Volume 2

Chapter 40: Miss Doll’s Confusion

Nakisai Sainthue died without meaning.

From a purely objective perspective, this Grand Duke did indeed die in a conspiracy—except neither those who designed the conspiracy nor those targeted by it had intended to kill him.

He was simply unfortunate enough to be in a position where anyone would have died and so he perished meaninglessly, taking with him the three-hundred-year legacy of the Sainthue Family.

Perhaps because it was truly so meaningless, Her Majesty the Empress, in her great mercy, did not exterminate the entire Sainthue clan.

After executing the Grand Duke Sainthue, she simply lost interest.

In her great mercy, she left this group, now without a protector, to a pack of greedy, ravenous beasts.

In theory, Conrad had every right to inherit all of his father’s estate.

Regardless of titles, a son inheriting his father’s legacy was perfectly normal.

But obviously, this only existed in theory.

In reality, the beasts circling the Sainthue legacy, who would even leave Conrad a sliver of capital to rise again, could be considered merciful beyond measure.

And the former genius of the Ether Academy, once bathed in endless glory, the pride of the heavens, Conrad Sainthue... From the fact that he took his family’s name as his surname even before becoming its head, one could see how much he valued the family’s honor.

How could such a person slink away like a dog, hiding in a cold cave, day after day dreaming of resurgence and revenge?

When the Sainthue Family died, Conrad had already resolved to embrace death, but before that...

There were still some accounts to settle.

If Conrad’s sudden intrusion merely left people in a state of shock, what happened next was beyond anyone’s expectations.

The backstage of the podium was instantly reduced to ashes by towering flames, the long curtain now a cascading waterfall of molten lava.

Amid the furious shouts of a noblewoman, the temperature in the entire lecture hall skyrocketed!

In the Imperial Capital, only fifth-tier transcendents could barely escape the Empress’s suppression.

Ronggor, who seemed to have been attacked as well, almost immediately looked toward Mingfuluo on the podium, her eyes filled with urgent concern.

She stared intently at the black-robed figure that had suddenly appeared, golden molten light gathering into a terrifying pressure:

“Lunkef! Have you lost your minds! Mr. Barnes, let’s join forces—”

The next moment, the space around the three of them distorted dramatically without warning

and all three fifth-tier transcendents... vanished in an instant!

“You still have the mood to look at others?”

Mingfuluo, who had instinctively turned to check on Ronggor, heard this voice and almost reflexively activated a defensive spell.

But the blazing beam of light that struck contained such terrifying energy that it blasted her straight into the burning curtain behind her.

“...Not dead?” A low voice came from the steel puppet.

“You’re as protective of your life as ever, Mingfuluo.”

...An abnormal energy output, far exceeding the third-tier scope!

Coughing up a large pool of blood, Mingfuluo, now buried in the rubble, felt the energy-dampening necklace on her chest shatter from overload.

That seemingly plain light beam from Conrad had compressed an extremely high concentration of light elements, its instantaneous energy burst capable of evaporating its target without exaggeration—a signature technique of the Sainthue Family.

But Conrad couldn’t possibly have this level of power... That external armor on him?

A weakened version of mechanized armor?

Impossible.

The Grand Duke Sainthue at most had the ability to replicate mechanized armor from Anselm’s blueprints, not to improve it—

Boom!

The steel puppet, wielding a longsword, swung down, and the explosive beam of light pulverized everything in its path.

The entire front of the hall was nearly split in two by this strike.

Mingfuluo, hiding behind the curtain and barely dodging the blow, gasped for breath, blood from her forehead staining her gray-white glasses frame.

The numbers on the data system flickered wildly, but in this split-second crisis, its rudimentary and unrefined form was clearly inadequate.

Conrad had come with the intent to kill her, his purpose clear, his plan meticulous... He wouldn’t waste time spouting self-righteous nonsense before acting. If nothing unexpected happened, the next strike would likely—

The steel puppet raised its sword with both hands, the light flashing on the blade surging instantly, making the sword appear dozens of times larger.

Under the frantic alerts on her glasses, Mingfuluo remained motionless, knowing she could do nothing now.

Under the blinding white light that nearly seared her eyes, even from dozens of meters away, Mingfuluo felt the scorching heat that seemed to burn her skin.

Light, heat, energy... the simplest output, the purest violence.

Conrad knew his time was limited and chose the most brutal method to obliterate Mingfuluo completely.

There should be other fifth-tiers on this floor... They should make it in time.

No, they might sit back and watch me die or they could be tied up by Conrad’s people. The only one I can hope for is—

“Go ahead and perish before me, Mingfuluo Zege!”

...How laughable.

At a time like this, you’re still hoping for his rescue, Mingfuluo?

Amid Conrad’s maniacal laughter, Mingfuluo thought to herself.

The will to survive could never be wrong.

Mingfuluo certainly didn’t want her life to end so absurdly in a place like this.

But... if that fleeting thought was true, if the rift three years ago wasn’t Anselm’s true intention, did I really have the right to expect his rescue?

Or rather, why was I so certain that Anselm would save me?

Was it my value, that Anselm still intended to tame me and wouldn’t let me die, or...

Or was it, amidst last night’s frenzied desire, the words Anselm whispered repeatedly in my ear?

“Because I am the only person in this world who can resonate with you.”

I, Mingfuluo, had to admit that I trembled multiple times because of those words.

I had to admit that the reason I vented my negative emotions in such an absurd way was indeed because Anselm was the only person in this world most suited for me.

We clearly shared the same ideals, clearly had such compatibility... If Anselm’s “betrayal” back then truly had hidden reasons, if my anger and resentment were overly self-centered, then what exactly had I...

What exactly had I lost over these three years?

I didn’t know.

Before the destruction descended, instead of fear, I felt only confusion.

It was as if someone had set fire to their own house, determined to find a new place to live, only to step outside and discover the world was nothing but a vast, blinding expanse of icy snow.

Such a piercing, hollow, cold confusion.

And in that confusion, my salvation... arrived as if it were only natural.

The destructive light did not engulf me, because with a tremendous crash, the puppet’s spellcasting was interrupted.

Yes, that man wouldn’t let himself die here.

I was valuable to him and he still wanted to tame me.

But... but if, if he didn’t think that way, if he still saw me as a friend... He said before, he was still my friend—

Everything Anselm had done exploded in my mind at that moment.

The chaotic, jumbled memories and scenes kept surging.

Once the confusion and doubt began, they couldn’t be stopped.

Marina Lansmarlos, that woman’s words, were like a delayed bullet.

After Anselm’s test made me realize the strangeness between us, they shattered the mindset I had held for three whole years.

As I began to reexamine everything that had happened, I could no longer distinguish whether Anselm’s kindness was meant to tame me or if he genuinely cared for me, whether his cruelty was to make me submit or to retaliate for my betrayal.

...Yes, Anselm also said that in his eyes, I was a betrayer too.

If, if that were true, then was I—

“Got you, bastard!”

An excited, high-pitched roar shattered my thoughts.

My unfocused eyes slowly regained clarity, but there was no joy of surviving a calamity.

The complex, chaotic thoughts made it impossible for me to calm down, so only now did I realize... the one who saved me wasn’t the person I had expected.

—He hadn’t even shown up.

The wolf, who had also crashed through the ceiling, twisted her neck, looking at the massive iron lump before her, licking her rosy lips.

“That was close. I almost couldn’t answer to Anselm.”

“...Hitana Lansmarlos.”

Conrad’s voice came from the steel puppet: “Why are you here?”

“Idiot, obviously because I was waiting for you.”

Hitana crossed her arms, looking puzzled: “What, you think I came to listen to a lecture?”

“So, it was Lord Anselm’s... orders.”

The steel puppet fell silent for a moment, then let out a desolate, neurotic laugh.

“Heh heh heh... hahaha! You’re really lucky, so lucky, Zege!”

“Lunatic... I’m not here to listen to your ravings.”

Hitana looked at the steel puppet with the gaze one reserves for an idiot, her eyes burning with unmasked ferocity: “Anselm told me today I’d get to fight to my heart’s content. Though that other guy who seemed pretty strong got away, you... hm, you’ll do.”

She twisted her neck, her fists meeting her palms, a wild, ferocious smile spreading across her beautiful face:

“Come!”

The wolf beast, still far from achieving the path to emperorship, took a step forward.

Whether it was the savage aura emanating from her or the tremor caused by that single step, it sent fear surging in people’s hearts.

In Hitana’s eyes, the greedy flames of hunger burned fiercely:

“So you better... satisfy my appetite!”

Bang!

A sharp, piercing explosion rang out in the hall.

The girl, who had been standing still, broke the sound barrier in an instant.

The extreme speed amassed a force like an unstoppable tidal wave.

Before one could even blink, her tall, athletic figure was already in front of the steel puppet.

Her long, powerful leg swept upward, the muscles on her thigh bulging visibly even through her black leather pants!

Boom boom boom—

The four-to-five-meter-tall, seemingly indestructible steel puppet was sent flying by Hitana’s sweeping kick.

Its massive form plowed a trench through the ground, kicking up billows of dust, before crashing and embedding itself into the wall on the other side of the hall.

On the other side, Hitana glanced at her leg, which was bent at nearly ninety degrees, broken in a horrifying manner, barely held together by muscle.

She grabbed the lower half of her broken leg and forcefully jammed it back into place, hissing in pain before muttering while rubbing her neck: “Pretty tough, not easy to deal with, but...”

In just four or five seconds, she stomped her broken leg on the ground, casually kicking it a few times and bouncing in place twice.

Under the dual enhancement of her terrifying physical talent and the Head of Wind, the ghastly injury had nearly healed in mere seconds.

“Break a few more times, and it’ll be fine!”

The wolf beast laughed maniacally as she charged forward.

Her footsteps thundered like lightning, her entire body roaring as she closed the distance in an instant to the steel puppet she had kicked dozens of meters away.

Almost simultaneously, a blazing, dazzling beam of light shot toward her.

The aura sensed by the Head of Wind made Hitana sneer contemptuously.

Despite her full-speed charge, she seemed to predict the future, nimbly twisting her body to dodge the beam, not even letting it graze her clothes.

The monster, growing through pure violence, was once again in front of the puppet, her primed iron fist crashing down!

The sound of breaking bones was drowned out by the clash of steel.

Hitana’s expression shifted slightly.

The puppet’s hardness far exceeded her expectations.

Her punch only dented the thick armor by a few inconsequential centimeters, while her striking hand—palm and wrist bones included—was essentially shattered.

Before she could throw a second punch, the puppet erupted with blinding white light.

Her acute danger sense made Hitana kick off the puppet, leaping back dozens of meters.

The dazzling light radiated from the puppet, blinding even Hitana, but the Head of Wind’s perception wasn’t affected by mere light. She instantly sensed that this guy... was trying to attack Mingfuluo directly.

“Dream on, you bastard!”

Hitana roared furiously: “Be a good opponent and face me!”

Her speed outpaced the puppet’s light cannon’s charging.

Without hesitation, the girl’s uninjured fist smashed into the steel armor’s head, another massive metallic clash echoing through the hall.

The light cannon, disrupted by Hitana’s heavy blow, veered off toward the ceiling.

“Get in the way!”

Hitana shouted without looking back: “What are you still doing here? Get out, don’t interfere!”

After saying this, she threw another punch at the increasingly deformed steel armor, her expression ferocious: “Either beat me and then kill her, or get beaten to death by me now... There’s no—”

Her fists clenched into a hammer shape, raised high above her head.

Every muscle in her body tensed, channeling immense force through her spine to her arms.

With a roar, she brought down a hammer fist wrapped in explosive, terrifying power!

“—third option!”

Sss!

The expected boom didn’t come.

Instead, Hitana’s forearms and fists were stripped of a layer of flesh by an instantaneous light cannon, causing the strike’s destructive power to plummet.

“It seems Lord Anselm is using me as a whetstone for Miss Hitana.”

Conrad suddenly spoke: “If that’s the case, I won’t resist anymore. How about a fair duel, you and me?”

Hitana, both hands nearly carbonized, froze for two seconds before nodding vigorously with uncontainable joy: “You’re pretty honorable! Alright!”

She leaped back a dozen meters, opened her palms, relaxed her muscles, then suddenly clenched her fists.

The bulging muscles shattered the carbonized tissue, exposing raw flesh and even bone, while muscle fibers wove back together at a visible, astonishing speed, repairing her arms.

“A fair duel, oh... and this thing!”

Hitana walked to where the steel armor had been kicked, picked up the metal longsword likely used as a spellcasting medium, and tossed it forcefully to Conrad in the distance.

By the time this action was complete, her arms had nearly fully recovered.

“That’s more like it... Come!”

Hitana, brimming with excitement, looked at Conrad, who raised the longsword, ready to fight her like a true warrior: “Let’s keep going!”

This was the battle she craved, the slaughter she yearned for, a hunt... of true value!

In the ruins, I, Mingfuluo Zege, watched Hitana ahead, that monster who could fight above her tier with such intensity yet still hold her own, even slightly dominating.

Just looking at that profile, I could feel that spirited, triumphant air.

The same spirited air I once had.

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