"Y-you! Gol—k!" Nord tried to shout, his voice hoarse as his hand twitched toward his summoning mark.

Before he could finish calling his beast, the vines around his neck suddenly shattered into fragments of green light. A middle-aged man appeared out of thin air, his presence heavy and oppressive.

"No fighting outside the arena on Academy premises," the man said calmly, his voice carrying unquestionable authority. "If you have grievances, settle them outside the walls."

His gaze shifted to Miho's condition, then to the dagger that had slipped from Nord's hand and lay stained with blood on the ground.

"The weapon is the problem," he said after a brief pause. "Get your friend to the temple quickly. Otherwise, the pain will only worsen."

After addressing Lily, the man vanished just as abruptly as he had appeared.

The Academy maintained a policy of minimum interference in student affairs. Unless the situation became excessively severe or violated clear rules, they would not intervene. Lily nearly crushing Nord's neck outside the arena—but still within Academy grounds—crossed that line.

Inside the Academy walls, students were only allowed to fight within the arenas. Outside the walls, however, all hell could break loose.

Nord collapsed onto the ground, wheezing as he struggled to draw breath, his face flushed deep red as circulation returned painfully.

His supporters rushed to him, lifting him hurriedly. A few sickening cracks echoed as it became clear that several bones in his neck had been displaced. One of them—a healer—immediately began casting layered spells, pale light flickering as he tried to realign the bones and dull the pain as they took him away to a safe area.

Lily, meanwhile, was once again focused on Miho, desperately trying to heal her. The effect was minimal at best. Seeing what people assumed was a dying girl, most of the crowd lost interest and quickly dispersed, believing she would be transported to the temple sooner or later, like with the others that had been happening from morning.

Lily wrapped bandages tightly around Miho's wounds, slowing the bleeding enough that she might be able to carry her herself. Just then, a shadow fell over them.

"Who—!" Lily snapped, fury already boiling over.

She stopped mid-word when she recognized the man standing there.

Leon.

"Do your work," Leon said calmly. "I'm not here to cause trouble."

Despite his words, his eyes never left Miho—more precisely, her wounds. He knelt beside her and gently touched one of them. Miho winced faintly.

"These wounds…" Leon murmured. "What did he use to injure her?"

"An oriental dagger…" Lily muttered, her hands still busy pressing bandages to stem the blood. She subconsciously deemed Leon harmless—her opinion of him was good since their previous battle. Chivalrous, controlled, and not someone who gave off a vile aura, even if she still considered him an opponent.

"It seems the attack struck the soul," Leon said thoughtfully. "What was his name?"

"Nord Birel."

"Birel…" Leon's eyes narrowed slightly. "Ah. The Birel family. The misogynistic household with a soul specialist among them. He must have been using an enchanted weapon that delivers damage directly to the soul."

He looked back at Miho.

"The first effect is slowed—or halted—healing. Let me see her."

Before Lily could respond, Leon raised his hand. His index and middle fingers pressed together, faint aura coating them. He struck Miho's body at several precise points with controlled, measured movements.

"What are you—!" Lily began, then stopped abruptly.

The bleeding slowed.

Leon then took Miho's palm, pressing firmly at specific locations, massaging and compressing in a rhythm and transfusing faint aura in her body. Gradually, the pained tension on Miho's face eased, her breathing becoming steadier.

After a few more presses, Leon attempted to withdraw.

But when Miho felt the aura subside and pain return, her fingers suddenly curled around his hand, gripping him tightly.

Leon was taken aback, trying to pull away, but doing so clearly discomforted her. Under Lily's intense glare, he decided against it and continued sending trace aura into Miho's body to ease her pain.

Even he felt faintly threatened.

---

Sensing Lily's distress through their bond, Leo was already sprinting toward the arena, weaving through the crowd as fast as space allowed.

He passed a group of men supporting someone clutching his neck, his face twisted in pain. Snippets of their conversation reached him.

"Lord! We'll track that girl down for you!"

"How dare she raise her hand against you?!"

"Idiots! Heal me first!" Nord snarled. "It hurts like hell! That bitch—getting a little praise and acting all high and mighty? That's why women belong under men's feet! Take me to the temple first!"

Leo ignored the rambling entirely and bolted forward.

He spotted a small crowd gathered around three figures. One of them had unmistakably bright pink hair.

"Lily!" Leo called out.

She turned her head around instantly.

"Leo! Come quickly! I can't heal Miho's wounds!" she said urgently, then shot a sharp glare at the onlookers. They quickly scattered.

Leo reached them and froze for a fraction of a second at the sight of Miho—her body soaked in blood, clothes darkened and clinging to her skin. The bleeding had stopped, but the damage was horrifying.

He noticed Leon crouched beside her, Miho holding onto his hands tightly. Leon clearly tried to free himself, but failed.

Leo also noticed something else.

The wounds Leon had suffered during their earlier fight were still there and fresh.

His broken arm was reinforced with two metallic rods, while his other arm, which was cut opened was wrapped in bandages, stitches and clamps, but the fresh blood was still visible beneath the gauze. The sight reminded Leo painfully of injured comrades from the battlefield back on Earth.

He forced his attention back to the present.

"What happened?" Leo asked grimly.

"The challenge was too strong for Miho," Lily said hurriedly. "And he wasn't satisfied with just defeating her. He tortured her until she went unconscious."

"Why didn't she forfeit?" Leo asked, crouching beside Miho and activating his healing skill.

"Those dogs!" Lily snarled. "The man's dog beasts kept biting her—she couldn't surrender! When she finally tried, he closed in on himself and slashed at her face. I wanted to kill him on the spot, but a professor stopped me!"

Leo understood immediately. But when he tried to heal Miho using [Nature's Heal], his brows knitted together.

It wasn't working.

Just then, Leon spoke.

"He used a soul-damaging weapon," he said quietly. "And it was potent. Either it's suppressing healing… or the attack itself was designed specifically to block the body's recovery."

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