Chapter 21

Serene's POV

The disappointment I felt after my defeat was beyond words. Although I had prior training I was still no match for Zeph. He was exceptional and he proved it. We relied too much on our magic and, therefore, were no match with Folkels in non-magic combat. I was gonna be a laughing stock after he handed my ass to me in that duel.

I glanced up at him as he was standing a few feet from me with his friend, with a perfect smile on his face. His silky hair bit messy from the duel, which he was trying to straighten with his hands. His nose was bruised from where I hit him with my head. I felt bad looking at his wound. It wasn't my intention to hurt him but it was a duel and just like him, I wanted to win. How could someone be so damn perfect, only if he had a better attitude as well and wasn't so smug?

Duels had ended and Sarim Sensei announced all the winners: "Some of you have pretty good techniques but all of you still need a lot of practice. Your schedules have been provided to you and it's solely up to you to decide which weapons you want mastery on. Now, we will show you what regular training, diligence, and hard work can achieve."

He motioned to Alvene who moved to the centre of the hall withdrawing her batons. Sarim Sensei grabbed a simple staff from the weapons and went to stand face to face with Alvene; who bowed to him before beginning. As they went head-on with each other, everything seemed to become a blur. Their movements were rapid and swift and they wasted no time in counterattacking each other. Sarim Sensei was lightning fast on his feet and his defence left no openings. Alvene had an attacking mood and the way she handled both batons at the same time for both attack and defence was a treat to watch. Although, they were only giving us a demo they were lightyears ahead of us in terms of weapon control, footwork, and speed. Besides, they made it look effortless.

Unlike, us none of them was out of breath. Most of us were wide-eyed at the perfect display of duel in front of us. While few had bored looks on their faces and clearly thought it was a waste of their time.

As soon as they stopped there was a loud cheer from us. "Alvene has been my student for a year now and you people can clearly see the difference. If you people strive to work hard, this could be all of you by the end of this year." Sarim Sensei addressed us again. The crowd murmured, mostly in agreement.

"You people can head to your rooms now, a special welcome feast will be held at night for you all, where you can meet your seniors and become acquainted with each other. So, see you all later tonight." Sarim Sensei announced before dismissing us.

I left the room with a heavy heart. Ayrden joined me on my way back. She realised that I was feeling down. "Don't let that bother you too much, it was your first time and from what I have heard from Artins Sensei, Zeph is an exceptional swordsman. He stood first in the entry test for Folkels and even defeated a gigantic monster and a werewolf. Considering all that you did great."

"I can't believe what I am hearing. Do you think he went easy on me then?" I asked in a shocked voice.

"I didn't go easy on you, princess. You did well in that fight. More than what I would expect from your kind," someone spoke with a lot of sarcasm.

I quickly turned around to find myself looking straight into Zeph's dark eyes. The bruise on his nose had turned purplish blue and there was no trace of a smile on his handsome face. How could someone be so handsome and yet so rude at the same time?

"Sorry, about your nose. I didn't mean to do that." My tone was apologetic.

"But you did. I don't need your apology, everything is fair in a battle." He just shrugged his shoulders and walked away without any backward glance, leaving us standing there looking at him.

"Hiya! I am Ralph, please forgive his rudeness. Manners are not his forte," a cheerful voice brought my attention back.

He was a redhead with ocean-deep blue eyes. His whole personality seemed the polar opposite of Zeph, from his appearance to his smiling face. He kinda reminded me of Zian.

"Heya!" I shook his extended hand.

"You were really good in that fight against him. That was his way of appreciating you, I know he comes on as rude. But once you get to know him, he is not that bad. I have known him since childhood and believe me his manners are all over the place." He told us while laughing.

I smiled back at him: "It's alright."

"Are you coming or what? " Zeph shouted from a distance throwing an angry look at us. "Gotta go before he murders me with those looks." Ralph apologetically grinned at us before sprinting towards Zeph.

Ayrden and I began to laugh at this encounter as we headed toward our room.

Once inside our room, I asked Ayrden about what to wear for the evening. I didn't want to wear anything fancy so as not to draw any more attention to myself. Ayrden was wearing a silvery blue one-shoulder floor-length dress which was adorned with white pearls. It was an exquisite dress.

I showed her the dresses which I had brought along. She was in awe looking at my dresses and told me to wear the A-line black dress with a belt and black gemstones on it. It was made up of silk and net. I opted for black high heels with it.

As the sun began to set, we started dressing up. I put on very light makeup but let my hair loose by combing them from the right and placing my flower in it.

"My, my you have such gorgeous hair," Ayrden exclaimed.

"Thank you, I like them long but I don't open them much."

"I wish I had long hair like you, but no matter what I do they never grow." She pointed to her ear-length short hair which almost looked like a pixie cut.

"Well, they suit you and that's all that matters," I tried to reassure her.

Once we were ready we decided to head down and enjoy the party.