Hans and Lara withdrew their swords. Although they had given it their all, they didn’t appear worn out. After all, the two could fight for several days straight and a short battle like this one couldn’t make them exhausted. However, they did feel slight mental fatigue from evading Zich’s precise and sharp attacks.

“You really became unbelievable, sir,” Hans said in awe. He knew that Zich’s strength had risen along with Windur’s, but after fighting Zich directly, Hans realized the change was beyond his imagination. If he didn’t dare to duel Zich before, now, it was as if he was looking up at a limitless sky with no end in sight.

“You don’t have to be that impressed; it’s not my skills that have improved.” Zich had already recovered all the power from his peak days after his battle with the dragon; the increase in strength after that was all thanks to the World Tree’s mana that was transferred to him through Windur.

Yet, Hans shook his head.

“As someone who uses Estellade, that hurts my conscience.”

“Me too,” Lara added while standing next to Hans.

Zich smiled at them and hung Windur on his back again.

“Good work.” Lyla removed the barrier on the ground and handed each of them a cold glass of water. The three gulped the water down immediately.

“What are you here for, Sir Zich? I don’t...