The awkward silence as everyone waited for someone to make a move did not help Uma's confusion.
Unfortunately for her, that didn't stop her opponent from thrusting a rapier straight for her eyes.
You're kidding!
Uma barely dodged it, dropping into the splits and earning a very distasteful look from her attacker. Having no idea how to hold a spear, Uma pushed herself up, thrusting the pole horizontally.
She didn't get far with that idea, however, as her attacker spun around—dipping low enough you would've thought she was bowing to the crowd—and sliced at Uma's ankles. As a reflex, Uma jumped straight up. The move allowed her to dodge the blade, but it also left her completely airborne, and for her troubles, she got kicked square in the stomach.
Spit flew onto her opponent's dress as Uma took a tumble, and the throbbing in her stomach doubled.
Shit!
Uma almost coughed her lungs out when she gazed up at the woman.
"Untalented mongrel."
The woman's voice dripped with such hate that Uma thought she might have killed her dog.
What the fuck is this bitch's problem? I haven't done shit to her.
Her assailant kept up the pressure, and all Uma could hope to do was dodge. Thanks to the frilly dress, it made it hard to tell where Uma was gonna jump, but that didn't seem to do much in the long run as Uma caught a scrape to the cheek.
Trying to go on the offense and not understanding Spear 101, Uma twisted her spear and, with one hand, tried to slam it overhead. Her form was sloppy—and even that was an overstatement—making it easy to dodge, but the crater she left in its place made her assailant panic for just a second.
Then she lunged forward, causing Uma to lift her spear up to block once more. However, mid-thrust, the mayor's daughter stopped, twisting her body a full 360 degrees and delivering another horizontal cut that, had it been any closer, would've left Uma with one eye.
Uma had tried to counter with a forward thrust, but it only scraped the side of the dress, tearing the fabric slightly. The mayor's daughter grimaced at that and caught the off-guard Uma with a kick to her side, bouncing Uma off the ground where the crowd parted for her.
She could really feel her guts trying to come out, and she would've thought the other mayor's daughters came to triple-team her by the way she saw three. Still, despite her condition, she could see practically the whole crowd cheering for her. If anything, seeing three of everyone only raised her spirits even more.
Come on, uma you're not gonna disappoint everyone by not punching this bitch in the face are you?
Uma smiled at the thought Pushing herself up, she bounced from side to side, steadying her breath. Through sheer will, she forced her vision to settle, moving her hand all the way down the spear to the very end and slinging it over her shoulder, crouching down just slightly to steady herself.
Alright, I think I got it.
Uma lunged—though "lunge" was a strong word, it was the closest thing to what she did. Naturally, she caught a boot to her side, but she managed to dodge the rapier strike that followed.
Each exchange got worse for the mayor's daughter, with Uma getting closer and closer with each attempt. Of course, it came at the expense of her ribs getting violated and dress getting cut up, leaking enough blood all over the cobblestones that it almost painted a picture.
The scales tipped more and more in Uma's favor, with the final clash ending with Uma swinging the spear more as if it were a sword than a spear. The wooden pole clashed against the fine metal of the rapier, sending both women back.
Before the mayor's daughter even got to set her back foot, Uma pushed off. Swinging the spear vertically once more, she was parried in the process, leaving them both off guard. That, however, did not matter to Uma, who, once her feet touched the ground, rammed her head into the daughter's stomach.
This appropriately drew a collective gasp from the crowd, with Serosa covering her mouth, trying to hold her laugh back. Hamaron just huffed in approval and smiled.
"I taught her that."
The mayor's daughter keeled over, gasping and trying to collect the air that was stolen from her. When her eyes flicked over to Uma, they were filled with the hate of a woman who had just had garbage dumped on her.
"You... barbarian! Cretin! Nothing but gutter-snipe trash!"
Uma mimicked Hamaron's huff before sticking her tongue out and flipping the lady off. The daughter wasn't quite sure what the gesture meant, but it pissed her off all the same. She grunted as she readied her blade, pointing it at Uma.
"My name is Aida Azo Almano, youngest of the Almano family, and I refuse to be disrespected by such an uncoordinated, uneducated..."
Bitch, I learned your stupid language in a week, Uma thought as Aida seemed to never stop talking.
"...uninteresting, unpolished, uncouth urchin!"
Uma had stopped listening two minutes ago and started drawing in the dirt as she waited, which only pissed off Aida more, who lunged at Uma.
Uma simply glanced up, her red eyes boring into Aida, causing her to hesitate for a second before jumping back. Sweat dampened her forehead instantly and her breathing got heavy. The intensity with which Uma had gazed at her made her question for a second if that was the same girl.
What the heavens? What was that? How did one girl radiate such... malice?
Uma, on the flip side, was shaking and trying hard to hide the sweat pouring down her back.
Holy shit, how did I not get hit right there? I got too locked into drawing.
Turning to face Vivi with a wide-eyed look of pure shock, Uma chuckled in response to the girl, who gave her nothing but a thumbs-up and mouthed, You're the coolest. That seemed to steady Uma's nerves once more.
Damn right I am.
Standing up, Uma pointed her spear at Aida. My name is Uma... last name pending, and I will smack you in your smug face.
She chuckled to herself. She knew no one heard her, but who knows? Maybe there was a mind reader around.
Both fighters readied themselves. Uma dropped into her homebrewed stance once more as Aida recovered her guard. Despite what was supposed to be somewhat of a friendly spar, the air was oddly heavy. Whether it was whatever had accidentally scared Aida coming from Uma, or Aida's burning hatred, no one could tell.
Each fighter took one step, then two, and then they lunged. Uma's spear thrust upward—for once, she was using it as intended... sorta—sending both the rapier and the spear flying into the background. Uma didn't wait. She readied herself; growing up with boys at the orphanage had taught her how to throw a good one.
What'd I tell you, bitch?
As if time slowed down, the crowd gasped as Uma threw the punch. All five knuckles landed straight onto Aida's cheek, recoiling her head back as her entire body followed, lifting her off the ground. She tumbled backward straight into her sisters' arms.
When time resumed, everyone gasped collectively. Slowly, one of Aida's sisters checked for a pulse and let out an exhale when she felt one, leaving Aida in the hands of the other sister before starting to march straight for Uma, drawing two blades connected by a rope.
Before she could take another step, she was stopped. A man walked from the crowd, chuckling as he scratched his goatee.
"Woah now, let's give the little lady some space. She's fixing to fall over."
A thud was heard from behind the man as Uma did indeed fall over, the mix of a concussion and incredible blood loss finally getting to her.
"Oh... see? You wouldn't wanna hurt a poor, defenseless girl, would you?"
"Zat is no girl. Zat is a barbarian, a demon, a devil! Move! I must exorcise it!"
The sister's voice rang out, smooth and velvety, giving the hate in her speech just a little more ground to stand on. How she and Aida were related truly was a mystery in itself.
That made the man's face widen in confused shock. "Woah, woah there. I may not be the brightest, but I don't think that..." He pointed over to Uma, who was currently foaming at the mouth with Vivi standing over her, staring blankly. "...is no demon. Heck, she's barely even alive."
In the background, Uma's eyes rolled back in her head and her spirit tried to fly out of her mouth, but Vivi smacked it back in before calling for Hamaron to carry her.
"Your sister lost, Edith. Please take it like a woman and continue on as ladies. We shouldn't make it harder for the street sweepers to clean the road—my lovely Uma already bled enough to attract a shark to land."
Serosa's voice rang out from behind, stepping in between the man and Edith. She held that gentle smile she always wore, yet somehow, without changing a thing, it completely lacked tenderness this time.
In response, Edith gritted her teeth, about to retort.
"You lost."
The pure, unfiltered fact seemed to physically hit Edith, who recoiled just a step back before grunting and stomping away. "Come on, Mary. Let's go."
The third sister, the one holding Aida, jumped in shock before nodding. "R-right. Um, thank you for your hospitality." Mary bowed, dropping her sister in the process, before hastily picking her up and rushing behind Edith, who had already started to rant.
Simply sighing in response before chuckling, Serosa turned toward the man and offered a small bow. "Thank you, kind sir, for stepping in when you did. You saved the girl's life."
The man blushed, chuckling and scratching the back of his head. "Oh, wow. That means a lot coming from a lady, but I'm sure it would've gone fine. I don't think Ms. Edith would've really hurt the little lady."
"I wasn't talking about Uma."
A chill ran down the man's spine.
"O-oh."
Serosa excelled at transitions; she chuckled again, resting a hand on his shoulder. "I'm only joking, dear. Look at you, so serious."
He chuckled in response, seriously worrying if he should say anything else at all.
"You're part of the army, yes? You are more than welcome to stop by the library. I'm Serosa, the owner." Giving a small curtsy, Serosa smiled again. This time, warmth radiated off of her like a switch she could flip on and off.
"O-oh, right. I will. N-names Harin."