Harem System In A fantasy World-Chapter 221: Sucker

Elion stepped toward Lilian as the healers were still making their way over, and up close, it was even clearer that she was not in a good state.

Her breathing was very uneven, and her body was still trembling slightly from the impact, yet she remained standing out of sheer will as she looked up at him with a complicated gaze that was hard to read, a mix of frustration, disbelief, and something else she did not quite understand herself.

He extended a hand toward her and smiled gently.

"Good fight," he said simply with a calm and sincere tone, "and... sorry about the hard blow."

Lilian stared at his hand for a moment before taking it and letting him pull her up properly as she steadied herself. Her grip felt weaker than she would have liked, but it was still firm enough not to appear fragile.

"No, it’s fine," she said, shaking her head slightly as she caught her breath, "I could see that you held back quite a bit there."

Elion gave a small shrug, as if it was nothing.

"Of course," he said lightly, "I couldn’t bear causing that kind of damage to such a beautiful face."

Lilian’s eyes trembled slightly at that, completely caught off guard, and then she blushed just a little.

Her gaze dropped instinctively as she pulled her hand back from his, clearly not expecting that kind of response in the middle of a match, let alone after what had just happened.

Elion chuckled softly and took a step back, already turning away as if it was nothing, but inwardly, he could not help but feel that something was wrong with him lately.

Because every time he saw a beautiful woman, he simply could not stop himself from saying something cheesy like that, even here, even now, in front of tens of thousands of people, although the only saving grace was that most of them could not hear what was being said.

The proctor, however, definitely could, and his brow was twitching slightly.

’Flirting... during a tournament... in front of this many people...’ He praised Elion inwardly. ’I wish I had this young man’s guts when I was younger.’

Even though the voices were not heard, most of the screens were still focused on the platform, and there were more than enough people with sharp eyes to catch the subtle reactions, the shift in Lilian’s expression, the faint blush, the relaxed smile on Elion’s face, and it did not take long for speculation to begin spreading among the spectators.

"What did he say?"

"Who know..."

"But that handshake... was a show of good sportsmanship."

Up in the Adventurers Guild balcony, Rhea Umbra was still standing in absolute shock.

Her eyes remained locked onto the platform, with her mouth slightly open as if she had forgotten to close it; her usual composure was nowhere to be seen now.

Behind her, her assistant hesitated for a moment before finally speaking.

"...Madam... is it possible you may have underestimated this place?"

No response came from her, and she did not even spare him a glance. In fact, Rhea did not seem to hear him at all.

Her mind was elsewhere. ’Who is this boy?’

That was the only thought running through her mind. Because nothing about this made sense, neither his strength nor his control.

’That technique.’ Of course, she recognised the phantom blade technique. Not only was it highly difficult to learn, but she had also learned a variation of that technique that was used for sabers.

Other than that, there were plenty of things about this boy that shocked her to no end. Like his composure. Not once during the whole fight had he hesitated or doubted himself.

Every single one of his movements was immaculate and full of unfiltered confidence in himself.

’His background... cannot be so simple.’ She thought. Many others in the arena had the same thought as her. She did not even consider blaming Lilian.

Not even a little, because she had seen clearly that her daughter had done everything she could to win that fight.

She had fought properly, and she had not held back from start to finish. It was simply unlucky for her to be matched against a monster like that boy.

If anything, Lilian’s loss only served to raise Elion’s position in her mind, not to bring down her daughter’s own strength and potential. This was just a variable you could never prepare for.

Back in the waiting room—

Mira leaned slightly forward, her eyes fixed on the screen as she watched the brief interaction between Elion and Lilian, and a small, knowing smile formed on her lips, one filled with both amusement and pride.

"...It looks like my dear husband has his eye on another one."

Aria narrowed her eyes slightly at Mira’s words. "...I don’t like her." She was also looking at the screens closely.

Isolde laughed softly. "You don’t like anyone."

"Tch...." Tessa clicked her tongue from the side. "Of course, he won’t even let the poor woman take a break even after beating her so brutally," she said, crossing her arms, though her tone carried a hint of acknowledgment, "that guy has no shame."

A part of Tessa was very astounded. ’It feels like he keeps getting stronger every day.’

Initially, she had felt like maybe Elion had been hiding his strength, but now, after spending so much time with him, she was convinced that was not the case.

He really was improving at a ridiculous rate. He had long since flown past her in terms of strength. But instead of jealousy, she found herself grinning. Why did his strength make her heart race so muc!

Mira chuckled lightly. "That’s part of his charm."

Aria huffed quietly but didn’t argue further, her gaze still fixed on the screen.

Down below—

Elion had already turned away with his hands in his pockets.

Walking back toward the tunnel as if the entire arena wasn’t still buzzing from what had just happened because of him.

Everyone was still watching him with a bit of awe and respect. He had stored his sword back in his storage at some point in time, and the action only seemed to cement multiple people’s thoughts about Elion having some sort of backer.

After all, only a genius with a backer could afford to have a storage ring. In fact, a few others were already wondering if there was a way to poach this young man from whoever his backer was.

Meanwhile, Lilian stood still as the healers worked on her, their hands glowing faintly as they treated her injuries, sealing wounds and stabilising her condition, but her mind was elsewhere entirely, replaying the last few moments of that fight over and over again, not just the clash, not just the loss—but that brief exchange afterward.

’Why did I...’ Her brows furrowed slightly as she stared ahead, her lips pressing into a thin line. ’Why did I react like that?’

She could still feel it.

That moment when the heat rose to her face.

Lilian almost berated herself right then and there.

’Ridiculous!’

Her whole life had been dedicated to strength, to discipline, to becoming someone powerful, someone who stood above others, and because of that, she had never really concerned herself with things like relationships, attraction, or anything involving the opposite sex.

It was simply not something that mattered to her, not when there were more important things to pursue.

And because of that. She had always believed she was immune to men’s shameless charms. She prided herself on that.

Yet just now, from a single sentence and a simple shake of the hand, she had reacted like that, like some lovestruck fool! 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Her jaw tightened slightly.

It wasn’t like she hadn’t heard compliments before.

She had been complimented more times than she could count. From powerful nobles. From talented fighters. And from arrogant men who thought too highly of themselves.

And every single time, she had ignored them, and she had felt nothing.

So why...

Why did this feel different?

’Well, he is the most handsome man I have ever seen,’ the thought popped up out of nowhere.

Her thoughts paused as she shook her head to dispel the thought.

But whether she wanted to admit it or not, this was different from all those times. He was different.

That overwhelming strength that had completely overturned her expectations. And that casual smile felt so effortless. As if everything that had just happened meant nothing to him.

Her fingers clenched slightly.

"...Tch."

She looked away, her expression tightening.

’Get a hold of yourself.’

She didn’t like this feeling. Not one bit.

It was unfamiliar and uncomfortable. And completely out of place for someone like her. She didn’t like it when her heart fluttered like that.

But no matter how much she tried to push it down, it stayed with her

Unbeknownst to Lilian, a seed had already been planted deep within her heart. One she did not notice, and one she would not acknowledge.

But one that would grow nonetheless.

Because, despite everything she believed about herself and despite her discipline, her pride, her absolute focus, Lilian Umbra had one very simple weakness.

One she had never discovered, and one she had never needed to face until now. She was a sucker for handsome younger men. Especially those who were stronger than her.

...

Vivian and Cain stood side by side, both watching the aftermath of the fight with quiet interest.

They both glanced at each other and shared a knowing smile.

"That must be him," Vivian said.

"That must be him," Cain said at the same time.

They both paused, and then Cain chuckled.

"Well... it has to be, the name checks out as well."

Vivian nodded slowly."...It does."

"So what should we do now?" Cain asked lightly, "Surely there is no reason for me to stay here any longer now that our target has been found."

"There is no hurry, we were told to wait and observe once we have found him, apparently something big is going to happen," She added, "but we are not to interfere under any circumstances."

"Tch, what did I do to be stuck with such a stickler for the rules? " He complained

"I thought you said you liked to work with me?"

"Well, there is a limit to everything, and I’m just too lazy to do everything to the last minute detail, like you." He shrugged.