A Distant Reverie

Chapter 87

Suisei found herself back in the bunker with her companions during the early hours of the morning. Ame was standing in front of them, arms folded, one foot tapping repeatedly against the floor. She wore a difficult expression—some sort of strange blend between an apologetic grimace and a frightening scowl.

If Suisei had to guess, the apparent leader of this place was having a battle inside of her head.

Undoubtedly, it was related to the incident that occurred an hour before dawn. Suisei heard of the details in passing, but allegedly, Marine had gotten into a fight with Calli. A spar, to be precise. It had been formalized and officiated by Kiara, one of the other members of this compound that they haven't got acquainted with yet.

The result was an overwhelming victory for Marine.

An expected outcome. Suisei was not at all surprised. She was no stranger to Marine's prowess at this point—not after having gone through two worlds of adventures with her. Marine actually losing in a one-on-one fight would have been more unbelievable especially in a world that lacked mana.

Suisei could, however, understand why Marine's savagery might have come as a shock to the other members of this compound. It was easy to underestimate Marine due to her petite frame. To an untrained eye, she looked like a regular person. There was nothing discerning about her appearance that would have outed her as a monstrous combatant. Maybe someone might have noticed her quiet confidence and composure as something to be wary of, but even for a skilled warrior, that level of subtlety would be difficult to pick up at a glance.

Although I wouldn't be surprised if she intentionally made herself look less threatening to catch people off guard.

Suisei knew Marine well enough at this point to understand that the pirate was extremely self-aware and observant. Almost every action she took was purposeful and intentional, even if it appeared frivolous and self-indulgent at first.

And so, rather than freak out about the spar, Suisei decided simply to wait and watch.

After another uncomfortable minute, Ame finally let out a frustrated sigh.

"...I suppose I better apologize on behalf of Calli."

"You don't have to if you don't want to," Marine replied, nonchalant, "I rather not take any half-hearted concessions when I've already received my side of the bet."

The two stared daggers at each other—the temperature in the room suddenly felt like it dropped a few degrees.

Umm...

Suddenly, Suisei found her convictions wavering. Marine seemed unusually combative.

"I know that it was Calli who initiated the challenge. And I'm also aware that you deliberately held back for her sake in the end." Ame's eyes suddenly narrowed. "But I think you can understand my hesitation. Even if you have the word of Lady Ouro."

Marine shrugged. "Yeah. I would be wary too if there was a stranger roaming around my home who could beat down my strongest friend without breaking a sweat. Completely understandable."

Ame clicked her tongue.

"That being said, Calli didn't exactly give me a choice to step away, did she? It was either a spar or a full-on fight. You only have your friend to blame for not being able to properly judge the strength of her opponent. Or, did you expect me to accept getting pummeled without retaliation?"

"I—"

The air suddenly grew oppressive. Suisei flinched. The murderous energy radiating from Marine became increasingly uncomfortable to bear.