System's POV

Chapter 466: Last Assessment [Part 3]

Thanks to Joshua's debuffs, Diana was able to hold her ground at the front. With her defense, the Minotaurs were unable to break the barrier that Shana erected.

Supporting her from behind was none other than Erica and Mildred, who were unleashing the cover fire she needed to endure the onslaught of the monsters.

From time to time, Shana would also assist by casting Arrows of Light to help lighten Diana's load. However, she prioritized casting the Shield Spell to protect Diana from attacks that she was unable to dodge or block.

While this was happening, Derek was distracting the two Alpha Monsters that served as the Three-Horned Minotaur's Bodyguards.

They were as strong as they looked, and he had to use everything in his arsenal to keep them both at bay.

Thirteen had taught him a Martial Technique that would allow him to overcome his fears and fight the enemy head-on.

Although he only managed to grasp the tip of the iceberg, what he learned was enough to help him survive, albeit barely, the onslaught of the two Rank 3 Alpha Monsters.

However, the more he fought, the more his potential was squeezed, making him enter a trance-like state.

This was something that those who practiced Martial Arts, wished to experience at least once in their lifetime.

Why?

Because it allowed them to see the world in a different perspective, and allow them to better understand their abilities better.

All sounds, worries, and fears disappeared, and the only thing that was in Derek's mind was his battle against the two Minotaurs, who were attacking him great intensity.

Dodging an attack…

Deflecting an attack…

And unleashing his own attack…

All of these were done while dancing with death.

One mistake, and Derek knew that his life would end. Even so, Derek didn't show signs of fear.

In fact, a faint smile appeared on his face as if he had reached enlightenment.

'Is this what you always see, Master?' Derek thought as he narrowly dodged an attack that created a small cut on his cheek. 'Is this always what it feels like for your life to hang by a thread?'

Thirteen had told Derek that in his past life, he had fought against a God.

Of course, the Swordsman didn't believe him and even stated that if the teenage boy had fought against a God, then he, the future Sword Saint, had saved a Universe in his past life.

And yet, after watching the video of Thirteen fighting against the Three-Horned Minotaur over and over again before he slept, Derek was able to see it.

The teenage boy faced death head-on, using every bit of his potential to overcome his opponents.

When he fought against the Three-Horned Minotaur, he made it look as simple as if he was just playing a simple game.

But as someone who had experienced fighting against the same Rank 5 Overlord, Derek understood that it was nowhere as easy as it looked.

And now, he was facing something similar.

Fighting against two Rank 3 Alpha Monsters who made him remember his battles against the Blaze Skunk that was covered in metal armor.

Frankly, compared to that Rank 3 Sovereign, the two Rank 3 Minotaurs weren't really a problem.

Fighting against that blazing Sovereign allowed Derek to learn how to be nimble on his feet, ready to dodge and run away at any moment.

Becoming fearless didn't mean that you needed to face your enemy head-on.

It also meant that you must know when to retreat and when to fight.

Running wasn't cowardice, it just allowed you to position yourself in a more advantageous position so that you could hit the opponent that was in front of you.

The two Minotaurs have different running speeds, and Derek did his best to force them to run after him.

This way, they would distance themselves from Roland, who was busy fighting against the Three-Horned Minotaur on his own.

Whenever one of the Alpha Monsters would try to help their Boss, that was when Derek would strike at their backs, dealing significant damage and injuries to their bodies.

Thirteen always told him that only the strong didn't need to fight dirty. ????????.???

Since he wasn't strong, playing dirty was the best thing he could do for now.

As Derek backstabbed the two Minotaurs, the two of them roared in anger and once again faced him.

However, when they did, they noticed something hovering behind the teenage boy's body. Still, they chose to ignore it and raised their weapons to strike

A second later, a bright flash of light erupted from the flash-bang grenade that Derek had tossed behind his back, imitating his Master who taught him a few dirty tricks that he decided to use in this battle.

The moment the two Minotaurs were blinded, Derek did what he had to do and attacked the vital spots of the two Minotaurs as quickly as he could.

Since he only had a few seconds to execute this move, the Swordsman unleashed his fastest thrust, going in for the kill.

But due to the terrain, the Swordsman accidentally tripped and the sword thrust that was aimed at the Minotaur's chest, hit something else, drawing blood.

Derek hastily backed away after his blow landed on the opponent's body and assessed the situation.

Since the sun had already set, there was only very little light, allowing him to barely see his targets.

He had forgotten to pay attention to the ground he was stepping on, which made him trip.

However, the Minotaur that he had hit crouched down as it held onto its lower body.

Although Derek's thrust didn't land on the Minotaur's chest, it landed on something else that was just as vital.

It took him a few seconds to realize what he had hit, but after seeing the Minotaur's reaction, the Swordsman simply sneered.

"All part of the plan," Derek said. "How does it feel to have your balls cut off, huh?"

The Minotaur was in so much pain that the only thing it could do was growl in anger.

Its comrade gave it a sidelong glance before charging at Derek alone.

The young man didn't hesitate to meet the Minotaur's charge because he no longer felt pressured by his opponent.

When he was fighting against the two of them, he truly felt as if his life was in danger. But things are different now.

Just as the Minotaur thought that it had already understood how fast Derek could run, it suddenly found itself staring at the tip of the boy's glowing sword that was just a few inches from its eyes.

"Tiger Blitz!" Derek shouted as he put the entire weight of his body in that single sword thrust.

A second later, Derek's sword stabbed through the Minotaur's right eye. But, it didn't end there.

The force of the sword thrust allowed his sword to pierce through the Minotaur's brain, ending its life.

The sudden burst of speed that he did at the last moment caught the Monster by surprise, giving it no time to react to one of the styles that Derek had mastered under Thirteen's guidance.

After killing the first Minotaur, it didn't take long for the second Minotaur to fall.

Derek panted for breath as he pulled out his sword from the monster's body.

He wanted to shout out loud to proclaim his victory, but it was still too early to celebrate.

Roland was still fighting against the Three-Horned Minotaur alone, so he needed to help him as fast as he could.

The Swordsman glanced in the direction of his other friends to see if they needed his help.

After roughly assessing their situation, he shifted his attention to Roland to see if he was in any immediate danger.

Now that he had checked how both sides were faring, Derek didn't hesitate to charge toward the place where Diana and the rest were fighting.

He could tell that Roland still had a lot of fight in him, so he decided to help the others first.

In order to defeat the Three-Horned Minotaur, they needed to fight as a team, and Derek deemed that they would win much more easily if he helped his other party members first.

Thirteen, who was paying close attention to Derek, nodded his head in satisfaction.

'Good choice,' Thirteen thought. 'It seems that you now know how to look at the bigger picture.'

The teenage boy knew that once the Hero Party had finally assembled to fight against the Three-Horned Minotaur, their long-awaited revenge match would finally become a reality.