Dominatrix System

Chapter 181: Swordsman

My skin itched as I reached the gate, and I looked at the guards as I came to a stop before them. The guards were fully suited up in armor now and carried long spears that were slightly taller than them. The polished steel armor glimmered with torchlight as they looked at us.

"We didn't hear anything about a delivery leaving the estate!" A guard lightly exclaimed as I pulled up, and I wanted to curse at his loudness.

"I am sorry, sir; I am bringing some things out and food for the soldiers fighting the fire. The Kitchen head had some extra things that a servant found and told me to find a carriage and take it," I lied quickly. It was a horrible lie, but it was something I thought up on the fly.

I couldn't see the man's face as he looked toward his comrade, and I felt eyes on me. They were scrutinizing those eyes, and the guard turned back to me. "I am unsure," I put up and hand quickly with a gold coin out of my inventory and showed it to the man, and that coin turned to five with a swipe of my finger.

"Sir, Guard," I said, my voice lowering an octave, "You and your fellow guard must be parched; I am only taking some food to the soldiers, and the food was surplus. One of the managers told me to do this and said that if I get into trouble at the gate, I am able to use ten gold coins as a bonus for you being so vigilant," I said, looking around for those eyes that now sparked some hostility.

The guard looked at the other guard, and both nodded and reached out a steeled hand. I dropped ten gold coins into their hand. The guards both stepped back and waved me through. I started the horses back down the road, and the guards quickly shared the coin behind us.

There was a problem, though, as I still felt those eyes watching me from somewhere. They were unblinking and watching me with increased hostility, and my skin was still itching. Someone knew what was happening and was following me down the road.

Still, moving toward danger out in the city was better than letting it happen at the entrance of the City Lords estate. I let the carriage move away from the estate down the road and felt those eyes hostile towards me continue. I didn't want to set them off and waited to get farther and farther from the estate.

I was disappointed as I felt that person start to close, and my instincts sparked. I brought out Sophia's knife and pulled the horses to a stop with one hand. The other hand intercepted a sword coming for my face. A cloaked man was sneering at me, and the clash sent me off the carriage from his strength.

Twisting my body, I found myself sliding on the ground with my feet scaping on brick. The pain was the least of my worries as the man leaped off the carriage, shattering some wood on the driver's seat, and catapulted to me.

I wanted to curse my luck but knew I must have messed up somewhere around someone I shouldn't have. I didn't know, but as this man thrust his sword at me, my hips moved out of the way with only the slightest leg movement. The man was surprised at the unnatural look of my body as I was bent in a manner no one could. My knife woke him up as it flashed after him as he pulled his sword back. I nicked his arm with a small cut, and he cursed in what seemed to be surprise at my actions.

I used the time that he retreated and carried myself forward. I needed to be hyper-aggressive against this man as I felt out with my mana and felt the mana of another B ranker. This person was strong and had experience. His mana felt like a war-torn blade, but with it came nicks and cracks. This man was someone who was suffering in their mind, but their sword remained sharp.

His life revolved around the sword, and he was on the edge of a breakthrough in the B rank. Those nicks and chips in his swords could be polished off into a pristine sword that could kill at the slightest touch. This was a man back from war and seeking opportunities. I had no idea who he was, but that didn't matter. The ring of my knife against his sword was not quiet, and soon guards might respond. The night still glowed with the fire in the distance, but it was getting smaller.