Polymath Redux

Chapter 59: Secret War (10): Curtain Call

Friend or foe, the members of the king's court was thrown into disarray, unsure on how exactly to classify the sudden appearance of this deathly black knight. Xagontetia was a country that had placed great emphasis on outward appearances and often times discriminated against the more demonic imagery. Yet this knight clad in shadows and darkness had come to the defense of the king against Phantom who had otherwise had a 'light/holy' appearance.

"Wh- who are you?"

Still shaken from the firsthand experience of a fight breaking out right in front of his eyes he asked the mysterious black knight. At the king's question the black knight tilted her head in confusion but soon realized that her identity was covered by the fully encapsulated helmet. Upon removing her helmet she revealed her true identity as the Third Princess of the realm, Leona Crom.

"It's me father, Leona."

Leona answered the king with a warm smile.

"It, it really is you, Leona?!"

The king brought his face closer to her in order to examine her more closely. He was stunned; he could not believe the incredible amount of change that his daughter had gone through during the past month or two. While she retained her usual serious demeanor her aura was much different than before. As a child of the Sun Country she usually strode around with light colored armor and gave off a heavenly appearance so this death calling armor was the last thing that the king had expected her to wear.

"Yes father, though I've yet to fully complete my training I rushed over as soon as I heard that the royal castle was being besieged by a terrible Phantom."

The father and daughter stared into each other's eyes, happy to see each other after so long but the reunion was cut short by Phantom.

"I'm happy for you and I want to let you finish... your reunion, but I must 'cut' it short."

Phantom phased right through Leona's guard and had his Sacred Sword locked onto the king's chest. However the black knighted Leona had become even stronger than before and with her increased reactionary speed she parried off Phantom's blade and pushed him aside. Phantom landed a few steps back but before he could regain his inertia Leona had dashed into attack range and blasted a powerful kick that sent him flying several dozens of meters past the throne room.

The walls of the castle started to crumble from the impact alone and as Phantom crashed into the floor a large dust cloud covered the area.

"Sorry father, we'll have to talk later."

Leona spoke as she put her helmet back on.

"Y- yes, okay."

The king replied, awed by his daughter's sudden growth of immense power. While Leona had always been strong and talented as a fighter from a young age she was never at this level before; it was to the point that even the country's best knight could no longer hold a candle to her strength. It would be apt to say that her strength and skill had surpassed what was normally possible for humans and that she had entered the realm of heroes and legends.

After recovering from Leona's attack Phantom stood up but blood started to drip from behind his mask. Seeing actual, quantifiable damage being seriously dealt to him Phantom scoffed behind his mask with delight. The only other time where his 'life' had theoretically been endangered was when he engaged in combat against a deity-boosted hero-class fighter.

"Hahaha... I guess I should consider this a successful experiment."

Phantom whispered to himself as he wiped the blood off his face with the sleeves of his coat. He was delighted at the progress and growth of his guinea pigs and wanted to test them out even further. Though the reason may have stemmed from his arrogance there was a more strategic reason why he wanted to see her powers.