A luxurious tea house located in the center of Vienna.
There, three women sat quietly in their seats. The three women were dressed in fairly comfortable clothes for drinking tea, a privilege of the upper class.
At first glance, they did not seem like aristocrats but more like adventurers or those engaged in similar endeavors. They possessed considerable skills to be able to visit a place like this without any burden.
However, despite sipping expensive tea, there was a rather chilly atmosphere at the table where the three women sat.
“I can’t believe it… I never thought I’d meet my nemesis in a place like this.”
“What nemesis? How dare you consider yourself my opponent even after being defeated by me one-sidedly?”
“At that time, I was caught up in your scheme and in poor physical condition, but now the story is different. If we officially clashed, four years wouldn’t even amount to a fistful distance.”
“Then… why don’t you try it?”
“Haaah…”
Two women glared at each other, radiating sharp momentum—Echid, the former leader of the Predators, and Tilda, the best female warrior of the Uranus Merchant Company. With a teacup in one hand and a sword hilt in the other, the two were poised to attack each other at any moment.Meanwhile, another woman sighed, sipping her tea as she sat between them.
In fact, Ophelia, who had arranged this meeting, found herself in an embarrassing situation due to these unexpected tensions.
‘I can’t believe I didn’t know that the two of them had been at each other’s throats for so long…’
Ophelia hadn’t even known Echid’s face until she officially entered the Beden Merchant Company after her previous experiences. The Assassins of the Sakiel Knights, who often clashed with the Uranus Merchant Company, had been dipping their toes into the underground economy. Among them were the Predator at the top and its leader, Echid. Because of the clashes, lives were lost more than once, and conversely, there were several instances where Predator members found themselves in danger due to Tilda.
‘I was expecting Ophelia to introduce me to a new colleague. I never thought that person would be this woman…’
‘To think I would meet this detestable woman like this… If it weren’t for Ophelia, I would have cut her down right now…’
Glaring at each other, the two women exuded a fighting spirit like angry beasts. Under normal circumstances, Ophelia would have tried to reconcile them, but unfortunately, she had no intention of doing so.
‘It seems like there are quite a lot of old grudges between them… but there’s no way this can be resolved with words anyway.’
It would have been a different story if Bahamut or Isolda were present, but fundamentally, Ophelia was a warrior who wielded a sword. Considering this, Ophelia emptied her teacup, looked at the two, and said, “I don’t know what happened between the two of you in the past… but I want you to know that at least now, you are in the same boat. In that sense, don’t you think it would be better to set aside past grievances and reconcile?”
“To reconcile with this b!tch? Absolutely impossible.”
“I would only do so if she lowered her head first, but I can never do that.”
“Haaah… Fine. In that case…”
With those words, Ophelia stood up from her seat.
The two women started to feel some doubts, and Ophelia looked at them calmly. “Follow me. Since it’s come to this, I think it would be better to settle things that have been left unresolved, even for the future.”
***
“Phew… Today, as usual, ended boringly. There’s not a single guy coming in, so I’m bored out of my mind…”
Epicher left the imperial palace, stretching. Although called the Royal Guard, what they actually did was walk around the palace all day and stand guard. It was a truly boring day from the perspective of Epicher. Personally, he thought it would be fun if at least one assassin showed up for a fight.
“Look at what you’re saying. If His Majesty finds out, you’ll really be executed! Since this is a duty, please perform it with a little more sense of commitment.”
“Haa… Of course, if there were someone to fight. But Misa, isn’t it honestly boring for you too, walking around staring at walls all day?”
“Um…”
Misa couldn’t strongly protest against Epicher’s words. Since she had been involved in a major incident in Frank a while ago, she, too, had been stuck with only walls in her sight. To be honest, wielding a weapon had been a daily routine, and it would be a lie to say it wasn’t boring. However, as guards serving the Emperor of the Holy Empire, they couldn’t openly express such sentiments.
Feeling slightly stifled, the two crossed the square they usually passed through and headed home.
Then…
“Hmm?”
“What’s that? Who are those people…?”
What was normally a busy place was exceptionally crowded today. The two, still feeling bored, headed there with piqued curiosity.
And there…
Clang!
“…!”
“Oh… this is quite…”
In an instant, their boredom was blown away. Epicher and Misa’s eyes began to sparkle as they observed the scene before them. They saw a simple arena sloppily made with ropes. In its center, two women were brandishing wooden swords at each other with murderous intent.
Clang!
However, there was no dull thud from the wooden swords they wielded; instead, a clear metallic sound echoed even in the ears of Epicher and Misa.
How such a thing was possible was clear to Epicher and Misa.
“The state of mana being condensed on a wooden sword… Is that condensation? But using a wooden sword, not an iron one, and still being that powerful…”
“It means they’ve nearly perfected their mana circulation. Impressive! Neither of them is average.”
Condensation, a technique using mana to enhance the cutting power of a sword, would normally cause a wooden sword, not made of hard steel, to burst under the flow of mana. However, the wooden swords in their hands showed no such signs. From this, Epicher and Misa could immediately tell that they were watching masters of considerable skill.
“This… it’s been a while since my blood boiled like this. I never expected to witness such a showdown in the middle of a city.”
“Hmm…”
Epicher’s voice was filled with excitement. Misa, though not openly stating anything, quietly shared his enthusiasm.
Meanwhile, Misa managed to recognize the face of one of the two women, even from a considerable distance.
“That woman… that’s definitely Tilda Rusty of the Uranus Merchant Company. I’ve seen her several times in the imperial castle.”
“Ah… right. I remember now. Wasn’t she often seen acting as security for that woman named Bertina?”
Tilda Rusty was one of the most formidable forces of the Uranus Merchant Company, and her skills on display now showed her reputation was well-earned.
“But… who on earth is the woman who’s evenly matched with Tilda?”
“Hmm… I have no idea. At least, I don’t recall ever seeing her in the imperial palace…”
At that moment, Misa noticed another figure apart from the two fighting fiercely—a dark-haired woman watching the situation calmly with her arms crossed outside the arena. Although not on par with Isaac, in Misa’s eyes, trained to some extent to read opponents’ strengths, this woman’s aura was stronger than even the two sparring.
‘Who on earth is she?… I’m not sure, but it doesn’t seem like she’s ordinary either…’
With the sudden appearance of unidentified masters in Vienna, Misa started to feel a mix of curiosity, wariness, and an unusual sense of anticipation.
At that moment…
Crack!
“Argh!”
“Damn…”
In the next instant, the wooden swords of Tilda and the other woman broke almost simultaneously. Both voices, filled with frustration and regret, echoed at the same time.
“I lasted longer.”
“Rubbish! My sword broke later.”
“Has your crooked personality extended to your eyesight too? Where are you getting that nonsense?”
“Ophelia! What do you think? Obviously, mine is more…”
“Haah…”
Honestly, the swords broke almost at the same time, so Ophelia just let out a sigh of embarrassment.
‘What is this… do we have to go through this again?’
Fortunately, she had prepared a spare set of wooden swords, so if necessary, they could go another round.
At that moment…
“Hey! Hold on there, ladies!”
“Hmm?”
“…?”
At the sudden voice, the two women looked in that direction simultaneously.
There stood Epicher, visibly excited, while Misa let out a small sigh, seemingly understanding the situation.
HELP:
During the recent unrest in the country I am from, our family hardware store was broken into and looted by thugs. I don’t know why they did it, since my family has always been minding our own business, without bothering anyone else. I’m guessing some people are taking advantage of the current lawless and chaotic state of the country.
Anyways, the incident now leaves me as the only earning member of my family. Long time readers know that I was already dealing with a mountain of trouble (that I inherited from my father), and was already struggling. I had created a plan of action, and was steadily moving forward. But this incident destroyed whatever plans I had, again. I don’t know why bad things keep happening to me again and again. I might as well be cursed or something.
So here I am, after much hesitation, once again asking for your support. If you are reading this, please help if you are able to, I repeat, help only if you are able to. I am not asking something for free, you can become a Patron at Patreon to gain access to more chapters, or sponsor as many chapters you can from any of the novels you enjoy on Goblinslate here at BuymeaCoffee. Or if you just want to help, you can donate any amount at the Wishlist at BuymeaCoffee.
Thank you.
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