In the middle of a courtyard surrounded by black stone walls with reddish stains decorating their sides, a woman with dark-red hair and green eyes swung her sword. Her sword was jet-black like her metal armor that covered every inch of her body except for her face. The armor was sleek, but it had no luster; instead, it swallowed the moonlight shining down on it. The grass in the courtyard was worn down, filled with stains and bits of unidentifiable lumps strewn about.

A shadow appeared by the entrance to the courtyard, and the woman halted mid-swing. She sheathed her sword and turned around, sweat dropping from her chin onto the ground. Her voice was hoarse like an old man’s. “What is it?”

“My liege,” the shadow said as it knelt to the ground, it’s face and body hidden beneath dark wrappings. “We’ve figured out Grand Duchess Apollonia’s plan. She intends on summoning a being from another dimension to overthrow you.”

The woman cocked her head, sheathing and unsheathing a portion of her sword with her hand. “Really? How did you come to such an outlandish conclusion?”

The shadow flinched with every clink of the sword bumping into its sheath. His breaths grew short as he lowered his head even further, staring at his right hand that was pressed to the ground. “There hasn’t been a moment where we’ve taken our eyes off of the grand duchess. Her trusted retainer left her side, and we sent someone to tail him. He entered the royal library and perused the forbidden section. All the books he read were related to summoning and contracting with devils. A few weeks later, the grand duchess purchased materials required for summoning en masse.”

“A devil, is it?” the woman asked, letting her sword rest. A smile blossomed across her face. “I’ve never slain a devil before. I look forward to it. Let her proceed.”

“Understood, my liege,” the shadow said, his trembling halting along with the clinking of the sword. He exhaled out a silent breath as he raised his head. “We aren’t certain, but the grand duchess will most likely perform the summoning ritual during this year’s autumn banquet.”

“So that’s why the old hag took the initiative to invite me,” the woman said. Her white teeth seemed to sparkle in the moonlight as her smile widened. “Was there anything else?”

“According to the oracle, a genie king has been found and the finder hasn’t made a wish yet.”

The woman raised her eyebrow. “See if you can negotiate for it, but don’t resort to threats. I don’t expect too much, but there has to be a reason why the finder hasn’t used it yet. Perhaps I can grant the finder a wish that the genie can’t.”

“Yes, my liege,” the shadow said, remaining perfectly still. “There’s one more report. A tenth dragon has appeared at the roost. Its scales are a darker blue than the native dragons, but it seemed to be acquainted with the rest—there have been no signs of a conflict.”

The woman frowned. “That’s the third one this year, isn’t it?” She tapped her finger against the pommel of her sword, clicking her nail against the metal. “Should I cull some of them? It’d be a problem if their population continues to grow at his rate…. But I just succeeded the throne; it’d be in poor taste if the dragons destroyed the empire under my reign.” Her eyes narrowed as her tapping stopped. “Send an offering to the dragons. I’ll let the next generation worry about them.”

“Yes, my liege,” the shadow said as he rose to his feet. He thumped his fist against his chest once before disappearing, melting away into the darkness.

The woman stared at the entryway, unmoving. After a few moments passed, she exhaled and clenched her hand, gripping onto the hilt of her sword. It cut through the air as she unsheathed it in one motion, holding it out in front of herself. “I wonder,” she said to her sword in a low voice. “How strong is a devil? If Apollonia thinks she can kill me with one, then it has to be pretty tough, right? Can I kill one?”

A blue light flashed along the sword’s edge, and a high-pitched voice responded, “If you train harder!”

The woman sighed as she positioned herself into a combative stance. “That’s what you always say.”

“If you weren’t so weak, I wouldn’t have to tell you to train harder. Train harder!”

The woman swung her sword, cutting the air, leaving behind a line in the space in front of her that vanished a second later. “One of these days, I’m going to replace your ego.”

“That day won’t come unless you train harder!”

“Right, of course.”

“There is no problem in the world that can’t be solved with violence. The stronger you are, the more problems you can solve. To freely roam the world in a carefree manner, you need strength! And strength comes from training. Train harder!”

The woman’s eye twitched. “If you weren’t such a powerful sword, I would’ve melted you down and turned you into scrap. Shut up and let me practice in silence.”

“…Train harder,” the sword whispered in its high-pitched voice, practically squeaking.

The woman sighed. After a hundred swings, she paused and looked down at her sword. “Hey, if I gave you some blood, would you answer a question seriously?”

Blue light flickered along the sword’s edge like a dancing firefly. “Instead of giving me blood, you can train harder!”

The woman grimaced as she sheathed her sword before grabbing the edge of her gauntlet. She removed the armor around her left arm and laid it onto the ground by her feet. The sword glowed with a blue light as she slid it out of her sheath, but it took on a purplish tinge as she pulled more and more of it out. By the time it left the sheath, the sword was emitting a bright-red light reminiscent of blood. The woman’s expression didn’t waver as she pressed the sword’s edge against her forearm and pulled, cutting a deep gash from her elbow to her wrist. Her blood flowed freely, dripping onto the sword, staining its red hue black with every drop.

Once the sword was pitch-black, a deep growl came out of the sword, and a raspy voice asked, “What is it that you wish to know?”

The woman’s forehead wrinkled. “If I were to fight a fully-grown dragon by myself, who would win?”

A deep chuckle echoed out of the sword. “With my help and all of your precious blood, it’d be easy to slay a dragon. But whether or not someone could bring you back to life after the fight…, heh-heh.”

“As I thought,” the woman said as she sheathed her sword. She pressed her thumb against her elbow and traced a line along the gash down to her wrist. Her blood stopped flowing as the wound disappeared, leaving behind a thick scar. She gripped the hilt of her sword, her face pale. “It looks like I have to train harder.”