He smirked back at me, raising a brow, “Already?”
“Well, we have limited time here.” I huffed, making him laugh gruffly.
“Get me a list of what you need. I’ll see to it.” He promised with a nod.
“Thank you.” I nodded in return, a small smile on my lips. He hummed, looking over me critically for a moment, making my nerves rise.
“The night after your date, we will begin training you with a sword,” he suddenly announced, making my eyes go wide.
“What?” I shook my head in confusion before they narrowed at him. “Why, exactly?” I asked suspiciously.
He grunted in amusement, “In case you make it far enough to need it.”
So one of the events would involve sword fighting, likely near the end. I looked at him, intensely curious, but I knew he wouldn’t betray Azurill and reveal what it was. Instead, I smiled back at him.
“Don’t worry, I can handle a sword,” I told him confidently.
“Maybe so,” he shook his head, his purple braids swinging with the movement, “But I doubt Carnelian or your father had you trained to the level you’ll need. I’ll pick up your training from wherever you left off.”
I wanted to protest, but I was forced to admit that he was right. I’d learned on the street, so my fighting style reflected that. I didn’t fight like a noble, and that could cause some issues. Another thought occurred to me then.
“What about the other girls?” I asked him.
“What about them?” He asked in return, surprised.
“Will they be trained too?” I pushed, needing to know more to shed light on what the trial might be.
He grunted, seeming unsure about answering, before he finally sighed. “Yes, they’ll all be trained. Most will likely have the fundamentals down at least. No noble parent would leave their daughter wholly unprotected, but I have no idea what level of proficiency any of the ladies have with a blade.”
Curious. It sounded like we would all need to be at a higher level of skill for the trial. Would we be fighting each other? Someone else? Somethingelse?
It was clear that answers wouldn’t be forthcoming right now, so when we reached my rooms, I wrote the list of what I needed for Alfrikr and sawhim off for the night. Collapsing into my bed, my thoughts swirled with everything going on.
The thought of deep teal eyes going dull and lifeless haunted my sleep that night, but upon waking, the image was easy to chase away. Upon entering the breakfast hall, the other ladies, excluding Faiza, sat around the table. A seat thankfully remained next to Amatista, and I claimed it quickly.
“Good morning!” she chirped, and I returned her greeting with a smile, quickly digging into my food.
Azurill eyed me occasionally from the other end of the table, but my eyes narrowed upon realizing Sania was sitting beside him, laughing as her hand lightly swatted his arm. The smile on his face…
An elbow to my side made me grunt, turning to face Amatista incredulously.
“Stop glaring at them,” she hissed quietly. “Act like you don’t care who he’s flirting with.”
“Idon’tcare,” I argued mulishly.
Her raised eyebrows spelled out her disbelief quite clearly, but it wasn’t what she thought at all. It was merely proof that I needed to do better. It had nothing to do with emotions of any kind.
“Showing you’re unconcerned with the other competition will be attractive, trust me.” She smirked slyly, “Men crave being desired, and it drives their own interest in a woman if they think they must chase it. They love nothing more than proving they can win your affection.”
I didn’t have much experience with men in a romantic capacity, since I didn’t think having one-night-only romps with them counted, so I’d have to take her word for it.
“He clearly has a type, though,” she muttered, observing Azurill like a science experiment.Scholars, I shook my head in amusement.
“What do you mean?” I asked her quietly.
“The two of you have many similarities.” She observed, making me go completely still. “You have a similar color palette, your noses and mouths actually…”
She trailed off, her eyebrows creasing as my heart started to race and sweat began to bead along my temples.
