Reborn as the General's Useless Daughter-Chapter 196: The Ambush (Part-4)
The light in Zora’s eyes flickered with brief surprise. She followed the direction of the attack and caught sight of Prince Kael standing not far away, casually blinking at her as if nothing had happened.
There was no need for explanations. The one who had acted was clearly him.
A faint smile curved Zora’s lips. Nathaniel had been unbearably noisy. Ending it like this was, frankly, efficient.
Black and White exchanged glances, then both raised imaginary thumbs in their hearts. Prince Kael was truly ruthless when it mattered—clean, precise, and decisive.
The two mercenaries standing before Zora, however, were completely stunned. They hadn’t seen anyone move. They hadn’t even sensed danger.
And yet... Nathaniel was dead.
That man had been under their protection.
Before panic could fully set in, Zora surged forward. Mana erupted from her body as she raised her hand, a long sword appearing in her grasp. Without hesitation, she thrust straight toward the two mercenaries.
They reacted instantly, abandoning all thoughts of Nathaniel. Weapons came up in a flash as they met her attack head-on.
Clang!
The sharp clash of metal rang out through the night.
Zora’s figure blurred, her movements swift and elusive like a phantom. Even facing a two-on-one siege, she showed no sign of retreat, her sword weaving a deadly, unstoppable arc through the darkness.
The two mercenaries could only catch fleeting glimpses of a blazing red figure flashing around them.
No matter how they coordinated their attacks, every strike fell short, cutting through nothing but afterimages. Their expressions gradually hardened, disbelief creeping into their eyes.
Zora was clearly only at the mid-stage of the Sky Realm.
One of them matched her cultivation exactly, while the other was even a level higher. Yet with the two of them joining forces, they still couldn’t suppress her. The absurdity of the situation made their hearts sink.
"This doesn’t make sense..."
Before either of them could fully process it, Zora’s aura surged.
"Tempest Break!"
Her clear shout rang out as violent mana erupted from her body. In an instant, her sword light transformed into a raging storm that slammed straight toward one of the mercenaries.
She had already judged the situation clearly. Fighting the two of them together would only drag things out. They had worked together for years and coordinated instinctively. If she wanted a clean victory, she had to break their formation and deal with them one by one.
The mercenary at the mid-stage of the Sky Realm felt his scalp go numb as the attack closed in. Panic flashed through his eyes as he hurriedly channeled his own mana, pushing a martial skill forward to block.
Boom!
The two techniques collided midair, and the resulting explosion sent a shockwave rippling outward.
The mercenary was forced back several steps, his face flushing red as a metallic sweetness surged up his throat. He swallowed it down with effort, but the damage was already done. His internal organs had clearly been injured.
Zora’s expression remained calm and detached, without the slightest hint of pride. She had expected this outcome.
Mercenaries might have richer experience fighting on the edge of life and death, but they had an undeniable weakness.
Their cultivation resources simply couldn’t compare to those of academy disciples. Her Tempest Break was a mid-grade Yellow-rank martial skill, while her opponent’s technique was barely an entry-level Yellow-rank art. The difference was decisive.
Seeing his companion wounded, the mercenary at the late stage of the Sky Realm let out a furious roar and charged forward, anger blazing in his eyes.
"You dare injure my brother? I’ll make you pay!"
Zora swept him a cold glance. "You come to kill me, and now you’re angry that I hurt someone? Don’t you find that ridiculous?"
"Arrogant!" the man barked. "You’re only at the mid-stage of the Sky Realm. You’re no match for me!"
"That’s not for you to decide."
Her voice dropped, carrying a killing chill. In the next breath, her figure blurred. The art of shifting shadows unfolded, and she vanished from his sight like a ghost.
The mercenary’s pupils shrank.
Too fast!
Before he could fully react, a sharp pain tore across his left arm.
Slash!
He barely managed to retreat, but blood sprayed into the air, a deep gash carved into his arm. Cold sweat instantly soaked his back. Had he been even half a step slower, that sword would have taken his life.
For the first time, fear seeped into his heart.
He had always looked down on academy students, believing they relied solely on family backing and abundant resources. Strip those away, and they were nothing.
But the woman standing before him shattered that belief.
Her cultivation was lower than his, yet her combat power was overwhelmingly stronger. This alone was enough to prove how terrifyingly talented academy disciples could be.
At the same time, battles were breaking out across the clearing.
Raphael and the others were locked in fierce combat with the members of the Black Vulture Mercenary Group, their movements swift and decisive.
Alaric Von Seraph and Julian faced each other coldly, sparks of long-standing enmity crackling between them, while Raphael showed no hint of retreat even when outnumbered.
Although Reesa’s cultivation was slightly weaker, she and Baldwin formed a seamless partnership. One attacked while the other defended, advancing and retreating in perfect synchronization.
Facing three opponents at once, they were under pressure, but they managed to hold their ground without collapsing into chaos.
Marcus and Tifanny were even steadier.
Their cooperation was honed through countless battles, and every exchange carried an unspoken understanding. Their side of the battlefield remained firmly under control.
In contrast, Sylvandria’s situation was far more precarious. From the moment Julian appeared, her composure had been shaken. Her breathing was uneven, her thoughts disordered, and the strength she usually wielded with ease could not be fully brought forth.
On another front, Prince Kael faced Thaddeus, the second head of the Black Vulture Mercenary Group. To Thaddeus, the battle was nothing short of suffocating.
By all logic, with his late-stage Heaven realm of cultivation, suppressing a student should have been effortless. As long as Julian pinned Alaric Von Seraph down and the others stalled Raphael and Marcus, victory should have been assured. Yet reality was merciless.
No matter how Thaddeus attacked, Prince Kael blocked every move with infuriating ease. Each strike was neutralized calmly, almost casually, as though Thaddeus’s full strength amounted to nothing more than a passing breeze.
Worse still, a dreadful realization crept into Thaddeus’s mind.
This wasn’t a stalemate born of equal strength.
It felt as if Prince Kael’s cultivation had already surpassed his own, and that this "battle" was little more than a deliberate restraint. Like a cat lazily toying with a mouse, never killing it outright, but never letting it escape.
The humiliation burned.
As the second head of the Black Vulture Mercenary Group, Thaddeus had never been suppressed like this. Regret flooded his heart. Had he known the true depth of Prince Kael’s strength, he would never have agreed to this encounter. This was no mission. It was a trap.
Boom!
A dull sound then echoed across the clearing.
Zora calmly withdrew her sword, its blade no longer stained with fresh blood. At her feet lay a lifeless body, eyes wide in disbelief.
The remaining mercenary froze, his face draining of all color.
Even a late-stage Sky Realm expert had fallen to her blade. He was only at the mid-stage. There was no need to test the outcome further.
When he met Zora’s gaze, cold and merciless, his courage shattered completely. Without a word, he turned and fled, abandoning the battlefield in a desperate sprint.
Zora did not pursue him.
From the moment his will broke, he was no longer a threat. A mercenary who had lost the resolve to fight was already half dead.
