Chapter 217: We Won

There was proof of her claim: a darker smear of dirt on the edge of his boot, a bare sliver where the packed earth had been touched. The toe of his boot rested not on the inside of the circle but beyond it — only a finger’s breadth of dust to show the line had been crossed.

Orion’s mouth twisted at the corners; for a bare instant he was the student who had been outfoxed. Then that twist became a laugh, soft and incredulous. "You used your collapsing as a way to win?"

"You said anything works in a battle. I’d admit I didn’t do it intentionally, but it worked in our favor all the same," she told him.

Orion laughed as his hands tightened around her. "Okay, fine, you sly woman. You won. But do you see what you’re doing wrong?"

"Pushing myself too much?" she asked him.

He nodded. "You’ve improved drastically, but you need to know when to withdraw, when to rest and take a step back. You don’t want to be weak, Sophia, but if you continue like this, not knowing when to rest, then you will be weak," he told her.

She nodded, absorbing his words. "I’ll take the rest of the day to rest."

Orion shook his head. "No, you rest for about two days minimum," he told her.

"No, one day is enough. One day is all I need," she argued.

Orion didn’t say anything. Instead, he took her hand in his own; his fingers closed around hers with a firmness that had no cruelty but no compromise either. The squeeze was gentle enough to be a lover’s chastisement, tight enough to be impossible to break easily. She hissed a little from the contact.

"Two," he said again.

"You’re brutal," she breathed, half amused, half affronted.

He leaned closer, and the crowd seemed to blur into unimportant noise. His lips brushed the shell of her ear. "I need you at full strength, shorty. You’ve been cockblocking me for days and my cock can only live so long without its mate."

Heat rose up Sophia’s neck at the word — equal parts indignation and amusement. She scowled at him.

Thank the goddess there was no one near them to hear his words.

"I’m not joking," he told her sternly.

She rolled her eyes, but even she had to admit that she missed sex with him.

"So?" Orion asked her.

Sophia sighed. "Two days it is."

Orion grinned like a man who had won a private war.

"Good." He released her, still holding her close enough that the warmth of him brushed against the cold on her shoulders. He stepped back and, to the trainees who were still watching at the edge with hushed breaths, he spoke.

"Just so you guys know... even if someone out here puts their health on the line, which I don’t recommend," Orion said, giving Sophia a stern look, "you guys pass the test. You can take the rest of the day off."

At that proclamation, the trainees lost whatever wary reserve they still wore. Dren, Joren, Laia, Nia, Micah, Cat — they all surged forward in a tangle of laughter and shoves, crowding around Sophia like a flock around a favored bird.

They grabbed her by the shoulders, hugged her, ruffled her hair, smothered her with clumsy affection. Sophia, small and triumphant, let it happen; she leaned into the crush of their warmth and stuttered gratitude between their excited words.

Orion raised a hand, but this time he did not stop them immediately. He let them soak in the moment for a long breath. Then, with a smile that was part amusement and part command, he put an authoritative palm out. "Enough," he said. "She’s exhausted. Don’t crush her."

"Aww, are you jealous?" Sophia teased, blinking up at him as the huddle loosened.

"Given how he is, it’s no wonder he’s jealous. No one apart from Joren would hug him this way," Laia said with a laugh.

"But not today," Joren told them. "Sophia is my favorite person for today."

Sophia turned to Orion with mirth in her eyes. "Even Joren doesn’t want you?" she asked him with a gasp. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Her words just gave the others an avenue to tease Orion about not having people who would hug him like they hugged Sophia.

Meanwhile, at the edge of the yard, Holly watched them with a hardness in her eyes that had nothing to do with the day’s lesson. Her mouth had threaded into a narrow line — the posture of someone folding anger into plans. She turned away before anyone could read the shift in her shoulders, leaving the ring to its small, bright victory and walking off with a stride that mirrored how she felt.

No one noticed when she even left. She was the only one who didn’t rejoice with the others.

Garron gathered the trainees, telling them to polish and return the weapons and get some rest.

There was a chorus of agreement — tired and relieved. The trainees melted away into the bustle of packing weapons and rubbing at sore hands. Garron barked next steps; a few older trainees began to organize the cleaning. The day’s lesson collapsed into routine again.

Sophia let the commotion carry her for a little while, feeling the tiredness like a weight and the victory like a buoy. She waddled gingerly as the adrenaline ebbed, joints complaining and muscles humming with the quiet ache of well-earned work. Micah fell into step with her, a quiet companion, watching more than speaking, and offered a small, steadying smile.

"You were awesome," he told her.

She laughed. "Um... I know. Did you see my fan base?" she asked him with a laugh.

Micah laughed. "I did. I’m part of it, after all."

She smiled.

"You can skip cleaning. You look exhausted. Take the time to rest," he told her.

"Are you sure?" she asked him.

He nodded. "The others wouldn’t mind. You helped us pass the test, after all."

She yawned, and Nia spoke up just as she reached them. "Go get some rest before you swallow us all with that loud yawn."