"Guren..."
Ying Yue slightly calmed down as she glared at Guren beside me.
"Are you sure you want to go against our Luo family?"
With her words, the whole space between them started freezing at a visible pace. Guren snorted and patted my shoulders, as if saying, "I'll leave this to you."
I sighed before looking at Igni; she then released her fire aura, melting the encroaching ice field in an instant. Ying Yue's ice was pushed back so easily that it was a bit pitiful to see.
She gritted her teeth in chagrin as she waved her hand, sending a more powerful freezing wave. However, despite that, Igni's flames didn't get pushed back. It swept through cleanly all the way until it went past her and to the gates.
"Kyaah!"
Ying Yue screamed in pain as the flames started burning her clothes. I waved at Igni, signaling her to stop.
"Stop it already. You're too weak to even stand before me."
The effect of the [Oath of Truthfulness] still hadn't faded, making me spout cringeworthy lines that I'd never voice out if I could control my mouth.
Ying Yue was visibly agitated, gritting her teeth hard enough that her mouth started bleeding. In a fit of anger, she suddenly shouted with her loudest voice.
"Then do you dare challenge me in a 3-versus-3 deathmatch?!"
"Why not? You don't have any chances of winning anyway."
Hearing my reply, a cocky grin appeared once more on her face.
"Hmph! Then I, Wan Li, and Wan Er will be fighting. You can take Guren and-"
Before she could finish her words, my nasty mouth opened again. I felt the blood drain from my face as I listened to my own voice, muttering words that I didn't even consider possible.
"No need. I alone can fight the three of you."
Everyone stared at me, mouth agape. Ying Yue was flabbergasted, and then she became enraged.
"We'll fight exactly a month later! Don't you dare run away! I'll definitely kill you then!"
She then turned around and walked away.
The other members of the Luo, who were injured, carried the corpses of their allies, the ones who were still mostly intact at least, as they retreated. The eagle tamer from before was also brought away; his neck was bent at an impossible angle.
Soon, all that was left in the ruined entrance were the fallen Seimei guards and the rubble of the destroyed buildings nearby. When I could no longer see the energy signatures of the Luo in my sight, I finally let out a long sigh.
"So I have a month to prepare. Easy."
"Will... Sorry for using the oath on you, but I honestly think that you're too talkative in this state."
I think so too. I said a little too much against Ying Yue. Although I didn't regret anything I said other than the last one, it's still a refreshing feeling now that I can properly go out in the sun without a mask anymore.
"... You'd better wear a charm to protect you against skills like [Oath of Truthfulness] in the future."
Guren muttered in exasperation. Did I say that out loud? I can't help it, though, as it seems like as soon as my thoughts focus on a topic, my mouth will move on its own.
In retrospect, this also means that I honestly thought deep in my heart that I could take on the three girls, Wan Li, Wan Er, and Ying Yue, alone.
"Well, I did fight against 7th level and above demons, so fighting a 3rd stage feels like bullying now."
Rather than bullying, isn't it closer to trampling?
"A duel, huh... This'll get troublesome."
Guren muttered at my side.
It's something that even I know, but usually, duels are done by two sides after claiming their own conditions upon winning. The loser would be unable to refuse whatever the winner demands, even if it's their life.
I'm not worried about losing. What I'm worried about is what to ask after winning. If it was Ying Yue alone, then I could just take her life... But I fear that'll start an all-out war between the Luo and Seimei. Honestly, thinking of a punishment is more of a headache than thinking about how to beat them.
"The preparation should be done; we should go back now,"
Guren suddenly said as he walked back to the previous building with a carefree attitude. Now that I remember it, I did ask for him to call for backup, but I didn't even see a single shadow of them anywhere.
"Where are your 8th stage and above tamers?"
I asked out of curiosity.
"8th stage? We don't have one anymore. Our strongest is only at the 7th stage, which is the branch family heads."
When he told me this, I stopped in my tracks. I couldn't believe what I just heard.
I remember hearing that the Luo had swarms of 7th-stage tamers, about a hundred 8th-stage tamers, and a dozen 9th-stage tamers. They even had one god-level tamer to boot.
"Wait, then if we went to war with the Luo, we have no chance of winning?! What's with your bravado earlier then?!"
I grabbed him by the cuff of his haori, shaking him wildly.
This guy was about to start a war on a whim, and he knew that the Seimei had zero chances of winning. If that's not insanity, then what is?!
"I-It's fine... W-We have you now... Urp."
Seeing as his face was turning blue, I stopped shaking his head and asked instead.
"What do you mean it's fine? Is my bloodline that great that even the 8th level and above tamers from the Luo would kneel before me?"
If it's true, then that's definitely awesome. However, Guren raised his brows and shook his head.
"What? No. I mean that with your blood, the others could finally break past the boundary of the 7th level."
Guren grinned as he stared me straight in the eye.
"With your blood and a one-month grace period, we could turn the thousands of 7th-level tamers of our clan into powerful 8th-level tamers! We'd definitely have the upper hand in a war then!"
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