‘You know she actually tried to save Oke?’ he tells Jonas. ‘She tried to save someone who had tried to kill her. And she nearly died doing it. But she didn’t. She’s still here. And now you’re going to sit there and tell her she needs to stay back because she’s weak? You have no idea how strong this woman is. No fucking idea. Oh, and just so you know, if there’s any pairing in the trials, she’s with me. You can take that as an order from your prince.’
With that, he turns around and marches away.
My gaze follows Kyor until he disappears, and when I look back, everyone is gawking at me. Jonas knows what happened with Oke because I already told him. But the others stare at me in disbelief.
Finally, Llinos clears her throat. ‘Talk about sexual tension. If you don’t fuck that prince soon, then I might genuinely consider it,’ she says. ‘And Caroline is going to be less than happy about that.’
Next to her, Benny snorts, but Jonas abruptly pushes back his chair and stands.
‘Turns out it wasn’t just a case of wrong time, was it, Rose?’ he mutters, shaking his head. ‘Of all the fucking men.’ He turns on his heels and marches off.
‘Well fuck.’ I drop my head into my hands.
‘I don’t know why they say women are the emotional ones.’ Llinos shakes her head in mock-disbelief at Jonas’s back before she smirks.
‘Hey, don’t put me in with those guys,’ Benny protests. ‘I don’t have an emotional bone in my body.’
‘Yeah, right.’ My head is throbbing from whatever the hell just happened, but I’m grateful for the pair of them trying to make light of it.
‘And talking of emotional men who get unreasonably erratic aroundyou,’ Benny continues. ‘I guess it’s time we head to the battle yard and face Holden.’
I grimace. If I’m not training with Kyor, then he’s probably right. I need to spend the day training. Besides, Holden must recognise that I’m not a runt by now, right?
‘Is it me,or is Holden staring at us way more than normal?’ Benny asks. Llin and I are meant to be fighting him together, but she’s distracted – most likely wishing she could be spending time with Caroline before the next trial. But with the scribe working, it’s either sulk in the dorm or practise with us. Although what she’s really doing is a piss-poor attempt at both.
‘Not us,’ I respond to Benny’s comment. ‘Me. I swear, after every trial, he’s more and more angry that I’m still alive. I’m pretty sure if I make it to the Ofur he’s going to kill me himself.’
Llinos laughs as she slices her sword towards Benny only to have him block it with ease. ‘I’d like to see him try now that you have your own prince protector.’
I let out a low groan. ‘He is not my protector.’
‘No? Then where did you sleep last night?’
‘Truthfully?’ I say. ‘In my old room.’
Her eyes widen. ‘As in the one that was burned down? With no door?’
I grimace. ‘Yeah. I figured Zara wasn’t going to come for me there, not that I really expected her to come for me at all. Seeing her sitting at breakfast this morning was such a sorry sight, I almost felt bad for her.’
Zara chose her normal table and sat there alone. She was there when I arrived and was still there when I left, staring blankly into nothing. Quite a change from the woman who purportedly was just fine leaving her fellow Rettlings to freeze to death on the ice.
‘From all the talk over here, I assume you’re hoping that whatever trials you face next will simply be lulled to sleep with your drivel.’ The nasal timbre of Holden’s voice cuts through the air as he strides towards us.
‘I’m pretty sure that’s the only technique he’s ever used to win a fight,’ Llinos mutters, just loud enough for us to hear.
Benny laughs, but my attention is still fixed on Holden. The very sight of him is enough to make my skinbristle.
‘Miss Kultavaris, it appears that you and I have never had the pleasure of sparring together. Given how much you and Zelle used to enjoy your little tussles, I thought we could rectify that now.’
I can feel Benny’s and Llin’s eyes boring into me, but as much as my heart slams in my chest, I know I need to do this. I believe I’m good enough to survive the final two trials and that I don’t need Jonas or Kyor to protect me, and now is my chance to prove it. Maybe then they’ll believe me.
Holden continues, ‘I’m interested to see exactly how you’ve survived trials that have killed the likes of Baylis Airlan. His wolf travels back to Afaven Forest for his final rest while you stand here, yet again.’
Were he and Baylis close? I never noticed, but then, they were both knights of a similar age. Maybe they trained together. Fought together. I’m hardly surprised he assumed Baylis deserved a place above me. Deep down I probably thought the same at the beginning. But these trials have never been solely about who the strongest fighter is. These are Etta’s trials. The Goddess of Life. So what does it mean for me now that I’ve taken one? The vision of Oke’s dying eyes threatens to resurface, but with a sharp inhale, I push the image down and focus on the moment. With the way Holden feels about me, this spar could easily be as deadly as the next trial.
It’s only as Holden draws his sword that I realise it’s the first time I’ve actually seen him fight. Standing on the sidelines and barking orders? Absolutely. But fighting? No.
I step back as he performs an elaborate and utterly unnecessary flourish with his blade, while behind me, Benny clears his throat.
