Jubilia’s eyes widened; her momentary surprise presented Nagi with a brief window of opportunity. He sprang forth with his knife at the ready. With an angry cry, he moved into a flashy strike that seemed like it would never reach her. Jubilia easily dealt with it.
“Too soft.”
Regardless, Nagi didn’t give up. He swung his knife to and fro with small, sweeping motions, and Jubilia lightly hopped back. In that instant, Nagi threw the bottle in his left hand. The knight was unable to react in time, and the bottle struck her. Poison spilled out and stained her clothes.
“And what exactly is this supposed to accomplish?”
The poison had no effect. Nagi was taken aback. This was impossible. Halahala was supposed to be highly effective on nobles.
Crap. How do I get out of here now?
“This isn’t the time to be playing around,” Jubilia said, shaking her head. “Lady Saya, you’ll be coming with me.”
“No,” Saya replied.
“Please do not oppose me. Your wounds will heal even if I cut you with this blade. Thus, the option of cutting off your limbs and dragging you along remains open.” Letting these terrifying words hang in the air, Jubilia turned to Nagi. “If Lady Saya was the one to defeat the guard in the Garden, that makes you nothing more than a commoner. You have no value. If you say you kidnapped Lady Saya, then the death penalty awaits you. As such, I can execute you right here. Your death will be much easier that way.”
“Stop it!” Saya cried.
“If you come along with me obediently, I will make it so this boy was never here to begin with. You escaped on your own. Without anybody’s help.”
Both Nagi and Saya instantly understood what she was getting at. If Saya obeyed her, she would show Nagi clemency. Saya looked clearly shaken by this.
“I...”
“Whatever you choose makes no difference to me. Either way, you will be coming with me to the royal palace.”
“That’s not gonna fly,” a voice said as a shadow suddenly fell from the trees.
The shadow swung a large sword at Jubilia. She managed to block the attack with her slender blade on the spur of the moment.
“Who goes there?!”
The interloper had long hair and thin cheeks. His gaze was like a blade sharpened to its limits.
“I don’t got a reason to tell you... But you sure are a beauty, huh? I’ll tell you if you tell me your name,” Nagi’s older brother, Keele, said as he sneered at Jubilia.
“Don’t mess with me!”
“Ain’t you supposed to declare your names at times like these? Come on. It’s part of that whole honor code bullshit you nobles like to wax on about, yeah?”
Jubilia was enraged by Keele’s teasing as she roared back at him. “I am Jubilia Erste lu Listeta!”
“Hah. You really told me. Well, I’m Keele.”
“A commoner,” she huffed. “If you are here to obstruct me, then I shall eliminate you.”
“I can’t let that happen.” Keele put his weight into his front leg, then aimed his sword over his left shoulder. “Let’s get it on!”
With that, he charged at Jubilia.
“You couldn’t possibly land such a wide swing!”
“You’d think so, yeah?”
In an instant, Keele’s sword suddenly changed directions and chased after the bewildered Jubilia as she dodged.
“What?!”
Unable to get away from the blow completely, the sword grazed her shoulder.
“Augh!”
Jubilia’s face was steeped in anguish.
“Sorry. I didn’t learn no fancy swordsmanship like some noble brat. I’ve got some pretty nasty habits. But man, you’re good. Didn’t think you’d dodge it. That’s a knight for you.”
Jubilia held down the wound on her shoulder as she groaned. Her voice couldn’t hide her agitation. “What... What is going on?”
“Hurts, don’t it? A wound that doesn’t heal, that is.”
“You’re saying that’s a blood caliber? Impossible. There’s no way a commoner could use one!”
“Of course not. This here’s Halahala. But that’s not the important thing here. You nobles—you fucking vampires—can be killed by this.”
“Don’t you dare use that word!”
Keele’s provocation, using what nobles considered to be the worst slur, was quite effective. Jubilia was now enraged. Keele took this chance to dart toward her, catching her off guard and delaying her reaction. She just barely managed to evade his attack.
“Looks like my idiot little brother misunderstood how this stuff works. This here saps a noble’s ability to regenerate. There’s no point in smearin’ it on somebody.”
Realization washed over Jubilia. “That liquid did this?!”
Keele was strong. In his current state, he couldn’t even be compared to the Keele who had lived in the village. His sword skills looked rough at a glance, but that was a lure to skillfully guide his opponent into a trap. Jubilia was a first-class warrior in terms of technique, but having only experienced proper training, she was a poor match for Keele. Thus, he continued to trifle with her.
Regardless, Keele lacked the means to deal a decisive blow. The difference between their physical abilities was far too great. No matter how much stronger Keele had gotten, it would be impossible for him to duplicate such feats of strength as leaping to and from treetops as she had done earlier. The only ones capable of doing so were nobles like Jubilia, and even then, only the best among those chosen as knights.
Despite being put on the defensive, Jubilia used her astounding jumping ability to maintain some distance between them. Keele had no way of attacking her, so it was a stalemate. At least, it would’ve been, if only the two of them were involved in this fight.
“Nagi! Shoot the wet spots!” Keele shouted.
Nagi quickly readied his bow and loosed an arrow. His fast and efficient movements were those of a skilled hunter. Jubilia dodged the arrow, as she had no other choice.
He was aiming for the areas dampened with Halahala. According to Keele, the poison stole a noble’s regenerative abilities. So, what would happen if an arrow pierced through a spot covered in the stuff? The arrowhead would surely pierce her body, poison and all. Unable to heal, the resulting wound could prove fatal.