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Chapter 9 – Aire’s Miscalculation
As soon as the battle began, Aire charged forward explosively.
With their feline physical abilities, the Golden Tiger Clan excels at short, decisive hunts.
Aire’s calves and thighs contracted, and she closed the distance between them in an instant with a stomp that seemed to gouge the ground.
The acceleration was so intense that the wind pressure distorted her expression.
Her field of vision narrowed, and she could clearly see Cloche’s face.
This was not a fight to the death; it was a battle that would not take a life.
However, Aire and Cloche had fought many close battles in the past, walking on thin ice each time.
Aire converted her forward momentum into rotational force and swung her sword, the Great Ice Tiger.
It was so sharp that it could cut an ordinary warrior in two with a single blow.
“Shhaaaaaa…!!!”
“Gaaaaaa!”
Aire’s sword cut through the air, aiming for Cloche’s neck.
The screams of both sides mixed together as they collided.
Their hands tingled from the impact.
The moment their swords crossed, Aire realized that her abilities had declined.
(It’s weaker than I thought!)
She preferred to strike with one blow to kill. If that didn’t work, she would retreat.
She immediately backed away and waited for another opening.
Cloche must have felt the numbness in her hands because she did not pursue her.
(If I had known this would happen, I would have pushed myself harder to train more.)
Aire felt such regret about her decline in ability that she gritted her teeth.
Since becoming a slave, she has been unable to train properly.
Even after Wataru purchased her, she never had a day where she could train seriously.
Still, she could easily defeat ordinary opponents, so it wasn’t a problem.
However, when she fought seriously, she could clearly see how weak she had become.
Cloche had also grown stronger.
The Golden Tiger Clan preferred short, all-out battles, while the Black Wolf Clan preferred long ones.
This was due to the physical differences between the two tribes. Still, it was painful to have her valuable first move blocked.
Aire wasn’t impatient, but she no longer had any margin for error.
She wasn’t careless or complacent. She regulated her breathing, allowing oxygen to reach every corner of her body.
She could feel her blood pumping through her veins.
“Nee-sama, is this your full power!?”
“Just kidding. I haven’t even started yet.”
“Fufufu… Ohohoho! Today, I will defeat you completely and surpass you!”
Holding her sword, Cloche laughed loudly.
The sight wounded Aire’s pride deeply.
“…”
“Hii…!?”
Silent pressure.
A demonic aura emanated from Aire’s entire body.
Cloche sensed the change and felt a sense of fear. She instantly changed her stance.
Her quick reflexes were proof of her talent.
If there’s no opening, create one.
Using her agility to target her opponent with three-dimensional movements was one of Aire’s specialties.
She swayed her body slightly to the right and left, then took a quick step forward.
As she kicked up dust, Aire’s body swayed.
She cleverly hid the origin of her sword, making it difficult to judge the distance between them.
However, the outdoor training ground had no solid walls, pillars, or ceilings that could be used as footholds.
Should she lower her body or move violently from side to side?
This also limited Aire’s abilities.
She narrowed her target as much as possible, but Cloche responded brilliantly.
She calmly blocked and deflected Aire’s attacks.
Aire received such a fierce attack that her hands were left numb.
Cloche grinned and bared her fangs.
“What’s wrong, Nee-sama?”
“Hmph, just wait.”
“You’re just putting up a defense. Where are those fierce attacks now? I knew it! Nee-sama is wasting her talent by accepting the life of a slave!”
“Shut… up!”
“Fufufu, I’m excited to free Nee-sama with my own hands.”
(Damn, she’s so annoying. If I were in top form, I’d beat her to a pulp.)
Aire grimaced in frustration.
○○○
Wataru watched from a distance, away from the outdoor training ground. However, he couldn’t follow their movements with his eyes.
Their whole bodies were moving too fast.
He couldn’t even make out their hands or feet.
The distance made it difficult to see the flow of their movements. If he had been facing them head-on or standing closer, he wouldn’t have been able to see anything, either.
When he saw them reach a stalemate, he finally understood the situation.
Judging by their expressions, it was clear who had the upper hand.
“H-Hey, Aire is in trouble!”
“Really? I never thought this would happen…”
“Could she be losing? Aire, hang in there!”
All Wataru could do was watch and shout.
Hoping that even the slightest sound would give her strength, he raised his voice.
“Oh my, someone’s cheering for you, Nee-sama.”
“Kuh, don’t get cocky…”
“Fufufu, you’re swinging too wide. You’re getting nervous, aren’t you?”
Before she knew it, the tables had turned.
Cloche unleashed a series of strikes with her whole body.
There was a wind-cutting sound with a downward strike.
Aire dodged, but her posture was slightly off-balance.
She used the recoil to counterattack.
Her posture was thrown off further.
“Ugh, gah… Fushaaaa!”
“Ara, ara, don’t scream so loudly.”
Bang! Bang! Aire took blow after blow, making loud, distorted metal sounds. She seemed to be in great pain.
Aire took blow after blow.
She hung on by a thread, avoiding a fatal blow.
“Fufufu, my victory is almost within reach!”
“I won’t lose…”
It must be tough for the one taking the hits, but Cloche, the one attacking, must also be under a lot of strain.
Besides, this is not an opponent who can be taken lightly just because she has the upper hand.
Only a short time has passed, yet sweat pours off her like a waterfall.
On top of that, Aire’s movements are becoming sharper.
“Wow, amazing! It’s turning around little by little!”
“Aire’s movements are becoming more vivid. Could she have regained her senses while fighting?”
“Can she recover that quickly? It usually takes more time, doesn’t it?”
“It takes time for beginners to regain their instincts, but experts can recover quickly, even after a short rest. Still, this is an extraordinary speed. Perhaps it’s because of her original physical abilities and keen senses as a beastman.”
One more step—no, one more inch—and Cloche’s defense will be broken.
Anxiety appeared on Cloche’s face.
In contrast, confidence began to show on Aire’s face.
In the terrifyingly fast exchange of attacks and defenses, when they paused, Wataru and the others realized that the tide was slowly turning in Aire’s favor.
This must have been even more obvious to the two of them who were facing each other.
“Kuh! W-Why!? I’m so close!”
“I’ve been teaching you since you were a child. I know your sword techniques and how you change them like the back of my hand. That’s why I pretended to struggle and asked you to be my practice partner.”
“Where did you find the composure to say that? You’re lying!”
Cloche retorted.
From the initial exchange, she must have been confident of victory.
“Did you think I was really getting weaker?”
“You weren’t actually getting weaker… were you? As far as I can recall, your movements were more vivid than when you were at your peak!”
“It was all an act. Didn’t you notice? Did it feel good to think you were getting stronger?”
A cruel smile appeared on Aire’s face.
She was trying to disrupt her opponent’s state of mind and make her lose her cool.
She was about to deliver a fatal blow.
“When you beat me before, you were surprised at how easy it was, weren’t you? That’s because I let you win.”
“T-That’s not true!”
“Ever since I was a child, the adults around me were so weak that I thought it would be better to raise you as a practice partner since I was going to do it anyway. But if I won too much, you would lose your confidence. That’s why I always went easy on you.”
“No, you’re lying. That’s not true… That’s not true at all!”
Cloche cried desperately. Her voice was filled with desperation.
But Aire continued her attack.
“That’s not what you said. You said you couldn’t read your nee-sama’s emotions. Fufufu, you were so cute when you were losing and didn’t even know it.”
“Ah, ah…! No, I don’t want to! That’s not true! I was deceived; it’s a lie!”
Even Wataru found Cloche’s frantic appearance painful to watch.
Her face drained of color as she desperately insisted it was a lie. She looked like a small child who had been abandoned by her parents.
She was unrecognizable as the person who had dominated Aire just moments ago.
She had lost her confidence.
Her movements were no longer delicate but broken and powerless.
Still, Cloche swung her sword with a desperate expression; her desperation caused her to exert unnecessary force.
Aire swung her sword to meet the attack, knocking Cloche’s sword out of her hand.
“…Ah.”
“That’s enough, winner Aire!”
“No! I can still fight! Please, let me continue!”
“You want to fight me unarmed?”
Aire thrust her Great Ice Tiger at Cloche.
Cloche had lost when they were both armed.
If this were a battlefield, she would have crawled on the ground to find a weapon. However, such behavior was not allowed in a duel.
Cloche fell to her knees in a daze.
“Ah… Ah…! O-Onee-sama, I’m so sorry! I couldn’t… I couldn’t save you. Ugh! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
Cloche sobbed and crouched down.
Even at this moment, she didn’t think about herself, but rather, she cried for Aire. Even Aire’s heart was hurt by this. She frowned and turned her face away.
Thus, the duel between Aire and Cloche came to an end. However, it would take a little more time for everything to be settled.
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Nice, Wataru gained another slave. Thanks for the treat.
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