Soulslike emphasizes mastery of all weapons.
Even though he had never used a spear weapon before, under the skill bonuses of the Tarnished template, Ron only felt that wielding it came naturally.
Facing the Apollo Familia fighting with their full strength, he was considering the specific method of combat. The greatest threat was none other than Hyakinthos. If he could quickly entangle him in close combat, the outcome of the battle… would definitely tilt in his favor.
Yet as Ron looked at those who had received the protection of Daphne's "Raumure" magic and kept charging toward him, instead it was the strongest member of the Familia—
Hyakinthos, who maintained an observing attitude.
'Trying to let these cannon fodder exhaust my stamina?'
When this thought arose in his mind, he instantly rejected it.
In the distance, Hyakinthos's eyes were filled with cold malice, like a poisonous snake waiting for its opportunity, preparing to deliver a fatal strike the moment he revealed a flaw.
But now, those adventurers swarming toward him gave Ron no time to think.
'Then I'll beat them one by one!'
Ron decided to temporarily give up thinking. Looking at the adventurers who were the first to raise their weapons toward him from tricky angles, he grasped the spearhead in his palm.
As he spun his body, the spear shaft, swung with a single hand, tore through the air, keeping the adventurers of the Apollo Familia several body-lengths away, giving them no chance to get close.
Finally, he halted the spear and fiercely smashed it toward the ground.
Bang!
The spear tip struck the ground, and the unstoppable force instantly shattered the surrounding ground, forming spiderweb-like cracks as the shockwave spread outward.
The sudden change forced the Apollo Familia adventurers surrounding Ron to raise their arms to block the flying debris. But when the dust obstructing their vision gradually dissipated, Ron's figure had already disappeared from where he stood, launching a sudden assault toward the direction where Hyakinthos was.
"The farce is over…"
"…"
The burst of speed was simply too fast.
So fast that Hyakinthos did not even have time to react. The next moment he saw the figure of the boy who had rushed before him, along with the fierce and tricky sweeping strike of the spear.
His pupils suddenly contracted, and as a Lv3 adventurer, his combat instincts were not poor. Only when Hyakinthos raised the Flamberge of the Sun to block—
Clang.
At the instant of the block, the disparity in weapon quality, along with the vast difference in strength between the adventurers, caused the blade of the Flamberge of the Sun held by Hyakinthos to begin shattering from the middle.
The attack that had not been completely neutralized resulted in his body being violently thrown backward like a kite with its string cut.
Even with the protection of Daphne's "Raumure" magic, the intense pain it caused still left Hyakinthos's mind briefly blank.
'Even among adventurers of the same level, can someone really be this strong?'
"…"
It was not as if he had never fought adventurers of the same level before. As long as the opponent could not break through his defenses, he could use the magic he had mastered to defeat them.
Only when facing Ron did Hyakinthos feel an extreme sense of powerlessness. Whether it was speed, strength, or even weapon quality, there was simply no room for him to retaliate.
"Impossible!!"
The elegance he had been pretending to maintain had already been completely torn apart after the first clash.
When the other members of the Familia obstructed Ron and prevented him from pressing the attack, Hyakinthos trembled as he climbed up from the ground.
As Apollo's most favored follower, he absolutely could not accept—that in battle he could not defeat the opponent whom the god desired to possess. And the only possibility of defeating Ron in the end was the magic he possessed.
"My name is love, precious child of light. I offer my body to my sun. My name is sin, jealousy of wind. I call a gust of wind to my body. Released ring of fire - come, wind of the west
Rupele!"
Hyakinthos chanted rapidly.
Until finally, magic power gathered in his hand, forming "Magic: Aro Zephyros."
The radiant golden magic ring expanded continuously. Once the target was locked, he hurled it toward Ron's direction, carrying a scorching wave of heat.
"End it."
"…"
What Ron was most wary of was Hyakinthos's magic that could automatically track its target. Noticing that the members of the Apollo Familia around him consciously made way, he looked at the radiant golden magic ring rushing straight toward his face.
[Shattering Crystal]
He had no masochistic tendencies. As magic power rapidly gathered in his palm, it quickly condensed into a brilliant azure ice crystal, which he decisively swung forward.
Whoosh—
However, the moment the two magics collided, under Hyakinthos's guidance they instantly exploded. The intense blaze produced by the blast immediately engulfed Ron.
The thick smoke and dust produced by the explosion made it impossible to see the exact situation.
But what Hyakinthos could confirm was—
Ron had definitely not escaped the range of the explosion. Even a Lv3 adventurer who directly endured his magic would completely lose the ability to fight.
Let alone this guy!
"Seems like… he's not as strong as I imagined?"
A wanton smile appeared on his twisted face. As for whether Ron lived or died, Hyakinthos did not care—so long as he could win the War Game.
But when the smoke and dust cleared, the only thing that came into view was the figure of the boy with slightly dirtied clothes.
"That line also goes to you."
If he really had to evaluate it—it was not even as oppressive as the Erdtree Burial Watchdog behind the fog gate. The latter had thick skin and sturdy flesh, and even possessed various insidious combat methods and coordinated attacks.
Ron lightly brushed away the dust that had settled on his body.
The damage caused by the explosion, before his bucket-like durability attribute, amounted to only minor injuries, which had already recovered under the healing of the "Healing Gourd."
Immediately after, the boy's figure swiftly disappeared from where he stood.
Hyakinthos could not understand why the magic he was so proud of had not caused any effect on Ron, nor did he have time to think.
In the blink of an eye, that guy launched another sudden assault!
Facing the clearly offensive horizontal sweep of Ron's spear, Hyakinthos's eyes split with fury, yet he still drew another dagger called "Short Sword of Intimacy."
The attack was simply too fast, and the enormous attack range also cut off any space to evade.
He knew he could not block it.
If he forcibly endured this attack again, he would definitely lose the ability to fight. Just when Hyakinthos thought he had successfully defended, he saw Ron's spear-swinging motion slow down once more.
Then, beside his ear came the sound of the spear tearing through the air, along with the sound of bones in his body shattering.
What a pity, though, the War Game was not set in a mid-level area that even he had not explored. Otherwise, the members of the Apollo Familia could also experience the characteristic flavor of Soulslike.
Ron's gaze swept across the adventurers present.
Perhaps it was an illusion, but the fearlessness that had burned in their eyes just moments ago now seemed to have been replaced by fear; even their gazes had become uncertain.
Just as he was about to completely finish off Hyakinthos, in the distance ahead, the heavy wooden doors of Apollo's manor were forcefully pushed open. Immediately afterward, the figure that entered view was the god of that Familia—Apollo.
And—the shout filled with dejection.
"We surrender."
---
I will post some extra Chapters in Patreon, you can check it out. >> patreon.com/TitoVillar
---