The Female Knight of Doom - TFKOD 17: Between Life and Death

In the end, Alice had removed the question of whether she should join the God of Doom at the age of seventeen from her list of concerns.

At this point, the most crucial part of their master-apprentice plan was to have her fight as the red-haired Allen by herself.

She would be easily promoted to a Special Grade Mercenary after winning.

Rom had been invited on a number of special missions during the last six months. He thought about them and sent Alice to Moores City to assist the city lord in fending off the attack by the Count of Dragon City.

The animosity between Dragon City and Moores City, which are neighbors, dates back three generations.

A great war was on the horizon, and the situation had grown more tense in recent years. Since their strengths are essentially equal, both of them are attempting to bolster their own strength and morale by enlisting well-known knights and mercenaries.

The tactical elite Knight Gale was commanded by the Count of Dragon City, who reportedly brought in Silver Helmet DeWitt this time.

As well-known as the red-haired Allen was Silver Helmet DeWitt, a Third Special Mercenary. City Lord of Moores appeared to be at a disadvantage as a result.

In order to assist, he wrote to the Mercenary Union early on, asking the Immortal Rom and his apprentice to go there.

If Alice could defeat Silver Helmet DeWitt and aid the City Lord of Moores in winning, she would undoubtedly be promoted to Special Grade Mercenary due to the size of the battle and the strength of the opposition.

But Silver Helmet DeWitt posed a serious threat.

He would definitely put in his best effort if he found out that the red-haired Allen would be visiting Moores City.

It was more akin to a duel between the two Third Grade mercenaries for those who had no intention of taking part in the conflict.

A Special Grade Mercenary would be created for the victor.

The loser could likely only end up as a heap of decaying flesh in the gutter, where the Dead could retrieve them for odd experiments.

But Alice couldn’t be scared of that if she wanted to stay in this business.

Rom shared what he knew after choosing this task for her.

“As a former junior mercenary, Silver Helmet DeWitt has eight years of experience. He’s two years your senior. Very tall, and he follows a rigid schedule. He is known for wearing a silver helmet, which is the source of his nickname, and is reportedly especially terrified of head injuries.

I met him once, and even though he is known for being extremely strong in battle, I didn’t think he was capable of being a Special Grade Mercenary. Because he lacks agility, you stand a good chance of defeating him. Either way, it’s preferable than dealing with an actual Special Grade Mercenary.”

Alice was confident because she had faced several strong men, but she had not yet gone on a solo mission. Anyone who wished to remain a mercenary had to go through this process.

On the day the Count of Dragon City attacked, she turned seventeen.

She felt rejuvenated engaging in combat with a group of mercenaries that the City Lord of Moores had hired.

Well-known mercenaries had an advantage in combat. Mercenaries were aware that they might be killed in combat, but they would not readily confront senior mercenaries.

They value their lives, after all, and they wouldn’t risk their lives to defeat them.

Because of this, a well-known mercenary could be worth an entire team, and Alice’s flaming red hair would turn people away from her wherever she went because they didn’t want to face her directly.

She also encountered some mercenaries of the same rank who, upon learning of her presence, had enlisted in the enemy army specifically to engage in combat.

They lacked a good master like Rom and her reputation. They fought her for a few rounds before losing, despite the fact that they were all Third Grade mercenaries.

Alice continued to struggle and eventually came across Silver Helmet DeWitt.

At first look, DeWitt looked familiar, like the red-haired Allen, with his silver helmet. His helmet was always silver with a blue tassel floating above it.

It was hard to see his face because the helmet obscured it so much, but as long as you knew it was him, it didn’t matter.

There was no need for small talk when they met on the battlefield. After they drew their swords, Alice saw that he wasn’t as simple to handle as she had assumed.

First, she was a woman. Her physical strength pales in comparison to his. He carried a huge, weighty sword. She started avoiding touching his sword after hers briefly touched his, out of concern that her fragile blade would shatter.

Second, her fine sword could not pierce his armor, which was quite complete.

All she could do was try to attack the joints, which needed a very steady hand.

She did, however, succeed in stabbing him in the right shoulder. Blood trickled down the blade as he grunted, his voice muffled.

Alice felt better.

This is excellent! He wouldn’t be as nimble with his sword because of the injury to his right shoulder.

DeWitt just moved the sword to his other hand, though.

In fact, he could wield the sword with his left hand!

His ability to wield a sword with both hands was undoubtedly his killer weapon. Certainly he would not have used it so readily if he had not faced Alice, a formidable foe.

It’s much more difficult to defeat an opponent who wields a left-handed sword, as anyone who has seen one knows.

Alice thought about switching hands, but doing so would reduce the likelihood that she would stab her opponent because her left hand was much less flexible than her right.

Under DeWitt’s massive sword, her leather armor appeared to be made of paper, and her sword was no match for his. It would be easily penetrated.

To avoid her opponent’s attacks, she had to rely solely on her agility. She had to use a lot more endurance than normal because of this.

DeWitt, meanwhile, attacked less frequently, so even though he was wearing heavy armor, he didn’t put forth as much effort.

Alice was forced to back off when he attacked her head after noticing that she was taking care to shield her face.

Rom was mistaken.

Long ago, this DeWitt had already attained the rank of Special Grade Mercenary. He had only been concealing his power.

It was the longest struggle Alice had ever been in. She could feel the perspiration trickling down her body as her focus slowly waned. She finally noticed a gap.

DeWitt, never one to pass up a good chance, swung his sword and cut her chest.

Knowing it was over, she fell after losing her balance and felt excruciating pain.

DeWitt approached, grabbed her blade, broke it in two, and flung it far away.

He moved closer, took off his silver helmet, and watched her intently, thinking he was safe.

A strand of red hair was cut off by him with the sword by her ear, serving as a trophy and evidence of her defeat.

It was Alice’s final opportunity, and she would not pass it up.

Under her shirt, she silently reached for the dagger Lina had given her, pulled it out, and, using her remaining strength, stabbed it into DeWitt’s eye.

Her injuries prevented her from moving as fast. He retreated instantly. The dagger only made contact with his eyelids, and her range of motion was restricted.

The blade of the dagger suddenly elongated and stabbed him in the eye as the enchanted gem on it flashed with a brilliant light.

Alice killed him by twisting the dagger.

The dagger’s enchantment had worn off by now. The sword shrank, reverting to its initial shape. The enchanted gem broke in two and ceased to function.

Blood and brain matter mingled and spilled out, covering her in splatters.

But she had also exhausted her last remaining strength and was left with nothing to do but lie there, breathing heavily.

Alice’s eyes were red.

Instead of piercing her heart, DeWitt’s sword had wounded her lungs and cut her ribs. She might live if she was treated right away.

However, no one was in the area to save her. If anyone could pull her back, it would be too late.

She was aware that she would die.

This was not the way she had anticipated her first time out alone, away from her master.

Simply put, it was so dull.

Despite her desire to laugh at herself, she lacked the strength to even curl her mouth’s corners.

As she closed her eyes, she sensed the world growing darker.

She’s not sure how long it took, but she heard her name called in the darkness.

“Alice! Alice!”

Both the voice and the name had an odd sound.

It was the first time she had heard that name. Her real name was known to her master, but had never called her by that name. He took this action in order to stay out of trouble and avoid being discovered.

It had even become apparent to her that her name was simply Allen.

She wanted to say, “Who are you?” but was unable to do so.

“Alice, have you forgotten me?” As though it were emanating from the heavens, the voice was so soft and lovely.

Alice felt lightheaded.

Goddamn it!

She was running low on blood. Her death was imminent.

However, she was certain that she had heard this voice previously. This voice had come to her in the most uncertain time of her life.

She suddenly remembered that day, even though she had lost a lot of blood.

‘It was my god.’

He had read her mind and his voice became ecstatic, but she lacked the strength to say it aloud.

“Well, that’s a lovely way to put it. It’s been a while since I’ve heard that call. Although you’re dying, I’d really like to hear you say it again.”

‘I’m dying…’

“I’ll soon be in a never-ending sleep once more and struggling to use the power of dreams if you pass away. I’ve spent the last five years observing you. I apologize for not getting back to you. It uses so much energy that I have to use less of it.”

‘I apologize for never praying to you, but it’s too late now.’

“Because you are not yet my believer.” In a forgiving tone, He said, “However, you now believe in me. These are words that I have read from your heart. I can’t just watch you die because of that. You will survive.”

‘Do I… stand a chance?’

The God of Doom didn’t speak, but Alice’s breathing became easier.

Strength poured into her body.

When she opened her eyes, the earth and heavens looked as they had before.

A voice passed by her ears like a puff of smoke or a gust of wind. It was nearly inaudible due to its lightness.

“Never forget me again.”