After giving the formal greeting, as well as inquiring about their parents, eventually the Marquess and Countess released us, mainly due to Anput dozing off slightly during tea.
As soon as we were dismissed, Anput shot up and moved towards the door, her tail swaying slightly behind her back.
We made our way to the now familiar training ground, and Anput and I walked to the center after grabbing practice blades.
Spinning the dagger in my hand, I stayed in a loose stance as I observed Anput.
She had grabbed a longsword, similar to the one she bought last visit. Twirling it once, she wrapped both hands around the handle and lowered herself, her grin almost splitting her face.
"Alright, first hit wins. Leone will be the judge, since she is more impartial than me. Are you ready?"
Hearing Jahi's voice, Anput and I nodded, waiting for the countdown.
"3...2...1... Go!"
Anput dashed forwards, swinging the blade down towards my skull.
Her movements were fast and fluid, and even as I stepped to the side I had to ward off an elbow sent my way.
Jumping backwards, I spun my dagger into a reverse grip before I rushed towards Anput, swiping the dagger towards her midriff.
Seeing her spin out of the way, I stabbed the dagger back towards her, catching her off guard. She quickly brought the crossguard up, narrowly blocking my dagger.
She moved back, her eyes narrowed as she looked at me.
"I didn't think you'd be this good, Kat..."
I just smiled at her, before dashing forwards again.
This time, as I stabbed the dagger at her again, I sent a jab towards her temple.
She swayed, before slashing her blade towards my midriff. I rolled to the side, before lunging back at her.
She had swung to far, and was off balance, so I smiled widely when the dagger started inching closer and closer to her side.
However, I suddenly found myself lying on my back, the air knocked from my lungs as Anput sent a kick to my chest.
I blinked rapidly, feeling the cold metal on my throat before my vision refocused.
Looking up, I saw Anput smirking at me, her blade resting on my throat.
"I haven't been slacking off this year either~"
Withdrawing the blade, she stabbed it into the ground before offering her hand.
I glared at her, before sighing and grabbing her wrist. Pulling me up, I beat the dust off my dress before looking back at her.
Anput was just smiling at me, though I could see the familiar heat in her gaze, reminiscent of how Jahi looked at me, or the Countess looked at the Marquess.
Leaning towards me, Anput whispered "If you weren't already promised to Jahi, and I didn't need to worry about my marriages... Oh, I would do everything I could to make you mine~"
She moved back, taking the sword from the ground before looking towards Jahi.
"Care for a round?"
Nodding, Jahi took a blade from the wall before walking towards Anput. I sighed, before moving off to the side. My chest still stung, but it wasn't something I wasn't used to at this point.
The Marquess sometimes forgot her strength...
Leaning against the wall, I heard Leone move next to me.
"Well... If it is any consolation, Mother has said that the Sultana is raising Anput not to be the next ruler, but to become the Sultanate's blade."
I looked over at Leone, looking at her side profile as she watched Jahi and Anput spar in the center of the grounds.
"The Sultanate's blade?"
Hearing my question, Leone turned her orange eyes to look at me.
"Yes. The Sultana plans on raising her daughter to be as strong, if not stronger than her. She says that the Sultanate needs a sharp blade to protect itself."
I looked back towards Anput, watching as she grinned as she danced around Jahi's blade.
Sighing, I replied "Well, at least she seems to enjoy the role..."
~~~
The day passed rather quickly, with Anput and Jahi sparring most of the time, with both sometimes asking me to spar with them so they could 'spice things up'.
After the sun fell, we made our way back inside, soaked in sweat. Jahi and I made our way to our room, while Leone and Anput made their way to their own rooms.
We took our time in the bath, before eventually getting out to go get food. Eating a large meal, Leone asked if we could go to the Library, where she and I looked through various books about magic while Anput chatted with Jahi.
Hours passed, and eventually the day caught up to me, and I started nodding off. Seeing that, Jahi scooped me up before bidding the other two goodnight.
Laying me in our bed, I could hear her hitched breathing as she undressed me, before quickly placing my chemise on.
Getting into the bed with me, she pulled me into her, burying her face into my ears.
I drifted to sleep rather quickly, both from the exhaustion and how comfortable I was in her arms.
~~~
The day of my core awakening...
It both flew by and dragged on.
It felt like it took forever for the Marquess and Countess to draw the ritual circle, and yet...
Here I was, sitting in the center of the circle, a crystal ball laying in my lap.
My heart pounded in my chest, and every breath I took felt like I was breathing in soup.
I tried to calm down, but the more I realized that this was the actual start of my life here...
Shaking my head, I looked around, seeing Jahi, Anput, and Leone standing as a group, all looking at me with a mixture of worry and anticipation in their gaze.
Like with Jahi, the Marquess, Countess, and Arch Mage Kolia sat in a triangle around me, where they would start gathering mana to funnel into the crystal in my lap.
My mother stood by herself, her lips pursed as she looked at me in worry.
I gave them all a shaky smile, before nodding my head at the Marquess.
Closing my eyes, I focused my entire being on the crystal, just like Arch Mage Kolia told me to do.
Hearing the sound of the three women chanting, I gripped the ball tighter.
They continued chanting, until they fell silent, moving away from the circle.
Feeling the ball shiver in my grasp, I continued to hold it, until...
Gasping, I felt something enter my body through my hands, flooding my veins as it worked it's way to my chest, right next to my heart.
From my right hand a warm, gentle energy worked through my body, before reaching my heart.
From my left hand I felt a chilly, sharp energy rush into me, before colliding with the warmer energy.
Crying out, I felt the two slowly clash together, before mixing and spreading to the other side of my body.
Taking in gulps of air, I could feel the energy coalesce next to my heart, before slowing ballooning out slightly.
I gasped again, the pain and discomfort from my heart feeling like it was being pushed aside making my head spin.
Moments passed, and gradually the two different energies in my body fused, creating a cold, yet comfortable feeling throughout my body.
Taking in a deep breath, I noticed something else.
The air around me now felt... thicker.
I could tell that it was no longer 'empty'. There was something in it, and if I had to guess, it was mana.
Opening my eyes, I looked down at the pale blue crystal ball, that was slowly dimming.
Turning my gaze upwards, I saw everyone looking at me in surprise.
Standing up, I felt my vision tunnel, until the only thing I could see was Jahi.
Her lithe figure.
Her gold tipped horns.
Her amethyst eyes.
Her plump lips...
Dashing forwards, I threw myself at her, wrapping her into a tight hug.
My heart was beating fast, and as I buried my face into her neck, her normally sweet smell sent me over the edge, making my whole body warm up.
Pulling away, I looked up at her eyes, watching as they flickered between amethyst and gold.
Smiling at her, I leaned upwards, placing my lips on hers.
Feeling her stiffen, I moved my arms towards her waist, pulling her closer.
As she looked down at me in surprise, I nipped her lower lip, making her moan slightly.
Before I could deepen the kiss, she pushed me away slightly, her face a deep blue.
Turning away from me, I ground my teeth, slightly annoyed at her, before sighing.
Taking a deep breath, I calmed myself down, before simply leaning into her.
I could feel Leone and Anput move next to us, as well as my mother, however...
My focus was entirely on the blushing demon in my arms.
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So, that's the core! I plan on showing how it affects her in a little more detail next chapter, but we finally reached this point lol~!
Anyways, I had a wonderful idea about a few chapters, so just know we have a bit until the Academy, though I do think that these chapters will be less... tedious(?) than everything before now, so...
Enjoy~
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