Novel Full Chapter 291: Final Strike - 2
Chapter 291: Final Strike – 2
Chapter 291: Final Strike – 2
“Well, he can void his contract with a beast anytime,” one professor said.
“But wouldn’t that require the consent of the beast? And I’ve heard his beast doesn’t listen to him… though I doubt that’s true…”
“Hmph. If a beast remains disobedient for long, just kill it. We can always repair a damaged soul. Since he is a Low 4-star individual, his beast must be an Intermediate 4-star or, at best, a High 4-star. The presence of a 5-star expert like us can easily stabilise his soul and prevent any fatal damage. After that, we can heal his soul. But… kekeke, I’ll first make him sign a contract so he provides me with benefits when he gets stronger. A payback for helping him when he was weaker.”
Hearing that, many other professors began to entertain similar thoughts.
“Nulling a contract is his choice. No one will interfere with his life. If, after learning everything, he still wants to remain like that, that’s his choice,” Brant said, his voice calm, yet firm enough to be heard by all.
Some tried to argue, but quieted down the moment they saw the cold glare in Katherine’s eyes.
“Tsk. A 4-star bum hiding behind a woman…” one muttered under his breath.
“He’s not even supposed to be here…” another added quietly.
“I don’t even know why he has the authority of a professor.”
“Tsk. Nepotism. Big brother is a vice principal, wife is a top-tier professor—and he himself a bootlicker of the principal.”
As always, Brant’s real power remained hidden, known only to a select few. It was done to prevent disasters. Whenever Brant was stationed somewhere, it was made known that he was only a 4-star assistant professor, luring enemies—usually demons—into making a move. And when they did, they were met with an unexpected outcome as Brant wiped them out.
It wasn’t just him. Many others operated the same way, all personally selected by the principal for their trustworthiness.
Down below, Leon’s Soul Power finally ran out, and his body began to revert.
Claws and fangs retracted, his height returned to 6’4″, and his strength sharply diminished. All the damage he had endured during the soul fusion—though reduced in size—became concentrated, making the wounds cut deeper.
But that wasn’t the case for Leo.
Leo’s aura surged as he forcefully pried Leon’s hands off his neck. The misaligned bones in his neck shifted back into place with a faint crack, healing rapidly. It was at that moment Leon knew—he had lost.
As Leo began to rise, still pinning Leon down—
“Bastard! How much mana do you hav—GAH!”
Crack!
Leo’s fist slammed into his chest, the impact heavy as a spiderweb of cracks spread beneath Leon’s body across the ground.
But Leon wasn’t done yet.
Gritting his teeth, he pushed himself up and tried to create distance, forcing out whatever soul power he had left to boost his speed. But this time, even with his techniques, he was slower with soul fusion—and now, Leo matched him perfectly. The one-sided fight was gone.
Leo caught his arm mid-escape and yanked him back. Vines coiled around Leon’s feet, dragging him off balance and flinging him back toward Leo.
“Taste your own fucking medicine!” Leo snarled, driving a punch forward—but his [Critical Strike] wasn’t activated to seriously injure him.
The blow landed squarely on Leon’s face, sending him flying across the broken ground.
And then—
“Master Leo! Don’t hurt brother Leon so much!!”
The voice was panicked. Even drowned in the roaring cheers of the crowd, Leo heard it clearly.
“Surrender, you fool. Or Miho will have to work extra hours,” Leo said coldly.
Leon slowly stood up, wiping the blood and sweat from his bruised cheek.
“Why aren’t you using your full power? Scared?”
“Hmph. I don’t want my subordinate mourning needlessly after losing someone they care about,” Leo replied with a smirk, clearly teasing him mid-match.
Leon clenched his teeth.
The pain in his arm still burned from the slash wound, though it had dulled over time. The numbness lingered, spreading slowly because of the poison.
He shook that same arm.
“Maybe I should use this one… the poison makes it hurt less…” he muttered, though the movement was noticeably slower.
Leo lunged forward, unleashing a barrage of punches. To the audience, it looked relentless. Whenever Leon dodged, Leo’s attacks slammed into the ground instead, sending tremors and cracks through the arena, maintaining the illusion of full force.
Katherine sighed softly.
“So he does understand the slow healing, huh?” she said, watching Leo’s attack pattern—the deliberate ’misses’ and the strikes Leon seemed to ’masterfully’ evade.
By now, Leon’s body was covered in light bruises, along with the earlier dagger wounds. His breathing had grown heavy. The damage to his soul had already eaten into his stamina.
“Huff… huff…” Leon panted as he continued to exchange blows.
“Give me a fatal blow, idiot… or I’m not surrendering,” he said between breaths.
“Nope.”
Leo answered simply, his charged punch grazing past Leon’s ear—another attack that Leon barely ’dodged’. It was clear Leo could end the match anytime. But if he did, Leon would suffer fatal injuries, and the temple wouldn’t be able to guarantee his survival.
Students were only teleported away when the damage became fatal. If someone was about to die from a completely pierced heart, they would be teleported the moment the heart was 3/4 pierced—ensuring they fought till the last moment while still giving the temple’s healers enough time to save them.
But that wouldn’t work for Leon.
If he were teleported after receiving a fatal wound that gave him, say, 1 minute to live, the temple would try to heal him—but it wouldn’t work. And after that minute, he would die. That was why Leo was being so careful.
Leon couldn’t help but feel a strange warmth in his chest. Not only was Leo allowing him to save face before the audience, but he was also respecting his strength—fighting with technique instead of overwhelming force, where Leon had an edge.
But then—
He saw it.
A cruel glint flashed across Leo’s face.
His fist surged with aura and was enveloped by the power of [Critical Strike]. Whatever force was behind it… It would kill him.
And right before his widening eyes—
Leo’s punch shot straight toward his face.
“NOOO!!!” Miho screamed from her seat as she stood up abruptly.