Strange Whisper

Her kick landed right on his arm, making him flinch. Rafael could feel his hand turn numb from the attack. His body was also pushed back a few steps.

Gritting through the pain, Rafael moved to counterattack with his kick.

Based on distance, it should have been more effective if he used his fist, but now it was too painful to use his arm.

His feet swiped upward, targeting her waist. He didn't go for the head anymore as he knew Leslie could dodge it more easily. Also, this time, he had another target.

Leslie, as he expected, raised one of her arms to block his kick. But midway, he changed the angle. He spun his body, making it hit diagonally toward her knee.

Her knee buckled under Rafael's attack as he put all his weight behind it. Using the opportunity, Rafael gritted his teeth, forcefully using his hand to throw an uppercut toward her chin.

But this was still not enough to defeat Leslie. She quickly reacted, raising her hand to block the punch despite her unstable posture.

Seeing this, Rafael decided to throw another punch using his other hand; this one targeted her stomach.

Leslie saw this and changed her block to a punch to counter. Her goal was to attack Rafael first before she got hit. In her prediction, Rafael should have chosen to move back and put some distance, or her fist would meet him, but with her strength, she should win the clash, allowing her to send him back nonetheless.

But this time Rafael did something different. He suddenly dropped his own body, lifting his leg, making him fall to the ground. The move caught Leslie by surprise.

Using the opportunity, he grasped over her leg and then pushed it down, making her also fall. Rafael used this opportunity to ride on top of her and then started throwing punches at her face.

Aurora's eyes widened by what Rafael did, while Leslie's cheeks turned red because of their position. If someone had entered now, their imagination would have probably run wild. Thinking they were just sparring would be at the bottom of their imagination.

Seeing Rafael's face coming, a weird energy started pulsating from Leslie. Rafael felt a strong wind, then the next thing he knew, he was blown out of the ring.

'I knew it; she is a witch, so she can create wind? Damn it, she is even more dangerous than that invisible ninja. At least the ninja still needs to make a gesture before doing something, but she can just use it as she desires. Is this a unique case for her? Or for him…' Rafael wondered.

But his thoughts only lasted for a moment before his body was assaulted by intense pain. He was smashed into the ground.

"Rafael!" Aurora screamed in panic; she then glared at Leslie, "Why did you use your abilities?"

"I… I am sorry, miss…" Leslie mumbled in a low voice; she was too flustered by Rafael's action that she failed to control herself. This was a huge blunder for a professional like her.

This never happened before, "Let me call for Merlin to take care of him."

"You do that, and also make sure to scrub all recordings of your spar. I don't want any further inconvenience for my friend."

"Yes, miss," Leslie replied, then quickly left the area.

Meanwhile, Rafael barely registered what they said, his head ringing with pain. He felt like all the bones in his body were smashed to pieces.

As he was groaning in pain, a strange whisper started appearing in his mind. 

At first, he couldn't tell what the voice was saying, but as his consciousness started disappearing, the sound became even clearer.

It was an ethereal voice, soothing and calm but filled with reverence.

"Rex.. Rex, redde thronum tuum."

Rafael didn't understand what it meant, but the voice kept repeating itself again and again. Glimpses of strange images started appearing in his mind.

The images were blurry and unclear, but he could somehow make out some of the silhouettes. 

It was a throne. A majestic giant throne with many weird creatures around it.

Then everything turned black.

When he opened his eyes again, Rafael felt a warm gentle energy mending his body. His mind felt refreshed as his eyes fluttered open.

"Thank God you are alright, Rafael. You almost scared me to death."

"Aurora?" Rafael mumbled as he studied the place around him.

He was now lying in a bed, surrounded by medical devices. Beside him, a strange woman was sitting with a warm smile.

"He should be alright now, Miss Aurora. Can I take my leave? I want to finish the drama now when I have the time."

"Thank you, Merlin. You can go." Aurora replied.

Merlin had blue eyes and black hair. Her hair was tied in pigtails, and she wore a white coat, giving her the appearance of a doctor.

"Who is she?" Rafael asked.

"She is the healer in this organization. You are lucky she was taking a break at this place now. Usually, she always goes out on missions."

"Is she a witch?"

Aurora's gaze turned complicated. "Rafael, this witch, and templar stuff don't try to find out more. 

Yes, she is a witch, but behind them exists a giant organization that even my father needs to respect. 

If you cross paths with them, we probably won't be able to help you."

"Tell her my thanks then. Anyway, what time is it now, Aurora?" Rafael asked. As she had already made it clear, he didn't try to ask for further information.

He believed Aurora was not lying to him. If there really was a big organization like that, it would be better for him to stay as far away as possible. Who knew what kind of trouble he would face otherwise?

"It's around 5 now," Aurora replied.

Hearing the time, Rafael's body quickly stood up, "Damn it, I am late. I need to go home now."