The comfortable life of the best swordsman

The woman was lying on the ground, covered in blood. Her two daggers had fallen from her hands and lay before her. She had lost. Yet she hadn't even realized what had happened to her. When she opened her eyes, she found herself lying there in this state. 

"N-not yet!" the woman murmured. Pushing herself to her limits, she tried to stand up. She grabbed one of the daggers on the ground and pointed it at the haughty woman who had come to this fight in her finest attire. 

"Oh? You can still stand?" The woman spoke with indifference. 

"You haven't seen anything yet," she panted. She could barely stay on her feet. "Draw your sword!" 

"Huh? Is that a challenge to a duel?" A smirk appeared on her face. 

"Yes, yes! Come on!" 

"Alright then. But first, there's something you need to do." 

The smirk disappeared, and her expression turned serious. Her movements became calculated and deliberate. 

"Huh? What nonsense are you spouting?" 

"Do you see that table back there? The one with the whiskey bottle on it. Bring me that bottle." 

"W-what? Are you mocking me?" 

Eimme sighed. For a proper duel, her opponent needed to be in good condition. Fighting her in this severely injured state would be utterly meaningless. She wanted to heal her. 

"Just do as I say. You won't regret it." 

The bloodied woman was confused, but she knew she had no other choice, so she complied. She couldn't refuse her in this condition. Limping, she went over to the table, picked up the whiskey bottle, and tossed it to Eimme. The white-haired woman caught the bottle mid-air. 

"Good job," Eimme said with a smile. 

She opened the bottle and bit the tip of her finger, cutting it. A few drops of blood dripped from the cut and mixed with the whiskey in the bottle. The whiskey's color changed instantly, turning a deep crimson. After resealing the bottle, she tossed it back to the bloodied woman. 

The woman looked surprised. She couldn't make sense of what Eimme had done. Holding the bottle in her hand, she asked, "Uh… so, what am I supposed to do now?" 

"Isn't it obvious? Drink. You need to take two sips. No more, no less. Exactly two sips. Got it?" 

"W-what will it do?" The woman was hesitant. 

"It will heal you. For humans, the blood of someone like me has many effects. Drinking my blood directly would kill you, so I diluted it with whiskey. Now stop asking questions and take two sips." 

She did as instructed. Opening the bottle, she took two sips of the crimson whiskey. The taste was inexplicably exquisite. She didn't even like whiskey, but this was perfect. She could almost become addicted to it. Just as she was about to take a third sip, Eimme stopped her. Any more could have killed her. 

"Did you forget? I said two sips! TWO!" 

"R-right," the woman said, embarrassed. She had been overtaken by a sudden desire and lost control. Yet she still couldn't comprehend it. The whiskey had been so delicious. Moments later, she began to feel more energetic. Her body felt light, almost as if she could fly. Her bleeding had stopped. The pain from her broken bones was gone. She felt incredible. It was as if she had been reborn. 

She now understood how valuable the liquid in the bottle was. It had already been an expensive whiskey, but that wasn't what mattered. Just two sips had taken her from the brink of death to full health. Wars could be fought over this whiskey. 

She placed the bottle back on the table and picked up her other dagger from the ground. "Are you ready?" 

"I admire your courage. What's your name?" Eimme asked. She was genuinely curious. The woman's bravery had truly impressed her. Eimme also remembered all her past duels and opponents, names included. This one would be no different. 

"Alize." 

Eimme bowed respectfully and introduced herself. Her face held unwavering seriousness as she drew her sword and assumed her stance. 

*** 

"C-Charlie, is it really you? What have you been doing all this time? What are you doing here?!" Cladia asked, her sword drawn and stance ready. She wanted to be prepared for anything. She feared that this man was no longer the friend she once knew. 

"Yaaa. Shouldn't I be the one asking that? What are you doing here, Dia? And who's that bloody woman with you? She took down my strongest subordinates with no effort." 

"That's not important! You owe me an explanation! What is going on here? Why are you the regional leader of this criminal organization?!" 

"We can talk about that later. For now, let's enjoy ourselves." The man was calm, or at least he seemed so. His tone and behavior completely contradicted his appearance. His attire and physique were impeccable. He was well-built and wore expensive, high-quality clothes—the kind made especially for nobles. Yet his demeanor and way of speaking were childish. 

"I came here for answers! I'll ask you again: Why are you part of a criminal organization, and not just a member, but the leader?" Cladia shouted. 

The man sighed. He realized this conversation wouldn't go anywhere unless he answered her. 

"They forced me into the organization after you left. They trained me for a long time. Combat training and all that—the usual stuff, you know. I didn't like it at first, of course. I tried to escape many times. But after a while, I started to get used to it. I even began to enjoy it. Eventually, my position in the organization rose. That's it." 

"One last question: Did you know I was a slave in this organization?" 

"Huh? What a silly question. Of course. After all, I'm the one who sold you." 

The man's tone was mocking, but every word he said was deliberate. What he said was the truth. 

"What?" The woman froze. Her face turned pale. 

"Huh? You came here not knowing that? I thought you were here for revenge." He sighed again. Then he sat cross-legged on the ground. "Ah, ah. Things are getting boring. But you're an important asset. After all, you're a human-giant hybrid. People like you are very rare. You're worth a lot of money. I'm sorry, but I can't let you leave." 

Though his tone was mocking, his final words were entirely serious. He had no intention of letting Cladia go. 

"S-so, we're going to fight?" The woman was scared. It wasn't the fight itself that frightened her. She was confident in her combat abilities. Despite her limited training and experience, she had been trained by Eimme herself. She had faith in herself. What scared her was her opponent. 

"It'd be better for me if you just surrendered, but if you want, sure. Let's fight." 

"..." Cladia had many things she wanted to say but couldn't. Words wouldn't come out of her mouth. Her telepathic necklace had lost its effect. She could no longer communicate telepathically. The red crystal on the necklace had dimmed. Its magic must have been depleted. It needed to be recharged. 

Although she panicked for a moment, she realized this was actually to her advantage. Despite having much to say, she didn't want to say anything. She wanted to end this and leave. She was disappointed. If only Charlie had remained the same as before. They could have been friends again. 

She raised her sword and swung it at the man. Even though he was still sitting on the ground, he managed to dodge the attack. Cladia saw nothing, but the man suddenly appeared beside her as if he had teleported. 

The man was still sitting. This time, he was beside her instead of in front. Slowly, he stood up. He picked up a sword from the ground. It wasn't a fancy sword, not even an average one. It was a cheap, subpar sword. It must have fallen from one of the men Eimme had just killed. 

The red-haired man swung the sword at Cladia's shoulder. He wasn't trying to kill her. As he had said earlier, his goal was to capture Cladia and gather information about that gray-haired woman. That woman was truly dangerous. 

*** 

The dagger-wielding woman lunged at Eimme, hurling the blade in her right hand toward her target. It was a feint—a calculated attempt to distract. But she knew it wouldn't work. After all, the same tactic had failed on Eimme before. 

And just as she expected, Eimme caught the dagger mid-air. Before the woman could close the gap between them, Eimme flung it back at her. The woman narrowly dodged, the blade embedding itself in the ground. 

Without hesitation, the woman continued her charge. She shifted the dagger in her left hand to her right; she was right-handed, after all. Targeting Eimme's leg, she slashed downward. But Eimme deftly leaped forward, evading the attack aimed at her foot. When she landed, she was standing near the dagger lodged in the ground. She appeared not to notice it. 

Turning swiftly, the woman prepared another strike with her remaining dagger. This time, she aimed low, intending to attack from below. But her target wasn't Eimme's legs; it was her ribcage. Lowering herself close to the ground, she lunged with a sharp, upward motion. 

At least, that's what Eimme thought. 

The true attack wasn't with the dagger in her hand. In a blink, the woman snatched the embedded dagger from the ground. Now armed with two blades, she revealed her actual plan. It was a risky, almost reckless strategy, but that was precisely what made it brilliant. No one in their right mind would dare to attempt such a maneuver, which made it almost impossible for Eimme to predict. 

But the woman underestimated her opponent. She believed Eimme was human. Eimme was anything but. Her reflexes, senses, and reaction speed far surpassed human capabilities. Even in her human form, the immense magical energy coursing through her body made her transcend human limits. While the surprise attack caught her off-guard, Eimme managed to evade at the last moment. Her dress wasn't so lucky; the fabric was sliced, bearing a slight tear where the dagger grazed it. 

The fight was far from over.