CHAPTER 68: CHAPTER 68: DEMON GIANT AND THE HEROIC SPIRIT OF THE DIVINE ARTIFACT

"This man... actually commands such an incredibly powerful army."

The mage, coming back to his senses, felt his face burn. He had felt such intense fear—not only of those monsters but also of these human soldiers.

"How can he possibly have enough food to feed such a force?"

He was shocked by the strength of the cavalry and equally overwhelmed with curiosity. After all, the slaves already consumed a considerable amount, and a soldier with the physique of a trainee knight would require a large quantity of food every day.

But for now, he had no way of finding the answer. Below the city walls, Brand’s armor was stained with countless splashes of blood, and the momentum behind the entire cavalry force was beginning to take on a peculiar intensity.

Every elite soldier is forged in blood and fire. One reason Ryan brought all his soldiers to Furnace City was because he needed the power of an army. The other was that most of his troops had never experienced actual warfare.

They were no more than recruits. Even Brand—before this war began—was simply a powerful individual, a formidable warrior.

Yet with the brutal combat of this war, as countless decisions were carried out from his mouth, he was gradually transforming from a warrior into an excellent general.

A chilling killing aura surged in his chest. Brand let out a thunderous roar, expelling that aura from within, allowing his battle energy to circulate through his body, easing the ache in his muscles.

"Kill!"

He pulled the reins and turned his warhorse. Gazing at the chaotic abyssal beasts, the cavalry charged once more.

...

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"

Ultrado, watching his army once again pierced straight through by the cavalry, exploded in fury and cursed.

His blood-red eyes grew increasingly frenzied as he looked around. Yet the last remnants of reason kept him from using the abyssal power to transform his followers into monsters to fight the cavalry.

He still needed these people to consolidate his authority and rule.

Sensing the crisis, someone beside him hesitantly suggested:

"Your Holiness, our army won’t be breaching the city any time soon. Perhaps... we should summon Lord Frederick."

He forced the words out, as if even the name itself inspired fear.

"It seems that’s our only option."

Ultrado raised his scepter. A dark radiance pulsed from the gem at its tip.

"Noble Frederick, existence of the Abyss, by the name of Dionysus, I summon you to serve me. Destroy the wall before me. Kill all within."

A massive portal of darkness opened on the battlefield. Brand halted his steed, cutting down the surrounding abyssal creatures. His gaze turned solemn as he looked toward the distant black portal.

From it emerged a towering, crimson-black giant, fifteen meters tall, with horns like a bull atop his head. Four eyes stared forward from its hideous face, watching the battlefield with cruel ferocity. Its mouth—full of fine, razor-sharp teeth—seemed to be chewing something. Blood sprayed from between its fangs.

In its hand, it gripped a massive, blood-soaked club, blackened by gore and covered in barbs. Even the hardest metal would likely be no match for its brutal edge.

"A demon giant."

Ryan’s expression grew grave. As expected, these cultists aligned with demons had mastered the power to summon abyssal monstrosities.

The previous magma giant had already been alarming—now a demon giant. Clearly, the demon behind this cult was determined to seize the dying continent of Exnir.

Just a single demon giant—with its immense size alone—was something no ordinary knight could confront. At the very least, it would take a sky knight to even stand a chance.

And to truly kill such a demon giant, it would require several sky knights working together in flawless coordination. Otherwise, they would only be slaughtered.

"Fortunately, I anticipated this."

Ryan took out the crystal given to him by the Archmage of Amethyst. His eyes burned with intensity.

"Just how powerful is the strength of a divine artifact?"

He crushed the crystal in his hand. In an instant, a blood-red brilliance shot into the sky, piercing the clouds above and descending deep into the ground beneath the Mage Academy.

A hundred meters beneath the Academy lay a furnace, but few knew that within this furnace was a divine artifact—one that once belonged to the Spirit of the Stag.

With the Spirit of the Stag fallen, the artifact had lost its power. The Mage Academy placed it within the furnace, hoping to replenish its strength. But after many years, they never succeeded. The artifact eventually lost all power.

The Archmage of Amethyst gave it to Ryan precisely because it had only one final use left. And even then, its release of energy wouldn’t surpass the might of a single forbidden spell.

At most, it had a year or two before its last trace of divinity would be gone, and it would become no more than a mundane object. That’s when she confirmed the Spirit of the Stag had truly perished. She chose to give it to Ryan—to use against the forces of the Abyss and to buy time for people to flee Furnace City.

When Ryan first heard about the artifact, he nearly jumped for joy.

He had long wondered: if Duke Moriarty could flee south from the north to Furnace City, why couldn’t the royal family of Exnir manage the same?

Only when he learned about the artifact did he understand.

Exnir truly did have a royal line. But every king was the most devout follower of the Spirit of the Stag. With the stag’s fall, the royal house had fallen with it.

Yet the most powerful of the royal bloodline, upon death, would become the spirit within the artifact—achieving a form of eternal life. A final blessing from the stag for the believers of Exnir.

"Honored Gonzalves, in the name of the Stag, I call upon you. Release your heroic spirit. Fight for me. Banish all who stand against us."

Ryan’s voice rang softly as a golden light soared from beneath the Academy.

A crown landed before him. Then, beneath that crown, a ghostly figure appeared.

The heroic spirit—this was the true power of the artifact: granting one long life and unfading strength.

Of course, only while the Spirit of the Stag still lived.

"Gonzalves, at your command."

The noble king placed a fist to his chest and offered a reverent salute before Ryan.

Ryan extended a finger, and a blessing from the Stag—costing a thousand units of spirit essence—descended upon the heroic spirit’s head. Then this spirit, once the King of Exnir, turned and flew toward the demon giant.

A greatsword appeared in Gonzalves’ hand. With a single leap, the sword cleaved down as though cutting through the sky. It blotted out everything in Ryan’s eyes.

When the light faded, the demon giant collapsed to the ground.