Chapter 165: Bad Misunderstanding
Kai grabbed Bree’s hand firmly and pushed her away.
It was an instinctive move that his body did without his mind telling it to.
He was too weak to save his sister on the orientation. Perhaps that’s the reason why his body moved on its own, as he now has the strength to protect himself and those around him. Friends or more.
But seeing the charging skeleton deer, he couldn’t help but wonder whether he should have used the time pushing Bree out of the way to dodge the charge himself. It’s too late now. Kai’s arms came up on instinct as he braced for a force he already knew intimately.
The bone-shaking impact of antlers driven by the skeleton deer’s full might.
Now, with the orange energy bleeding from it, he knew that this would be way worse.
Just earlier, his arms were numb from the impact.
He reckoned this one would break his arms, and he knew it with cold certainty. Perhaps it’d be better for him to meet this charge with an attack of his own using his scimitar—but it was too late to counter.
And there’s not enough room to swing the scimitar.
Since it came to this, his mind screamed for Perion.
No need to hide him anymore; this was an emergency, and he needed Perion’s help.
From the ground a few feet away from him, a dark puddle formed as Perion materialized with the intention to lift the skeleton deer at the right moment to stop its momentum. But even as the summoning flared, he was pessimistic.
There was no time. Perion might be too late.
Just then, his eyes caught something. A shadow that streaked in from the side.
No, it was another beast.
A beast of dark fur and muscle that hit the skeleton deer like a boulder. The wolf that had an unnatural size clamped its fangs onto the pulsating antlers and wrenched hard. The skeleton deer was pulled sideways—orange energy scattered in wild sparks as the antlers gouged stone right beside Kai.
Before the skeleton deer could recover, a figure fell on it.
A woman descended with the moon silhouetting her figure. She had fiery, wavy long hair that streamed like a battle banner, sharp features that made her look menacing, and a muscular body that could even rival Matilda’s.
No, hers was more stocky and bigger than Matilda’s.
Her clenched fist was already cocked, and when she struck, the sound was thunder.
Boom—!
The punch landed not on the skull or the antlers, but on the cervical vertebrae—the exact crack Kai’s earlier attack had carved into the skeleton deer’s spine. It seemed like she had been watching, or her focus was that sharp.
And against the force of her punch, the bone snapped.
A deep, resonant crack echoed across the clearing.
The skeleton deer’s body seized, and its legs buckled before it collapsed to the ground.
But the woman wasn’t finished; she had to make sure, so she seized the antlers in both hands, planted her boot against the spine, and pulled hard. Muscle corded along her shoulders as the spine gave way with a wet, grinding tear.
Like a barbarian, she pulled the skull free—antlers and all.
She lifted it overhead like a trophy wrenched from a corpse, and then hurled it aside.
From how heavy it was, the skull didn’t even bounce as it met the stone ground, as it spewed dust everywhere. Its orange light flickered—before guttering into nothing. Kai stood frozen as he watched the woman take down a star beast.
He could still feel the ghost of the impact that never came, still humming in his bones.
"You came to this place and tried hunting the prey I’m already hunting," the woman pivoted her body and stared at Kai, still standing on top of the skeleton deer’s carcass. "You really are something, huh, Lesser Angel."
"W-Who are you...?" Kai asked, eyes narrowing.
"Good to see you again, Barbara," Bree approached from behind. "You’re stronger than I last remembered."
Upon hearing the name, Kai’s eyes widened in surprise.
As it turns out, this fiery-haired muscular woman was Barbara, the leader of the Auric Cabal.
Someone many considered equal to Chester.
"Ah, you’re High Angel Barbara." Kai straightened his back and offered a small smile, which was wobbly considering his heart was still pounding inside his chest. "Thank you for saving me from that disaster. And I don’t know that the skeleton deer is your prey. I’m sorry if I did anything wrong."
He has Chester to deal with, so he doesn’t want Barbara as his enemy.
But somehow, from the way she was looking at him, there was already an unspoken tension.
One that Kai doesn’t quite understand why.
"Did you really think I would intervene to save you?" Barbara asked—as she leaped down from the carcass. Then, she tilted her head a little. "Save a thief and a bastard like you? No. I intervened to save Bree from getting unnecessarily hurt."
From how she uttered Bree’s name, with fondness, Kai could tell that she was close with Bree.
Perhaps really close.
"A thief and a bastard...?" His brows furrowed in confusion.
Considering that this was their first time meeting properly, this hostility was surprising.
But his confusion was cleared in the next second.
"You attacked my people. You poached Bree into your group. And now you tried to steal my prey in my own territory," Barbara’s eyes narrowed sharply. "What else does that make you other than a thief and a bastard?"
"Hmm?" Bree turned to Kai. "When did you attack the people from Auric Cabal?"
"I don’t consider your group to be an enemy," Kai didn’t answer her and spoke directly with Barbara, wanting nothing more than to clear this misunderstanding. "I only have a problem with Alex, not the Auric Cabal, since he unnecessarily beat up my servant. As for the prey, I already told you I didn’t know.
"And for the matter with Bree," He glanced at Bree. "I think she can explain herself."
Now that he thought about it, he unconsciously created a trifle with Barbara.
He wasn’t intending to, but it was clear he hadn’t thought this far.
But he doubted Barbara would be as unreasonable as Chester; as long as he showed courtesy and cleared up the misunderstandings, she should find no worth in pursuing this hostility. At least that’s what Kai thought.
"And why should I believe a word from your mouth...?" Barbara asked sharply.
Beside her, the massive wolf bared its fangs at Kai and growled.
It was unmistakably an Awakened Monster—anyone with eyes could tell that much. Yet here it was, following Barbara like a loyal pet. Strange didn’t quite cover it. Then again, she could easily possess an imprint or skill that made such a thing possible.
Especially since Kai didn’t know much about her Patron God.
"I am a Lesser Angel, Barbara," Kai’s forehead creased into a frown as he placed a hand above his heart, almost like he was showing her his genuineness. "I already have a big problem with High Angel Chester. Why would I want to offend you, too?"
"Isn’t it obvious?" Barbara’s voice was a blade wrapped in a snarl. "You blamed everyone for the Sky’s sins. You can’t defeat the professors, the academies, or even the Sky. So, you aimed at the only target left. High Angels." Her eyes burned. "You want us all dead."
"That’s not true!" Kai argued, surprised that she would even go there.
He has resentment for having to kill his own sister during the orientation, but his wrath was targeted at the class system. The caste system that assigned classes the second a new Supernal becomes an Angel. And anyone who upheld it.
Anyone who bowed to it; he would see their corpses folded around his legs.
Angels are victims of that system, so he won’t actively try to kill them all.
Only the bad apples that exploited the system.
Barbara only looked like someone who was trying to survive, so he has no intention of taking her down. Not to mention—he was still in a lock against Chester, so inviting her anger would only be suicide.
"Not true?" Barbara snickered. "Tell me, how does it feel after killing a High Angel?"
"What?" Kai’s brows dipped deeper.
"Everyone knew that you’ve killed a High Angel or maybe more. I am asking you what does doing that make you feel?" She grinned savagely. "It must’ve felt good, right? Especially since you’ve seen the effect; Angels fearing you despite you being a Lesser Angel."
Many students were wary about Kai.
It was to the point that they weren’t even treating him as a Lesser Angel anymore.
And for Kai, who had only tasted the rank of Angel briefly before it was ripped away, seeing other Angels wary of him must’ve felt intoxicating. Revenge served cold and bloody. It would not be a stretch to say that he had grown addicted to it.
Addicted to the rush from the anticipation of what others would think after learning that he had killed another High Angel.
"It’s nothing like that at all." Bree stepped in. "I can vouch for him. He’s not mad like that."
"Come on, Bree," Barbara looked at her helplessly. "You’ve known him for a month. What do you know about him?"
"Enough to know that he didn’t mean to do what he did to you. Besides, don’t misunderstand this, Barbara," Bree raised a finger and pointed at herself. "I didn’t get poached. I simply left your group because I wanted to be with hi—"
Bree’s words rubbed Barbara the wrong way and never reached their end.
Not wanting to hear her speak again, Barbara charged—with the sudden, violent finality of a hawk stooping on a mouse. The space between her and Kai collapsed. One moment she stood still; the next, her fist was already buried in his face, and the crack of impact reached the ears a heartbeat after the blow had landed.
Kai’s eyes widened; unable to react in time.
Not with recognition, but with the blank, animal shock of a body registering heavy trauma— before the mind could catch up. Her knuckles drove deep, and the mana in them sheathed the punch like a razor’s kiss, and he felt it bite through his skin and reach his bones.
The fracture spread across his skull.
His body left the ground as he was launched away like a broken doll.
In his vision, the world spun—and when the motion finally stopped, he was already staring at the cold sprawl of stars and moon overhead. His back was flat against the earth, and all his limbs splayed like a broken doll.
Blood drizzled hot and thick from his broken nose, tracing paths down his lips.
His chest heaved from the desperate gasp and rattled something loose in his ribs.
Inside, the fracture in his skull pulsed with a sick, nauseating rhythm. He blinked at the sky, and it took him three full seconds to understand what had happened. By then—the blood had already pooled beneath his head.
