*1 year ago*
She appeared out of nowhere. Dressed in black silk, her hands and face covered by it, invisible. 170 centimeters tall and fought with claw-like weapons. If I was fast in defeating 5 opponents, she was faster. She cut them down, one by one, leaving not one seriously injured. In a few minutes, she stood there, alone, waiting to fight me.
She spun and turned all around the ring. They missed her, no, she dodged them. Countering every move they made with her own. Her footwork, balance and sense of her surroundings was spectacular.
'Who the hell...?' I was stupefied.
The crowds went from an excited cheering to a worried and perplexed expression.
"What the hell?"
"How did she do that?"
Even a normal person could see and realize that she was something else, something special.
"A mixture of freedom and rebellion." Is what I said to describe The Panther's style.
"Aughh.."
"Aaahh!!"
"Hmmm.."
The competitors who hadn't lost their consciousness writhed in pain.
The announcer and commentator of the underground fights always entertained the crowd. He stopped mid-way and started watching her moves as well.
A few seconds of silence followed after The Panther had destroyed her opponents. The announcer regained his composure and announced.
"We have a winner!!"
Hearing this, the crowd chanted and cheered. Just like they had done when I, the Shining Swordsman, had beaten my opponents when I first fought inside the SSS 3 months ago.
I was excited to see what she was like when we fought. I itched to fight immediately, but I was stopped by the SSS's owner, Keith.
"Calm down. You'll fight her. Just let them place their bets first." Keith
I watched the fight from the VIP lounge above the arena.
'Truly one of a kind, that woman.'
Until now, I'd only used a wooden training-sword, never a real blade or dull-blade. This time though, I thought about using a dull-bladed straight-sword.
"The time to bet is over."
The people then gathered around the ring again and waited for me and The Panther.
"On the black corner we have our new challenger, The Panther! She broke the record of the fastest win in the elimination stage."
The Panther that was clothed in a black silk robe slowly entered the ring in grace. She radiated pure confidence and pride. Each step as calculated and soft as a Panther's.
"In the white corner we have our 12-time champion, the undefeated, undisputed and unrivaled Shining Swordsman!"
My sign to enter came. I walked onto the ring as I usually did. Slow steps, chest puffed out and shoulders straight. I carried the sword in my left hand and adjusted my gear for the last time.
I wore a white loose mask, a white button-up shirt and black pants and shoes. Over both of my underarms, I wore protective gear that covered the outer side of my arms.
I stepped into the ring, the cheers louder than it had ever been before.
"Swordsman!"
"Panther!"
The crowd cheered, mostly for me.
The Panther just stood there, completely still. Her arms out to the side leaving a clear opening.
The crowd quieted down.
[How strong are you compared to the others?] She asked in Arabic.
Before more confusion built up inside of me, she attacked.
Her arms were still out, I went for it, even though it was a trap. I tried a straight stab. She dodged and jumped into the air. While she was sideways in the air, she pushed my sword away from the side, leaving an opening in my guard.
*Wham*
She kicked me in the liver. My legs wanted to give out from the overload of my nervous system, but I had enough experience to continue. The pain that the kick caused was the problem. I felt dizzy, nauseous and my sight worsened. It felt like my intestines were a balloon that was just popped and flew around in my abdomen.
"Iaagh!" I groaned.
The Panther smiled after she saw me still standing. It wasn't a smile of respect or happiness. It was a sadistic smile that showed me how much she liked to make others feel pain.
Without setting down her foot she used to kick me, she roundhouse kicked me to the head. I dodged and closed my guard again.
'I won't go for obvious openings again. A shark won't go into infected waters twice.'
Distance was the key that I needed to use to win. Stomach-high strikes and slashes would give her less space to parry and would make her dodge more.
I slashed a dozen of times, each time, she dodged and spun around again like she'd done before.
"Stay still!" I yelled.
Unexpectedly she did. I aimed right at her head and slashed downward. She stretched out her arms, exposing the claws she wielded. The claws were like gloves, it covered her palm and three fingers. The thumb, the index finger and middle finger. The tips of her covered fingers were as sharp as a knife and as pointy as an eagle's beak. When I slashed down, she used her exposed left palm to guide the blade to my right. I missed.
*Slash*
She slashed at my face with her right hand's claw. She cut my lip. I stumbled backwards and held on to the gushing wound with my left hand.
"No!"
Intense anger surged from my stomach and corrupted my mind to such a degree that I wasn't able to properly think anymore.
*Wham*Wham*Wham*
She followed up with three strikes to my chin and solar plexus.
The air left my lungs as well as the lights in my eyes. I wasn't sure how long I was knocked out for but I assumed it to be a few seconds.
The Panther crouched down and slapped me in the face. I came to and saw her face clearly for the first time.
Chocolate brown skin, short, blonde hair that was just about 4 centimeters long, eyes darker than a shadow, thick lips covered in a golden gloss, freckles and a thin nose. I forgot about my situation for just a moment, her appearance made my mind go blank.
Her satisfied and arrogant teeth-smile burned into my brain. My synapses showed me bits and pieces of forgotten memory right at this moment. 'She looks familiar...' I thought.
Knocked to the ground and at The Panther's mercy, I laid on the ring floor. The crowd silent and dumbfounded, again. I could feel the humiliation coming to get me.
"The Shining Swordsman was defeated by The Panther."
"HAHAHA!!"
"He was beaten by a woman!"
"I wish I would've bet on The Panther."
"Embarrassing, HAHAHAH!"
["Your family was of great service, back then, of course, decades if not centuries ago. Knowing our blood, I would say that your mountain-sized pride will not allow you to remember this. I'll be seeing you.]
***
The memories of how I got the scars on my lip reappeared along with the emotions that were locked up too. I made Briony and Silva suffer just because I was reminded of my defeat by a woman's hands.
They both held onto their throats, trying to imbue enough Mana into it to release some pressure. Realizing what I'd done, I released the pressure and controlled my Aura again.
*Cough*
They coughed and gasped for air, I felt bad, they didn't deserve this.
"Guys, I didn't-" I was cut off by Silva.
"It's okay, Haru. We get it. Memories and stuff."
"Memories and stuff" was our way to say "I don't want to talk about the past."
They recovered from the pressure and made me lead them to the SSS again.
'The Panther, I remember who she is again! She's the Arabic Emperor's first born child, the First Princess!