Mo Li rolled away, his scimitar sliced into several pieces, clutching his wound as he retreated.
The poorly made scimitar, a mix of scrap iron and inferior copper, was no match for the beast’s sharp claws, shattering into pieces with a snap.
Mo Li had thought the blade would hold for a while, but it broke after just five exchanges.
“Your blade is as fragile as tofu,” Limdis remarked, pausing her attack and raising an eyebrow.
“Do you need me to wait until you find a suitable weapon before continuing?”
“No need, I’m fully prepared today.” Two hidden blades shot out from Mo Li’s sleeves, abandoning the element of surprise they offered, now serving as close-combat weapons.
Twin daggers against twin claws.
In their first clash, Mo Li realized he had underestimated Limdis.
Although he had always taken her seriously, he focused more on her bloodline than her skills.
Her appearance was deceiving; despite constantly reminding himself of her uniqueness and identity, Mo Li misjudged her strength.
Even without using her bloodline, this beast-eared girl was a formidable opponent.
When Limdis got serious, she was a different person.
Fighting her felt like battling a fierce predator in the jungle, not a humanoid.
This girl’s strength was immense! In his past life, Mo Li had fought a giant bear in the forest under extreme hunger, winning at the cost of several broken ribs.
Limdis’s strength was comparable to that bear.
Moreover, she combined the strength of a forest bear with the agility of a wild leopard.
Her power and speed were beyond ordinary, making her moves hard to follow and react to.
The low margin for error meant a single hit could be fatal.
Mo Li had no room to resist, being overwhelmed from start to finish.
Just dodging with all his might was exhausting, and he had already taken several hits, leaving deep wounds.
Damn, it’s a disaster, my pet cat is attacking me! Mo Li fought while retreating, sparks flying from his twin blades.
He could react to Limdis’s relentless attacks, but his body couldn’t keep up with his brain.
His long-standing muscle memory was reset, and he was far from his peak in his past life.
He saw through her intention: to pin him down with this relentless assault.
Without a bloodline, his attacks were limited to physical means, making it easy to suppress such an enemy.
Limdis thought she had the upper hand, viewing Mo Li as just a slightly stronger human.
He couldn’t use the White Feathered Dragons bloodline, or doing so would lead to social death.
Without the White Feathered Dragons bloodline, Mo Li was just a skilled human.
Limdis took him seriously but never saw him as a threat.
However, thinking she could win by making him surrender was underestimating this old trickster.
Back in the day, Mo Li was a key target for the knight orders, a thorn in their side, a heretic they dreamed of executing.
His portrait once filled the city.
He kicked vice-captains, teased the knight captain until she blushed, and escaped unscathed, earning the nickname “the perverted dog.”
It wasn’t because he was powerful but because he was cunning, with endless tricks.
Without absolute power suppression, he could turn any situation around with enough preparation.
So, as a regular on the knight orders’ “honor wall,” he’d seen it all and wasn’t afraid.
As Limdis focused on attacking and neglected defense, Mo Li distanced himself and flicked a yellow-green pill from his pocket, quickly swallowing a white pill.
“Boom!” The arena was instantly shrouded in yellow-green mist.
“What is this stuff?” The audience, clueless, inhaled the dust and felt paralyzed, their limbs heavy as lead, slumping in their seats.
The paralysis poison was released, and it was time to counterattack.
“Cough, cough, what is this yellow-green mist?!” Limdis was caught off guard.
This naive beast girl was clearly encountering such a dirty trick for the first time.
Though beastfolk had some resistance to toxins, it wasn’t as effective as imagined, but Mo Li had considered this.
“Is he the skilled assassin Martha mentioned?” On the platform, Viscount Minster raised an eyebrow.
“Yes, father, he’s the one who keeps ruining our plans!” Barlow clenched his fist, veins bulging.
“I must make that bastard who keeps interfering with me pay!”
“Barlow, don’t get angry,” Viscount Minster said calmly.
“He’s just a small-time thief with no real skills.
You’re destined for great things; such people shouldn’t concern you.”
“…You’re right, father,” Barlow took a deep breath and nodded.
“Poison smoke, sneak attack?… Ha, truly an assassin’s style, but this match doesn’t seem to prohibit alchemical substances,” Viscount Minster mocked.
“Just a nobody, Barlow.
Don’t tell me your ultimate goal is just to take down this insignificant assassin.”
“As you say, he’s just a small fry easily caught by a honey trap, not even a pawn.
I shouldn’t aim to defeat him,” Barlow nodded.
“That’s the right mindset… Is that girl using her bloodline?” Viscount Minster turned his gaze to Limdis, showing some approval.
“Yes, she’s the only bloodline user in this match.”
“No, not the only one,” Viscount Minster corrected.
Barlow paused, then grinned knowingly.
“You’re right, father, not the only one…”
“Can we recruit her?” Viscount Minster asked casually.
“I tried, but she refused.”
“Ha, you must have used the wrong method,” Viscount Minster smiled meaningfully.
“To deal with women, you need a mix of firmness and gentleness.
Just being gentle won’t work; sometimes you need to be forceful.
Once the rice is cooked, everything is solved.
You’re a noble; act like one, understand?”
