Chapter 67 – What Arrogance
As the emerald-like gaze landed upon her, Aileen felt a sudden chill down her throat, as if pierced by an icy arrow, making her break out in cold sweat.
“Clang!” The poisoned arrow was once again easily deflected by Tillysha, causing the hairs on the neck of Aileen’s goddess companion to stand up.
This time, it wasn’t aimed at her chest; the only difference seemed to be the lack of padding. Tillysha was still slightly rocked by the impact.
So, it’s still impossible to break through her defenses huh?
The ranger goddess had a sour look on her face as she struggled to swallow. Having run out of tricks, her eyes turned to Aileen questioningly.
Looking at Tillysha’s spotless golden hair, which shone with a sacred gleam under the sunlight, Aileen harbored resentment inside.
She’s just another scheming fraud trying to appear righteous— who exactly is she trying to fool?!
Having lost her only knight, Aileen had no choice but to stand in front of the long-range ranger and assume the knight’s role.
She glared fiercely at Tillysha, knowing fully well that she must find ways to tie both her hands for her to gain the upper hand.
At a distance, she would be finished with Tillysha’s light arrows. Without a knight diverting her attention, Aileen had no other option but to charge forward and engage in close combat, seeking an opportunity to unleash the Divine Authority.
But Tillysha wasn’t about to be fooled by Aileen’s thoughts. With the ranger reduced to mere decoration, Tillysha only had this one strategy left. A quick-witted elf, paying slight attention, could easily avoid Aileen’s Divine Authority.
Tillysha hadn’t used her bow this time; instead, she strapped it to her back, drawing the light sword that had earlier pierced Lalo to intercept Aileen’s whip.
Aileen was surprised.
Having witnessed Tillysha’s impeccable archery, Aileen had assumed her skills in melee combat were lacking. Surely, if she devoted all her effort and time to honing her archery, her skills in other weapons would be minimal.
Aileen’s thought process wasn’t entirely off. Her biggest mistake lay in estimating Tillysha using human standards.
The whip—a weapon with a long strike range, but one that’s extremely hard to master. In the chaos of battle, with heightened tension, such a whip was prone to striking itself.
Equivalent to its difficulty was its unpredictability and its daunting attack trajectory.
Aileen’s whip tip was lined with small hooks, capable of tearing off strips of skin and flesh if struck.
Operating under the stereotype that bowmen were not skilled in close combat, Aileen thought she had the upper hand at first. But after the first clash, she began to feel uneasy.
Tillysha held her sword in one hand, and with the other, used the back of her weapon to block the whip flying dangerously through the air, pushing it aside. Then, with both hands on the sword, she surged forward, closing the distance in moments.
Aileen was startled and hurriedly retracted her whip.
Her Realm effect was to unleash increasingly faster combinations with each hit, overwhelming her opponent.
Tillysha’s golden sword swung and deflected Aileen’s whip, pushing forward relentlessly.
As the golden figure drew closer, Aileen’s flailing whip grew more chaotic and disordered.
Although clearly not as proficient in swordplay as her archery, Tillysha still displayed a skill level far above that of a novice.
It was evident that Tillysha was no stranger to the sword.
Tillysha’s relentless assault tore down Aileen’s defense like a storm through dry leaves.
“Clang!” There was a long and crisp sound as Aileen’s whip was knocked away.
Still unwilling to give up, Aileen attempted to use her Divine Authority as the whip was cut open but, to her dismay, the black vines that emerged from the void were swiftly sliced by Tillysha’s light sword.
Powerless, Aileen’s knees buckled, collapsing as she saw Tillysha’s light sword pointed right at her nose.
She couldn’t believe it. She, a proper deity maiden, had been defeated by a wild deity maiden, a fact that shocked and refused to register with her.
“…Haha, congratulations, now your great vengeance is fulfilled.” Aileen raised her head bitterly. “Feels good, doesn’t it? Liberating and exhilarating?~”
However, when she looked up, Tillysha remained silent, her eyes glistening like water, pure and calm.
Too pure to have any trace of impurity or taint.
It was as though her victory was void of any personal emotion—it was merely for self-defense.
This emotion couldn’t lie. But why? Why, after all the ab*se she’d endured, did Tillysha show no hatred or disgust towards her?
Aileen was perplexed again; she couldn’t understand why Tillysha remained so composed after attaining her revenge.
Was she forgiving? Was she kind?
Looking at Tillysha’s eyes, Aileen gradually understood.
Tillysha didn’t hate her. Yes, she could be seen as magnanimous or kind, but these weren’t the essence of it.
Ultimately, Tillysha thought it wasn’t worth it.
Simply put, Tillysha found the whole thing trivial—not even worth mentioning. Aileen herself wasn’t worth a second glance from Tillysha.
If someone doesn’t even consider you worthy of attention, there would be no hatred. Consider, would humans harbor hatred for a particular insect?
Not worth it. An insect that could be crushed with a single finger wasn’t worth wasting complex emotions on. Thus, everything associated with that insect, including grievances and hatred, would also be trivial.
Through Tillysha’s eyes, Aileen only saw purity, a kind that didn’t consider anyone worthy of her attention.
She remembered the “Please guide me” Tillysha had said to her before entering the Secret Realm—it was devoid of any meaning or emotion.
“Until we meet again, Aileen-sama.” Tillysha gracefully bowed to Aileen, behaving warmly and politely, refraining from any mocking words against her vanquished foe, and yet the effect was more scathing than any satire or ridicule.
In this moment, Aileen thought Tillysha’s actions were the epitome of irony—every gesture from the golden-haired girl indicated one thing. In her eyes, she’d never truly noticed Aileen’s existence.
How conceited… Compared to Tillysha’s, her own arrogance based on bullying the weak did not even qualify as real arrogance.
With great effort, Tillysha swung her light sword in a single breath, severing the token around Aileen’s neck.
A crisp explosion sounded, and Aileen’s figure vanished into the forest.
“Ranger-level deity maiden from Team 57, Aileen Cardiff, has been defeated by Ranger-level deity maiden from Team 30, Tillysha.”
After eliminating Aileen, Tillysha dismissed her knight light sword and picked up her bow, its energy-charged arrows aimed at the last remaining combatant from Team 57, Mary, who was pale as a ghost. Two precise arrows hit the throat.
“Ranger-level deity maiden from Team 57, Mary, has been defeated by Ranger-level deity maiden from Team 30, Tillysha.”
