Talia was a very strict instructor.
But her guidance was often sharp and precise. Even Alyssa had gained a great deal of insight after only a short battle.
Talia did not end the training. Instead, she snapped her fingers once more.
In the next moment, the ice covering the bodies of the [Mountain Giants] instantly melted away.
Although the leading [Mountain Giant] still had no idea what was going on, they could clearly sense the threat coming from Talia. So, roaring nonstop, they charged straight toward her!
Yet at that critical moment, Taliaâs figure suddenly flashed, and she vanished from where she stood.
At the same time, she left a warm and affectionate remark for Alyssa beside her:
"Alyssa, Iâll leave all these [Mountain Giants] to you!"
...
Talia returned to the shade beneath the tree.
Just as she was about to sit down and continue enjoying her crispy potato chips,
she suddenly sensed a very familiar aura!
Her eyes lit up with delight, and she immediately jumped to her feet, spreading her arms wide toward a certain direction.
Caelanâs body flashed. He had originally intended to dodge, but Talia shifted angles and threw herself straight into his arms instead!
Lazybones Talia, are you body-checking people with your chest again??
"Stinky little brother, so you still remembered to come see me? Be honestâhave you already started treating me like a tool now??"
"Hmph, I refuse to be molded into your shape!!"
The corner of Caelanâs mouth twitched violently.
Listen to thatâwhat kind of outrageous nonsense was lazybones Talia even saying?!
"Ahem, Talia, stop joking around. There are so many people here!"
But Talia did not care in the slightest. She vigorously ruffled Caelanâs hair and said,
"Oh? Our stinky little brotherâs all grown up now? You even know how to get embarrassed?"
"Tell me thenâdid you come here to apologize to me? Since youâre being so sincere, big sis will forgive you!"
Seeing that lazybones Talia had forgiven him, Caelan quietly let out a sigh of relief.
Talia then brought him over to stand before the female legion members.
The moment they saw Caelan appear, the girls could not help whispering among themselves.
How could they possibly not have heard of the most popular handsome guy in Ironclad Legion these days?
It was just that Caelan was always elusive, like a divine dragon that showed its head but never its tail. Many of them had only heard his name, but had never actually seen him in person.
There had even been a rumor that Caelan was some hulking musclehead!
However, the instant Caelan appeared, many of the girls widened their eyes, their gazes practically sparkling.
"Wow, Caelan really is so handsome!"
"So bright and charmingâtotally my type!"
Talia gave a light cough, and the girls instantly fell silent.
After the last few days of training, they had already come to realize how terrifying this instructor really was.
"Stinky little brother, say hello to everyone!"
Smiling sweetly, Talia pushed Caelan forward in front of the group.
Caelan froze for a moment, then smiled and greeted them.
But just then, an angry roar suddenly came from the forest not far away.
In the next instant, the massive [King of the Mountain Giants] suddenly charged out!
Faced with this sudden turn of events, quite a few of the female legion members turned pale with fright.
Caelan had originally intended to step in, but at that moment, he caught the mischievous look on lazybones Taliaâs face.
So... this had actually been part of her plan all along?
Thus, Caelan decisively gave up any intention of intervening. Instead, he smiled and asked in return,
"Talia, should we make things a little more difficult for your trainees?"
The moment those words came out, the female legion members all stared in stunned disbelief.
Wait, how can such a handsome guy be this inhuman??
Canât you see weâre already struggling this badly, and you still want to raise the difficulty?
Listen to yourselfâdoes that sound like something a human would say??
On the other side, Talia gave Caelan a thumbs-up in approval.
"Stinky little brother, well done!"
Caelan smiled faintly. Then, gripping his longsword in one hand, he gave a light swing toward the [King of the Mountain Giants].
In the next moment, the [King of the Mountain Giants]â thick black hair was completely severed in an instant!
The [King of the Mountain Giants] froze on the spot.
He halted in utter disbelief, then reached up and touched the back of his head.
When his hand felt a patch of smooth skin, his huge single eye instantly filled with bloodshot fury!
"ROAR!!!"
The [King of the Mountain Giants] had actually entered a berserk state!
In truth, the berserk reaction of the [King of the Mountain Giants] was perfectly understandable.
Because to the [Mountain Giant] race, hair meant more than anything else. It was a symbol of identity and status!
So once his hair had been shaved off, the [King of the Mountain Giants] had effectively lost all of his dignity.
"ROAR!!!"
Along with the furious howl of the [King of the Mountain Giants], a notification box appeared before every awakener present.
[King of the Mountain Giants has entered a berserk state, attribute points x3]
???
When the female legion members saw that, they felt so miserable they could hardly describe it!
Alyssa was the first to react. She immediately tried to organize the other members into a battle formation to resist.
However, the [King of the Mountain Giants] was even faster than she had expected!
In almost an instant, he rushed in front of one of the female legion members and stomped down viciously!
The girl did not even have time to scream. Her vision went black, and she lost consciousness on the spot.
When she came to her senses again, she found that she had already been returned to Taliaâs side.
And Talia, from who-knew-where, had somehow pulled out a small notebook and marked a huge "X" beside the girlâs name.
"Your result is unacceptable!"
The girl opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, another figure appeared beside her.
"You tooâunacceptable!"
...
After only five short minutes,
Alyssa was the only one left on the battlefield, still struggling to hold on.
At that moment, nearly everyoneâs eyes were fixed on Alyssa.
Right now, Alyssa herself was also locked in a desperate battle.
The lance in her hands was so enormous that it actually limited her mobility.
However, the lance also provided an immense defensive advantage.
The reason Alyssa had managed to hold out until now was, in no small part, thanks to that lance.
Seeing that Alyssa had actually endured this long, the other female legion members could not help exclaiming in admiration.
"As expected of Goddess Alyssaâsheâs still so strong. Even against the [King of the Mountain Giants], she can hold out this long!"
"Ugh... I wonder when Iâll ever reach 5-star. Iâm so jealous!"
"At Alyssaâs current pace, sheâll probably be challenging 6-star before long, right?"