Chapter 160: [160] Defeat

By the time Ark got to the edge of the stage, Cain’s transformation had come undone. He was in a pool of his own blood, and blood dripped down his mouth as he slowly stared up at Ark.

Although in this form, Ark was shorter than him, right now, to Cain, he was like a mountain that towered above him. The line he still could not cross.

Ark bent down and placed his wand right underneath Cain’s chin. The gem was still hot, so his blood sizzled on contact as the gem began to glow.

Cain felt helpless. His arms were too weak to move, his mind was still a haze of thoughts, even his breathing came out hoarse and distorted.

This was the end for him. Cain knew it, he could feel death calling him. And in that moment, he could not help but reflect on his life, on his decisions, on everything...

What had his life been about? Why had he tried to kill Ark? What were his goals?

When no answers came to him, Cain realized just how empty of a man he had been.

"W-what are you waiting for?" Cain could see Ark’s glowing orbs staring intently at him. "Do it. I... I would have killed you without hesitation," he managed to spit out.

"..."

"DO IT!!"

Ark scoffed, and then Cain felt bony fingers atop his head. So was that the way he would die? His head crushed to mush—

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted as Ark ruffled his hair roughly, before placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I guess you owe me your life now?"

Ark got up to his feet, his cloak swaying in the air as he turned around and began walking away.

[Harvest successful! You have successfully received B-Rank skill, Poison Ash!]

Cain simply stared at his retreating figure, his mind completely clogged and confused... unable to believe what he had just witnessed.

He tried to think, but his vision dimmed, just before he fell flat on his face. His clan members were upon him barely seconds later, the healer already pouring mana into his body.

"Hmm." Ark sighed. "That was a good fight..."

Although Cain had been irritating from the first day they met, a selfish bastard that likely didn’t even deserve to live...

For whatever reason, when Ark saw the look on his face as he demanded death, almost begging for it, Ark could not bring himself to kill him.

It felt... wrong.

He glanced up at the stage where Ares stared at his brother, with darkness swirling in his eyes.

Seeing Ares, seeing the relationship he had with his brother made Ark wonder how Cain had been brought up.

Ark may have been poor, but he was brought up surrounded by the love of his parents before their deaths, and after that he was smothered by his sisters.

Did Cain even have a home? Did he have anyone he could rely on?

Normally, at the verge of death, most people would think about the people they would leave behind. The thought of leaving them was usually enough to make them fight, or even beg for their lives.

But all Ark saw in Cain’s eyes was regret, emptiness and grief. He did not have anything to lose.

Ark turned back to stare at him. Today, he had been lenient, but they would inevitably clash in the future.

If Cain chose to be an obstacle... Ark’s eyes darkened as he crossed his heart... then he would have no choice but remove him.

Soo-min still couldn’t believe what she had seen. She tried to make sense of it, an artifact? A hidden class?

Nothing could explain how a skeleton could not just prevail over a holy knight, but a demonic warlock...

She glanced at her sister. How had she been able to find a talent like him this early? From her reports about the tutorial, Soo-jin had added him to her team from the beginning, meaning she must have known, or at least had an inkling.

"Hmm." She let out a breath, her eyes narrowing slightly. "It is rather disappointing that the Order heir is still alive."

"But."

She nodded at Soo-jin as she got to her feet. "You found yourself a good ally. Make sure to keep a hold on him." Her voice dropped. "Or you will inevitably lose him."

Soo-jin stared at her sister in disbelief. Did Soo-min just give her advice?

She had been under the impression that her sister was the type to say nothing even if she was at the edge of a cliff.

While she was still stunned, Soo-min turned around to leave and Soo-jin hurriedly got up and bowed slightly.

"Thank you, Eonni..."

Soo-min paused.

Soo-jin heard her sister’s breathing deepen for a second. Her fingers twitched by her sides, and then she spoke, only that this time, her voice was far softer than anything Soo-jin could remember.

"Will you still hold on to your childish goals?"

"... yes."

Soo-min shook her head and began walking away. "Then you will die, Soo-jin. Can you also see that in your future?"

She did not wait for Soo-jin to respond before she walked away, leaving her alone with Isabella and Satella.

"Miss Soo-jin." Isabella held her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"Let’s go down to meet Ark," Soo-jin replied, walking in the opposite direction her sister had gone.

<••>

"I knew you were good, kid, but to beat Cain!" Lady Freude chuckled as she wrapped an arm across Ark’s shoulders. "I knew I was right to invest in you!"

"You say that, but you were nagging that he was going to destroy your investment by losing..." Tristan smirked.

"Hey! That was meant to be a secret among friends, you snake!"

Ark sighed, then stared at Tristan. "Someday, I will put you in that position as well. I haven’t forgotten."

Although Ark clearly did not like him, Tristan was adamant on acting chummy, as though that night had not happened, as though he had not sent assassins to eliminate Thalia...

Tristan seemed mildly amused by his threat. "You will need ten... no... twenty... no... fifty years before you will be able to beat me, shortie."

"Hey, I am not short—"

Just before Ark could explode in rage, he heard Soo-jin’s voice from the side.

"You really have a talent for captivating the crowd, don’t you?" She walked forward with elegant, cat-like steps, her crimson gown immediately drawing Ark’s attention.

Admittedly, his eyes lingered a little lower for longer than necessary, before they settled on her twinkling eyes.

"You have just raised your reputation among hundreds of top-ranking players." Soo-jin smiled. "Are you sure you didn’t plan this entire duel?"

Ark would have rolled his eyes if he could. "I may be a troublemaker, but I am not that big of a troublemaker..."

"So, how did I do?" He glanced at Isabella.

She smiled and gave him a big thumbs up, unable to hide her excitement as she fist-bumped the air.

"You did excellently well! That serves him right for what he did to Soo-jin, hehe!"

She seemed to have enjoyed watching Ark beat Cain so much that her normally reserved personality had wavered.

Ark raised his hand in a high-five position and she immediately clapped it, while grinning wide.

Even Satella seemed pleased.

’I guess they didn’t really like Cain...’

Since the duel was over, the players were returning to the main hall, after all, the party never even got to start before they were interrupted by the duel.

"I guess we should join them." Tristan pocketed his hands as he walked side by side with Lady Freude, moving towards the hall.

Soo-jin, on the other hand, hooked her hand around Ark’s, as usual, and then they followed after them...