Just as he had promised, Densooth immediately began preparing for Ruena’s test and word began to spread among nobility. Once they found out, everyone wanted to get involved. Had Densooth not been in control of the situation it might have quickly gotten out of hand. No wonder Bastion had only recommended powerful and influential people. It didn't take long before the nobles and royalty outside of Altea began to show their interest. This included the king of Florfana, the kingdom of animals.

  Taiga scowled the moment she caught sight of that letter in particular. "You should ignore that one," she advised, "Nothing good will come from owing a debt to Florfana's royalty."

  "I have to at least see what it says. There is a chance Densooth could choose their kingdom to host the test," Ruena replied, deciding to err on the side of caution.

  The letter was just as pompous as Taiga had warned. It was clear that Florfana looked down on Alodan, or at the very least was not favorable towards them. There was also the fact that the letter mentioned her own opinion as an afterthought as Densooth would be the real decision maker.

  “Alodan’s Young Heiress,

  We have heard news that you wish to claim the title of your ancestors despite the risk to your own life. Florfana cannot support such recklessness so long as you have so many of our people under your care. We would like to honor you with the chance to return what is rightfully ours along with a stage to show your talents.”

  It became clear as Ruena continued reading that Florfana wanted her to stop recruiting and protecting the Cats. If she agreed, they were even willing to make a bet. If she could defeat their strongest warrior in her test, they would give up. If she fails, she must return the Cats she had taken in and forfeit her right to ever become the Weaponsmaster. That is, if she managed to survive.

  The royals of Florfana were so confident of their own win that they offered to let her choose whatever reward or penalty she desired if she somehow managed to succeed. This was something she needed to talk out with Densooth, but Ruena thought it was perfect. Like this she could easily free the Cats from Florfana’s tyranny, claim the title of Weaponsmaster, and silence any naysayers. The only issue was that an enemy kingdom would no doubt use dirty tricks to ensure their victory.

  To her surprise, Densooth agreed with her. He seemed to be particularly interested in her desire to free the Cats and the Protectors from Florfana’s grasp. There must have been another prophecy that he hadn’t told her about. He took Ruena’s handwritten letter of demands to negotiate a time, as well as an arena for the battle to take place. Florfana was far too exclusive of a kingdom to host such a large scale event.

  In the end, it was decided that Soral’s newly acquired kingdom, Vista, would host the test. Soral could easily create an arena, and Vista was eager for a chance to gain their own piece of fame from the event. Qilin had also been in consideration, but hosting a battle in a kingdom of assassins was asking for trouble. Valen was even more exclusive than Florfana was, no matter how much Xandus wanted to get involved.

  The entire event was thrown together before Ruena had a chance to truly prepare. Now that she knew her opponent was likely to be a Protector, Bastion had changed her training regimen to match that. She was glad to see that his confidence hadn’t wavered at all. Bastion was hard to read, but Ruena was fairly certain he was looking forward to the test.

  For a last minute training with a different enemy, Ruena called upon Storm. When Storm arrived he was with a young black-haired boy. This boy must be the reason Storm had announced his rather sudden and semi-permanent retirement from the Warriors. The reason she had asked for Storm’s help specifically was because of his similarity to Protector’s in his fighting style. He had speed, strength, and crystilium.

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  “Can I fight you too?” the boy asked, “You don’t have magic but you look strong. I want to fight you.”

  “You cannot,” Storm denied, “You still can’t control yourself enough for normal sparring.”

  “I won’t kill her,” the boy promised.

  What an oddly chilling conversation for an assassin to be the more morally sound person when talking to a child. The boy reluctantly watched from the sidelines as Storm entered the arena with Ruena. Bastian was watching them closely, especially Storm, but whatever his thoughts were he kept them to himself.

  “It’s not too late to change your mind,” Storm warned, “I am optimized for killing, not gentle sparring. I cannot guarantee you will walk away unscathed.”

  “Good. I need to be prepared for that much,” Ruena replied, “The Protector I am fighting against will likely be aiming for my life.”

  “In that case, I won’t hold back. If you can’t handle it, surrender immediately,” Storm told her.

  That was all the warning Ruena got before the air churned around them and Storm disappeared. This wasn’t magic, just sheer speed. Would the Protector she would be fighting be this fast as well. Had she not been practicing with the white pawn, she wouldn’t have stood a chance. Now her instincts allowed her to react just in time. A thrill raced through her veins as she realized that Storm’s attack would have been the end for her if she failed to dodge in time. He hadn’t been joking about not holding back.

  It was all she could do to dodge, but if she wanted to claim her title and free the Cats she needed to win. Her enemy was stronger, faster, and even better defended than she was. He was ruthless so he would not shy away from the final strike if it presented itself. There had to be something she could do. Ruena had known Storm for years, so he had to have some kind of weakness.

  Something swished through Ruena’s hair. He was throwing things now?! Unlike the white pawn, he was adapting his fighting style along with her. She couldn’t afford to let her guard down. The only weakness she could think of would be useless against the Protector she would be fighting. There had to be something else. Anything else.

  “I surrender!” Ruena called out, stumbling out of the way of his latest strike. Her lungs were burning, and her limbs ached. She thought she had gained more strength and stamina in her training but it was nothing compared to Storm.

  Storm came to a stop, becoming a normal and perfectly visible person again. “You did better than I expected,” he commented, “I expected you to try to play dirty so I made sure not to give you any openings.”

  “I could tell,” Ruena muttered, “If I thought it would help in the real battle, I would have played dirty, but I couldn’t find any weaknesses that would actually be useful.”

  “I could tell you,” the boy said, “I can see everything, so I know everyone’s weaknesses.”

  Another concerning statement from a child. Just what kind of trouble had Soral gotten involved in this time? Where had he picked this boy up from?

  “Thank you, but I must find it myself,” Ruena told him.

  The boy was strangely delighted by her answer. “You are so cool! Now I really want to fight you. Can I really not?”

  “How about this? If I can beat Storm before my test, you can fight me then.” Ruena offered.

  The boy grinned. “Awesome! I’m Blade, by the way. Are you really the future Weaponsmaster?”

  “My name is Ruena,” she told him, “but yes.”

  “Cool. We should get along, then. I am the Living Weapon!” The boy was once again very proud of something that sounded far too concerning. Ruena was going to have to ask both Storm and Soral for answers later after all.