Chapter 457
Chapter 457: Now It Can Shine. (1)
In an instant, Melkier widened the distance and slowly turned around.
Thud, thud, thud, thud!
A moment later, a group burst out from the burning forest. Melkier recognized immediately who was approaching.
“Count Penris.”
Seeing Ghislaine, radiating an aura so powerful it tingled throughout his body, Melkier licked his lips.
“You finally arrived.”
Hee hee!
Ghislaine, pulling tight on the reins of the Black King’s mount, spoke.
“Gillian, head to the castle with the knights. Eliminate all the remnants.”
“Understood.”
Gillian galloped off with the knights again.
Melkier did not stop them as they passed by. Instead, he slightly stepped aside as if to guide them on their way.
Gillian scowled in displeasure, glancing back at him before continuing onward.
Once Gillian and the knights disappeared, Melkier twisted his neck from side to side and laughed.
“Sending all your underlings away; are you confident? No, you left one behind. Planning to confront me with just the two of you?”
Belinda, who remained beside Ghislaine, continued to glare at Melkier.
Her face was wrapped in bandages, making it hard to recognize her. But distinguishing a person isn’t solely based on their face.
Eyes, lips, atmosphere, voice. Comparing the features of the person before her with those in her memories, Belinda squinted her eyes and spoke.
“So you really are alive. The traitor Melkier.”
Melkier raised an eyebrow as he looked at Belinda.
“What? Traitor? You know me?”
Belinda slowly opened her eyes. A tear rolled down from them.
“I can never forget the one who betrayed Lady Anette and ambushed her.”
Upon hearing that name, a massive aura erupted from Melkier’s body. The intent to kill was clearly visible in his eyes shining through the bandages.
“You know her. Who are you? Where is that woman now?”
“She has returned. Due to the wounds she suffered from fighting you.”
Melkier paused for a moment before bursting into laughter.
“Ha, hahaha! She’s dead? She finally died? Kha ha ha! Then doesn’t that mean I won! Kha ha ha!”
Melkier was utterly delighted. The one who had left him in such a state of limbo had ultimately died because of him.
It felt as though the pent-up frustration and anger accumulated over twenty years vanished completely.
Belinda scoffed at Melkier’s maniacal laughter.
“Won? You brought hundreds of assassins to ambush, and still, you ended up annihilated. Do you genuinely think that’s a victory? You flailed around pathetically. Aren’t you actually happy that a terrifying presence has disappeared?”
Upon hearing her words, sparks flew from Melkier’s eyes.
“You… who are you? How do you know that?!”
The only people who knew about his disgraceful past were a select few from the Duke Faction and the Salvation Society. It was information that outsiders could never know.
Glaring at Belinda, Melkier suddenly widened his eyes.
“Could it be… Belinda?”
“Yes, I’m glad you remembered.”
“Ha ha ha! You survived! You’ve been alive all this time!”
Clang!
Two daggers suddenly appeared in Melkier’s hands.
“Ah, I see. The young girl managed to survive by sheer luck. I suppose Anette took you and fled?”
Belinda didn’t respond. She merely drew up her mana with a cold gaze.
As her robe fluttered, dozens of daggers connected to her body writhed up like snakes, ready for action.
Seeing this, Melkier laughed once more.
“As expected, it’s similar to that technique she used. I see you learned some tricks while hiding away. Today, I’ll kill you and erase all traces of my shameful past. Come at me together.”
The two stared each other down, their momentum rising.
Still feeling awkward as he listened to the conversation, Ghislaine asked.
“Belinda, did you really know him? And who exactly is this Anette?”
Belinda bit her lip. After a moment of contemplation, she seemed to have made a decision and spoke with a pained expression.
“Lady Anette was my mentor and the leader of the organization I belonged to. And…”
Ghislaine prodded her as if urging her along.
“And?”
“She was your mother.”
“……”
Melkier’s head snapped toward Ghislaine, who also looked astonished at this revelation.
Could he have heard wrong? Ghislaine stammered as he asked again.
“My mom… was an assassin?”
“She’s a bit different from a typical assassin. More like a righteous assassin.”
The term “righteous assassin” was something Ghislaine had never heard in his life. He strained to calm the whirlwind of thoughts in his head.
To be honest, he didn’t have many memories of his mother. She had passed away when he was young.
What he remembered was that his mother had been somewhat frail. That’s why she couldn’t live long and left.
The memory of his father mourning for years remained with him.
“Uh, then… was my mom’s poor health… because of that guy?”
“Yes. She suffered a severe injury that shattered her mana core while fighting this vile man.”
“Even after sustaining such an injury… she married my father and gave birth to me and Elena? Does that even make sense?”
When a mana core breaks, it becomes challenging to live normally. The balance of the body breaks down, and life force constantly leaks out, making one weaker than a commoner. Most often, they suffer until they swiftly pass away.
If one is born robust or uses an alternative method to store mana and life force, they might extend their lifespan. But such cases are exceedingly rare.
Yet Belinda nodded as though it were the most natural thing.
“Of course, the leader was born with divine strength. She was truly a strong person.”
“Wow…”
Those born with divine strength possess stamina and strength several times greater than that of a commoner. Ghislaine recalled that a being with divine strength had been among the seven strongest in the previous continent.
If his mother had been born with divine strength, it would indeed make sense that she could live for several years even after her mana core broke.
“I see. Elena and I are both so robust, yet I always wondered why our mother was frail. So it was due to a major injury.”
Belinda’s mysterious origins, along with her past with Perdium, seemed suspicious. With this newfound revelation of their birth secret, Ghislaine nodded.
“Yes. In fact, she wasn’t a weak person. If someone born with divine strength sustained such severe aftereffects, it doesn’t make sense that that guy is still alive. I can’t fathom how he survived.”
“Now that you mention it.”
If what Belinda said were true, the fact that this guy was still perfectly healthy suggested some nefarious activity.
Every breath he took released black energy, clearly indicating some manipulation by the Salvation Society.
“That guy is Anette’s child?”
Melkier appeared genuinely astonished, glancing between Ghislaine and Belinda.
“Yes. A remarkable figure who conquered the North and became a master.”
“Ha, ha… So he truly is the child of that woman who was touted as the strongest in the kingdom. Now that I look at him, his hair color and appearance are indeed similar to the Marquis Perdium, just like hers.”
“He looks a lot like Lady Anette.”
“Could it be that he became strong so quickly because he was born with divine strength, just like her?”
Melkier looked slightly tense. Those with divine strength amplify their inherent powers manifold when they master mana.
Belinda shook her head with a proud expression.
“No, the young master wasn’t born with divine strength, nor has he learned Anette’s mana circulation method or techniques.”
“What? Then how did he ascend to master at such a young age?”
“We didn’t teach him anything. That’s what Lady Anette wanted. The young master learned only Perdium’s mana circulation method and swordsmanship.”
“Nonsense! That woman’s secrets and powers must have transferred to him, allowing him to become strong so swiftly!”
“No, the young master achieved that position through his own efforts. Also… stop referring to her as ‘that woman.’ Show some courtesy toward someone who was once your superior. You insolent brat.”
Bang!
Belinda’s eyes gleamed, and in an instant, she vanished.
She appeared behind Melkier, launching her daggers with precision, but the target had already vanished.
As she turned her body, Melkier’s bandaged face emerged before her.
“How dare you attack me as a mere apprentice member? You have grown quite bold.”
Clang!
Melkier’s dagger aimed for Belinda’s abdomen. She narrowly deflected it and retreated.
Whap!
Dozens of daggers writhed and flew toward Melkier. The assault sought to dominate the space, yet he dodged them all.
Swish.
Belinda’s form grew dim and soon disappeared. Following suit, Melkier’s figure also blurred.
Clang! Clang!
The two continued their battle, disappearing and reappearing all around as fast as lightning. Neither could follow the diminutive movements.
Ghislaine observed everything with concern.
“It seems it’s still too much for Belinda to win.”
Melkier was indeed strong. He merely looked weak in a direct fight, but if he ambushed properly, even someone considered an ‘extraordinary’ would fall swiftly.
There was a somewhat leisurely air about him with every move.
“He’s not using all his strength.”
Whether he was confident in being able to handle Belinda without full power or saving his strength due to facing two opponents, he still appeared to have plenty of room for maneuver.
“Hmm, what should I do…?”
Normally, he would have joint forces with Belinda to quickly take him down. Despite the sudden turn of events making him feel dazed, this was the one who had seriously injured his mother.
However, it felt a bit ambiguous to intervene in this fight.
“It’s rare for Belinda to show such vengeance and emotion…”
She wanted to defeat Melkier by her own strength. She wished to sever her past ties herself.
Bang! Clang!
Injuries began to appear all over Belinda’s body. Smoke wafted up from the wounds, perhaps as a result of poison.
Bang!
As they fought, Belinda, seemingly worn out, widened the distance and retreated.
Taking a moment to catch her breath, Melkier smiled at her.
“Look at this. The one hailed as the finest talent in the ‘Shadow Knight Group’ is still only this much after twenty years? Anette clearly lacked judgment in choosing people.”
“Shut up.”
Belinda bit her lip angrily. She wanted to snap this guy’s throat with her own hands, but defeating an extraordinary opponent was still a daunting task.
While Melkier continued to mock, he stole a glance at Ghislaine.
“Do you think I look foolish because I’m doing well lately? I was already a master long before you were born.”
“So?”
“It means how long will you keep watching? Will you only move after this girl dies? You seem quite at ease, don’t you?”
“It seems Belinda genuinely wants to kill you by her own power, doesn’t it?”
Ghislaine’s question prompted Belinda to nod.
“Yes. I’m sorry for you, young master, but I must be the one to kill this guy.”
Melkier chuckled at their conversation, shaking his shoulders.
“Ho ho ho, so you plan to just watch? It seems you’ll regret it after this woman is dead. Well, then, keep watching.”
Whoosh.
Melkier twirled a dagger between his fingers, grinning.
He didn’t believe that Ghislaine would refrain from interfering. If Belinda’s life were in imminent danger, he was sure Ghislaine would act. At that moment, he intended to unleash a counterattack using his secret techniques.
“Shall we have some more fun?”
With a grin, his body vanished. Suddenly, he popped up from behind Belinda.
“Tch!”
Clang!
Belinda twisted her body and barely blocked the attack. The duel was on once more.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The darkness generated by their confrontation surged upward.
The fight of assassins was clearly distinct from that of knights.
Neither of them put excessive power into their strikes. They concentrated sharp energy at a single point, targeting only their opponent’s vital spots. Thus, no strong shockwaves radiated out.
Crack, crack, crack!
Belinda’s daggers began to chip away, one by one, unable to withstand Melkier’s aura blade and falling helplessly to the ground.
Even though she had absorbed the Dragon Heart and amassed a powerful amount of mana, her level of concentrated strength was markedly different from Melkier’s.
Thus, even when pushing her mana to the limit, her daggers were either shattered or severed.
Melkier kept sneering without pause.
“You still can’t break through that wall? You can’t even use that woman’s techniques properly. What on earth have you been doing all this time? Playing around?”
“……”
Belinda merely bit her lip. No, it would be correct to say she had no time to respond.
Winning was hard. She wanted to personally deliver judgment to this traitor, but the chances of that felt overwhelmingly slim.
Having absorbed the Dragon Heart, her mana had already reached the level of an extraordinary being, yet she was unable to cross over that singular wall and move beyond.
It was only natural. Belinda was aware of the reason why. Yet, she didn’t regret it.
“That was my entire life.”
Feeling sympathy for her, Ghislaine looked at her with slightly pained eyes.
