Online Game: Starting With SSS-Ranked Summons
Chapter 437: Fighting the beetle.

Chapter 437: Fighting the beetle.

He wanted to test how his physical attributes compared to superior-rank creatures at similar levels.

This would be pure skill, strength, and speed against natural armor and predatory instincts.

The beetle’s diving attack came with the force of a falling boulder, its golden carapace gleaming as it aimed to crush Arthur beneath its considerable mass. Arthur sidestepped at the last possible moment, his katana flashing upward in a precise arc.

CLANG!

The blade struck the beetle’s side armour with a sound like a bell being struck. To Arthur’s satisfaction, what should have been an impenetrable defence showed visible damage—a large crack caused a spider-web illusion across the golden surface where his sword had made contact.

The beetle landed heavily, its talons gouging deep furrows in the earth as it spun to face Arthur with obvious confusion. That strike should have bounced harmlessly off its legendary armour. No creature at its level had ever managed to even scratch the golden carapace that was its pride and evolutionary advantage.

Arthur pressed his attack, moving with fluid precision as he struck again. This time, he aimed for the junction where the beetle’s head connected to its thorax, a classic weak point in the anatomy of similar creatures.

This wasn’t the first time that Arthur had fought against a beetle. In fact, one of his very first fights was against some beetles inside the forest of Village #420. Of course, this beetle was in no way, shape or form similar in strength or size, but such weak points were very difficult to change in this species.

SLASH!

His katana bit deep, and the golden armour that had protected the beetle for years cracked like an eggshell. Golden fragments scattered across the forest floor, revealing the softer chitin beneath.

SCREEEECH!

The beetle’s cry of pain and confusion echoed through the forest.

The beetle lashed out with its powerful mandibles, the bronze-colored jaws snapping shut with enough force to shear through steel. But Arthur was no longer where the attack had been aimed, having flowed around the creature’s assault like water around a stone.

The beetle locked eyes with Arthur, who was now ten meters away with a simple step away. Its eyes were filled with hatred at the human that had managed to break the defence of its golden armour.

The golden armour had been the thing that it took the most pride in. Yet the human in front of it had broken that pride today. It wasn’t going to let him survive, even if that meant that they would both die.

The creature lunged at Arthur again, fury burning in its multifaceted eyes. Its chitinous limbs slammed against the ground with enough force to crack boulders that weighed tonnes, and its serrated mandibles clicked together in rapid succession, anticipating the moment they’d clamp down on Arthur’s flesh and bone.

It radiated a primal desire: not just to kill, but to rip Arthur apart piece by piece.

Arthur, in the distance, however, didn’t flinch at its obvious hatred towards him. Instead, a faint smile curved his lips as he met the charging beetle’s wrath with calm indifference.

His stance remained relaxed, eyes sharp and calculating. The creature was already losing its composure, and the battle had barely begun.

This is going to be easy, Arthur thought, not with arrogance, but with the confidence of someone who had fought too many battles to count.

Arthur wasn’t underestimating the creature’s power. He was simply reading its state of mind.

Experience had taught him one immutable truth: the moment your opponent lost control, the fight was as good as over.

Rage dulled accuracy, anger clouded judgment born from experience, and desperation coupled with those characteristics made warriors reckless.

Once a fighter let emotions dictate their actions, they stopped relying on training, tactics, or instinct.

They lunged when they should’ve waited, they roared when they should’ve listened. They died when they should’ve won.

And right now, this beetle was on the fast track to doing all three.

As the beetle arrived close to him, Arthur sidestepped casually before striking the beetle. This time, the katana slashed across the beetle’s wing cases.

Splash!

Blood and spray of golden fragments splashed on the forest floor.

The creature screeched with all its might from the agony. It’s rage increased; it was a creature that had never known pain or such vulnerability, and the feeling that Arthur was instilling in it was unbearable to it.

To the golden beetle, the pain was akin to being thrown into the fire without knowing what heat even meant.

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

Each successive blow found its mark without fail. Arthur’s strength, honed through countless battles and amplified by his equipment, proved more than sufficient to overcome what the beetle had believed to be an impenetrable defence.

The creature’s attacks became increasingly desperate and uncoordinated. It’s usually precise mandible strikes went wide, snapping at empty air as Arthur danced around its bulk with grace. The beetle’s compound eyes reflected growing panic as its most fundamental assumption about its own invincibility crumbled along with its armour.

THUD! CLANG! CRACK!

Arthur’s assault was relentless but controlled.

He struck at joints and weak points, methodically dismantling the beetle’s defences piece by piece. Each successful hit sent more golden fragments cascading to the forest floor, creating a glittering carpet of defeat beneath the increasingly frantic creature.

The beetle attempted one final, desperate charge, lowering its cracked head and rushing forward with all its remaining strength. Arthur met the charge head-on, his katana finding the exact centre of the creature’s forehead.

CRACK!

The golden carapace split completely, the fracture line running from the point of impact all the way back to the creature’s thorax. The beetle’s charge faltered, its legs giving out as the realisation of its defeat settled into its consciousness.

Arthur stepped back, breathing steadily despite the intense combat. His katana remained ready by his side, but the fight was clearly over.

The Golden Beetle lay before him, its legendary armour reduced to scattered fragments, its pride as thoroughly shattered as its defences.