Chapter 4: Broken Pride
Why am I unable to hit her?
Lucia was frustrated. She had launched barrages after barrages of attack at her opponent, but the only thing she had achieved was putting a dent on Minerva’s shoulder armor. On the other hand, the other knight’s battle-axe had touched her flesh eleven times in total, which meant, she would have died nearly a dozen of times by now if not thanks to her power. Even if Lucia’s tactic was to keep attacking aggressively without worrying about defense, this outcome was still ridiculous. Was the difference in skill between her and Minerva that much?
Lucia had always considered herself the best knight of Maven, or to be accurate, wanted to prove that she was the best. As the result, someone like Minerva naturally became an obstacle that she had to overcome. That was why during the Gothorian War, she had constantly put herself where the fighting was thickest, in order to show that she was the better warrior. However, her efforts were all for naught. She won the competition, but not because of her own accomplishment, but because Minerva had fallen from grace due to a stupid mistake. Her achievements were meaningless anyway, because in the end, Maven lost. After the war, the atmosphere was so gloomy and everyone tried her best to avoid the subject. Therefore, no one really appreciated Lucia’s contributions, apart from her own family.
Moreover, post-war Maven was in such a bad shape that it had to avoid conflict whenever possible. As the result, there were not many chances for Lucia to show off her power. There were still tournaments and competitions, of course, but she didn’t really care about them, as what she wanted was to prove her worth in real combat. That was why she was delighted when Minerva challenged her. If she could slay Minerva here in a duel, she would be able to achieve she had always been yearning for. There was no reason for her to refuse that challenge.
But perhaps that was a mistake.
Her role in every battle up until now was to spearhead an assault. Thanks to her power, she could just run straight the enemies without having to worry about anything, as any projectile they threw at her was negated. Once she got close enough, she used her deadly weapon to launched devastating barrages of attacks to disrupt their formation, and then her soldiers charged and slaughtered the disarrayed enemies.
It appeared that such tactic did not work well in a duel against someone of Minerva’s caliber. Her weapon was just too cumbersome. While it was easy to hit many people in a crowd, it was very hard to hit one single opponent who was experienced and agile enough. Wielding such a heavy weapon also made her tired quickly, and with her stamina depleted, the protection coming from her miracle became much more unreliable. Lucia had been forced to slow down her attacks, and the situation was not promising at all for her.
If Lucia had been in the battlefield right now, she would have retreated. But she couldn’t retreat from a duel. Yielding and letting Minerva and the princess go was obviously not an option, but if she went back against her words and ordered her soldiers to interfere, her reputation would be destroyed forever. There was no simple way for her to get out of this situation.
I can try bluffing.
That could be a solution. While she was in a bad shape, maybe Minerva was even more desperate. Most people did not know about her power’s limitation. Minerva could be very frustrated right now after failing to kill her even though her blows connected so many times. She was also wounded. Yes, she was clearly having trouble holding that big-ass axe of hers.
“It’s impressive that you can manage to dodge most of my attacks,” Lucia decided to give it a try, putting every ounce of her confidence on her face. “But you are just delaying the inevitable.”
Minerva did not reply.
“Killing a capable warrior like you is a waste though,” Lucia continued. “So why don’t you just surrender? Give me your princess. I want her, not you. You will not be punished for killing my soldiers. In fact, you will be welcomed to join the service of our family. My mother can give you back your position in the army. She can even appeal to the Saint to annul your excommunication. You can get back everything you have lost.”
Minerva was still silent.
“If you don’t want your little friend to die, well, even her life can be spared. If she begs my mother to allow her to become a breeding slave, I’m sure that mother can grant her that.”
It was not implausible. If Anastasia became a breeding slave, she would be politically dead. No one would ever consider her or any of her offspring’s claim to the throne legitimate anymore. Anastasia might be not very happy with the life as a breeder, but at least she was allowed to live, so she should be thankful. That was the best deal she could get in this situation.
Minerva still didn’t say anything. That was a good sign. Because it meant that she was considering her offer. Given Minerva’s personality, if she did not like the deal, she would have already started cursing with foul language by now.
“Hey Lucia …” After a while, finally Minerva opened her mouth.
“What is it?” Lucia smiled.
“Your protection … It’s gone, isn’t it?” Minerva said, staring Lucia in the eyes.
“What …”
Suddenly, Minerva started sprinting toward her. Lucia was startled and she swang her flail at her opponent in a panic. However, Minerva’s charge was just a faint. She stopped right outside the range of the chain, and then resumed the offense after the spiked ball had passed.
Minerva used her axe with only her right hand, gripping the handle at the middle. Doing that would reduce the weapon’s reach, but it would also make it easier to control. The vicious axe came down, aiming at Lucia’s chest. She was not confident enough to let the blow connected, so she reluctantly let her weapon go and jumped back to evade. However, by doing that, she had essentially confirmed Minerva’s assumption.
Minerva did not stop with just one attack, instead she made another swing from the right. Lucia couldn’t dodge in time, and she raised her hand to cover her head in reflex. Steel met flesh in a violent clash, the both of the two warriors bounced back by the impact.
Lucia stared at her right hand. It was still intact. She was still protected by her power, otherwise the limb would have been sheared off cleanly. However, her relief didn’t stay long, as immediately she felt an unbearable pain.
It hurts! It hurts!
Tears kept pouring out of her eyes, and she started crying. The pain was so terrible that it could drive her mad. Never in her life had she ever suffered from such injury. Her hand could no longer move. The bone was broken. Her power had only partially protected her, and obviously, that time was the last. She couldn’t use her right hand, she had lost her weapon, and she had no protection. Now Minerva could just walk to her and casually finish her off.
“Yield, Lucia!” Minerva said.
Lucia looked back at her opponent, and what did she see? Pity. The other knight looked like she was staring at a pathetic creature that she did not want to dirty her hand by killing it.
Is that how you look at me?
How dare you look down on me?
I am better than you are!
You are nothing but a slut couldn’t control your lust and then lost everything!
“Kill her!”
Overwhelmed by her rage, Lucia shouted the order. The soldiers, who were forming a ring around them, drew their swords and rushed in.
“If that’s how you want to end our fight, so be it!” Minerva sighed, raising her weapon to meet the new opponents. She was alone, and completely surrounded. There was no way she could win this fight, even when she was in full strength, let alone now she could use only one hand.
Then something incomprehensible happened.
Suddenly, inside the ring appeared a newcomer. A tall man in tattered clothes, two swords in his hands, and three soldiers had already collapsed before Lucia could even realize that he was there, their blood splashing on the ground.
The girls halted, staring at the man. Minerva, on the other hand, didn’t show any reaction, as if the man’s arrival was the most natural thing to happen. Without saying a word, the two of them unleashed themselves on the soldiers like a storm. The man’s blades went through the women’s bodies like a hot knife through butter, while Minerva hacked her axe left and right with her brutish strength. Heads and limbs and fingers and nipples flied everywhere.
What is happening?
Lucia gaped, staring at the carnage in disbelief. She knew that she shouldn’t be here. She knew that she should run away from this place as soon and as fast as possible. But she couldn’t move her legs.
“Finish your duel! I’ll take care of the rest.” The man said in a low voice.
A cold shiver ran down Lucia’s spine. She saw Minerva nodded, and walked toward her. The other knight were staring at her with eyes filled with murderous intents.
“Wait! Stop! Don’t come here!” Lucia cried. I am going to be killed!
Minerva did not stop.
“No! Please! No! I was wrong! Okay? Please forgive me! Don’t kill me!” Lucia begged. Her pride was completely shattered now. The only thing she wanted now was to get out of here alive. She would do anything, including becoming a breeding slave, to have her life spared.
Minerva was not slowed down a bit.
“No no no no … Not this … Not this …” Lucia sobbed. She couldn’t control her bladder anymore and urine started running down her legs.
Minerva was in front of her now. She was just a bit taller than Lucia, but at this moment she was towering over her. She looked like Death itself.
“I yield! You win!” Lucia whimpered.
“It is a bit too late for that now, isn’t it?” Minerva coldly replied, raising her battle-axe.
“I … don’t want to die …”
That was Lucia’s last word, right before the vicious axe came down and buried into her cleavage.
, but we shall see.
