Kapitel 424: Trap

*Cough!* *Cough!*

Tristan, who had also been tossed by the shockwave, struggled to get up from the ground after crashing into three trees and two rocks in succession.

She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, feeling the intense pain coursing through her body, her eyes practically shooting fire.

"You dumb cow! Didn't you see I was still there?! Are you trying to kill me?!"

The newcomer, wearing a bull-headed mask with pitch-black horns protruding from the top, nearly three meters tall, glanced at Tristan sideways, emitting a disdainful snort from his nostrils.

Asterios, a monster bearing the name of 'Lightning', but more famous than this name was his nickname—Minotauros.

Like Atalanta, after being captured by Camelot, he was brainwashed and became a Knight of the Round Table.

Seeing the towering figure of Asterios, Arkhan narrowed his eyes.

Logically, Asterios should be far away, just like Atalanta, dozens of miles away. So it didn't make sense for him to be here.

*Rattle!*

Suddenly, the crisp sound of chains echoed from deep within the forest, and before long, sharp daggers with chains, like a coiled snake ready to strike, shot straight toward Arkhan's head.

Arkhan looked calm and quickly used his spear to knock the daggers away.

But in the next moment, as if possessed, the daggers surged back, tightly entwining around Black Abyss, as if intent on snatching it from his grasp.

"Hmph!" Arkhan snorted, giving a hard tug.

The chain instantly straightened taut, transferring immense force along its length, hurling its owner out from the depths of the forest.

It was a rather seductive and mature body, a tall and charmingly alluring woman. Her purple hair cascaded down to her feet, and beneath her black dress lay an unmistakably sexy body, while the eyepatch covering her eyes added a hint of mysterious allure.

In the moment she was flung out, the eyepatch slipped off, revealing a pair of shallow purple serpent-like pupils, staring straight at Arkhan.

But to Medusa's surprise, Arkhan simply closed his eyes, refusing to meet her gaze.

Ever since Atalanta and Asterios appeared, Arkhan had already concluded that the remaining Servant must be nearby.

And he was right, the newcomer was none other than Medusa.

Medusa possessed powerful Mystic Eyes, capable of petrifying those with lower 'Mana' unconditionally. It was a rather domineering skill, hence why she was known as 'the snake monster who could turn everything she saw into stone'.

Due to his Nidhogg bloodline, Arkhan's 'Mana' reached A+, allowing him to resist Medusa's Mystic Eyes to a large extent. But if he were careless, he could still be petrified.

Because of this, he simply chose to close his eyes, avoiding direct eye contact with Medusa, rendering her Mystic Eyes ineffective.

With her Mystic Eyes useless, Medusa reluctantly released the chains and retreated. She dared not attempt the consequences of being drawn into close proximity with this terrifying man.

Still keeping his eyes closed, Arkhan casually flicked away the chains and surveyed his surroundings with his perception.

In his perception, there were three quite distinct magical energy signals gathering around him, vaguely forming an encircling formation. Additionally, one signal was located a kilometer away, locking onto his body.

It was obvious; this was a long-planned conspiracy, a trap specifically targeting him.

===

On the barren desert, the sun blazed mercilessly like a furnace, scorching the earth.

Naked bedrock and huge boulders sprawled across the surface, interspersed with patches of withered yellow vegetation. Occasionally, a whirlwind would sweep up, sending a column of yellow sand swirling into the air, adding to the desolate atmosphere.

This once desolate wilderness, untouched by humanity, had now become a battlefield drenched in blood and fire.

Clad in crimson rose armor, soldiers of the Holy Roman Empire clashed with the knights of Camelot.

*Clang!* *Cling!* *Clang!* *Cling!*

The clang of metal resounded over and over, accompanied by the thunderous roar of battle cries. Both sides charged forward recklessly as if their lives depended on it, each person coated in a thick layer of blood, their eyes burning with the vivid red of slaughter.

On one side stood the faithful knights, steadfastly executing their king's commands, while on the other were the indigenous people who had lost their homes and been forced into exile, both sides eager to annihilate each other.

Rationality was abandoned, like a spark igniting a raging fire fueled by hatred and anger, setting the whole scene ablaze.

Perhaps the only ones still clear-headed on this battlefield were Mash and Ritsuka, yet even they found themselves engulfed in extreme confusion.

Mash, clad in her usual black-purple tight outfit, remained in a state of combat readiness, her hands gripping a massive black shield, her lavender eyes fixed straight ahead as if searching for something.

Yet there was nothing there, only emptiness.

The only abnormality was the scattered debris of shattered rocks strewn across the ground, like toys discarded by careless children.

However, upon closer inspection, one would notice that each stone was cleanly sliced in two, their surfaces smooth and even.

The stubborn bedrock weathered over thousands of years, had been effortlessly cleaved apart, leaving one to wonder at the immense force required to inflict such terrifying destruction.

"...Senpai, did you just... see what just happened?"

"Yeah..." Ritsuka nodded solemnly. "Saw it clear as day."

After gathering accurate intelligence from their scouts, they hastily marched their army out of the Holy Roman Empire, traveling day and night until they finally reached their target—Asterios.

Once their companion, bearing the name 'Lightning', had helped them alongside the capricious goddess Euryale to restore the human order in the Third Singularity, Okeanos.

But now, they could no longer see his gentle face or hear his familiar voice. Instead, they were greeted by his furious roars and the weighty swing of his massive axes.

Even though Asterios's birth was a tragedy, it didn't prevent him from becoming a renowned monster in Greek mythology, surpassing even some of the gods in fame. On top of that, as a Servant, he gained a boost in popularity wherever he went, his power even greater than when he was alive.

Aside from Melusine and Arkhan, few could suppress this formidable monster, as both of them were assigned to deal with the more troublesome Medusa and Cu Chulainn.

Regrettably, Da Vinci wasn't adept at handling opponents reliant on brute force like Asterios, leaving the heavy burden of confronting him on the shoulders of Mash and Ritsuka.

Their goal wasn't to defeat Asterios; they just needed to hold him off until Arkhan or Melusine could deal with their respective opponents and rush to their location to handle him. If they could accomplish this, their task would be complete.

Everything went smoothly at first.

They managed to keep Asterios distracted, preventing him from rampaging through the soldiers.

With Galahad's approval, Mash became increasingly proficient in harnessing his power residing within her. Despite Asterios's relentless barrage of attacks, each blow showcasing inhuman violence, she held her ground stubbornly.

All the shattered stones around bore witness to their fierce battle.

However, about an hour ago, things took a drastic turn.

Suddenly, a black rift opened behind Asterios, swallowing his nearly three-meter-tall figure without leaving a trace.

Everything was going fine until their opponent suddenly vanished into thin air, which left Mash and Ritsuka in a state of confusion since they couldn't figure out what had just happened. It was all too sudden and quick, leaving them no time to react.

According to Romani, after Asterios disappeared right before their eyes, not even a trace of his magical energy signal existed in the area, confirming that he had truly disappeared from this place.