"I wasn't expecting an interruption right now," Clind sighed. "Mortifying."
Garfiel blinked in surprise. He didn't understand exactly what had happened: all he knew was that his body had been thrown with brutal force, flying out of the mansion and crashing into a tree.
The shower of leaves had been falling for several seconds, the same amount of time it took the demi-human to recover from the impact and stand up. In the distance, Clind's figure waited patiently. The butler decided that the execution of the traitorous maid could wait, given the current obstacle.
The act of throwing Garfiel out the window was also premeditated: Clind couldn't afford to fight inside the mansion because that would cause significant damage to the building, which would be unacceptable. By keeping the fight outside, the butler could unleash his power without worry.
For his part, Garfiel was only thinking about protecting Ram. If Clind hadn't done it, he would have made sure things moved far enough away to fight freely. Now that that was settled...
"You bastard, how dare you lay a hand on her! I'll kill you!"
Anger was boiling over. Garfiel, who had failed to protect the Sanctuary and his loved ones, was fed up with being powerless. This time he wouldn't depend on others: he would solve the problem himself.
The demi-human ran and threw a powerful punch, which was easily blocked by his opponent. Clicking his tongue, Garfiel attacked again.
And another one.
And another one.
But Clind always blocked or dodged all his blows as if nothing was wrong.
So Garfiel began to use partial transformation, mutating only the limb he used to attack in order to enhance his attacks without losing his sanity.
"Hmph."
Approving of Garfiel's strategy, Clind nodded slightly. For the next few minutes, the demi-human maintained a relentless offensive, not pausing for a second.
However, Clind defended himself masterfully, avoiding Garfiel's claws every time and remaining completely unharmed.
"Damn it!" Garfiel realized there was no point in continuing like this. He gritted his teeth and a red aura enveloped him, transforming his body until it became several times larger. "ROOOOOOOOOAR!"
With the power of his beast form, Garfiel's strength increased significantly, so much so that Clind now only dodged attacks instead of blocking them. However, the decrease in speed and intelligence was too much of a burden.
Charges that uprooted trees, blows that shattered the ground, swipes that could cut through metal, none of them were effective against a mere butler.
The battle became a duel of endurance, and Garfiel was losing. To make matters worse, Clind began to counterattack, accelerating the demi-human's exhaustion. Garfiel couldn't even see where the blows were coming from, blows that would have already knocked him down if he weren't transformed.
Looking back on his fight with Leandro, Garfiel could say that Clind was on a completely different level. He wasn't even trying against him.
Yes, Garfiel knew he would lose no matter what he did. However, his pride, like a shield, prevented him from surrendering. Even though his death was the only possible outcome, he would give it his all.
He thought of Ram, of Frederica, of everyone he wanted to protect. He had to keep them safe.
With a war-like roar, Garfiel charged once more.
But Clind was already fed up.
He threw a single, precise, and lethal punch.
Then Garfiel fell.
"..."
Immediately after finishing him off, Clind turned around and started walking back to the mansion. He hadn't even broken a sweat.
However, halfway there he had to stop to avoid a sneak attack with throwing knives. He looked around for the hidden enemy, but before he could spot it, he was attacked again; this time it was two mabeasts that emerged from the trees.
One was a Guiltylowe (classic chimera) and the other a Rock Pig (evil hippopotamus). Both ran towards him from opposite directions to catch him with a cross-charge.
With excellent reflexes, the butler leaped into the air, getting out of the way just in time.
"It seems more setbacks have arisen. Interesting."
Below him, the mabeasts growled hostilely. Just as Clind prepared to attack them, a figure appeared behind him, wielding a pair of kukris.
The knives moved towards him like lightning, but Clind reacted terrifyingly fast and stopped the wrists of the one wielding them.
"Wonderful," Elsa smiled with a deranged expression. "It's the second time I've fought someone so strong."
Elsa's presence there was no coincidence. Her constant surveillance of the faction members had begun the moment Leandro struck a deal with her that very morning. To cover as much ground as possible, she and Meili strategically divided their patrol areas, which worked remarkably well.
Clind was unaware of Elsa's ability to detect and identify emotions through her sense of smell. She, being an expert assassin, quickly grasped the level of danger the butler posed and his hostile intentions.
—...
Without a word, Clind kicked Elsa in the side, sending her flying. Then he spun in the air and stepped into the open jaws of the Rock Pig, which was trying to devour him. Leaping nimbly, the butler positioned himself behind the beast, grabbed one of its legs, and with surprising strength, hurled it toward the Guiltylowe.
The bodies of both monsters collided with a loud crash, causing a small tremor. At the same time, Elsa sat up with a sharp pain in the arm she had used to block Clind's kick; if she hadn't, her ribs would have been broken and she probably had some organs punctured.
" I no longer have the curse, so I could die at any moment. Ah, this feeling of danger... I feel more alive than ever!" she exclaimed, launching herself into the attack once more.
It had been a long time since the Bowel Hunter had been in a situation like this. Her body trembled with excitement.
Even without her regenerative abilities, Elsa wielded her kukris with her usual audacity. Unfortunately, Clind deflected all her attacks, effortlessly outpacing her.
With such an advantage, it was not difficult for him to kick Elsa's legs, making her lose her balance, then he hit her several times in the lower back, grabbed her by the hair and slammed her body against the ground.
He was about to finish her off when the mabeasts leaped at him, recovered from their previous clash. However, this time Clind didn't hold back and killed them with two powerful punches to the head that shattered their skulls, splattering the ground with blood.
Finally, Clind fixed his gaze on the blue-haired girl hiding in the distance.
"..."
He would leave her alone, as long as she didn't try to get in the way.
With that, Clind set out to finish off Ram once and for all, but...
"Hey, mister butler!"
The voice that called to Clind was Otto's. The intrepid merchant was looking at him from the window of Ram's room, displaying a serene, almost cold, expression.
The butler sighed with a hint of annoyance.
"I suppose this will no longer be a private execution. Resignation."
Clind prepared to jump, but Otto stopped him with a gesture.
"Wait a second. Can I ask why you're doing this?"
It wasn't that Clind was feeling particularly patient at that moment, but the silver-haired young man inspired in him a feeling that was difficult to describe. That unease made him hesitate for a moment.
"Isn't it obvious? Because you liars and traitors have conspired against Master Roswaal. Justification."
"I see. You're right, but you're also wrong. Things are more complicated than that. Let me explain."
Otto gritted his teeth, forcing a nervous smile. He needed to buy time until Leandro arrived; otherwise, he'd have to rely on that thing.
Just a few minutes earlier, the birds and insects that were around the mansion approached him to warn him of what was happening.
While the news was shocking, Otto had already considered that possibility (though he hadn't expected it to actually happen). From the beginning, he was certain that the Miload butler didn't believe the charade of Roswaal's death at the hands of the Great Rabbit. He also realized that Clind was more loyal to Roswaal (even in death) than to Annerose. This made sense, since everything pointed to the girl being a potential vessel should the current Roswaal die.
The only thing that didn't add up was the fact that Roswaal hadn't been reincarnated into her immediately after dying. If he was so obsessed with his plan, why did he resign himself to dying permanently?
Otto didn't know for sure. Whatever the reason, he could think about it later.
Frederica was currently looking for Leandro and Beatrice, at Otto's own suggestion.
As for Emilia and Annerose, Otto dismissed the idea of informing them of the situation, since it was almost certain that Clind would ignore Annerose's orders even if she asked him to stop.
If things continued this way, Emilia wouldn't hesitate to risk her life for the faction, which could end horribly. Otto wouldn't allow it.
"I'm not interested in your excuses," Clind said, regaining his composure. "I'll end this right now."
Seeing that Clind could no longer be stopped with words, Otto resolved to use the other method and stepped back, clearing the way for the butler to enter the room.
Clind jumped back and quickly checked that Otto was alone (aside from the convalescent Ram). He stared at him, wondering if he should get rid of him first.
"..."
No, he had already wasted too much time playing games with the others. Besides, it was obvious that the merchant was only there to buy time. He would eliminate the main traitor first and deal with the rest later.
Having made that decision, Clind walked past the seemingly harmless Otto, turning his back on him to concentrate on the pink-haired girl lying in bed.
In any case, if that fellow tried to attack him from behind or cast a spell, Clind would sense it and could easily stop him, though he wasn't worried about being attacked by an untrained merchant. Otto was intelligent, but he didn't have the magical power or brute strength to be a real threat.
It was a reasonable conclusion, but what Clind didn't know was that the merchant Otto Suwen never put his own life at risk without at least some guarantee.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Six shots were fired, consecutive and uninterrupted. The bullets passed through Clind's body and lodged in the wall.
"Guh!"
The butler gasped and spat blood as he slowly collapsed, falling to his knees. Blood gushed from the numerous wounds on his torso.
Behind him, Otto lowered the revolver and sighed with relief. His face, hardened by concentration, made him look like a ruthless killer, but the trembling in his hands betrayed how nervous he was inside.
"That's great, I was afraid the gun wouldn't work. When I repaired it, I had no idea what I was doing and just glued the two parts back together. Even now I was very lucky not to make a single mistake, even though you were so close."
Clind didn't hear it; his mind was consumed by the pain he was feeling. It had been years since he'd been hurt like this. That it had been done by a mere weakling was the height of absurdity.
—You...! Urgh!
He tried to move, but the internal damage was too much. His body wouldn't respond. Even speaking was difficult.
"Impossible! I'm going to...!"
Somehow, Clind began to rise through sheer willpower.
"Oh, shoot." Otto couldn't believe it.
But when all seemed lost, Clind stopped moving and then collapsed.
For a few seconds, Otto said nothing, as if he wanted to make sure the tenacious butler wouldn't get up again. Finally, he relaxed and opened his mouth.
"Well, this turned out better than I expected. I guess I should go check on Garfiel and Elsa."
Otto walked toward the door. As he was about to cross the threshold, an ominous feeling froze him. Something was wrong.
Then it happened, too fast, too suddenly.
"..."
The merchant slowly lowered his gaze, noticing with horror that a bloody hand was emerging from his stomach. Strangely, he felt no pain, but he was a little cold.
"Ha, ha, ha... Why does the world hate me so much?"
As Otto lamented his fate, the dragonkin Clind opened his yellow eyes, now without a monocle; he had two black horns on the sides of his head and his body was enveloped in an aura of purple lightning.
His deep voice echoed in the room.
"You should have aimed for the head. Arrogant."
***
Frederica raced through the mansion, desperately searching for a dark-haired man and his hired spirit. Ever since Otto told her what was happening with Clind, her world had crumbled. So little time had passed since the events at the Sanctuary, and now this...
The corridors seemed endless, especially at such a critical moment. Even so, Frederica didn't slow down. Garfiel was out of commission, and Otto wouldn't be able to hold out against Clind for much longer.
Time was precious. She had to find those two soon, before something terrible happened.
"Master Leandro! Miss Beatrice!" The demi-human raised her voice, calling them repeatedly. The sound of her footsteps and exclamations echoed through the empty galleries.
There was no answer. Frederica kept running, going back and forth, looking in every corner without stopping.
The minutes passed and the demi-human began to get hysterical, imagining all sorts of tragic scenarios.
Then she turned a corner and saw her. Beatrice was standing there, her back against a door, a sad expression on her childlike face.
"MISS BEATRICE!"
"Huh?"
Their eyes met. Beatrice was perplexed by Frederica's vehemence.
"Where is Master Leandro?!" Frederica decided there was no time for explanations.
"In here... What's going on, I suppose?" the Great Spirit asked timidly, but Frederica ignored her and quickly entered the room, finding herself face to face with the same sight Beatrice had seen before.
Frederica blinked once. In a calmer setting, she probably would have reacted differently, but the current priority was stopping Clind.
"Wake up, Master Leandro! We have an emergency!"
She grabbed the dark-haired man and began shaking him roughly, even slapping him to speed things up. However, Leandro didn't wake up.
"Master Leandro?!" Frederica frowned. Even a very heavy sleeper shouldn't continue sleeping after receiving such a wake-up call.
Beatrice also noticed this, and her gloomy expression turned into a worried one as she approached.
"Why doesn't he wake up, I suppose?"
While the girl was asking that question, suddenly six explosions were heard in the distance.
Frederica was silent for a moment. Her breathing was ragged and her tail twitched from side to side with stress: she just had entered semi-beast mode.
"I don't know, but it will be very bad if he doesn't come to!" Her voice began to break as she thought again of Garfiel, Otto, and Ram, who were still out there, at Clind's mercy. "Master Leandro, we need you! Please, come back to us! Please...! I don't want anyone else to die!"
Frederica was on the verge of collapse, her eyes filled with tears and her vision blurred by them. At that moment, a hand rested on top of her head, giving her a gentle pat, and the dark-haired man's voice reached her ears.
"I apologize for the delay, but I'm here now."