"Ahhhhh!"
Cooper leaped backward, covering his right eye with his sole left palm, and howled like a pig whose ass was penetrated by a burning rod.
The pain was so intense that Cooper wished to lie down and cry. It wasn't just his right eye that was injured—his other eye and even his brain shook from the attack.
Cooper's right eye soon turned bloodied, and blood began pouring from his eye socket like a waterfall.
Lyria and Livy exchanged a quick glance, understanding each other's intention: to proceed and finish the fight swiftly and completely.
Just as they were about to charge toward the injured Cooper, a loud shriek erupted behind them.
"UNCLE!"
Both Lyria and Livy were startled and quickly leaped to opposite sides while whipping their heads backward toward the newly arrived person.
They had been so focused that they hadn't noticed another presence—though thankfully, this person was little far from the battlefield to sneak up on them.
Jack, who had appeared, stood frozen in shock and terror.
He had rushed as soon as he heard Lyria's loud shout upon recognizing Cooper.
The moment he arrived, he saw how Lyria had 'penetrated' Cooper's eye with a dagger. The only thing he could do after coming to his senses was cry out in horror.
But he didn't take a single step forward, as he was too terrified to even move. His legs trembled like a newborn calf.
If Lyria could injure even a Rank 1 Warrior, then what of him? He would die even if he had three swords with him!
After howling in pain for a few short seconds, Cooper came back to his senses.
Cooper knew that he absolutely could not show any weakness, no matter how urgently he needed medical care or at least some rest.
If he took too long recovering, then without a doubt, he would lose his other eye—if not his life altogether.
He hated and detested both Lyria and Livy to his core. Because of them and that disgusting street beggar, he had suffered the injustice of losing his right wrist, and now he had even lost his right eye!
How could he, a respected noble and one of the original six Mana Wielders of Ringwood Town, take this?!
Cooper had now fully realized that he had far underestimated both Lyria and Livy. He might not be able to capture these girls alive—they were far too capable—and he, a Rank 1 Warrior, was instead heavily injured. If this continued, even he might lose his life!
Cooper didn't hesitate and roared, "Jack, throw me my sword, NOW!"
He had no more hesitation; he needed to kill both girls as quickly as possible before they could escape. It was too late—no, there had never been an option to apologize and walk away. The moment he took action, it was either capture or kill, and since capture was no longer possible, only killing remained!
Jack was stunned and began hesitating.
He didn't want either Lyria or Livy to be killed or crippled. He was so close—so close to having both goddesses for himself!
Though he didn't know if more beautiful girls existed in the world, even in the vast Batley City, he had never seen a girl who could compare to Lyria or Livy in attractiveness, beauty, or charm—let alone one willing to speak with him, much less marry him.
Now, such bewitching beauties had dropped into his town from the sky—how could he give them up?!
This was a true God-gifted opportunity, for him alone. A lucky chance even Batley City's top nobles could only envy!
Cooper was no longer going to consider Jack's genital matters anymore.
So, he decided to take the matters into his own hands.
Both Lyria and Livy had to die—right here!
Cooper didn't bother convincing Jack any further and lunged straight toward him.
Both Lyria and Livy were startled by the sudden change in situation; they also couldn't stop Cooper, as fighting a Mana Wielder was not easy. They only needed to make one mistake—or let Cooper grab them—and they would die helplessly.
Cooper didn't even glance at Jack and swiftly yanked the heavy sword from his back.
Just as Cooper grabbed the sword, Lyria and Livy exchanged a quick glance of understanding, then bolted in opposite directions toward the trees.
A Warrior without a weapon and with one was a huge difference in power.
A bare-handed Warrior could still be strong, but Cooper wasn't skilled enough. If he grabbed a weapon, then even if he wasn't skilled in swordsmanship, it would still be a hopeless battle for both Lyria and Livy—they'd be chopped in half within no time!
Just as Mana Wielder could defend using Mana, they could also imbue their Mana onto a weapon or object, making it far more durable and powerful.
Even a Rank 1 Mana Wielder with just their Mortal-Tier sword could slice through thick trees effortlessly.
Of course, due to their limited Mana, they couldn't keep doing it without rest.
When the fight broke out, Lyria and Livy's initial goal was to make Cooper suffer so he couldn't easily catch up to them while they escaped. The best way to escape was by distracting his attention—running in two different directions rather than giving him the chance to chase them both together in a single direction.
For the last few days, while searching for Eric, both Lyria and Livy had been walking with a dozen or so meters between them to cover more ground. They'd agreed that if separated and unable to see each other, they wouldn't run around. First, they'd shout for one another. If that didn't work, they'd search for the nearest tallest landmark—be it the tallest tree, hill, or rock.
So now, even though Lyria and Livy had separated without planning, they already had a landmark in mind.
Lyria quickly thought of something to buy them at least a few seconds so Cooper wouldn't immediately chase either of them.
If they got just ten seconds, they could travel far enough to make swift tracking difficult for Cooper with only one eye.
Cooper scoffed coldly, "Let's see how far you girls can run!"
The moment he spoke, Lyria had an idea.
She yelled, "Liv! Whoever he's not chasing will go kill that son of a bitch with the swords first!"
Before Cooper could even take a step in any direction, he stopped. He was dazed.
'Indeed...'
"Alright!" Livy answered back to let Lyria know she understood.
Lyria smiled. Though she was running away, she was also checking for movement within the forest.
She was moving far slower than Livy, so in case Cooper chased after Livy, she could rush back to support her.
After waiting over a dozen seconds and not hearing any loud noises or shouts, Lyria started heading toward the tall rocky hill in the distance.
Cooper had realized that if he spent even a minute chasing either Lyria or Livy in this dense forest, the other one could easily come back and kill Jack.
Previously, he had thought Jack was very strong and capable, but now he thought: Jack was complete trash!
Not only was Jack far too incompetent compared to both Lyria and Livy, he was also a coward, indecisive, and too inexperienced to survive against any predators in the forest.
Cooper had also noticed how seriously injured he currently was, so he hesitated and waited. By the time he calmed down, more than half a minute had already passed.
He sighed deeply and sat down on the ground to recover his health and Mana.
Due to the constant release of spiritual pressure during the first half of the battle, Cooper was quite drained and also felt lightheaded. With his current remaining Mana, he could at most swing his Mana-imbued attacks with his sword only once or twice—and that was by giving up on his Mana defense entirely.
Chasing after either Lyria or Livy within the forest while still so gravely injured was not something he could do, even if he wanted to, as both girls were far too capable.
He needed to recover first.
As long as he recovered enough, he could still track Lyria and Livy down if they hadn't left the forest by then.
While Cooper was thinking about all this, Jack stood behind him, hesitating.
Jack knew talking nonsense wouldn't be good. He could clearly see Cooper was furious—not only because of the failed plan and injuries, but also because of the risks that would follow after they returned to town.
So Jack asked, lowering his voice to avoid triggering more wrath from Cooper, "U-Uncle, are we letting them go?"
He still didn't want to leave—not because of the risks and danger from Bella Noll, but because he didn't want to miss this perfect golden opportunity to obtain both Lyria and Livy within the forest, with no one to stop him in between.
Hearing Jack's idiocy, Cooper grew even angrier.
He could clearly see Jack still hadn't given up on taking Lyria and Livy as wives—despite having lost an eye to them!
Cooper knew yelling at Jack wouldn't help them in any way, so he sighed and muttered, "Both of them probably haven't left the forest yet. After I recover, we'll search for them. I have a feeling that tracking even one of them will lead us to both, and I highly doubt they'll leave the forest today. Their backpacks and side packs, although small, have too many items for a single-day outing. We can only take our chance. If this fails, we can only stay in this forest for a year—until Bella Noll dies."
He was also depressed, as he couldn't even go back to town to get bandages or medicine. If he left now, tracking Lyria and Livy would become impossible as clues didn't remain forever. He was currently deeply regretting that he had been too confident and hadn't even bought any supplies with him.
Jack's face paled at the thought of living in such a dangerous jungle for a year!
He knew himself well—not only did he lack such courage and willpower, nor did he have the necessary supplies to live in a forest with mosquitoes and ants biting him every day and every second, and worse, without any warm food or a comfortable bed to sleep in.
He absolutely couldn't imagine living in this place for even one day, much less a year!
Jack quickly thought of something to make Cooper reconsider and spoke in a deeply worried tone, "But then what about Aunty Isolde...?"
Cooper flared up in rage and snorted loudly.
What else could happen? Isolde would probably die from Bella Noll's wrath!
It pained Cooper deeply, but his life was more important than anyone else's.