LHAHS Chapter 539
Velkia, caught off guard by the unexpected counterattack, got back on her feet. There was no serious damage, but for a brief moment, she had glimpsed Kyle's shadow.
Master.
Still, she couldn't fully accept what she had seen.
"What did you just say?" she spat.
Leo pointed at himself with his finger. "I."
Then, in a blunt tone, he pointed at Velkia. "You."
And indifferently declared, "Master."
Even at those words, Velkia only looked at Leo with lifeless eyes. "Utter nonsense," she sneered coldly.
She won't believe it. Of course, she wouldn't.
It was an absurd claim. In that case…
"I just have to prove it." Leo spread his palm.
Wooong…!
As mana surged from Leo's hand, Velkia's expression turned wary.
Hwaak…!
Soon, amidst the snowy ruins, a single flower bloomed.
Velkia's eyes widened.
One flower, then another, and soon, an entire field of blossoms spread across the area.
Velkia's eyes trembled. "A spell… that makes flowers bloom…"
There was no way she could forget this magic. How could she ever forget the face of her master, smiling brightly amidst a field of fully bloomed flowers?
Velkia's hands trembled. No… This can't be… This isn't…
Then, in that moment, an elemental appeared above Leo's outstretched palm.
Velkia gasped. "Elemental magic?"
At last, from the sword in Leo's hand, a gray aura flared.
Magic, elemental summoning, and aura manipulation.
Velkia knew all too well what that meant.
"All… Class…" Muttering in a trembling voice, Velkia once again met Leo's gaze. Behind him, the image of someone overlapped vividly in her mind. "M-Master…"
There was no way she wouldn't recognize him. The Magic of Blooming Flowers, the abilities of an all-class master and even his stance.
Too many undeniable truths were pointing to Leo as Kyle.
"Urk!" Velkia clutched her head.
Leo took a step toward her.
Step— Step—
At the same time, Velkia stepped backward. "I-I don't want this…"
"Velkia."
Step— Step— Step—
"Don't look at me…!"
"You did nothing wrong."
"This is different from back then! Don't try to understand me!" Velkia shrieked, as if in convulsion. Seeing her master look at her with understanding eyes only accelerated her collapse.
Leo clenched his fists. He knew that his presence alone couldn't bring Velkia back.
She had already crumbled too much. It was too late for her to lean on someone.
She wouldn't have leaned on anyone, no matter how difficult it was.
That was how Leo had taught her. To walk forward alone, never relying on anyone.
"Ahh!"
The hatred burning in her heart was unbearable. The thought that her master would be disappointed in her wretched state was agonizing.
Velkia squeezed her eyes shut, trying to suppress the madness boiling inside her.
Then, her eyes snapped open, and she lifted her head and looked at Leo.
"Master." Still trembling, Velkia whispered, "Punish me… Please punish me."
Step— Step—
Velkia walked toward Leo. "I have become an undead abomination… I tried to destroy the world you saved… Please, punish me."
There was only one person. The only one who had the right to judge her sins. The one who had sacrificed everything to protect the world…
Being killed by Kyle was the only way she could escape this torment.
Leo looked at Velkia. "Running away is an option, too."
Velkia's face relaxed slightly, but Leo's next words froze her in place.
"Throwing yourself at the father you looked up to, asking him to kill you, and feeling relieved, suuuuure, that's one way to go, Velkia."
Velkia's body trembled violently, like a leaf in the wind.
She had realized. If her own child were to ask her to kill them, what would she feel?
Her stomach churned at the thought, and her self-loathing grew even deeper.
Thud…!
"Ahhh…" Velkia lifted her head and let out a choked whimper, but as she began to lose control, she let out a scream filled with pain, "AAAAAAAAAAH!"
Her mind faded into the distance. Overwhelmed by emotions she could no longer contain, her reason vanished and in that moment, her eyes met Leo's.
Again, those eyes. Eyes that looked at her with pity… with sorrow… as if they understood.
When was it? The first time her master had looked at her with those eyes? Since when? Since when had she started thinking of her master as a father?
As her mind drifted away into darkness, Velkia lost consciousness.
"Leo!" a desperate voice rang out.
Leo turned his head to see Lunia, Eiran, and Chen Xia rushing toward him, their faces pale.
"What about Lady Velkia?!" Lunia asked urgently, her voice trembling.
Leo replied, "Her mind has collapsed."
Lunia and Chen Xia's faces hardened, while Eiran's face turned ghostly white.
"She's about to lose control."
"T-That can't be…" Eiran looked at Velkia, horror creeping into her eyes. "W-what should we do…?! What can we…!"
"Don't worry," Leo reassured in a calm, detached voice, his gaze locked onto the now-mindless Velkia.
From the start, he had never even considered giving up. That word didn't exist in his dictionary, but…
Even if I wanted to give up… If you look at me with those eyes, how could I?
Leo clenched his hand into a fist. Etched in his mind was Velkia's face just before her consciousness shattered, her terrified, pleading eyes fixed on him.
She had only ever shown such fear once before.
At that time…
That day, too, had ended with an unbearable training session.
"KIIIIIIIIK!"
"If someone heard you, they'd think a wild animal was being tortured."
Kyle looked down with a bored expression at Velkia, who lay sprawled on the ground, glaring at him like a feral beast.
His training was nothing but relentless repetition. Swinging a sword endlessly while chanting magic incantations over and over again, the most basic of basics.
For the past two months, Velkia had been trapped in this endless cycle of hardship. Unless she successfully wielded her sword and recited her magic for an entire day without failing, she couldn't move on to the next stage.
At the start of the day, when her stamina and divine power were plentiful, it was easy, but the longer Kyle's training continued, the more grueling it became. As stamina and divine power drained away, mistakes inevitably crept in.
Kyle's task was brutally simple yet excruciatingly difficult.
For Velkia, whose desire to grow stronger burned fiercely, his training was nothing short of torment. He also showed no mercy despite her struggles and pain.
No matter how rough her life had been, wasn't she still a child? The way Luna and Aaron treated her and the way Kyle did were night and day.
Kyle never gave Velkia a shred of warmth. No, if anything, he was cold and ruthless.
If Velkia tripped during training, Luna or Aaron would rush to help her up. Kyle, on the other hand, would simply wait for her to stand on her own, only to immediately knock her down again.
That was why Velkia despised Kyle. She knew his training made her stronger, but following him was unbearable.
Before she realized it, night had fallen.
Slumped on the ground, Velkia mumbled, "I'm hungry…"
She might have to go without food until tomorrow. At this hour, Luna and Aaron would be asleep and there was no way that the Kyle standing before her would prepare a meal for her…
"Eat before you go."
"Huh?" Velkia blinked in surprise and looked up at Kyle with wide eyes.
Kyle asked with his usual bored tone, "Do you not want to eat?"
"If you're offering, I'll eat."
Velkia was an orphan. She would never refuse food just because she disliked someone. She had learned better than anyone that she had to eat whenever the opportunity arose.
Getting to her feet, Velkia followed behind Kyle as he walked ahead.
Maybe Master Kyle is actually a decent person?
That thought crept into her mind naturally, but the moment she realized what she was thinking, she scowled at herself.
Calling someone a good person just because they gave her food? Ridiculous.
Shaking her head furiously, Velkia's heart swelled with defiance and irritation.
This guy is a bad person.
Of course, it didn't take long for that thought to change.
Master Kyle is a Good Person.
Velkia bit down on her fork, her face glowing with happiness, but then she gasped, her eyes widened in realization, and she shook her head frantically.
No, no! Just because he's good at cooking doesn't make him a good person!
As Velkia struggled with her thoughts, Kyle, watching her devour her food, asked in exasperation, "Luna and Aaron don't feed you?"
No, no. He really is a good person. I'm sure of it.
"They do."
"They probably think it's a nutritious meal since they made it themselves." Kyle clicked his tongue, unimpressed. "They should just buy proper food."
Mmhmm! Velkia unknowingly nodded to herself. It felt like an irreverent thought to have toward the masters who showered her with endless love, but the food Kyle had made naturally led her to think that way.
As she ate, Velkia looked around Kyle's house.
It was barren. It didn't feel like a place where someone lived.
"Master Kyle, there's nothing in your house."
"It's so I don't get attached," Kyle replied flatly.
"What do you mean by that?"
"If you have a place to return to, you get attached. And if you get attached, you'll have regrets in the end."
Velkia was too young to understand those words, but she could tell that Kyle's face, as he said them, looked somewhat lonely.
Clatter-
She put down her fork and asked, "Can I sleep over?"
"If you're done eating, go."
Velkia pouted her lips. "Stingy."
Thud-!
"Something's weird," Luna remarked.
"Why are you calling all of us except Kyle and saying that?" Dweno asked indifferently.
Luna slammed the table with a bang. "Velkia keeps going to Kyle's house for meals! Cooking for Velkia is one of my greatest joys!"
Lysinas tilted her head in confusion. "That is strange. Why is that? That child doesn't even like Kyle much, does she?"
Watching the two women, Dweno said, "You truly don't know the reason?"
"Dweno, do you know why?" Lysinas asked, looking puzzled.
Dweno gazed at her as if she were truly pitiful and answered, "Isn't it because Luna's cooking isn't edible, so she's eating at Kyle's place instead?"
"Ah! That makes sense!" Aaron nodded in understanding.
"You old fossil! What's wrong with my cooking?! Compared to your dishes, mine are works of art!"
"Don't insult art. And my cooking is a product of originality. Besides, unlike yours, it at least looks decent." Dweno smirked. "Rather than eating your or Lysinas's food, I'd rather grill a monster's meat raw and eat that."
Lysinas and Luna used magic to restrain Dweno.
"You first?"
"No, let's do it together. I'll take the face."
"I'll take the solar plexus."
"Hit me all you want. Only your hands will hurt."
Even as he was beaten, Dweno remained unfazed.
After a brief commotion, Luna said seriously, "Alright. So the reason is that Kyle's cooking is better, huh? Then from today on, I'm going to start practicing cooking!"
"Being Velkia's parent must be exhausting."
"Huh? Do Luna and I look like parents to her?"
"Aaron, get a hold of yourself. I was talking about Kyle. Do you really want to look like parents alongside… this?"
"No."
"You bastards, seriously!" Luna swung her staff wildly at Dweno and Aaron.
Shaking her head at the scene, Lysinas turned to look outside. There, Velkia was following closely behind Kyle.
Watching that scene, Lysinas nodded to herself.