At this moment, Leo’s group of three, who had just rushed to the courtyard wall, witnessed this exact scene.
"Son of a meow!!"
Vespa, crouching on the wall, watched the monster wreathed in green fire. Her fur bristled in rage, and her tail stood straight up like an antenna.
"I knew it! I knew it!"
"You’ve got to be kidding me! So this is what was waiting for me!"
At this moment, Vespa finally realized she had been played.
No wonder the mission brief only mentioned 'assassinate the first young master' while all other intelligence was classified as top secret!
Whenever she asked, she was met with corporate nonsense like 'a soldier’s duty is to obey' or 'you’re close to becoming a permanent employee after this job'!
Damn those full-timers!
On the way here, I was thinking that any mission assigned to our Fel Special Ops would involve something from the 【Ever-Devouring Abyss】... but I investigated for ages and found nothing. I thought I was overthinking it...
I didn't expect it to actually be this damn thing!!
This isn't an assassination mission; this is a suicide-run mine-clearing operation!
The big shots upstairs knew there was a shadow of the abyss here all along. They intentionally sent an outsourced worker like her to test the waters and die!
"Old man, I knew you’d be fine!"
In the center of the courtyard, Leon, now transformed into a demon, looked at his father blocking his path. His voice sounded like two pieces of pig iron grinding together—piercing and harsh.
"Leon..."
Gareth looked at his eldest son, now unrecognizable. His eyes were filled with pain and fury.
"Why?! Just why?! The Hawthorne family has treated you well. Why would you touch such forbidden power! You are severing yourself from the world!"
"Shut up! I have nothing to say to a hypocrite like you!"
Leon let out a furious roar, the green flames in his eyes surging. "Just die!"
"Is it because of your mother?"
Gareth seemed to think of something. As he blocked an attack, his tone softened slightly. "That incident... there were hidden circumstances! Back then, I..."
"Shut your mouth! You aren't worthy of mentioning her!"
It was as if Leon's sore spot had been stepped on. He swung his claws frantically, his offensive becoming increasingly violent.
"Wait until you go to hell to explain it to her! Right now, I only want your life!"
Gareth looked at his eldest son, who had completely lost his mind and refused to listen to any explanation. The last spark of warmth in his eyes finally vanished.
In its place was the iron will of a glorious-rank warrior.
"In that case..."
The greatsword in Gareth's hand rose abruptly, and a vast pressure surged toward the sky.
"Then today, I must clean house! Leon, you should never, ever have fallen into the Ever-Devouring Abyss!"
"【Giant's Strike】!"
Boom!
This time, Gareth no longer held back.
The steel greatsword instantly suppressed the dark green Fel flames, forcing Leon’s massive body back step by step!
...
"Tsk, tsk, tsk."
On the wall, Leo watched the scene and couldn't help but shake his head.
"This plot is too cliché... A typical family tragedy mixed with the 'I'm not listening' misunderstanding trope, ending in a father-son deathmatch."
"Can't the author show some originality?"
"Hey, you stinking small fry!"
Lucrezia, standing beside him, was in no mood for a show. Her red eyes were full of unease, and her small hand gripped Leo's sleeve tightly.
"I have a bad feeling... I command you in the name of your master to drop this smelly cat immediately and leave this place!"
"You're the smelly cat! Your whole family are smelly cats!"
Vespa retorted without backing down, but her amber slit pupils were rapidly scanning the chaotic, Fel-ravaged courtyard. Her eyes betrayed an irrepressible anxiety.
Where was A-Ling? She couldn't have been swatted to death by that monster, could she?
Though she usually complained about that expressionless, busty woman stealing her credit and acting cold, at a life-or-death moment like this, Vespa’s heart was in her throat.
Until her gaze swept over a broken wall in the southeast corner of the courtyard—
There was a very faint, clean blade mark that only their internal personnel could understand. The tip pointed outward—the signal for 'mission ended, safe withdrawal.'
Furthermore, while the ground was littered with corpses, that tall figure with the katana was nowhere to be seen.
Phew...
Vespa let out a long breath, her tensed tail finally relaxing.
That heartless, expressionless woman sure knows when to bail!
Made me worry for nothing!
It’s reached a point where us outsourced guys can’t interfere anymore. Time to report back and let them send some heavy hitters to settle the score...
Having confirmed that A-Ling had safely escaped through these clues, the heavy weight in Vespa’s heart finally lifted.
With her worries gone, she turned her attention back to the more pressing issue and looked at Leo.
"I also think we should bail. That’s an abyss demon! If the Church’s Inquisition tracks us down, every single one of us will be burned as heretics!"
'Actually, even if we don't interfere, we're already basically VIP customers for the burning stake...'
Leo really wanted to say that, but it wasn't something he could explain in a few words. However, it wouldn't hurt to give the little cat a warning and test her reaction.
"She doesn't understand, but don't you?"
Leo looked at Lucrezia and pointed at Gareth, who was currently pinning down and pummeling his son.
"With such a huge commotion here, the Church is definitely going to investigate. If they accidentally stumble upon us, aren't we finished?"
Leo continued his analysis.
"So, we have to help him. It's called providing help when it's needed most."
"As long as we help him settle this matter, he’ll owe us a massive favor. Having a local power like him to cover for us will save us countless troubles later on."
"Are you sure... he’ll think you're helping him?"
Vespa looked at Gareth, who was nearly beating Leon into a pulp, and her mouth twitched.
"That baron looks incredibly fierce. He doesn't seem to need help at all..."
"Speaking of which, what exactly is your background? Why are you so afraid of..."
Before Vespa could finish, a sudden change occurred!
"Curse you! Old man! Why are you still so strong?!"
In the courtyard, Leon—who had been sent flying by a sword strike that sheared off half his shoulder—let out a desperate and venomous roar.
He realized that even with the help of demonic power, he still could not scale the wall known as his father.
"In that case... then don't blame me!"
"Sacrifice!!!"
Leon slammed both claws into the ground and chanted a pre-prepared, incredibly vile incantation.
"Buzz—!!!!"
In an instant.
In the West District of Kent Town—the most chaotic and impoverished area, and the headquarters of the Black Tail Gang—countless blood-red pillars of light shot into the sky without warning!f
The magic circles already laid out there were instantly activated!
"Agh—!!"
Thousands of poor citizens and gang members, currently dreaming or partying in taverns, didn't even have a chance to react. Their life force was instantly drained by the arrays, turning them into mummified corpses!
That was the life force of a quarter of the city!
This massive, suffocating blood-colored energy instantly crossed space and poured frantically into Leon’s body!
"Hahahaha! Power! This is power!!"
Leon’s already terrifying body began to mutate once more!
His size swelled to five meters, the bone spikes on his back transformed into burning wings, and the original dark green flames were now laced with a heart-stopping blood red!
"Get lost!!"
Leon swung his hand casually.
Bang!
Gareth, who was about to press his advantage, didn't even see the movement before being sent flying by an irresistible force!
The glorious-rank powerhouse was like a cannonball, crashing through three thick courtyard walls and getting buried in a pile of rubble.
"This..."
On the wall, Leo, who had just felt things were 'stable,' nearly had his eyes pop out.
"Oh no! There's actually a damn Phase Two!?"
Rate on N.U.
