Knight (31 page)

Zion sensed her annoyance rolling off in waves. He wouldn't deny that she was right. To be in another world far from where she originally came, and being the only human . . . it was a horrible situation to be in. He couldn't help but wonder how she lasted this long.

“Why go so far for something trivial?” He asked, feeling the need to aggravate her further.

“It isn't trivial.” She hissed. “Like I said, you don't understand anything. You're repeatedly cutting classes, barely attending any of it. A lot of other people would like to have been able to attend this academy, yet you are wasting the opportunity.”

They exchanged blows. “I don't even need to attend the classes.”

“Then why not do it for courtesy's sake?” She asked. “To say that you are too good to even attend any of the classes feels like a slap to someone working hard to catch up. You don't have to work your ass off every night to read tons of books and juggle the responsibility of being one of the Twelve. I may not be called worthy for the position of fifth-ranker, but I still took the title when I luckily defeated Courtney, so I must take responsibility.”

“Those classes are a pain.”

“A pain or not, be responsible! You entered an academy, so you're supposed to study with the rest! If you're not going to, then get the hell out of here.”

“Quite audacious of you to say that to me, fifth-ranker.” He said. “When I can easily snap your neck into two.”

“Then do it.” She snarled. “I'm already getting tired of all this.”

The increasing cadence of the fight initiated a serious, heavy, and uncomfortable air around the arena. Everyone who watched grew uneasy. Lady Seraphina clenched her fists apprehensively while she examined Valeriana's condition. She could tell that the girl was seriously doing her best. Never minding the fact that she was bruised and beaten, she continued to give it her all and never once let go of her weapon. It seemed that everything she told her became engraved deeply in the girl's mind. Although she was supposed to feel happy about it, she couldn't help but feel the total opposite.

“There is no need to worry, Lady Seraphina.” Kylon stated comfortingly beside her. “Valeriana is exhibiting an impressive performance. That fire and determination is something to be admired.”

“I'm worried.” She admitted. “Should I have not told her not to let go of her sword no matter the situation, she would never be in this condition.”

“You would've done the same thing, wouldn't you, Seraphina?” Lord Aeron casually queried. “I think Valeriana is the type to heed an advice regardless of the consequences.”

“I completely agree with Lord Aeron.” Headmaster Kylon said. “So do not blame yourself.”

Not sensing the lady knight's worry for her wellbeing, Valeriana continued with her unending cycle of assaults. Zion blocked them off with little effort, staying on defensive mode the whole time. When he decided that he got tired, he gave her another strong hit that sent her tumbling once more.

She got up much slower than the last time.

“How are you faring, Valeriana?” He asked. “Have you finally decided that you'll give up?”

“No . . .” Answered her weary voice. “Never.”

“Why do you go so far for this?” He inquired. “I simply cannot follow. . .”

He seriously didn't understand why. The whole time they were fighting since their last argument, questions endlessly kept popping into his mind. He was able to comprehend the fact that she was doing this for the sake of proving herself worthy, but what he didn't get was why she was willing to go to these lengths of doing it. He stared at her hands. They were trembling uncontrollably.

“You're already in no condition to fight. Why do you still go on?” He asked again.

He was curious. Although he was originally only after the fight, he found himself finding the urge to give his best as well. Valeriana's drive was infectious.

He noticed her hands were bleeding. Blood fell like rivulets, making visible stains on the sand. Seemed as though seeing her bleeding from a while ago wasn't his imagination.

Silently, he waved his lance in the air, creating a figure of a circle with his outstretched hands. Fire erupted from the blade, causing Valeriana's eyes to widen. The roaring flames licked at the weapon's sharp edges, but it didn't seem like it was being burned.

“You know what?” He said. “This might just be the fight I'm looking for—a fight worth winning.”

“Huh?” The girl was more than shocked.

“Get yourself ready, Valeriana.” He smirked, addressing her by her name for the very first time. “Because I won't be holding myself back.”

The girl almost slapped herself. Now that he said that he was going to be serious about the fight, she felt more than anxious of what was coming. She stared at the golden flames that crackled on his lance.

“MISS VALERIANAAA!” A voice screamed. “YOU CAN DO IT!”

She recognized that voice which belonged to Poulette. Another chorus of voices echoed, all which belonged to her aides. Valeriana was glad that she had them. They really lifted up her spirits.

Holding back the tears that threatened to fall out from her eyes, she fixed her gaze on Zion and determinedly tightened her loose grip around her sword. Her hands ached and trembled unsteadily. Still, she wasn't going to let it get to her.

“Bring it on, Zion.”

Her opponent stared at her incredulously. One moment she was oozing with determination, and now she was tearing up like a stupid fool. He truly did not understand her. Was it because she was a member of the opposite sex? Or was it because she's a human?

“What is with you, woman?” He sighed problematically. “Why are you so confusing?”

“Not my fault.” She sniffed, wiping her tears away. “I was born this way. Maybe you can ask my mother.”

Zion burst into a fit of laughter while everyone around them looked utterly confused. What exactly was going on? They could see their lips moving, but could not hear what they were talking about.

“What the hell's going on down there?” Corvan asked, crossing his arms and brushing back a long, stray lock that wandered onto his face.

“Who knows?” Tamara shrugged, clueless as well.

Zion didn't look like he would stop laughing any moment. He was bent over, clutching his stomach with his arm. The bladeless tip of his lance hit the sandy ground, letting a small thump reach his ears. Instead of a weapon, he used it as a substitute for a cane to prevent himself from falling over.

“Don't you think Valeriana has a habit of making unlikely characters to laugh?” Charles queried.

“Seems like it.” Tamara answered.

The two eyed Valeriana, who looked beyond annoyed. She was biting her lower lip, face red from anger.

“Stop laughing.” Growled Valeriana. “There's nothing funny.”

“But there is, oh lovely Valeriana.” He told her. “You amuse me to no end. You're a highly intriguing character.”

She blew off the hair that fell on her nose. “I don't get it. What's so interesting about me?”

“You.”

“I heard this line before.” She muttered.

“Valeriana Kerrigan, quite the funny girl indeed.” He laughed.

Valeriana sighed. “Urgh . . . I can't wait until this fight ends.”

“Now don't be in such a rush, fifth-ranker.” Zion told her. “I want to savor every moment of it as much as I can. It's people like you that I love to defeat.”

He then repositioned his weapon in front of him and got into his fighting stance. The flames that were lively beating on his blade seemed even more intimidating than before. The look in his eyes visibly changed. Valeriana looked into them and felt a shiver run down her spine. Those eyes looked like they belonged to a hunter . . . and she was the prey.

Despite the fear that pooled inside her stomach, she took a huge calming breath and held her ground. Her hands were shaking. She didn't know if it was because of the fact that they were already trembling since a while ago, or because of fear.

She recalled the lady knight's advice once more.
'In battle, you'll find yourself in very dangerous situations, Valeriana. Though you may feel that you are the prey, it doesn't always mean that you'll end up getting eaten. Just make sure you don't go down without a fight.'

She now knew where his alias came from. At first, she didn't entirely get it. But, now that he was looking at her with those eyes, she finally understood. Those electric blue orbs seemed to turn into slits and the smile that showed his teeth appeared like he was baring his fangs . . . and the flaming blade made him look the part all the more.

Her steps stuttered.

He grinned dangerously which made the girl swallow hard.

Gritting her teeth, Valeriana got into position as well. “Ah, damn it all to hell.”

Zion shifted his feet and shot forward without warning. The crowd gasped at the speed he displayed, which in turn made Valeriana even more nervous. Instead of worrying, she decided to brace herself for whatever was coming. She had a feeling in her guts that everything would turn for the worst-case scenario.

Her opponent appeared in front of her in a flash and their weapons collided with an unbelievable intensity. Valeriana clenched her jaw from the sudden pain that shot out from her hands but planted her feet on the ground to avoid being driven back by the force. This action, however, caused her feet to be buried in the sand underneath the soles of her shoes, which then served as an evidence of how serious Zion really was.

It was only then that she noticed her hands were injured. They were bleeding profusely, making her grip on her weapon somewhat slippery. It was made harder for her to have a firm grip on her sword. Still, she wouldn't let this be the cause of her defeat. It would be a trivial excuse.

Grunting, she threw Zion back with all her might. The challenger skidded a few steps away from her, but it did not stop him completely. He moved with the same speed as before and started attacking her relentlessly.

Valeriana tried blocking each and every one of his attacks, but her skills proved to be inferior to his and she received a big gash on her shoulder. The girl cringed at the smell of her own flesh burning and realized that the swiftness of his movements made it even harder for her to keep up with the pace of the fight. Valeriana began to block his attacks mindlessly, depending on luck and instinct to help her.

Damn it.
She thought.

Valeriana backed away, staggering. Her breathing was ragged and her heart thumped inside her chest. She held her sword wearily, its tip practically pointing to the ground. Zion did not allow her to rest. He pulled his weapon back before swinging it hard towards Valeriana's direction, maintaining the current distance between them.

The girl's eyes widened when she saw balls of fire coming her way. She hurriedly eluded them and jumped out of the way before they could hit her. The attacks resembled streams of pure fire that originated from Zion's blade.

“The flames that burned on the deepest parts of the land! One which danced on the hands of Arland! I call upon you to heed my will!” He growled and pointed his weapon at Valeriana.

“Oh, holy crap!” She shrieked, watching the building up of energy that seemed to fuel the fire's flames on his lance.

She speedily jumped out of the way as a roaring ball of fire bigger than her flew towards her direction. She hit the ground painfully, landing face first on the dirt while she missed the recent attack by a hair's margin. The fire crackled passionately as it flickered, gradually diminishing. The ground was marred with soot, flames of the surviving blaze decorating the ground of the arena.

“Whew.” She whispered in relief but yelled and scrambled to move when another one came her way.

Seraphina, who was watching the sudden turn of events, tried to stop herself from screaming. “This is not good. She won't survive at this rate. The flow of the fight is completely in Zion's favor.”

It stayed like that for a few moments before Zion suddenly decided to stop and finally began to cross blades with the girl. Another wound appeared on her thigh, cutting through the cloth of her pants. Valeriana truly did not know where he was throwing his blade, but all she knew was that she was clumsily retaliating. She could feel her weapon slowly slipping from her hands.

“I . . .” She growled. “Will not . . .” She grunted. “Let go of this sword!” She tightened her grip on her weapon further it hurt her fingers.

With a battle cry, she stepped forward with all her strength and fired a barrage of attacks his way, completely reversing their positions. Zion was smiling while skillfully parrying her blows. He jumped from toe to toe gracefully, resembling a dancing sprite whose moves completely defied gravity. Valeriana was more of a bird with a broken wing.

The flames of his lance roared from each strike, causing the girl to sweat from the heat being emanated.

“I am not going to lose, damn it!” She shook the bad thoughts away.

Never minding her remark, the fight continued in its current pace. Her rhythm became disrupted. She let Zion control the fight and she knew it was one of her biggest mistakes. Things were bound to get awful if Zion got serious. Wasn't this what she wanted anyway?