"Should I take that as a threat?" Frea asked with a smile, her arrow now aimed squarely at Leon's head.
"Frea… this is madness. You can't just kill someone because he said 'no' in a rude tone," Ludric said, his voice firm and brows furrowed.
"I know," she replied casually. "But something about this guy just pisses me off. I can't explain it… and I'm not in the mood to ignore it. So today, either he apologizes—or he dies."
She didn't lower her bow and continued to aim it at Leon's forehead.
"She's joking. Just walk away, she won't actually shoot," Bela said in a neutral tone, her eyes watching Leon.
"Bela… you ruined the fun," Frea pouted, finally lowering her bow. "I bet he was about to say sorry."
Leon tilted his head slightly, a faint smile forming. "You might want to raise that bow again. Because now… I'm feeling pretty damn annoyed.
And don't Loose Grip on it..."
The bow slipped from Frea's hand before she could've reacted.
"What the—" She immediately lowered her hand in order to catch it but Leon already raised his fingers at her, his eyes sharply looking at her open hand.
"I want her fingers." Leon spoke with a serious expression.
In an instant, the pitch-black blade hidden in his pocket flew out and shot forward like a shadow.
Slice. Slice. Slice. Slice.
In a blink, four of Frea's fingers were severed cleanly by the Nyxter's blade.
Leon curled a finger, and the blade snapped back to him.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
The dismembered fingers hit the dirt just as Frea's scream tore through the forest.
"AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! MY FINGERSSSSSSSS!"
She dropped to her knees, her eyes locked in horror at the blood gushing from her hand.
'She crossed a line. There are people I don't like—but I usually let it slide. Because they're nobles, or because killing them isn't worth it.
But the moment she pointed that arrow at me… I knew. If I let this go, something worse would happen in the future.' Leon thought with a serious expression as he looked down and noticed that her party had already moved into formation.
The tank—Max—stood in front, shield raised. The healer, Bela, was behind him, and the mage, Ludric, had already begun chanting a spell.
'Typical. These guys have only ever fought dumb monsters. They've never faced someone with intelligence.
Why would they take that formation in front of me ?' Leon thought with a confused expression.
Leon took a step forward, his voice calm but cold.
"Do you think I'm some mindless monster that's going to bash against your shield and wait for your mage to finish casting?" Leon asked with a serious expression as he looked at the tank.
"You attacked our teammate first," Max growled. "So we'll respond the same way."
"Before you do that…" Leon said, casually raising a hand, "you might want to check on your healer."
"What?" Ludric's eyes widened as he turned his head—only to freeze.
The Nyxter's blade hovered silently, just a centimeter away from Bela's throat.
"I-I-I don't want to die… Please save me, God," Bela whimpered, her eyes shut tight and hands pressed together in desperate prayer.
"W-We surrender! Don't do anything to her!" Ludric shouted, dropping his wand to the ground.
The moment it hit the dirt, Max let go of his shield and mace as well.
Leon calmly recalled his blade, sliding it back into his pocket like nothing had happened.
"Good, I'll be taking my leave now. And If you don't want her to lose those fingers permanently, reattach them and cast a healing spell on them, maybe it will work." Leon spoke with a neutral expression as he turned and began walking away.
"W-What…?" Max blinked in confusion, not quite processing what Leon had just told them.
"Do it," Ludric ordered, his voice hard as he looked down at Bela.
"Y-Yes!" she responded quickly, running over to Frea and carefully picking up the severed fingers.
"L-Ludric… he… he sliced them off. H-He hacked all of my fingers…" Frea sobbed, trembling as she stared at her hand.
"Oh, Mother of Healing… please grant me your mercy and restore your child." Bela started chanting as she placed the fingers back on her hand.
As soon as the skill was casted, A faint golden light surrounded Bela's hands. Slowly—almost miraculously—the severed fingers began to reattach, tissue knitting themselves together.
"T-This is incredible…" Max whispered, his eyes widened in shock. "I've never heard of this kind of recovery method before…"
"Why would he chop off her fingers and then tell us how to reattach them?" Ludric muttered, still baffled.
"You guys… We have to take revenge," Frea hissed, tears streaking her face as she turned to Ludric. "We have to kill that bastard."
"Kill him ? Didn't you see how that blade sliced through your fingers like paper? That thing's too dangerous." Max spoke with a serious expression as he looked at Frea.
"Max is right," Ludric added. "He's strong. And you were the one who provoked him first. If you had just let him go, we'd be tracking that damn monster by now."
"W-What…?" Frea stared at them in disbelief.
Meanwhile, Leon walked calmly back toward the dungeon, his expression unreadable.
'That was some damn good sharpness, he thought, pulling out the blade and examining it with a satisfied smile. Sliced through her fingers like a knife through vegetables. I knew Gerald was the right guy to forge this.' Leon thought as he cleaned the drops of blood from the blade.
"Human…" A heavy voice came from behind as a massive shadow fell over him.
"What the—" Leon turned, his eyes narrowing.
Behind him stood a monstrous feline, towering and sleek. Its pitch-black fur shimmered like ink, but its three white tails lashed the air with menace.
Long fangs jutted from its mouth, dripping with saliva. Its glowing green eyes locked onto him like a predator sizing up prey.
[Author: I also want to thank Kai writer151 for the biggest donation last week.] ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹·𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑒·𝗇𝗲𝘁