An axe clashed against claws, creating a metallic ring that echoed throughout the surroundings.

Astravor had used its strongest attack. And yet, all it did was briefly stall the Orc Champion’s advance.

It flapped its wings to distance itself from the Orc, but the latter tried to reach out to the fleeing Gryphon.

However it stopped mid-reach and jumped backward. A second later, an arrow pierced the ground where it stood earlier.

Otto had already nocked a second arrow, letting it fly straight and true.

Though, the Orc Champion had used its axe to block it, as if it already saw it coming from a mile away.

"Hassan, help them!" Leone ordered.

The young man’s shadow extended forward in response. From there, the masked man emerged with its blades ready to kill.

The Orc Champion sneered and clashed with its new opponent. Hassan timed his skill perfectly and transformed into a black mist, intending to evade the Orc Champion’s deadly strike.

Suddenly, the monster’s axe was covered in flames, forcing Hassan to return to his original form and block the incoming attack.

"Gnhhh!" Hassan gritted his teeth as he skidded several meters across the ground after blocking the Orc Champion’s attack.

That single attack was more than enough to tell him something.

The monster was stronger than him!

"Young Master, run!" Hassan shouted.

Leone gritted his teeth before he ran away as fast as he could.

However, the Orc Champion was not going to let its prey escape so easily. Unfortunately for it, there was one more person who accompanied Leone on this journey.

"Boris!" Brann shouted.

The giant Raptor unleashed a fire breath, forcing the Orc Champion to dodge to the side.

"Great Chieftain, please escape!" Brann urged his partner forward in order to assist his allies in battle.

A Rank 5 Monster was no joke!

Hassan and Astravor were not Leone’s vassals, but they were his strongest allies.

Yet, even the two of them combined was still not enough to deal with the monster before them. This just proved how strong the Orc Champion was!

A monster whose overall stats was over 5,000!

Arion descended from the sky in order to save its Master from harm. As soon as Leone mounted its back, it took off right away, bringing him to safety.

Leone understood that his people couldn’t fight at full strength as long as he was around, for they constantly worried about his safety.

"Daedalus, please go and save Ulric and Jason!" Leone ordered.

"Understood!" Daedalus hurried to the location where the two vassals laid unconscious. Though both were seriously injured, their lives weren’t in danger.

Soon, the grimoire used some kind of spell that made their bodies float from the ground and had them follow him around.

When it returned to its Master, Leone used his skill, Heal, to heal their injuries.

The level of his healing spell wasn’t that strong. At best, it could only stop minor wounds from bleeding out, but only partially heal internal bleeding.

"Master, I think we need to raise the level of your Heal to Level 5 by spending 25,000 BP," Daedalus said calmly. "If they aren’t treated right away, I’m afraid it might result in chronic injuries that wouldn’t go away even if they recover."

"Do it!" Leone didn’t bat an eye and asked Daedalus to handle the exchange.

"Understood." Daedalus opened its pages. A beam of light shot to Leone’s body, forcefully increasing the level of his skill in exchange for BP.

"Heal!"

"Heal!" 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

"Heal!"

Leone used his healing spell repeatedly to ensure that Ulric and Jason would recover from their injuries.

This was his first time using the miraculous power he gained after gaining the Unique Class ’Hero King.’

Although both of his vassals were still unconscious by the time Leone was done, Daedalus reported that they were no longer in any imminent danger.

Still, the battle was far from over.

The Orc Champion wasn’t the least bit fazed even though Astravor, Otto, Hassan, Brann, Borris, and Blitz were fighting alongside each other.

"What a monster," Leone muttered under his breath as he gazed at the Orc Champion’s Status Page.

————

[Logan The Ravager]

Race: Orc

Prestige Class: Orc Champion

Grade: Epic

Strength: 1254 (+376)

Agility: 1,172

Dexterity: 1189

Vitality: 1489 (+447)

Intelligence: 896

Skills: Brutal Cleave [Level 5], War Axe Mastery [Level 5], Blood Frenzy [Level 5], Battle Roar [Level 5], Flame Axe [Level 4], Body Slam [Level 4], Intimidating Presence [Level 4].

Signature Ability: Ravager’s Wrath [Level 5]

— Increases Strength and Vitality by 30% while in battle

— Ignores pain and fear effects

— Physical attacks have a chance to cause Crushing Wounds

— Gains increased attack power against multiple enemies

Prestige Class Ability: Orc Champion

— Gain natural resistance against fear, poison, and pain

— Increase morale of nearby Orc allies by 30%

— Reduce damage received from frontal attacks by 20%

————

Blitz, Otto, and Astravor were using ranged attacks to support Hassan and Boris in battle.

Yet, the most they could do was keep the monster at bay. They were unable to land a decent hit on the body of the monster who seemed to be enjoying the battle.

Suddenly, fireballs flew toward Astravor, forcing the Gryphon to fly higher in order to evade these magical attacks.

The Orc Mages and Orc Shamans had now joined the battle, assisting their Champion.

The rest of the Orc army surged forward, with Logan leading the charge.

"Retreat!" Leone ordered.

Otto, Blitz, and Astravor provided support fire so Hassan, Brann, and Boris could run away.

Of course, the Orc Army wasn’t going to let them escape easily. The shamans cast their debuffs, with some even managing to hit Arion with a paralyze spell, forcing it to the ground.

Astravor hurriedly tried to grab Leone, but it was pushed back by a fireball that made it stagger in mid-air. Although it had a high resistance to magical attacks, that single move stopped it from coming to Leone’s rescue.

Using every ounce of its remaining strength, Arion flapped its wings in an attempt to break its fall.

It landed roughly on the ground, unintentionally throwing the young man off its back. Arion collapsed soon after, unable to move its body due to its injury, as well as the effect of the paralysis spell.

Seeing that its target was finally within reach, the Orc Champion charged at Leone like a cannonball.

Brann gritted his teeth and made up his mind.

He would buy time for Leone to escape even if he had to sacrifice his life!

"Boris!" Brann shouted.

The Scorch-Fang Raptor roared in return, understanding its Master’s intention. It stopped running and then unleashed a Fire Breath at the Orc Champion at point-blank range!

Logan crossed its arms over its head and endured the flames until it managed to break through Boris’ attack.

With a ferocious roar filled with bloodlust, the Orc Champion jumped and swung his axe.

He intended to behead the Raptor in a single strike!

Boris could no longer dodge the Orc Champion’s attack, so it decided to meet it head-on with its razor-sharp fangs.

Brann also raised his sword to strike, his eyes filled with determination even in the face of death.

’Sorry, Leone,’ Brann thought as time seemed to slow down. ’I won’t be able to see you rise up to become the King you’re meant to be.’

Just as the Orc Champion’s axe was about to decapitate Boris’ head, a young man with short blonde hair and red eyes appeared in front of it.

The sound of two weapons clashing soon reverberated throughout the surroundings as sword and axe clashed against each other in the battlefield.