Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Sword play

"you….became a knight?....how?" he questioned in disbelief. 

Following his gaze, Eli also gazed at the badge, but unlike the knowledgeable Aaron, she couldn't understand the meaning of that simple-looking badge. Only confusing her even more. As her sister wasn't wearing shining armor like a knight was supposed to.

The only people surprised were only the maid and Aaron himself. why wouldn't they be, the first daughter of Mirakle. Livia. Was only but six years older than Aaron and Elizabeth. She was young, too young. But the pair of wings on her chest couldn't be denied.

Watching their contemplating eyes, Livia couldn't help but smirk. Mostly looking at his contemplating brother. She didn't know, her sweet brother knew about such matters at his age, but here he was, figuring everything out with just a single glance.

"Are you guys just going stand there and stare at me all day or give your big sister a nice welcoming hug?"

Eli was already ready for a bear hug, and seeing such an offer before her, it didn't take much time for her to land on Livia's lap.

"I missed you, I missed you so much, big sis!" 

"Haha, did you?" she replied, patting her head. "you look a bit thinner than before, oh, did Aaron bully you, don't worry, just say a word and I will put him in his place." She proclaimed, glaring back at Aaron once more.

"n..no, no. brother has been taking care of me, please, please don't beat him." 

"hahahaha….I was just kidding, Eli," she said. "So what about you Aaron? not giving your favorite big sister a hug?"

"....I prefer hugging pure maidens than a psychopathic sword lover..." He said, directing his cheeky smirk back at her.

It didn't take much time, for her eyes to twitch, listening to such words of shaded compliment. "oh I see….so, there was no one to discipline you when I was not around, huh." She said, showing her corrupted smile.

"mom and dad really spoiled you to the tea, I see. Having the guts to talk to your senior sister like that. Maybe a bit of discipline is in order, eh."

Aaron couldn't help but take a step back, those murderous eyes hawking him as a dead corpse.

'for god's sake….she is only fourteen years old, how did she envelop such a murderous aura? And she already reached knighthood? That isn't even funny as a joke.'

Swish!!

He had just blinked, such a minor millisecond blink, and the wooden sword was already near his left cheekbone.

 'she's faster….'

Bang!

A swift hit, right on the head. throwing the boy to the side like a soft toy. The swing hit so clean that its echo of impact was stretched all around the mansion.

"that's a surprise, I thought I hit the killing blow." She said, placing her wooden sword on her shoulder. "I guess you didn't slack off when I wasn't around, eh Aaron."

Eli was already pulled by the side, by her maid. She wanted to stop them from fighting but she knew her words would reach them no more. And she had already grown familiar with these hectic situations. Taking it as simple banter between brother and sister.

"ummm….ummm, brother, you can do it." Eli innocently cheered her hands high above.

"what? Doesn't it look like I'm the bad guy here?" she questioned, seeing her sister's favoritism. "huh…leave it, Aaron was always your first priority, even then. Nothing has changed, has it?" she said, accepting it as it was. "Oe!..... how long are you going to act dead, I know you still breathing there."

Aaron who was laid on the floor, looking lifeless, gradually opened his eyes, tired as his usual antics didn't work. "for god's sake, is it how you greet your brother, with the fucking intent to kill. You know I would have died if I was a normal human." He said, standing up as he patted his dark coat, trying to latch out all the dust he had to dive on.

"yes, you would have died, but my great younger brother, the heir of the Mirakle family, isn't just a normal peasant, is he?" she asked, readying her wooden sword once more.

Aaron sighed as his fingers taped on his watch, lowering his invisible shield. Which had acted like a full-body suit. surprising everyone but his elder sister.

"…..so you are really intending to die." She said with a sneering smile, but he wasn't alone, she did the same, lowering her body shield. As she was a warrior. An honorable knight. Her brother may have wanted to spook her, but all he was doing was only hyping her up. "here…" she said, throwing another wooden sword at him.

"one killer move….. let's finish this right here, and be done with it," he said, catching his wooden sword.

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"oh, getting cheeky, are we? Prepare your funeral then, as the next heir will be me, my dear brother." She said, pointing her sword at him.

And so did Aaron, leading the edge of his sword to his side. He gazed at it for a second, remembering all the harsh training, he had to go through. By his trainer, his father, and worse of all, his sister.

'…..even in this modern world, they couldn't rid of these weapons. Well, it's the fault of their own inventions and the enemies they made along the way, can't say more than that.'

He held his sword loose, only grabbing it with the right pressure in his hand. even in his past life, he wasn't a man who handled the ways of the sword, as his physic was not capable of doing so. As he only learned close combat as a gig from his friends, one of them being a sword saint himself.

But, this body was different, the talent and physic were definitely there, delivered from his sword master father himself. he was indeed joyful when he discovered this, as in the past he admired the many heroes who used their unwavering swords to smash the enemy before them.

And now, he could see it doing the same. Now with this well-endowed body, he could harness his past dreams. Tarnishing the enemy before him.

"Sister, I know you have gotten stronger, reaching knighthood in such an age, but underestimating me should be the last thing you should be doing." he said, pulling his sword from his side like he was unsheathing a real blade itself. 

'saint slash, way of the 10th'

Gathering all the momentum beneath his feet, he pushed himself to his body's limit, curving his sword towards his sister.

Livia, who was uninterested at first, couldn't help but open her eyes wide in surprise. But her hands held strong, ready to smite anything her little brother threw at her.

Cling!

Even though they both were using wooden swords, a metallic clink sounded from their single clash. Aaron who was only a meter away was now a few feet behind his sister. The wooden sword which was in his right hand, now on his left, showing the end of his slash, the end of his attack.

"....."

"....."

for both of them, it was like hours of fighting but for their audience, Elizabeth and her maid. It was finished in a single moment's notice.

"….what happened? Ummm…..what happened, Ms. Olivia?" Eli asked, nudging her maid's skirt.

"o…oh, sorry Lady Elizabeth. I don't seem to understand as well." 

The silence between the brother and the sister was still there until Livia finally opened her lips. "I guess, that was it huh? Showing such bravery of lowering your shields, you know if it was a real battle, you would have died my cute brother."

Creak…

Aaron checked his wooden sword, and his chest, she was right. If this was a real battle, his chest would have been opened wide, like the chain-mailed coat and shirt he was wearing.

'….I guess saint slash didn't do it huh….' He thought, with a bit of frustration. He turned back to his sister, showing his shamed ripped clothes. And to his utter bitterness, he couldn't see it, not even a single scratch. Not even on her wooden sword, which in comparison to his, was already on the way to its breaking apart.

He couldn't help but bite his lips. "so, what are you waiting for, come and finish me…." He said, throwing down his broken sword.

"hahaha….trying to act like a warrior, eh. Well, a punishment was due anyway." She said, readying her sword. 

She gazed at his eyes, trying to see a hint of fear, a semblance of anxiety, but no, like always, she didn't even see a single bit of terror within his crimson eyes. not before, not now. Even when he was at her mercy. His focus was still the same.  She smiled, knowing everything was still the same. From all the years staying in her school. The one thing she missed the most was those red unwavering eyes.

"Only if you had focused more on the way of the sword…." 

Her grip was tight, her steps taking the appropriate position for her sword style, like a graceful dance, she started pacing near, a hint of redness peaking out from her sword, and with just a single step, she already reached her opponent, her body movement so refine that it felt like she glided to Aaron. But her sword wasn't graceful like her demeanor. Like a raging blade, driving its way to him.

'...haaa.' Aaron sighed. 'Glad to have you back, sister.'

Bang!

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