This chapter is equivalent to Chapter 8 of Volume 2.
For the Volume 1: The Awakening of The legendary King, it is polished and completed in Amazon: https://a.co/d/0f0nCyAq
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Standing before Bokku and his group was a short-haired blonde girl, holding a magical sword shaped like an antenna: Mai. Her gaze was calm yet powerful. Beside her stood an AI Witch in the form of an Eastern dragon named Miki, its body shimmering with a golden glow.
Bokku sneered.
"Girl, judging by your AI Witch, you're no ordinary person. You'd better get out of here if you don't want trouble!"
"You're the ones who should get out!" Mai said, tightening her grip on her sword.
She glanced at the shop owner clutching his stomach on the floor, then immediately turned back to Bokku, her voice filled with anger.
"I heard outside that you were extorting money from the shop owner for no reason. That's completely outrageous!"
Bokku looked at her coldly and growled,
"Little girl, wait until I finish collecting the money. I'll deal with you afterward. Stay right there!"
He turned to his subordinates and shouted,
"Grab her and tie her up, then keep beating the shop owner!"
They immediately rushed forward to seize Mai. She instantly ordered Miki to create a hazy mist, within which dozens of illusions of Mai appeared. Everyone was stunned, unable to tell which one was real. One of them shouted and lunged at an illusion, only to grab thin air—some even tripping over themselves.
Bokku immediately ordered Piggy. The pig-shaped AI Witch stood up, spreading its front legs and balancing on one leg. It poured all its magic into enhancing its physical strength and began spinning like a top. Piggy quickly swept through the illusions of Mai, erasing most of them in no time.
Mai whispered to Miki, and Miki's eyes glowed gold. Suddenly, an illusion of Bokku appeared. Piggy hesitated, thinking it was about to collide with its master; still standing on one leg and carried by momentum, it toppled to the ground.
Mai appeared behind Bokku—who was still irritated from being tricked. She raised her antenna-shaped sword, which glowed as it charged with electricity, preparing to strike and paralyze him. He turned and dodged, then drove his knee into Mai's stomach, causing her intense pain. As she clutched her abdomen, he grabbed her by the hair and lifted her up, sneering:
"You're quite something, girl. Is this magical sword some kind of noble weapon? Hah, it'd sell for a fortune!"
Mai suddenly spat in Bokku's face, then drove her knee into his groin, forcing him to release her in pain. Seizing the opportunity, she leapt back and dashed out into the street.
"You bastard! You dare grab my hair? Miki, enlarge!"
Miki expanded into a massive dragon, its tail sweeping through Bokku's subordinates and knocking them down. But when its tail struck toward Bokku, it suddenly stopped—Bokku had lightly touched it with a single finger, halting the attack.
Mai felt both frustration and a hint of fear. At this moment, she was facing a high-level AI Witch; with her limited EN, victory would be extremely difficult.
Out of nowhere, Piggy rushed in and grabbed Miki's tail, slamming it back and forth. Mai panicked and shouted, "Miki, shrink!"
Miki suddenly shrank, escaping Piggy's grip. Mai panted heavily from overexertion. Before she could recover, she turned around—only to be ambushed and restrained by Bokku's subordinates.
"Let that girl go! I'll give you the money!" the shop owner shouted, tears welling in his eyes.
"No, don't give it to them!" Mai cried helplessly.
A blue punch suddenly flew in from nowhere, blasting away the man restraining her.
A familiar figure appeared, long hair tied back and fluttering in the wind. Long had arrived.
Dreamy flew over and asked,
"Hey, Mai, are you okay?"
Before Mai could answer, Bokku's subordinates charged again—but suddenly, they began crying and wailing about their misfortune. Standing in a corner, Nguyen crossed his arms, his expression cold and composed.
Mai, still surprised, looked at them and said,
"I'm fine, thank you… but how did you all know I was here?"
Long replied quickly,
"I was out looking for EN and saw a crowd. Thought there might be some big money to make, so I came to check it out… Who knew you were being bullied!"
Dreamy placed his paws behind his head.
"I thought it was a food festival."
Nguyen remained silent.
Suddenly, Long sensed a slight movement above him and immediately dodged. A thunderous explosion rang out, leaving a crater nearly half a meter deep in the ground—caused by Bokku's magical punch.
Bokku hissed in anger,
"You brats don't know when to stop, do you?!"
Mai stood up and turned to Long.
"Let me handle him!"
She walked forward and stood face-to-face with Bokku. A noble girl now confronted a notorious thug of Sohy Bok. She remained calm and resolute, her eyes locked onto his without fear.
Mai ordered Miki to enlarge again and attack Bokku directly, while she herself charged straight at Piggy.
Even Bokku was surprised by this strategy. Normally, AI Witch masters fight each other while their own AI Witches do the same—unless they reach a Superior level where they can assimilate and fight together. But Mai's approach was completely different.
Miki attacked Bokku with its tail and claws, trying to tear him apart, but he effortlessly blocked its strikes. Meanwhile, Piggy nimbly dodged Mai's magical sword attacks.
At that moment, Mai smiled.
"Miki, attack Bokku with everything you've got!"
Miki unleashed a relentless assault.
Piggy, with its immense physical strength, continued dodging without counterattacking. However, Mai's swordsmanship—trained during her noble upbringing—was precise and relentless, making it increasingly difficult for Piggy to evade.
Piggy spoke,
"Master, may I use my magic now?"
While blocking Miki's attacks, Bokku shouted back,
"If you use your power, I will not be protected. Just keep dodging!"
"Yes, Master," Piggy replied.
Seizing the moment of distraction, Mai swept Piggy's leg and struck it with her magical sword, paralyzing it and binding its magic.
At that exact moment, Miki's tail struck Bokku. As usual, he raised his hand to block—but this time, he was knocked to the ground.
His expression filled with shock as he turned to Piggy.
"Piggy, what are you doing? I told you not to use your magic—"
Then he froze. Piggy had already been paralyzed by Mai's sword.
Mai slowly approached Bokku. He panicked and shouted,
"I don't understand! I have a high-level AI Witch—Piggy! How could I lose to a mere noble girl?!"
Mai flicked her hair and crossed her arms.
"You still don't get it, idiot? I've been watching how you two exchange magic. All you care about is protecting yourself, so you keep taking its power. Piggy is strong, but when it transfers its magic to you, it becomes useless!"
From outside, Dreamy laughed loudly.
"This girl's amazingly smart, haha!"
Bokku finally realized the truth. From the very beginning, Mai's strategy had been to target Piggy—the high-level AI Witch with immense strength and the ability to transfer magic to its owner. But Bokku's selfishness and stupidity, his obsession with protecting himself, had led to their defeat.
Mai flicked her hair again.
"And this is what I owe you!"
She drove her knee into him just as he had done to her earlier. Bokku collapsed to the ground.
Standing nearby, Long wiped his sweat and glanced at Dreamy. The two exchanged looks and muttered:
"From today on, we're not messing with Mai ever again!"
Mai turned to her friends and smiled gratefully. Without them, she would never have won. Facing Bokku and his men alone had been far beyond her limits—she would have been completely defeated if they hadn't arrived in time.
She raised her hand, forming a "V" sign (Victory). Long and Dreamy burst out laughing, while Nguyen crossed his arms and gave a faint smile.
Suddenly, Bokku forced himself back to his feet. Grabbing a chair from the pho shop, he swung it at Mai—but the blow only grazed her shoulder, causing her pain.
Long rushed in and punched the right side of Bokku's face. Dreamy lunged and bit his head. Miki wrapped around his legs. Nguyen teleported and struck the left side of his face.
Summoning all her remaining strength, Mai punched him in the stomach.
Together, they formed a "united tableau" against Bokku. Bokku finally collapsed, completely unconscious after their combined assault.
Mai dropped to the ground, gasping for breath, still in pain, yet laughing loudly.
"Hahaha… I—I mean, we won! That felt amazing!"
Perhaps for the first time in her life, Mai had thrown herself fully into battle, leaving her body bruised and battered. But within her, a new determination had begun to grow—the need to become even stronger for the journey ahead.
Mai and her friends had won.