It was as if the person who had uttered those words were standing from somewhere up high looking down on them. There wasn't a hint of arrogance or carelessness in that person's eyes, however. He merely watched the enemy before him.

"His Majesty desires the head of this holy knight. This isn't the time to be sleeping, you three."

Gi Za Zakuend's words spurred on the three goblins.

"You don't need to tell me!"

Gi Zu roared as he stood up, then Gi Za took out a magic stone from his chest.

"I'm sorry but I haven't the time to waste on you."

Gi Za scornfully laughed as he crushed the magic stone, which gave rise to a powerful tempest that overtook his surroundings.

"I call upon your exalted name (Call)!　G.o.d of wind! (Castor)!"

As soon as Gi Za uttered those words, a wind coiled up atop his head like a dragon that ruled over the wind. Just its presence alone was enough to tear apart the houses around him. That powerful tempest blew toward Zelkof. Its vengeful song of a maddened ghost resounded within Gi Za's ears. The wind was telling him that it was unhappy.

The corners of Gi Za's mouth lifted a little to show that he approved, and then the ma.s.s of wind sent Zelkof's body to the air, cutting it up as it did. Zelkof covered his face with his two arms, but his sides and his back were left open. His legs too. As a result, giant wounds were cut open on them.

But just as one might expect from a holy knight, by the time he'd landed back on the ground, his posture was back to normal.

Blood came gus.h.i.+ng out of his legs as soon as he landed. So much gushed out that there was now enough to form a puddle. He had been wounded that much. At the same time, blood gushed out of his mouth, possibly due to having a critical organ wounded. Zelkof was in dire straits.

But despite that there was no erasing the smile on his face.

"I…"

Zelkof took a stop forward, but he was clearly injured. The three goblins weren't about to miss this opportunity, however.

The three goblins - Gi Gu, Gi Ga, Gi Zu - once again a.s.sumed their three-man-cell formation and attacked.

Slipping through Zelkof's attacks that had now evidently lost their l.u.s.ter, a long sword lodged itself inside one of his opens wounds, while a spear penetrated his back. The great outpour of blood showed that Zelkof was almost at death's door. So grave were his wounds that were he a normal human, he would have long been unable to move from the pain and the bleeding.

"I…"

But Zelkof showed no signs of stopping. Gi Gu and Gi Ga's eyes opened wide in shock as they found themselves being dragged along Zelkof's wounded gait.

With a swing of his arms that looked like a back handed strike, Zelkof sent Gi Ga flying, then he turned to Gi Gu, who was holding the long sword stuck in Zelkof's body.

"GU, NU… This is absurd."

Gi Gu tried to pull out his sword, but try as he might, he could not pull it out. The goblin panicked.

Before Zelkof's fist, even he had prepare for death. Those hands held within them a gripping power strong enough to easily crush a normal goblin's head. That was a power that cared not for one's well being just like that of a wounded beast.

If Gi Gu pulled out his long sword, Zelkof would probably finally die from the blood loss. No. Already, his death was but a question of when and not if. It was precisely because of that that Gi Gu tried to pulled out his sword and Zelkof refused to allow it to be pulled.

Zelkof's Spear Hand Strike came shooting for Gi Gu's head, but then in the next moment, as if the goblin had been waiting for it all this time, Gi Zu angrily swung his fist toward Zelkof's to intercept it.

Unfortunately, Gi Zu's right fist could only s.h.i.+ft the trajectory of that spear hand strike. Gi Zu's skin cracked from his fist to his shoulder and blood gushed out, but he ignored the pain and swung his left fist from his hips toward Zelkof's side.

That blow caused Zelkof to cough another mouthful of blood.

Gi Gu realized that it was impossible to pull out his sword, so he jumped back. Because of that Zelkof's attention was now gathered onto Gi Zu.

"I will!"

As if finding purpose for the first time, Zelkof's right fist descended on Gi Zu as he cried out.

"—GURUUuUoOAOAAA!!"

At the same time, Gi Zu roared so loudly it seemed he was trying to wring out his very soul as he tried to shoot out the sword stuck in Zelkof's body. Zelkof's fist pa.s.sed by Gi Zu's face. For a moment, it seemed the holy knight would finally fall, but he took another step.

Although the force behind his fist was enough to send a human flying, Zelkof stopped for a moment, and sent the back of his hand toward Gi Zu, then he stepped firmly with both of his legs and held his ground.

"I will, become a knight…"

Zelkof's eyes remained wide open. It was as if he was pursuing something as he looked beyond the goblins and gazed at the heavens. From his mouth poured out copious amounts of blood that formed a puddle on the ground.

"Your Majesty…"

With those last words, Zelkof fell and never again stood up.

Later on, Gi Do Buruga would - with much interest - pursue the question of why Germion Kingdom was so powerful, but there would be few records regarding the Knight of Destruction.

Within the dazzling and radiant history of the lineage of Germion Kingdom's holy knights could be found nary a pa.s.sage about the Knight of Destruction. At most, there was his name 'Zelkof', and then the description that he was once known as the Graceful Knight.