CHAPTER 543: RICHARD?!

The man’s face looked surprised when he registered Coco’s words.

His red eyes widened and before the enormous boulder could make contact with the humanized flying pig and the woman below them, he quickly clenched his free fist.

Miraculously, the massive boulder shattered into countless pieces, sparing the duo from the incoming attack.

The sudden shattering of the boulder brought a slight sense of relief on Coco, causing her heart rate that was beating fast with anxiety to begin to gradually slow down.

A sigh of relief slipped past her lips as she watched the small pieces of the boulder scattering around below them.

"Oh, thank goodness it stopped.." She murmured, her voice sounding both relieved and worried as she shook her head. "I thought I’ll have to cover up a murder."

With the adrenaline subsiding, Coco found herself leaning against the man’s sturdy frame and settling comfortably on his arm, her forehead pressing unconsciously against the side of his head.

In the middle of that chaos, she had momentarily forgotten that he was a stranger.

Fortunately, when she felt the man shift against her head, it surprised her and caused a flicker of realization across her features.

She quickly pulled her head away, her face turning white with a faint hue of embarrassment as she hastily apologized. "Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to lean too close—"

However, before she could finish her apology, a scoff cut her off.

The man’s scoff was laced with annoyance and concern as he glared at Coco, obviously displeased for whatever reason.

"You puny human, you should have been home by dinner!" He reproached her, his voice tinged with anger which made Coco flinch and look at him with wide eyes.

"What were you doing out here at this hour?! And why were you beaten down by this excuse of a king beast, huh?! You’re clearly stronger than him! You beat me before so you would have been able to beat him!" The man growled out, glaring menacingly.

His words stung a little, his scolding reminding Coco of the unexplainable mistake she made that led to her being injured badly.

"Who the fuck are you to speak to me like that?" Coco asked as a frown emerging on Coco’s face, her voice dripping with irritation. "I don’t even know you! Yet, you’re talking to me like you know me! I only let Alhai and Richard to me like tha.."

As the words left her lips, realization dawned in her eyes as she gasped and blurted out. "Wait, are you Richard?!"

The man’s glare intensified as he scoffed, his words laced with sarcasm. "It took you that long to realize? With how tightly you’re holding onto me, I assumed you knew it was me all along!"

Coco shook her head, her surprise evident in her wide eyes. "Does that mean that you already met me before—"

However, their conversation was interrupted when sharp whistles were heard audibly, causing Coco to whisk her head to the direction of the sound and saw several daggers come hurtling their way.

Richard reacted quickly, protecting them by materializing a boulder in his free hand and threw over to the incoming daggers.

The impact of the boulder on the blades sent the daggers clattering to the ground.

Coco’s heart raced, the sudden attack catching her off guard as she teared her gaze away from the dagger and looked at the two people below.

"You pig! Have you heard of shame?!" Richard thundered, his crimson eyes flashing with fury. "First, you attack my outlander, and now you’re attacking me?! Are you eagerly seeking your end?!"

Richard’s voice rumbled with anger as he addressed the humanized flying pig creature, his question laced with a chilling warning.

"I don’t care if she’s your outlander!" The humanized flying pig announced with obvious anger. "You attacked my master, so now, I must avenge her!"

Richard merely growled, the sound making his chest rumble against Coco’s arm and raised a hand to launch another boulder.

Coco gasped when she saw this and grabbed Richard by the hair again. "Richaed, stop—"

"Apologize this instant, you naughty boy!" The woman’s voice rang out, her voice firm and authoritative which made Coco turn to her.

The woman grabbed Leo by the ear who let out a sharp yelp as his ear was held in a firm grip, causing him to wince, his attention torn away from the showdown with Richard.

"Ow, ow, ow! Let go!" He protested, squirming in discomfort.

Almost immediately, the woman tugged firmly on Leo’s ear and brought him closer to where Coco and Richard were suspended in the air.

"Apologize to that young lady!" The woman ordered, her voice stern as she shot Leo a menacing glare that would usually work on misbehaving children. "You were the one who attacked her first, young man!"

Leo winced in discomfort as he was pulled closer to the duo."But— ow, ow, ow! Fine, I’ll say sorry!"

Richard’s growl rumbled in his throat as his grip on Coco tightened protectively when the woman and Leo neared their spot.

Coco found herself being pulled closer to Richard’s, making her glanced down at him, surprise flickering across her face, but the gravity of the situation kept her silent for now.

"Okay, okay, I’m gonna say sorry, alright?! Let go now!" Leo pleaded, his arrogance from earlier melting away under the woman’s grip.

"No! You deserve a good whooping! I should have done it earlier, but we needed to take her to the city, but you went ahead of yourself and decided to attack her familiar, too!" The woman hissed before stopping right below Coco and Richard.

"Can the two of you get down?" The woman asked as she addressed them, smiling softly.

Richard frowned, but reluctantly lowered himself on the ground, keeping a tight hold around Coco and keeping her close just in case they tried to pull anything suspicious.

"Cleora, please!" Leo whined, the pain and discomfort evident in his voice.