Chapter 93: Leslie (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 93: Leslie (4)
Osner’s sudden punch, and its violent aftermath.
Silence fell over the arena.
As everyone struggled to comprehend the scene before them, a woman’s scream echoed through the stands.
“Aaaaaah! Cloud!!”
It was Katarina, who had been watching anxiously from her seat.
Seeing Cloud slammed into the wall, she shrieked and rushed toward him.
Katarina’s scream snapped Alfred back to his senses.
The Hero was sent flying by my father's fist?
It was something his common sense simply couldn't accept. The Osner he remembered was a frail man, not some mighty warrior who could send the Hero flying into a wall with a single punch.
For that reason, Alfred was convinced the man before him was not his father, but a fake created by Leslie.
“Archers!”
At Alfred’s shout, the archers came to their senses and drew their bowstrings again.
“Volley!”
As Alfred’s hand fell, the archers released their strings. In that instant, Leslie’s eyes glowed blue. She spread her hands, and a cold energy flowed from her palms, forming a hemispherical dome.
[Ice Barrier]
The rain of arrows was blocked by the wall of ice.
Except for a few arrows shot with immense force, most of them bounced harmlessly off the thick ice.
“Father.”
Leslie called out to Osner, who was stroking the ice barrier. Hidden within her calm voice was a deep sense of bewilderment.
“What was that just now? Please, explain it to me properly.”
When he had first risen from his sickbed, she thought the gods had answered her prayers. When his emaciated body filled out and muscle took shape in less than a month, she considered it a miracle.
She knew it defied all logic, but she simply believed the heavens had helped her.
That was how desperate she had been.
How much she had missed her father’s carefree laughter.
But no matter how much she missed him, she couldn't pass off what had just happened as a miracle. Her father was a sickly man who had spent half his life in bed, not a monster who could send a man flying like a cannonball with a single punch.
“...Are you really my father?”
Osner stared intently at his daughter.
Just as he was about to open his mouth to answer—
Crash!
Someone broke through the ice barrier. Beyond the white vapor, the silhouette of a man with six thick arms came into view.
“Uwoooaargh!!”
Iledrick, a chimera created by the Magic Tower, swung a thick axe down at Osner. Osner leaped aside to dodge. Thud. The floor where the axe struck caved in.
“Father!”
Though Leslie had her doubts about Osner, they were still just suspicions. For now, he was still her precious father. Cold energy erupted from Leslie’s hands, taking a sharp form in mid-air.
[Ice Spike]
Just as the seven ice spikes were about to shoot toward Iledrick—
Crash!
The ice walls on either side of Leslie shattered as a knight and a martial artist burst in.
[Ground Leveling]
The martial artist stomped her right foot on the ground. Crack. The ground fractured, and the floor beneath Leslie’s feet trembled, throwing her off balance. Seizing the opportunity, the knight’s arm moved swiftly.
A silver sword flashed, tracing an arc through the air.
Leslie sacrificed one ice spike to block the knight’s strike. As she tried to attack the knight with another—a slender fingertip touched her side.
[Fa Jin]
The light touch became a devastating blow that struck Leslie’s flank.
“Keuk..!”
With a short cry, black blood spurted from her lips. Thrown sideways by the direct hit from [Fa Jin], she quickly froze her legs to the floor, stopping her momentum.
Leslie gritted her teeth against the throbbing pain that radiated not just from her side, but throughout her internal organs.
“How dare they...”
I was going to end this quickly for Father’s sake, but you won’t let me.
Leslie’s eyes gleamed menacingly.
The amount of magic power flowing from her surged dramatically. As frost began to form around her, the tension of the knight and the martial artist heightened.
It was then that it happened.
“Gyaaaaaargh!!!”
A horrific scream stole their attention. The three of them turned toward the sound. Iledrick was being stomped under Osner’s foot. His six arms had become five.
“Still five left.”
Osner tossed aside the arm he was holding and grabbed another of Iledrick’s arms.
And then.
“Gyaaaaaaaah!!”
He ripped it clean off.
The knight and the martial artist froze for a moment at the brutal sight. Iledrick was the strongest monster among the mercenaries hired by the nobles. Neither the martial artist nor even the knight could have guaranteed a victory against him.
Yet Osner was tearing off the monster’s arms as easily as pulling the legs off an insect.
A joint attack is the only answer.
Both of them came to the same conclusion. Without a word, the knight and the martial artist charged Osner simultaneously. Their plan was to rescue Iledrick first, then attack as a trio.
[Instant Kill]
The swift sword drew a straight line for Osner’s neck. Osner reached out with his left hand and casually caught the blade. The knight was momentarily stunned, but the martial artist calmly performed her role.
Her slender fingertips touched Osner’s spine.
[Fa Jin]
The same blow that had staggered Leslie moments ago struck Osner’s back. She had intended to damage his spine, but that was a foolish assumption.
The Fa Jin only managed to rip Osner’s cloak; it failed to deal any significant damage to him.
“What in the...”
Is his body made of iron?
While the martial artist stared in shock at the tingling numbness in her fist, Osner slowly turned his head.
“Is that all?”
He had the eyes of an old man looking down on a pathetic youth.
But the killing intent within them was real. The knight and the martial artist flinched and tried to create distance, but it was too late. They should have retreated the moment their attacks were blocked.
Osner spun around and swung his right fist. The knight was struck by the punch and sent flying, slamming into the ice barrier.
He didn't stop there. He took a large step forward and extended his opposite leg. Osner’s foot slammed into the abdomen of the martial artist as she tried to back away.
“Ugh...!”
Feeling her organs being crushed, she flew back and crashed into the ice barrier. She went limp, unable to get up.
“Uwaaaaargh!!!”
Still pinned under Osner’s foot, Iledrick struggled to break free.
Osner lifted his foot and stomped down again.
Crunch. Iledrick’s chest caved in, in the shape of Osner’s sole.
After confirming Iledrick was dead, he turned to leave the ice barrier, where dozens of warriors were waiting.
“Father.”
Crack.
A chilling cold froze Osner’s feet, stopping him in his tracks.
“Don’t you have something to explain to me?”
“...”
Osner turned to face Leslie.
The ice binding his feet shattered easily with a slight exertion of force. The tall, massive man strode toward her. Leslie made no move.
He came to a stop right in front of her.
Father and daughter looked into each other’s eyes.
Like father, like daughter; both had unreadable eyes.
The father spoke.
“Leslie. Please, get away.”
Veins bulged on his right arm as it slowly rose. It was incomparably slower than the movements he had shown just moments before.
Leslie did not move.
Still meeting her father’s gaze, she said, “I don’t know what’s happened to you, Father. But I know one thing. You are no longer the father I knew.”
Cold air swirled, forming a dagger of ice. She grabbed it and pressed the tip against Osner’s chest.
“Is this what I’m supposed to do? Is this it?”
The veins had now spread to Osner’s face. He gritted his teeth, unable to answer. But his warm eyes affirmed her question.
“I see.”
Leslie smiled bitterly, then her expression brightened into a radiant smile.
“Father. Thank you for giving birth to me, and for raising me with love.”
She moved to plunge the dagger in... but couldn't.
Her trembling hand had no strength, and her bright smile twisted into a look of despair.
How could she?
How could she kill the father she loved, driven only by a sense of duty in a situation she didn't even understand?
In the end, Leslie dropped the dagger and collapsed to her knees.
“I’m sorry, Father. I just can’t do it.”
Tears streamed down Leslie’s face. Seeing her crumpled form, Osner wanted to tell her to pull herself together. But he couldn't. If he relaxed even a little to speak, he knew this arm, moving of its own accord, would harm his daughter.
All he could do was hope she would find her resolve.
But Leslie had no strength left to stand.
For the past three years, she had lived under the constant threat of assassination. The Empire sent investigators to find any pretext to break the treaty, while within the Duchy, she was reviled and called a witch.
Just when she had no one to lean on, her father had miraculously recovered.
She had held onto hope.
The hope that if she just endured a little longer, things would go back to the way they were.
And now, that hope had just been shattered.
To stand up again... she was just too exhausted.
Watching his daughter, who would not rise, Osner squeezed his eyes shut.
Ah... what have I done...?
When his illness had worsened and death drew near, a voice had spoken to him.
It said it would save him.
That it would heal his frail body and make him a great warrior.
Osner had accepted its offer.
Because he still wanted to live.
Because he wanted to break free from the curse that had tormented him his entire life.
He shouldn't have.
An old man like him shouldn't have been so greedy.
Osner was terrified by the fact that his foolish choice might not only cause his beloved daughter to suffer, but could even cost her her life.
Grind.
His over-inflated muscles began to tear, and his bones started to strain. His arm was slipping from his control. If this continued, his rogue hand would shatter his daughter’s skull.
Leslie. Please. Please, get away.
But contrary to his wishes, Leslie didn't move. Instead, she slowly closed her eyes.
As if accepting her fate.
Feeling a great despair, Osner lost control for a moment. Just as his palm was about to split Leslie’s head like a watermelon—
A fist suddenly shot out and smashed him across the jaw. It was a punch of considerable power. Osner was sent flying back, rolling several times across the floor.
Rubbing his stinging jaw, Osner lifted his head. He saw some madman, shirtless and covered in blood. The madman grinned widely at Osner.
“Kronok—!”
He shouted an unintelligible word and decked him.