-Not so arrogant now, are you?
Paul tried to smile but grimaced in pain.
Her last attack almost killed him, and he only managed to avoid her sword piercing his heart by mere centimeters.
However, her blade stabbed him and pierced his lung.
He immediately cast healing spells on himself, but that didn't change the fact that being stabbed by her sword hurt like nobody's business.
Not to mention that he was a bit low on mana at the moment and focused on repairing his lung.
Mio Yuki looked at him with fear in her eyes, but she didn't beg for mercy.
-End it already and stop mocking me.
She said instead.
Even if he let her go, she would become a laughing stock in her clan after losing to someone at the mage stage, while she was already at the peak of the sorcerer stage.
-Stay your hand!
A voice came from a distance, and a volley of ice spears flew at Paul so suddenly that he could not react fast enough.
He managed to jump away at the last moment, but one of the icicles pierced his thigh.
Paul groaned in pain as he fell to the ground.
He removed the piece of ice from his leg and immediately cast a healing spell to stop the bleeding.
However, before he could get back to his feet, he got kicked and sent flying into a nearby tree.
-How dare you lay your hands on my daughter?
A woman who just kicked him roared in anger.
Paul was a bit disoriented after hitting the tree, and his vision was getting blurry.
Before he could even react, he had a blade at his throat.
-Madam Yuki, stop at once.
Paul heard a familiar voice.
-Why should I stop? This person was about to kill my daughter.
The woman said in anger.
-Because he is my nephew and the person we talked about.
Xiao Han said, coming closer.
The woman was shocked at this revelation.
-You said that he had left the city already, so why is he here, and why was he trying to kill my daughter?
Madam Yuki asked, not any less angrily than a second ago.
-I don't know, maybe we should ask them about it?
Xiao Han suggested, pointing at barely conscious Paul and shocked Mio, who barely believed what her mother had just done.
-Well, Mio, care to explain why this man almost killed you?
The woman turned to her daughter, taking her blade away from Paul's neck.
The moment he felt the blade leave his throat, Paul activated a transport spell he had taken out from his spatial device and was gone within a second.
He reappeared 500 meters away and immediately took out a long-range spall, activating it with the last of his mana.
Short-range transportation spells are activated almost instantly, but the long-range ones need a moment to activate.
-Paul, you're not in danger, stop.
Xiao Han shouted, rushing in his direction.
But Paul was dizzy, thanks to a concussion he got by hitting the tree, and he was now in a survival mode, so before the province lord arrived, he transported fifty kilometers away.
-Where is he?
Madam Yuki asked, arriving just a few seconds after Xiao Han.
He left.
The man said with regret in his voice.
He hoped that Paul was safe and would come to his senses soon.
-Miss Yuki, you'd better have a good explanation for this mess.
Xiao Han turned to Mio Yuki, and his gaze sent shivers down her spine.
-Mio, I want to know everything that happened and right now.
Her mother chimed in, not any less angry than the man next to her.
Without any other choice, the young woman recounted her meeting with Paul and everything that led them to having a duel.
SLAP.
Madam Yuki slapped her daughter across the face.
-You idiot, I left you at the prime minister's mansion to keep you away from trouble, and what do you do?
You asked the minister to bring the man we wanted to ask for help to his mansion, and you offended him.
Not to mention that my attack to save you was another offence, and I doubt he will just forgive us or even hear us out now.
Madam Yuki tore into her daughter.
She scolded the younger woman for at least five minutes before she stopped, trying to figure out a way out of this mess.
Not only did her daughter offend the man, but she also wanted to take back everything he got, thanks to the custom of mercy and burial, and on top of all that, she herself attacked and injured him, interfering in a duel.
If word of this all spread, her family's reputation would be destroyed.
Worst of all, the man they offended turned out to be exactly the man whose help they needed.
-Lord Xiao, is there a way to appease your nephew and still ask for his help?
She finally asked, hoping that the man would have a way to do so.
She hated to ask for help, and even more than that, she hated to ask for forgiveness, but this time it was her daughter and her fault.
-With all that happened today, it would be a miracle if Paul didn't see your clan as enemies, so I very much doubt he would agree to help you.
However, he is a reasonable young man, so if it is explained as a misunderstanding that it was, and Miss Yuki is willing to apologize, then there still might be a chance.
Xiao Han said, hoping that this was the case.
In the end, no one wanted to have a powerful clan as enemies.
After some more discussion, it was decided that the people from the Yuki clan would accompany Xiao Han when he went back to the Storm Wave city in hopes of clearing the misunderstanding with Paul.
While this was happening, Paul had other problems.
First of all was the fact that he needed to heal himself, and it didn't help that he was barely conscious.
-I'll take care of you, rest for now.
The reincarnation soul said inside his mind.
Paul only nodded and closed his eyes.
The next moment, his eyes opened again.
-Damn, I don't miss this sensation.
The reincarnation soul said the moment it took control of Paul's body.
After assessing his condition, he took some pills and a mana potion from the interspatial device, eating them and drinking the potion immediately.
As soon as the medicine started to work, his headache lessened a lot, and his injuries began to heal.
With a full mana at his disposal, he started treating Paul's body, which was not in the best shape at the moment.
Fortunately, the injuries were not that severe, and with replenished mana, he quickly patched up everything before relinquishing the control to Paul again.
-Thank you.
Paul said, standing up.
-Don't mention it.
-Was that my uncle's voice I heard before I escaped?
Paul asked, since he was in a daze at that moment and was mostly operating on instinct.
-Yes, your uncle was there, but with the head injury you had, it would be a miracle if you even recognized him.
Do me a favor and try not to hit any more trees with your head any time soon.
The soul answered.
-I'll try, but I can't promise anything.
Paul said, with a bitter smile.
It wasn't like he wanted to be thrown into a tree again.
-Other than that, you did great, defeating an opponent who was more than a stage above you, but you might have taken her down way earlier.
-My goal was to defeat her, not kill her.
I don't want to be hunted by the Yuki clan.
Paul answered.
-Well, considering what your uncle said when he arrived, you might meet these two women again in the near future.
The soul said.
-I hope not, I don't want to have anything to do with them after this whole mess.
Paul said and started walking in the direction where the ladies were waiting for him.
Despite all the healing, he was still feeling stiff, and it would take a few hours before he was back to normal.
He was not worried about Xiao Han, since the soul told him that he seemed to be acquainted with Madam Yuki, so there was little chance that he would have trouble with them.
Besides, it was already afternoon, and he had a promise to keep.