She didn’t much care for his words, though to engage in an all out brawl here was beneath her. “How you have fallen, Zhang Liao. My father held high regard for you, once. Until you betrayed him, and me.” She shook her head, upset over the loss. Zhang Liao was very much like an uncle to her once.
“To kill you here and now would be unbefitting of the mighty Zhang Liao. We shall meet on the battlefield, and determine who is stronger there.” She turned away to walk, only to pause and give one final look back to Zhang Liao.
“I do hope serving your captor like a well trained dog is all you hope for in life, Zhang Liao. Though if you wish to be the great man you once was, I would welcome you back.”
Her words did not move or shake him. As firm as a mountain he remained with his feet rooted into the ground. He would not pursue her for many reasons, for not only was it unwise to do so, but dishonourable as well. To strike an enemy in the back–and further, a woman he once stood beside–was not a victory, but rather an act of cowardice.
“I am afraid that you will stand corrected,” came a slow response over the scraping of metal upon metal as his axes were separated and lowered to the pivotal point of his hips. “For I am hardly mighty.”
“You have nothing but your own might, lady Lingqi. While I would relish in standing by your side on the field of battle once again, I fear that I am unworthy of it.” He paused then, sharp eyes softening for only but a moment as he too, drew away from her.
“This is the path that fate has carved for me, my lady, and while I will not ask for your forgiveness, know that I am truly sorry.”
