Kenley drew his sword and charged once more.

  The demon mole glared furiously in Kenley's direction. For so many years, it had never encountered such a significant threat. Since it began dwelling by Lake Myerzu, nothing had ever jeopardized its existence.

  But today, a human wielding a sharp sword shattered its peace. Glancing at its fallen comrade, whose body lay burst and lifeless, the demon mole let out a piercing roar.

  "A shriek?" Kenley was unsurprised. It was one of the demon mole's skills, capable of boosting its physical defense.

  Its fur gleamed with a reflective sheen, and Kenley immediately understood— its physical defense had increased by at least 12 points. With his current attack power, each strike would deal around 25 HP in damage. With the additional 12 defense points, it would take nearly ten strikes to bring the creature down.

  The demon mole raised its claws, which were as sharp as steel blades, standing on its hind legs to appear more intimidating. This stance indeed enhanced its aura significantly. Many lesser monsters would hesitate at the sight of such a display before ultimately fleeing.

  But it was facing Kenley!

  The demon mole lunged at Kenley with incredible speed, its claws flashing like streaks of light.

  "Defensive Stance!" Kenley's reaction was swift. He raised his sword just in time to block, the clash between the imperial sword and the demon mole's claws ringing out like a hammer striking a steel plate.

  The two crossed paths in an instant.

  "Tia, Fireball!" Kenley commanded without delay.

  "Yes, Master!"

  Although the demon mole had high physical defense, it had no effective means to counter magic attacks. Moreover, having just clashed with Kenley, the creature was in a post-attack recovery state due to the recoil. This was the perfect moment for Tia to strike.

  Tia's response was a bit slow for Kenley's liking. In professional battle teams, such instructions were often unnecessary; a single gesture or glance was enough.

  However, Kenley did not get upset over Tia's slight delay. After all, this was their first time fighting together, and Tia wasn't a professional player. What they needed now was practice to build better coordination.

  "Flames, burn all to ashes in your roar! Fireball!"

  The massive body of the demon mole couldn't withstand such a powerful attack. HP -40! Nearly a third of its health was gone in an instant.

  Its low magic resistance was laid bare, leaving it helpless against Tia's assault. After a desperate roll to extinguish the flames, its eyes glowed even redder as it charged directly at Tia, the greatest threat.

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  "Hey! Where do you think you're going?"

  Harming Tia? Not on Kenley's watch. As the vanguard, protecting the backline was his duty!

  In a flash, Kenley charged forward again, executing a second charge. He intercepted the demon mole with a fierce sword block, halting its momentum completely.

  "Sweep! Double Strike!"

  Kenley's sword gleamed with a trail of afterimages, delivering a double-hit to the demon mole!

  HP -11, HP -12.

  Already severely injured from the earlier fireball, the demon mole was now suffering even further from Kenley's relentless assault.

  Furious, the demon mole shifted its focus to Kenley. It realized that if it didn't take out this human warrior, its own demise was inevitable.

  Relying on its larger frame, it began to advance rapidly, swinging its claws from side to side in a powerful charge.

  This was no ordinary attack but a type of advancing skill. Any enemy caught in its path would suffer a dual-layered damage: Swipe + Crush.

  If Kenley took the hit head-on, he would lose at least half of his HP!

  And worse, this skill was unblockable— he could only dodge or assume a defensive stance to mitigate half of the damage.

  But…

  "Bud Unfurl—!"

  Though Kenley had yet to master the second stage of the White Blossom Sword Art, he could still perform it by relying on memory. Its power might only be entry-level, but that wasn't what Kenley was aiming for.

  He sought to exploit the unique effect of the second stage: displacement.

  The sound was brief, almost like teleportation. The human who was right in front of the demon mole vanished in an instant, causing all of its attacks to miss completely, yielding no results.

  Kenley reappeared behind the demon mole, utilizing the displacement effect of 'Bud Unfurl'. With the creature's sluggish speed, there was no way it could keep up.

  "Fireball!"

  With a deafening blast, flames erupted once again from the demon mole's body! HP -40! In total, the accumulated damage now exceeded 100 points!

  "Tia, Blood Feast!" Kenley prompted immediately.

  Huh? How does Master know vampire skills so well? The thought flickered briefly in Tia's mind, but she did not hesitate. She dropped her spell-casting stance, sprang forward like a human cannonball, and launched herself at the demon mole.

  "Blood Claws!"

  With a fierce cry, Tia's once pale hands turned crimson, slashing a deep wound across the demon mole's body.

  "Squeal—!"

  The demon mole let out a pitiful wail, HP -15. Without pause, Tia clung to its massive body like a deadly mantis, her movements swift and lethal.

  "Mmph!"

  She sank her fangs into the injured spot without mercy.

  In its severely weakened state, the demon mole was utterly defenseless against the paralyzing effect of the vampire's blood feast. Its body went rigid, standing motionless as Tia continued to drain its life force.

  Gulp, gulp.

  With each mouthful, Tia absorbed the demon mole's vital essence. Before long, the colossal beast collapsed with a resounding thud, lifeless.

  Satisfied, Tia wiped her mouth and raised her head. This was her first time using Blood Feast in a direct battle, and even more thrilling, it was in sync with her master.

  It felt amazing!

  Tia opened her eyes with delight, sensing her newfound strength.

  However, what Kenley noticed was different. Tia had leveled up again.

  It seemed certain now— vampires could enhance their power by feeding.

  Two beams of golden light were absorbed by Kenley, as two second-tier monsters were effortlessly defeated by him and Tia.

  Kenley leveled up five times, advancing from early-stage Tier One to mid-stage. All his attributes saw significant improvement.

  Still not enough experience, huh? Kenley licked his lips. After all, these were just ordinary second-tier monsters, not elite mini-bosses like Dain. Defeating an elite would have granted him five levels in one go.