Chương 108: The Second Condition

Lancelot stared at the wound in his abdomen as blood continued to seep through his fingers.

"Why isn't it working? Why won't it rewind time?" he muttered, his breathing uneven.

"It's impossible for it to be overloaded…what the hell is going on?" Felicity looked at him with contempt.

"Can't you stop time, idiot?" She didn't give him a chance to answer. She dashed forward, her blades slicing through the air. Lancelot blocked her attacks with increasing difficulty, retreating step by step. The tension on his face spoke for itself. Felicity was clearly superior to him in terms of swordsmanship.

"This isn't good…" he thought through gritted teeth.

"I really could lose". Leah cast a quick glance at Ethan.

"Didn't you say he could stop time?"

"He can", Ethan replied, confused.

"But I don't understand why he isn't using that power. Maybe he really thinks he can win without relying on it…but that would be a huge miscalculation on his part. And Lancelot never underestimates his enemies". Felicity continued pressing him.

"He still hasn't stopped time…" she thought.

"Does he really think he can defeat me like this? No… he's not an idiot. Did Xia do something?" She attacked again. The wound in Lancelot's abdomen was weakening him. His grip on his sword grew more and more unsteady. This time, he failed to block the attack. Felicity seized the opportunity. With a swift slash, she tore open his chest. Blood sprayed through the air. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Lancelot collapsed to one knee, gasping for breath.

Felicity pointed one of her blades at his throat.

"Hand me the sword, or I'll slit your throat". Lancelot looked at her. Then, surprisingly, he smiled.

"I don't know what's happening…" he said in a weak voice.

"But I'm afraid I have no other choice".

"What the hell are you talking about?" Felicity pressed the blade lightly against his throat. A thin trickle of blood began to run down his neck. Lancelot slowly slipped a hand beneath his cloak. He pulled out a dagger. At that very instant…time stopped. Felicity. Leah. Ethan. Agnes. All of them froze in place. The snowflakes remained suspended in the air. The wind ceased to exist. The entire world became a motionless image. Lancelot coughed. He wiped the blood from his mouth.

"Did you really think a power this divine was confined to a single sword?" He raised the dagger. A bitter smile crossed his face.

"When the sword that rewinds time isn't enough…I can always rely on the dagger that stops it". Beneath the blinding white light, Xia watched everything unfold.

"No…" For the first time, panic tried to creep into her mind.

"How is this possible? How could I not have foreseen this? I underestimated him…" A new wave of agony forced her to grit her teeth.

"They're going to lose…" Her heart pounded violently in her chest.

"If I add a second condition…I'll violate every rule of this ritual". She hesitated.

"What will happen to me? Will I die?" The light continued to engulf her without mercy. Lancelot tightened his grip on the dagger. He spat out more blood.

"Damn it…" he panted.

"Using it twice in a single day is too much for my body. Maybe I shouldn't have used it to reach them…" With great effort, he managed to get back to his feet.

"I have one minute. I need to hurry". Holding his sword, he slowly approached Felicity. Xia watched the scene. Terror tightened around her heart.

"Felicity can't die…not now". Her hands began to tremble.

"And that sword has to become mine". She gathered every last fragment of strength she had left.

"Maybe I'll die… but I have no choice. If Felicity dies, my goal dies with her. All of this sacrifice will have been meaningless". With a desperate movement, she traced the triangular symbol once again. Against every rule. Against every limit. She imposed a second condition upon the timeline. The dagger would not function. A second pillar of white light struck her. The pain, already beyond imagination, doubled. Xia screamed until her voice gave out. Her body collapsed completely.

Lancelot was now standing directly before Felicity. He raised his sword. He was about to slit her throat. Time began to flow once more. Felicity reacted purely on instinct. She moved aside at the last possible instant. The blade grazed her neck, leaving behind a thin cut. She staggered backward, breathing heavily.

"He stopped time…" she murmured.

"There's no other explanation. I never would've let him get that close". She brought a hand to her neck. Her fingers came away stained with blood.

"From now on…I'll have to be much more careful". Meanwhile, Lancelot stared at the dagger with wide eyes.

"What…?" He turned it over in his hands in disbelief.

"A minute hasn't even passed yet…so why isn't it working?" He gripped the weapon with growing fury.

"What the hell is going on today?!"