Faced with the sudden assault, Nolan displayed astonishing reflexes. He immediately channeled his magic and reinforced the shield once again.
Despite having already endured two heavy impacts, the shield's surface remained smooth and pristine, without so much as a dent or scratch.
"So that's all the so-called Lord of Cinder amounts to."
Coming back to himself, Nolan grabbed the bald man by the collar and flung him backward, sending him into a safe spot.
Then he asked,
"Hey, what's your name?"
The bald apprentice stood there in a daze, his body trembling uncontrollably from fear. He stammered out,
"I… I'm Thops."
He was still caught up in the shock of being saved. His head felt light, his thoughts sluggish. All he knew was that he had just escaped death.
Before he could gather himself enough to ask anything, a disc-shaped object suddenly flew toward him at high speed.
Acting on instinct, Thops reached out with both hands and caught it. Only then did he realize it was a round shield, its surface gleaming with a metallic sheen.
"Remember to give it back later!" Nolan's voice called out. It was property of the Haligtree.
Without wasting another word, Nolan raised his staff.
The Giant Crayfish swung its massive claws and let out a strange, mournful hiss, as if grieving for its fallen companion.
Nolan, watching the scene as the great hammer in his hand dissipated, showed no sign of surprise.
They were animals, not mindless husks. When one of their own was killed, they would either flee or rush in to retaliate. There was no way they would just stand there unmoved.
The Giant Crayfish clearly intended to avenge its companion, but Nolan had no patience for sentiment.
The moment he saw it lift its head and open its ferocious jaws, he sensed the danger closing in and immediately rolled to the side.
A thunderous crash followed.
A thick pillar of water crashed down from across the street, spraying violently before smashing into the wooden house behind Nolan. In an instant, the structure was reduced to splinters.
Seeing this, Nolan sprang into the air and, in one fluid motion, hurled several blocks of condensed magic, each trailing a long, blazing tail.
Glintstone Stars!
The projectiles struck the Giant Crayfish's left side with flawless precision. Crisp cracking sounds rang out as several of its smaller legs shattered completely.
With its lower support destroyed, the Giant Crayfish's massive body tipped sideways.
It didn't even have time to scream before slamming heavily into the ground.
Seeing his attack land cleanly, Nolan didn't linger.
He never liked giving his enemies a chance to recover. Without hesitation, he swung his staff once more.
With that motion, "Cannon of Haima" roared forth.
This projectile dwarfed the earlier Great Glintstone Shard, its destructive power unmistakably overwhelming.
The cannonball streaked through the air like a massive blue gemstone, carrying terrifying momentum as it flew straight toward the Giant Crayfish.
There was no suspense. The shot hit the creature squarely in the head. With a dull, wet pop, the Giant Crayfish's head burst apart in an instant.
A blue-green slurry surged out of the shattered skull, flooding the narrow alleyway.
The onlookers who witnessed the scene felt their stomachs churn. Several of them turned away, unable to hold back their vomiting.
After a short while, the clatter of armor grew clearer, followed closely by the sound of approaching hooves.
A squad of Cuckoo soldiers finally arrived. Their expressions were grim as they gripped their weapons and cautiously scanned their surroundings.
The knight at the front looked toward the Sorcerer standing amid the ruins, surprise flashing across his face.
Taking in the scattered gore and the two mutilated corpses on the ground, he quickly grasped what had just happened.
"Huff…"
Nolan let out a deep breath and lifted his head, noticing that the apprentice was still standing not far away.
This time, there was no trace of worry or panic in the man's eyes. Instead, they were filled with pure, unfiltered joy.
It was a heartfelt sense of relief, as though he was genuinely happy that Nolan had come through the fight against the two giant shrimp without a scratch.
However, when he saw the Cuckoo soldiers and the surrounding crowd closing in, cheers rising around them, the step he was about to take forward suddenly stopped.
Thops really lacked confidence.
Nolan shook his head with a helpless smile.
Don't let appearances fool you. Even though he was mocked at the academy as a "Bluntstone" apprentice, he was actually a theoretical prodigy, someone whose original spells could only be described as miraculous.
Personality was a personal matter, and Nolan had no reason to meddle. But now that he had encountered a future master-level magic teacher like this, there was no way he would let the opportunity slip by.
The Erdtree slowly withdrew its brilliance, its fading glow spilling over the ruins and tinting the entire scene in soft gold.
The Cuckoo soldiers worked with difficulty to clear the area, pulling out misshapen, broken corpses and laying them out neatly to the side.
These Giant Crayfish weren't as fearsome as they were in the game, but they were still far beyond what ordinary civilians could hope to deal with.
Thops had been called aside by others for questioning.
Since Nolan had already warned him in advance, the bald brute didn't try to hide what he had done.
Whether his efforts had truly made a difference or not, his courage still earned the respect of those present.
Courage was never something to be mocked.
The Cuckoo Legion only dared to interrogate Thops, an apprentice, while Nolan calmly lifted a cup of tea and sat beside the ruins, lost in thought.
The shrimp meat he had planned to bring back for his teacher was completely ruined now. He would have to buy another portion.
It was already getting late. His teacher, who never stopped lecturing about time, would definitely be angry. He would need to bring back a few extra treats to make up for it.