“There are three things that a beautiful woman should never be made to suffer. A violent glare, a violent word, and finally a fist raised in violence.”
- Attributed to Valerie of the Vale circa 573 AC.
The summons brought us to an outdoor court, where a large marquee had been erected to shield the gathered throng from the harsh afternoon sun. The esteemed members of the Salahaem clustered in small groups, sipping from fine glasses and picking delicately at the array of finger foods laid out on long tables. They were dressed in all their finery, like birds of paradise, making me feel almost naked wearing just my plain gambeson and simple garments.
The Lady Aelayah lay on a raised divan, fanned by servants at her side. She was engaged in conversation with the Jien fellow, but when her eyes alighted on me smiled and gestured for me to come over.
Walking stiffly over, I inclined my head in a small perfunctory bow. Jien gave me a nod of his head, a gesture which I did not reciprocate.
“Why, I almost did not expect you to come!” she greeted as if I had been invited to an outdoor afternoon tea party. “Will you not have some refreshments?”
“No, thank you,” I declined politely. “We have already enjoyed your earlier hospitality.”
“Well, then shall I get straight to it,” she started, clapping her hands together eagerly. “The two of you will do your little thing over there… how does one decide these things? Points? First blood?”
Jien was about to voice his worthless opinion, but I beat him to it.
“To the death,” I stated. Anything else would be meaningless. I wanted to convert the pathetic man into experience points as soon as possible.
“If my opponent so wishes, though it is regretful that one so young will die this day,” he accepted with a deep bow to both Aelayah and myself.
Could this man get any more annoying? Or was this his pathetic way of trying to get under my skin? Well, two could play that game.
“It seems that your education has been somewhat remiss, Rio John. There is no greater danger than underestimating the man who stands against you,” was my riposte, paraphrasing a well-known quote from my old world.
He bristled at this but held his tongue.
“Oh, and another thing. Unlikely, though it might be, young Gilgamesh, should you somehow manage to best Master Ruyi here, I would like to see how you fare against another of my household. Then I can promise you a place among us…” the Lady Aelayah offered offhandedly.
I gave her a savage, confident grin, “And, I will represent you at the Festival. The glory will be mine to reap.”
Jien chortled. “I do, how do the people say it here? Yes, putting the cart before the horse?”
“If he speaks out of turn again, his will be a slow death,” I stated, not bothering to look at Jien.
“You are most feisty, Gilgamesh. But, please, remember there is a line that you must not cross,” she reprimanded sternly. Her lips pouted prettily and I focused on them instead of her odd eyes.
“I will take that under suggestion, Aelayah,” I answered in a voice I reserved for dealing with teachers.
At my casual disrespect, Jien reached for his sword. Farzan, who stood behind the Lady Aelayah did likewise.
Aelayah raised a hand to stop them. “I think it is high time that we stop with this male posturing. Let us begin,” she commanded, rolling her eyes.
We were led to the center of the marquee, a circle of finely fashioned chairs surrounding our ad hoc arena.
From a tall-backed chair, Lady Aelyah presided over us now like a judge. “This will be a contest between the warrior-poet Ruyi Jien from the Land of Streams and Copper Rank Adventurer, Gilgamesh. The fight will be to the death,” the Lady declared, opening a fan embroidered with the design of a fire serpent and raising it above her head.
Lady Aelayah smiled at everybody, her expression radiant.
Jien bowed deeply to me, keeping his eyes fixed on me. It was a warrior’s mark of respect. I did not return the favor, instead choosing to use Identify on him. He was not worth the extra point in Mana to use Sage’s Sight.
Ruyi Jien - Blade Dancer [Human 20]
Health: 250/250
Stamina: 39/39
Mana: 15/15
Not only did I have a few levels on him, but my raw attributes vastly dwarfed his. I took a moment to appreciate the fact that he had the same class as Larynda’s friend. Perhaps it was not such a unique class after all. A cruel smile worked its way to my lips.
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
This one was fodder.
Lady Aelayah let go of the ornate fan. It dropped, hitting the soft grass of the lawn, signaling that the contest had begun.
Ruyi Jien took up a guard position, his muscles coiling like a serpent ready to strike. The Blade Dancer’s eyes remained locked on mine, a steady unfounded determination in their depths.
I did not bother with formalities, not even bothering to put up guard. Standing straight and still, I waited for him. Seeing that he was in the throes of cowardice, I gestured for him to come.
I would play with him for a while.
His first move was surprisingly swift and brutal—a feint to my left followed by a kick aimed at my ribs. I let the strike hit me with a meaty thud, my body moved only slightly by the force of the blow.
I registered a measly fifteen points of damage to my Health on my Status. Smiling, I remembered that once upon a time such a blow would have killed me almost instantly.
“Is that it? Come now, at least try,” I teased with a friendly smile, lashing out with a kick.
Unfazed, he reacted quickly, sidestepping with surprising agility, but my boot still grazed his side. The impact was enough to make him grunt, though he kept his stance solid.
Jien retaliated immediately, his hands flashing forward in a series of rapid strikes. My Mimic arm deflected and parried the first few blows with consummate ease, the limb moving to form an almost perfect barrier. But he was fast, faster than I had anticipated, and one of his strikes caught me on the shoulder, getting through my lazy defense with enough force to inflict another astounding ten points of damage.
I felt almost insulted that my Ashura gauge, as I had come now to call it, had started to fill.
“You fight well, boy. You fight in the old style,” he complimented. “Who taught you?”
I snarled, not in pain but in exhilaration. “Better than you at least,” I replied, ignoring the rest of his question.
The thrill of it all surged through me, awakening a familiar hunger within me. I responded with a backhanded slap, more powerful than any of his punches and kicks. It sent him reeling, his feet skidding across the grass.
Even my Skills were unnecessary for dealing with such… a basic opponent.
My magic would be wasted on one such this. Still, my Ashura Gauge went up a smidgeon, confirming the fact that I could fill it up by both receiving and inflicting damage. Jien’s life might have served a worthy purpose after all.
The older man, despite receiving a bloody nose, recovered quickly. He sprung forward with a flying knee aimed at my chest. I twisted at the last moment, catching his leg and slamming him down into the earth with a vicious throw. Had the ground been hard stone I am sure he would have been reduced to a pile of broken meat by the impact. However, it was soft, yielding grass and earth and Jien was not yet so easily subdued. He rolled to his feet, his face a mask of grim concentration.
In that very moment, I wanted to teach him the meaning of despair before I ripped him from this mortal coil with my bare hands.
Making sure to limit myself, our exchange became a dance as I tested him. He came at me with a spinning kick that whistled through the air, but I ducked beneath it and drove my elbow into his gut. The force doubled him over, but I let him twist away. I did not bother on capitalizing the opening for it was far too soon to end our little dance.
It was then that I think he began to understand his predicament. That I was playing. Jien’s desperation was becoming apparent. He rushed me with a flurry of punches and I blocked and wove through them all with almost contemptuous ease. I let him wear himself out, each strike taking more out of him than it did out of me. He had barely forced me to expend any Stamina at all.
When he finally slowed, I seized the moment, grabbing him by the wrist and wrenching him forward into a brutal knee strike that cracked against his ribs. Crimson stained the emerald blades below as he coughed up blood.
He gasped, the air forced from his lungs, but instead of falling, he wrapped his arms around my waist, dragging us both to the ground in a tangled mess of limbs. I was stronger than him, stronger by far, but it seemed that even I could not deny physics.
At least not yet.
Grappling now, he tried to secure a chokehold, but he underestimated me. Jien was a far cry from Kidu’s primal Strength and it felt as if I was dealing with a child. With a surge of raw power, I twisted free, reversing the hold and locking him in an iron grip.
Jien struggled, his body writhing in a desperate attempt to escape. But it was no use. I tightened my hold, feeling the tremors of his failing strength. His breaths came in ragged gasps, and his movements grew ever more sluggish as he fought against me.
He might as well have been fighting against the tides. I was the inevitable made manifest.
With a final, forceful twist, I drove him into the ground, pinning him there. His resistance faltered, and I felt his body weakening beneath mine. Victory was mine, but I didn’t let go, not yet. I wanted him to know, to feel his own helplessness, as the last vestiges of fight drained from him. To know shame and true hollow defeat.
Leaning in close, I whispered to him, my voice low and cold. "You're out of your depth, John. A lifetime spent in vain. Perhaps you should have spent more time with meaningful practice instead of deep contemplation."
I imagined his eyes grew wide in acceptance as his body relaxed for a touch. He had found his despair and defeat.
Satisfied, I grabbed him by the head and neck and twisted with all of my might. There was an audible snap and his body grew slack as death claimed him.
You have slain Ruyi Jien 50 experience gained.
You have gained 1 Strength.
The assembled members of Salahaem watched in stunned silence, the weight of my dominance settling over them like a heavy fog. Larynda’s eyes sparkled with bloodthirsty adoration and hero worship, while Vincenzio offered me nothing more than a begrudging nod of approval.
A slow clap began from Lady Aelayah, and the gathered members of her court hesitantly joined in, though lingering horror was still etched on their faces.
When the final echoes of the reluctant applause faded, Lady Aelayah stepped down, her movements imbued with an effortless, natural grace. At this close remove, she appeared smaller and more vulnerable than my initial impression of her.
It seemed that she was after all, when all was said and done, just a young girl. A beautiful one, though.
“It seems you’ve won and backed up the words I thought were mere youthful boasts. Perhaps there is more to you than meets the eye,” she remarked with a wry smile. Her face was flushed with excitement, her voice quivering and husky as she spoke in her lilting tone.
“As is my right, I’ll be taking his sword. He was never worthy of it,” I declared flatly, half ignoring her.
I knelt to claim the Mantis Mark blade from Jien’s still-warm corpse.