NOVEL NEXT Vol. 2 Chapter 64: Luysia and Bicrista
The blonde woman nonchalantly disposed of the monsters using the sword she was equipped with.
She was already very strong, being of rank A, but once she became the Servant of that man, her statistics increased dramatically.
To these enhancements are to be added the buff given by ingesting the semen of Strauss Wagner.
She lost the powers granted to her by the the righteous Gods, but Luysia has never felt so deadly.
She sheathes her sword and turns towards the exit of the cave where she found herself.
The woman strides purposefully towards her Master.
Her priority is to reach him, confident that Rero will do the same, and they will reunite.
Their bond is the center of the broken world of this woman, and it is the thing that keeps her going.
In front of her, in the only viable path, a tiny figure stands.
Luysia Camclair, the glacial beauty with golden hair, gazes with her emotionless azure eyes at the obstacle in her way.
Bicrista Schrecken, the girl with silver hair, stands before her, wielding her kitchen knife.
A fake smile is painted on Bicrista's face, but she radiates hostile intentions.
Bicrista playfully swings her kitchen knife, effortlessly shifting it from one hand to the other with a dangerous lightness.
The blonde Luysia remains impassive in the face of Bicrista's hostile demeanor.
Her gaze stays cold and calculating.
"Camclair, don't you think we have unfinished business?~" Bicrista asks maliciously.
"I don't think so. Actually, I have no idea who you are," she responds, maintaining an emotionless tone.
"Move aside. I need to reach my Master."
"Are you going to Strauss?~" Bicrista asks, gripping her knife angrily.
"Exactly. If you know, don't waste my time," the woman confirms.
"See, that's the problem!~ Too many women around my Strauss!~"
"It's not my problem."
"It is! You don't even love him! You're stealing him from me!" Bicrista screams hysterically.
Luysia raises an eyebrow ever so slightly, maintaining her composure. "Are you out of your mind?"
"Yes, I AM. I am for Strauss. As I was falling into the rift, I thought I might die without seeing him again... Without receiving his warm seed."
"Nevertheless, it remains a fact that it's not my problem," Luysia says, elegantly drawing the training sword she carries with her.
Unfortunately, since she has been excommunicated, she can no longer access her [HALBERD OF FAITH] and must make do with this weapon provided by the academy. With hindsight, she should have bought a better weapon.
Unfortunately, she doesn't have much money available, as almost all of her assets are in the hands of the church.
Should she have asked Strauss for a loan? It's hard for her to make selfish requests to him.
She doesn't feel equal in their relationship, and communication with him is challenging.
Not much time has passed since the last time, but she's starting to feel the need to see him, touch him... feel him inside her.
Only in those moments of unrestrained lust can she experience joy and slowly heal from her brokenness.
"It's a problem because you abandoned him when he was in danger! I was the only one who helped him! I'm the only one who can protect him!" Bicrista accuses her vehemently.
Indeed, Luysia feels guilty for arriving late on the rooftop while Strauss was engaged in a deadly duel with Deedee and her companion Guli. Despite this, the silver-haired girl having no right to point fingers at her.
If anything, it will be her Master who punishes her.
"So what are your intentions?" Luysia provocatively questions, maintaining her icy tone.
"To kill you! It's obvious!"
Luysia never laughs.
If she did, this would probably be the moment.
Instead, she hints at a faint half-smile.
Bicrista lunges at her with a leap, wielding her kitchen knife in a position ready to strike.
Luysia is poised, in a defensive stance with her sword at the ready.
Bicrista is dangerously close, ready to strike.
Luysia, with a calculated movement, readies her defense.
But it's a feint!
[SHADOW STEP]
Bicrista instantly appears behind the blonde.
The assassin thrusts her attack.
Luysia, with a swift turn, intercepts the blow with her sword, cleanly breaking Bicrista's knife in half.
Half of the blade flies off, landing a few meters away with a resounding metallic noise.
The assassin recoils in surprise.
Luysia maintains her composure.
She gazes with her icy eyes at the girl who is shocked by her swift reaction.
"Your health points and mana points are at a minimum. You're in bad shape from the clash at the academy. But even if you were at your best, it wouldn't change anything. This fight is pointless," she informs with a neutral tone, without a hint of mockery.
"What?!" Bicrista screams, angrily throwing what's left of the knife to the ground.
"You can't kill me in any way. This is the power of Strauss Wagner. This is the power he granted me in exchange for everything I believed in," she declares with a mix of pride and sadness in her azure eyes.
"It's not fair! Why you and not me? Why am I not enough? I'm really upset! Why this difference? No one has ever escaped me! No one!" Bicrista screams, expressing her frustration.
Tears stream down from the mad girl's yellow eyes.
"These are silly questions. Please, don't cry," Luysia responds. "It wasn't my intention to humiliate you, but you were the one who attacked me first," the girl points out.
"It's because you made me angry!" Bicrista shouts, channeling her rage.
"I didn't make you angry. You're the one behaving like a child. And what have I done to you?" Luysia asks.
"Everything! You're here to take Strauss away from me! To ruin our relationship!"
"We've barely met," Luysia emphasizes.
"Well, then we must get to know each other!~" Bicrista proclaims enthusiastically, her eyes shining bright.
The sudden change in personality surprises even the impassive Luysia.
The silver-haired girl is entirely unpredictable.
Her mood swings make it challenging to approach her in a rational manner.
However, the blonde begins to think that there is much more behind it.
She's not convinced that these behaviors are spontaneous; Bicrista is hiding something.
In a way, Luysia can't shake the feeling that they are somehow similar. That the girl is broken inside, just like her.
The face of the silver-haired girl is familiar.
Yes, she's seen her at school. But she has the sense of having met her long before.
Bicrista extends her hand to the former paladin. "Nice to meet you! I'm Bicrista!"
"Luysia Camclair," the blonde responds without accepting the hand of the silver-haired girl.
"Are you always this unfriendly?" Bicrista asks, trying to lighten the tension with a playful smile.
"I've never bothered with it," Luysia replies with her usual coldness.
"I don't understand what Strauss sees in you. You're as cold as an ice blade."
"Because I am a real ice blade, unlike you."
"What do you mean?!" Bicrista startles, confused by Luysia's declaration.
"I think you're all talk. Have you ever killed anyone? Really?" Luysia questions, delving into Bicrista's dark past.
Bicrista recoils at the blonde's direct accusation.
"Y-yes, of course!" she responds unconvincingly, trying to defend her image.
"For how long will you keep wearing this mask?" Luysia continues, relentless in her interrogation.
"N-no, I don't know what you're talking about!" Bicrista retorts, trying to conceal the truth behind a veil of false confidence.
"Now I remember. You're that girl. The child abducted by Jakobus Aufreiber."
Luysia finally recalls where she had seen that familiar face before.
Bicrista was that little girl.
Segregated in that church, now deconsecrated.
Bicrista retreats in fear, shaking her head.
"N-no, it's not me! You're mistaken!" the woman denies, putting her thumb in her mouth in a childish manner.
"You're broken. I know because I am too. You've already experienced an abyss of the deepest darkest black. Strauss will make you sink into an even deeper abyss. Why do you want to go through something like that again?"
Luysia doesn't know why she's taking this matter to heart. It's not like her.
But perhaps in Bicrista, she sees a reflection of herself, and this strange empathy is surfacing unconsciously.
"Beacuse I yearn for the darkness and strength of a man I cannot kill!" Bicrista's gaze returns that of a mad yandere.
Luysia clicks her tongue.
"Patience, it's not my task to save you. It will be Strauss who destroys this charade."
Bicrista, realizing her act is ineffective, is left speechless.
Luysia sheaths her sword.
"Follow me; I'll take you to him."
Luysia tells her, moving past without looking back.
Even if she were to attempt some trickery, the assassin is not at her level now.
Bicrista says nothing and silently begins to follow the blonde.