Love Sword

1

In a cold and dark dungeon, the sounds of swords clinking and clanking against each other could be clearly heard.

Swift and strong, two men are sparring against each other as if their lives depended on it. The darkness of the night seems to be making the battle a bit more challenging as one could not see what is going on around them.

The two warriors had no choice but to use their other four senses to defend and attack.

Judging from their stance and techniques, anyone would know that they possess incredible swordsmanship. Not losing to one another, the sparring continued on for another incense stick time.

At long last, the man on the right lifted himself up and twirled the other's sword. The long and slim blade flew off its owner's grip and fell down with a clang!

Silence permitted through the darkness.

Soft chuckles broke out after a while and the dungeon suddenly got lit up with a torch.

The losing man held the torch and grabbed a shirt to put on.

Even with the brilliantly lit torch, the dungeon is still far too dark for us to discern the faces of these two men. However, one could make out their tall imposing figure of warriors going to war.

'As expected, his highness did not even break a sweat!'

The other man with the address of 'his highness' remained silent as he put his sword back into its sheath.

'How's the job going?' Asked the winning man who was called 'his highness'.

The other man who appeared to be of lower ranking than the male royal paused his actions. He remained silent, his tensed body language showcased his emotions at the instance.

The other party of royal blood pulled out his shining silver sword. The shiny blade blinged in the torchlight as it landed itself just 2 centimeters from the other man's neck.

'Y-Your highness, p-please spare th-this lowl-ly life! I-It's just that the t-third highn-ness...'

'So you're scared?' Muttered the royal in a low voice, the intimidation in his tone caused the one in front of him to whimper.

The man in danger shivered from head to toe. Although their sparring from a moment ago seemed like it was a close fight and their martial arts appeared to be not so different, the man knew that his master was merely flicking his arms around, going easy on his insignificant life.

He knew that this royal prince who got a blade on his throat is far more superior than him in terms of swordsmanship. Killing him off would be easier than crushing an ant.

'If you are scared, I might as well just help you diminish your fear right now.' Said the prince.

'N-No, your highness. P-Ple-...'

Thump!

The man laid dead on the cold damp floor of the dungeon with dark crimson blood seeping out from his throat which was slit open, his eyes still wide open with horror still visible in those pupils of his.

The torch which fell down along with him hit the floor and the fire extinguished suddenly.

The culprit of the victim's death wiped his blade slowly without a single shred of guilt before grabbing his outer robe and walk out. As his tall figure moves, we could faintly see a long scar stretching across his naked broad back.

The hideous scar seems to be scaring onlookers away, it appears to be silently implying that its owner is not someone to be messed with.

———

Clank!

'This is outrageous! How could emperor father do this to his own daughter?' Shouted a voice.

The voice seems to belong to a woman but the tone was so rough people would not believe a lady is capable of releasing such a rough tone akin to a soldier at the frontier.

Inside this brightly lit chamber, a beautiful woman is standing with her legs spread apart in a domineering manner. Her thin eyebrows furrowing into an obvious disturbance.

In her right hand, is a sword. She is clad in thick black cloak, no jewelries could be seen on her. It is quite clear that she had just came back from spying on someone or something.

The two personal maids knelt on the ground, their faces showing worry and concern for their master but did not dare utter out a question.

The first princess has always been a tomboy ever since she was young. She refused to dress up in girls clothings and was always interested in martial arts and war. At first, the emperor refused strongly when the princess requested to go learn martial arts.

However, the stubborn princess found a way to learn martial arts anyway. Her ability in protecting and defending herself from enemies is enough for her to wander around alone without the company of the royal guards.

Although the princess grew up as an aggressive girl, different from other young girls in the kingdom, they had never seen the princess this mad before.

Just what made the princess this mad?

Suddenly a knock sounded on the doors of the pavilion. Princess Ruo An looked up and her face softened as she let out a relieved sigh. She put her sword down and rushed to open the door.

'A'Chang! You're finally here. I have an urgent business right now.' Said the princess in hushed whisper as she pulled her personal bodyguard and closest friend inside the pavilion.

The two palace maids glanced at their master holding the tall man's wrist and snickered.

It had been so obvious from the start that He Chang, the princess's personal bodyguard, has a crush on her. However, it was the princess who's oblivious to this on her own. Anyone with eyes could see He Chang's soft gaze whenever he looked at her.

Although, it is a pity for him because a lowly bodyguard as himself could never even dream of touching the princess.

He Chang is a nineteen years old man with a tall height and strong built. He was selected by the emperor himself to be the princess's personal bodyguard after seeing He Chang's exceptional martial arts skills.

There were circulating rumors that He Chang was actually a bodyguard sent by Da Dong's emperor along with about twenty other bodyguards as a gift for the emperor of Chang'An. However, this was nothing but a rumor and nobody dwelled on it too much.

'What is it that her highness would like to tell this subordinate?' Asked He Chang respectfully.

Princess Ruo An sighed

'Let's talk when we reach Xiao Ning's pavilion.'

To Be Continued...