The Golden Lord has a perverted SSS-rank summoning system!

While searching the bodies of the corrupted orcs for anything useful, the Goldenveil guards stumbled upon a pleasant surprise: most of the creatures possessed magical cores.

The corruption, however, ran far too deep and purification was impossible.

Still, though humans couldn’t absorb them, the cores remained an excellent source of energy for magical arrays and so, the guards carefully tucked each one away.

The battle had been brief, yet extremely fruitful.

Ethan and Evelyn were now approaching level forty-nine, while Alice had already reached level fifty-three. It wouldn’t be long before she was ready to advance to the third stage.

The other guards had also leveled up significantly.

Those in the second stage had gained two levels each, while those in the first stage had already climbed to level twenty-five.

Under Doran’s guidance, it wouldn’t be long before those with talent above Rank D reached the second stage.

It was a shame Cain wasn’t there, but the boy was already at level twenty-three and wouldn’t take long to reach the second stage himself.

With a soft sigh, Ethan simply motioned for Doran to get ready.

A few minutes later, the group resumed their march, entering a tunnel at the end of the vast chamber.

The floor sloped downward at a gentle incline, almost imperceptible underfoot. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Every now and then, a lone orc would leap from the shadows to attack them, but nothing that posed a real problem.

The creatures were growing stronger the deeper they went, and some even looked well-fed, though their numbers had dwindled considerably.

After a little over twenty minutes of walking, they finally came face-to-face with an orc in its prime.

The creature stood nearly three meters tall, with intense blood-red eyes and a powerful body covered in scars; over five hundred kilograms of pure muscle.

The orcs they had faced at the cave entrance had barely weighed over a hundred kilograms and a single glance at that monstrosity was enough to make Ethan freeze in place.

Most orcs weren’t quite that colossal, generally not exceeding two hundred or two hundred and fifty kilograms.

Still, it was terrifying to imagine an entire army made up solely of brutes like this one.

The Eternal Forest was infested with both orcs and goblins, and he considered himself lucky not to have stumbled upon an orc camp until that moment.

Stopping in his tracks, Ethan tightened his grip on his sword.

[Name: Greater Corrupted Orc

Description: An orc in an advanced state of corruption. Once a glorious creature, with the potential to reach the third stage, but now nothing more than an empty shell.

Level: 50]

Standing before a massive door of rotten wood, the orc watched them coldly before its jaws peeled open in a furious growl.

The creature seized the colossal axe leaning against the door behind it, the iron head grinding against the stone with a low rasp.

It took a heavy step forward, and the ground shuddered faintly beneath its feet.

Ethan didn’t hesitate, activating both the Burning Blood Body Enhancement Technique and the Lost Crimson Blade Technique.

Behind him, Alice cast a powerful buff spell, strengthening him even further.

Confident, Ethan planted his feet firmly on the ground.

"RRRRAKH!"

The orc let out a deafening roar before swinging the axe at him, the rusted blade crashing against the beautiful elven sword.

A shrill metallic clang tore through the cavern, bright sparks scattering across the walls as the very air between them buckled under the pressure of their colliding auras.

"Damn..."

Ethan grunted, a thin trickle of blood running down the corner of his lips.

His eyes flashed. With a powerful thrust, he sent the orc’s weapon flying upward.

Had he been alone, this would have been a grueling battle, but fortunately, that was not the case.

The monster staggered forward, its eyes widening just in time to see Evelyn’s axe descending swiftly toward its skull.

A wet, sickening thud echoed as the skull-crusher’s sharp edge bit violently into bone and pulped the creature’s brain in a single stroke.

The orc’s body convulsed, its thick muscles spasming, and its colossal axe slipped from its fingers to clatter against the stone floor.

"Ah... a fitting death for a filthy pig."

Evelyn laughed, trying to pull the weapon out. The blade didn’t budge a millimeter, and the orc still seemed alive, despite its brain having been reduced to pulp.

"Shit!"

Evelyn released the handle and stepped back as the orc’s powerful hands lunged forward in a attempt to seize her and crush her with sheer brute force.

Fortunately, Ethan had already recovered.

His blade swept upward in a clean, rising slash, slicing cleanly through the creature’s wrists.

The first strike sent two enormous greenish hands crashing to the ground; the second, a head.

"Ah... come on, we have to take out the boss soon."

Ethan barely gave the body time to fall before he was already ripping open the creature’s chest to extract the powerful magical core.

As he worked, the Blood Emperor’s Ring absorbed yet another point of the enemy’s strength attribute.

Mentally, he counted the seconds remaining before the Burning Blood Body Enhancement Technique wore off, his eyes still shining as he ignored the throbbing pain spreading through his body.

The clash of power against the orc had left him with a minor internal injury, but nothing serious.

"Wait, you’re hurt!"

Alice interrupted him, pressing her delicate hand against his armor, her beautiful face filled with concern as she cast a healing spell.

A cool freshness spread through his chest, and the dull ache began to dissipate.

Ethan smiled softly.

He could easily heal the wound with the Blood Emperor’s Ring, but it felt too good to receive such care from that beauty.

"Thank you, darling."

With that, he turned and pressed his hand against the door.

Slowly, the heavy wooden slab gave way, a creak and a loud crack echoing through the passage as the path ahead revealed itself.

Ethan took a single step, and then froze in place.

Alice’s light vanished behind him. When he turned around, a dense, impenetrable mist had sealed off the path he had just entered through.

His heart sank in his chest, and he slowly turned back around.

All around him, purple-flamed torches flared to life one by one, and a system notification reached him.

[You have entered the lair of the Fallen Knight Princess, a heroine of the past and a skilled duelist who succumbed to necromantic powers.

Defeat her in a duel and prove yourself worthy.]

"Shit..."