Chapter 54: The Provocation of Third Brother

Aqi, witnessing the scene, swiftly positioned himself before me, obstructing Third Brother’s gaze. His voice resonated, firm and resolute:

“Third Brother, you can’t be thinking of her that way. You know who she is…”

“Of course I know she belongs to the boss!”

The man before him retorted without a hint of politeness, his tone laced with a subtle blend of disdain and provocation. His eyes, too, gleamed with an undeniable sharpness.

“But what’s wrong with just looking? The boss wouldn’t get angry at me for such a trivial matter, would he? Besides…”

He shrugged, spreading his hands wide, and cast a sneering, contemptuous glance my way.

“I watched you teach this woman those moves just now. I simply couldn’t bear to watch any longer, that’s why I came over!”

“My moves…” Aqi hesitated, a hint of uncertainty in his voice. “They’re all very classic, standard techniques, aren’t they?”

“Tsk––”

Third Brother pursed his lips in a gesture of disdain. Then, pointing at me, his words dripped with provocation and scorn.

“Just look at this scrawny little body, with those thin arms and legs! Forget using a sword—I bet she’d have a hell of a time even giving birth, hahahaha!”

Ugh…

“You––”

Even with my generally good temper, being provoked in such a manner by this man ignited a furious spark within me.

‘A hell of a time giving birth, my ass! Wasn’t your own mother exhausted when she birthed you? Did you just pop out yourself, you bastard!?’

Noticing my expression, Third Brother’s gaze shifted to me, his eyes alight with an arrogant smile, as if relishing the thrill of his provocation.

Then, with a flick of his foot, he hooked a wooden stick from the ground, catching it deftly as it swung up, and pointed it directly at me.

“Your expression tells me you’re not convinced, huh? Come on, come on! Try those moves you just learned on me!”

“Huh?”

I glanced at the sharp single-handed sword in my grip, then at the wooden stick in his hand, a sense of absurdity welling up within me.

“Even if I’m a beginner, you can’t use that thing as a sword, can you? Are you crazy?”

“Heh––”

Third Brother’s lips curved into an incredibly smug smile, his eyes flashing with absolute confidence in his own abilities.

“You little brat, do you really think you can hurt me? Third Master is laying it out here today: if your sword can leave a single mark on my body, I’ll immediately kneel down, kowtow, and call you ‘Father,’ no questions asked! But before that, you’d better be careful. My big stick isn’t just for show—it might just knock you off your feet, you know~”

Aqi stood to the side, his brows tightly furrowed, clearly displeased by Third Brother’s blatant provocation.

He hesitated, seemingly weighing whether to intervene in this meaningless contest.

I took a deep breath, attempting to calm the turbulent emotions within me.

But the more I looked at Third Brother’s arrogant and overbearing face, the angrier I became. The fire in my heart surged, as if doused with oil!

Perhaps the wager of being called ‘Father’ was too tempting; the fighting spirit of a man within me was thoroughly ignited.

“Alright, alright, if you want a father-son match, let’s have one!”

I gripped the sword tightly, swinging it haphazardly a couple of times, feeling a sudden surge of power course through my body.

Steeling my resolve, I stared intently at Third Brother, roaring each word:

“Then this old man will be your father today! Take this!”

Though my words were fierce, I didn’t dare to truly go for a killing blow. Therefore, my first strike was aimed only at his thigh, intending to leave a superficial wound as a lesson.

However, Third Brother merely sneered at my somewhat clumsy offense, shifting half a step with effortless grace, easily evading my attack.

Just as I found myself momentarily rigid from missing, his mocking voice suddenly reached my ears:

“Hesitant and timid, are you? Do you freeze up when you see a man?”

The next moment, he swung the wooden stick like a whip, delivering a sharp crack to my backside.

“Eek––”

The sudden pain made me shriek involuntarily, my body losing balance and nearly stumbling to the ground.

“Hahahahaha!”

Third Brother burst into triumphant laughter upon seeing this.

“Little girl, that felt great! Again, again!”

His arrogant and overbearing demeanor filled me with immense anger and humiliation.

“Urgh––”

Burning with rage, I ignored the pain in my backside. Once I regained my balance, I rushed furiously towards Third Brother.

This time, I cast aside my previous hesitation and fear, attacking him directly with a perfectly standard ‘overhead chop,’ just as I had practiced for so long.

This was a classic and effective sword technique; it not only leveraged the weapon’s weight but also allowed for adjustments to the downward trajectory based on the opponent’s movements.

Typically, parrying would be the simplest and safest response to such an attack.

But the man before me held only a wooden stick. If he dared to parry with that, it would surely be split in two.

I was confident in this strike, certain it would make him realize my strength!

However, the man before me did not choose such a response.

His eyes narrowed, and he swung the wooden stick at an incredible speed. Just as my sword began its descent, he parried it away.

Wood met steel with a crisp ‘clang,’ sending a jolt up my arm, nearly making me drop the sword.

“Eh––”

A jolt of surprise ran through me. I hadn’t expected this guy’s reaction to be so swift, nor his strength to be so great.

Seizing the moment of my error, Third Brother took the opportunity to press the wooden stick against my chest, a lewd expression spreading across his face.

“Oh, quite substantial, aren’t they? Are they real?”

“Eh?”

I froze, not immediately understanding what he meant. But as my gaze followed the tip of the stick, I saw that my chest had been pressed into an indentation, a rather suggestive sight. A wave of belated shame instantly crept up my cheeks, burning hot.

“You… you goddamn…”

I was forced to take a step back, instinctively covering my chest. My face flushed crimson, and I glared at the man before me, trembling with anger.

‘I thought he only came over because he genuinely looked down on my skills! Turns out he just wanted an excuse to take advantage of me!’

Though I wasn’t truly a woman, suffering such humiliation to my body still felt incredibly awkward.

“Oh, oh, why are you looking at me like that? I haven’t even touched you~”

Third Brother spread his hands at me, deliberately adopting an innocent expression, as if he had done nothing wrong.

His attitude only fueled my rage further. However, after two failed attempts, I knew that a rash attack would be futile, and I didn’t dare to act carelessly again.

“Haah––Haah––Haah…”

What’s more, I felt my stamina was almost completely depleted, my entire body soaked with sweat. I had no choice but to lean on my sword, panting heavily.

“Third Brother, that’s enough.”

Seeing my disheveled state, Aqi couldn’t help but interject.

“Miss Lilian is just a young girl who knows nothing. You’ve been wielding weapons for how many years? Why are you still bullying her like this?”

“Am I bullying her? I’ve only been defending myself the entire time~”

Third Brother casually retorted, his face betraying no emotion.

“Besides, as you saw, did any of the things you just taught her actually help her? I don’t think they had any effect at all~ If she really ran into bandits, it would probably just excite them more~”

With that, he rested the wooden stick on his shoulder and gave me a playful smile.

“In my opinion, everyone has something they’re good at, and everyone should do what they’re good at. A delicate young girl like you shouldn’t be holding a sword; you should be holding…”

He patted his crotch, letting out an ‘hmph’ sound.

“Hehe… pure bliss~”

“Damn you––”

Seeing his lewd behavior, I couldn’t hold back my anger any longer. No longer would I go easy on him. I immediately charged forward with my sword, launching a ‘diagonal slash.’

This was an extremely difficult move to dodge; I was going for a deadly blow!

“Oh, oh, you scared me!”

But because I hadn’t judged the distance correctly, Third Brother easily dodged this strike as well.

He mocked me, then, catching me off guard, suddenly lashed out.

“Ah!”

I felt a sharp pain in my wrist, and my single-handed sword flew out of my grasp, landing on the ground ahead.

Even worse, a stone on the ground blocked my path. My toe caught it, and my body, carried by momentum, tumbled forward. For a moment, I couldn’t regain my balance, and my body lurched towards the sword blade!

“Watch out!!!”

Aqi’s cry of alarm rang in my ears, but I was powerless to control my body.

In that critical instant, I felt a force from the side, sharply pulling me. My body was yanked off its original trajectory by this power, narrowly avoiding the fatal sword blade.

“Urgh…”

I fell to the ground, and through a hazy blur, I saw a woman’s indistinct face. Though I couldn’t make out her features, I inexplicably caught the cool, elegant scent of her perfume.

Simultaneously, Third Brother’s trembling voice echoed beside me.

“S-Second Sister…”