Aria’s katana sliced through the air, blazing with a sharp blue light. The blade shimred with lethal intent, like it was thirsting for blood.
Ricky didn’t dare take it lightly. He quickly raised his short blade to block at an angle.
Clang!
Steel clashed against steel with a screeching ring that pierced the air.
But Ricky’s brow furrowed—sothing felt off.
Aria’s katana had already bitten into his blade, sparks flying as the pressure mounted. Then, with a sharp crack, her sword cleaved straight through his weapon.
The broken tip of Ricky’s blade spun through the air before embedding itself in the ground several feet away.
"Shit!"
Gripping the broken hilt, Ricky’s heart raced. His weapon was no match for hers. And that searing blue edge was still coming straight for his throat.
In a split-second reaction, he twisted his body to the side.
The pale blue tip of the katana grazed past his cheek, so close he could feel every pore on his skin sting from the near miss.
Thud!
Aria didn’t let up. She followed through with a swift kick to his gut.
The impact sent Ricky flying backward, his body tumbling through the air before crashing hard onto the ground.
"Damn it, that hurts~~~!"
His stomach churned like it had been turned inside out, but what stung even more was his pride.
Humiliating. Absolutely humiliating.
Especially with Ethan watching from a distance. After months apart, Ricky had wanted to show off how much stronger he’d gotten. Instead, he got his ass handed to him by a teenage girl.
Aria stood alone, katana angled toward the ground. She had the upper hand, sure—but her pretty face was twisted in pain.
Not physical pain. Sothing deeper.
Just a short distance away, her instructor and classmates had been slaughtered by the Zombie King in the white shirt.
It felt like soone had reached into her chest and ripped her heart out.
The pain was sharp, relentless.
She used to regret not being able to go to Necroterra. But now, here in Xenobeast territory, she’d run straight into the infamous Zombie King in the white shirt. Guess she got her wish—just not the way she wanted.
And he was terrifying. He’d taken out two instructors like it was nothing. Just a flick of the wrist, and they were gone. He was like a mountain—massive, immovable, impossible to climb.
"Mom... am I gonna die? sniffsniff... waaahhh~~" Aria had never seen anything like this. Her spirit broke, and she burst into tears.
Ricky gritted his teeth and pushed himself off the ground. "Hey! What the hell are you crying for? Get up and fight !"
Without waiting for a response, he lunged forward, fury and resentnt radiating off him. His aura flared, and he charged in barehanded.
Aria, still crying, swung her katana to defend herself. But her mind was a ss—she wasn’t really fighting, just reacting on instinct.
It didn’t take long for her to slip up.
Ricky saw the opening and drove a punch into her stomach. His fist, charged with dark energy, shattered her water-elental defenses.
Aria gasped and dropped to the ground, landing hard on her butt.
Her delicate face twisted in agony. It felt like her organs had been rearranged.
Ricky stood over her, fists clenched, brows furrowed. But he didn’t go in for the kill. Sohow, finishing her off like this wouldn’t make up for the embarrassnt he’d just suffered.
anwhile, the rest of the battlefield was a massacre.
Hundreds of House Guards and several academy students had all been wiped out.
The ground was soaked in blood, bodies strewn everywhere.
Veyra and the others stepped through the carnage, their boots splashing in the gore as they closed in around the injured Aria, eyes scanning her like a specin.
"Ryan, what’s the deal? Don’t tell you’re going soft."
"Bullshit! I’m not going soft!" Ricky snapped, shooting a glare over his shoulder.
Another mber of the White Robe Order stroked his chin, eyeing Aria. "Still... she’s pretty damn cute."
"She’s Claire’s daughter, you know. Number one at Pinnacle Academy. Big deal in the Inner City."
"..."
Off to the side, Ethan heard the exchange and quickly pieced things together. So this girl... her status was probably on par with Trent Hawke from the Hawke family. Maybe even more valuable. Definitely soone worth keeping alive—for now.
Aria sat in the middle of the group, feeling all those eyes crawling over her. It made her skin crawl.
Back in the Inner City, people didn’t even dare look her in the eye. She’d never been treated like this before.
Beep beep!
Beep beep!
Suddenly, a red light started flashing on the bracelet around Aria’s wrist, accompanied by a series of urgent beeps.
"What the hell is that? A kid’s smartwatch?" soone muttered, puzzled.
Sure enough, Aria pressed a button, and several beams of light shot upward, forming a holographic screen in midair.
On it appeared the anxious face of a woman.
"Sweetheart! Where are you? Are you okay?" Claire’s voice was tight with panic. She’d just received a distress signal from the House Guard, but before she could get any answers, the connection had cut out.
The mont Aria saw her mother, the tears ca flooding back even harder.
"Mom~~~ We ca to Xenorift for training, but we ran into that Zombie King in the white shirt!"
"What???" Claire’s eyes went wide, her face frozen in shock.
The Zombie King in the white shirt?
She couldn’t believe it. She’d planned everything down to the last detail. They’d even run simulations for a month beforehand—nothing had gone wrong.
So how the hell did her daughter end up face-to-face with him?
Was this fate? Was her daughter destined to face this kind of disaster?
"Hello there," ca a calm voice from the comm.
Claire’s eyes snapped to the screen—behind her daughter, a figure in white stepped into view.
She shot to her feet like she’d been electrocuted, her breath catching in her throat.
Her daughter was in the hands of that man—the Zombie King in the white shirt. The outco was obvious. He was a butcher, a monster, a killer with no rcy.
"Please! Don’t kill my daughter. I’m sure we can work sothing out!"
"What’s there to talk about?" Ethan asked casually, like he was discussing the weather.
Claire’s mind raced. "I know you don’t need her crystal core. But I can offer you ten tis—no, a hundred tis—its value in resources. Just let her live."
"Alright," Ethan said with a shrug. "Then I want a Dreadnought-class Starcruiser."
"..." Claire went silent.
She slowly closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and after a mont of thought, said, "Fine. I’ll consider it. Just don’t hurt my daughter."
"Sure. No problem," Ethan replied with a nod.
Claire then turned her attention back to Aria, trying to soothe her. "Don’t be afraid, baby. Be strong. Mommy’s coming to get you."
Then the call cut off.
"Waaahhh~~~" Aria sobbed uncontrollably, her eyes swollen and red.
Just monts ago, she’d been the proud daughter of a powerful family. Now, she was a hostage—completely at soone else’s rcy.
Ricky, still stunned, hurried over. "Master, seriously? That girl’s worth a Dreadnought-class Starcruiser?!"
"She’s not," Ethan said flatly. "She’s bluffing."
"Huh?" Ricky blinked. "Then why’d she say—?"
"She’s stalling," Ethan explained. "She agreed just to buy ti. She’s hoping to keep us from killing the girl while they figure out a plan."
"Then why’d you go along with it?" Ricky asked, even more confused.
Ethan smirked. "Because now we get to see what they’ll try. We’ve got the upper hand. If they don’t co through, we kill the girl. Either way, we win."
Ricky’s eyes widened. Ethan’s words hit him like a lightning bolt—suddenly, everything made sense. It was like a whole new world had opened up in front of him.
"Damn, Master... you’re a genius."
...
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