Chapter 303: Never Again (1/2)

Leonel's legs hung weakly in the air, his face slowly turning red as Lamorak's hand clamped down on his throat.

It felt as though his whole body was washed by pain. It was an endless torrent that rammed through his senses like a tsunami, crashing through his mind in a repetitive, infinite cycle.

In his current state, lasting without oxygen for tens of minutes at a time, though difficult, wouldn't be impossible. However, having one's throat clamped down wasn't just about oxygen, it was also about blood flow.

Leonel felt his head becoming light, the pounding headache he had earned himself after his Soul Force ran dry was only getting worse. Yet, maybe in an odd twist of fate, he could just barely ignore because its level of pain was nothing compared to what was happening to the rest of his body.

Lamorak became irrationally enraged, staring toward Leonel's unwavering gaze.

Whether it was consciously or subconsciously, he felt as though all of his actions were being judged. It was impossible to tell whether he knew he was in the wrong, but all that was important was that he didn't like having to question himself in this way.

A roar escaped his lips as he slammed Leonel into the already cracked walls. The result was Leonel's already slipping consciousness swirling once more.

Leonel found it difficult to tell which way was up and which way was down. The whole world seemed to swim. He only barely managed to hold on to two thoughts.

One was the circulation method of [Dimensional Cleanse], and the second was the start and stop timing of this circulation.

He knew it was the only way for him to survive. He just needed his Soul Force to recover. It seemed so close and yet so far at the same time.

At some point, the pain began to numb his body. But, was this a good thing? Pain was a sign of life… so what was numbness a sign of?

Leonel clenched his jaw, weathering the storm of Lamorak's rage. Just a little more, just a little more.

Lamorak's grip tightened around Leonel's throat even more as though trying to twist his head off. However, he found his actions no different from trying to squeeze a thick metal pole.

When he looked at Leonel's body. Though his flesh was beaten and batted, along with his bones being broken in several places, it all seemed far too shallow for the punishment the Grand Knight had inflicted onto him.

Any other person would have been beaten into a pile of mush by now, but why was Leonel still in one piece? Why was his neck so sturdy? Was he really made out of metal?

The more Lamorak thought, the more panicked he became. He had never run across something like this in his lifetime. To have someone allow him to go all out to kill them, yet to actually be unable to do so even after so much time had passed…

The more blows Lamorak landed, the more his panic set in and fused with his rage. He felt as though the longer this went on, the more dangerous his situation became.

”Die! Die! DIE!”

Lamorak completely lost his composure. The calm Knight of the Round Table had somehow become a madman.

It felt to him that as long as he could kill Leonel, then it would all be justified. Those judgmental eyes, he didn't want to see them anymore, he didn't want to have to face the consequences of his own choices.

It was quite an ironic turn of events.

When Lamorak first met Leonel, it was the latter who had lost his mind. Leonel had reacted inappropriately to the situation due to something influencing his mind. Maybe had he not reacted that way, things might have traveled down a different path.

And now, it was Lamorak who had lost his cool.

Leonel didn't know how much pressure Lamorak had been under in these past few months. It was his suggestion that turned Camelot against Leonel. Though it didn't seem like it on the surface, this affected the trust between him and King Arthur.

Of course, when one was having internal struggles, they had to show a united front to others. But, internally, the struggles would continue.

Lamorak could tell that the trust between him and King Arthur had broken. The man he had sworn to follow his whole life no longer looked at him the same. Not only had he alienated such a talent, but he had also been the one monitoring Leonel during his escape.

He had to fix it. If he couldn't kill Leonel, he would never be able to.