

She felt the wind, felt the warm liquid splashing on her body. At first, Tasha had no idea what was happening because everything in front of her changed too quickly, like a camera switching too fast, Tasha couldn’t keep up with its speed. She heard screams, heard the sound of bodies falling, then the sensation of bodies moving reached her brain. She found herself fighting in and out of the templars, smashing the huge shields covered in Holy Light, knocking off the skull of a rear priest.

Alone, she was slaughtering a whole army of templars and priests bare-handed.

She heard a low chuckle in her throat, she – the presence her senses were connected to – even hummed a song with an extremely joyful melody.

"Oh, Abyss." She heard herself saying, with a deep and magnetic voice, a slight trembling at the end of her words, a cheerful tone completely different from the content, "I just came for a vacation, can’t you people leave me alone for a while?"

If this voice wasn’t so composed, if it was more impatient, more ridiculous in a way that made it hard to notice the tone, it would sound exactly like Victor.

Tasha suddenly understood what she was reading, she was reading Victor’s memories.

She also understood why Victor didn’t specifically warn her, the former great demon didn’t think that Templar was a character that needed special caution. An entity that effortlessly defeated Templars in almost every encounter, due to their habitual thinking, completely unaware of the need to treat it as a major threat, just like a wealthy young man struggling to immediately learn to be frugal when in trouble.

Tasha felt the sensation of tearing apart a bunch of Templars, even experiencing what it felt like to crush through the Saro Knights using her body and tail (???). Among these seemingly useless experiences, there were still some parts that were very suitable for the current situation.

"You better not lose," Victor said weakly.

The presence of the Book of Dungeons weakened unprecedentedly, like a phone running out of battery, Tasha could hardly feel it. Victor seemed to bear all the impact of this transmission, Tasha didn’t feel any headache, nor dizziness, she just closed her eyes and effortlessly absorbed a bunch of information.

Tasha opened her eyes, and the wall in front of her collapsed with a loud crash.

Alexander walked through the rising dust, looking middle-aged with all-white hair. The Templar’s eyes quickly caught sight of the Dungeon Core behind Tasha. Tasha had seen this look many times in Victor’s memories, the current Templar didn’t care about Tasha’s or his own well-being, he only wanted to destroy the Core.

Tasha bowed to him.

Her feet stood together, fingers lightly gripped, drawing a symbol of justice on her chest. She unsheathed her sword, the blade paused with the edge up, then she turned her wrist and pointed it straight at Alexander. This was a standard posture for an honorable duel, not a part of Saroism doctrine, but widely used among Paladins of various good and neutral factions. Even though Saro was long gone and divine spells no longer required deities, as long as they still considered themselves knights, this brief ritual would not be lost.

For the knight’s honor, for your beliefs, are you willing to fight me fair and square?

The old knight, about to charge out, stopped in his tracks and gazed deeply at Tasha, his eyes filled with surprise, nostalgia, and other complex emotions. "I never thought anyone else knew about this," he said softly, chuckling self-deprecatingly. "And yet, it is someone like you, a strange creature…"

Boom! The heavy boots of Alexander clashed as he paused, feet together, his left hand drawing the same mark in the empty air. Feeling his master’s emotions, his battle axe hummed crisply as it sliced through the air with a single powerful strike.

"Come, artifact of a bygone era!" the old knight laughed heartily. "It is time for our final act!"

The longsword pointed at the battle axe, the Paladin ablaze with soulfire, facing the final dungeon in a last stand before the Dungeon Core, a fight to the death.

No, Tasha thought, it is only you who will meet your final act. I will continue to live on, for a long time, and usher in a new era.

The flames of war ignited in the next moment.

They both moved simultaneously, Alexander charging straight towards Tasha like a fierce siege engine. The battle axe traced an arc in the air, creating a powerful gust that lifted the nearby dust once more. A golden light enveloped the axe head, adding an invisible edge to the blade, the sharp wind arriving before the axe itself. Tasha slid skillfully to the side, evading the unseen blade. The axe landed at her feet, cracks spreading out like a spider’s web for meters.

Empowered by the golden light, the Paladin was formidable, towering with incredible speed that even surpassed Tasha’s. Her advantage lay in being quicker, able to react a split second before the old knight’s next strike landed.

The old knight wore battle boots and held a battle axe, but he wasn’t wearing armor. Under his thin linen cloak, his muscles showed a slight tight outline, Tasha read him like an open book. She was no longer the beginner who could be hurt by simple soldiers, the dungeon’s all-knowing perspective provided enough information without any blind spots; the skills taught by the Amazonian were fully memorized in Tasha’s mind, becoming like a reflexive language. Tasha and Alexander passed each other, she twisted and leaped, her long sword slashing towards Paladin’s neck from behind.

Clang! The long sword crafted by the Dwarf made a ringing sound on Alexander’s skin, the body covered in golden light actually made a metallic sound. The hardness from the blade reverberated back into Tasha’s hand, leaving her impressed.

Paladin didn’t even turn around, he kept his back towards Tasha as he swiftly retreated backwards, crashing into Tasha, and then all the way to the high wall behind. The terrifying speed left Tasha flattened against his back, like a bird hitting a car window.

Boom!

Alexander’s acceleration was rapid, his rigid and broad back like a shield, crashing into the wall against the enemy. A prominent dent appeared on the hard wall, rubble and dust falling from the cracks, the dull sound transmitting through the radiating cracks far away. Even people wearing heavy armor could have their bones shattered by this blow, let alone a wolf-headed woman wearing only lightweight clothing for flexibility. But Alexander frowned, he didn’t feel the impact of this blow, nor did he see the opponent in his sight.

Missed from behind, not on the left, right, or front, so…

The battle axe suddenly struck upwards, the sharp axe blade with spear-like spikes capable of piercing anyone. Almost at the same time the axe was thrust, a figure pressed against the blade sank downwards, leveraging the force of the fall, this descending strike popped out in mid-air, aiming to slash at the old knight’s eyes.

This strike was as sharp as a snake’s venomous bite, seizing the opportunity as Alexander swung the battle axe, he only managed to turn his face to the side, the sharp blade glinted on the knight’s face.

The blade in Tasha’s hand was only half a meter long, curved towards the blade direction, with the front of the blade slightly raised, looking nothing like a regular long sword. It was a weapon tailored for her by Craftsman Dwarf, not too heavy, possessing the ability to chop and stab, its cutting force could easily sever a wooden stake covered in armor. Blood grooves were applied on the blade, a special forging technique formed a dazzling pattern of light and shadow on the blade, staring at it would even make one dizzy. It was extremely sharp and oddly shaped, creating the illusion for Paladin that the blade hadn’t yet landed: when the blade was a bit away from him, the upward-pointing tip was already there.

Right in the middle of Alexander’s left eye.

The golden light shimmered again, forming a layer of tough armor just like before. As Paladin sought the protection of divine spells, Tasha protected herself.

The power of the dungeon was imbued in the razor-sharp blade. While this power couldn’t directly affect Paladin’s body, it could enhance and diminish to some extent. Magic consumption eroded the golden light, causing them to fiercely clash upon contact, like water and hot oil, like archenemies destined to fight each other to death. Tasha could feel her magic rapidly depleting, and the golden light became unstable in this erosion. In that brief moment, the blade cut through the golden light.

Blood gushed out, flooding Paladin’s left eye. The sapphire eye shattered, and even the best healing couldn’t restore it to its original state.

Alexander let out a painful roar as the battle-axe came down with a hurricane force. His movements were even swifter than before, and Tasha’s evasive maneuver couldn’t keep up with him, resulting in a new bloodstain on her body. The axe swept from her shoulder to her abdomen, with the real impact of the metal being even more horrifying. Several ribs snapped, revealing deep bone injuries. Tasha wiped the blood from her lips and immediately bounced back up from the ground where she fell.

The blood stained her clothes red, but in a moment, it stopped flowing. The dungeon was her body, here she was like the son of a Greek earth goddess in the myth, with magic continuously pouring into the body of the rearing wolf from all directions, repairing her wounds and replenishing her strength. The broken bones quickly healed, there was no time to worry about their alignment. The internal bleeding stopped, the skin had healed, and Tasha had returned to her original state the moment she fell to the ground.

She dodged just in time, as Alexander’s next strike was coming.

In one moment Paladin was far away, the next second he was right in front, it was hard to imagine such a huge figure moving at this speed. He had lost sight on one side, yet his speed and strength had somehow increased. The earth trembled, and if the dungeon was not such a sturdy building, some parts might have collapsed under the impact.

Tasha anticipated this, the burning soul fire of the templar had this characteristic – the higher the damage received, the more intense the burn, which would shorten the duration of this enhanced state but make him stronger during that time.

Was it a mistake? No, for the Paladin who often plays recklessly in the final stages, dealing with a dungeon with limited magic and multiple battlefields, taking calculated risks for a quick victory is the best option.

The golden light protecting Alexander surged once again after he was injured, like pouring oil on a firewood, it became more vibrant but also more unstable. When the Paladin’s speed reached this stage, and when Tasha’s reactions were faster than reading muscle movements, it was time for another teacher’s teachings to come into play.

That was what Victor had just taught her.

Alexander was surprised to see the enemy’s speed also increasing.

Maybe it wasn’t speed increasing, just decreasing the space for hiding. The Paladin found that each of his attacks became very uncomfortable, like moving in mud, each strike felt restrained. The golden light could counteract the forces acting on him, so what put him in this situation wasn’t a spell but the enemy itself.

Tasha was dodging close to him.

She moved like a fish, extremely elusive, staying just centimeters away from the Paladin, constantly moving up and down, left and right. The battle-axe is a long-handled weapon, making it difficult to attack at such close range, while Tasha moved like a slippery eel, like bees dancing around a giant bear. She stayed in the most dangerous positions, her close, small movements increasing her dodging efficiency, and at the same time, the knife’s path became unpredictable, not engaging with the battle-axe, just touching and retreating. The oddly shaped curved blade did not block, it dodged the sharpness of the battle-axe, disarming Alexander’s force, a slight tilt at certain points completely redirected the direction of the force used.

Other than cheating by directly acquiring skills from a contract, there was no more efficient way of learning than the kind of transmission just now. The Amazonian expert taught Tasha how to use a certain martial art technique hand in hand, while Victor let her enter his memories, putting on his body. Tasha experienced the postures, timing, and force of using this martial art technique over and over. She learned, she felt, and unlike directly gaining the skill, Tasha truly mastered it.

This was a tactic learned from Victor’s "game," which he once used to mock a Templar, wearing the opponent down to death, like a predator playing with its prey. He did it out of boredom, but for Tasha, who lacked spells and his monstrous strength and powerful attacks, learning this evasive technique could save her life.

She was very focused, using up her energy quickly, burning her magical power just as fast. But Paladin was even more impatient, with his golden light becoming increasingly unstable, unable to hit her, not using much force, and Alexander, feeling frustrated, finally couldn’t hold back anymore.

The battle-axe swung back and landed on Paladin himself. It was more severe than the blow Tasha had just endured, a huge wound appearing on Alexander’s chest, with internal organs visible.

The Paladin, accelerating for the second time, was so fast it was almost impossible to see with the naked eye.

Tasha was finally thrown out, unable to dodge the battle-axe, barely avoiding it hitting her left shoulder. This time the dodge luckily prevented the axe from piercing through her, but the intense pain caused her vision to darken for a moment. Just a short distance away, her left hand had just hit the ground.

The shoulder-level strike chopped off Tasha’s left arm.

Magic quickly mended the gaping wound, making the area that would normally take a long time to heal smooth and new again. However, the skin covered in wounds, her hand did not grow back. Tasha quickly got up, stumbling a bit, finding it difficult to maintain balance without her left arm.

Alexander squinted thoughtfully.

In the next moment, Tasha was thrown to the ground, rolling desperately to avoid another fierce chop. With no time to recover, Paladin’s attacks were relentless.

In just a second, the battle-axe clashed countless times with the long knife, if their weapons were not protected by their respective powers, this series of impacts would be enough to shatter ordinary iron into countless pieces. Tasha gritted her teeth, feeling the rapid decline of magical power, she persisted, watching the golden light flicker more and more fiercely, until…

The loud clash of weapons suddenly stopped in the raging storm, and after a loud crack, the long sword shattered, the battle-axe split down, and cut her head off.

The wolf’s skull was chopped off, rolled several meters from the inertia, and the monster of the wolf head stopped moving.

Alexander put away his battle-axe, stood up panting, even with the protection of the golden light, the exhaustion and pain from the fierce battle made him sweaty all over. The flickering golden light, the old knight could feel the cold rising from his limbs, towards a group of scavenging jackals staring at the travelers, waiting for the campfire to go out to pounce.

"You are a worthy opponent," Alexander said, making a gesture of respect at his chest. He nodded at the body, dragging his heavy steps towards the crimson heart ahead.

It was very close to Paladin, only a few steps away after stepping onto the stairs. As he stepped onto the edge of the stairs, a row of small arrows suddenly flew up from the floor, Alexander frowned and dodged backwards.

This is what happened in the moment he lost focus.

His vision suddenly rose, his body becoming both light and heavy. The old knight opened his mouth in surprise, his head spinning in mid-air, turning behind him to see the headless body that beheaded him.

An undead rare talent, eliminating the vulnerability of the head.

[Full Moon- Call of the Wild], giving you three seconds of unstoppable claws.

Tasha’s arm can actually grow back, as long as she places her severed limb on her wound. She sacrificed her left hand just to deceive Paladin into thinking that she can only heal wounds, not regrow limbs.

If the severed arm cannot be reattached, then beheading must surely be foolproof, right?

A Paladin, who was running out of time and strength with his soul fire burning, let down his guard against an enemy whose weapon shattered and head got chopped off.

Tasha won.