Chapter 206
Chapter 206: The Defeated Knight
Gwen stared intently at Safirose before her, her expression unimaginably grave.
No wonder—from the very beginning, she had sensed the aura of a Magical Creature.
At first, she had assumed it was a Magical Creature that had invaded the Clavena Manor.
That's right—Gwen had recognized the person standing before her.
That monster who had appeared within the Magical Creature Rift.
Why was she here?
Gwen solemnly raised her blade, the sword's body trembling faintly as radiance began to gradually envelop it once more.
She addressed Leah and Heni behind her, her tone carrying the weight of a warning:
"Leah...prepare to flee. I'll hold her off."
"And find a way to notify Viktor to come back."
Leah watched Gwen behave with such intensity and solemnly gave a nod.
"Understood."
If Gwen was saying as much, it meant the woman standing before them was absolutely not someone to be trifled with.
At that moment, Leah lowered her gaze to the Mage's Hand fitted on her own hand.
She did have a way to call Viktor back directly, but...
The magic Viktor had stored for her was far too devastating—whether in damage or range, it ranked among the very pinnacle of 3rd-Tier spells.
If released here, the entire manor would likely be destroyed.
For now, she couldn't do that.
In the blink of an eye, Safirose had already launched her attack.
Her silhouette moved across the floor at terrifying speed, the long blade in her hand poised and ready, about to be drawn.
【Iai Cleave】
The same technique as last time!
Gwen's eyes widened, locked onto the cold blade surging toward her.
That flash of white swept past Gwen's face in an instant, stirring a gust of wild wind.
In the blink of an eye, Safirose had already appeared behind Gwen.
That streak of cold light blazed to life, and the terrifying pressure and sense of crisis transformed into a gust of wind that shot straight up Gwen's spine.
But...Gwen was not the least bit afraid.
Last time, she had been able to take the blow.
And this time, she could do the same.
Gwen gripped her longsword with both hands, the aura around her body simultaneously climbing without cease.
Radiance surged and swirled between her palms without pause, her silver-white hair fanning loose at the same moment, dancing wildly through the air like silver serpents.
【Silver Knight's Stance】
The radiance in her palms began rushing at blinding speed toward her four limbs, a surge of warmth spilling from within her veins.
She pivoted sharply and brought her longsword up before her.
In an instant, the crimson blade and the long blade collided, detonating in a massive shockwave.
Every pane of glass in the vicinity was utterly shattered. Metal screamed against metal, sending vibrations rippling outward.
Yet Gwen could clearly feel that her own strength was slightly outmatched.
Feeling her power gradually suppressed, she had no choice but to retreat a step, flicking her longsword upward to deflect the silver long blade from Safirose's hand before stepping back several paces.
Gwen readjusted her grip on the longsword, reset her stance, and the gaze she fixed on Safirose grew several shades more grave.
She had grown stronger than before—back in the Magical Creature Rift.
And at that moment, Leah, who was keeping Heni sheltered at her side and watching the battle, couldn't help biting her lip.
"What on earth is Cocotte doing?! A Magical Creature walks right in plain sight and she doesn't even think to stop it?!"
"Is she still sleeping?!"
Meanwhile...
In the garden of the Clavena Manor.
Cocotte lay sprawled atop a massive flower bud, deep in blissful sleep.
All of a sudden, she sneezed.
"Achoo!"
She blinked, roused from sleep, and rubbed her eyes in a groggy daze, just about to drift off again.
But through her bleary, half-open eyes, she suddenly caught sight of a furtive, cloak-wearing figure slipping past in front of her.
That Demon Hunter froze in place as well, turning his head to stare blankly at Cocotte.
Their eyes met. A beat of silence.
It was the Demon Hunter who broke it first, offering a greeting.
"Uh...hello?"
Cocotte smiled and gave a polite nod in return.
"Oh, a Demon Hunter."
The next second, the soil beneath them began churning rapidly, the very ground trembling faintly.
The Demon Hunter glanced down, sensing the dirt beneath his feet shaking and shifting.
Without warning, a vine burst violently upward, tearing through the earth and coiling around both of the Demon Hunter's ankles, hoisting him high into the air.
He thrashed his body madly, struggling without cease.
"Useless. Stop struggling."
Cocotte let out a yawn and extended a hand, beckoning the cloud over.
That puff of white cloud swayed and drifted toward her, nearly veering the wrong way and colliding with the garden wall.
Cocotte tipped herself sideways and flopped onto the cloud, floating over to the Demon Hunter's side, watching him in silence.
"You came all this way specially to boost my performance metrics?"
"Thank you so much."
Cocotte was in a good mood, and couldn't help humming a little tune.
Just thinking about capturing a Demon Hunter who had snuck into the Clavena household—Viktor and that vicious little sister of his were sure to praise her.
That way, next time something came up, she could use this as justification and demand time off with complete confidence.
Cocotte lay face-down on the cloud, burying her face in the white fluff, sinking into a blissful daydream.
But all of a sudden...
Boom—!!!
A thunderous explosion erupted from within the manor. Cocotte shot upright at the sound, blinked, and turned back in a daze to look at the Demon Hunter still bound in midair.
"Did you Demon Hunters change careers?"
"You're not catching Demons anymore, just demolishing other people's houses now?"
......
Gwen and Safirose continued their high-speed battle, the pace of both so swift the naked eye could barely track them.
Their auras climbed without cease, and virtually everything inside the house had been reduced to wreckage.
The curtains that had fallen to the floor caught fire, and roaring flames began to spread.
Yet barely even a minute had passed.
Gwen's crimson blade swept and swirled without pause, clashing over and over against the long blade in Safirose's hand.
Sparks flew.
Leah and Heni huddled to one side, watching the 2 of them fight in heart-pounding dread.
Watching furniture shatter all around them, they were both bleeding on the inside.
This was all money!
But the most pressing matter was getting Heni out of there first, then using the Mage's Hand to call Viktor back.
With that thought, Leah turned to look at Heni behind her.
"Heni, come with me first..."
But she stopped where she stood.
Heni was wearing a blank, dazed expression, staring at the spot where the 2 were fighting, lips moving over and over in a murmur:
"She...she actually has wings..."
Heni's mind had gone completely blank.
The instant Safirose appeared, she had recognized those familiar eyes.
But what stunned her even more was—
Safirose had a pair of wings growing from her body!
Heni was utterly thrown.
She knew there had been something visibly protruding from Safirose's back beneath that cloak.
At first, Heni had assumed Safirose was carrying something on her back—a pack, perhaps.
Or maybe...some kind of physical condition...
She had even imagined the worst-case scenario.
But she had never, not once, considered—
That Safirose's body, just like hers, was hiding a great secret!
They were actually 2 drooping wings!
No wonder her strength was so immense, her movements so swift, even the concentration of her Magic Power so chaotic and disordered.
Because Safirose was not human.
Heni brought herself back to the present and looked toward the battle ahead.
Gwen and Safirose were trading blow for blow.
The 2 of them grappled relentlessly, their blades clashing against each other again and again.
The sword in Gwen's hand charged with power over and over, meeting Safirose's techniques head-on each time.
In the instant that cold light flashed, the great sword wreathed in flame always managed to intercept the blade in the final split second.
Using the flames to force open a gap between herself and Safirose with a backhand slash.
Yet the massive impact was still enough to set both her hands trembling faintly, her figure retreating several steps.
But the blade in Safirose's hand showed no sign of stopping—on the contrary, the frequency of her attacks only grew higher and higher.
Heni could plainly see it.
Gwen was losing ground, step by step, beneath the torrential assault Safirose unleashed like a flood.
Safirose was truly formidable.
Heni slowly raised her head, her eyes filled with worry.
She curled her hand into a fist.
And then Leah's voice rang beside her ear:
"Heni—that thing...do you know it?"
No one could look at Safirose right now and still think she was human.
Every time Safirose swung her blade, those black-and-white wings at her back swept open in tandem.
Like a completely cold-blooded Magical Creature, every last scrap of remaining reason existing solely to kill the prey before her.
Hearing this, Heni's expression faltered.
Before she could respond to Leah, a tremendous crash of impact exploded from the battle not far away.
Thud!
A shockwave tore outward, and with it, Gwen was sent flying several meters.
Her body lurched and twisted through the air, landing on the floor in a stumble.
The gap in power was too great.
Before Gwen could reset her stance, Safirose launched another attack.
Those wings beat without pause, and the white silhouette, trailing a gleam of cold light, tore through the space between them and flashed directly in front of Gwen.
This time, Gwen didn't even have time to raise a defense.
Yet just as Safirose's attack descended—
【2nd-Tier Magic: Azure Crystal Veil】
In an instant, a blue curtain rose from beneath Gwen's feet, then spread and expanded rapidly, wrapping entirely around her.
Like a veil of smoke and mist, the curtain billowed and churned. Safirose felt her long blade connect as if she were hacking into a soft, yielding cloud.
She eased her force back, flipped her body, planted a foot on the blue mist, and used its elasticity to propel herself several meters back, putting distance between herself and Gwen.
Within her eyes, an unspeakably complex emotion flickered.
A Whitelist character was protecting a Blacklist character.
【Unable to comprehend—】
Heni had raised one hand at that moment, bent forward, breathing hard.
The blue makeshift Formation behind her lit up, then began to gradually collapse, having intercepted one dangerous strike on Gwen's behalf.
"Just...made it..."
She couldn't cast magic without chanting as easily and swiftly as Professor Viktor could.
So this timely barrier spell had placed no small burden of Magic Power on her.
She felt as though the strength had been drained from her body, leaving her unbearably fatigued.
Safirose held her blade aloft, her gaze carrying incomprehension as she looked at Heni.
Just now, if she had wanted to, she could have broken that barrier.
But she didn't.
Because at that moment, Heni had already met her gaze.
And spoken, her voice slow and steady:
"Safirose..."
"Stand down."
【Whitelist character request detected—】
【Whitelist character request takes priority over Blacklist elimination】
【Command—Execute】
Safirose's expression grew complex, and she looked at Heni once more.
"I...only wanted to..."
【Protect you】
The words had barely faded when Safirose had already sheathed her long blade.
Beneath the bewildered gazes of everyone present, she beat those great wings open, stirring a fierce gust where she stood.
The next second, she shot like an arrow straight toward the heavens.
In an instant, she vanished from the spot.
And the others—Heni included—watched Safirose's departure in silence.
At that moment, a puff of white cloud drifted over.
Cocotte surveyed the manor around her—now resembling a ruin—and leaned against the wall, poking her head inside.
Taking in the complex, grave expressions on Leah and the others' faces, she looked utterly baffled.
"Hm? What happened?"
At the same time.
Gwen pressed a hand against her own arm and looked up through the shattered glass.
She stared at the moon hanging in the sky, then sank to the floor in a sudden slump.
She reached into her armor and drew out the 2 white feathers she kept hidden within.
As though unwilling to accept it, she tightened her grip ever so slightly.