Chapter 63
It was an easy win for s.h.i.+n; he didn't consider it as a fight nor even a warm-up; the two of them were just far too weak compared to him that he felt he was humiliated.
[Next fight would be between Cole-sama and Vlad-sama's butler, s.h.i.+n-san!] the referee shouted to the audience.
General Cristov and his family are currently sitting on a different table than Vlad's and his twin maids. The servants are standing still - also watching the fights unfold. Many of the servants are experienced fighters and were trained in combat - this, as a requirement to become a servant of this family.
Many of them nodded as they observed the first fight, regarding s.h.i.+n as a decent fighter. They know that he was still not serious then, but still, their bet to who will win this round is Cole, the second daughter of the family.
[Butler, I've observed your fight and I'm a bit disappointed. I could've beaten the two of those kids to death in just a second, yet you took far more time than that.]
Cole: like any other member of their family, has red long hair and a tall structure.
She's now wearing some kind of light female-armor that almost only covers the corners of her body, allowing her to move more freely and have lighter movements. And almost the opposite of Caiden, who uses large and heavy weapons, she uses knives as her weapon and she has tons of them on her belt.
[I'm really sorry for disappointing you. But regarding why I took more than time than necessary with that fight was merely because I was giving them a chance to land a hit on me. Too bad, they were not able to.] he says with a bow to show respect.
[Then, I will expect you to go all out on me, since I'm nothing like those two kids.]
[Of course.]
[Don't disappoint me.] as she says so, she took two knives on her belt and prepared a stance.
[Fight!]
***
The fight ended in seconds.
[s.h.i.+n-san wins...]
[Whwhat the h.e.l.l...!?] she shouted and complained to the referee as she holds her pained stomach.
[I hope I did not disappoint you, Cole-sama. I thought you would hate it if I give you the chance to land a hit on me as I did to the young masters, so I ended the fight as fast as I could to not disappoint you.]
[You b.a.s.t.a.r.d...!]
[[...]]
It was then they realized just how serious their opponent was. The fight was so one-sided that they were only able to stay quiet in disbelief.
~~~
Except for one person...
[Hahaha! Your butler did not show mercy at all! He punched a woman straight to the guts without even blinking an eye...! I've never seen anyone do that before! Even more so, for a mere servant to do it...!] Cristov laughs to the scene in front of him.
(His daughter is almost dying and this is his reaction...?)
[Vlad-san, I want to know where did you get that guy!]
[...] Vlad only stares at him as he continues to laugh.
[I'm really sorry about this, Vlad-san... This is a normal occurrence in our household, I hope you get used to it.] Karen apologizes to him from Cristov's side.
[No, I'm the one who's sorry, I think my servant went a little too far...] it was a genuine apology from Vlad. He just couldn't help but feel guilty as he looks at the girl that is rolled over to herself on the ground coughing to death.
[Please don't worry about it, they're already used to it.]
[Oh...? Is that so?]
(I think I will accept this as normal for now...) Vlad again thought as he looks at Cole.
[The next battle would be s.h.i.+n-san against Caiden-sama and Cette-sama!] the referee took their attention and announce the next fight.
And as the referee had said, Caiden and Cette are already standing on the opposite side of s.h.i.+n.
(Wait... Isn't this a bit too much...? The oldest sister has the same level as Caiden... a hero...
(They would do everything to win, huh...? I thought they were fair fighters, but I guess I was wrong...)
[I'm sorry about this Vlad-san, your butler is just too strong... Although I laughed at it, he's abnormal... I don't think they will win at all if they fight him in a fair fight. I want the two of them to defeat him so I can have a fair fight with you.] Cristov interrupted his thoughts.
[I think even I will have a bad time dealing with your butler. I've never defeated my own daughter like that in a battle before, yet your butler did.] although he still has a smile on his face, he was serious.
[I want to have a fair fight with you Vlad-san. I will not be able to do that if I'm already exhausted fighting your butler.]
[I get what you are saying, Cristov-san. But don't worry, this fight is still fair. I don't think s.h.i.+n will have a hard time dealing with the two of them.]
Despite the situation, Vlad was still confident. He was the only one who can see the difference in their power, so he knows he shouldn't worry.
[...] Cristov was in disbelief, seeing how Vlad accepted the fight so casually and confident.
He stares at Caiden and Sett and he lost the confidence that they would win against s.h.i.+n. What Vlad had said is not at all impossible, he just couldn't remove the possibility that his butler will still win against his oldest son and daughter.
(We'll see about that...) Cristov utters inside his head as he prepared himself for the upcoming battle.
***
[Fight!]
As the referee sw.a.n.gs his hands downward, the battle began.
With his usual weapon, Caiden threw a swing to s.h.i.+n, only to be dodge by s.h.i.+n by stepping a foot back - one would think that this is the end of their first interaction, but that was not the case at all.
*Swoos.h.!.+
Another weapon came das.h.i.+ng towards s.h.i.+n as soon as he landed his foot on the ground.
*Bam!!!
It was the first time s.h.i.+n was not able to dodge and was..h.i.t.
It was an unexpected attack, and he was not able to react to it that fast.
[...]
He put his fingers on his face to feel the wound, and immediately, he felt a stinging pain coming from it.
[Hmph...] a satisfied look appeared on the person who was able to hit him.
Cette - the eldest daughter of the family. In height, she's taller than Caiden. She's also a bit rough-looking, but she's definitely still recognizable as a woman. Her face won't lose to other n.o.bles; and although her body has obvious muscles, it still cannot hide the curves of her feminine body. She is the perfect ill.u.s.tration of a woman in the family of Lionhearts.
Like Caiden, Cette is also a knight. They're both captains and have high popularity among others in the n.o.ble factions. And although she was not named a hero, she was still recognized as a powerful individual in the ranks of knights and n.o.bles, there are even those who say that she should be the one who should inherit the t.i.tle of her father.
[Don't let your guard down, nee-san...] Caiden came to her side and said.
[I know.]
Caiden has a lot of respect for his older sister and he considers her someone who has a higher rank than him; both as a Lionheart and a knight. In the first place, she taught him as much as his father and he had never won a battle with her before.
[Vlad-san's servants are nothing like ours...]
[Definitely. I never thought that I will ever have an unfair fight with a servant like this...]
As she looks at s.h.i.+n, she prepared her sword again, ready for the next attack.
[Caiden.] she called to him to sign her next attack.
[Un.]
[[...]] they nodded to each other and...
*Thud! Swooos.h.!.+
Cette came first. She attacked s.h.i.+n endlessly, using all kinds of attacks she could probably throw: slashes, kicks, punches, she used all of them to s.h.i.+n, hoping she could land a hit.
*Bam! Thud! Dud!
But as expected, all of them were blocked by s.h.i.+n by only using his arms and legs.
(Tsk! Just what is this guy made of!? His wound had also already healed! It did not even bleed!) she made a dissatisfied and angry look on her face as she continues her rush at him.
[Caiden!] she shouted.
As she did, a glimpse of shock appeared on the eye of the enemy.
Her plan was a succeed: to get him busy dodging her attacks and turns her attention away from Caiden.
[Haa!!!]
It was then a huge attack had finally hit s.h.i.+n...
*BAM!!! BOOM!!!
s.h.i.+n was thrown to the opposite side of the room, appearing a loud cras.h.i.+ng sound as he did.
[Haa... Haa... This guy... Just what is his body made of...? I can crash any boulders with three hits of my sword yet he took all my attacks without even blinking an eye as if it was nothing...]
Cette buried the edge of her sword to the ground as she tries to catch her breath. She sweats endlessly and her clothes started to drip wet from the amount she produces. As she turns her head down, her sweat poured and wet the floor.
[Is he still even human...?] she just couldn't believe that those words all are she could utter.
[I want to believe he is...]
They again look at where their enemy was thrown, and as they expect, he was still yet to stand.
[A normal person should already be dead with that attack...]
They have no intention to kill s.h.i.+n, but with almost all Cette's attack not even bruising him or hurting him up, there was no other choice but to use their most powerful attacks.
Their family is known for their brutal tendencies and ferocious dangerous attacks. There's even a myth about their family -
"Any Lionheart can cut a man in half with a wooden sword"
But today, in contrast to that myth, they have found a man that they can't penetrate
The ground where s.h.i.+n is are already all messed up and is almost dug up. His body is limp lying on the ground. His butler clothes are almost all torn off and already unusable.
One would think he's already dead - as everyone who is watching are.
[The winners are -]
It's already over, they thought.
*Crack... Crash...!
Until the person they already though dead or knocked out came standing back up.
[Tsk...!]
[What the h.e.l.l is this butler...?]
s.h.i.+n stood up with his butler appearance already gone. He removed his suit, leaving him with his white b.u.t.toned-up s.h.i.+rt.
*Crack! Pop. Pop.
He pops his head and fingers and turns to look at Vlad, ignoring his two enemies.
In his gaze, Vlad nodded.
"You can" - are the words he receives from his eyes.
[You... What are you...?] Cette called out to him with an empty voice.
[Cette-sama, am I right...?] he asks back.
He then finally turned his whole body towards her and says:
[To your question...]
His eyes were serious and full of malice.
[...]
He was a being who was not afraid to kill anything...
He was a powerful ent.i.ty who controlled everything he can stand above onto...
He is...
[I'm only just an ordinary butler...]