Chapter 107 Pride [2]

Wooooooo-
Cheering that wasn't for him.
'Miller, you shouldn't surrender.'
Words that disguised the command as advice and….
'Block his attack three times and you can surrender.'
A way out of his predicament.
Among these voices, a distinct announcement, one that he wanted to escape but couldn't, rang out.
-THE SIXTH ROUND BETWEEN MILKY MILLER AND VILE REAPER WILL BEGIN-
WOOOOOOOO-
The cheers erupted in many folds when his opponent, a man with unkempt hair and notoriety that surpassed most, entered.
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"Surrender, quickly. I don't want to waste my time with soiled fruits."
A transparent blue dome covered the arena.
'First lesson: Attack before your opponent does.'
"W-hy do think I will give up?!"
He shouted and ran to attack as the lessons had taught him.
Vile Reaper's eyes widened in surprise when he saw this and a small smile appeared on his face. Ignoring Miller's shaky voice and quivering figure, he mused.
"You are not even peak Meta rank. What makes you think you have a chance against me?"
The figure of Vile Reaper vanished and suddenly appeared in front of the rushing Miller.
He effortlessly raises his leg and kicks Miller in the stomach.
"Ar-"
Bam-!
Miller's back arches like a bowstring. And his body is flung away.
His body collides against the ground several times and he lands dozens of feet away from Vile Reaper.
Miller tries to stand but immediately bends over.
"Urg-!!"
Taste of iron fills his mouth.
"Was that shout just to appear strong?"
Whip-
'Second Lesson: Never take your eyes off your opponent'
Hearing the shrill sound of something fast tearing through the air, Miller rolls away without thinking twice.
Bang-!
A whip lands where Miller was a few seconds ago.
Miller jumps to his feet and sees the whip that landed at his earlier position.
"Will you give up?"
Vile Reaper asks, licking his lips, while his smile begins to stretch.
He can see Miller's eyes that were burning with indignation, resolved to see everything till the end.
'Last lesson: Don't defend. If have your pride, then take up your weapon and fight, fight until the bitter end.'
"I can let you go if you want~"
'Remember this, Miller, shields are only needed until you are weaker than your enemies. It is a weapon of cowards and weaklings. People will leave you once they grow stronger and no longer need your shield. Carve these words in your mind..'
"No."
'Offence is the only defense.'
Miller raises the bat in his hand and glares at Vile Reaper.
"Ah~"
Vile Reaper's whole body shivers in delight at Miller's answer.
He wanted to pounce and devour his prey in one go, but he held himself back.
'No, I can't break him too quickly' His body continued to shiver in delight, making it hard for him to speak, but he managed to ask something in a suppressed tone.
"Will you give up?"
"No."
Vupp-
Vile Reaper teleported in front of Miller.
"Please, don't die too quickly~"
With a crazed smile on his face, he punched Miller.
*
"That bastard!"
Leon shouted, looking at the vicious nature of Vile Reaper.
In the arena, a one-sided beatdown was continuing.
As a Meta rank, Miller was no match for Vile Reaper, but for some reason, he wasn't surrendering.
Vile Reaper simply kept punching Miller in the guts, throwing his dozen feet away and then asking for his surrender.
After Miller refuses, Vile reaper teleports to Miller and again throws a punch to his guts.
This had continued a few times already.
"Why isn't he giving up?!"
Miller was his and Isabell's benefactor's partner.
A friend of a friend is also a friend. As such, Leon didn't want Miller to get hurt.
"Will you give up?~"
Vile reaper asks again, but Miller was no longer able to answer.
He was bleeding from all orifices and a part of his stomach had been slightly caved in.
But even though Miller didn't answer, Vile reaper wasn't stopping.
Bam-!
Miller skidded and his back collided against the mana barrier.
"BASTARD!"
Crackle-
Leon, who was watching the twisted nature of someone for the first time, couldn't control his emotions any longer.
"Kyaa!"
"R-Run!"
People around Leon ran when golden lightning started flickering around him.
Without thinking anything, Leon held the rail and got ready to jump off.
"You can't interfere."
Huntress placed a hand on his shoulder and stopped him from interrupting the match.
"But why? Everyone can see that he can't fight back. Why are they allowing this kind of torture to continue?!"
Leon pointed to Miller, who was lying limp on the ground.
"Because it doesn't concern us."
"What?"
Leon felt a bucket of cold water drop on top of him. He looked at Huntress, wide-eyed.
"Aren't we supposed to help others? How can we leave those in nee-"
"No, we don't help others."
Huntress swiftly cut him off and left the spectator area while leaving a few parting words.
"If you try to intervene, then you'll fail your testing phase and be kicked out of the unit. After that, we'll no longer help you to solve the requests you've made."
Leon stood rooted in his spot as he gazed at her retreating back.
'Was I wrong about them? Isn't Goliath Unit made to help humanity?'
He couldn't help but question himself if he made the right choice by joining the Unit.
"Leon, don't take her words to heart. Sis is only making sure that you remain safe."
"How?"
Isabell pointed to the blue dome covering the arena.
"That mana barrier is made by dozens of rank 3 mages. If you try to break it not only will you fail but…"
She looked at the highest point in the stadium.
"..they might act too."
Leon bit his lips and nodded his head.
He couldn't do anything but leave Miller to his fate.
*
"Cough..cough"
Vupp-
Vile reaper appeared in front of Miller and, grabbing his neck, raised him in the air.
Vile reaper still felt something missing.
Something was missing for him to reach climax, the highest achievable pleasure.
"Why aren't you fighting back?~"
Miller's eyes showed the resistance against the despair that Vile reaper wanted but…
"Why? Why aren't you fighting back? Your struggle isn't enough until you fight back~"
He needed that euphoria, the one like Yato has given him, the one someone shows when they fight after giving up on everything.
He needed that desperation.
Miller was no longer a soiled fruit, but still only unripe fruit.
'I need to ripen him before devouring him~' Viler reaper licked his lips.
"Fight back~"
Pow-!
Vile reaper's fist landed on Miller's face. The mask that he was wearing cracked.
"Fight back~"
Pow-!
Pow-!
The white mask broke into large pieces.
Miller tried to hide his face when he remembered Nathan's words.
But there was no need for him to do that.
Pow-! Pow-!
Vile reaper's continuous punches embedded the broken pieces into Miller's face, making him unrecognizable.
But he didn't stop.
The pieces of masks burrowed themselves deeper with every hit.
With every punch, Miller's face became more deformed.
Blood flowed down his face, and painted the ground red.
Miller tried to pry Vile reaper's grip off his neck, but he was far too weak for that.
Slump-
Miller could no longer muster any strength, and his limbs fell back.
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