I slash at Klevon but he is fast. He sidestepped before the edge of my knife connects to his stomach. Sensing my mistake, he raises his knife and is about to bring down the knife on my left torso, when I duck and roll myself away towards safety.
I crouch a few meters away from him, wiping the sweat that's dripping on my chin. I scrutinize his form. Even if he's huge, his defense is impregnable. I switch my hold on the knife and take another from the holster on my legs.
Magic. I need to use magic. It's the only way I can fight against him. I enclose the edge of the knife in fire and glares at him.
"Your fire magic is not enough. Heighten it," Klevon suggests.
I did as proposed and I feel hotter from the magic output. Nevertheless, I rush towards the unmoving Klevon who is watching me as a hawk does on its prey. I raise my arm, planning to strike at the side of his torso when he flicks his wrist. My knife shoots towards Theo's feet, who is watching our practice battle.
I ignore the way that Theo's brow raises and shift my attention to Klevon. With only one knife, I strike at his leg, but the same way, he flicks my attacks with little effort and it hits the wooden box that Theo is sitting on which he evades successfully.
I glare at Klevon. Why is he too into this?! Shouldn't he fight a little less since I am a beginner on this? But then, I sense his kick before it connects to my lower legs. With no way to evade, I block it, making me spiral towards Theo.
But instead of pain. I feel a soft landing and then Theo's arms lifting me and putting me down on the floor.
"Didn't I say there should be a limit?" Theo asks.
Klevon shrugs his shoulders. "You are here. I know you will save her if I get too into it."
I look back and forth at the two men. I know Klevon is intentionally sending my knives towards Theo, possibly to annoy him. There is no need for that though. Theo is already upset since today is Sunday and I am spending it to practice combat with Klevon.
"Why are you here, anyway?" Klevon asks, without an ounce of respect to his King.
I sense Theo's irritation. So this time, I step in front of him, while holding his arms to stop him.
"Theo, he's right. It's my training. If you want to watch, you should not help me."
"That kick could have sent you off this deck!" he roars.
I grimace. He's right. I felt it at the moment of impact. I am actually grateful that Theo caught me.
"Are we going to continue with the practice or not?" Klevon calls.
"Here." Theo hands me the knives. "I can't believe you are choosing this to spend your Sunday rather than in the bed with me." I blush at that and he notices it. "It's not too late. It's still the afternoon," he adds.
"No," I say, trying to fight against the temptation. Besides, there is no valid excuse to be tempted by his invitation. We've been doing it every morning and night nonstop, even if Klevon warned me not to have so much sex.
I touch Theo's cheek and say, "You know I need to do this before we arrive at your land. Once there, it will be hard to practice."
Theo takes a deep breath and sits back at his wooden box. I, on the other hand, look at Klevon. He's still waiting. In reality, I don't know how I will break his defense. I make my stance. This human combat is harder than I thought.
"That's it," Klevon says. "Feel the magic from your core and guide it towards the tip of your fingers."
I did as instructed. This time, the blue fire appears on the edge of my knife. Instantly, I drop it. I look at Klevon, worried that I did something wrong.
"Why did you drop it!?"
"There's blue fire, and it's engulfing my hands," I say.
Klevon hits his forehead and says, "Did you feel burned?"
I shake my head.
"That's because it will not affect you! It's from your magic. It will only hurt me!"
"But it's blue. Mine should be orange."
"Blue is hotter than your orange. It means you're getting used to it. Now, get those knives and do it again. And attack me with the intent to kill me. Else, you won't break my defense."
I clench my jaws as I pick up my knives. Like before, I let my magic flow from my core towards my knives. Then, there it is again, the blue fire. It kisses the edge of my knife and it seems to be inextinguishable.
"That's good. Give it more."
I did and I watch the flame burst, but it didn't explode and didn't hurt me. I smile, liking how it looks on my knife.
"We don't have all day, missy! Attack with it now!" Klevon interrupts my thoughts.
Focusing on him again, I prepare myself. I start slow and then I rush towards him, my knives poised in front of me. I make a couple of slashes and strikes at him, but like before, nothing gets through.
I growl in frustration, and haphazardly I rush into him, planning to hit his hips instead. Suddenly, Klevon extended his arms. He catches my wrist and in a split second; I find myself losing balance. Turns out Klevon has made his move and has imprisoned my wrists in a cuff.
I withdraw and look at the silver metal around my wrists. "What is this!?" I shout at him.
"Silver really looks good on werewolves," he says, massaging his chin as he observes me.
I groan. I know what this is now. He is making me aware that he's just playing around, that I am not worth his time to train.
"You should use silver necklaces and bracelets once we're back at Pitchford." Then he returns his knives to his holster and walks towards me. "Silver chains would be best."
I growl at him. Silver chains are symbols of werewolves' slavery, of our subjugation after the war.
"Ah, don't growl at me. No matter how angry you get, you cannot hurt me."
He stands before me, his frame towering over me. He leans towards me and says, "Because you are so average, so mediocre. Aren't you too full of yourself to declare yourself as my King's mate?"
"Fuck you," I seethe with anger, my fists tightly holding my knives, and then I slash at him. He might have not expected it because he steps back too slow, allowing my fire to lick at his clothes, burning them in the process.
"Ha!" he snorts, seeing the damage I've done on his cotton shirt. He wipes the remaining embers and looks at me. "You can't fuck me, dear. Or my King will kill me. But if you get rejected, come to me, I will take pleasure in it."
I glare at him, my wolf starts to appear. But when he sneers, I calm myself down. I take my stance again, but he rushes at me first. Suddenly, a knife passes between us, and Klevon pulls back. We look at where it came from and see Theo playing with another knife, while his hands are on his chin.
He stands up and says to me, "Starting tomorrow, you will be training with Brandon instead."
Theo walks towards me and places his arms around my shoulders.
"Where's the fun in that?!" Klevon complains.
Instead, Theo glares at him. "I do not give you the duty to train her just so you can enjoy yourself."
Klevon snickers. "Are you jealous?!"
When Theo did not respond, Klevon laughs. "My King learned how to be jealous! Ain't that great, my little werewolf, you are teaching him more things!"
In a split second, Klevon falls and Theo is on top of him, with a knife on his neck. It was too fast that I didn't even notice it. Afraid that it will escalate, I approach the two. Theo is mad while Klevon is smirking.
"She's not yours," Theo says in bated breath.
"It's just a pet name, why so angry?"
"You are not allowed to use any pet names for a King's lover," he whispers.
Klevon raises his arms and says, "Fine, fine. I give up. I won't do it again."
Theo stands up and offers him his arm. Once they are on their feet, Theo says, "You better be."
Theo returns to my side and places his arm around my shoulders as if showing Klevon his ownership of me. I know there's something wrong with it, but I can't help the fluttery feeling of knowing that he is jealous of me.