It was a display of pure, brute force.
Snap!
The Black Knight's arm was severed by Kay's sword, but Kay didn't give him a moment to recover. After knocking the Knight's straight punch aside and leaving him wide open, Kay instantly drove a powerful punch straight into the Knight's throat, forcing his body to bend backward involuntarily.
Taking advantage of the Knight's inability to fight back, Kay's fists rained down on the Black Knight's face like a downpour.
This aggressive technique, called the 'Overlord's Hard Reins' (referencing a powerful, controlling martial arts move), is known for its immense power, easily shattering an opponent's defense to allow a rapid follow-up. The punches and palms are constantly changing, hacking or striking to hit vital points. Kay rarely used this move on living opponents because it's absolutely lethal, targeting the face and throat—it's a move guaranteed to cause death or serious injury even in practice, let alone in a real fight.
But, again, the Black Knight wasn't human. So, while Kay's technique warped the Knight's helmet, the creature remained stubbornly standing. Facing this indestructible punching bag, Kay couldn't afford to back off.
His fists continued their relentless assault, capitalizing on the Knight's unsteady footing and pressing the attack without pause.
Because Kay's 'Overlord's Hard Reins' had effectively 'snapped the reins' and broken one arm, the Black Knight had to use his remaining arm to raise his huge sword, horizontally bracing it across his upper body to protect his head, chest, and other key areas. Even though the Black Knight was an undead creature, its body still operated on instinct, making some defensive moves automatically.
As the Knight focused entirely on defending its upper body, Kay's lower body went to work. A quick rubbing kick struck the back of the Black Knight's knee. This is a crucial pressure point, and it doesn't take much force to destroy a person's balance. The Black Knight staggered.
The instant the Knight lost his footing, his head was exposed. Kay wasn't about to miss that opportunity. He twisted his body, raised his leg high above his head, and brought it down like a falling battle-axe, brutally chopping down onto the Black Knight's skull.
Boom!
The Black Knight's reflexes were actually quite fast; his head managed to shift slightly sideways the moment Kay's split-kick connected, but the move was still too slow. The force drove the entire body to its knees, and the helmet was sent flying off.
When the helmet hit the ground, everyone in the arena finally saw the Black Knight's true face: a shriveled, blackened, and terrifying desiccated corpse was revealed to the horrified crowd.
The gossipers in Camelot had speculated a lot about the Black Knight's identity, but no one could figure it out, given that the event that created him happened almost twenty years ago.
But now.
Contrary to all expectations, a gruesome mummy-like corpse was revealed under the helmet!
Hearing the collective screams of terror erupt from the crowd, Kay frowned.
To be honest, he was deeply disappointed. And saddened. The Sir Tristan he once admired and respected was appearing before the world in this repulsive form.
Kay wanted to face the real Sir Tristan, not this ugly puppet!
Seeing this spectacle, Kay lost all desire for a duel. Tristan should be remembered as the perfect image of a hero. He should be a symbol of honor, not an evil creature standing before the world—this was the ultimate insult to his memory.
This was no longer an honorable duel, so Kay decided to deliver the final mercy.
Kay ignored the Black Knight, who was trying to reattach his drooping head to his neck, and instead turned to pick up his two swords.
"It's over... You are clearly not Tristan anymore... Don't worry, I will find the one behind this and make him understand the price of desecrating a warrior!" Kay said quietly as he walked up to the Black Knight.
With that, Kay charged forward, wielding the Dragon's Breath-infused blades.
The outcome of the final fight was obvious: the undead creature was no match for Kay. Though the undead cannot die, its bones can still be broken. With multiple broken bones throughout its body, its movements were disjointed and awkward, unable to keep up with Kay, who quickly severed its head with his twin swords.
As the head was cut off, a bright flame erupted from the shriveled, withered body, then turned to ash. Tristan was completely gone.
At the same time, a surge of energy flowed into Kay's body.
This caught Kay completely off guard. The energy was huge, increasing his personal energy bar by nearly thirty percent! It was this surge that granted Kay an extra energy point!
Kay raised an eyebrow at the unexpected bonus. He hadn't expected such a massive reward from this anti-climactic duel. Kay had killed undead creatures before, but none had ever yielded such a rich harvest.
Could the soul he just defeated really have been Tristan's?
This thought made Kay feel depressed again. Gaining soul energy was great, but when the source was someone he once idolized, it was a different matter entirely. He felt as though he had personally killed Tristan...
Fortunately, Kay's mental fortitude was always strong, and he quickly regained his composure.
After all, the corpse manipulated by hatred and grief was not truly Tristan. Even if Tristan's soul was trapped inside, Kay had simply released him. Kay believed that given Tristan's pride, he would never have tolerated his body being desecrated like this, even if it meant his final end.
As the Black Knight turned to ash, a thunderous cheer erupted from the entire dueling grounds.
Kay, the Knight representing Camelot, had slain a ghost from the underworld! What could be a bigger news story?
The tale of Kay and the Death Knight would soon spread across all the Celtic kingdoms.
And Camelot's strength was proven once more.
Everyone, from the people to King Uther, was ecstatic.
Only Kay seemed a little low-spirited.
That evening, after a lively dinner party that had pleased nearly everyone, King Uther returned to his private chambers alone.
Uther was exhausted by the events of the past two days. He knew better than anyone that this was not over; with the desecration of Tristan's body, everything was just beginning!
Twenty years. He thought everything would fade with time, but the moment Tristan's corpse stood before him, Uther knew that was nothing but wishful thinking!
He couldn't escape the sins of twenty years ago. The past had come back to haunt him!
Thinking about all this, Uther felt more drained than ever before. But just then, a sudden gust of wind swept through the tightly sealed room.
Uther looked up at the candle, which flickered wildly in the draft, and his eyes filled with sorrow.
He slowly turned around. A stunning young woman in a red dress was standing not far behind him.