Domineering

“Master Blake, it's her! And that silver-haired man behind her! They're the ones who beat us up last night.”

The man whose arm Aila had dislocated the previous night stood behind the youth, whispering with his head bowed.

“You useless trash! You were beaten like this by a woman and some nobody? They don't even have a scratch on them! What happened to all your training? You're an absolute disgrace!”

The young man shouted at his subordinates, glancing at Aila and Midir, who looked completely unbothered.

“We... we had too much to drink, and they really are strong...”

The man didn't dare talk back, looking at his master with a cowering expression.

“Fine. Since you're my men, I have to settle the score for you. Listen up, you lot. I am Blake Rowena, the second son of the Grand Duke of Azure. You injured my people in a bar yesterday—don't you think you owe me a proper answer?”

“An answer? Would giving you a beating count as an answer?”

Aila seemed amused to the point of laughter. She pulled a hair tie from her pocket and gathered her long golden hair, which had been draped over her shoulders, into a high ponytail. Her entire aura instantly became sharp and spirited.

“How dare you, you arrogant woman! Watch your words! A mere commoner dares to speak to Master Blake like that? Kneel and apologize at once!” The lead knight in iron armor stepped forward, pointing his longsword directly at Aila.

“We'll see if you have the ability to make me apologize. Enough talk—if you want to fight, then come!” Aila said dismissively, waving them forward provocatively.

“Take her down!”

The knight captain and Blake exchanged a look. After receiving his master's nod, the captain gave a loud shout.

The dozens of men behind him immediately swarmed forward, lunging at the solitary Aila.

Facing the surging crowd, there wasn't a hint of fear in Aila's eyes. Her right hand darted to her waist, drawing a sharp dagger. With a practiced parry, she met the longsword of the foremost enemy.

Then, her left hand reached into her pocket, pulling out a handful of cold, gleaming metal spikes about the length of chopsticks.

Using the force from the longsword's impact, Aila leaped lightly backward. With a sudden flick of her left arm, the metal spikes flew out like a torrential rain, pelting the armored warriors in front of her.

The standard-issue iron armor should have provided impenetrable protection. However, under Aila's exquisite control, the countless metal spikes seemed to come alive, finding the gaps in the armor and piercing through with precision, causing her opponents to cry out in pain from the sudden strikes.

Aila didn't stay in place after throwing the spikes. Fiery red Battle Qi surged around her body, and like a vibrant butterfly flitting through a garden, she dove straight into the crowd.

The flame-like Battle Qi spread across Aila's dagger. With its empowerment, a simple swipe of the blade could cleave through thick iron armor, drawing a spray of blood. In the blink of an eye, the warriors on the field were already covered in wounds.

Blake witnessed this scene with a grim expression. He roared at his subordinates.

“You incompetent fools! Use your Battle Qi! Execute a combined combat technique!”

The warriors exchanged glances upon receiving the order. They began to condense their Battle Qi, weaving it together with practiced coordination, casting it like a giant net toward Aila in the center of the field.

Using her hands as a pivot, Aila performed a graceful backflip, narrowly avoiding the incoming net of Battle Qi. The condensed energy slammed heavily into the street, shattering the stone slabs and creating a deep crater.

“You really have the nerve to do this in the inner city of the Royal Capital? Aren't you afraid of the royal family coming after you?”

Aila sneered as she retreated, reaching into her waist pocket once more.

The short dagger in her hand suddenly vanished. In its place, two small crossbows appeared in her hands.

Infused with her Battle Qi, the tips of the crossbows glowed with a crimson light, and several fiery red bolts were fired in rapid succession.

These bolts were formed entirely from Aila's Battle Qi. Though small, they contained unimaginable power. The combined Battle Qi technique of the dozens of warriors only held them back for a moment before the arrows slammed into the men at the front, sending them flying several meters back.

Despite knocking a few aside, more knights quickly rushed forward to fill the gaps. Seeing this, Aila clicked her tongue in annoyance.

With another flick of her hands, the crossbows transformed into a dark green whip that looked like a vine. With a snap of her wrist, it extended forward with a sharp, piercing sound.

The seemingly soft whip struck the warriors' longswords with a crisp metallic ring, snapping the blades in half instantly.

As Aila's hands moved with fluid grace, the whip coiled around another man's ankle, flinging him away. He crashed heavily into the wall of a small house.

The stone wall collapsed under the impact, sending dust flying everywhere, and the unlucky fellow was left incapacitated.

Although Midir knew nothing about warrior skills, it wasn't hard to see that Aila was clearly holding back. None of her attacks were lethal; she was only trying to disable them.

However, the opponents charging at her didn't feel the same way. They attacked relentlessly like a pack of wolves, and Aila had clearly underestimated how troublesome these well-trained warriors could be.

In a moment of carelessness, a corner of Aila's long skirt was torn, revealing her fair, slender leg and making her look a bit disheveled.

Now, Aila was truly angry. The fiery red Battle Qi on her body began to recede into her like a tide, and a faint, almost imperceptible golden light surged in her eyes.

Among everyone present, Midir seemed to be the only one who noticed that fleeting golden flash.

Just as the two sides were in the heat of battle, a loud bang echoed from behind the warriors.

Everyone hurriedly turned to look. The silver-haired man had somehow appeared behind them and was now coldly pinning Blake to the ground with his foot. The immense pressure turned Blake's face bright red.

“Alright, let's cut the head off the snake. There's no point in continuing this fight. How about everyone stops?”

Midir clapped his hands casually as he spoke to the stunned crowd.

Pinned to the ground and unable to move, Blake was in a daze. He couldn't understand how, with his level as a High-level Swordsman, he hadn't even realized how he'd ended up on the floor.

The two of them had been on opposite sides of the entire battlefield. He had even kept his attention on the silver-haired man's figure the whole time, yet in the blink of an eye, the man had vanished from his sight.

He only remembered a cold wind blowing from behind, and his body feeling as if it were frozen solid, becoming incredibly sluggish. The moment he tried to break free and turn around, he saw a large foot coming right at his face, pinning him to the floor.

“Stop... stop at once!”

A trace of blood leaked from the corner of Blake's mouth. Feeling the sharp pain in his chest, he hurriedly ordered his subordinates to stop. Upon seeing their master's condition, the warriors immediately backed away from the surrounded Aila and shifted into a square defensive formation, keeping a wary eye on both of them.

“Wouldn't it have been better to do this from the start? Why did you have to get physical?”

A faint, ambiguous smile played on Midir's handsome face, but to Blake, who was under his foot, that smile looked as terrifying as a demon's.

“Who... who on earth are you people!” Blake wheezed, struggling to breathe.

Seeing that Midir wasn't doing anything further, Aila seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. The golden light in her eyes vanished instantly. She looked down at her torn skirt and glared fiercely at the dog-like Blake.

“Who am I? It seems the useless idiots in your house didn't even bother to check that before coming to pick a fight. Go back and ask your elders if they would dare do this! Listen well! My name is Aila—Aila Mars!”

“Mars...!? You're from the house of the Grand Duke of War God...!”

Upon hearing Aila announce her name, Blake's face turned deathly pale, as if the beautiful young girl standing before him were some kind of terrifying monster instead.

“Now you know how to be afraid?”

Aila gestured for Midir to release the pressure on Blake's chest. She then grabbed his collar like she was picking up a helpless chick and hauled him up from the ground.

“Now, do you still need me to give you an explanation? Hmm...? Second son of the Rowena family?”

“No... no need... Miss Aila.” Blake forced a strained smile, his eyes darting away from the girl.