With lifeblood activated, even at the lowest setting, my power would at least increase by 50%. The penalty isn't as harsh as losing a day of lifespan every second, but about a tenth of it.
"Ying Yue, I'm sorry, but I'll need to end this quick."
I apologized in advance, as I knew that she wouldn't even be able to understand what would happen next.
"Shut it! I have the upper hand now!"
Ying Yue seemed to genuinely believe so. I frowned deeply and sighed. I seemed to have given her so much hope that she thinks she genuinely has a chance to win.
"Look, I was just playing with you, alright?"
I confessed, tapping her shoulders.
Ying Yue's eyes opened wide before she rapidly jumped away, gaining distance. She didn't know what happened, as expected. To her, I seemed to just suddenly appear right before her in an instant without any warning.
"See? You can't even follow my movements."
I said as I crouched right beside her feet, staring at the location where I should have been before along with her. Ying Yue had goosebumps, as could be seen from how her leg's pores opened up.
She lowered her stance and sent a sweeping kick to where I was. However, it hit nothing but empty space.
"What are you hitting there?"
I asked as I peeked over her shoulders. Almost reflexively, she slammed the side of her head into my face, but I took a step back and dodged.
"Convinced now? You can't win."
She stared back at me; her eyes looked full of doubt. She was probably wondering if I was using some teleportation skill... But it was purely footwork. It was one of the many skills that I taught the other tamers of the Seimei, Vanishing Steps, which was able to hide one's presence from the enemy for a brief moment.
"It's about a minute now, so sorry. I don't want to lose more than a week's worth."
Deciding that was enough, I lowered my stance. My index and middle fingers were joined into what was commonly known as the sword hand. Then, I lightly waved it towards the unicorn, stealthily surrounding me with dozens of restriction traps.
An invisible wave of energy surged towards the unicorn, sending it flying out of the stage and smashing into the outer barrier protecting the audience. It bled from all seven orifices as it got smashed and fell limp to the floor. The white unicorn was now bloody red.
I turned around and walked away, going down the stage.
Taking this chance, Vermeil rushed towards Ying Yue and supported her body, standing up while fainting. The audience didn't understand what happened at all.
"Winner, Will!"
When Vermeil shouted this while trying to heal Ying Yue, the audience burst into a loud cheer, celebrating the victory of the Seimei family.
---
An hour later, in a private room in the main residence, two groups were sitting down on cushions as they faced each other.
From the Luo family, there's Vermeil in lieu of the still-fainted Ying Yue. Behind her, Wan Li and Wan Er were lowering their heads with sad expressions.
From the Seimei, there was me at the front and the three girls behind. At the side, acting like observers, were Guren and a few of the other branch family heads.
"As the winner of the duel, you have the right to request one thing from us..."
Vermeil announced. Her playful expression from before was nowhere to be found. Rather, her eyes were sharp as she glared forward with a frown. There's a silent pressure released by her that makes one feel stifled.
As she continued, though, a hint of sadness appeared in her eyes for a moment.
"But please, with respect to my name, don't take her life."
Even without her begging me to pardon Ying Yue, I wasn't really planning on killing her off. But rather than that, I was troubled by what to do with her instead.
"Lady Ying Yue is the only successor to the Luo family. With that in mind, please decide a proper punishment for them."
Vermeil added, making me hesitate even more.
If I decided on giving too light a punishment, then a repeat offense would surely follow. I can't have that, so I need to properly instill in her mind to never go against me again... Training?
"How about making the three of them slaves of the Seimei? For now, about a year."
"Slaves?"
Vermeil squinted her eyes.
"You mean to smear dirt on the face of the only successor to the Luo family?!"
Blue sparks started flying from all over Vermeil. However, remembering that they were the ones who were on the lower ground in this negotiation, she quickly tried to calm down.
"Please consider a different one."
Vermeil stated this with a blank face.
"Then how about a sex slave? Ouch!!!"
Guren added from the side, earning an iron fist to his head from priestess Harumi beside him.
"Ahem. Then, how about becoming my personal servant? Like that, they wouldn't need to go outside in public, so the Luo could still keep some dignity."
Vermeil thought for a bit and decided that it was acceptable.
"Alright. Shall we talk about the terms of the contract then? The three of them would be your servants for a year. Other than housework and other official business, nothing else would be requested of them."
She smiled; her eyes were thin, like strips, as she looked in my direction.
"If ever we found out that our young miss lost her purity to someone..."
She then gestured with her fingers like a scissor, cutting something off. I felt cold suddenly, and my little guy shrank back in fear, as her threat was definitely a serious one.
"A-Ahahah, don't worry about that. I wouldn't, no, nobody among the Seimei would lay a hand on the three of them during their stay here."
Hearing this, Vermeil closed her eyes and nodded in satisfaction.
"And, in exchange for lowering their punishment, please promise that the Luo will stop pursuing the matter of my bloodline and such."
Vermeil smiled genuinely this time, nodding while answering positively, "Of course."
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