Chapter 214

Herriot's will, tempered by years of hardship and discipline, fought back against the aura's influence. With a roar that was part defiance, part exertion, he forced the blade to steady. He didn't parry this time. Instead, he met Evelyn's charge head-on, sidestepping at the last second and pivoting on one foot.

His [Resonance Blade] became streak of silver light when spun, channeling all his remaining mana into a single, devastating strike.

It wasn't a clean cut but a brutal, hacking blow. The energy blade met Evelyn's neck and shoulder. There was no blood or gore spraying, only sound of tearing flesh and severed bone.

Evelyn's head, still grinning madly, flew from her shoulders in a clean arc. It landed with sickening thud several meters away on sandy floor, eyes blazing undimmed hatred.

Her body stumbled few steps back, claws still twitching, before collapsing. Then came grisly sound, her limbs began to detach, sliced through by the same blow that severed her head.

Her headless torso fell apart, arms and legs tumbling to ground like discarded doll parts.

Incredibly, Evelyn's head remained alive, rolling slightly on the arena floor. Her mouth opened, spewing obscenities. "You… fucker!" she gargled, spittle flying from her lips. "I'll rip… your guts… out… and wear them… like scarf! I'll… find… your family… and…"

Herriot, breathing heavily, lowered the [Resonance Blade] but kept it active. He approached the rolling head, looking down at it with mixture of disgust and grim satisfaction.

"You're a persistent little pest, I'll give you that," he said, wiping sweat from his brow before glancing around at the cheering monsters, then back down at the talkative head. "But even the dead can be silenced."

He raised the blade again, ready to finish the job. The cacophony of the arena fell into sudden silence when a voice, calm and resonant with power, cut through the noise. "Alright, playtime's over."

Herriot froze, his [Resonance Blade] stopped. That voice sent involuntary shudder down his spine, a primal recognition of immense power. Slowly, he lowered the weapon and turned towards the source.

Lyssandra stood at the arena's edge, arms crossed, looking down at the carnage, her expression of mild exasperation.

'That woman again!' Herriot thought, his single eye narrowing in undisguised hatred and fear. Memories of this dungeon, the helplessness, flooded back.

"I just left for a while…" Lyssandra sighed, surveying the severed limbs and headless torso twitching, "… and you all made a mess already. Honestly."

She strode into the arena, her boots kicking up small puffs of dust. Reaching down, she scooped up Evelyn's detached head by its long white hair, holding it aloft.

Evelyn's grin widened, her eyes glittering with perverse excitement.

Lyssandra's expression turned to one of utter disgust. Without hesitation, she brought her other hand back and delivered a sharp, open-handed smack across Evelyn's pale cheek.

THWACK!

The sound echoed in the stunned silence.

"Ah~!" Evelyn moaned, her eyes fluttering closed in apparent ecstasy. "Yes! Harder! More!"

"You pathetic masochist," Lyssandra muttered, tossing the head aside like discarded trash. It landed in sickening, wet thud close by.

Lyssandra turned her attention to Herriot, circling him like predator. Her blue eyes held dangerous glint, calculating.

"You know…" she murmured, her voice carrying weight that made the air feel heavy, "... I spared your life for a reason, didn't I?"

Herriot stood his ground, though tremor ran through his broad frame.

"I don't care!" he roared, his voice hoarse, full of conviction. "Just kill me if you want! My sword art will never fall into the hands of the Kingdom's enemies! You hear me, monster freak?"

His knuckles were white, his scarred face twisted in snarl. The declaration rang with desperate bravado, but beneath it, Herriot knew, lay a terrifying reality of the power before him.

Lyssandra leaned in close to him, her breath hot against his ear. One slender finger traced the cool, smooth surface of his glass eye. The contact sent jolt of primal fear through the old warrior.

"How is your eyesight?" she whispered. "Is the world clearer now?"

Herriot stood rigid, his remaining eyeball fixed straight ahead, jaw clenched so tight it ached. He refused to acknowledge her, to give her the satisfaction of his terror. But the tremor in his hands betrayed him.

"That was just a small price," Lyssandra continued, mock sympathy dripped from her voice. Her finger continued its gentle, tormenting journey over the artificial orb. "A tiny payment for daring to invade my home. My sanctuary."

Herriot's breathing grew ragged when memories flooded back.

He saw himself, kneeling inside prison cell, paralyzed by her gaze. A crude wooden fork, usually used to spear chunks of meat, was gripped tightly in his own hand.

He could only watch, helpless, while his arm moved at agonizing slowness. The point of the fork approached his right eye. It pressed against the orb, pressure building until pain exploded inside his brain.

Slowly, excruciatingly slowly, the fork sank deeper, piercing delicate tissues, grinding against the back of his eye socket. Tears of blood and agony streamed down his face.

He saw his hand, shaking but relentless, withdrawing the fork just as calmly, prolonging the excruciating torment.

He didn't understand why. In his mind, vague images swirled – a past mistake, a betrayal… but they dissolved before he could grasp them. Only the pain remained, searing and absolute.

And finally he understood. She did this. This terrifying woman, she invaded his mind, twisted his memories, forced his hand. She stole his eye and replaced it with this cold, dead thing.

"I will… never…" Herriot grated out through clenched teeth, his voice raw with suppressed fury and fear. The [Resonance Blade] flickered and died in his hand, vanishing as his concentration shattered. "Never… yield."

His remaining eye flickered to Lyssandra's face, filled with dawning, horrifying realization. She hadn't just blinded him. She had violated his mind. And she could do it again.

Lyssandra pulled back slightly, removing her finger from Herriot's glass eye. Mocking edge vanished from her voice, replaced by chilling, absolute authority.

"It's okay," she said, her tone deceptively gentle. "You don't have to tell me. I already know."

She paused, letting the weight of her words sink in. Her blue orbs bored into Herriot's single good one with intensity that pinned him in place.

Then, her voice dropped to a whisper, barely audible even in the sudden stillness of the arena. "Why did you run away from Indyrge’s royal palace?"

The words slammed into Herriot, leaving him stunned. Blood drained from his face, leaving him ashen. Cold sweat instantly beaded on his forehead and ran in rivulets down scarred cheeks.

'How did she know?' the thought screamed in his mind. 'That was decades ago! HOW?!'

His mind raced in panicked circles. He'd fled that life, buried that shame, built a new existence on the fringes, far from the gleaming towers of power. No one knew, no one could know. His identity was a ghost.

'I have to kill her!' desperate thought flashed through his mind. 'She knows! She'll tell! She'll ruin...'

But that thought withered and died when Lyssandra's gaze intensified. It wasn't just the eye contact, it felt like her will was crushing his own, a tangible pressure squeezing the air from his lungs. His defiance crumbled into dust.

He remembered the pain of the fork piercing through flesh, the horrifying realization of her power. She could make him do anything.

His broad shoulders slumped in defeat. The fight, the bravado, drained from him like water.

"Please…" he whispered, voice hoarse and broken, devoid of its earlier defiance. "Please… whatever you know… don't… don't tell anyone. I will… I will do what you say."

His head bowed, face a mask of utter, abject surrender.

Heavy, oppressive silence had fallen over the arena since Lyssandra's arrival. The monsters, who had been roaring with bloodlust moments before, now stood utterly still, murmuring nervously amongst themselves, eyes fixed on their Great One.

Lyssandra observed Herriot's complete capitulation, a satisfied smile tugging at her lips. She patted his shoulder once, a gesture both dismissive and condescending.

"Very well," she said, her voice ringing clearly across the arena. "Go ahead. Continue the lesson you were supposed to teach."

Just like that, she turned on her heel and strode away, her movements effortlessly graceful. When passing the spot where Evelyn's head had landed, she reached down and scooped it up by the long hair. She held the head for a moment, its eyes rolling wildly, before casually tucking it under one arm like a morbid purse.