Too Small, Evina

Lynn parried Evina's assault with a backhanded block, still not answering her question.

He had already been thoroughly confused by the complicated relationship between these siblings. Lott's diary had never mentioned any of this.

The clashing of blades rang continuously through the silent manor. Under normal circumstances, it would surely have drawn the butler's and servants' attention, yet not a single person was in sight.

That was also why Lynn had not rushed to activate Overload Mode or use magic again.

"Is that so strange? My brother, Father isn't in the residence tonight. I lured all the servants away. They'll only know that the Demon's Follower wanted by the Church broke into the manor tonight..." Evina looked utterly unhinged as her blade struck Lynn's sword again and again like the wind, seemingly determined to vent every bit of resentment and unwillingness she had accumulated.

Lynn's expression turned rather strange, because the Demon's Follower wanted by the Church that the girl spoke of seemed to be him...

Boom!

During a gap in their exchange, a sudden explosion sounded in the distance. Through the third-floor window, a faint blaze appeared in the west of Harbor Town.

How could it be this soon?!

Lynn's expression immediately changed. It clearly was not yet time to act. Could it be that the [Ship Gang] had grown impatient and moved first?

"Where are you looking, my brother?"

Taking advantage of Lynn's distraction, Evina used a spinning slash to knock the longsword from his hand, sending it flying straight into a crack in the wall.

The brown-haired girl immediately raised her sword again and chopped downward!

"Die!"

Evina muttered to herself, her dark golden eyes fixed tightly on Lynn. Yet there was not the slightest trace of fear on his face...

Why?

Why was he not afraid of death?

A flicker of hesitation and bewilderment appeared on the brown-haired girl's face.

No matter how badly she had treated him over the years, the man before her had only ever looked at her with a particularly pitiful gaze.

But she had never needed anyone's charity.

Whatever she wanted, she would seize for herself!

Countless thoughts flashed through the girl's mind. Meanwhile, sensing the threat, Lynn had already raised an arm.

For that instant, it was as though their first battle had been replayed.

Only this time, no one spoke up to stop them. With a sharp howl of wind, the slender blade had already reached Lynn's head!

Yet Lynn moved even faster. His outstretched right hand struck second but arrived first, seizing Evina's sword-wielding wrist from a strange angle!

Then he twisted with all his strength. A faint crack of dislocating bones echoed through the silent corridor.

Outside the window, the brilliant moonlight intertwined with the rising flames, forming a hellish tableau. Lynn took the opportunity to raise his leg and viciously kick Evina in the abdomen.

Bang!

With a dull impact, the girl's body arched backward and crashed heavily into the wall.

How was that possible?

Evina struggled to stand again, blood slowly spilling from the corner of her mouth. Ignoring the pain in her right wrist and abdomen, she stared at Lynn with utter disbelief.

Even after using all her strength, she had been knocked to the ground so easily.

Evina could not accept that reality. Gripping her sword with her still mostly intact left hand, she charged forward again.

"I'm sorry, but my time is limited, Evina..." Lynn sidestepped Evina's horizontal slash, snatched away her slender blade with a backhand, and knocked her down again with an elbow strike. Finally, he thrust the blade toward the girl's pale neck.

Evina's pupils contracted. She could only watch helplessly as the silver-white blade drew closer and closer, her mind utterly blank.

Am I going to die?

The girl slowly closed her eyes.

Thinking of how she had struggled with all her might, only to end up having to stake everything on pleasing a Duke's son, she found it especially laughable. Perhaps being freed like this would mean she would no longer suffer?

Clink!

The soft sound of the sword tip touching the floor rang by her ear. Evina opened her eyes in confusion and saw Lynn take a leather rope from behind his back and bind her hands and feet.

"You're not going to kill me?" Evina stared blankly at the familiar yet unfamiliar brother before her and asked in confusion.

"There's no need. After today, you'll never see me again... I think that should suit you just fine." Lynn offered a casual explanation, dragged the rope originally prepared for Adrian, and tossed Evina into his room.

He was not the real Lott, nor could he handle such a complicated sibling relationship. But since Lott had been willing to end this karmic entanglement through suicide, Lynn naturally had no intention of interfering.

He also understood where Evina's resentment came from. No matter how hard she tried, she could not resist her predetermined fate. From the moment she was born, she had been destined to become a sacrifice for the Pedrol Family's revival.

But she had clearly chosen the wrong target for her hatred. What truly made them both suffer was Baron Pedrol's stubbornness, and the Secas Empire's ignorant feudal system...

Since she had cleverly removed the butler and servants from the residence, she could stay here and reflect on herself properly.

After tonight, everything concerning the Pedrol Family would have nothing to do with him.

Lynn turned to leave, but Evina's voice rang out again behind him.

"Why? You have this kind of strength, yet you failed the Knight Assessment, and even during our sparring match..."

"Are you pitying me?" Evina demanded in humiliation and anger, clinging to the last remnants of her pride.

"Too small, Evina..." Lynn turned around and looked at the disheveled, despondent girl lying on the floor, speaking with a sigh.

"Your talent with the sword is excellent, far greater than anyone I've ever seen, yet your vision is limited to tiny Harbor Town and the position of a Baron who cannot even inherit a territory."

"Beyond Harbor Town lies Nordland Territory. Beyond Nordland Territory lies the Secas Empire, and beyond the Empire is an even broader world..."

Lynn murmured softly. This world contained magic and divine arts, with countless secrets waiting to be explored.

"Forget it. You probably can't understand." Without waiting for Evina's response, Lynn shook his head.

For most people in this world, a town, a village, or a family was everything. Besides, this had nothing to do with him.

Could she not understand? Evina watched Lynn's departing back with a complicated expression until the door was shut tightly.

After remaining silent for a while, the girl suddenly lowered her head and bit down on the leather rope binding her hands, tearing at it with all her strength.

But the rope, made from special materials, was extremely tough. Her teeth alone could do nothing. As she struggled, her legs slammed hard into a nearby table leg.

The black book on the table was jolted to the floor and rolled all the way to Evina's side.

The brown-haired girl froze. The writing on the page was messy, yet Evina recognized it at once as her brother Lott's handwriting.

[Perhaps without me, everything will get better...]

(PS: As usual, please vote, bookmark, send monthly tickets, and keep reading! Thank you as well for everyone's support these past few days...)

Thanks to World in Memories for the 200 Qidian coins, Former Lord of Chaos for the 100 Qidian coins, and Warmhearted Citizen Gu Yun for the 2 Qidian coins.