As the blood from the side of her chest dyed her crimson, she struggled to breathe as she looked upwards to see what damaged her.

("Tch, how'd I let myself fall for a trick like that?")

Avis showed no caution as she walked towards her but the pace she approached was almost glacial.

("Damnit, I've accidentally ingested this poison before but I've never allowed myself to be affected for this long. My body hurts. I don't feel cold, I don't feel heat, I don't feel discomfort. All I feel is pain. Maybe I can… No, I'll wait for the next 45 seconds until the poison kills her.")

Avis thought as she stared down Elizabeth. She contemplated attacking but with how immobile her opponent was it seemed she had no problem staring her down until her final moments.

Which was why it came as a shock when she was sent flying into the wall behind her. She crashed into and the strain it made suggested it almost broke.

("A moment.") She thought. ("I blinked and in that moment she decided to strike.")

She fell to the floor and felt her broken nose. As the blood dripped down her face she contemplated if she even had the energy to stand back up. She had gritted her teeth so hard enduring the pain, that her gums were starting to bleed.

"Sorry, but I'm somewhat of a professional at enduring pain," Elizabeth stated as she walked over. She bent down and reached her hand near the apron of Avis.

("Ah, Albus. Forgive me, but I can't move anymore. Because of my weakness, your life is going to be ruined. No, I've ruined your life ever since I came into it. You may not have had this obsession of yours nor would you have had that twisted sense of love you possess.")

Her eyes started tearing up.

But as Elizabeth's hand got closer and closer she felt something burn inside her.

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A woman was facing the sky. She had messy black hair and was covered in bruises. She was covered all over by blood and bone fragments. She turned her face to the sky and had her eyes closed. She looked blissful from afar, almost enlightened. After so much fighting, she could finally appreciate the quiet on the battlefield. Around her were several bodies, in various states of damage.

As she stood, enjoying that her life had not ended, a purple-haired woman walked up to her.

"What are you doing slacking, Avis? You know it's not over yet." The purple haired woman responded.

"Please, let me enjoy this for a bit more," Avis asked as she stood. She looked like a statue with how still she was keeping herself.

The purple-haired woman walked over. "Do you think closing your eyes will make the battlefield disappear?" She asked.

"No. But at least I can go another moment without seeing it."

Around us were not only enemies. There were far more allies. It was a miracle she survived. Yet she had no joy at the situation.

"Huh, you're made of weaker stuff than I thought." The purple-haired woman commented before leaving.

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The black haired had spent her days in 'retirement' as a deep collector. The pay wasn't as good as her old job but the amount of fools who would let their guards down just because a woman had come asking for their debt was comical. At first anyway. With enough time, she had become so feared by the average debtor, that they would end up running at the sight of the first black-haired woman they saw. This was not ideal for business and she soon had to figure out a new way to make money.

Sitting in her bed, she remembered an old discussion she had with her old leader.

"Become a maid?" she asked.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"Why not?" Her boss responded. "It seems pretty popular with mercenary dropouts."

"That sounds ridiculous," she stated.

"Does it?" She asked as she scratched her head. "Well, my good old sister became one, and considering I haven't heard her talking about coming back since, the pay must be decent."

"That sounds no better than whoring yourself out."

"I mean, aren't we already doing that? Instead of allowing ugly fucks to do whatever with our bodies, we put our bodies on the line to kill the ugly fucks they tell us to. Is losing your virginity to some smelly bastard any worse than losing your arm?"

"So you're saying we're no better than common whores?" She asked in a cold tone. She already lost any respect for the profession so she felt no need to defend it.

"Shit, we probably make less."

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After remembering that conversation, she still couldn't stomach the idea of becoming a prostitute no matter how her former leader put it.

"I suppose wearing one of those frilly dresses would be better than losing an arm."

And so with that, she started looking for a new job as a maid. And as expected it didn't exactly go according to plan. Most people were unlikely to hire a random woman looking to become a maid, to begin with, but add the lack of experience or formal education and it was damn near impossible.

And the shadier places that would accept her already knew of her reputation and made sure they did anything possible to keep her out of their buildings. The one time she was allowed in a gambling house, half the clientele recognised her and ran for the nearest door or window they could find.

After tiring herself out, searching for a job during these few days, she decided to rest on a bench in the town.

"I suppose if it was that easy, I wouldn't have become a mercenary to begin with."

As she watched the populace walk by she noticed a young boy run around. He appeared to be hiding from a group nearby, as he quickly slipped into an alley.

They all had on maid uniforms.

Sensing an opportunity, she decided it was worth giving it a shot. It couldn't be any worse than the other failures.

She made sure not to look in the direction of the child and approached one of the maids.

She tapped her shoulder and jolted back. She appeared to be startled by Avis. It probably didn't help that she wore a short-sleeved shirt that hid none of the scars on her arm.

"Um, can I help you, M-miss?" Even the maid was unsure why she was shaking in front of this woman but something in her body was telling her the woman before her was dangerous.

Avis rolled her eyes seeing the woman in front of her.

"Looking for a kid?" She asked.

"...N-no, sorry you have the wrong person."

She didn't even try to listen to what she was saying, before trying to make her exit.

Avis didn't think twice about grabbing her arm and the maid was visibly shaken by it.

"Please let me go, hold on." She didn't even attempt to scream and scrambled into her pouch for a purse.

Avis slapped it out of her hands and the maid fell into deeper dread. She looked to the crowd behind her and before she could open her mouth to scream, Avis quickly placed her hand over it.

"Listen if you don't want to find the kid that's fine with me, but I could do without you drawing attention to us." Avis bluntly stated while staring deep into her eyes.

The maid had tears in her eyes and looked away in fear. Avis removed her hand.

"Now, follow me."

"Please, I've only just become a mother!" she pleaded.

"You dumb bitch, I'm showing you where I saw the kid."

She grabbed her hand and dragged her into the alley. The fact nothing other than a trash can was present, truly made the maid's life flash before her eyes.

Avis was surprised no one was there as well until she heard rumbling from the trash can. She opened it to find the boy balled up inside. However, the only reason she could tell he was a boy was due to his pants and shirt.

"It's Albus," the maid muttered softly.

The boy looked in her face for a few moments before attempting to run away. She quickly grabbed him by his collar and lifted him up. She brought him closer to her face to get a good look and he responded to this by spitting in it.

She simply clicked her tongue and turned back to the maid. Surprisingly the maid was the one to walk closer and slap the boy in his face.

"You dumb little bastard, do you not have any sense?" She shouted at the boy.

She quickly turned to Avis and bowed to her. "Please the boy doesn't know any better, don't do anything too rash."

"Is he your kid?" Avis asked.

"Ah, no he's… it doesn't matter."

"Hey, quick question, is this kid important?"

"Uh," the maid wasn't sure how to respond to that question.

"Is he?"

"He is." Another responded.

Avis turned around to see the other maids entering the alley.

"Ma'am, might I ask what you are doing with the boy? He is the child of a noble after all, so I do hope you aren't planning unsavoury."

"A child of a noble, you say? And here I thought he was just a lost child."

She placed him on the ground and patted him on the back to go towards the other maids. He didn't move. Strangely enough, he decided to walk back towards her.

"Is he usually this clingy? By the way, you mentioned a noble?" she asked.

"Correct."

"Considering how easily he escaped from you all, I don't mind keeping an eye on him until we meet his father. (Hopefully, I use this to leverage a way into a job position. Hell, after that maid slapped him, I probably have a guaranteed position.)"

The maids huddled together to discuss for a moment.

"Alright, after all, it would be odd for his father not to show generosity after all."

After that reassuring comment, Avis followed them back to the Lord's Manor.