Lynn parried Ivina's attacks, still not answering her questions.

  Because he was utterly fused by the plex retionship betweewo siblings, Lotte's diary didn't mention this at all.

  The csh of sword bdes echoed through the silent manor. If this were any other time, it would have surely alerted the butler and servants, but right now, there was no one in sight.

  That's why Lynn refrained from using the overdrive mode or res to magic just yet.

  "Is it very strange, my brother? Father isn't at the estate tonight, and I've led all the servants away. They'll only know that the devil worshiper the Church is hunting broke into the manor tonight..." Ivina appeared to be driven to madness, her sword relentlessly striking against Lynn's, as if she o vent all the built-up anger and frustration.

  Lynn's expression became odd, for the wanted devil worshiper the Church was after seemed to be him...

  Boom!

  During a brief pause in their battle, an abrupt explosi out in the distahrough the window ohird floor, a faint fire glimmered on the western side of the harbor town.

  Why would this happen so quickly? Lynn's expression ged abruptly. It wasn't time to act yet. Could it be that the members of the "Ship Gang" couldn't wait and had already taken a?

  "Where are you looking, my brother?"

  Seizing Lynn's distra, Ivina unched a spinning strike that sent his longsword flying, embedded firmly into the gap in the wall.

  Then the brown-haired girl raised her sword once more, this time for a downward strike.

  "Die!"

  Murmuring to herself, Ivina's amber eyes locked onto Lyn his face revealed no trace of fear.

  Why?

  Why was he not afraid of death?

  A hint of hesitation and doubt crossed the brown-haired girl's face.

  Over the years, no matter how terrible her attitude had been, this man before her always looked at her with araordinarily passionate gaze.

  But she never needed his pity.

  What she wanted, she'd take for herself.

  A myriad of thoughts fshed through the girl's mind, while oher side, Lynn sehe threat aended his arm.

  In that instant, it was as if the first time they had fought was repyed.

  Only this time, there was no oo stop them, and with a sharp gust of wind, the slender bde had reached above Lynn's head.

  However, Lynn's movement was even quicker. His right haended, seemingly at an unusual angle, and grabbed Ivina's wrist holding the bde.

  Then, he exerted a twist, and a faint sound of a dislocated bone resohrough the silent corridor.

  Outside the window, the moonlight intermingled with the rising fmes, creating a devilish picture. Lynn took advantage of this and raised his leg, sending a fierce kick towards Ivina's abdomen.

  Thud!

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

  How was this possible?

  Struggling to get back up, Ivina's lips slowly oozed a trace of blood. She couldn't afford to be ed with the pain in her right wrist or abdomen. She looked at Lynn with an expression of disbelief.

  She had used her full strength and had been easily knocked down.

  Ivina found it difficult to accept this reality, and her undamaged left hand once again lunged with the sword.

  "Sorry, Ivina, but my time is limited..."

  Lynn dodged Ivina's horizontal ssh, took the slender bde from her, and then delivered an elbow strike that knocked her down once more. Finally, he swung the bde towards her fair neck.

  Ivina's pupils tracted, and she could only watch as the silvery bde came closer and closer, her mind going bnk.

  Am I going to die?

  The girl slowly closed her eyes.

  Recalling all the effort he had put in, only to have his fate determined by a Duke's son, he found it particurly ughable. Perhaps seeking release through this would end his suffering?

  Ding!

  The soft sound of a sword's tip toug the floor echoed in Ivina's ears, and she opened her eyes in fusion, seeing Lynn behiaking out a piece of leather rope to bind her hands a.

  "You're not pnning to kill me?" Ivina stared at her familiar yet unfamiliar brother, puzzled by his as.

  "o do that. After tonight, you won't see me again... I think that should suit you well." Lynn casually expined, dragging the rope that had been prepared for Yadon, and tossing Ivina into his own room.

  He wasn't really Lotte, and he couldn't handle such a plex sibliionship. But site had chosen to end this karma by taking his own life, Lynn didn't pn to interfere.

  He also uood where Ivina's rese came from. She struggled but couldn't resist her predetermined destiny; she had been born to be a sacrifice for the Pedror family's revival. However, she had clearly targeted the wrong source of her rese. What truly tormehem both was the stubbornness of Baron Pedror and the ignorance of the feudal system in the Secas Empire.

  Since she had cleverly sent away the housekeeper and servants from the mansion, she could take some time to refle her as.

  After tonight, everything about the Pedror family would no longer him.

  Lynn turo leave, but Ivina's voice sounded once again from behind.

  "Why do you have such power but 't pass the Knight's examination or even a sparring match with me?"

  "Are you pitying me?" Ivina maintained her st vestiges of pride, asking in a tone mixed with shame and anger.

  "Too insignifit, Ivina..." Lynn turned his head to look at the disheveled and bewildered girl on the floor.

  "Your talent in swordsmanship is excellent, far better than anyone I've ever seen. However, your vision is limited to the small harbor town, and you're fixated on iing the title of a baron that eveerritory 't hold."

  "Beyond the harbor town is the Nordnd domain, beyond Nordnd is the Secas Empire, and beyond the Empire, there is a much broader world..."

  Lynn muttered softly, realizing that this world held the existenagid divis, along with tless secrets waiting to be explored.

  "Fet it. You probably 't uand," Lynn said, shaking his head before Ivina could respond.

  For most of the world's inhabitants, a town, a vilge, a family was everything, and this matter had nothing to do with him.

  "'t uand?" Ivina gazed at Lynn's departing back with a plex expression, until the door was firmly closed.

  The girl fell silent for a while, then suddenly lowered her head and bit into the leather rope binding her hands, struggling to break free.

  However, the rope was made of a tough material, and biting it with her teeth was futile. Iruggle, her legs hit a nearby table leg.

  A bck book that had bee oable fell to the ground, rolling to Ivina's side.

  The words on the pages were hastily written, but Ivina reized her brother Lotte's handwriting immediately.

  "Perhaps, without me, everything will get better..."

  Weebkun