LOST

Chapter 18- Rankings

I walked until I faced the lethal warrior in front of me. My self-confidence kept shattering with every step I took. I released a shaky breath. My stance widened as I held the sparring stick tightly within my grip. Hudson's gaze landed on my posture and a smirk formed on his lips. He just looked at me with an all-knowing smile as if taunting me to back off when I had the chance. 

But I wasn't going to. 

I wasn't going to let him have the satisfaction of seeing me defeated before entering the battlefield. I stood my ground and looked at him with the same heat that he was showing me. I rose my chin higher, indicating that I was ready for whatever he was going to throw my way.

"Widen your stance," Hudson commented. I didn't obey. How could I trust him? Maybe he was trying to sabotage me.

Hudson simply sighed as his gaze travelled the length of my body. It wasn't in a sexual kind of way; it was a practical gaze, taking in every flaw of my posture. Hudson simply clicked his tongue and that was the only warning I received before he stuck faster than lightning. 

The blow landed on my right arm in such a brutal way that I was sure that I had a broken bone. Tears stung my eyes immediately and I looked to the ground to hide my shame. My stick still stood in the air, useless like me. Hudson stood an inch away from me. I saw a glint of pity in his eyes before it was replaced with stone-cold indifference.

"Do you have any experience in the field of combat, trainee?" he asked.

"No," I replied immediately.

"Obviously," he sighed heavily. "I will assign you with a trainer from the other trainees. Be sure to improve-," he waved at me, "-this before the trials."

He then dismissed me with a wave of his hand.

 Unfortunately, my stupid brain didn't obey and my body froze just as it was. 

Hudson looked around at the crowd with his back facing me, not quite noticing that I hadn't shifted from my position.

"You!" Hudson called out to another young woman in the crowd. "Let's have a go at it shall we?"

The woman was frail-looking and I reckoned that she shouldn't be allowed anywhere near a sword. Although, she proved me wrong when she swiftly lifted her stick with such precision and elegance that I visibly shrank.

Was everyone better than me?

Hudson was still standing with his back against me.

"Whomever I shall declare as incapable of wielding a stick for sparring shall be partnered up with a person who can," he started loudly. "I expect to see improvement in the next week."

 Hudson motioned for the woman to join him on the field but the woman stood staring at me, not knowing what to do. Hudson followed the woman's line of sight and his eyes narrowed the minute they landed on me.

"What do you think you're doing, trainee?" he barked.

"I want to fight," the words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. 

Oh my lord, who are you right now?

Hudson's eyebrows rose to his hairline and I swore I heard Karthur groan in the crowd.

"You want to fight?" Hudson repeated, pronouncing every syllable with torturing slowness

"Yes, sir," I nodded defiantly.

"Well, can you learn how to fight first? Then we can go to the real thing," Hudson laughed. A few people from the crowd laughed along with him. Heat rose to my cheeks but I still didn't move. Hudson noticed my stubbornness and simply smiled.