Chapter 232: Chapter 232 – Three Hundred Enemies

The building had been deserted for a long time. Its walls were cracked, its roof had holes in several places, and its floors were covered with debris and trash. But from the fourth floor, there was a clear view of the underground entrance Eldertree had just passed through.

A woman with golden hair stood near a broken window. Her face was beautiful, graceful, like a goddess descending from a painting. Her white dress shimmered softly even in this filthy place.

And beside her stood a man with a white cloth covering his eyes, his long hair neatly arranged behind his back. His posture was upright, calm, like a tree unshaken by storms.

They were none other than Delilah the Star Witch and Zephyr the Divine Archer.

Zephyr smiled faintly. “I didn’t expect to catch such a big fish.”

From the beginning, he’d known there were two traitors within the Guardian Council. Black Dragon and Eldertree. But he wasn’t sure about other members—perhaps there were more, perhaps not. That’s why he’d only included Delilah in his plan. To maintain secrecy.

When he killed Black Dragon, he’d planted silent surveillance devices on all of Eldertree’s communication devices. The logic was simple: with the death of their infiltrator within the Guardian Council, the Abyss Syndicate would surely contact Eldertree to find out the reason behind it. And he was right.

But he hadn’t expected Eldertree to lead them directly to the main headquarters.

Delilah turned. “How many are gathered there?”

Zephyr was silent for a moment, sensing. His eyes were indeed covered, but his vision—his true vision—was sharper than anyone’s.

“About three hundred people,” he answered quietly. “This appears to be their main base. They’re holding a meeting—probably discussing Black Dragon’s death.” He paused, then added, “And from their energy signatures, there seem to be six high-ranking members there.”

“Six high-ranking members,” Delilah repeated. “So what’s your plan?”

Zephyr explained calmly. “You go in alone and attack. Capture two or three of the leaders—bring them back alive for interrogation. Meanwhile, I’ll kill everyone else from here.”

He raised his hand. From his palm, white light began to gather, condense, forming a bow.

It was clear even from a glance that this was no ordinary bow. It was made of pure light, gleaming with an intensity that hurt to look at.

Delilah stared at the bow for a moment, then nodded. “Alright. I’ll capture them.”

She turned, ready to leave.

“Wait a moment.”

Zephyr’s voice stopped her. Delilah glanced back, eyebrow raised.

Zephyr hesitated. For the first time, something unusual showed on his face.

Finally, he said, “One of the leaders… there’s a woman named Yumi.” He paused, searching for the right words. “Please capture her alive.”

Delilah looked at him with curiosity. “Why specifically her?”

Zephyr exhaled. “There’s something I need to ask her.”

It was an answer that didn’t really answer, but Delilah didn’t press. She simply nodded.

“Fine.”

From within the light in his hand, a broom materialized. The broom shimmered with a soft glow, its handle carved with ancient runes, and its bristles seemed made of starlight.

Delilah leaped onto the broom, hovering briefly in the air, then shot away. Her white dress fluttered in the wind, her golden hair gleaming under the sunlight streaming through the broken roof.

Zephyr watched her go, then exhaled slowly.

He could sense Yumi’s presence there. That woman… that woman was a spy from the Abyss Syndicate. Sent to seduce him. To get close to him. To extract information.

All this time, Yumi had never done anything suspicious. Never asked about important matters. But her presence here, at the Abyss Syndicate’s headquarters, was undeniable proof.

Zephyr felt as if he’d been betrayed twice. By the same woman. He was angry. Frustrated. But beneath that, there was something else—something he didn’t want to acknowledge.

He raised his hand to his face. His fingers touched the white cloth covering his eyes.

Then he removed it.

The cloth fell softly, revealing what had been hidden all along.

Horizontal scars around his eye sockets—deep, rough, jagged cuts from sharp objects. The wounds stretched beneath his brow, across his eyelids, over his upper cheeks. As if a cruel blade had carved the same place repeatedly, leaving marks that would never fade.

And then both eyelids opened.

His right eye was blue like a clear day sky, while his left eye burned red like twilight on the western horizon.

And in both eyes, the iris and pupil were split in two. Four perspectives. Four ways of seeing the world. All contained within a pair of ruined eyes.

Zephyr raised his bow. Arrows of light formed at the string’s tip.

He aimed.

Not in one specific direction. Not at one specific target. He aimed in all directions at once, because with his split eyes, he could see everything.

Three hundred sixty-two people down there. Five leaders. And Delilah, who had already entered the area.

Time for action.

He drew the bowstring.

Light filled the room.

.

.

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Meanwhile, several hours before that raid, the crowd was still enthusiastically focused on the matches at the Aegis Grand Colosseum.

In the arena, the battle raged on. I stood with heavy breathing, my body covered in wounds, fatigue settling into every joint. Eight consecutive fights had drained my stamina, but there was still one more Arclight representative to face before Leonhardt.

From the Arclight bench, a woman walked down into the arena. Her dark red hair blazed like fire, flowing long to her waist. Her sharp green eyes stared at me with a mixture of determination and anger. Her red robe billowed as she stepped forward.

Roselyn Calderose. Pyromancer, A-Rank.

She stopped at her position, the fire in her hands growing larger. Her voice rang out loudly across the arena.

“You monster! I’ll stop you right here!”

The Host declared with undiminished enthusiasm, despite having been speaking continuously.

“ROSELYN CALDEROSE, A-RANK PYROMANCER FROM ARCLIGHT ACADEMY, WILL FACE ADAM SOCHERON WHO HAS ALREADY DEFEATED EIGHT OF THEIR REPRESENTATIVES! THE QUESTION IS, WILL ROSELYN SUCCEED IN BREAKING ADAM’S WIN STREAK? OR WILL ADAM CLAIM HIS NINTH VICTORY? DESPITE HIS BODY BEING COVERED IN WOUNDS AND FATIGUE, HIS SPIRIT REMAINS UNBROKEN!”

The referee raised his hand. “THE MATCH… BEGINS!”

Before I could even move, Roselyn attacked.

Both palms thrust forward, and from them, a massive torrent of fire shot directly at me. The flame was so huge, so hot, that the air around it vibrated and the arena floor began to melt.

BOOOOM!

I leaped to the side; the fire struck where I’d stood a second earlier, creating a massive crater in the floor with smoldering edges. The heat was palpable even from several meters away.

“ROSELYN UNLEASHES A DEVASTATING FIRE ATTACK RIGHT AT THE START! SHE’S GIVING ADAM NO CHANCE TO BREATHE!”

I didn’t wait. I charged forward immediately, sprinting toward her. On my chest, [Aegis Pendant] activated—a transparent energy shield enveloped my body, protecting me from the searing heat.

Roselyn saw me approaching. She smiled faintly.

Just as [Mindrender] was about to strike, she vanished.

I slashed at empty air. To my right, Roselyn reappeared, her palms already charged with another massive fireball.

I spun, ready to activate [Aegis Pendant] again. But at the last second, I hesitated. The pendant only had two uses left—I needed to save them for critical moments.

Instead, my foot slammed hard into the floor.

CRASH!

The arena floor cracked, shattered, and I hoisted a large chunk of marble as a shield just as Roselyn’s fire struck.

BOOM!

The fire hit the marble chunk, shattering it into fragments that scattered everywhere. But I’d already moved sideways, dodging most of the heat.

“ADAM IS USING A PIECE OF THE FLOOR AS A SHIELD! CREATIVE! BUT HOW LONG CAN HE LAST?”

I caught my breath. My body ached, not just from the fire, but from all the wounds covering me reacting to the high temperature. Sweat poured down, blood from countless cuts flowed more freely.

From my left, another fire blast shot toward me.

I smashed the floor again, lifting another chunk as a shield.

BOOM!

The chunk shattered, but I survived.

From the left again, before that last blast had even fully dissipated, I’d already anticipated it.

I didn’t wait. My foot kicked the large floor chunk I’d just lifted—it shot forward like a projectile straight at Roselyn.

Roselyn was surprised. She leaped aside, dodging the chunk, and in that moment, I charged forward, using another chunk as a moving shield.

“WHAT—?!” Roselyn couldn’t react in time.

I reached her position, [Mindrender] raised, but she’d vanished again.

From the left, she reappeared, her palms charged with another massive fireball. She leaped into the air, ready to unleash flames from a higher position.

I threw [Mindrender].

The black saber shot forward like a javelin, spinning through the air. Roselyn was forced to redirect her fire blast to deflect it. The sword bounced away, but its tip still managed to graze her arm.

Blood sprayed. Roselyn winced, but she didn’t stop. The fire in her hands still grew larger, ready to be unleashed.

But I was already before her.

I lunged with maximum speed, my exhausted body pushing itself for one final attack. Roselyn saw me, her eyes widening, and in panic, she released a fire blast directly at me.

No time to dodge. No floor chunks left.

[Aegis Pendant] activated.

The transparent energy shield enveloped my body just as the fire struck. The heat was incredible—I could feel it even through the shield, but the shield held.

And within that protection, I lunged forward.

My fist slammed into Roselyn’s stomach with all my remaining strength.

WHAM!

Roselyn was sent flying. Her body spun through the air, then slammed into the invisible barrier at the arena’s edge with a loud BAM. She fell to the floor, unmoving, unconscious.

The Colosseum fell silent.

Then, like a breaking wave, cheers exploded.

“ROSELYN CALDEROSE CANNOT CONTINUE THE MATCH! VICTORY GOES TO ADAM SOCHERON! HIS NINTH CONSECUTIVE VICTORY!”

I stood with difficulty, my body swaying. My breath came in gasps, blood flowed from over a dozen wounds, and exhaustion nearly brought me down. My eyes turned to the Arclight bench. To the only remaining representative.

Leonhardt Halstrom.

He sat with a serious expression, his sharp blue eyes fixed on me. His hand gripped his sword’s hilt, but he didn’t move. Beside him, their instructor placed a hand on his arm, then smiled bitterly.

They knew. With nine losses and only one representative left, there was no way they could win. Even if Leonhardt somehow defeated me, there was still Yukie, Isabel, Nerissa, Maximus, and others.

Cheers filled the Colosseum. Three hundred thousand spectators stood, applauding, chanting my name.

I straightened my body, trying to appear upright even though I felt like collapsing. My gaze shifted to the Nine Stars stands.

Yukie sat calmly, her face expressionless. Her pale blue eyes regarded me with something I couldn’t read. It was hard to guess what was going through her mind.

Not far from her, Isabel sat with folded arms. Her face was still pale, but there was something different in her eyes.

He’s playing around, Isabel thought inwardly, watching the man in the arena. He’s enjoying this. All these fights, all of this… he’s enjoying it.

Despite my battered body barely able to stand, there was deep satisfaction within me. Seeing their defeated faces, one by one, was a sweet achievement. I’d dreamed of something like this for a long time.

But this fight wasn’t over yet.

There was still Leonhardt. Still one more representative who hadn’t descended.

I stared at him, challenging him.

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