"Eh?" Ellyn was shocked by the sudden turn of events.

'What the hell's going on?' she thought as she frantically looked around for someone to explain it to her only to meet with gazes that signified that this was a normal thing to Rhys and the maids.

"What's wrong? Are you giving up without trying?" Selena asked Ellyn in her usual cold tone.

"No... I..." Ellyn was starting to regret coming here. Who in their right mind would duel with a child of an aristocrat? If something happens to her in the duel, wouldn't her head roll?

"If you are worried about attacking me, the contract you signed earlier also covers you if something goes wrong. So rest assured that there would be no consequences." Selena responded seemingly understanding Ellyn's distress.

"That... but still..."

"Of Course, this is only a problem if an old hag like you can even touch me." Selena continued.

*Crack...!!!*

Something broke inside Ellyn's mind as being called an old hag penetrated her very soul.

"Old Hag?! OLD HAG...!! I am gonna freaking kill you...!!" Ellyn lost all control of her emotions and unsheathed the sword from her waist. Rhys was surprised after looking at the sword. It was the signature weapon of the Blood Sparrows. It had a blood-red handle with a metal sparrow's head carved on the pommel.

'It seems she still holds the Blood Sparrows in her heart to not let go of the sword.' Rhys shook his head. Even though Ellyn was a strong soldier, she was still immature and easily enraged.

*Staadsshh....!!*

The ground underneath Ellyn's foot split at the impact of her speed and force as she aggressively ran towards Selena with gritted teeth and tears in her eyes.

'Who's an old hag...?! Me...? I am still a maiden like you, damn it...!! So what if I am thirty and not married yet? Many people (creepy ones) still fawn over me...!!'

Ellyn targetted Selena's Rapier and intends to disarm her by striking it and use the force of it to knock her down. Even though she was angry, she was still in control as she was aware that Rhys will probably kick her ass if she goes too far.

"Fall...!!" Ellyn cried out as she swung her sword after closing in on Selena. She looked at Selena to see her panicked face, but what awaited her was Selena's normal cold as ice face.

*Swooshh...* "Eh?" Ellyn didn't feel the Rapier clashing with her sword. She turned her eyes to look only to see an empty space where the Rapier was positioned.

She then turned her eyes to look at Selena only to have her completely disappear from sight.

"But how did---" *Weennggg....* An alarm went off inside Ellyn's head as she instinctively jumped forward rolling on the ground.

*Swishh...!!* Not any longer than she had done it, she felt a wind on the back of her neck as cold sweat formed on her back.

*Stumble* Ellyn's roll stopped after gaining considerable distance and she quickly turned around to find Selena's location only to see her not moving from the spot from where she attacked her. It seems Selena chose not to chase her and instead observe her actions.

"Not bad. Good instincts..." Selena replied.

Ellyn couldn't stop shaking. As someone who took part in many bloody battles, she was well aware of how close she came to be a headless corpse.

"M-Monster..." Ellyn uttered the same words as the muscled woman from before as she caressed her neck. To think a seasoned nimble soldier like her was brought to her knees within only seconds.

"On guard...!!" Selena declared as she brandished her Rapier and sprinted at Ellyn with a fast but steady speed.

"D-Damn it...!!" Ellyn clenched her teeth and stood up to receive the attack. She was really furious this time. Seeing that her opponent was not a novice, Ellyn decided to not hold back anymore. She started planning counterattacks after Selena's attack and---

*Swoosh...!!* Selena threw her Rapier at Ellyn.

"W-What?!" Ellyn was shocked at Selena's unexpected style of attack. She jumped back instinctively and the Rapier lodged itself on the ground.

"This bitch...!!" Ellyn fumed after realizing Selena's intention which was to throw off Ellyn's train of thoughts and disrupt any plan she had. But before Ellyn could process it more, Selena had already reached to the Rapier pulled it out and then she... twirled?

"A Dance Twirl?" Ellyn was confused again by Selena's move. But she was still prepared enough this time. As soon as Selena's twirl reached halfway and her back was exposed to Ellyn, she pushed forward to attack her. By now, Ellyn had given up all restraints. She did not even care that if her attack hits, Selena will be killed by the stab of her sword.

*Skiiddd...!!*

"What?!" Ellyn's attack missed as Selena skid on the ground with the twirl to change her original position. The Sword missed by an inch.

"Does she have eyes on the back of her head?!" Ellyn was terrified of Selena's instincts. She did not understand how did Selena saw her attack coming from the backside. Even more so, how did she even know when to dodge. What kind of ultra-fast reaction timing does she have?

However, her thoughts were short-lived as Selena finished her twirl and Ellyn saw the Rapier's point rapidly approaching her heart.

"This..." Ellyn could feel the strength behind that attack and quickly held her sword in front of her chest in the time frame she had which did not muster much strength.

*Clanngg....!! Cracckk...!!*

Ellyn's hands shooked and she could hear the audible crack from her sword as it was pierced by Selena's Rapier a little.

Ellyn jumped back to alleviate the pressure on her sword which saved it from breaking in two.

However, unlike before Selena did not allow her breathing space. She quickly jumped forward and kept attacking while rotating in place.

It was an incredible sight. Selena spun around as the blade in her hand kept swinging down on Ellyn. Her movements were fluid and the attacks were precise, each aiming at the small crack on Ellyn's sword.

*Clang... Clang... Clang...!!*

The sounds of metal crashing reverbed in the area as Ellyn felt her heart go numb from fear.

She tried to change her position, attack, change the way she held the sword, and even jumped around but for some reason, Selena's Rapier always hit the cracked spot of her sword. It was a never-ending nightmare as if a monster was latched on her and would not stop unless her sword was completely devoured.

If anyone saw this scene from a distance, it would look like Selena was dancing instead of battling. It was truly a unique battle style and it was appropriately named by Rhys after experiencing for the first time.

"Danse Macabre... (the Dance of Death)"

"Enough...!!" Ellyn finally snapped as she decided to drop all restraints.

*Whhiirr....!!!*

Ellyn started her magic circulation as strength flowed inside her body and sword. Her senses also became sharper and the previous unpredictably fast movements of Selena slowed down in her eyes.

*Clang...!! Swish Swish Swish...!! Crash...!!*

Ellyn attacked Selena's Rapier which swung out of Selena's hand and lodged itself on the ground behind her. Ellyn then pointed her sword at Selena's neck.

"You los---- What?!" Another alarm went inside Ellyn's head as she jumped back again.

*Swish...!!*

A sharp wind was felt on Ellyn's neck. She quickly lifted her head to see Selena holding another Rapier in her hand.

"Where are hell are you hiding these things?" Ellyn shouted in panic. She almost lost her head again.

"You truly have good instincts..." Selena complimented her as she flicked her wrist and the Rapier in her hand disappeared again. She then walked to the Rapier on the ground and also stored it.

Ellyn tried to follow the movements of Selena to see where she stored them but Selena was so fast, that she could not catch it.

'Is there a secret compartment inside of that Dress?' Ellyn thought as she tilted her head to look.

Meanwhile, Selena looked at her hand with a mild frustration as it ached from when she was disarmed by Ellyn's attack.

"I am still no match for a magic-user." Selena frowned at the results. The people who would come after her would obviously use magic to reinforce themselves just like Ellyn. So, even if she was stronger now than the average person, she was still no match to actual combat experts, and the gap between their strengths which was due to Selena's inability to use magic could not be easily filled.

"What's wrong...?! Use your magic too...!! You can't possibly be thinking of backing out now...!!" Ellyn screamed at Selena. She was feeling extremely frustrated after being played around by a little girl like that. She was confident that by introducing magic in this duel, she would definitely win. However, her hopes were shattered by Rhys.

"Ahem... Junior Ellyn... Lady Selena can't use magic because of an accident during her Rune Ceremony."

"Wha--- WHAT?!" Ellyn froze. Her heart sank, but not because her battle was left unfinished but because of the fact that such a talented swordswoman had already reached her limits. Female Warriors were rarer than diamonds, especially someone like Selena. To have such a Diamond break even before it was polished was something Ellyn felt deeply frustrated about.

"Humph...!!" She stopped her magic circulation and pointed her sword at Selena.

"Come at me...!! I will not accept this outcome because of something like this...!!" Ellyn cried out. There were tears in her eyes. Even if this diamond was broken, she still wanted to polish it. She knew that even a broken diamond, like her, would outshine everyone when it is polished.

Selena only gazed at Ellyn but did not react. She stared at her for a minute before casually talking to Rhys.

"Someone you know?" she asked as she had heard Rhys call her junior.

"Eh? Y-Yes... She was my junior when I was in the Blo--- er... Stone Spears. I was the one who invited her here." Rhys explained while quickly covering the fact that he was in the Blood Sparrows.

'Junior? Is she also from the Blood Sparrows?' Selena already had guessed Rhys's origin which he had tried to hide. Selena observed Ellyn for a minute. She seemed to be thinking about something.

"Ellyn Clover... Why did you seek this job?"

"E-Eh?" Ellyn was dumbfounded by the sudden question.

"I-I... I want money." Ellyn replied frankly which made Rhys clasp his head and the maids almost stumbled from shock.

"Money? Sure I can give you that? But how do I know you won't be bribed when your goal is money." Selena replied.

"I don't want dirty money...!! Pootoey...!!" Ellyn spat out. "It leaves a bad taste in my mouth. How can I enjoy myself if my mind knows that I didn't earn the money the way I like?"

Ellyn truly felt this way. This is why, even after so many offers by her creepy customers, she refused them on the spot. Not even Rhys knows this, but the one who reported about their commander to the Royal Family was her. She did not like her squad being dirty. Although she did not expect her squad to end up being disbanded, she still did not regret her decision.

"She doesn't seem to be lying." Soul responded to Selena after checking Ellyn with his Lie-Detection Radar. From all the previous applicants, it seemed that Ellyn was the only one being honest with her words and actions, even if her demeanor was a bit immature.

Selena nodded and turned towards her maids.

"Make the preparations..."

"Yes, My Lady..." they responded and quickly brought in a stretcher.

"Eh?" Ellyn was confused.

"Act like you were knocked out too. When you will be escorted out, these two will bring you in from the back door." Selena replied as she sat back on her chair again with her book.

"This..." Ellyn understood the intention. They don't want to reveal the identity of the personal guard before it as confirmed and Ellyn was moved inside the Booker Manor's compound.

"Don't worry..." Rhys approached her for the first time with a smile on his old face.

"Senior...?"

"I will explain later. I am sorry for not telling you everything before but know that it was for the safety of My Lady." Rhys explained.

"I... Okay." Ellyn did not understand much but decided not to question much as she was happy that she got the job.

She quickly lied down on the stretcher while the maids summoned some people to take her to the Infirmary of the Manor.

"By the way, your young Lady is truly fierce with a Rapier. Did you train her, Senior?"

"Yes..."

"I knew it...!! No wonder she was so strong...!! When did you start training her anyway? Last I heard, you were being a guard in a library or something."

"I think... about two weeks ago?" Rhys scratched his head as he tried to recount.

"..."

"..."

"Bruh... What?"

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