"RUNNNNN!!!!"

"GET AWAY FASTTTTT!!!!!"

"NOOOOO!!!! MY CHILD!!!!!"

"COME HERE!!!!!!!"

"MOMMMMMY!!!!"

The panicked shouts of the residents echoed in various directions, turning the otherwise peaceful night in Arclens City into one filled with terror. Many inhabitants had already fallen victim to the appearance of the giant monster amid the city.

The monstrous creature was terrifying, with glowing red eyes and a putrid stench emanating from its body. It was the Death Giradeer, a fusion of a deer and a giraffe. Its body and head resembled that of a deer, but it had the neck, tail, and legs of a giraffe.

What made this monster even more horrifying was that parts of its skin were peeling off, revealing decaying flesh beneath. Even its bones were visible in some areas.

This was essentially an undead version of the Giradeer giant monster. At the highest level, it was known as the Mythical Monster: Vermillion Giradeer. The Giradeer possessed several powerful skills, with its two best being the Ultimate Skills: Red Zone and Ball of Soul.

The Red Zone was the Giradeer's ultimate skill, which transformed a large circular area into red before exploding after 5 seconds, dealing extremely high damage.

The Ball of Soul allowed the Death Giradeer to create a soul ball above its head, releasing numerous souls to randomly attack multiple targets with significant damage.

A man was currently running in sheer panic as the Death Giradeer appeared nearby. His expression was one of utter fear, akin to someone facing the angel of death. Unbeknownst to him, a soul was chasing him from behind.

"HELP!!!!"

In an instant, the man transformed into a mere skeleton after being possessed by the soul originating from the Death Giradeer.

At this moment, the Death Giradeer was quite confused as its master, Alice, had vanished without giving any command, causing it to attack targets randomly.

Many citizens were trampled by the Death Giradeer as it continued moving uncontrollably.

"SAVE MEEEEE!!!!!"

"MOMMY!!!! MOMMY!!!!!!"

The cries of children, the shouts of adults, the sounds of those slain—all merged into one on this night. It was the greatest tragedy to befall Arclens City since the rise of the Igrasian Empire.

======================

Mikami, Rufus, and the knights were currently on high alert, preparing to attack the Death Giradeer, which had caused chaos and casualties in the city.

Of course, the knights weren't foolish enough to directly attack the Death Giradeer as it was extremely dangerous. They were all realistic, especially considering they all had families waiting for them at home.

"Rufus, lead the knights in mage roles and assist in long-range attacks," Mikami commanded.

"Understood, what about you?"

"I want to try a few things with this monster. I'm grateful to the White Hero for removing the real threat,"

"KNIGHTS READY TO DIE, FOLLOW ME!!!!!" Mikami shouted to ignite the knights' spirits.

Mikami and around 1,200 knights then began running towards the Death Giradeer, with Mikami at the forefront to deflect all soul attacks launched by the Death Giradeer.

A red aura enveloped Mikami's body, even his eyes turning red. His muscles swelled significantly, tearing his clothes apart until he was bare-chested, wielding a large axe.

The Death Giradeer sensed the approaching danger and focused its soul attacks on those trying to get closer while continuing to move to maintain distance.

The Death Giradeer's voice was similar to that of a deer, albeit slightly hoarse and much louder. Sensing the imminent danger, it immediately activated its other skills.

The area around Mikami suddenly turned red, and his instincts warned him that this was extremely dangerous.

"GET AWAY FROM THE RED AREA!!!!" Mikami warned his troops to retreat.

After 5 seconds, a powerful explosion occurred, instantly killing about 30 people who didn't manage to escape the red zone, shocking the other knights.

Many of the knights were newcomers and lacked combat experience, so they were still very inexperienced in situations like this.

"DON'T BE AFRAID!!!!! WE ARE KNIGHTS OF THE IGRASIAN EMPIRE!!!!!" Mikami shouted to rally the knights.

"YES!!!!!!!!" The knights answered Mikami's call.

As Mikami and the Death Giradeer drew closer, Mikami immediately swung his axe at the Death Giradeer's neck, causing it to lose balance.

The Death Giradeer emitted a pained cry like a deer when struck by Mikami. It heavily relied on its skills as it could hardly attack physically.

The intensity of the Death Giradeer's soul attacks caused knights to fall one by one. Mikami relentlessly countered these attacks, aiming to protect himself and the knights.

"FORWARD!!!! ATTACK!!!!" Mikami commanded.

Mikami and the knights attacked the Death Giradeer simultaneously, causing it to lose balance and fall to the side.

"GET BACK!!!!"

Hundreds of magical attacks rained down from the sky, originating from Rufus and the knights proficient in magic. These attacks intensified the Death Giradeer's agony, causing its flesh and skin to peel off in some parts, exposing its bones.

However, the Death Giradeer remained a formidable foe with high HP, so the attacks were not enough. Feeling threatened, the area around Mikami and Rufus slowly turned red.

"GET AWAY FROM THE RED AREA!!!" Mikami and Rufus shouted to warn their troops.

Five seconds later, two explosions occurred, killing 50 knights who didn't have enough time to leave the red zone.

Mikami realized that if the battle dragged on, many knights would fall, greatly disadvantaging the Igrasian Empire. With the uncertainty of when war might erupt, losing knights would be detrimental, and Mikami didn't want that to happen.

[Telepath]

"Rufus, use it."

"Are you sure? Using the imperial treasure will put it on a long cooldown."

"I'm sure... We can explain to Ivy-sama."

"That's true... Ivy-sama will understand our situation."

"I'll stall, and finish all preparations."

"It'll take about half an hour, can you stall for that long?"

"I believe I can, compared to spending hours defeating this damn monster, especially since it's in the middle of the city and very dangerous."

"Alright, and I've seen plenty of bodies strewn about like there's been a massacre."

"In that case, I trust you."

[Telepath End]

"EVERYONE, KEEP ATTACKING THIS DAMN MONSTER!!!!" Mikami ordered.

"YES SIR!!!!" The knights responded with high spirits.

The Death Giradeer stood back up on all fours and continued to endure the knights' attacks. It continuously used its Ultimate Skill: Red Zone, causing more knights to perish.

Mikami kept up the morale of the knights with his rallying cries, and they continued to attack the Death Giradeer relentlessly. Meanwhile, Rufus and 800 knights with magical abilities began a ritual to channel their mana into a giant magical circle.

The Death Giradeer didn't perceive the threat from the magical circle and focused solely on attacking Mikami and the knights assaulting it.

"KEEP PUSHING FORWARD!!!!!!!"

"DON'T GIVE THE DAMN MONSTER ANY OPENINGS!!!!"

On the other hand, this allowed the residents to evacuate to the outskirts of the city to distance themselves from the Death Giradeer, although the casualties among the populace were still significant.

After 30 minutes, hundreds of knights had fallen victim to the Death Giradeer, and the area around it was completely devastated, with many craters from the explosions caused by the Death Giradeer.

Several times, the Death Giradeer lost its balance but managed to rise to its feet using all four of its legs.

"Legendary Item: Sacred Chain of Igrasian!!!!!"

The giant magical circle shattered, and instantly, a massive blue chain emerged from a bracelet on Rufus's right hand. The giant blue chain immediately bound the Death Giradeer's legs and neck, immobilizing it and causing it to fall due to the loss of balance.

The chain also had another effect: it sealed the user's skills and magic, rendering the Death Giradeer unable to launch any attacks.

Many knights with magical abilities immediately fainted due to mana exhaustion, as this item required a significant amount of mana. Rufus had full control over the giant blue chain.

"We did it!!!!"

Mikami and the knights immediately attacked the Death Giradeer brutally, drastically reducing its HP. Moreover, the Death Giradeer was now unable to move or launch any attacks.

========================

In an empty house, Clarissa lay prone after battling 25 knights, led by Arshald. However, Clarissa's identity remained entirely unknown.

There were also many knight corpses scattered around the empty house, numbering around 30, indicating that Clarissa had successfully killed 30 knights. All the knights, including Arshald, were extremely exhausted, and Arshald himself was injured in several places.

"Remove, her mask," Arshald ordered.

A knight then approached Clarissa, who was lying injured, but suddenly, the knight's head was severed.

Suddenly, a beautiful woman in a white dress appeared, with brown hair and purple eyes—she was Arina. This surprised Arshald greatly as the woman appeared before him out of nowhere.

"Who are you!!!???" Arshald asked, pointing his sword at Arina.

"I'm just here to pick up this person," Arina replied calmly.

"ATTACK EVERYONE!!!!!" Arshald commanded.

All the knights around Arina immediately attacked her with their swords, but Arina easily slashed through all their heads with her claws.

Arshald was shocked to see all the knights who had fought alongside him die so easily as if all their training, struggles, and hard work had been in vain.

It seemed to imply, 'What is the meaning of life if you can die so easily in just one second?'

"W-WHO ARE YOUUU!!????" 

"You, aren't you the head of the knights?" Arina asked.

"I'LL KILL YOU, YOU BASTARD!!!!" Arshald yelled and tried to attack Arina.

"Well, you're important, so I won't kill you. I'll just erase some of your memories,"

Suddenly, a bright light appeared, causing Arshald to faint instantly. The light emanated from a necklace held by Arina.

"Well, lucky I brought this Item,"

"I should give Clarissa some healing magic,"