Alex barely had time to steady his breathing before the Troll Lord surged forward like a charging avalanche.
The massive creature covered the distance in seconds, its twin axes raised high. Alex instinctively shifted into a defensive stance, his scythe angled across his body.
The troll swung first.
The massive axe slammed into Alex's guard with terrifying force. The impact detonated like thunder, sending Alex hurtling through the air. He crashed across the ruined ground, skidding violently before jamming the blade of his scythe into the earth. Dirt and broken stone sprayed outward as the weapon dragged through the ground, slowing his momentum until he finally stopped.
Before Alex could fully regain his balance—
The troll hurled its second axe.
The weapon spun through the air like a flying guillotine.
Alex's perception shifted instantly into the Mist World. The battlefield dimmed, movements slowing as trajectories became faint streaks through the fog-like vision.
He pivoted sharply.
CLANG.
His scythe struck the spinning axe aside, sending it crashing into a nearby stone pillar that shattered from the impact.
But the Troll Lord had already anticipated that.
With a powerful leap, the monster launched itself forward, catching the thrown axe midair. Now gripping both weapons, it raised them above its head as it descended toward Alex like a falling mountain.
Alex's eyes narrowed.
Mana was gathering rapidly around both axes—dense, violent, unstable.
Through the Mist World he searched for an escape route.
There was none.
"…Then I'll take it head-on."
The Troll Lord roared.
"Mountain Crusher!"
As it fell, the sheer pressure of the descending attack warped the air itself. Invisible shockwaves rippled outward, slicing through the atmosphere like blades. Alex felt thin lines tear across his skin as the compressed air cut into him.
Then the axes came down.
BOOM.
Alex raised his scythe and blocked just as the weapons collided with it. The ground beneath his feet instantly collapsed, stone fracturing outward in a crater.
His legs were forced down into the shattered earth.
The impact traveled through his arms and into his ribs like a hammer striking bone. Blood surged into his throat as internal damage spread through his body.
Yet the violet glow of Nebula Healingpulsed across his skin.
Muscle fibers reknit. Ruptured vessels sealed.
Pain remained—but the damage refused to stay.
The Troll Lord pushed harder, grinding its axes down against Alex's scythe.
The ground continued to sink.
Cracks spread across the battlefield like spiderwebs as both fighters strained against each other.
For several seconds neither moved.
Then the Troll Lord made a tactical shift.
Instead of continuing the stalemate, it suddenly lifted one axe and brought it down again in a second strike meant to break Alex's guard entirely.
But Alex had been waiting.
Inside the Mist World, the troll's movement stretched into slow motion.
Alex twisted his scythe.
The descending axe slid along the curved blade—
—and in the same motion Alex pivoted and slashed.
SHNK.
The scythe carved cleanly through the Troll Lord's forearm.
The severed limb hit the ground with a heavy thud, still gripping the axe.
Blood erupted from the stump.
The Troll Lord roared in agony, clutching the wound as crimson sprayed across the broken ground. Its regenerative ability immediately slowed the bleeding, but the severed limb did not regrow.
Even trolls had limits.
Alex staggered backward, breathing heavily. His body throbbed from accumulated injuries.
Quickly, he pulled a stamina potion from his inventory and drank it.
The cool liquid spread through his body, restoring a fraction of his strength.
"…That was my last one," he muttered.
His eyes hardened.
I have to end this soon.
Across the battlefield, the Troll Lord kicked its severed arm aside and grabbed the remaining axe from the ground.
Even wounded, its gaze remained sharp and calculating.
It wasn't a mindless beast.
It was adapting.
Alex shifted his stance.
The posture resembled the opening form of Half Moon Slash.
But something about it was different.
Ever since learning the skill, Alex had realized that Half Moon Slash combined mana and shadow energy to create a crescent-shaped attack.
But what if—
What if I use only mana?
The damage would be weaker, but the cost would be lower.
Meaning he could use it repeatedly.
Mana wrapped around the blade of his scythe.
He compressed it…then solidified it along the edge.
When the Troll Lord charged again—
Alex swung.
A pale crescent of condensed mana shot forward.
The arc tore through the air toward the Troll Lord.
Alex immediately prepared another stance.
If it's different… it deserves a different name.
"…Lunar Arc."
Another slash followed.
Then another.
The Troll Lord's eyes widened in surprise as multiple crescent blades surged toward it.
The monster raised its arm to block—
—but the attacks cut into its flesh, leaving shallow but accumulating wounds.
Realizing defense would only slow it down, the Troll Lord roared and charged straight through the attacks, accepting the damage in order to close the distance.
Alex rushed forward as well.
Mana compressed tightly around his scythe.
The two collided.
BOOM.
The shockwave from their clash exploded outward.
Nearby buildings that had already been weakened from earlier attacks collapsed intentionally as Alex redirected the force of the impact, sending stone and timber crashing down to block the advancing trolls attempting to reinforce their leader.
Trees were uprooted.
Walls shattered.
Several lesser trolls standing too close were sliced apart by the pressure waves alone.
The battlefield had become a war zone.
The duel continued.
Axes clashed against scythe again and again.
Alex blocked, dodged, countered—sometimes barely avoiding lethal strikes. Each time he was injured, Nebula Healingstruggled to repair the damage fast enough.
The Troll Lord fared little better.
Its regeneration closed wounds slowly, but the cumulative damage was beginning to show.
During one exchange, Alex deflected an axe swing and spun his scythe.
Instead of slashing, he slammed the hiltinto the Troll Lord's jaw.
CRACK.
The creature staggered as blood sprayed from its mouth.
Alex immediately attempted Half Moon Slash.
But the Troll Lord recognized the danger.
It reacted instantly—kicking Alex with brutal force.
Alex barely managed to raise his scythe in time to block.
Even so, the impact launched him backward across the battlefield.
When he regained his footing, he saw the Troll Lord raising its axe again.
But this time—
The mana gathering around it felt different.
Darker. Denser.
"Mountain Cleaver."
The Troll Lord hurled the axe.
The weapon ripped through the air with devastating power.
Alex activated the Mist World again—
But this time something went wrong.
Pain stabbed through his eyes.
Blood began to trickle down his face.
His vision blurred.
He had pushed the skill too far.
The spinning axe approached like an unstoppable meteor.
Alex staggered as exhaustion clawed through his body.
Then a memory surfaced.
The old man's voice echoed in his mind.
"If you must stake your life… do it with no regrets."
"Because you were never meant to die on your knees."
Alex inhaled sharply.
"…Then I won't."
Using the last of his focus, he forced his vision through the Mist World one final time.
The trajectory became clear.
Alex stepped forward—
—and swung.
CLANG.
The collision exploded with blinding force.
Alex's arms trembled violently. Blood poured from his palms as the impact tore open his skin.
Even the muscles in his arms began to rupture from the strain.
For a moment it felt like the weapon would crush him entirely.
Then—
Alex twisted his scythe.
The axe deflected.
The attack screamed past him, flying across the battlefield and cleaving every building, tree, and structure behind him clean in half before finally crashing into the distant ground.
Alex collapsed to one knee.
His body trembled violently.
He was almost completely out of energy.
Using the scythe as support, he forced himself to stand.
Across from him, the Troll Lord was also staggering.
That last attack had drained nearly everything it had.
Alex ran forward.
The Troll Lord tried to rise and strike again—
—but its legs gave out.
It dropped to one knee.
Alex gathered the last remaining mana in his body and poured it into the blade of his scythe.
One final strike.
The blade flashed.
SHNK.
The Troll Lord's head separated from its body.
The massive corpse collapsed to the ground.
For several seconds—
Silence filled the battlefield.
The ground was covered in blood, shattered stone, and broken bodies.
Then the remaining trolls saw their fallen leader.
Panic spread instantly.
They turned and fled in terror.
Alex stood in the middle of the ruined battlefield, breathing heavily.
Then he raised his scythe toward the sky and roared in victory.
The brutal battle was finally over.