Promise of a Date (3)

"Ha!"

The first attack was from the woman in front of Shui. She summoned a single-edged sword that seemed to be made from dried lava and approached him with a slash. She and her group planned to exhaust the two and then separate them so that they could beat up one and force the other to watch. They had more numbers so it would have been easier to simply shoot spells and force them to endure with the barrier spell, but even they weren't daring enough to cause major damage in the city. They weren't on a very popular street so bystander damage could be kept to a minimum, but property damage was more troublesome because it was easy to assign a price to it.

Even though Shui was in front, they all thought that Lisa would be the one actually fighting, but Shui summoned a blue one-handed sword to oppose the woman's blade, and managed to push her back. There was a bit of doubt in everyone other than the woman, but they were surprised that Shui could beat her in a head-on clash.

"I see, you must be a body cultivator."

"No wonder."

Believing they had found the reason for Shui's calm, the group snickered. For the second clash, a man joined the woman in attacking Shui with his axe. Though the man's cultivation was the lowest among the group, he had cultivated a special body refining art and had the most brute strength among them. They planned to break Shui's composure with this attack, but he didn't engage them head-on like last time.

"Fly."

Due to a strong gust of wind that suddenly appeared below them, the two were thrown into the air. The other three members were shocked, but they quickly attacked Shui and Lisa to prevent them from taking advantage of this opportunity. Noticing their approach, Shui summoned a vortex barrier to repel them and then blasted the two in the sky with a simple but powerful gust of wind. The two received little direct damage thanks to their barriers, but due to being in mid-air, it was impossible for them to escape being blown away.

Rather than defeating them, Shui's objective was just to solve their current predicament, so whether they were beaten into submission or kicked out of the vicinity, there was little difference to him.

After losing two of their comrades, the remaining three became a little apprehensive, but since they had already started the fight, they couldn't back down easily. They gave up on keeping collateral damage to a minimum and immediately prepared their strongest spells. As long as they didn't activate the spell they were still able to keep up a barrier, so there was little concern that Shui or Lisa would be able to stop them. Unfortunately, they were still underestimating their opponent. With a tap of his foot, Shui cast a spell that turned the surrounding ground to mud that ate up his adversaries like quicksand. Their barriers did little to stop them from sinking, so they had no choice but to give up on casting their strongest spells and focus on getting out while keeping Shui at bay.

As he watched them struggle to escape the quagmire, Shui made one more move to finish the battle. He held Lisa close and leaped out of the group's encirclement, before changing the quiet muddy swamp into a whirlpool where every futile struggle only pushing them further below.

"Have some fun being buried."

"Damn you! You'll regret this!!!"

Shui ignored the angry shout and turned to face Lisa.

"So, where shall we go next?"

"Huh, oh. How about lunch?"

Lisa was still in a daze, but she regained some composure once Shui addressed her. Cultivators like them had little need to eat regularly, but it was still considered a pleasure.

"Sure, let's go."

After having lunch at a simple restaurant, Lisa suggested that they head back. Of course she had more planned, possibly even sealing the deal, but it would be troublesome if the Lava Stream Sect group gathered their friends and came looking for revenge.

'Damn those rock eaters! I had so much planned too!"

Lisa was disappointed, so she viciously insulted those disciples in her head, but as the entrance to the manor came closer in sight, her grumbles decreased and she worked up the courage to ask the critical question.

"So, how did you like the tour?"

"It was nice. There are a few places I think I'll come back to when I'm free so, thanks. We sort of got interrupted, so how about we do this again another time?"

"Really?!"

Shui chuckled at Lisa's hyper response and she also seemed embarrassed once she realized that she had exposed her inner thoughts.

"Yes, I look forward to it."

"Okay, I'll come up with a plan and tell you as soon as possible."

Excited at the thought of a next time, Lisa walked with Shui without any of her previous gloom.

The two returned to Storm Sky Manor and parted ways before night, so Shui wondered if he should continue the lesson with Fatty or go home to cultivate. However, he still had one more visitor before the day was over. As he was pondering while strolling down a tiled road in the inner section, he felt a pair approach. Based on their very similar auras, he was certain that they were twins of decent talent. If they had simply greeted him it wouldn't be strange, but though their presences were clear to him, they seemed to be trying to sneak up on him.

A bit curious, Shui acted like he didn't notice them and continued on his stroll. Encouraged by his ignorance, the twins came closer, but right before they were ready to pounce on him, he appeared to vanish. The two were shocked out of hiding and hurried to locate him, only to hear his voice from behind.

"What can I do for you two?"

"!"

"!"

As Shui expected, the two were a pair of twin sisters, both with honey blonde hair and lime green eyes. They were likely two years older than him, but even while scowling they were cute.

"Sally, we've been had."

"I can see that Mari!"

Shui was fully prepared for a fight, but after a shared glance they clicked their tongues and released the tension from their bodies.

"Be grateful, you mere man."

"Although you've kept us waiting, our mistress still seeks your presence."

"Oh? And who would this mistress be?"

"Hmph, don't start crying in regret now."

"Our mistress is the great Queen Cassandra!"

"Oh..."

"Wait, don't tell me?!"

"You don't know Queen Cassandra?!"

Shui actually did know who they were talking about, but he acted dumb because he was feeling a little playful. Her name had come up during his talks with the elders. She was known for being extremely charming and having a large number of fans even outside of the manor, along with her status as a talented member of the core section. Her current master was apparently a similar type of seductress in her younger days, but when she mentioned that with her current appearance it only inspired looks of pity.

'I wonder what she wants from me.'

If Shui had already made plans he would have likely refused, but luckily for them he wasn't feeling reluctant.

"Okay, I'll follow you."