CHAPTER 11:THE PRINCE'S TEST
No one said why the prince came to the training field again.
They never had to.
His presence shifted the entire atmosphere—every breath held tighter, every sword gripped firmer. The recruits stood straighter, quieter. Even the veterans sharpened their movements like they were suddenly children again, trying to impress a father who never smiled.
Valen Draeven didn't speak when he entered.
He never did—at least not first.
Captain Ren bowed, crisp and stiff. "Your Highness, we weren't expecting your visit again so soon."
The prince's voice was low. Controlled.
"I'm not here to visit. I'm here to test."
My stomach tightened.
---
The courtyard stilled.
I kept my expression neutral, my eyes forward.
He didn't look at me—not right away. But I felt it.
That same presence from the archway. The way his gaze cut deeper than any blade. Like he could read thoughts not written.
And still—he said nothing.
---
"Five recruits," he finally said. "Your best. Let me see what you've taught them."
Captain Ren hesitated only a second. "Of course."
He began calling names. Bastien. Kael. Two others I didn't know.
Then—
"Sera."
Heads turned.
My name sounded too loud in the air. I stepped forward without hesitation.
If I refused, I'd draw suspicion.
If I agreed… I had to be careful.
---
We lined up in the center of the training ground.
The prince stood at the edge, arms crossed behind his back. He didn't wear armor, only a dark coat with silver threading. No crown. No weapons.
He didn't need them.
His silence was sharper than steel.
"You will spar," he said. "One by one. With me."
A beat passed.
Even Bastien blinked. "With… you, Your Highness?"
He nodded. "If you cannot keep up, I'll consider it Captain Ren's failure."
---
Kael went first.
She moved well. Swift. Balanced. He toyed with her—not cruelly, but enough to show he was in control of every exchange.
Then Bastien.
He charged like a brute.
He left the ring dizzy and humiliated.
Two others.
Same result.
---
Then… me.
I stepped into the ring as the others stepped back. My hands didn't shake. My pulse didn't waver.
But inside, my mind screamed.
You cannot draw attention.
You cannot fight like who you were.
"Name?" he asked, though he already knew it.
"Sera."
"Just Sera?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
He tilted his head. "Interesting."
Then he moved.
---
The first strike was a test.
I blocked.
Too quickly.
His eyes narrowed.
The second came faster—low and sharp. I parried, deliberately off-tempo.
He frowned. "You're holding back."
I said nothing.
He pressed forward, and I danced away, dodging by inches.
His strikes were clean, surgical, never wasteful. Not overpowering—refined.
So I gave him the same.
Just a taste.
I shifted my stance, the one drilled into me by Virellian masters. The form I was never supposed to show.
He noticed.
His next attack was a feint. I stepped into it, not away.
Our blades clashed, locked.
His voice dropped, soft enough for only me.
"Where did you learn that step?"
I didn't answer.
He didn't press.
Instead, he stepped back and lowered his sword.
"Enough."
Captain Ren looked confused. "Your Highness—"
"I've seen what I needed to see," Valen said.
His eyes never left mine.
"You're wasted as a recruit."
---
Later, after we were dismissed, Kael found me in the corridor near the armory.
"You okay?"
I nodded. "Just tired."
She didn't press. She never did.
But I caught the look in her eyes—protective, not suspicious.
And I realized, as I sat in the shadows and wiped the sweat from my palms, that something had changed.
---
Prince Valen was growing suspicious of me.But for some reason he doesn't seem to think that I'm a threat because if he did he would have already removed me from the royal guards or is he just waiting for the right opportunity?
I really have to be more careful.