Chapter 440: I’ll Prepare The Whips And Candles

Published Mar 14, 2026, 09:20 AM

Chapter 440: I’ll Prepare The Whips And Candles A day had passed since Renard’s battles with Nessia and Lavinia. Now, it was Princess Xenia’s and Mary’s turn to spar with him. Truth be told, the princess wanted to spar with Renard one-on-one, but Alex had told her that Mary should fight alongside her. There was a lesson that he wanted to teach Mr. I-Have-Trust-Issues that would be useful for him in the long run. When the battle began, Renard didn’t hold back and attacked at full power. Princess Xenia’s sword blocked his initial blow, but the momentum behind it was no joke. The princess was forced back several meters and almost lost her balance, having underestimated Renard’s strength. Fortunately, a strike from Mary forced him to dodge before he could follow up and take advantage of Xenia’s surprise. This window of opportunity allowed Princess Xenia to regain her balance and rejoin the fight. What they didn’t know was that Alex was using this opportunity to teach both sides what their weaknesses were. Renard was one of the Main Heroes of ELO. He wasn’t some random cannon fodder that could be stepped on so easily. He might not have the power of plot armor, but he was still blessed by the world. That alone separated him from his peers. Being caught off guard so early in the battle made Princess Xenia realize that if she wanted to win against Renard, she had to fight with the intention to kill. As a Princess Knight, she usually fought against monsters. Her experience with human opponents was really very limited because her godfather, Alphonse, and Mary usually took care of them, unwilling to let her hands be dirtied. Renard was her complete opposite. If he won, it wouldn’t be his first time killing someone. His village was often attacked by bandits. Before leaving his home, he had made sure to "clear out" the bandits to ensure that his friends and family wouldn’t be hurt during his absence. As she faced the young man’s killing intent and bloodlust, Princess Xenia finally understood that her opponent could easily overpower her if she didn’t fight with her full power. Mary was just like Lavinia. With her two daggers, she specialized in speed and lethal attacks at point-blank range. She had been trained since a young age to become an assassin who could also serve as the princess’s maid and bodyguard. If Princess Xenia’s life was in danger, Mary wouldn’t hesitate to eliminate the threat without even the slightest shred of mercy. Actually, the one pressuring Renard wasn’t the princess, but her maid. Mary didn’t hold back, targeting the young man’s vital points relentlessly. Renard hissed as he dodged an attack meant for his eyes, knowing full well that he would either be rendered helpless or ejected out of the domain if he was hit by any of the handmaiden’s blows. He might be stubborn, but he was a quick learner. After fighting Nessia and Lavinia, he had realized the importance of being prepared. He had also developed his own strategy to counter fast-moving opponents. Unfortunately, he wasn’t up against just one opponent. If he had been fighting either Princess Xenia or Mary, he would have won hands down. However, the two girls’ seamless cooperation prevented him from neutralizing either of them. All three teenagers were Rank 3. It was not obvious who would triumph. Although this was a match between friends, the spectators ended up watching with bated breaths because both sides often came very close to victory. The battle lasted for nearly twenty minutes. Eventually, Renard fell for one of Princess Xenia’s feints, allowing Mary to pierce his back with her dagger. His "death" triggered the safety mechanism of the domain, and he was expelled once more. Although they had won, the two ladies felt unsatisfied as sweat streamed down the sides of their faces. No one pointed it out, but it was obvious that they did not have as easy of a time as Nessia and Lavinia had. "Mary, after this, we will go and train," Princess Xenia said. "I am getting rusty." "Yes, Your Highness," Mary replied as she bowed her head. She was also unhappy with her performance during the battle. "Are you guys ready to fight Renard?" Alex asked, turning to Chuck and Charles. Chuck blinked. "Aren’t we fighting him tomorrow? I mean, I don’t mind doing this today, but Renard might already be tired." At that moment, Renard reappeared inside the domain and walked towards Chuck. "Who’s tired?" Renard asked. "You?" "A-Actually, I am tired," Chuck admitted. Unlike the others, Chuck was not competitive. He didn’t feel like he must fight Renard. However, Princess Xenia glared daggers at him until he had no choice but to reconsider. He also noticed that Mary was still clutching her daggers. "I’m ready to fight anytime," Charles stated. "Let’s go, Chuck. Alex already told us what strategy to use yesterday." Chuck redirected his attention from Mary’s daggers to Alex. "Are you sure that strategy of yours will work?" he asked. "One hundred percent," Alex answered. His confidence failed to infect Chuck. The troublemaker took out a golden potion from his storage ring. Just as he was about to down the potion in one gulp, a little bun snatched the vial from his hand and bounced out of his reach. "Dim Dim!" Dim Dim glared at Chuck before tossing the Conqueror’s Potion inside its dimensional storage. Clearly, the Dim Sum God was against Chuck using the potion in this sparring match. "You won’t need the potion." Alex patted his friend’s shoulder. "Just stick to the plan." "Alex, if I die, I will haunt you for the rest of your life," Chuck threatened unconvincingly as Charles dragged him away to face Renard. "You won’t die," Alex assured him. "Just follow the plan." 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢 Left with no choice, Chuck took a deep breath before whisking out his wand and adopting a fighting stance. Charles did the same, trusting Alex’s strategy. The young man’s right arm transformed into obsidian, and his hand into claws. Charles was a Void-Touched. Behind closed doors, Alex had been teaching him how to use his powers fully. Seeing that everyone was ready to fight, Alex raised his hand. "Battle Start!" Charles and Chuck immediately split up and ran in opposite directions, making sure that Renard wouldn’t be able to close in on both of them. "Wait! Why are you targeting meeee?!" Chuck complained because Renard didn’t hesitate to chase after him with the intention of eliminating him first. "It’s because you’re weak!" Eleanora shouted helpfully. "Weakling!" "Just you wait, Eleanora!" Chuck yelled back. "I’ll spank you later!" All the ladies in the room blinked once then twice before glaring at Chuck. "Hoh... Did you hear that, Mary?" Princess Xenia said icily. "I’ll prepare the whips and candles, Your Highness," Mary commented. Her voice reeked of contempt as her gaze locked on the running bastard, who would soon be subjected to something worse than a mere spanking.

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