The rain keeps dropping ever harder and the drenched, muddy soil around us are sloshing as we step on them, however, our focus is entirely at each other as we trade blows and swings. The camaraderie of the rain hitting the ground and the leaves of the trees sounding like its cheering fills the place.

Boss and I, both using the similar fighting stance that is Calm Dragon Tempest are of itself it odd since I am the only who was taught of it by master Mrothgir. If anything, Boss could have met master Mrothgir somewhere, copied my fighting style through prodigal method, or has prior knowledge.

From afar, I could see Boss’ entourage using some tools to cover themselves from the downpour, including Mimi who seems still unconscious. At the very least, they are tending to her but I doubt they had any intention from the start.

This somehow forgoes one of my worries and enabled me to focus on battling Boss. My short sword versus her katana, it was a battle that both parties need to exploits one’s weaknesses.

As the name implies, my weapons is a short sword that has limited range, lighter than the normal sword but easier to swing and more durable and, as for Boss’ katana, it was fast, longer, but it can easily break.

I’m already using my intangible barrier which scans every possible thing in a particular radius. It was like my all-seeing eyes that can detect every bit of movements, even the rain counts. I just have to do my best to ignore as much as possible information to keep the pent up headache from escalating. That’s why back attack or any strategy to use my blind spot is all useless unless the person moves faster than my reaction.

However, Boss, on the other hand, has almost the same specifications, as if she moves to defend instinctively. If I am not undermining it, she should be predicting movements or has a powerful intuition and it makes me believe that she isn’t a human.

Or is it possible that Boss isn’t actually a human?

There was a little to no method for me to know right now. Her movements are sharper but her skills aren’t above mine but aren’t below either. Even if this is a stalemate, at some point, one would turn the tide somehow or another and that would be me.

CLANK!

At some point, our swords cross path and a metallic sound reverberate sharply. If it is a contest of strength, I am in doubt that I can win against anyone in my age range, however, contrary to the situation…

“Tsk!”

Boss leaped away immediately from the collision. Against my sword which is heavier, she couldn’t afford to let her katana be incessantly chipped from pointless clashes like that. One of her leeway in this battle is dodging.

She stops at her track as she made quite a distance away from me.

“Say, I made a deal with you on the spur of the moment but I really hadn’t thought of what I want when I win.”

“You’re making such talk in the middle of our fight?”

“Of course, I want to at least straighten this out before I defeat you.”

I glare at Boss at the same time, set a facial expression of expressing confusion. I don’t like how she sounds so confident in her words.

“Then…what do you want then?”

“A date, with you, a whole day.”

“…That sounds awfully normal.”

I let out a sigh while scratching my left cheek with my available hand. I’m really troubled if it was a joke or not. The heavy downpour doesn’t make my mood any less happy. In any case, I have to make sure her intention behind that.

“What is your intention?”

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Am I dumb or something?

I just said what I had in my mind milliseconds ago!

“It’s just on a whim. It doesn’t sound bad as a punishment now, is it?”

“I just want to make one thing clear… You…swing that way?”

“Try me.”

What does that even mean?!

“I’ll agree to your terms for now. Your friends seem to be taking care of Mimi anyway. However, if I see any hostile actions against her, we’re not doing any of the deal anymore.”

“Understandable. With that said, on you!”

As Boss shouted those words, she lunges straight towards me with her katana pointing at me. Her fighting style immediately changes from a seemingly cheap knockoff of Calm Dragon Tempest to a new play.

I immediately brought my sword up to defend against her strike. As she got closer, I swing my sword sideward to parry her katana, believing that if I hit her katana as much as I can and break it, she’d concede. It’s a mundane and naïve strategy but I can make it possible.

However, before I blade clashes, Boss bobs her head backward while withdrawing her sword. In hindsight, she started sliding on the mud with her body bent so low that my swing hits nothing but empty air.

Before I knew it, I was completely fooled and had my feet swept by her kick. Because of the sudden uncalled feint, I didn’t manage to break my fall and I fell on the muddy ground.

“Kuh…!”

“Ha!”

I hit my elbow as I fell so it momentarily distracted me. Boss immediately tried to pin me by grabbing onto my clothes but I rolled away in panic, covering my whole clothes in the mud. As I stood back up, I swing my sword as a defense from the approaching Boss. Since I made a preemptive slash as I fix my posture, she stops her deft movements of pursuit.

Seeing that I immediately prompted myself upwards, Boss changes her approach and lunges sideward. She maneuvers like how Dragon Tempest goes; a spinning strike with her weight behind. I raise my sword up for defensive play, however, it didn’t go as I expected…

“Guah!?”

Instead of swinging her sword, her left knee comes forth on my flank and pushes all the air inside my lungs. I kneeled down as I held on my side that Boss had hit.

“It’s kind of forgiving of you not to use your barrier.”

“…”

I couldn’t spew any words as I was still trying to catch my breath. It was her who is forgiving for not doing anything decisive while I’m down. Not that I’ll easily submit to defeat at this point. There’s a reason why am not using any advantageous skills for me.

“You…aren’t taking this seriously, how could I?”

“Oho? Is that all?”

“I just thought that how you can use calm dragon tempest, at my master’s own style at that.”

“Are you curious? It’s not that hard to answer that but I totally won’t tell you that easily.”

“…Then why are you avoiding our sword clashing since earlier? I wonder, is it…”

“I wonder too?”

Boss shrugs with a smile. Even in the middle of this downpour, I can see the sinister glint in her eyes but oddly, it doesn’t give off any bad hunch. I know she’s a good person. I wanted to believe that she wasn’t the one who hurt Mimi, however, I want to be certain.

“You gave me this much time to recover. Don’t hold it against me if you lose.”

“I won’t be blaming you since I’ll be winning.”

Her weapon, the katana, will surely break once it takes more damage that it has now. The reason I don’t use any skill is that I won’t force her to use any too. I want to read her movements through pure physical activity and fight her teeth by teeth.

Her strength is familiar, her reactions are familiar, her blank face is familiar, however, I am still not certain. If she is who I really think, then for what reason is she doing this?

So on forth, we started dancing under the rain, her and me.

The following minutes were a soundless battle as the rain shrouds any friction from our movements. It mostly slashes and dodges on a basis of trying to hit each other discretely. Fluidly, our movements become sharp as we get used to each other’s stroke of swing, our attempting feints, and our synchronized breathing in this biting cold.

How long have we been swinging our swords? An hour? A day? It feels like our sword speaks for ourselves at this point and what each other tells us that there's only determination to win. It also tells how Boss learned this technique and it was staggeringly brisk.

I’ve crossed sword with Boss a lot in this past week, however, this is truly where I found that her skill with the sword was of a beginner but prodigal. Her feints are too hard for me to read and I can barely read and dodge them.

Polished enough and her use of katana would be critical and deadly. If she had the skill from the start and maybe fleeting morals, she’d be trying to send my head off from my torso.

As I made another huge swing at her, she dodges a little late as I was able to cut a strand of her hair. She loses a little bit of her balance as she staggers on a root from a tree. Seeing this is a chance, I lunge myself forward to her and bashes her abdomen with the hilt of my sword.

“Ack!”

She staggers on her feet and fell one knee on the ground as she held onto the spot that I hit. The hilt of my current sword is circular and the handle was quite elongated so it must have really done quite a force that it rendered her immobile.

“What are you saying I’m already at my limit?!”

“…?!”

“Not fully healed yet? I do remember you mentioning that. Damn…”

She started talking on her own. It was quite eerie as I felt a sliver of presence from her; deeper and familiar. She sprouts a frustrated look while she clicks her tongue.

To be honest, with this weather, the chance that she can keep up with me was frighteningly low because my body which has been always healthy since that time where I first met Nil, cannot get sick and my regeneration is fast enough to render any broken bones healed.

In any case, I should claim my victory.

“This is battle…is ov--!’

Before I could finish my sentence, someone just ran past me with incredible speed. Both Boss and I were startled as a glimmering sword made its way towards Boss.

“Wha--?!”

Boss immediately rolled backward, however, to truly get her neck out of the sudden attack, she sacrificed her katana to parry the sword. The katana was mercilessly shattered but Boss got away.

The identity of the one who made such an attack was none other than Daisy. Like the rest of us, she’s drenched and breathing heavily from running all the way here.

She held her sword, the nameless legendary sword, towards Boss and glares at her. Unlike her usually petty stance, Daisy’s form is dauntless and dignified… it’s as if she’s another person.

“Daisy, that’s enough!”

“…”

“Hey, Daisy, draw your sword away.”

“It has been long since then…the Battle of Camlann…”

This is…bad!

That’s not Daisy anymore!