CHAPTER 133: THE WINTER TRIALS 8

Talia stepped onto the platform like she owned it.

God, she looked sexy when she was in fight mode. Her black hair was tied back in a tight ponytail, yellow eyes sharp and focused. Across from her, Mira Firefield—a lanky redhead with a reputation for aggressive fire magic—cracked her knuckles and grinned.

"Hope you’re ready, Princess. I’m not holding back just because you’re royalty."

Talia’s expression didn’t change. Not even a flicker.

"Good. You’ll need all the strength you can muster."

Valdris raised her hand.

"Begin!"

Mira immediately launched a fireball.

Talia raised her hand and a wall of ice erupted from the platform, absorbing the blast. Steam hissed into the air, obscuring both fighters for a heartbeat.

Before it cleared, Talia was already moving.

She closed the distance in seconds, her rapier gleaming. Mira barely had time to conjure another flame before Talia was on her, blade flashing.

Once.

Twice.

Mira stumbled back, eyes wide with panic.

Ice spread across the platform beneath her feet like crystalline spider webs. She slipped, arms windmilling as she caught herself at the last second.

Talia didn’t give her a chance to recover.

She thrust her palm forward and a spike of ice shot up from the ground, stopping just inches from Mira’s throat. The tip was so sharp it could’ve threaded a needle.

The crowd gasped.

Mira froze, hands raised in surrender.

"I yield! I yield!"

Talia lowered her hand. The ice cracked and fell away in glittering shards.

The entire fight had lasted maybe twenty seconds.

The crowd erupted into cheers and shocked murmurs.

Aegis leaned back in her seat, grinning.

[Fuuuck, she’s hot when she’s being terrifying. Kinda miss when she used to casually threaten to kill me.]

Talia walked off the platform without a word, her expression as cold as the magic she wielded. She didn’t even glance at the crowd.

Mira looked shaken as the healers rushed over to check her over.

"Next match!" Valdris called. "Serilla Frost versus Edwin Rothwell!"

Serilla sauntered onto the platform, her pink hair bouncing with each step, hips swaying. Edwin—a stocky noble with a warhammer nearly as tall as he was—looked confident enough.

That confidence lasted about ten seconds.

Serilla moved like water. Every time Edwin swung that massive hammer, she wasn’t there. She danced around him, her blade scoring light cuts across his arms, his legs, his sides. Little red lines that added up fast.

By the end, Edwin was bleeding from a dozen places, gasping for breath like he’d run a marathon.

When Serilla pressed her blade to his throat, he didn’t just yield—he dropped his warhammer with a loud clang and raised both hands so fast he almost fell over.

The crowd murmured, confused.

Aegis caught a glimpse of a wet spot spreading across the front of Edwin’s pants.

[Oh my god. Did he just—]

Serilla wrinkled her nose and stepped back, her expression shifting from battle-ready to utterly disgusted.

"Yield accepted."

Edwin scrambled off the platform like his ass was on fire, face bright red. Someone in the crowd laughed. Then someone else. Within seconds, half the arena was snickering.

Serilla looked utterly unimpressed as she walked back to her seat, wiping her blade clean with a silk handkerchief.

Aegis snorted.

"Brutal."

The matches continued.

Darius stepped onto the platform next, facing a skilled swordswoman named Celeste. She was fast, her footwork impeccable, each step precise and measured.

It didn’t matter.

Darius matched her move for move, never breaking a sweat. His blade was always exactly where it needed to be. When she lunged, he sidestepped. When she feinted, he didn’t fall for it.

Within two minutes, he’d disarmed her with a twist of his wrist and had his blade resting against her ribs.

She yielded.

Darius offered a polite nod and walked off like it was nothing. Like he’d just finished a light warmup.

Aegis exhaled slowly.

[He’s too good. Way too good.]

Valdris announced a break.

Aegis stood, stretching her arms overhead. Her muscles ached from her earlier fights, and her throat felt like sandpaper.

"I’m grabbing water," she said.

Scarlett waved her off.

"Bring me some too!"

"Get your own."

"You’re the worst!"

Aegis made her way through the crowd toward the refreshment table set up near the arena’s edge. Students and nobles milled about, chatting and placing bets on the next matches. She caught snippets of conversation—odds on Talia versus Serilla, speculation about Darius’s final opponent, whispers about "that commoner girl."

She grabbed a cup and filled it from the pitcher, the cold water sloshing slightly as her hands shook from residual adrenaline.

"You fought well."

Aegis turned.

Darius stood beside her, pouring his own cup of water. He looked as composed as ever, not a hair out of place despite having just fought.

"Thanks," Aegis said cautiously. "You too."

He took a sip, studying her over the rim of his cup.

"I mean it. You’re better than I expected."

"High praise from the guy who’s won every fight in under three minutes."

"Practice." He leaned against the table. "How did you learn to fight like that? You move like someone with formal training, but you’re a commoner."

Aegis hesitated.

[Is this a trick? Or is he actually curious?]

She decided to roll with it.

"I trained with Scarlett. And... I spent a lot of time fighting monsters in the western forests."

Darius raised an eyebrow.

"The forests? That’s dangerous."

"Yeah, well. Desperate times."

"Desperate for what?"

Aegis met his gaze.

"Money. A title. A future that doesn’t involve scrubbing floors for nobles. No offense."

Darius nodded slowly, something almost like respect flickering across his face.

"Fair enough."

They stood in silence for a moment, sipping their water. Around them, the crowd buzzed with energy, but here at the refreshment table it felt oddly quiet.

"What about you?" Aegis asked. "How’d you get so good?"

"My family." He set his cup down. "They’ve been grooming me for this my whole life. Combat tutors, strategy lessons, etiquette training. All of it."

"Sounds exhausting."

"It is." He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. "But it’s what’s expected. My family’s reputation depends on me being perfect. Anything less would be a disgrace."

Aegis studied him, really looked at him for the first time since they’d met.

[Huh. He’s actually being genuine. There’s no smugness, no condescension. Just... tired.]

"That sounds like a lot of pressure."

"It is." He picked up his cup again, staring into the water like it held answers. "But pressure makes diamonds, as they say."

"Or it crushes you."

Darius laughed, short and humorless.

"True."

They drank in silence.

Aegis found herself... not hating this. He was still an arrogant prick ninety percent of the time, but there was something almost relatable about the way he talked about expectations and pressure.

[Weird. I didn’t think I’d ever have a normal conversation with this guy.]

Lune’s words flashed through her mind.

"Vulnerability plus respect."

"You know," Darius said, "in another life, we might have been friends."

Aegis raised an eyebrow.

"That so?"

"Maybe. You’re ambitious. Clever. You don’t let people push you around." He tilted his head. "Those are traits I respect."

Aegis raised her cup.

"We may at least be acquaintances, though."

Darius smirked.

"Acquaintances? Big word for a peasant."

"Fuck you."

He laughed—actually laughed—and clinked his cup against hers.

"Let’s see how you feel after I beat you in the finals."

"Bold of you to assume we’ll both make it that far."

"Oh, I certainly will. The question is whether you will."

Aegis smirked.

"Guess we’ll find out."

Darius drained his cup and set it down with a soft clink.

"Good luck, Starcaller."

"You too, Goldspire."

He walked away, disappearing back into the crowd.

Aegis stared after him, watching his back retreat.

She shook her head and grabbed another cup of water for Scarlett.

When she returned to the stands, Scarlett was gaping at her.

"Did you just have a moment with Goldspire?"

"What? No."

"You totally did! I saw you! You were talking! And laughing!"

"We exchanged like five sentences."

"How did you not puke? Every time I talk to him I want to punch him in his smug face."

Aegis handed her the water.

"Believe it or not, I don’t actually want to make an enemy out of every single rich prick here. You gotta act nice with some of them."

Scarlett took the cup, still looking suspicious.

"I don’t trust him."

"Neither do I. But that doesn’t mean I can’t be civil."

Scarlett grumbled something under her breath and took a long drink.

Lune glanced up from her sketchbook.

"You’re being very pragmatic."

"Thanks?"

Lune added:

"It’s a compliment."

Aegis raised her brows.

[A compliment? From Lune? I must be dreaming.]

Sophie bounced over, practically vibrating with excitement.

"Big sis! Did you see Talia’s fight? She was so cool!"

"Yeah, I saw."

"Think you could beat her?"

Aegis paused.

[Honestly? No idea. Talia’s ice magic is insane, and she’s got way more combat experience than me.]

"Maybe. If I get lucky."

Sophie hugged her, nearly knocking the breath out of her lungs.

"You’ll do great! I believe in you!"

"Thanks, Sophie."

Vera yawned from her spot on the bench.

"Next match is about to start."

Aegis glanced at the bracket board hanging near the platform.

Her name appeared next to Kanna Greaves.

Her stomach dropped like a stone.

[Oh. Oh no.]

Scarlett followed her gaze and winced.

"Fuck."

"Yeah."

"She’s... really strong."

"I noticed."

"Like, really strong. Did you see what she did to me?"

"Scarlett, you’re not helping."

"Sorry."

Aegis drained her water and set the cup down harder than she meant to.

[Kanna. Great. The girl who beat Scarlett in under a minute. The girl who moves like a tank and hits like a battering ram.]

She watched Kanna stretching near the edge of the arena. Her movements were deliberate, methodical. No wasted energy. Every motion had a purpose.

[She’s going to be a nightmare to fight.]

Valdris stepped onto the platform, her silver hair gleaming in the afternoon light.

"Next match! Aegis Starcaller versus Kanna Greaves!"

The crowd roared.

Aegis stood, her legs suddenly feeling like jelly.

Scarlett grabbed her arm, her grip tight.

"Listen. She’s strong, but she’s not invincible. She relies on power and endurance. If you can outlast her, you’ve got a shot."

"Outlast her. Right. Easy."

"I’m serious. Don’t try to match her strength. Use your speed. Your magic. Stay mobile and don’t let her pin you down."

Aegis nodded, trying to steady her breathing.

"Got it."

Sophie hugged her one more time.

"Kick her butt, big sis!"

"I’ll try."

Lune glanced up from her sketch.

"Don’t die."

"Still not planning on it."

Aegis walked toward the platform, each step feeling heavier than the last. The crowd’s roar faded into white noise. All she could hear was her own heartbeat pounding in her ears.

Kanna was already there, waiting. Her grey eyes locked onto Aegis, calm and focused. No emotion. Just absolute certainty.

Aegis climbed onto the platform and drew her daggers. Ruby and Sapphire gleamed in her hands, the familiar weight grounding her.

[Alright. Time to see if I’m as good as I think I am.]

Kanna drew her sword—a massive two-handed blade that looked like it weighed more than Aegis did. The metal sang as it left its sheath.

Valdris raised her hand.

"Combatants, ready?"

Aegis shifted into a defensive stance, knees bent, weight on the balls of her feet.

Kanna planted her feet, holding her sword in a low guard. Ready to explode into motion.

The crowd fell silent.

Valdris’s hand dropped.

"Begin!"