Hailey was stunned at Aisha's word. She laughed out loud: "A round? Do you mean that you can beat me in a move? ...Haha... sister, do you really think that anyone will believe you? Why didn't you dare to take the challenge if you had such skills? Why did you abstain? It's because of your fear of failure. You have been flying in the sky for long and far off from the ground. The taste of loss must feel bitter..."
"Alright." Aisha indifferently said: "You are right. I'm scared."
Hailey was frozen for a moment when she saw her sister admit the loss. She had already percieved her sister as a lofty person who won't bow in front of anyone. She was puzzled but quickly reacted. Hailey grinned as her white teeth were shown: "Oh sis. I won't laugh at you..After all..."
"I listened to you out of courtesy." Aisha interrupted her words as if an elder person was teaching a younger generation.
Hailey expression turned gloomy.
Aisha continued: "I didn't accept the challenge because I feared that I won't be able to control my strength and kill you on spot. In that case... no one would be able to replace me as a saint."
Hailey was startled but still smiled: "Oh sister. I really want to see you ability after you talked that way! Don't forget that I am also a pioneer! Although my constitution is still inferior to your but it won't be so easy to beat me! Its just too unrealistic! "
Hailey sneered: "I have yet to learn the secret skills of the Dragon King but because of that all my life I practiced common fighting arts. I've grasped them in full! What about you sister? You were only focused on the secret arts of Dragon King. Did you forget already? Elders clearly set the rule and said that they prohibited the use of secret arts of Dragon King!"
"It's true that you would be far better than me if you relied on those secret arts!"
"Moreover, you have been relying on those skills for so long that you would instinctively use one of those skills and lose to me! However, if we rely on common combat arts then you don't have a chance even though your experience in much richer than mine!"
Hailey's lips curled up: "Elders had decided for ten rouns to make it sure that the battle was foolproof! In fact you can't beet me even in 20 or 30 rounds! But I prayed for us to fight! I wanted everyone to see my strength. I have pput so much effort in silence for so many years! I wanted to use you as a stepping stone in my ascension!"
Aisha quietly looked at Hailey.
Hailey chuckled: "Unfortunately for me you are way too clever. You ain't a fool! But you won't be so luck the next time!"
"I told you, you are misunderstanding everything." Aisha tried to correct her sister.
Hailey laughed: "Oh.. I won't be pulled down by you! Sister, don't forget that you can't go on for long time on your own! You lost to me because of that! Do you know why elders support me instead of you? Because you are too lofty and disdain them!"
"No one likes to grovel to others! Elders have long been tired of looking at your lofty face. But I am different. I crawled out from the bottom and I don't care about the stains. I'm good as long as I'm successful! I had nothing but I promised that that they would get their 'face' when I become the saint!"
"You are way too proud! Way to silly! "
Hailey smiled as she stared at Aisha: "What did you do for clan? How many things have you done for the clan? But at the end, who cares?"
"In this world, no one would say thanks unless you give them something!"
"No one cares about the overall good that you think you do. They only want to see the individual results that they get."
"You may have put painstaking efforts for the good of all, but what about the people that matters? You have criticized the people that matters for the sake of everyone. Who cares?"
"As a result, the elders have seen you as only a tool because they were aware of your importance! But I am different. They will get the sweet words that they want to hear from me. I have changed the whole scene!"
Aisha was silent.
Hailey couldn't help but smile as she saw her sister stay speechless. She said all of this to make a heavy blow to her arrogant sister! She wanted Aisha to lose her confidence. She wanted Aisha lose faith and confidence in clan and elders. This way Aisha would never think about getting back her position as a saint!
She wasn't afraid.
Hailey never missed a chance. Even if there was a small probability of crisis she would grab that chance to get what she wanted.
It was because of this cautious, step by step, moves that she was able to go from nothing to sainthood. She was able to climb to the highest position possible at this point. Entire family was under her control except patriarch and dragon mother.
Moreover, as the saint of the clan she was would be dragon mother one day!
She would be the new dragon mother as long as she kept her identity. She just had to wait for patriarch and dragon mother to pass away. Afterwards she would become the supreme power in the dragon clan. She would be able to veto the proposals and decisions of the elders. She would be the real decision maker!
"Sister, I will bother you to continue to guard the wasteland until I learn the secret arts of the Dragon King." Hailey grinned from ear to ear. Anyone that looked at her right now would think that she is just a na?ve teenager if they didn't hear her previous claims.
Aisha sighed: "It seems that you are really grown up."
Hailey laughed: "My sister was standing at the peak so she couldn't see my growth."
"True." Aisha nodded and smiled: "You take time studying the secret arts of the Dragon King. They are a bit difficult to learn. You can ask dragon mother if you don't understand anything. Until then I'll stay in guard in your stead."
Hailey froze up for a moment when she saw her sister smile. She looked at Aisha's eyes: "Sister, are you smiling to cover the pain in your hear?" There was concern in her tone and expression but the words were full of malicious intent.
"Pain?" Aisha smiled.
Hailey continued: "It seems to me that you were very concerned about the identity of saint. You have lost it now so you should feel very desperate, don't you? The thing is that despair and pain was given to me by you in an early age. I'm giving all of it back to you now."
"Desperate? Pain?" Aisha smiled: "You are wrong. It's most happy moment of my life as I'm freed of responsibilities. "
"Sister, you aren't good with words. Always trying to look brave, cold and so on." Hailey smiled: "Don't you know that a woman is the most beautiful when she is soft and weak looking?"
"Weak?" Aisha softly said: "All the women in the giant wall can be weak but not me!"
Hailey looked at her sister. She went through her memories but couldn't find a time when her sister had shown such a real smile.