Chapter 310 An unforeseen variable

The eight hunters immediately recognised the state of Vlad’s Sword Aura. It was barely leaking from the blade. They had learned about this.

Once the distinction between the Aura and the blade of the weapon becomes zero, the Knight reaches the Third Star.

"H-he is only half a step away from becoming a Cavalier Knight," The Sad Face gasped, every syllable laced with shock.

"There is no student in Second Year who is at the Peak of Two Star Knight," the surprised face added, equally shocked. "Who could be the person behind that mask?"

"Whoever he is, as long as he is not a Three Star Knight, he can be defeated!" The Angry Face shouted, drawing the attention of all the flustered students. "Attack him! Don’t let him destroy all the puppets!"

Vlad was about to move to the second puppet when a fireball streaked toward him from behind. He moved sideways, dodging the attack, but at the same time the puppet hurled a punch at him.

Bam!

It struck the flat of his sword, forcing him half a step back. "Max truly didn’t hold back in creating these puppets," Vlad muttered, his tone carrying nothing but astonishment.

Two more puppets surrounded him from either side, launching their cannon-like fists. At the same time, the mages released One and Two Ring destructive spells from behind, while those from the Order of Blades began attacking him side by side with the puppets. Since Vlad couldn’t possibly use the near-perfected Sword Aura to fight the students while also needing it to protect against the strikes from the puppets, he would definitely be overwhelmed. Or that was what the hunters thought, at least.

They didn’t take into account that Vlad had been swinging a sword since the age of five. Including the years he had spent in the Ascension Dungeon, he had honed his sword skills alone for fifteen years.

Using the Lightning Steps, Vlad moved like a blur, making him extremely difficult to sense, whether by the eyes of the students or the sensors of the puppets.

He dodged the destructive spells of the mages, struck the knights with his fists and kicks, and skilfully shifted to sword attacks when it came to the puppets.

For the next few minutes, the forest mountain echoed with the loud clashes of metal, the sparks of electrical discharges, and the screams of the students, until no more attacks were launched at Vlad.

"H-how is it possible?" The Angry Face muttered weakly, lying on the ground on his side, his face mask half broken, revealing his auburn eyes staring at Vlad in disbelief. Both his hands clutched his bruised abdomen, blood trickling from the corner of his lips as he demanded, "You are only at the Peak of Two Star Knight. Our force was powerful enough to wear down even an S-Ranked Early Stage Three Star Knight. Then why!? Why hasn’t your mana been exhausted until now? How are you still standing?"

Not just him; all the fallen students groaning in pain on the ground had the same question, their frustrated gazes fixed on the Joker standing at the centre, surrounded by the broken metallic bodies of the puppets.

The sword in his hand pointed at the ground, his breathing still even, without a single scratch on his body or clothes, as if such a force had never been a threat to him.

"Hehehehe," The Joker snickered, bending his back, his hand resting on the face mask. "That’s because I hit the gym seven times a week."

Although none of them believed it, that was truly the reason why Vlad was still standing.

Instead of depending completely on his mana, Vlad always used his superior physical strength in the battle while channeling only the bare minimum amount of mana to keep his Sword Aura activated.

Not only did this method allow him to conserve his mana, but he also wasn’t very exhausted, thanks to the high stamina he had built by exercising daily.

Vlad’s eyes shifted to the only two figures still standing, a few metres ahead in the flattened bushes.

Lisa and Max. The short, purple-haired girl wore a look of shock on her face, while the amber-haired boy seemed on the verge of tears, seeing his children reduced to such a state.

"You must be the one responsible for poisoning Noah," Vlad said, pointing his sword at Lisa, making the poor girl flinch.

Max immediately moved his arm in front of her protectively, shifting her behind him.

At that moment, Vlad could clearly tell what Max was thinking.

’My buddy. Surely you wouldn’t beat up your sister-in-law,’ Max gulped inwardly.

However, his worst fear actually came true. A sudden gust of wind struck his face as he felt someone pass him at a blurring speed.

Vlad was gone from his position. So was Lisa from behind him. He pivoted on his feet, finding Vlad a few metres away, holding Lisa by the back of her collar, her feet dangling. Her eyes were trembling, her lips quivering in fear.

"Max..." She whimpered as if asking for his help.

"Let her go!!" Max’s loud voice echoed as he bolted towards them. For the first time ever, Vlad saw Max making such a furious face.

"As you say," Vlad said with a wink, tossing the girl gently towards Max.

He caught her mid-air by the waist, their chests pressing together.

"Max..." Lisa whimpered, tightening her arms around his neck in fear.

"Don’t worry, I will not let him harm you," Max said, holding her tightly, her feet still in the air.

His eyes shifted to Vlad, who stood there with his arms folded. Max winked back at Vlad and silently mouthed the words.

"Thank you, buddy."

"Did you say something?" Lisa asked.

"No. Nothing," Max replied, holding her tightly, savouring every moment of his first hug.

---

"This is really my total defeat," Aria sighed, seated beside Chloe, having witnessed the entire battle. "As compensation, I will keep Vlad’s identity hidden. So you can’t take my identity token."

Chloe looked at her with her head tilted. "I don’t need your identity token. Also... he is not Vlad."

Aria didn’t argue any further. She was about to rise to her feet when she suddenly felt a chilling sensation at the back of her neck. She felt as if her life was being threatened.

Tang!!!!

A loud metallic sound echoed just behind her. When she turned around, she found Chloe and the Joker, both with their swords coated in Sword Aura, stopping a massive longsword that was just a few inches from slicing Aria’s throat.

The sword was held by Noah, his sclera frost white with no visible iris or pupil. His silver hair swayed without any wind, and his body was coated in a chilling white energy that froze even the ground beneath them.

The unreadable expression on his face showed that... he wasn’t even conscious.