Dark-colored Fairy Tale: Seven Magicians - Chapter 48
Chapter 48
The Duel Bet
“So, what’s the bet?” Chloe asked matter-of-factly, immediately accepting Li Qiuyu’s challenge.
A duel with a magical bet between magical beings was completely different from a regular street fight. When two magical beings fought, one side was bound to lose. The consequences could range from losing their fighting ability to a direct threat to their life. Because of this, duels were rare, but when a conflict couldn’t be resolved, one side would propose a duel. The two would state their conditions, and if both parties agreed, the duel would begin. The loser was bound by the bet. If they failed to fulfill their promise, they would not only lose their status as a magical being but also be imprisoned. A magical being who went back on their word was considered to have committed one of the seven deadly sins, and to prevent them from falling into a demon, their organization would keep them under strict lockdown.
Because of this, few magical beings would ever propose a duel. Yet, Li Qiuyu had. This showed just how determined she was to achieve her goal through this extreme measure.
Li Qiuyu had already planned her bet before speaking, so she didn’t hesitate. “If you lose, you will leave China, and you are not allowed to take anyone with you.”
When she said this, Li Qiuyu subconsciously looked at Liu Menglu. She didn’t want the two of them to stay together. She was terrified that Chloe would become a demon and Liu Menglu would meet a tragic end. She didn’t want this stranger who had shown her such kindness to die at the hands of her best friend. That would be too sad. So, in her inability to break their bond quickly, Li Qiuyu chose the most extreme method she could think of.
Chloe saw the way Li Qiuyu was looking at Liu Menglu, and a wave of anger surged through her. She wasn’t afraid of a duel, but she hated the idea of a duel being used to make her leave Liu Menglu. While she was confident she wouldn’t lose, the nature of the bet infuriated her. She stared at Li Qiuyu and spoke slowly, enunciating each word. “If I win, you will wield the Xuanyuan Sword.”
Chloe was truly furious to make such a demand. Every magical being knew that among the seven ancient sacrifices, the Xuanyuan Sword’s backlash was the most lethal. Each time it was wielded, it cut the wielder’s remaining lifespan in half. If the wielder’s lifespan was less than ten years, they would die instantly. Therefore, while the Xuanyuan Sword was one of the most powerful weapons, its host would never draw it unless absolutely necessary.
The demand Chloe was making was no different than asking for Li Qiuyu’s life. It was hard to imagine that the two of them had escalated to this point so suddenly. This was Chloe’s anger talking, a direct provocation. She truly didn’t believe Li Qiuyu would agree to such an unreasonable demand.
But sometimes, reality liked to play jokes.
“Alright.”
Li Qiuyu agreed without a moment’s hesitation. Chloe, who had been leaning on her desk, shot upright. A scrutinizing look crossed her beautiful face. “Are you sure? You know the side effects of the Xuanyuan Sword better than I do.”
Chloe watched Li Qiuyu closely, trying to see any sign of a lie, but Li Qiuyu responded without a trace of doubt. “I know. I agree to this bet.”
“Why?”
This time, it was Chloe’s turn to be confused. To get Liu Menglu to leave her, Li Qiuyu was willing to pay such a great price. If Li Qiuyu’s relationship with Liu Menglu was as close as her own, Chloe might not have been so bewildered. In Chloe’s mind, Liu Menglu was the reason she would not hesitate to use her ancient sacrifice. But Li Qiuyu had only known Liu Menglu for a single day. Something was very strange.
Li Qiuyu herself didn’t know why she agreed so readily to Chloe’s terms. She didn’t want Liu Menglu to die at the hands of a fallen Chloe, but magical beings, even her, treasured their lives. She could have simply refused this outrageous demand, but for some reason, Li Qiuyu didn’t want to give up this one chance to justifiably drive Chloe away from Liu Menglu.
“Why?” Li Qiuyu muttered to herself, her mind flashing back to the lunch hour, to the girl who had smiled so brightly as she offered her a bento box. And she also recalled another person, who had also smiled brightly, and then withered away in front of her.
“Why?” Li Qiuyu repeated the question, her expression hardening, as if to clear the doubt in her mind and solidify her resolve. “Because Liu Menglu is from my country, and it’s my duty to protect her. It’s my duty to drive away someone with ulterior motives like you.”
Li Qiuyu’s voice was calm, but it was filled with firm conviction.
This time, Chloe hesitated. She looked at Li Qiuyu, then scoffed and changed her mind. “Forget it. That broken sword is nothing to look at anyway. If you lose, you just have to promise to stop bothering me and Mengmeng.”
Li Qiuyu’s eyes flickered, and her opinion of Chloe improved slightly, but she didn’t forget her initial goal. “Where will we duel?”
Li Qiuyu had only just arrived and was unfamiliar with the area. Magical duels were not like regular street brawls; their artifacts were weapons of mass destruction. Duels between magical beings were usually held in open, barren places to prevent damage to the surrounding area. Chloe wasn’t familiar with the area either, but she had been out a few times and remembered a place: the abandoned factory where she had killed the pig-headed demon.
A Tense Duel
Liu Menglu watched the two of them decide on the duel in just a few words. She didn’t grasp the seriousness of the situation at all and actually found it quite amusing. The way they arranged the fight was too childish, like two kindergarteners settling a disagreement. The main reason for her obliviousness was that while Chloe had told her a little about the magical world, she wasn’t a magical being herself and her knowledge was too limited. So, with the excitement of watching a spectacle, she followed the two of them to the abandoned factory after school.
The abandoned factory wasn’t far from the city center, but it had been shut down after a major accident. Rumors of toxic gas that caused hallucinations and destroyed white bl00d cells kept people away, so there was practically no one within a ten-kilometer radius. This made it the perfect place for a magical duel.
When dealing with demons, Chloe and Li Qiuyu never cared about the means, only the end goal of killing them. But now, as they prepared for a duel, they were more formal and rule-abiding than anyone. They stood in the middle of the empty lot, bowed to each other, and when they looked up again, their eyes were filled with a steely resolve to win.
When they entered the factory, Chloe placed Liu Menglu on the second floor, far away from the center of their fight.
While Liu Menglu was there to watch, she was also quite nervous. But the moment the two of them started fighting below, her nerves vanished.
Because it was all too fast.
The two moved like the wind. When they clashed, all Liu Menglu could hear was the clanging of Chloe’s spear against Li Qiuyu’s sword. She couldn’t see anything else. This left Liu Menglu, who had been hoping for a realistic, flashy special effects battle, feeling unenthusiastic and even humming a little tune.
Her easygoing attitude had its reasons. First, she had immense trust in Chloe. Second, she didn’t believe Chloe would be so cruel as to kill Li Qiuyu. In her mind, a duel was probably just two girls clashing swords quickly, and whoever was slower would get a sword held to their throat and lose, just like in a TV show.
However, magical duels were often intense and accompanied by dense magical fluctuations. Ordinary people couldn’t detect this, but to demons, this magic was like alluringly sweet and delicious pastries. That’s why magical duels were rare in foreign countries. But since China’s relevant departments frequently cleaned out the cities, there were very few demons left in the urban areas.
But there were always a few that slipped through the net, hiding in the dark corners like sewer rats. In normal times, these rats wouldn’t be a problem for magical beings, but in a crisis, they could be the final straw that breaks the camel’s back.
Liu Menglu was the first to realize that something was wrong.