Chapter 111

Chapter 111: Chapter 111

Berthanon raised one hand, stopping him from saying anything else. His eyes remained fixed on Freya, and the expression on his face had become far colder than before.

"You’ve made a serious mistake today, Freya. I was willing to overlook your behaviour, but you’ve chosen to make false accusations in front of the entire Guild. You’ll answer for this."

Freya’s smile didn’t disappear. "Answer for it? Since you haven’t answered for what you’ve done all these months, I don’t dare answer to mine! You’re first in line!" Freya yelled, her voice carrying over the place. More and more Hunters came in, their eyes all on Berthanon.

"You took away the title of Guild Master from the rightful owner, killed him and is targeting his daughter." Freya’s voice got louder with every sentence she said. Her indignation was rolling off her in waves, "You forced Maya to give you her cells until she became so weak that she can barely heal herself. You forced Ingrid to go through with the memory searching machine and she almost died. You also gave Hunter G poison and almost killed him. If Ingrid hadn’t given him a pill that forced the poison out of his body, he would have died! He would still be lying in that room, dead, and you would have gotten away with everything!"

"What?"

The moment the words left her mouth, Freya froze. Her eyes widened. Damn it! She had said too much.

She wasn’t supposed to tell anyone that Ingrid had given Hunter G a pill, especially not Berthanon. That was one of the most important parts of their plan, and she had just revealed it in front of the very person they were trying to deceive.

Slowly, she looked at Berthanon, his expression had changed completely. The anger that had been building in his face disappeared, replaced by something Freya couldn’t immediately understand. His eyes widened, and then a strange light began to shine in them. It wasn’t the anger she had seen moments earlier. It was excitement, an almost greedy excitement that made the hair on the back of her neck stand.

"What did you just say?" he asked.

Freya tightened her grip. "I said Hunter G survived. That’s all you need to know."

"No." Berthanon took a step closer. "You mentioned a pill. What pill did Ingrid give him? Repeat what you just said."

"Why should I?" Freya replied, shifting her feet into a fighting stance. "It’s none of your business. You’ve already done enough damage to him. Hunter G died once because of you, and I’m not going to let you get anywhere near him again!"

Berthanon didn’t seem bothered by her threat. If anything, his smile grew wider. "Ingrid gave him a pill?" he repeated, almost to himself. "And that pill saved him from Black Vein?"

Freya’s stomach tightened. She had never seen him look this excited over anything. Even when he had been discussing the memory search and the Star Glow Herbs, he hadn’t displayed such an expression. Now, however, it seemed he had completely forgotten about the argument they were having. His attention was fixed on the information she had accidentally given him.

"Don’t you dare touch her!" Freya shouted.

She lunged. Berthanon raised his whip, but Freya was already close enough to strike. Her fist slammed against his arm, forcing him to move backwards. She followed with another punch aimed at his jaw, but he tilted his head and avoided it. The whip snapped through the air, aiming for her waist, and Freya quickly twisted away.

The tip hit the wall behind her. She didn’t wait for him to pull it back. Freya stepped forward, caught the whip with one hand, and yanked it hard, attempting to drag him off balance. Berthanon’s body moved slightly, but he planted his feet before she could pull him closer. He then twisted his wrist, sending a sharp current of force through the whip.

Freya’s fingers went numb. She released it just before the force reached her arm and jumped backwards. Her boots scraped against the floor as she landed, and she immediately charged again, refusing to give him room to attack.

Berthanon blocked her first strike with his forearm. Freya used the contact to swing her other fist towards his ribs, but he caught her wrist and shoved her aside. She stumbled, recovered quickly, and threw a kick towards his knee. He stepped away, but the movement gave her an opening.

Freya hit him across the face. The sound of the blow rang through the corridor. For a brief second, Berthanon’s head turned to the side, and Freya felt a rush of satisfaction. She had managed to hit him. But when he slowly turned his face back, she realised something was wrong.

He wasn’t angry, he was smiling. His eyes were still shining with that strange excitement, and he seemed far more interested in the information she had revealed than in the fact that she had just hit him. He barely touched the side of his face, where a faint mark was beginning to appear.

"That pill," he murmured. "Tell me more about it."

Freya’s expression hardened. "Go to hell!" She rushed towards him again, but this time Berthanon moved before she could reach him. His whip swept low, hitting her legs and forcing her to lose her balance. She tried to jump over it, but the movement was too slow with her injuries. The whip caught her ankle, and he pulled sharply.

Freya crashed onto the floor. She rolled immediately, avoiding the next strike by a narrow margin. The whip hit the ground beside her, cracking the surface and sending small pieces of stone flying. She pushed herself up with one hand and threw a punch at Berthanon’s stomach, but he caught her fist.

His grip tightened. Freya gritted her teeth, trying to pull away, but his strength was overwhelming. Before she could free herself, he twisted her arm and dragged her forward. Her shoulder nearly dislocated from the force, and a painful gasp escaped her.

"Let go!"

Berthanon didn’t answer. He pulled her closer and hit her across the chest. The blow landed with such force that Freya felt something crack inside her. Her body lifted off the ground before crashing several feet away. She coughed violently, blood spilling from her mouth as she struggled to breathe.

Her vision blurred. She tried to push herself up, but her arms were trembling. The earlier injury to her ribs had already weakened her, and Berthanon’s latest attack had made it difficult to move at all.