NoveLight ™
The illusion barrier that Pokori and Arianne had set up around the central square was obliterated by the collision of Marifa’s Wood Dragon Arrow and Merit’s Dragon Fist.
As the barrier vanished, many of the onlookers who had gathered out of curiosity or recklessness began to flee in panic. The only ones who remained were a few thrill-seekers and the mercenaries of the Immortal Mercenary Corps.
Naturally, with such a commotion, the city guards responsible for maintaining order in Lübeffo had noticed. However, they had strict orders from above—to not get involved.
(She's huge…)
Yuu thought to himself as he observed Merit, adjusting the dragon crystal goggles crafted by Woods. Though these goggles were high-grade and well-suited to a first-class adventurer like him, they interfered with Yuu’s Otherworldly Mystic Eyes, so he pushed them aside.
He checked her stats—and his face tightened.
Name: Merit
Race: Dragonkin
Job: Dragon Fist Master, Heavy Fist Master, Rumble Fist Master, Dragon Fist Master
Level: 76
HP: 19,943
MP: 1,571
Strength: 3,946
Agility: 1,762
Stamina: 3,608
Intelligence: 152
Magic Power: 230
Luck: 99
Passive Skills:
Active Skills:
Unique Skill:
Equipment:
The absurdity of her stats was enough to make Yuu tense up, but there was no panic. He had faced monsters with stats far beyond what was normal—some of them had stats so high they defied comprehension. However, never before had he encountered a humanoid enemy with such insane numbers, which made him more cautious.
(Merit... the Third Apostle, and leader of the Immortal Mercenary Corps. No wonder they have so many high-level members. But even so—this woman really doesn’t wear any weapons or armor.)
The only thing Merit wore was a simple cotton shirt that didn’t even have any enchantments. Her shirt only covered her shoulders, emphasizing her deltoid muscles. Her pants were baggy around the thighs, likely stretched to the limit by her massive quadriceps. She wore simple shoes that resembled kung fu slippers.
It was clear she specialized in hand-to-hand combat, and her skill composition was efficient, with no wasted abilities. Her base stats alone were monstrous, and on top of that, she had racial traits, job bonuses, and skill effects. Anyone facing her would be rightfully discouraged.
What particularly caught Yuu’s attention was her unique skill, Late Bloomer. If this skill hadn't fully activated yet, the consequences would be terrifying.
“Haha! You’ve still got some fight in you!” Merit gleefully shouted as she threw another punch. This time, her fist sunk deep into Marifa’s ribs, causing her to cough up blood.
No matter how many insects worked to heal Marifa from within, their ability to repair damage had its limits.
Yet, despite her battered body, Marifa refused to give up. She wasn’t just sitting idly by as she got beaten. She had been trying everything—bare-handed strikes, Wood Spirit Magic, and her insect minions—in an attempt to find an opening.
“Guh...”
Swallowing the blood that rose up her throat, Marifa headbutted Merit in the face. With no other means of attack left, this was her desperate measure. Her body was so broken that finding an uninjured part of her would have been more difficult than finding a wound.
Merit didn’t dodge, letting Marifa’s headbutt land squarely on her face. Normally, such an attack would have caved in her opponent’s skull, but Merit only had a trickle of blood running from her nose and a pleased smile on her lips.
“You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that.”
Merit grabbed Marifa’s head and lifted her off the ground, leaving her with no strength left to resist or escape.
“I like you. Maybe I’ll—huh?”
In Merit’s line of sight, Yuu was approaching. Annoyed by the interruption, she swung her left fist toward the sky. Instantly, the force of the punch sent a shockwave hurtling toward Yuu.
But before it could reach him, the invisible shockwave was neutralized mid-air—erased by Yuu’s unique skill, Void Fist, which canceled out the incoming force.
“Well now...”
For the first time, Merit’s attention shifted from Marifa to Yuu. With a flick of her arm, she sent not just one shockwave, but countless blasts toward him.
“What... what the hell’s going on?”
One of Luvto’s subordinates muttered nervously as the overwhelming clash between shockwaves and counterattacks created a strange and terrifying noise.
“Who are you?”
Merit’s grin widened, like a child being given a new toy to play with.
“Don’t act stupid. If you want revenge, stop messing around and come at me directly,” Yuu said coldly.
“Revenge?” Merit raised an eyebrow.
“You want to avenge Zepe—Zepe Magnote, right?”
“Zepe... Ma... who?”
“He’s one of your subordinates.”
“Never heard of him.”
A rabbit beastman, one of Luvto’s subordinates, overheard their conversation with his keen ears.
“Zepe? Oh! Sister!!”
He shouted out to Merit, apparently recognizing the name.
“What is it? Do you know this guy?”
“Zepe! You know, the one who got cocky because he had some talent, then tried to act all tough but ran away after you punched him once!”
“Still don’t know him.”
It seemed she genuinely had no recollection. Merit scratched her head and tilted it to the side in confusion.
“Doesn’t matter. If you’re—”
The moment Merit turned her gaze away from Yuu, her vision went dark, and she was suddenly thrown through the air.
She flew horizontally for several dozen meters before slamming into the ground, skidding another hundred meters before finally coming to a stop.
“When are you going to let go?”
Yuu had delivered a powerful spinning back kick to Merit’s face, freeing Marifa from her grasp. He caught her as she fell.
“Mas... master...” Marifa croaked.
“Sorry, but I don’t have time to talk. I’ve already healed Tin and the others, so stay back.”
The sensation of kicking Merit hadn’t felt like striking flesh. It was more like kicking a massive boulder—or even metal. Yuu didn’t take his eyes off Merit.
He had kicked her with all his strength. Merit had been completely off-guard and had taken the full force of the blow.
And yet—
“You’ve got a pretty good kick for someone who doesn’t look the part.”
Merit slowly lifted her head, a smile on her face.
“Merit, that boy—he’s a human with black hair! It’s Yuu Sato!” Vint, one of Merit’s subordinates, shouted a warning.
“Oh, so that’s him. Yuu Sato, huh?”
Merit stood up, stretching her limbs.
“Entertain me, will you?”
Unbelievably, Merit was now standing right in front of Yuu. How had she closed the gap so quickly? Not only that, she was already poised to strike. It was the Martial Skill Level 3, Shukuchi—a technique that allowed for instantaneous movement over short distances. However, the distance Merit had just covered—over a hundred meters—was far beyond what was considered normal for this technique.
“Kaaaah!”
Just like when she had attacked Marifa, Merit launched her punch, leaving sound behind. Yuu, in response, swiftly raised a shield with his left hand in one fluid motion.
A punch versus a shield—normally, everyone knew what the outcome would be. Especially against Merit, the victor seemed obvious. The mercenaries watching fully expected Merit’s punch to shatter the shield and send Yuu flying.
But—
“No way...!”
One of the mercenaries muttered, shocked at what unfolded before their eyes.
The sound of impact was deafening, and Yuu stood firmly in place, having blocked Merit’s punch with his shield. Both Yuu and the shield were unharmed. It was an unbelievable sight.
However, the surprise didn’t end there.
“Not bad—” Merit began to praise Yuu’s resilience, but suddenly, a black blade—Shoku, the Black Dragon Sword—descended toward her from above.
With a movement uncharacteristically graceful for her massive frame, Merit dodged the attack.
“Sister dodged an attack?!”
“No way! That has to be a fluke!”
The murmurs of disbelief spread through the crowd, but Merit’s grin only grew wider, seemingly unfazed by the commotion around her.
“Kaaah!”
Merit unleashed a high right roundhouse kick, and Yuu mirrored her, responding with a high right roundhouse of his own.
Their legs clashed mid-air, the impact causing a shockwave. The surrounding mercenaries scoffed, mocking Yuu’s audacity.
“He’s done for! No way he survives that!”
“What a fool. Who in their right mind tries to match Sister in hand-to-hand combat?”
Yet, when their kicks collided, both Yuu and Merit’s legs were knocked back, neither gaining an advantage.
“You...!”
Merit’s expression morphed into one of elation as she began throwing punch after punch. Yuu deflected the blows with his shield while swinging his greatsword in return.
“Wait... is he... fighting her evenly?”
“There’s no way!”
“He’s just playing around, right? There’s no way that brat could actually fight Sister and live to tell about it!”
The mercenaries had never seen Merit in an even match before. Her fights were always completely one-sided massacres.
“It can’t be...”
One of the mercenaries muttered in disbelief.
“What do you mean?”
“That brat... he’s using the same technique as Sister—Flow Veins.”
Combat Techniques were considered the pinnacle of martial prowess, a means to enhance the body and strike with heightened power and defense. At a basic level, one could use Combat Techniques to reinforce their body, but mastering it required far more.
Those who truly mastered the art could use what was called Flowing, allowing Combat Techniques to be circulated efficiently throughout the body without wasting energy.
But at Merit’s level, a technique called Flow Veins was used, in which the Combat Techniques flowed through the body like blood, enhancing both the surface and the internal functions.
“You’re telling me that brat is as skilled as Sister?”
“Do you have any other explanation? How else could he survive those kicks?”
“That’s insane!”
Another mercenary tried to grab the first by the collar, but Vint quickly shouted to stop the commotion.
“Enough!”
(As unbelievable as it is, the way Merit’s enjoying this fight...)
Vint couldn’t hide her surprise at Merit’s delighted expression as she fought Yuu.
(Things could get dangerous. I didn’t expect this boy to be such a formidable opponent. If Merit keeps getting more excited and decides to really go all out...)
Vint shivered at the thought. She hoped she was wrong, but as the battle between Yuu and Merit intensified, her fears seemed more and more justified.
“Don’t die on me now!” Merit shouted at Yuu as she backed away, giving them both space. Yuu noticed her stance—she had shifted into a vertical punch stance, and Marifa’s face paled.
“Sister!”
Tin, having regained consciousness, called out to Marifa with concern.
“Master won’t lose,” Marifa whispered, almost as if she was trying to convince herself.
“Dragon Fist, First Level—Dragon Fist!”
The central square, already in ruins from the earlier clashes, was further devastated as Merit unleashed a blast of explosive energy. The ground itself seemed to be flipped over as the attack barreled toward Yuu.
Yuu didn’t retreat. He reinforced his body with Combat Techniques and deployed Shield Techniques LV5 Gravity Press, LV6 Iron Wall, and LV7 Aura Shield. A massive shield of concentrated aura materialized in front of him, taking the brunt of the incoming attack.
“Master!” Marifa and the others’ voices were drowned out by the deafening explosion as the two forces collided.
“What... what just happened? That was Sister’s Dragon Fist, right?”
“Captain!”
Luvto, having regained consciousness, demanded a report from his subordinates.
“Is that brat dead? No way he survived, right?”
“No...”
The mercenaries stared in shock at the silhouette emerging from the dust cloud.
“No way! He should’ve at least lost an arm from that!”
Merit had once used the Dragon Fist to kill a giant over twenty meters tall with a single blow. No one could believe Yuu had survived such an attack unscathed.
“I can’t believe it... but he’s fine. He’s completely fine!”
Yuu stood in the clearing dust, as if nothing had happened. He locked eyes with Merit.
“I thought you were supposed to be the best at unarmed combat, but I guess I was worried for nothing,” Yuu taunted.
The mercenaries turned pale at Yuu’s words.
Vint, noticing the tension, had already erected a personal barrier to protect herself from the fallout.
“Kakakaka... Oh, you’re perfect! Absolutely perfect!”
Contrary to her subordinates' fears, Merit was overjoyed, her face twisted in ecstatic glee.
“I can’t hold back any longer! This is your fault, you know! I’ve been holding it in for so long!”
With both fists clenched at her waist, Merit’s smile widened, her eyes gleaming with excitement.
“Dragon Fist, Second Level—Dragon Break: Horn of the Body!”
Moving at the speed of sound, Merit charged forward like a blur. Her arms, positioned like dragon horns, were aimed at Yuu in a technique resembling a dual punch from karate.
Yuu braced himself, deploying the same defensive techniques as before.
“Gaaaahhhhh!”
With a roar like a dragon’s, Merit’s fists collided with Yuu’s Aura Shield. His vision turned white as light radiated from her fists, cracking the Aura Shield. The impact pierced through, shattering the black dragon scale shield Yuu held.
(This woman...)
Even as he was flung backward by the light and shockwave, Yuu recalled Merit’s stats.
“Exhaustive Dragon Fist...”
(That’s no Dragon Fist... it’s a monster technique!)