Chapter 158: A Sudden Scream
Chapter 158: A Sudden Scream
After staring blankly at Jenny for a few seconds, Leon reached out, pinched her cheeks, and gave them a gentle twist.
"You little brat. Are you messing with me?"
"Ouch, ouch, ouch!" Jenny cried, swatting at his hand. "What? Is it too difficult?" Her question completely caught Leon off guard.
"You’re actually serious?"
"What do you mean?" Jenny puffed out her cheeks after he let go. "Don’t you want to help? Cooking is a lot of work, you know. If the pots and pans become weightless too, it’ll make my job much easier." She spoke with complete innocence.
Leon stared at her for a moment before letting out a long sigh.
"Fine. I’ll make them lighter another time."
Jenny’s face lit up instantly. "Thank you so much, Brother!" She happily gave him a quick peck on the cheek before returning her attention to the knife, completely oblivious to the defeated expression on Leon’s face.
She admired it excitedly, turning it over in her hands again and again.
Leon could only smile helplessly. ’Stupid girl.’
Noira chuckled softly within Leon’s soul sanctuary. "It’s only natural for her to react like this, Master. She has no idea what you’ve actually accomplished. Only those who regularly use magical weapons and artifacts or deal with them can truly understand its value."
"She’s adorable, though." Frenrir added.
’She is,’ Leon admitted inwardly.
Once the commotion finally died down, Leon returned to his room and sat at his desk.
"Only four more days until the finals begin.... I should study a bit. I need to do good in the exams as well."
With that, Leon forced himself to focus on his studies. He remained seated at his desk for nearly an hour and a half before finally losing his patience.
"Ugh..." He closed the chemistry textbook in front of him with a frustrated sigh. "I really hope I don’t fail chemistry."
Inside the Soul Sanctuary, Noira and Frenrir exchanged glances before quietly suppressing their laughter.
After giving up on studying, Leon summoned the pitch-black claymore and resumed practicing the Third Form of sword art breathing.
More than three hours passed in the blink of an eye. Only then did he lower the sword.
"Concentrating my power is finally starting to make more sense..." Leon thought. "But this third requirement — perfectly aligning the attack — I still have no idea how long it’ll take to master."
He stood up and stretched his stiff body.
"By the way. Ever since I formed a soul bond with you two..." Leon suddenly said, clearly meant for Frenrir and Noira. "Something has been bothering me."
"What is it, Master?" Noira asked.
"I don’t know." Leon frowned. "It feels like I’ve forgotten something important."
"Perhaps you’ve simply been too busy lately," Noira replied calmly. "That may be why you have that feeling."
"Maybe."
Leon tried to remember if he was forgetting something but couldn’t. He then let it go and came out of his room.
The day passed quickly. After dinner, Leon tried studying again. An hour later, he gave up once more and returned to training before finally calling it a night.
The next two days passed much the same way.
College in the morning.
Training after returning home.
And whenever he could force himself to, a little studying in between.
On the second-to-last day before the finals, Leon and Henry were walking home together after classes.
"Wait... you’re joining the military training camp too?" Leon looked at Henry in surprise.
Henry rolled his eyes. "Hey, what’s with that expression? Just because you’ve become ridiculously strong doesn’t mean you forgot I’m an awakened too, right?" He puffed out his chest proudly.
"I’m already a peak F-Class Knight. I’m only one step away from reaching E-Class."
Leon laughed. "Yeah, yeah, I know. But I thought you wanted to become a scientist. After all, your academic scores are the second-highest in our entire batch. Why the sudden change?"
Henry scratched the back of his head with a sheepish grin. "We’ve been together since school. I thought it’d be nice to tag along. Especially now that you’re soaring higher and higher.
Maybe some of your luck will rub off on me, and I’ll become strong too."
Leon burst into laughter. "That was a good one."
Henry shrugged. "Maybe. But I really do want to try becoming a hunter." He looked ahead with determination. "Let’s hope it works out."
"Yeah. Let’s ho—" Leon stopped mid-sentence. A terrified scream echoed from somewhere in the distance.
"Nooo! Help!"
Both Leon and Henry instantly turned toward the source of the cry.
Leon’s expression changed dramatically.’Jenny?’ The name flashed through his mind.
The next instant...
He vanished.
His speed was so terrifyingly fast that Henry couldn’t even catch a blur. One moment Leon was standing beside him...
And the next...
He was gone.
Henry’s expression stiffened. Without wasting another second, he, too sprinted toward the direction the scream had come from.
Leon reached the source of the scream within seconds. The moment he arrived...
His blood ran cold.
Veins bulged across his forehead as his eyes turned bloodshot.
Jenny lay sprawled on the ground, her clothes stained with dust and blood.
Beside her, Cecilia was in an equally miserable state. Blood trickled down from a cut on her forehead while another wound on her arm continued to bleed.
Surrounding them stood ten figures dressed in black uniforms with their faces completely concealed.
They looked like members of an organized faction... or perhaps a notorious guild.
But none of them drew Leon’s attention.
His gaze locked onto the lone man standing at the center with his back facing him.
The instant Leon sensed his aura, his heart sank.
The pressure radiating from the man was suffocating.
Even from dozens of meters away, Leon could clearly feel the overwhelming gap between them.
’He’s strong... Far stronger than even Stanley Cooper.’
A single conclusion surfaced in Leon’s mind.
’A Disaster-Class Knight.’
Leon’s expression grew colder than ice.
"Who are you?" His voice echoed across the silent street.
No one answered. The masked figures silently turned to look at Leon.
Only the man standing at the center remained completely still, never once bothering to turn around.