Arthur walked away from the arena, distancing himself from the public until he reached his private waiting room. The moment he was alone, he leaned slightly forward and finally coughed up blood, staining the floor beneath him.
'The pain I felt after using that spell alone reminded me of that day. But using a dangerous spell and ending the fight quickly is better than dragging it out and putting repeated pressure on my mana core. I also wanted to use that opportunity to restore my reputation.'
'Unless I get trapped under that mana-suppressing device again, things shouldn't become dangerous for me.'
Suddenly a thought came to Arthur's mind
'Wait… I assumed that the organization recorded and released that clip.'
'But after the array was dissolved, I was in such a weakened state… If there was really another member of the organization, they would have definitely taken that opportunity to kill me. Even the masked man admitted he came alone.'
'If it wasn't the organization… then another noble? That's unlikely. Only the shadow watchers can conceal their presence even from me, and they can only be commanded by the royal family. Then who?'
'When I killed Keizard, I saw Lysandra's face filled with rage… could it be that petty woman got offended when I defended Elowen and decided to take revenge? No… I need to think about this rationally before acting.'
Arthur found it difficult to believe.
His own sister… publicly defaming him over something so trivial?
Some time later, Lysandra was sitting at the dining table, eating lunch with the rest of her siblings and their mother as usual. The atmosphere seemed normal on the surface, but her mind was far from calm. She still couldn't accept that her fiancé had been killed, and no one had even acknowledged her loss.
When she saw Arthur enter the room—
"Arthur, come join us,"
Alice said.
Arthur ignored her completely and walked straight toward Lysandra.
She frowned in confusion for a moment—
SLAP
The sound echoed sharply across the room.
Arthur struck her without holding back. The force was enough to send her head snapping to the side as she immediately coughed up blood.
Everyone froze.
"Arthur! What did Lysandra do??"
Alice asked, shocked.
"What's wrong with you?!"
Lysandra shouted, her voice shaking
Arthur grabbed her by the hair and dragged her aside.
"Did you think I wouldn't notice?"
His voice was cold.
Lysandra's face turned pale instantly. She understood what he meant.
"Trying to ruin my reputation? Using a shadow watcher to spy on me?"
Seraphina immediately understood the situation. Alice, however, was still confused, unable to comprehend why Lysandra would do something like this.
"Speak."
Arthur drove his fist into her stomach.
The impact sent her flying backward until she slammed into the wall. She coughed up more blood, her body trembling uncontrollably.
She had never experienced such humiliation in front of her siblings.
"Arthur, don't blame her entirely… I also played a role in this."
Lucian finally spoke.
He could no longer bear watching his sister being beaten like that.
Arthur turned toward him, slightly surprised.
'I haven't even spoken to him since I transmigrated… was it because of some old resentment? Even the original Arthur always ignored him.'
"Explain."
Lucian clenched his fists tightly.
"I always hated you, Arthur!"
He shouted, his voice breaking midway.
Both Arthur and Alice were stunned.
"You were always loved and praised by everyone… but me? My own parents forgot I even existed."
His eyes began to fill with tears.
"What are you even saying?"
Alice snapped, clearly losing patience.
"Mom, just don't try to hide it. At least this one time, accept it."
"Accept what?"
"You don't love me. You don't care about me at all."
"Receiving guidance from top instructors, wearing clothes that even nobles dream of, eating meals prepared by the best chefs… how ungrateful can you be?"
"Is that what you call love?"
SLAP
Alice struck him.
"It was my mistake for not disciplining you properly when you were young."
"You can deny it all you want… but deep down, you know it's true. Why did you go silent when I asked you about this in childhood?"
"Stop it, Lucian. We all know Arthur was treated differently, but does that mean we hate him? In this world, strength is what matters,"
Seraphina finally intervened.
"Oh? Arthur was born talented. He never had to struggle for anything. And why do you even like him? He never treated us like siblings. To him, we were nothing but trash."
Arthur remained silent.
He knew that Lucian wasn't entirely wrong.
"So out of resentment, you decided to defame me using underhanded methods? Instead of showing the full fight, you edited it?"
"If it were anyone else, their head would already be rolling on the floor. Don't expect to walk away from this so easily."
"Lock them in the dungeon,"
Arthur ordered the knights.
Time passed.
Arthur sat alone in his room.
'Even in my previous life, I was good at both academics and sports, while my younger sister wasn't. But my parents never compared us. Because of that, she never resented me… instead, she was happy for me.'
'It's true… Arthur was born gifted. But that doesn't justify being treated so differently.'
Arthur went to the dungeon.
Inside, the atmosphere was cold and oppressive.
Alice stood there, holding a whip lined with sharp nails.
Lucian and Lysandra had already been beaten repeatedly. Their clothes were torn at the back, their skin covered in cuts and bleeding wounds.
Lysandra kept struggling, crying, and begging her mother to stop.
Lucian, however, remained silent.
He had always wanted his mother's approval. But now… his actions had only made her despise him further.
He knew he was in the wrong.
So he didn't complain.
Alice raised the whip again—
"Mother, stop."
Arthur intervened.
"Arthur, they need to be disciplined."
"They've had enough."
"But—"
"You were also wrong."
Everyone froze.
"It's true. You treated me differently just because I was born special."
"Arthur, I—"
"I was also a terrible brother. Even though their actions can't be justified, we all share the blame."
Lucian stared at Arthur in disbelief.
A petty person like Arthur would have surely punished Lucian severely or probably even kill him
But this?
Arthur turned toward him.
"If you truly want to prove your worth, train harder. Improve your leadership, your strategies. As you said yourself… strength alone isn't everything."
Arthur left the dungeon.
His words stayed with Lucian.
It's not like he immediately started liking Arthur, but for the first time he saw concern in Arthur's eyes.
'Well… I already have enough enemies. A little goodwill might change him over time.'
'More importantly… the organization.'
'The masked man's words clearly suggested that the creators of the mana-suppressing device were not part of the organization. Then who were they?'
In a massive mansion, two individuals sat calmly.
A boy and a girl, both around nineteen years old.
Their appearances were nearly identical.
Both had striking red hair and crimson eyes. Their attire was luxurious, even by noble standards. Their beauty and elegance were undeniable.
They were twins.
Edward and Elena.
They weren't nobles, they were diplomats from the neighboring empire, Veltharion.
At first glance, they appeared refined and dignified.
A completely normal pair of rich kids, but
Edward had a naked woman sitting on his lap.
She had once been a knight.
Now, her body was covered in bruises, cuts, and was missing chunks of flesh. Four of her fingers were gone, and the remaining ones had their nails torn out.
Her eyes… as if in a daze.
"Master… please torture me."
A once proud knight… reduced to this.
Her mind had been completely broken.
"Oh? You want more?"
Edward smiled.
He slowly pushed his finger into her eye and began twisting it.
"Do you like it, dear?"
"Edward, did you hear about Arthur? He killed Keizard publicly,"
Elena said with a soft chuckle.
"Ah, yes… ever since I arrived here, I've been watching him. The so-called chosen one blessed by God?"
"Imagine him begging for death."
"I consider death a gift… freedom from suffering. It ruins all the fun."
"Exactly. Arthur just kills anyone who offends him. He clearly doesn't understand true pleasure,"
Elena replied.
"The mana-suppressing device we created worked perfectly. Though I didn't expect him to struggle so much even at 50%."
"If it were 60%, he would've died."
Edward paused for a moment, imagining that outcome.
Then he shook his head.
"No… I won't let that happen. He will lose everything first."
"Oh my… you've become obsessed with him."
"Of course. I love breaking people like him. It gives me a kind of pleasure that nothing else can."
"Even that day… when I went to collect his DNA after he collapsed from the mana-elevating bomb, I wanted to torture him right there."
"But I'm patient"
After Arthur had collapsed that day and was taken back to the palace, Edward had gone to the site which was then empty to collect Arthur's mana traces and hair, which were used as reference in future experiments
He played the footage of Arthur's fight again.
He focused on one moment—
When Arthur's stomach was pierced.
And when the masked man forced his hand into the wound, Edward reached his bottle neck
"Aaaaahhhh…"
He moaned and started masturbating looking at Arthur's state and hearing his screams of agony, completely absorbed in the scene.
Elena watched silently, a faint smile on her face.
They were far from normal.