Chapter 9: already contains a path to certain death!

Shu Yue had no intention of suffering a loss just because they were going to fight. She immediately proposed her own conditions.

“However, a plain duel is too boring. How about we make a bet?”

Shu Yue narrowed her eyes slightly. Her eyes were very beautiful, which somewhat clashed with the disguised face she currently wore.

Her amber pupils were clear and bright. As her gaze swept across everyone present, especially those luxuriously dressed young nobles, they looked like plump, fat lambs in her eyes.

Slaughtering just one would be enough to make her mouth oily!

This gaze was extremely provocative. It stirred up the emotions of these young masters who were used to flattery and sweet words. Those who had originally been standing behind Sart just to watch the show now completely aligned themselves with him.

This instead put Sart on the spot. He had no choice but to agree. They all wanted to bet now.

“Hahaha, I thought someone from the countryside would look eager to blend into our Grey Pine City.”

“Yeah, I didn’t expect him to be this arrogant!”

“You really have confidence. Lord Sart is a genius who can be mentioned in the same breath as Miss Emily.”

“…”

One after another, they fired back at Shu Yue’s extremely offensive gaze from earlier.

The originally low pressure instantly turned into raging waves.

Sart’s brain took a moment to catch up, but he was very confident.

“Fine! A bet is a bet!”

The current situation was no longer up to him alone. Refusing to bet would be the same as admitting defeat halfway, giving Shu Yue an excuse not to fight. So he had to accept this wager.

Sart sneered coldly in his heart. He believed that among his peers, very few could compete with him. The rare ones who could were all well-known geniuses within Grey Pine City’s circle.

Emily was naturally one of them, though she had never sparred with Sart in this regard.

Emily simply found Sart too crude.

Sart interpreted this as a lady maintaining her graceful image. He believed his talent was absolutely not inferior to Emily’s, which was exactly why he was determined to have her.

Only I can protect Miss Emily!

However, all his attempts to flirt and curry favor had been ignored by Emily.

Yet Sart had never given up, because he truly believed this was merely a lady’s reserved shyness. Emily must like him; this was her way of testing her future partner.

One could only say… his brain was truly something.

Belang, however, frowned imperceptibly. He realized that Shu Yue was not as simple as her appearance suggested.

Shu Yue watched them settle down, feeling pleased.

“Since everyone agrees, go ahead and place your bets!”

Since they were betting, stakes were naturally required. They would of course bet on Sart winning.

“I’ll put down one gold coin.”

“Two!”

“Then I’ll… go with five, hahaha.”

“I’ll do five too.”

“…”

One after another, they raised the total wager to a rather high amount.

The group pooled together twenty gold coins.

After stating their bets, they began to clamor, asking what Shu Yue would wager. They had all placed bets, but no one had bet on Shu Yue winning yet.

If no one bet on her, what would they win?

If the stakes were too low, their winnings would also be small. An unequal payout ratio would make it boring.

One particularly sharp-tongued youth smiled at Shu Yue and said,

“What will you bet? How about the portion of assets Baron Lester transferred to you? That should be acceptable.”

“Hehe~”

Shu Yue gave a faint smile. Her gaze shifted toward Belang, who was trying to stay out of it.

“Young Master Belang, in a few days I will be marrying Emily. We will be family from then on. I don’t have any gold coins or items of equal value on hand. Why don’t you bet on me?”

“…”

Belang was stunned. He hadn’t expected Shu Yue to drag him into this.

If he hadn’t deliberately mentioned earlier that he was Shu Yue’s brother-in-law, she wouldn’t have thought of using him as a stake. But since Belang loved to show off…

Shu Yue could tell from Belang’s expression that he was the type who cared greatly about face. This wool was too easy to fleece.

All eyes turned to Belang at once, waiting for his response. Earlier he had acted very friendly toward Shu Yue, playing the role of a good elder brother. This was also his usual public image.

“Alright. Since Father chose you to be engaged to Emily, you must have some outstanding qualities.”

Belang was someone who cherished his reputation. How could he abandon his image over a little money? He even generously took out ten gold coins and bet them on Shu Yue.

This nearly made Shu Yue laugh with joy. How much was she going to earn?

Thirty gold coins was a lifetime’s worth for many people. As expected of nobles; they spent gold coins so casually.

Shu Yue promptly sent him a grateful look.

Belang could only force a smile in return, maintaining his expression of complete indifference to money.

The others sighed enviously at how rich Belang was. In truth, while Belang could casually spend one gold coin without blinking, ten gold coins had genuinely exceeded his comfort zone. Gold coins were usually used for large transactions, yet they had been spent so frivolously here. He silently noted this debt, planning to recover it from Shu Yue later with interest.

Shu Yue knew this would draw hatred, but she didn’t care. After all, she would be running away soon.

Besides, who said she would lose?

Sart was already brimming with killing intent, clenching his fists tightly. Shu Yue’s earlier words about marrying Emily in a few days had infuriated him. He had almost wanted to grab her by the collar.

His face was extremely dark, his eyes filled with viciousness, and his whole aura surged violently.

Shu Yue, on the other hand, kept her aura restrained and calm as still water.

The two walked to the center of the training field while the others retreated to give them space.

Shu Yue clenched her fists, feeling out her own strength.

After absorbing the dragon blood, her bloodline had grown much stronger. If she activated her bloodline, the doubled strength and speed would let her easily crush Sart. But she couldn’t reveal that in public.

Without activating her bloodline, her physical strength was roughly the same as an ordinary person’s, perhaps twenty percent stronger at most. But that was enough. Moreover, she still had a Firefly-rank technique.

In an instant, Sart, dressed in black-gray-white attire, thrust a wooden sword straight at Shu Yue’s eyes. Shu Yue sidestepped to dodge. Sart halted his sword and swung it horizontally, still aiming for the eyes.

Aiming for the eyes during a spar was rather vicious.

Injuries elsewhere could still be healed, but eyes were complete organs that ordinary healing spells could not fully restore. Sart’s intention was obvious: he wanted to blind Shu Yue.

Shu Yue tilted her head back and bent at the waist to dodge, then flipped backward and jumped a meter away. At the same time, several broken stones floated up from the ground.

She was a girl now, after all. To actually attack a girl’s face…

He was already courting death!

The several suspended stones suddenly burst forth with astonishing speed, all shooting toward Sart’s face.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Sart was forced to defend himself, using his sword and arms to block the material spells.