Chapter 236

“And you’re fourth advancement?” Delta asked. “Dunno how good of a match we’ll be, then. Both of us,” she waved between Zoey and herself, “got skills that need practice before they’re usable, for our fourth advancement. And that happened yesterday, so.”

“Ah,” Cordelia said. “I see. Nevertheless. You need not worry this is a power play. The request is earnest. I would like a sparring partner to warm up with, simple as that. And, admittedly, I wish to get a feel for Rosalie’s teammates. But my goal isn’t to establish myself, or similar. A friendly bout, on my word.”

Delta considered her. “Wanna do a two-on-three, then? Maybe it’ll be even that way.” Her eyes flicked to Quinn. “What’re you, anyway?”

“Fourth as well,” Quinn replied calmly. For the most part, the dark-haired boy had been observing Rosalie’s fights with Honor and their conversations with an air of impassivity. The initial wariness Zoey had seen seemed to have faded. Either they, or Rosalie, weren’t as threatening as he’d worried.

“An arena would buy us privacy,” Cordelia added. “Away from prying ears. Rosalie had the right of it, to step into one with Honor so quickly.”

Delta turned an inquiring look at Zoey. Zoey shrugged. “We expected fights, coming here. It’s why Enzo sent us, I’m sure. For the best if our first one is with someone friendly, right?”

Cordelia raised her eyebrows, and it took Zoey a second to realize it was probably because of how she’d used Enzo’s name. Cordelia had called him Lord d’Celestin, and otherwise, he was simply ‘the Guildmaster.’ Casually addressing him by his first name was probably improper.

Then again, he was her girlfriend’s dad. Even if Rosalie was hiding that from the general world, Zoey thought she was allowed some casualness with her family.

“In fact,” Zoey said to Delta. “I bet that’s part of why she’s offering.” She nodded at Cordelia. “The longer you keep us occupied, the longer we stave off the vultures, as Rosalie put it.”

Cordelia laughed. “Perhaps,” she said. “But even if I were being so altruistic, I’m not lying about wanting to test you three. I’m dying of curiosity. Nobody knows anything about you. Even dear Madeline, for all we know who her mother is.”

“My family’s kinda private,” Maddy agreed.

“As Sovereign tend to be. So? You’re interested?”

They shared another look. Zoey shrugged and faced Cordelia. “Sure. Should we leave Rosie alone, though?”

Even as she asked that, Honor was once again thrown across the arena, slamming into a shimmering magical shield that, for all intents and purposes, was a solid brick wall.

“She’ll come find us. It seems Honor is being even more stubborn than usual.” Cordelia sighed. “She’ll have her good sense beaten into her eventually.”

The five of them set off for the nearest arena. Unfortunately, none were adjacent to Rosalie’s; they had to walk across half the courtyard. They stepped into their respective halves of the platform. Her skin tingled as she passed through the magical boundary. The sounds of the courtyard fell away, all the idle chatter disappearing.

“Much better,” Cordelia said, voice clear in the newfound quiet. She unsheathed her sword in a fluid motion, baring six feet of shining metal with an ease that spoke to years of practice. A movement that was instinctive, ingrained, second-nature. “Now, tell me if I’m wrong, but a rogue-type and two mages, correct?”

“That’s right,” Zoey said.

“I’m afraid we have the upper hand on composition, then,” Cordelia said. “You have no proper frontline.”

The implication, of course, was that Cordelia handily served as a frontline on whatever team she joined. The armor and enormous sword had given that away. And yes, Zoey could see her point: she doubted a dagger-wielding rogue plus two mages were an ideal group to fight in. They had a numbers advantage, at least. She wasn’t sure which way this fight would go, considering that.

“Gotta make do with what you have,” Delta said. She unsheathed her daggers and spun them. “And don’t get cocky. You think I can’t hold your attention?”

Cordelia made a noise of appreciation. “I hope you can, dear. Warm ups shouldn’t be too easy.” She settled into a battle stance. “I’m afraid you have my blood itching. May we start? We can speak after.”

Zoey had expected more conversation, perhaps Cordelia and Quinn trading some general descriptions of their classes and styles, but it seemed that wouldn’t be happening. Maybe it was for the best it didn’t. Adaptability was a skill that needed to be trained as much as any other. Most fights—the ones that mattered—wouldn’t be sanitized duels in which she thoroughly knew her opponent. Most would be blind.

“Sure thing, beanpole,” Delta said. “Try to keep up.”