CH 30 — Escalation
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Rin Tin Tin had her blade ready as her legs crouched in a way that she’d be sure to reach Huang Qingling in a single, lightning-fast jump. Above the black mask, her amber eyes gleamed in the night as her orange ponytail fluttered in the night winds. 

The sight was straight out of a game’s loading screen, Ku Lo thought within a moment wherein the time itself slowed down. 

Likewise, behind Qingling, Huang Gingge screeched at her sister’s insanity with swollen eyes and a throat which had wailed many times today. Her voice had broken, making her tone be emotional more than anything else.  

As he took steps backwards, he heard Qingling’s voice in slow-mo. 

“I’ll have you know.”

Her lips moved so slow he saw the end and start of each syllable formed by her lips. 

“What happens when you mess with my sister.” 

While his eyes and ears worked so did his mind as it churned out ideas at a frightening pace. However, it was dismissing them at the same exact pace. The task wasn’t easy. He needed to calm Qingling, who’d become a raging mess in a way which didn’t give Rin Tin Tin a reason to attack her; like letting her hit him; or throwing away his pride. 

Fight? She was much, much stronger based on the slap still paining his cheek. 

Run? He had come here to show his sincerity. Leaving would work against that. 

Take the beating? It would be the best option if it didn’t risk Qingling dying to Rin Tin Tin’s blade.  

Even if time appeared to have slowed down in his mind, it still ticked. At a crawling speed for sure, but time passed and Qingling wasn’t going away from him. 

“Fine!” Time returned to its normal flow as Ku Lo responded. “Let’s fight!”

“Sword of the Swordless!” A thin red line protruded from Qingling’s hand as if she had gained a lightsaber, though this lightsaber had no grip and it flowed like the letter ‘s’. 

Ku Lo didn’t hesitate to use his own Qi to mimic her move. 

“Sword of the Swordless!” he shouted the same incantation while guiding his Yin Qi into one hand before willing it to take the form of a greatsword. 

Qingling halted herself in a fraction of a second. “Wait?! Are you from the Sword Sect?” 

“No,” he said with a frown, and the black greatsword broke into million pieces. The slight interruption of answering had broken his concentration, and so the sword. 

“Bullshit!” She swung her red rapier at him. “You are lying again! Again!” 

“How could I be from this Sword Sect?” He withdrew as she attempted to close the distance. “How could I be from the Sword Sect, Huang Qingling!?”

“Then how did you cast the Sword of the Swordless?!” Qingling didn’t cease her attacks at all. “Explain to me that, Ku Lo, you lying bastard!” The ineffectiveness from attacks came either from frustration or she couldn’t control the move to be truly effective with it; he leaned to think the former.

“I thought of it!” he explained as she slowed down, most likely running out of mental energy and Qi. “I watched you do it and mimicked!” 

“Mimicked it? Don’t make me laugh!” She attempted one last swing at him with her lightsaber before it broke, first into halves and then into million pieces. 

“If I was a member, wouldn’t my spell last as long as yours?!” 

‘Swords’ broken, they began circling, neither side opting for a frontal attack.

“Let’s calm down,” he said, not shouting anymore and slowing his steps. 

“Why should I?!” She didn’t agree and continued to step at the same pace which forced him to match. 

“Because I say so, sister.” Gingge ran between them.

Yet all this achieved was to make Qingling seek out a straight line between her and Ku Lo. 

“You can’t let him get away!” Qingling shouted at her sister. “Now move aside!” 

“No, I will not! Ku Lo and sister yourself said that I should be more responsible for myself.” 

“Of course he would say so! He wants into your panties and nothing else!” 

“Can’t you even acknowledge your own words?” Ku Lo pointed out. “I remember you saying that she should do her own thing, but here you are trying to control her again.” 

Qingling paced forward in anger, but the two of them were able to match her. “I don’t care who I become or what I have to do as long as she can live a happy life! But you do as you please and think you can get away with it!”

“Me?!” He put his hand on his chest. “I will not try to make light of my mistakes and neither will I accept her just forgetting what I did; however, this is between us. It is not up to you to decide whether she can forgive someone or not.” 

“Right!” Gingge joined. “You pushed me onto him. Extorted him into accepting that contract which has inhumane conditions. Told me to have fun with him.” 

“That contract was meant to protect you from things like this! I just didn’t realize how big his influence has gotten over your heart.” 

“Sister, you can’t control me like a doll while at the same time say I have a free will!” Gingge didn’t stop; instead, she threw in more fuel. “Maybe you want what’s best for me, but there will never be prince perfect who will check all the boxes you want at any given moment!” She went as far as to point a finger at her screaming sister. 

“So a lying gigolo is enough for you? A life as an exchangeable plaything, that’s what you want?”

 Ku Lo walked next to Gingge, who kept on shouting at her unresponsive sister. “Gingg’er, that’s enough, she means well for you,” he said before pulling her into a hug. 

Gingge’s chest heaved as she responded. “Un-” she nodded. “But I’m not done with her. I don’t want her to insult you.” 

“She has the right to insult me,” he said. “However, that doesn’t mean I can’t defend myself. I’ll give her that I was a total dick towards the two of you yesterday. I will remember it every day for the rest of my life and try my best to make it up to you.” 

From the corner of his eyes, he noticed Qingling dropping to the floor with an expression that started as shock and frustration, but ended as lifeless, almost vacant.

“You will?” She looked up with her glimmering light-blue eyes. “T-that’s a promise, right?” 

“I promise.” This was easy to say since he didn’t want to disappoint Gingge like yesterday ever again. “I’ll promise this to you a thousand times.” 

“Mmm-” She leaned her head against his chest. “Just be good to me in the future and please don’t break another promise.” 

“I will not, I will not,” he said before breaking the hug. “Now, go inside while I stay here and be good to your sister too.” 

“Y-you’ll c-come for me after you're done here?”  

“If I don’t the heavens shall smite me dead.” And Ku Lo meant it, for if he would be so darn stupid again he could not forgive himself even if Gingge would. 

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