Chapter 77 - Sacrifice

"You're useless. I'm not going to spend the rest of my life with a useless werewolf like you. I will call off our engagement."

Three years ago, he heard these three sentences that completely shocked him for the first time, turning his world upside down.

He had been showing his brilliance for a few years, yet, nothing could be compared to the Martial Prowess of someone. Even the Werewolf King required someone who had profound strength first before testing their intelligence.

In other words, even if he became a scholar, he wouldn't go that far in this kingdom, considering he was one of the princes.

His ex-fiancee's words hurt him and destroyed all his happy memories when she uttered those words.

The following years became hell as she kept mocking him and showing how good his brother was, comparing them without even caring about his feelings.

He had gotten used to it for some time, but he still had his pride deep inside his heart. It reminded him of Albert's appearance, the man who gave him the power to change his fate.

Remembering this, Yale couldn't help but grit his teeth. He was scared that everything would be ruined because he had given up.

"No!" Despite strength leaving his body, Yale tried to fight back the dizziness in his head. "NO. I don't want to be restrained anymore."

Yale clenched his fist and got his consciousness back. He instinctively hit Renee's head, hoping it was hard enough for her to retreat.

However, Renee managed to react by stopping it with her sword, trying to subdue Yale.

The situation soon changed when the Bonk Bat and the blood sword collided.

Bonk!

A powerful push hit Renee, knocking her away.

Due to her sharp teeth, there was a wound on his neck, but Yale realized it wasn't that bad.

"What?" Renee widened her eyes, looking at Yale in shock. She never thought that Yale had this kind of power left even though she had sucked his blood.

Yale, on the other hand, stared at his bat in shock. He couldn't help but remember Albert's words.

"Remember this, Yale! People have different fetishes, so you shouldn't be surprised if someone is suddenly horny for no reason. Well, you may be surprised, but make sure you act immediately."

In that instant, Yale channeled his light and dark power into his bat. And surprisingly, the two elements were in harmony again.

In other words, Renee was horny.

'With this, I can win… I only have one chance to bonk her, so I need to hit her as hard as possible. It must be hard enough for her to admit defeat.' Yale thought as he raised from the ground. His body was swaying left and right, but he managed to regain its control even for a bit. 'I don't think I can last long, but I will defeat her during this time.'

He hurriedly turned around to attack her, but he was deeply shocked when he saw Renee's face.

Tears were streaming down Renee's eyes.

"Why… Why are you crying…" Yale was shocked. He believed the force wasn't that strong enough to make her cry, so she must be experiencing something to make her show such an expression.

Renee cried when she bit Yale's neck. His shout that was full of emotion kept flashing in her mind.

Yale really hated her to the point he refused to go down. Normally, the moment a Vampire sucked on one's blood, they would collapse within seconds.

Yet, Yale proved that wrong as he still had enough power to actually blow her away.

"I… I will give up." Renee looked down as she bit her lips.

"!!!" Yale sucked a cold breath as he soon realized that Renee was far different from his ex-fiancee. He had judged her wrongly because of all the sadness that his ex-fiancee brought.

Although this was what he wanted, somehow, the pain was creeping into his heart. He couldn't bring himself to be happy even though she wouldn't bother him anymore.

Yale gritted his teeth and shouted, "Don't you dare give up! You and I have our goals! If you don't even dare to chase your own goal with all your power, how can you even face yourself!"

Yale's words shocked Renee. There was a complex emotion in her heart despite being the same age as Yale.

"Fight me until the very end!" Yale shouted again as he raised his Bonk Bat, showing the light and dark element.

This was the battle invitation where they gambled everything in order to win. He showed her that he would be fighting her with all his power, so she should also do the same.

Renee wanted to state that she had given up and didn't want to continue the fight, but the words got stuck on her throat. Her heart started pumping as her body instinctively stood up.

Renee gritted her teeth and said, "I will fight you. No matter if I win or lose, I will respect the agreement."

Yale's expression turned serious as he leaped forward using the Bonk Dash Albert taught him not long ago.

Renee also took a deep breath and rushed to Yale.

Now that Yale had Bonk Dash, his speed managed to catch up with Renee, showing her that this was the final round.

Yale swung his bat while Renee struck forth.

"Light and Dark Bonk!"

"Blood Cleaver!"

They shouted, releasing all their emotion just for a bit of power.

However, the conclusion came suddenly. The Blood Cleaver couldn't destroy the Bonk Bat and the Light and Dark Bonk created a powerful shock wave that deflected that power, destroying Renee's sword.

The Bonk Bat continued to move forward and was about to hit Renee, but the latter somehow escaped from its trajectory by bending her knees.

After that, she formed another sword to attack him, but Yale kicked her stomach first.

"Gah!" Renee coughed before flying into the air.

Yale didn't stop as he raised the Bonk Bat and swung his bat downwards. "Light and Dark Wave."

A crescent-shaped light and dark energy flew forward, chasing after Renee.

The latter tried to stabilize her body and block this attack, but it was impossible for her due to the tremendous shock from the kick earlier.

In the end, she formed a giant shield to protect her own body, albeit the attack was stronger than she imagined.

The shield shattered into pieces in an instant as the Bonk Wave directly hit her.

Bonk.

Luckily, the shield managed to absorb at least half of the Light and Dark Wave's power, so when it shattered the shield, Renee still had her swords to take it on, reducing its power even further.

But, Yale's attack still had some energy left and the Bonk power was activated upon contact with her.

Bonk!

There was a deep cut on her arms before she flew for at least two hundred feet away.

Although it was supposed to be over, Yale headed straight to Renee, trying to make her admit defeat because that attack should have heavily injured her.

However, his face was already pale because he had lost too much blood.

"Khh… I can't go down yet." Yale panted while pressing the wound on his neck. However, his vision began to blur as he was relying solely on his willpower to reach Renee.

The moment he arrived in front of her, Yale raised his Bonk Bat. "This is the end…"

Renee saw his pale face with horror. However, she ended up closing her eyes, accepting this defeat.

But fate played its magic.

Yale hit the ground, but it missed her by a few inches and ultimately hit the ground. It was then he fell unconscious.

His body dropped right on Renee's embrace.

"…" Renee looked at him worriedly as she shouted, "Shelka!"

Another vampire suddenly appeared.

"By the will of Demon God…" Shelka bent her knees and placed her hand on Yale's neck as dark energy began to glow on her hand. In that instant, the wound on his neck vanished.

"Princess, you too." Shelka immediately placed her hand on Renee's wounds without hesitation, closing them as well.

"Congratulations, Princess. You have won." Shelka politely bowed while glancing at Yale. "Your wish has come true."

"Bring us to the inn," Renee stated with a stern tone.

"Princess?" Shelka was confused by her statement.

However, Renee raised her voice. "Bring us to the inn!"

Not knowing what Renee planned to do, Shelka followed her instruction and brought them to the inn.

It was at this time, the building, the road, and even the sky started shattering into pieces, revealing the true world that was bustling with people.

However, there was no trace of Yale, Renee, or Shelka.

…

The next day.

Yale fuzzily opened his eyes as the memory from last night began to jolt his mind. In that instant, he immediately rose from his bed. "Aaahhh!"

He realized that he had lost consciousness and failed to deliver the last blow. In other words, he had lost.

With this, he had no choice other than to marry Renee.

Yet, when he looked around, he only saw an empty bed next to him, clearly showing that this was a room for two people. But there wasn't a single sign of someone living here other than him.

"What's going on…" Yale widened his eyes and looked around, finding a piece of paper lying on the table.

He staggeringly walked toward the table and reached for the paper, shocked.

Dear, Yale.

I have come to realize that my goal is nothing but something that will bring you unhappiness. Even if I bring you back, there won't be another smile on your face.

Just thinking of your master alone is enough to put a smile on your face, so I know that you're the happiest when you're with him.

I know that for you, freedom is the best thing you can have because of your upbringing.

That's why I want to tell you one thing. I have given up at the last second, so this is your win. I won't bother you anymore.

You deserve your freedom and I won't chain you down…

Yale, I love you…

Because I love you, I know I need to let you go. I don't wish to chain you down in the series of sadness, so… please be happy. I know that I can't share that happiness with you, but I will keep following your news.

Live well, Yale.

Renee.

Yale could see the tilting all over the paper because the paper was wet. It was clear that Renee was crying when she wrote this message.

He indeed won their battle, but at what cost?

His heart was in a mess and his body was shaking. He dropped to the ground and clenched the paper tightly.

He didn't know why but he felt he had lost something very important.

'Why… Why does it hurt when I actually gain what I wanted?' Yale clutched his chest and started panting. 'Why?'

There wasn't a single word that could describe his feeling. He had misunderstood Renee.

The latter truly thought of his happiness even if it meant she needed to sacrifice hers. Yet, he still couldn't bring himself to accept her terms. He couldn't accept the engagement because he didn't want it anymore.

Yale gritted his teeth as tears started flowing in his eyes.

…

Meanwhile, Renee was sitting in a carriage as she was planning to return to the Gluttony Kingdom, her home.

"Are you sure about that, Princess?" Shelka asked with a worried expression. She had been crying all night, so it must have been hard for her.

"This is the best for us…" Renee closed her eyes. Her body fell to the couch as she was too tired because she couldn't get any sleep yesterday.

Shelka didn't know what to say at this moment. It was true that Renee desired Yale's blood, but her feelings were undeniable.

She wondered if not intervening in their matter was the right thing to do.