Chapter 152: Eyes of a Dragon and the Human Heart (16)

༺ Eyes of a Dragon and the Human Heart (16) ༻

Suddenly, the world fell silent.

A severed arm rolled across the ground, the continuous flow of blood showing no indication of stopping. The female student trembled, clasping the severed area with her remaining hand.

Blood seeped through her fingers, her eyes bloodshot as she wrestled to endure the agony.

Until they tormented Emma, the other female students were quite bold. It didn’t take long for their faces to pale with fear.

Sometimes, a single action spoke louder than a hundred words.

When the blood started to gush like a fountain, emitting a warm, metallic stench, even the female students had to admit internally.

Ian Percus was a lunatic.

He was not a commoner, but a noble. Yet, for just slapping a commoner, he had swiftly severed an arm.

This was not something a sane person would do.

Provoking a noble extended beyond the confines of the academy. Often, it could escalate into conflicts between entire families.

Especially considering the female students were only harassing a mere commoner girl.

A daughter of a rural herbalist, had she not been admitted to the academy, these nobles would have been completely indifferent to her life or death.

They couldn’t fathom Ian’s logic in reacting so violently just because they bullied a commoner.

But then, they remembered a few facts they had forgotten.

Firstly, Ian Percus had already offended the princess. So, he likely had no qualms about further conflicts with other noble families.

After all, the downfall of the Percus family was almost certain the moment he dared to touch a member of the Imperial Family.

Secondly, Emma was someone Ian Percus had revived at the expense of over 10,000 gold. Asserting ownership over her wasn’t strange.

However, there were still a few things the female students couldn’t quite understand.

Regardless of Ian’s feelings for Emma, she was still a commoner. Severing an arm just because a noble retaliated against a commoner was unheard of.

Usually, such matters were resolved through discussion.

Additionally, they’d heard that Ian feared expulsion.

He had even personally requested the princess to prevent his expulsion. This was information currently being conveyed by reliable sources.

The female students had no reason to doubt this information.

Even if he had offended the Imperial Family, having an academy diploma would secure his livelihood in the Holy Church or the Ten Kingdoms, even if his family were to fall.

After all, dousing an Imperial Family member with water wasn’t sufficient for expulsion. They believed Ian had restrained his provocation of the princess for this reason.

Yet, the reality before them surpassed all those judgments.

There was not a hint of hesitation in his actions.

One of their classmates’ arms lay pathetically rolling on the ground, a likely preview of the others’ fate.

A clear terror seized the female students’ minds.

Ian Percus advanced steadily toward them. At a pace neither too slow nor too fast, further draining the colour from their faces.

The notion of resisting didn’t even dare to cross their minds.

He was a monster who had hunted a named beast, defeated a demonic human, and overpowered four of the princess’s knights. While they were merely average academy students, undoubtedly no match for him.

So, as they always had, they resorted to another sort of tactic.

“...St-Stop!”

One of the female students cried out in desperation.

Ian’s steps came to an abrupt halt.

However, his golden eyes remained devoid of emotion as they focused on the girl. It appeared he was merely willing to hear her out one last time.

She sensed it. This was their final chance.

If they couldn’t persuade Ian now, a bloodbath was inevitable. But was it truly justified, all this just for slapping a commoner girl?

She was on the verge of tears, overcome by a sense of injustice and rage.

In their eyes, there existed a colossal gap between them, born and bred as nobles, and that commoner girl; it was truly a gap as vast as heaven and earth. Severing a commoner’s arm for daring to touch them was one thing, but the reverse was utterly inconceivable.

Their value was simply different.

Even having to justify themselves for such a trivial matter felt like an unbearable humiliation.Yôur favorite stories on n/o/(v)e/lbin(.)com

The female student, prepared to enlighten this barbarian in noble’s clothing, burst into fervent speech.

“Are you, are you insane? We are nobles! And that, that girl is a commoner! No matter how much you favour a commoner, if you are a noble, you should at least have the sense to discern...”

“My, my arm... my armmmmm!”

“Ughh, ah... arghhh!”

“M-My leg is gone... it, it hurts...”

Ian strode forward and pulled out the hatchet embedded in the shoulder of the mage.

A delayed spray of blood turned the ground a dark red. The girl convulsed from the sudden pain, but Ian was indifferent.

Yet, there was still one female student who had not given up.

“Revenge, ugh..I will have my revenge...”

Ian’s golden eyes briefly glanced behind him.

There, the first girl whose arm had been severed, now sitting collapsed on the spot, forced a twisted smile.

Her blue eyes, oozing with hatred and resentment, fixated on Ian.

“I, I’ll... have you expelled, you hear me? I’ll make sure your life is over... do, do you hear me?!”

He remained silent for a moment.

It was only after a while that he resumed moving, advancing steadily towards the girl.

The noble girl still wore her smile, her eyes simmering with intense vengeance. Yet, the pain appeared unbearable, as her forcibly curled lips trembled.

Ian, stroking his chin, realised he had seen her somewhere before.

“...Young Lady of the Lupesia County.”

“T-That’s right!”

Golden hair, blue eyes.

She had the look of a typical snobbish noblewoman.

Realising that she had been recognized, she seemed exhilarated, grinding her teeth.

“How dare a mere nobody like you touch me? You don’t want to be expelled, right? Ahaha... I’ll make sure you are! I’ll call the disciplinary committee, use all my connections and power...”

However, her words were abruptly cut off.

Her eyes dulled once again. A familiar sensation crept up.

Time slowed, sounds became distant, but the discomfort in her shoulder was clear.

Fear flooded her blue eyes.

There was no need to look. The fresh spurt of blood was evidence enough of what had occurred.

Her remaining arm had been severed too.

The sensation, like her spine being pierced by a red-hot skewer, was so surreal that she was unable to react for a while.

Her voice reacted before her body could.

“Heugh, ah... kkyaaaaaaaak!”

She hastily attempted to staunch the bleeding from the severed area, but she had no arms left.

Fear filled her blue eyes. Desperately, she tried to scoot away from the man.

Away from those indifferent golden eyes.

However, her attempt was swiftly thwarted.

A chilling slicing sound echoed.

It was her thigh now. A dying scream escaped her as her right leg was severed.

“Aaah, ah... aaaahhhhh! Uh, uh...”

Hyperventilating, she felt a genuine threat to her life. Her mind went blank, incapable of any thought.

She had provoked the wrong person.

This clear realisation dominated her thoughts as her trembling eyes looked up at Ian.

His golden eyes were disturbingly emotionless.

And he simply uttered in a cold voice.

“...Do whatever you wish.”

At that flat response, tears welled up in her eyes.

She had truly provoked the wrong person.

For the first time in her life, she felt a profound regret.