Chapter 73: An Owl and a Lion

I completely healed the Owl, letting go of his head as I took position on the edge of the roof, making sure nothing else was watching.

Evelina, meanwhile, talked to him, who was still lying on the floor, surprised at the sheer strength with which he was slammed down.

But he seemed to get over it the moment he had heard Evelina’s voice, nodding often as she explained what she wanted for the villain to do.

’This feels wrong on so many levels…’

I laughed, not because it was morally wrong… no, I’m already way past something like that.

But, because bullying an important villain from a novel’s arc and letting him do our bidding was strange, especially since I already knew the outcome.

It was like playing a linear game, but in your second playthrough, a book was misplaced.

“Go, don’t disappoint me.”

Evelina finished her explanation, and the Owl hurriedly scurried off to his feet as he immediately jumped into the dark alley.

He was excited to say the least…

“What’d you tell him…?”

“I just gave him more instructions on how to mess with the powercouple some more…”

“Does that perhaps include…?”

“Yes, if possible, the disappearance of Lillian.”

“And what about Julius?”

“I leave it up to him on how he’ll take care of him.”

The disappearance of Lillian… usually, her saying that would mean death, but in this case, it’s more like a temporary exile.

Having her long-time rival and source of so many irritations disappear so suddenly in the dead of night wasn’t a satisfying conclusion to their feud.

*** Back Alley

“Are you okay now, Lillian?”

Julius set her on a nearby pile of crates, allowing her to rest while still healing her with his magic.

“Yeah, just… the world rotating all around you is definitely a bit nauseating.”

She laughed, trying to lighten the mood, and it did. Julius seemed to calm down for a while. That is… if another problem didn’t come.

And it sure as hell is coming.

TAP!

[Light Displacement]

Julius moved as soon as he heard the sound of footsteps in the alley; his sword, made out of light, was already prepared to kill whoever it was.

CLANG!

“Sorry for the sudden disappearance.”

The Owl chuckled, breaking the sword lock by kicking Julius on the chest, sending him skidding backwards across the stone floor.

“Let’s dance again, shall we?”

The two of them lunged together, both planning to land a decisive hit.

At least, that’s what Julius thought.

“Pathetic, you really are a bastard.”

The Owl laughed the moment the two of them got close, and instead of clashing with Julius, he just weaved past him.

FWOOSH!

“What…!?”

Julius struck the air harmlessly, the Owl running past him and to where Lillian was resting.

’Lady D’Arclight told me to break their will before I return to my original plan… shouldn’t be hard enough.’

The Owl thought to himself, his rapier primed and ready, but Lillian was no slouch either.

Already recovering and had spells in the ready just in case of an ambush.

[Ice Wall]

The Ice Wall erupted in front of Lillian just as the Owl attempted to slash at her with the rapier. The metal blade clanged against the frozen barrier, sparks flying off as the magical construct held firm.

“—Huh!?”

The Owl stumbled back slightly, surprised by her quick recovery, though he quickly regained his composure.

“Not so fast,” Lillian hissed, shaping the ice into jagged shards ready to impale him if he dared approach again.

[Ice Spike]

[Ice Spike]

The Owl, still fully under Evelina’s direction, moved around the ice wall, trying to bait Lillian into making a premature move.

His attacks were precise but intentional, forcing her to overextend or hesitate.

Making sure she made as many mistakes as possible to break her ego and self-confidence.

Julius, meanwhile, had repositioned himself behind the crate pile, watching carefully. He could sense the subtle manipulation now, the Owl moving not for lethal strikes, but for… irritation?

“Why is he… not attacking to kill?” Julius muttered, eyes narrowing.

He could see the difference in his fighting style, from having fun and playing with them to outright calculation.

Lillian’s concentration wavered as she noticed the pattern in his movements as well, but before she could act or adapt to it.

The Owl feigned a retreat, then lunged back toward her, making her fire off an ice shard uselessly.

’As long as I can keep the pressure up, I can humiliate them without issue.’

[Light Guardian]

Julius joined in on the fight again, this time rendering Lillian impenetrable with his magic.

But… Evelina already gave the Owl a counter to that annoying spell.

Bluffing…

“Think that saves her…?”

“What are you talking about!?”

The Owl snickered, throwing a poisoned dart in Lillian’s direction.

Normally, Julius wouldn’t move to save her; he already has his spell that actively blocks projectiles.

But…

He couldn’t risk it.

[Light Displacement]

Julius teleported in front of Lillian, redirecting the poisoned dart.

But the Owl already expected it, his rapier now inches away from Julius’s chest, imbued with enough dark magic that it could even bypass his advanced defensive spell.

Not that he had much dark magic in the first place, he was a spellblade, yes, one of the few ones in the entire city.

But he relied on secondary items for magic; without it, he was just a plain fighter with a little magical talent.

’Idiot!’

[Light Whip]

’Huh…?’

SNAP!

The Owl’s rapier was suddenly snatched by a whip of pure light, ripping it from his grasp and leaving him unarmed just a step away from Julius.

“W-Wait…!”

THUD-CRACK!

Julius kicked the side of the Owl’s head so hard that it not only shattered his jaw but also carried through with enough force to slam the other side of his head against the wall.

The Owl fell to the ground with a whimper of pain, blood leaking out of the sides of his even more broken mask, showing a glimpse of his right eye.

“The hell…?”

I frowned while Evelina and I were still observing.

I knew he was a prodigy, but… did he already develop a counter to close-range fighting styles like mine when we fought back in the tournament?

“He got stronger just by fighting me that briefly…?”

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