"Quen!"
Far surpassing the Magic Seal skills of his apprentice.
Bordeaux could not conceptualize many of the strange uses of the Magic Seal, due to his own knowledge and perspective.
However, a solid foundation naturally provided him with tangible gains in the primary functions of the Magic Seal.
An orange-yellow magic shield was formed in the blink of an eye.
Stronger than Lann's, with greater capacity to withstand physical attacks.
If the three demons had pounced on this Quen shield just now, they would most likely have become "decorations on the wall."
However, in Bordeaux's bloodshot cat eyes, two arrows arrived one after another.
The long arrow came from a longbow, making a "pop" sound upon hitting the shield.
The orange-yellow shield was instantly overloaded and shattered.
The power of the longbow far exceeds its portrayal in film and games.
A battlefield longbow, focused on sustained output, with not even a high poundage, can still pierce modern iron sheets within a dozen steps.
And humans, or Demon Hunters' bodies, show undeniable weakness and fragility when facing steel.
The full-force release of the Quen Rune could only block one arrow, but there was no disappointment in Bordeaux's eyes.
This outcome was reasonable and fortunate.
The longbowman's skills were excellent, and his arrow was aimed straight at Bordeaux's throat!
The armor of the Demon Hunter's school did not protect the throat.
If struck by the arrow, the outcome would be no different from that of an ordinary farmer.
The sharp arrow would pierce through skin, muscles, cartilage, blood vessels, trachea, scrape past the bone, and come out the other side.
The resilience of a Demon Hunter's body exceeds that of humans, but given the gap between flesh and steel, this "advantage" is negligible.
The longbow's arrow being deflected by Quen gave Bordeaux precious time to react.
In front of the faster and more forceful crossbow bolt that arrived later due to being fired later, this man raised his arm with effort.
"Ding!"
A loud metallic clash.
The crossbow bolt hit Bordeaux's metal vambrace directly, deflecting off!
His robust arm shuddered.
A crossbow is a more powerful war tool than a bow, able to penetrate even several millimeters of plate armor.
Its force, even through the attenuation of the bracer, left a large bruise on the Demon Hunter's wrist.
If not for the reinforced armor, the crossbow bolt would have penetrated the flesh directly!
But... pain cannot impair a Demon Hunter's combat!
The raised wrist swiftly reached back, drawing a gleaming steel sword amidst the friction of metal.
Thanks to the specially enhanced physique and strength of the Bear School, the time taken from drawing the sword to slashing was less than half a second!
The air whimpered as it was torn apart, the sharp steel cleaving straight towards the bushes at his side.
Even though the slash was delivered hastily with a bruised arm, Bordeaux's swordsmanship was intimidatingly solid.
His blade's trajectory was stable and precise, maximizing the sword's lethality.
If it were an ordinary person against him, this strike would be enough to determine life or death.
But the premise is, that ordinary person... cannot carry a shield.
A shield is the greatest safeguard in combat.
"Bang!"
The reinforced wooden shield emitted a deep thud.
The brush was separated slightly by Bordeaux's sword, yet numerous branches and leaves remained like vegetables pinned to a cutting board.
They were sliced between the sword and the shield, tree sap spraying everywhere.
The captain of the four-man enforcement squad, a seasoned Temerian sword and shield soldier.
At this moment, the white lily crest on his shield had a deep sword mark etched into it.
With the veteran's experience, his stance in a defensive pose should have been rock-solid.
As this was supposed to be the style of shield use that distributed weight and center of gravity forward in legion confrontations.
Unless the opponent could push him and the weight of his armor entirely off balance, there was no moving this stance.
But in this hasty strike... he really retreated!
His murky eyes widened, his astonished expression akin to witnessing a demon spirit firsthand!
He too has traveled far and wide, yet never encountered a Demon Hunter, let alone fought one.
His medieval imagination couldn't fathom such power emanating from a humanoid being.
Nor could he imagine how this mutated oddity found him hidden in the bushes.
But the battle had started, whether imaginable or not, it had to be fought to the end!
A one-handed sword, used in tandem with the shield, snaked around the edge of the wooden shield.
Like a vicious snake.
Its target was Bordeaux's sword.
The law enforcement captain's ample experience showed in the difference in length between the one-handed sword and hand-and-a-half sword, plus the arm span difference between him and Bordeaux.
Meaning he couldn't threaten the opponent's body.
So he might as well strike the enemy's sword, disrupt the attack rhythm, and with a bit of luck, even shift the enemy's center of gravity!
His plan revealed the cunning of an experienced soldier.
But the reason the Demon Hunters can hunt monsters is largely because—they have casting abilities.
One hand holding a sword, yet the bearded man formed a strange hand gesture with the other.
The lips beneath the thick beard moved: "Alder!"
"Boom!!!"
The semi-transparent shockwave smashed onto the shield in an instant, and the shield, already bearing sword marks, cracked and split into two halves with a "crack" sound!
Alder's Rune, is a mental telekinesis impact force.
The Law Enforcement Captain staggered off balance, his wrist waving aimlessly in the air.
A stone carved into a turtle shape slipped out from the sleeve.
"Turtle-shaped Stone... foolish."
Bordeaux's face was like an iceberg.
Magic is a scarce resource, a service only enjoyed by royalty, nobility, or the fabulously wealthy.
Yet in this world, every farmer toiling the fields, and every herdsman milking cows or tending sheep firmly believed, with swearing certainty, that their misfortune and miserable lives were all due to magic's mischief.
Poor soil fertility, sick cows, lost sheep, it was all attributed to magic.
This is fear and defamation born from ignorance.
Thus, rumors about "breaking magic" and "banning magic power" were everywhere.
From the crowing of roosters to rabbit's feet... everything had a market if there was demand.
And the most famous of these, was the "Turtle-shaped Stone".
Even many nobles and politicians, who scarcely ever encountered magic, were deeply convinced of it.
Not to mention the few common soldiers in front of them.
But the fact is—the only thing that can counter magic is gold that wards off magic.
The Sword and Shield Soldiers' eyes flickered between disbelief and panic, a complex mix of emotions.
He had already lost his balance, and at Bordeaux's level of swordsmanship, to finish him off only needed a gentle slice across his throat with the thin sword tip.
The flesh would gash open, the blood vessels would be sliced into two.
With the stimulated contraction of the muscles, the blood vessels initially in the neck would be pulled directly into the chest cavity.
Massive bleeding.
No mage could save such massive bleeding even if one were present.
But just as he was about to make that slice, the solid and heavy swordsmanship suddenly stopped.
Then like a towering bear, the strong man stepped lightly and jumped off his original position.
And in the next moment, two arrows "whizzed" through the air where he had been.
The Sword and Shield Soldiers managed to stabilize their center of gravity, half a shield blocking in front of them.
Except the shield's area now halved, and besides being a bit panicked themselves, they were otherwise no different from when the battle started.
This is the dilemma of one versus many, the four-man law enforcement squad could not last a round against Bordeaux individually.
But now, not to mention killing, it was difficult even to inflict effective damage.
The lightly stepping strong man's extraordinary hearing kicked into gear, detecting someone trying to rush out from the bushes behind him.
The sound of foliage being brushed aside was a sign of someone wielding a long weapon.
A long weapon, another tricky opponent.
At this moment, even with Bordeaux's combat prowess, he sensed a heavy crisis.
He made a decisive call, starting to summon his apprentice.
"Lann! Go take out those two archers! They're just behind the stone on that little hill, behind the bushes!"
Lann was his "child of surprise," and in ancient legends, there is a profound destiny connection between a "child of surprise" and their guardian.
The destinies of both would silently make significant changes for each other.
And after the Demon Hunter's mutations, he, like a standard member of the Bear School, lost most of his emotional fluctuations.
They were the same kind.
Destiny-linked kin.
At this moment, Bordeaux certainly chose to believe in his apprentice.
His sword was broken, couldn't handle monsters and Demon Hunters, but it was enough against humans.
And now Lann stood in front of that Long Halberd Soldier, a soldier who had been full of confidence in the Turtle-shaped Stone, only now faced with dread and false bravery towards the young man's cat eyes.
The hand holding the long halberd was sweating.
Because the young man before him, his emotionless face remarkably resembled the towering bear not far away.
Lann responded to his mentor without looking back.
"Understood, mentor."
Receiving a response, Bordeaux began mobilizing his muscles, preparing to take the opportunity to fiercely strike down the Sword and Shield Soldiers before him.
The young man drew out the broken Velen Longsword from his back.
And just as the Long Halberd Soldier swallowed a gulp to ease tension.
"I'm here to... 'help' you!"
The first few words were like an iceberg, but within the final voice—erupted the lava beneath the iceberg!
Twisting waist and swinging hand!
The muscles and bones enhanced by the magic potion flexed ferociously!
The Velen Longsword, its guard rattling, rushed straight at Bordeaux's back with a sound more terrifying than a crossbow bolt!