The Gentleman at the End
Chapter 413 - Chapter 413 Chapter 412 Victory and Defeat

Chapter 413: Chapter 412 Victory and Defeat Chapter 413: Chapter 412 Victory and Defeat On the field,

due to Marcelino’s “grow stronger as the battle rages” Tearer trait, and cancer patients’ best technique “Blood Exchange,”

Yi Chen’s body was covered with cuts, and if it weren’t for the activation of “Dead Man Makeup,” his body would have been disassembled long ago.

According to statistics, his right leg had been sawed off three times, his left once.

His left arm, being fully armed with metal, although covered in cuts, had not been severed once,

while his right arm had been cut off twice.

Though losses of limbs at the physical level could all be quickly discarded and reshaped thanks to Dead Man Makeup,

some of the injuries left on the body were somewhat serious,

Marcelino’s living electric saw not only had traits specifically targeting the physical body, but also caused “Depth Wounds” with each tear of the saw.

The Cutter’s wounds would appear jagged,

and once the individual moved, the edges of the wound would rub against each other, further tearing apart the wound, eventually even causing the soul to split,

and Death Black Liquid would require three times the usual amount to fill the gaps when treating the wounds.

The worst was the electric saw cut on the shoulder,

which almost split Yi Chen’s upper body in half and grazed the heart, severing various organs and causing internal chaos… This directly resulted in the liquid volume between Yi Chen’s Frame being reduced to less than one-third.

The reason the injuries were so severe,

in addition to the opponent’s trait of growing stronger in combat, was also because of the “Dead Spine Lake” form issue,

the Knight Battle Axe was too heavy, affecting agility; switching to dual axes would require giving up firearms and might not guarantee an upper hand over the opponent.

This battle further solidified Yi Chen’s determination to “modify” Dead Spine Lake, ready to pay any price to find a way to alter its form.

However,

the individual currently emitting agonizing screams in the Duel Arena was not Yi Chen, but his opponent, Marcelino.

Apart from dominating the entire arena with his screams, he was rolling on the ground, seemingly having something growing, wriggling, and piercing through the most fragile nerves inside him, delivering excruciating pain.

From the Observation Platform’s gondola,

a certain member of the Venerable Tumor Knight Order almost leapt directly down to personally stop the match, but ultimately managed to stabilize his emotions.

“What the hell is happening to this guy? Why does he possess the monks’ traits, and specifically those used to torture prisoners with needle-piercing pain?

This release of agony is not from the lash of iron chains, but is delivered by a small metal vessel driven spirally into the deep flesh at high speed, reaching the soul with tormenting pain.

This unforeseen, erosive agony might cause permanent sequelae to the soul if mishandled.

Although Marcelino’s trait could withstand it… the outcome of this battle is pretty much decided. What a mess!”

That an Apprentice Knight personally selected by the Venerable Tumor Knight Order would fail in such an underground match, and moreover, lose to two slaves,

if word of this spreads, not only would the selecting system of the Knight Order be questioned, but even the Lord might be displeased.

The proposal to participate was made by three individuals. If things blow up, they will bear the primary responsibility.

Another Knight, however, spread his hands with an indifferent expression,

“So it’s a mess, then it’s a mess. At worst, the Lord will strip us of our knighthood qualifications… Besides, the other party did indeed outclass us, especially with that decisive shot at the last moment. So elegant!

Even when his body was completely cut by the electric saw, right down to the flesh and bones, the young man did not flinch at all,

he severed the Tumor Armor with a very dashing posture, and made a close shot.

Such a person will shine sooner or later,

if Marcelino was not in a state of hunger, had not been so conceited at the start of the battle and hadn’t exposed his cards too early, perhaps he would have had a chance to win.

Let’s accept the loss~ Wasn’t it a good match to watch? We didn’t seem to be this impressive back in our days, did we?”

‘Inside the arena’

Marcelino’s whole body tensed, he fell to the ground convulsing and howling,

his gradually hoarse and intermittent screams, as if needles were growing from his throat.

In such a situation, as long as Yi Chen stepped forward to deliver the final blow, it would be enough,

to slay and consume an Apprentice Knight of high ranking, and then to defeat another together with Jin, such an achievement would surely earn focused attention throughout Cancer Palace.

But…

Yi Chen endured the pain all over his body, especially in the torn shoulder, carrying the axe, and stepped closer to Marcelino writhing on the ground.

Spine Bone was raised over his head,

the emotions of the entire audience were pushed to the limit, even forgetting to breathe at the moment.

As if the Spine Bone Battle Axe was about to descend like on the Beheading Platform,

Puh–a mouthful of pitch-black blood sprayed out as Yi Chen fell to the ground, clutching his completely cracked shoulder.

The entire arena was in uproar,

even the Venerable Tumor Knights in the gondola observation platforms and Lady Oreina felt their hearts nearly leap out of their throats as if they were on a roller coaster.

There was a detail here,

the fallen Yi Chen had deliberately pressed the barrel of his gun against Marseillino’s body, slowly drawing out the pain bullet embedded within and retracting it back into the gun.

The pain-induced release allowed Marseillino to rapidly recover by utilizing the traits of a cancer patient,

and when he opened his eyes to see the young man lying before him, his heart was filled with mixed emotions.

Meanwhile,

seeing Yi Chen fall and unable to rise,

Jin, who was fighting intensely not far away, decisively abandoned the battle. She created a huge lotus in her palm and detonated it, the propulsion from the explosion blasting her towards Yi Chen to whisk him away.

In passing, she locked eyes with Marseillino, who didn’t try to stop her, allowing Jin to leave.

With the departure of the two, the Hunger Duel came to an end, the winners being Marseillino and Figray, directly under the New Soldier Camp of the Venerable Tumor Knight Order.

Thunderous applause erupted from the audience for the underground-standard-surpassing battle that had been incredibly thrilling.

As another presenter descended to give out the awards,

Marseillino had already left early,

leaving only the four-scythe-bearing Blood Mantis Fegre in the arena to deliver a victory speech and receive the rewards, indulging in the delicious and juicy presenter to satiate his hunger.

…

[Changing Room]

A syringe full of meaty essence was inserted into Yi Chen’s neck, the gash on his shoulder slowly healed back to its original state, and the Dead Man Makeup was finally removed, leaving him utterly drained.

But his expression was one of excitement,

as he examined the firearm in his hands, his muscles trembling slightly,

“The effect of the Pain Bullet is so good! If it’s not drawn out in time, the pain will continue, even causing irreversible aftereffects to that person.”

At this moment, thwack!

Jin suddenly slapped, blowing a dent into the wardrobe that Yi Chen was leaning against, and forcefully pinned him against it.

“Hey! Why did you intentionally lose?”

Yi Chen calmly explained, “Winning against a candidate of the Venerable Tumor Knights in such an event brings more than just attention. The entire Knight Order could be questioned because of it, even affecting the inner workings of the Cancer Palace.

It might benefit us or bring danger and targeting, considering we are not ‘local people,’

I can simply leave, but I have to consider your future, given that you, Jin, have decided to build a life here.

Losing a nearly tied match in this way will bring more stable benefits. People will talk about the two outsiders who almost beat a Venerable Tumor Knight afterward.

Even if it means a little less money, it’s a necessary sacrifice.”

“You’ve thought this through, passing up such a good opportunity to fight… That four-armed guy is pretty strong, I couldn’t suppress him even with Restriction Removal.”

“All right, I’ll make it up to you later. Let’s go~ We should apologize to Lady Oreina.”

Yi Chen and Jin left the changing room and hadn’t gone far through the competitor’s passage,

when a familiar figure appeared ahead in the corridor, leaning against the wall, his armor glistening with a flesh-like sheen.

“What’s your name?” called a voice from the shadow.

Yi Chen performed a gentleman’s bow very gracefully and announced his name, “William Behrens.”

“Marcelino Tearer… The winner’s prize money will be transferred to you after the match.

I sought you out to ask one question. Why didn’t you kill me? Doing so would have let you step over my corpse to earn the status of an Apprentice Knight, possibly attracting immediate upper-level attention.”

“Ah? I came to the Cancer Palace just to accompany a friend for a visit.” Yi Chen also gestured towards Jin at his side, “I won’t be staying long; it’s more of a sightseeing trip for me.

Facing a strong opponent like you has given me clear purpose, I may leave in a few days. Losing makes it a bit easier, thank you very much.”

“Tch…”

Having heard the reasons, Marseillino turned to leave,

whoosh! A card flew towards him as he turned, which Yi Chen deftly caught between his fingertips.

It was Marseillino’s cancer patient business card, specially designed with serrated edges and a dog’s head stamp.

His voice came from afar once again, “If you encounter any troubles in the Cancer Palace, I can resolve it for you once for free. If you don’t use it before you leave, consider it an opportunity automatically forfeited, and I won’t owe you anything.

Let’s have another battle when I become a formal Knight.”

Yi Chen just smiled slightly and tucked the business card into his clothes, waving goodbye.