The Grand Duke's Son Is A Heretic

Kael's expression darkened the moment he saw the figure stepping from the smoke.A strong wind blew around that swayed away all dust around.

Seeing the familiar figure, Kael couldn't help but cough..

"Adele..."

The name struck a chord of dread. His pupils narrowed.

'Not good. That pressure... this isn't just some elite knight. This isn't A- rank. It's beyond.'

He analyzed it in seconds. 'Typical A-rank caps at 300 across the board...Beginning from 300 stats it reaches 600 for A+. But this pressure is different. It's dense... complete. Her stats are hovering near 600. S-tier threshold.'

From A the stats start to differentiate wildly and many people throughout their life get stuck in the A rank inability to overcome the walk.

He stepped forward to warn them—but was cut off.

"Everyone, attack her now!" Adonis roared, sword raised high, his voice sharp with urgency.

"Stop!" Kael yelled, eyes flashing. "Don't be hasty!"

But it was too late.

Sol, ever the reckless one, was already on the move, blade in hand, shield at his forearm. He darted toward Adele with a burst of speed, his steps stirring cracks in the stone. He let out a roar and lunged, swinging his blade in a wide arc meant to crush her with raw force.

Adele didn't even blink.

With a small twist of her ankle, she pivoted just enough for Sol's sword to miss by a hair. Her hand snapped forward, palm open. A current of pressurized wind burst out like a hammer, slamming into Sol's gut.

"Ghuh!" Sol coughed out as his body crumpled mid-air and was sent flying backwards, crashing through a broken ship mast with a resounding crunch.

"SOL!" Freya shouted and launched herself into the fray. Her twin short swords danced with electric sparks as she blurred toward Adele from the right flank.

At the same time, Adonis charged from the front, his sword glowing with red-hot heat, flames licking the blade as he moved with deadly momentum.

Herion followed from the left, swinging his heavy war axe overhead, a blow meant to cleave stone.

Linda stood behind, both arms raised and casted a serious of buffs..

"Enhancement Aura… Acceleration! Defense Layer…."

Light enveloped the fighters as Linda poured mana into her companions, amplifying their speed and resilience.

The three melee fighters converged at once.

Freya came in with a swift crescent slash, aiming for Adele's throat. Adonis followed with a brutal downward strike, while Herion attempted a low sweep to crush her legs.

Adele twisted. Her left hand deflected Freya's blades in a whirl of wind, spinning them away. She ducked under Adonis' sword, the flames hissing past her cheek. Then she leapt, avoiding Herion's axe entirely.

Mid-air, she flipped and with a flick of her sword—a sleek imperial longsword with a curved edge—she sent a sharp burst of wind blades in all directions.

"Scatter!" Kael shouted.

But not fast enough.

The wind blades tore into the ground like razors, gouging deep trenches. Herion raised his axe in time to block, but was sent tumbling back. Freya got clipped in the side, her armor slicing open. Adonis grunted as he deflected one, the force shoving him back several meters.

Kael finally moved in.

He ducked low and burst forward, his blade flickering like lightning. He aimed not for strength but for pressure—a flurry of precise, snapping strikes that blurred into each other. His movements were cold, calculated.

Adele parried with shocking ease. Their blades met in a flurry of sparks, clang after clang resounding like war drums.

"You're fast," she said, eyes cool.

"You're terrifying," Kael answered, breathing steadily.

He fainted a stab, twisted, and aimed for her ribs—but she was already turning, her leg sweeping at him. He leapt, avoided it—but the wind caught him mid-air and hurled him sideways, throwing him away.

Carried by the wind, Kael shot across the sky

Linda caught him mid-flight.

"Deflection Barrier!"

The magical barrier softened the fall, but he still crashed into a barrel.

Adonis came again, his blade now glowing white with compressed heat. He screamed, leapt, and brought it down.

"Heaven Piercer!"

Adele raised her sword, wind gathering at its edge, and met his blade head-on.

The clash was cataclysmic. A shockwave burst from the point of contact, tearing apart the dock below, splintering the wood and sending fishing boats in the port tumbling over. A whirlwind spun out, forming a vortex of pressure that nearly blew Linda off her feet.

Freya and Herion rejoined, striking together from behind and side. Twin swords shimmered with lightning; the axe carried momentum like a landslide.

Adele gritted her teeth, twirled, and let out a scream. A cyclone of wind burst outward from her body—a defensive wave of sheer force.

"Back out now!" Kael shouted.

The team braced. Linda raised the largest barrier she could conjure. Even so, the wave hit like a cannon. The shockwave tossed everyone away, slamming them into crates, stone, walls.

Adonis skidded across the cobblestone-like a rag doll. Herion groaned, buried halfway under debris. Freya tried to get up, knees trembling.

Sol, groaning in the ruins of the mast, coughed blood.

Linda, pale from mana drain, whispered, "I-I can't cast again for a minute. I'm spent..."

Adele stood alone at the center of the wreckage, unscathed, sword resting on her shoulder, expression blank.

"Strong," she murmured, glancing at Kael.

Kael, bruised and panting, wiped blood from his lip.

"This…This.. is a true elite."

The air reeked of burnt wood, blood, and ozone. The port had become a battlefield, and Adele's presence was a storm none could ignore.

Meanwhile, Sol, who was neutralized first, took this opportunity to recover and shouted.

"Let me deal with her."

Sol shot forward like a cannonball, his sword cloaked in a brilliant white energy shield. His arrogance from earlier was gone, replaced by sharp focus. He rotated his wrist in mid-air, blade tilting slightly, aiming a diagonal cut from Adele's shoulder to hip—a movement meant to disrupt balance and open her guard..

However…

Adele didn't flinch rather her desire to kill arose.