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nLiam instantly took out his Rank 2 Jade that Samuel had given him, imbuing it with ‘Ora’.

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/

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nIt was well past midnight, and the night was soon to recede.

nClouds started to form and grow in the sky, churning up a thunderstorm.

n“It’s time for the rain to start pouring again.”

nOutside the colosseum, Samuel and a few other head guards sat across from each other, discussing the events of the tournament.

n“I have to say, I never expected a peasant to win this year…” a burly, tall, stern man said – donning a violet robe associated with Rizt – taking a sip from his mug.

n“I bet we’ll start seeing some changes around these regions.”

n“One thing is for sure, peasants will no doubt grow ambitious and hungry for power.”

n“We’ll see strengthened regulations for techniques now too. Damn rascal, made it difficult for us all.”

nSamuel chuckled, but some bitterness could be seen in his eyes.

n“That kid is just something else. The demon mask does well to represent him.”

nSamuel himself was quite proud of Liam’s achievement, especially since he did it with a pair of blades and a few low ranked spells.

nCultivators had respect for power, no matter how brutal and scum-like they were.

n‘He’ll have more than one target on his back, though,’ Samuel thought, taking a sip from his mug.

nAbruptly, his Jade started to glow.

nHis eyes widening, Samuel instantly answered it.

n“Help! Plea—” Liam’s weak and desperate voice rang out from the Jade, abruptly cutting off.

n“Everyone inside, now!” Samuel bellowed, his thunderous voice echoing past the other families.

nCondensed wind gathered behind the head-guard to form two streamlined wings, whirring as it fluttered him across the celebratory hall.

nThe Royce family soldiers followed closely behind – the remaining head-guards seeing that reaction turned stern, shooting towards the commotion.

nSeeing their familial soldiers entering their space, the nobles grew confused and panicked.

nSamuel was the first to arrive at the victor’s chambers, his senses stretching to their limits – his mental waves were dulled considerably by the privacy inscriptions, and he couldn’t properly assess the space.

nSamuel punched once through the large doors, his eyes widening in shock.

nThe Royce guards arrived shortly after, their mouths opening incredulously, unable to hide the shock in their eyes and the hurling of their stomachs.

nIan was lying dead on the floor, his body desecrated beyond recognition. Elsa’s head was separated from her body, her neck spurting blood.

nJacob was lying limp with a see-through gap in his head.

n“What… what is this?” uttered Samuel, mortified.

nHis eyes fell on the window.

nThe pane of glass was shattered, indicating a break-in.

n“I want this place secure. Notify Miss Lisa, I’m heading towards the western forest!” Samuel commanded, before his wings fluttered, sending him shooting outside with incredible speed.

nUnbeknownst to everyone there, a servant was heading in the opposite direction, slipping past the focused, marching guards and exiting the corridors.

nThere was no way Liam could leave through the main entrance, which is why he left through the back gate.

nIt was a small spot the servants used to discard their trash, and there was nothing but trees up ahead.

nLiam picked up his speed, hiding his presence and turning into a streak.

n‘Fleeting Foot!’

nBefore long, he was dashing through the tree line like a Shadow Panther, pushing his limits with the Fleeting Foot spell to get as far away as possible.

nLiam felt multiple emotions welling up. Nearly twelve years in the same city, countless memories and losses. He hadn’t even said goodbye to Rogan and Lloyd.

nBy the end, Liam’s lips turned to a resolute smile.

n‘I’m finally free!’

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/

/

/

nWithin the grand hall, a churning anxiousness started to gain intensity.

nLisa Royce had a tense scowl on her face as she followed the trail of guards heading towards Liam’s room, her brothers following closely behind.

n“Move!” she shouted, shoving away the apologetic soldiers blocking her view to the room. 𝗼𝐯𝐞𝐥．𝐜𝐨𝗺

nHer eyes widened with disbelief as she stared at the scene before her.

nHer niece decapitated, her nephew mutilated, her half-blooded nephew without a core in his abdomen – all were mummified, their rings looted.

nLisa covered her mouth in shock, a knot curled in her stomach as she felt like puking.

nAdrian entered the room a moment later, his trembling brows furrowed before his stomach emptied its contents.

nRichard was the first to enter the room, his eyes flickering with hard anger.

nHe wasn’t too disturbed by the mutilated bodies. As the eldest, Richard was subjected to harsh training by Edwin. He was even stronger than Samuel.

nAll eyes converged on Liam’s corpse.

nLiam’s hands were wrapped tightly around a pair of black blades, bloodstained and riddled with cracks on its surface.

n‘At least he won’t be a problem anymore,’ Richard thought, inspecting Liam’s body further.

nThere was no doubt about it… the peasant was dead.

nA moment later, a pair of Ovlar family nobles – along with other ruling families – arrived at the scene, followed closely by hundreds of soldiers.

n“The Blood Demon has returned!” Jacob’s mother shrieked, afraid to even approach her son’s desecrated corpse. “That cursed devil!”

nKevil Ovlar, Jacob’s father, shifted his incredulous gaze from the scene and looked towards Richard and his siblings.

nAnger grew on his face, and his eyes narrowed.

n“Our Patriarch will require answers,” his voice cracked, a poor attempt at hiding his grief and fear.

nRichard coldly scoffed and spoke with a stern tone:

n“You think ours won’t?”

nKevil gestured for the guards to leave, promptly turning around himself.

n“This won’t end well for your city. Our feud was never one of vicious hostility,” Kevil stated, before turning around to leave. “Expect that to change.”

nRichard scoffed and shook his head as Adrian approached Elsa’s and Ian’s body, kneeling and crying on their corpses.

n‘I doubt father gives a damn about those two,’ Richard shifted his eyes to Liam’s. ‘It’s him he’ll get angry for.’

n‘No use worrying about it now. There will be some political backlash, but we’re safer off with the boy dead.’

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