124 Chapter 124: The Victor

I watched as Shawn Franklin collapsed, the black mana swirling around him completely drained away into my flowers.

My vines loosened and curled away, fading back into my sword. The blade shattered completely and fell, peppering the floor with tiny shrapnel. The green mana that wreathed it dissipated and reformed into the chibi Green Dragon, who chose to hover above my shoulder. I nodded at my Celestial Guardian before turning my attention back to my broken sword.

Looks like this sword has finally reached its limit, I thought to myself. As expected, it could only last long enough for one final technique.

A single blue flower, a hibiscus, floated along the air, one among many as a rain of vibrant flowers drifted leisurely across the room. The spectators watched in wonder, admiring the scenery. Meanwhile, I stretched my hand and caught the hibiscus, allowing it to fall onto my palm.

"Now it is truly over," I declared quietly as I absorbed the mana from the flower. "I'll help myself to a bit of your energy."

"Y…you…" Franklin's weak voice barely reached my ears.

I turned to look at him.

"It…it isn't fair," he croaked, still lying on the ground. "That you were hiding something this amazing."

"That's…that's the final stage of Stuart Swordsmanship, isn't it?" Lionel Stuart demanded, his booming voice echoing through the devastated reception room. I could see that he was visibly shocked. "Hundred-Colored Flower Bloom? That's the ultimate technique of my clan's Stuart Swordsmanship!"

I shook my head. "No," I corrected quietly. "This isn't your Stuart Swordsmanship's ultimate technique."

"What are you talking about?" Cecilia shot out of her seat to glare at me. "That is definitely the final and ultimate technique of Stuart Swordsmanship! How did you learn it?!"

"I already told you, it's not," I snapped irritably. "I created this technique on my own, in conjunction with Green Dragon's powers. I was also inspired after reading a manga and watching its anime adaptation. It has nothing to do with the Stuart Clan."

"Stop lying! You definitely stole our techniques from somewhere!"

"Now, now." Stuart raised his hands to calm his daughter down. "Now that I look closely and analyze the traces of mana left, I see that Richard is correct. There are quite a lot of differences if you watch closely enough. If I have to say, it's an imperfect version of our clan's technique, which is already impressive enough, considering that he created this technique on his own from scratch."

"You can't possibly mean to believe him…!" Cecilia exclaimed.

"If he truly learned it from someone from our clan, I do not think there will be this many discrepancies." Stuart frowned. "The execution differs too much for someone to have taught it to him. The mana flow is all wrong. If someone from our clan really taught it to him, they must have botched it…but I find it difficult that they would mess it up to such an extent."

"But…"

"Well then…can you think of anyone other than us who have mastered Hundred-Colored Flower Bloom and is capable of teaching it to an outsider? From my knowledge, we are the only ones who have learned Hundred-Colored Flower Bloom."

Cecilia fell silent, unable to come up with a reply. She lowered her head bitterly.

"Well, whatever the case…" Stuart paused and nodded at me. "It appears that you have emerged the winner, Richard Huang."

I bowed humbly. "Not at all. It was a terribly difficult fight. Mr. Shawn Franklin has proven himself to be a formidable opponent."

"Yes, he has," Stuart agreed absent-mindedly, his eyes wandering over to his future son-in-law. "It appears that he won't be getting the 55% shares of my corporation, after all." He chuckled. "You've taught him a well-deserved lesson in humility."

"Uh…that wasn't my intention."

"Nonetheless, that was still a splendid display. I thank you for it." he turned to Cecilia. "Call Doctor Yi. Ask her to check on these two's wounds."

"Understood." Cecilia was already raising her smartphone to her ear and dialing the relevant number.

"I don't need any treatment," Franklin muttered under his breath, still sprawled on the ground.

"I think his pride is hurt worse than his body," I remarked. Stuart chortled.

"Indeed. I hope this will serve as a lesson for him to never underestimate or look down on others again."

Now that the duel had concluded, the spectators were dispersing, leaving their seats in the boxes and returning to the banquet tables. A few of them gingerly avoided the corrupted carpets and furniture that Franklin had destroyed during our match.

I caught sight of Alicia approaching me. Initially I thought Adrian would accompany her, but he was approaching Yuan Dao Yue Guang for some reason.

Meanwhile, Stuart was in deep thought, and he seemed to come to a decision.

"Richard," he spoke up in his usual, deep voice. "You should be the one to marry Cecilia instead."

"…excuse me?" I responded incredulously. Where did this come from, out of nowhere?

Stuart was nodding fervently, completely ignoring my opinion on the matter. "You've proven yourself to be superior to Shawn. Your wood magic, in particular, is extremely close to my clan's Stuart Swordsmanship. With a bit of teaching, I can polish your techniques and turn you into a fine swordsman. You've already surpassed most of my Stuart Clan members. Under my tutelage, you'll become among the most powerful swordsman in the world. And I can see that you're exceptionally bright as well. You'll make a better successor than Shawn."

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"Hell, no!" I shook my head and argued angrily. "This wasn't what we agreed on! I am sure that Mr. Shawn Franklin has proven himself more than worthy to marry your daughter. And unlike me, he has the skills and training to succeed the Stuart Corporation. I'm just a regular guy with no financial background whatsoever!"

Furthermore, I didn't want to get involved with the Stuart Clan and all its inevitable politics, nor did I want to get trapped by a stupid marriage. My dream was clear. I wanted to be a mercenary like my dad and explore the world. I wanted to go around beating up bad guys and saving the innocents. I wouldn't go so far as to say I wanted to be an ally of justice or superhero, but I wanted to follow in my dad's footsteps.

Running a damned corporation was going to impede my ambition.

"You can't be serious, Lord Stuart!" Franklin protested hotly. For once, I was in agreement with him. "You can't actually be appointing a lowly commoner as your successor, and marrying your daughter to someone without any lineage or pure magician blood!"

"That whole commoner, blood heritage and lineage thing has been outdated for well over a millennium now." Stuart regarded the fallen "noble" sternly. "I don't care about his bloodline or class. I only care about results…about what I can see in front of me. And despite your boasts about your lineage, pure blood and status, you have clearly shown that you're inferior to him in every aspect. Tell me, what use is your blood and family background when you have been so convincingly defeated by someone you mocked and looked down upon as a commoner?"

Franklin found himself speechless.

"That was just luck," I objected. "The difference between us was paper-thin. If I had made just one mistake, the victor would have been Mr. Franklin, not me. I only won because I took him by surprise and he underestimated me. If Mr. Franklin had been fighting seriously from the start, he would have won ages ago."

"That's bullshit and you know it." Stuart smiled thinly. "You're obviously very talented. You're smart, and your keen perception of wood magic alone is more than enough for you to lay claim to succeeding me. Not only have you defeated Shawn, you have also claimed victory against my daughter and prevailed over rank A monsters. Yet despite these qualities and achievements, you remain modest and down-to-earth. Do you really think I will let you go just like that? It'll be difficult to find another heir as suitable and gifted as you. With you following my guidance, I know you will lead the Stuart Clan to greater heights."

"Begging your pardon." Alicia chose that moment to step forward after finally reaching my side. She glared at Stuart defiantly. "But Richard is my fiancé. You cannot just take him away from me like that."

"The daughter of the Violet family." Stuart acknowledged with an insincere smile. "I am so sorry for snatching your fiancé away like this, but I will definitely compensate you for this. I hope you can indulge my selfishness."

"This isn't about selfishness, but…" Alicia protested hotly, but Stuart cut her off, his grin growing wider.

"Perhaps I should remind you that the Violet family is nothing compared to the Stuart Clan. I know your family has some measure of prestige, but even so, trampling over the Violet family is as easy as turning a palm over for me. I apologize if I sound excessively ruthless, but please understand. There is no way I will hand over a rare prodigy like Richard to anyone, especially a rival family. Perhaps if you belong to one of the ten great families, I will think twice, but the Violet family is nothing compared to my Stuart Clan."

This bastard…

I was contemplating the option of fighting my way out, but I knew that even if I weren't injured, I would still be completely outmatched. Even so, I refused to submit before the indomitable Stuart. Reaching out, I held Alicia's hand tightly, a gesture that was not lost on Stuart.

His expression softened as he studied the two of us. "If you really love that young lady of the Violet family, I don't care if you take her as a mistress." He shrugged flippantly. "With our wealth and influence, it's easy to keep such matters a secret from the public…"

What the fuck was this megalomaniac talking about?

Stuart continued smiling at me, and I could sense an immense pressure building from his body, a dense, suffocating aura of menacing mana. I felt Alicia squeeze my hand back even as I tightened my grip on hers.

"I'm sorry, Richard. My decision is final. You will marry Cecilia whether you like it or not. I cannot afford to let someone of your caliber slip away from my grasp."

I opened my mouth to argue, but somebody else beat me to it.

"Lord Stuart, you BASTARD!"

Alicia and I twisted around, completely taken aback by the sudden outburst.

It was Yuan Dao Yue Guang.

"What is the meaning of this?" Yuan Dao roared, his eyes bulging in fury "I've served you loyally for so many years…how could you betray me?!"

"What are you talking about?" Stuart demanded. "Explain yourself, Yue Guang! We have important guests here!"

"Shut up, you lying traitor!" Yuan Dao yelled, his face contorted and twitching in rage. "I…I…I'll kill you for touching my wife! I'll kill you!"

The entire area around him seemed to shimmer. I stumbled back, completely caught off guard by the enormous amount of killing intent that radiated off him. Beside me, Alicia keeled over and I quickly caught her before she could hit the ground.

I didn't ask if she was all right. I couldn't. At the moment, I was completely paralyzed.

If I had thought the killing intent he directed at me in the elevator was incredible, I was completely mistaken. It was nothing, nothing compared to the ocean of murderous will he was emanating now. It was like comparing a grain of sand to the sea.

Yuan Dao Yue Guang was on a completely different level.

His power dwarfed Cecilia's, even Instructor Feng Hai. It was much more potent than even my dad, who I had always believed to be the strongest, most powerful person I had ever met in my life. Of course, Dad had never shown me the true extent of his power, but I wouldn't be surprised if Yuan Dao was on par with him, or even surpassed him.

I fell back, trembling uncontrollably. Even though I was this far from him, I still couldn't withstand his killing intent?

The party attendees in the reception room were all dropping like flies, foaming in the mouth or unconscious, just like Alicia. None of them could even endure a second of Yuan Dao's wrath.

Yuan Dao bellowed, a bestial howl that could cause even the most ferocious of monsters to waver. Its very projection destroyed the concrete foundations of the room.

Bounding across the room, the security chief went straight for his boss, screaming in uncontrollable fury.

"B…bastard…" Franklin forced himself between Yuan Dao and Stuart. I was impressed to see that he actually retained his consciousness despite the murderous intent pouring off Yuan Dao in waves. "A filthy commoner like you doesn't even deserve to stand before Lord Stuart."

"GET OUT OF THE FUCKING WAY, YOU IDIOT!" I screamed, a fearful voice that tore itself out of my throat. I had never felt so afraid in my life before, and I knew that Franklin was no match for Yuan Dao at all.

Franklin ignored me. "Final Franklin Style: Royal Apocalypse."

His whole body glowed with dark, corrupting waves of mana that I had seen earlier. Ye Mo emitted the eerie, deadly waves to devastating effect, lashing out several dozen black barbed tongues at Yuan Dao. I was surprised that he still had the mana to pull off a devastating technique like that, especially after I had sucked all of his mana earlier. To my horror, I realized that he was recklessly burning his own lifeforce to activate the technique, a process that would irreversibly shorten his lifespan.

The tongues wrapped around Yuan Dao, thrashing and whipping around him as they attempted to devour him.

They had no effect at all. Those corruptive tongues that caused whatever they touched to rot instantly, were merely deflected off Yuan Dao's body as if they were nothing more than a minor irritant. Or less than that…a breeze that brushed past him ineffectually.

Bellowing, Yuan Dao struck Franklin aside and barreled past him, his mind focused solely on Stuart.

Franklin stumbled for a moment before stopping to stupidly stare at the huge hole in his chest.

"Mr. Franklin!" I shouted, totally shaken by the terrifying sight. He didn't seem to hear me, didn't raise his head to look at me, and continued to stare dumbly at the empty hole where his heart and lungs had been.

Then Shawn Franklin finally toppled over like a broken figurine, his eyes glazing over.

As much as I disliked him for his arrogance, I felt an immense regret at his death. Unlike me, who was paralyzed by fear, he was capable of pulling off a courageous, heroic act of defiance in his final moments. For all of his faults, he was a good man.

Meanwhile, amidst the shell-shocked and unconscious guests sprawled across the reception room, Cecilia darted forward at blinding speed. Prying Ye Mo from the dead Franklin's grasp, she leaped after Yuan Dao and swung her sword down on him.

"Stuart Style," she pronounced in a deadly tone. "Scattering the Sakura Petals."

Millions of Sakura petals whirled around Cecilia, enveloping her in a pink cloud. Concentrating all of her strength into a single strike, she directed the devastating cloud of razor-sharp and destructive Sakura blossoms at her security chief.

This was Cecilia Stuart's true power. The strength I had always been pursuing, the elegance I could never dream of achieving.

The difference between her and me was as vast as heaven and earth, as immense as the disparity between the sky and the sea. I realized for the second time that my victory against her had been a fluke, or that she had progressed a great deal in her cultivation of strength within the short months since our match. At the very least, right now she surpassed the current me.

Cecilia swung her katana down with all the deadly grace and elegance that belonged only to those who had reached the pinnacle of a female swordswoman, bringing forth a deadly rain of petals under her command.

And just like that, Yuan Dao punched through it all.

I watched, horrified and disbelieving, as Cecilia, the Invincible Goddess of War reputed throughout the Federation's academies for being unbeatable, was knocked away in just a single hit.

"Miss Cecilia!" I yelled, watching helplessly as she sailed across the room, demolishing the first wall she slammed into. She fell, motionless, before being buried by rubble.

I couldn't believe it. It just wasn't possible.

The Invincible Goddess of War had just been defeated by a single strike.

Shawn Franklin. Cecilia Stuart. One by one, the young elites of my generation had fallen, defeated by a single hit from a berserk, middle-aged man.

A monster. That was what he was.

Gritting my teeth, I conjured whatever mana I had left. Franklin and Cecilia had done their part, and I was all that was left. Some might accuse me of being a pacifist (and they were wrong), but I was definitely not a coward.

"Taurus!" I hollered, my fear and fury manifesting in the form of a bellowing, gigantic bull.

The enormous Constellation spirit smashed through the ceiling and charged right at Yuan Dao with the force of a meteor. Grunting and growling, Taurus aimed his horns at Yuan Dao…

…who simply and calmly punched the charging bull.

Taurus exploded into formless mana.

"W…what the fuck?" My mind was racing. What the fuck just happened?

Did he just obliterate Taurus with a single punch?

A single fucking punch?

No fucking way.

Roaring, Yuan Dao continued rushing toward his employer, who had been sitting through the entire event, stony-faced and impassive as he remained in his golden throne to await this new impertinent challenger.

I couldn't tear my eyes away from the incredible sight. Before me were two masters, both infinitely more powerful than Cecilia and the elites of my generation, perhaps even more so than Instructor Feng Hai, and they were getting ready to clash in a battle that was certain to shake the heavens and the earth.

Still helping Alicia up, I continued to watch, my mind at a loss at how to continue. Just what Constellation spirit or weapon did I possess in my arsenal that could match these two masters? Nothing short of a nuke would be able to even hurt them.

And suddenly I felt that it was possible that they would be able to survive even Scorpio's Antares.

"…Richard…"

"Alicia! Are you all right?"

I supported Alicia as she struggled to regain consciousness, her teeth gritted from the sheer effort of trying to withstand the massive killing intent that saturated the entire reception room.

"I'm fine…but we have to get away from here." her eyes darted to the trembling ground. "My instincts are telling me that we can't remain here. We have to leave the building. It's going to collapse at any time."

As a magic gunner, Alicia was sensitive to structures and composition of her surroundings, so I trusted her.

"C…Cecilia…help her." Alicia dimly caught sight of her friend, buried under the rubble.

"Understood." Cecilia wasn't the only one I wanted to help. I grimly looked around for Adrian as well.

It seemed that I was going to have to ask my young friend a few questions.