Chapter 48

Chapter 48

In the center of the square, as Lou Guanyue took the sword away, the suffocating dark power gradually dissipated.

Field knelt on the ground, his face ashen, the spot on his chest pierced by the long sword burning with a searing pain. The power within him had been completely drained, and along with it, the madness and vanity brought by the demonic sword vanished. He belatedly regained his senses, the clothes on his back already soaked through.

Field had long lost his former arrogant demeanor. Supported by his servant, he shakily stood up. "Let's go, back to the church..."

"Wait."

Just then, a familiar, melodious voice called out to him.

Field struggled to look up. Through his blurred vision, he saw the figure he had longed for day and night.

It was Isadel.

Field's nearly stagnant heart began to beat again. A faint yet scalding warmth surged into his icy limbs—she had come!

After witnessing his wretched state, utterly defeated as a loser, she hadn't followed Lou Guanyue away. Instead, she had chosen to walk toward him.

Indeed, there was a place for him in Isadel's heart!

She must have come to comfort him. Perhaps she would scold him for his recklessness and rashness, but in the end, she would take pity and forgive him. She would tell him it was alright in a gentle tone...

Field tried hard to force a smile. His ashen face regained a trace of color from this anticipation, and his chapped lips moved. "Is... Isadel..."

She didn't even bend down, merely leaning forward slightly, extending that fair, slender hand.

"Hand it over."

Field was stunned, looking at her outstretched hand in confusion, thinking she wanted to help him up and leave together.

Gratitude welled up in his heart. Trembling, he reached out his own hand, covered in dust, wanting to grasp hers.

But Isadel's hand deftly avoided his, instead pointing to the small, enchanted dimensional pocket hanging at his waist, inlaid with a space gem.

Her voice was clear, the corners of her lips still carrying a hint of an upward curve, yet it felt like a block of ice smashing onto Field's heart, which had just kindled a sliver of hope.

"I'm here on Yue's behalf to collect what you lost to him in the bet. What, has Young Master Field forgotten already? Or is it that members of the Divine Envoy Family have such poor memories?"

Field's face turned pale. His outstretched hand froze mid-air as he stared at Isadel in disbelief, almost doubting his own ears.

Sophia also chimed in playfully from the side, "That's right, Field is a proper noble after all. Before the duel, you were so enthusiastic and confident! Ah, it was you who proposed the bet first. Surely you won't go back on your word? That wouldn't be very gentlemanly!"

"Hah..." Field let out a self-mocking laugh. He had dueled Lou Guanyue for Isadel, even going so far as to touch that demonic sword, all to prove he was stronger and more worthy of her than Lou Guanyue.

And what he got in return for risking everything, even nearly falling into darkness, wasn't her pity—not even a simple word of concern.

She had only come on that man's behalf to claim the spoils of war!

So, in her eyes, he was just a laughable failure!

"Young Master Field? There are quite a few witnesses here. You wouldn't break your oath and bring shame upon the Rodney Family, would you?" Sophia said with a smile, rubbing salt into his wound.

"As a member of the Rodney Family and as a knight, I will of course not break my promise." Suppressing the pain spreading from the depths of his heart, Field trembled as he unfastened his dimensional pocket. Without even looking at it, he roughly shoved it into Isadel's still-open hand.

The motion was so forceful it nearly snapped the tie.

Isadel took the dimensional pocket, giving it a light pinch with her fingertips. Feeling the faint magical fluctuations from within, she gave a slight nod, then turned her gaze to the servant standing nearby.

The servant tremblingly handed over his own money pouch.

"May the God of Light guide your path ahead, Knight Field."

She ended with a standard blessing, then turned without hesitation and quickly walked away in the direction Pelan had left, not sparing him another glance.

The onlookers gradually dispersed, leaving the central square completely empty.

The disheveled young master roughly pushed away the servant supporting him, clenched his fists tightly, and slammed them heavily against a stone pillar beside him, roaring, "Damn it! How could he be so strong! The sword... that sword! Right! He must have cheated!"

The servant beside him trembled, his face crestfallen. "Y-young master, the sword was taken by that man. What should we do now? The family head will surely punish us when he finds out..."

Field gritted his teeth and said without hesitation, "Go! Report the theft of the demonic sword to the Archbishop!"

The servant was startled but quickly nodded. "Yes."

Field glared hatefully at the direction Isadel had left, then extended a hand toward the servant. "Get me a bottle of hemostatic potion."

"Young master, my things... were also taken by Miss Isadel..."

"Damn it! I'll make them pay!"

Isadel quickly made her way through the long street, finally catching up with Pelan under the archway of the inn.

"Pelan!"

Pelan stopped and turned around. His face still carried a trace of worry and fatigue.

"Isadel, what is it?" he asked gently.

Isadel quickly stepped forward, first handing over the dimensional pocket she had taken from Field. She nervously glanced around, lowered her voice, and said with a complex tone, "This is what Field lost in the bet. He... he really is your student?"

Pelan didn't even glance at the pocket, nor did he take it. His gaze fell on Isadel's slightly pale face.

"Yue is my student. Isadel, you shouldn't have gone to retrieve that money pouch. It will completely offend the Rodney Family."

Isadel curved the corners of her eyes, her tone light. "This way, he won't pester me anymore. Besides, this whole incident happened because of me. Now that I've offended the Rodney Family too, my father and the others won't be able to stay out of it."

Then, shifting the topic, she said with a hint of concern, "Pelan, you saw it too just now. Yue... he had already won, but he still chose to kill Field... and his eyes, even standing at the sidelines, I felt a chill run through my body."

Seeing Pelan remain silent with downcast eyes, Isadel pursed her lips and pleaded earnestly, "It's madness! He doesn't value life at all. My intuition tells me he even wanted to torture the other to death... Who can guarantee he won't do something even more insane in the future? I'm really worried about you, Pelan."

She reached out, gently grasping Pelan's arm, her fingertips applying slight pressure due to her agitated emotions.

"I'm sorry, Isadel." Pelan shook his head firmly. "Yue is my student. I won't abandon him. Besides, Yue is a kind person. He wouldn't normally do such things. He was already in a bad mood, and Field appeared out of nowhere to provoke him, so he crossed a line."

Isadel took a deep breath, her sea-blue eyes staring at Pelan in disbelief. "Do you really think he's a kind person? You... what is your relationship with Yue?"

"He is my student and also my soul contract partner." Pelan's expression gradually turned confused, showing clear bewilderment, as if he didn't understand why Isadel was asking such a strange question.

"Is that all?" Isadel's eyes were filled with disbelief.

She placed the pocket into Pelan's hand, only then noticing the crimson bloodstain on his right palm.

"What happened? Are you injured? Did you get hurt when you grabbed the sword earlier?" Isadel quickly understood, her brow furrowing tightly.

"It's nothing. I've already stopped the bleeding." Pelan withdrew his hand, shaking his head at her.

A complex emotion flashed in Isadel's eyes. She hesitated for a moment before asking, "You two are really close, almost too intimate. Especially the way he looks at you... And, Pelan, you really don't know why he was angry today, do you?"

Pelan thought back to what happened during the meal and slowly shook his head.

"You really haven't changed," Isadel sighed, watching Pelan's distracted expression. After a moment of silence, she leaned close to his ear and whispered something.

Then, as if hearing something utterly unbelievable, Pelan widened his eyes in disbelief, feeling even dizzier than after using a teleportation array.

"Th-That's impossible! Isadel, don't make wild guesses!" He never expected this to be the reason. Flustered, he turned his head away, but the tips of his ears were red.

Isadel snorted lightly, "You don't believe me? If you don't, you can try saying what I told you..."

*

Standing before the inn room door, Pelan slowly exhaled, clearing Isadel's words from his head.

There was nothing between them, and they had never even considered such a possibility. Isadel was merely speculating. Lately, she had been constantly pursued by Field, so it wasn't impossible for her to develop such strange misunderstandings!

He couldn't allow Isadel's words to get to him!

Tonight, he needed to apologize to Yue and discuss the contract with him...

Inside the room, Lou Guanyue leaned back in his chair with his eyes closed. The young man's nervous, hesitant behavior had long since been noticed, making him smile.

The young man seemed to be struggling with something, raising and lowering his hand repeatedly, nearly tearing a hole in the dimensional pocket he held.

After who knows how many attempts, the room door was suddenly pulled open.

Pelan was startled, suppressing the urge to step back. He looked up and stammered out to Lou Guanyue, "Yue, there's something I'd like to discuss with you. May I come in?"

Lou Guanyue stared intently at Pelan for a long moment before stepping aside to make room. "Of course, my dear teacher."

Pelan breathed a sigh of relief. After sitting down at the table, his gaze met Lou Guanyue's, and for a moment, he didn't know where to begin.

He couldn't just say, "I'm here to apologize, so please don't be angry," could he?

Should he really say what Isadel had taught him?

Pelan's brows furrowed into a small knot, while Lou Guanyue remained calm and asked, "What brings you here, Teacher?"

"It's nothing much..." Pelan pursed his lips and handed over the warm dimensional pocket he had been holding. "Isadel retrieved this for you as winnings and asked me to pass it on."

Lou Guanyue's expression darkened as he glanced indifferently at the item on the table. "Miss Isadel retrieved it? Please convey my gratitude to her... Indeed, such trivial matters aren't worth Teacher remembering."

Pelan was taken aback. Was Yue upset that he hadn't personally retrieved the bet from Field?

"If there's nothing else, Teacher should also rest. We have to leave for Kaiva City early tomorrow," Lou Guanyue smiled at him, though his intention to dismiss him was clear.

An exquisite box was pushed next to the dimensional pocket.

"This is a gift for Yue. Wearing it will protect you from any covert mental attacks by demons," Pelan said gently, gazing at him. As if remembering something, he added softly, "I only prepared this for Yue. No one else has one."

Since he was watching Lou Guanyue closely, Pelan didn't miss the brief smile that flashed in the man's eyes upon hearing those last words.

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Author's Note: The misunderstanding will be cleared up in the next chapter~ Let's stop someone from getting jealous over nothing [shy].