Chapter 208
Chapter 208
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 208
Chapter Title: 83. Between Love and Friendship (1)
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Sibylla picked up her sword.
The heavy royal cloak seemed an odd match for the steel at first glance, but it suited her perfectly.
Watching her, Yuri couldn't help imagining what it would have been like if she had rightfully become queen.
It would have been impressive.
She could be prickly at times, but deep down, she was a good person.
She would have made a balanced ruler, never leaning to one side. Perhaps the relationship between Brioll and the Holy Kingdom would have been better than ever.
Yuri let out a chuckle.
Dwelling on impossible what-ifs was nothing more than mental masturbation.
What if she had been the rightful heir to the throne.
What if Larson hadn't pressured her.
What if Cedric hadn't fallen to black magic.
All pointless thoughts.
The dice had already been cast.
To survive, Sibylla had embraced black magic and sided with the Empire. There was no turning back, so their paths had diverged, never to cross again.
That was reality.
"Sibylla."
No response came. Yuri gave a wry smile.
"Sorry it had to end like this."
The knights waiting outside rushed in and surrounded Sibylla.
Yuri gauged the distance.
The cavern was spacious enough inside for them to fight with plenty of room. As he backed away, Yuri called out.
"Jared, Simon, Guinness."
"Yes, sir."
"This isn't looking good. Do what you must to survive. Sorry for dragging you into this fight so suddenly."
This abrupt battle was partly due to Yuri's stubbornness. He'd pushed forward because he wanted to stop her as quickly as possible.
"Not at all."
Jared replied.
"We understand Your Highness's feelings. It pains us too to see Lady Sibylla like this. As her former comrades-in-arms, it's our duty to give her a proper end."
"Yes."
"Agreed."
Simon and Guinness nodded in agreement.
"Easing the suffering of a comrade in agony is part of our duty as well."
In the chaos of war, knights sometimes encountered those waiting in torment for death. Granting them a merciful end was part of a knight's role.
Of course, the weight piled up on the heart.
But it was unavoidable. They simply carried it on their shoulders until their own turn came.
"That's the right mindset."
Yuri smiled.
"Even Sibylla over there might soften at such resolve. Looks like her eyes are already welling up."
"Cut the nonsense."
At Sibylla's signal, the knights advanced.
Francesco, Umstein, and Penek, who had been hiding, drew their weapons and stepped forward.
But the enemies showed no sign of stopping.
Yuri glanced at Francesco.
"A Holy Knight shows up, and no one reacts?"
"You got me."
"Hey! Aren't you lot afraid of the Holy Knight right here?!"
One of the enemy knights shouted back.
"Shut your mouth. Holy Knights don't look like bandits."
Francesco clutched his chest, clearly wounded.
"Utterly useless."
Sibylla leveled her sword.
"Attack."
There was no time for more banter. The knights charged. True to the elite guard of a king, they showed no openings.
But what truly tensed Yuri was something else.
"This is..."
Yuri summoned the aura of Heart-Soul Severing.
The black energy emanating from the knights clashed against it, pushing and pulling like a contest for dominance. An invisible battle raged over control of the space.
This sensation was eerily similar to the Empire's black legions he'd tangled with endlessly in his past life.
Yuri twisted his lips.
The Empire—and Cedric—were already meticulously preparing to recreate the hell he'd endured before.
Sibylla was merely a pawn in that game.
Yuri drew Guilty. Any trace of amusement vanished from his face.
Heart-Soul Severing boiled within him, manifesting in a far more destructive form along the chaotic edge of his blade.
As Yuri swung, blood sprayed from one knight's chest.
That sharp strike dominated the atmosphere of the entire cavern.
Yuri was stronger than Sibylla had anticipated.
Not just him—Jared, Simon, and Guinness had also reached new heights. Jared had absorbed Yuri's teachings while fighting alongside him, and Simon and Guinness had their master, Moyong Chan.
Led by Yuri, Brioll's three knights seized the momentum against superior numbers.
Screams echoed through the air.
Watching them, Francesco gave a wry smile.
"So this is what Brioll's made of. Ha ha..."
Ever since his constitution rejected mana, he couldn't generate more than a handful.
But his achievements hadn't vanished. He could still keenly sense how rigorously Brioll's knights were trained.
Especially Yuri Brioll—he far exceeded Francesco's expectations.
"That guy's already at Ten Greats level. Like father, like son. A real monster."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
Penek marveled.
"Truly remarkable. The Third Prince of Brioll—no, the Prince King."
But there was no more time for chit-chat. Knights came at them too.
The brutal melee continued.
Blood and flesh flew through the air, screams reverberating.
Francesco couldn't wield his overwhelming power as before. He was limited to scant mana, forcing it out while enduring pain.
Yet it was enough.
He was a Holy Knight, one of the Ten Greats, the pinnacle of knighthood.
"You alright, Umstein?!"
"Of course!"
True to the dwarf's renown in metallurgy and weaponry, Umstein swung his axe with expert skill.
But numbers were numbers.
Gradually, Yuri's group was pushed back.
Yuri dodged the swords of several knights encircling him and glanced sideways.
Jared was holding strong, but Simon and Guinness were struggling.
Francesco looked taxed too. His fluid swordplay toyed with enemy gaps, but the power behind his blade paled in comparison.
Yuri gripped his sword tighter.
If they couldn't win this, the coming war with the Empire was doomed.
His eyes darkened.
His entire field of vision burned white.
Heart-Soul Severing raced through his veins. Then, a murky sword aura flowed forth.
The chaos revealed random possibilities, and Yuri's subconscious sought the optimal path.
He saw it.
He deflected two incoming blades and surged forward, slamming both knights' chests with his shoulders.
Their armor crumpled as they fell.
Yuri broke through the encirclement.
More knights surrounded him, but the net was looser now. Their hasty movements left gaps everywhere.
Yuri targeted the weakest link.
He parried a sloppy attack, then thrust Guilty into the knight's chest and shoved.
Covered in the knight's spewed blood, Yuri kicked the body aside and reclaimed his blade.
The encirclement broke.
The pursuing knights tangled and stumbled over each other.
Yuri spun, vertically slicing the head of one rising knight. The distance split it only a quarter; brains spilled from the gash.
Another knight thrust desperately.
Easy to dodge at range. Yuri leaned back as the tip grazed his chin, then severed the man's elbow in a flash.
He collapsed screaming.
Thanks to his near-superhuman distance sense, Yuri masterfully pulled off the so-called "graze-and-counter."
Fearing retaliation, the knights hesitated to strike first. Even when they did, it was timid—their movements too wide invited Yuri's blade like a striking serpent.
Initiative shifted to Yuri.
"What? Why's everyone frozen? Scared already?"
Taunting them, Yuri feinted toward a knight on the right by shifting his shoulder, then abruptly struck left.
The left knight, fooled by the quick pivot, couldn't react. He leaned back but took a deep gash to the shoulder.
As he clutched it and sank, Yuri kicked his head like a melon. It burst with a splat.
Yuri hurled the corpse backward, toppling two more knights.
He leaped up and plunged down twice. Two death rattles followed in succession.
Several foes slain in moments.
But Yuri didn't slow or catch his breath.
Having absorbed an old hunter's memories, Yuri was an expert in mechanical slaughter. These relatively weaker opponents stood no chance.
He dominated his prey utterly.
Yuri provoked them further.
"Come on, this is boring. Fight for real. Feels like playing with kids."
As Yuri rampaged, the knights' entire formation crumbled.
More were diverted to stop him, easing pressure on the others.
Finally, Sibylla stepped in.
"Yuri Brioll!"
She attacked suddenly.
Yuri blocked with Guilty. The force rattled his bones—heavy.
"Calling me by my full name? Kinda cold, don't you think?"
"Don't act so relaxed."
"Wouldn't hurt your feelings if I called you Sibylla Arseint?"
"Shut up!"
Their blades clashed repeatedly.
Yuri grunted inwardly. This wasn't the Sibylla he knew.
Fast and heavy.
Not her own power—the black magic aura within her.
As their swords locked in a test of strength, something rose from her back and lashed him.
Yuri's body flew, slamming into the wall.
"Urk!"
He groaned. Pain surged everywhere, blood rising in his throat.
He spat it out, staggering to his feet, forcing a grin.
"Sibylla. Looks like you finally found your lost wings?"
Sibylla didn't answer. A tendril of black energy writhed from her back like a living thing. Black magic users always wielded those tentacle-like appendages.
"Huh, just one?"
"I said shut up!"
Yuri scanned around.
With Sibylla advancing, the knights he'd been holding off swarmed his comrades. The fight turned against them.
Reinforcements were likely coming from outside.
Any delay would make it worse.
"Haa..."
Yuri gazed at Sibylla with a conflicted expression.
Sibylla looked back at him.
Neither averted their eyes. Amid the din of battle, they stood locked in stares.
Sibylla spoke first.
"Stop staring."
Yuri burst out laughing.
"Hahaha..."
After laughing with shaking shoulders for a while, he roughly swept back his hair.
"Sibylla. Why didn't you tell me? If Larson was harassing you, you could've come to me."
"I handle my own problems."
"Still, we could've talked about it. Us."
"We weren't that close."
"That hurts."
Yuri tapped Guilty's hilt rhythmically with his finger.
The tempo quickened.
His body prepared to accelerate.
But while his flesh geared for combat, his mind lingered. Thus, Heart-Soul Severing's aura merely growled behind him.
Sibylla spoke.
"Yuri Brioll. No funny ideas. Raise your sword."
She stepped forward first.
"Wrong is wrong."
She was right.
They were no longer on the same side.
To avoid being swept away by the world's waves, they'd each struggled desperately—and ended up as enemies.
That was all.
Yuri's finger stopped.
His grip settled perfectly on Guilty's hilt.
A cold rage ignited within. Not at Sibylla, but at Cedric, who had forced them to this.
"Fine. I'll kill you all."
Yuri charged at Sibylla.