[i]The second day, at the training field.[/i]

Elaeria sat down for a break, wiping sweat from her forehead and taking a drink of fresh water from the canteen she had taken from the supply wagon. All across the field in front of her students sparred, many still wielding wooden swords as proof the Arms Master had yet to deem them sufficiently skilled to wield the blunted steel weapons still in their racks. One of those weapons was on the grass next to her, symbolic of her skill. In actual fact she had not had to prove her skill; the Master had known her reputation and along with a select few others she had been granted use of a blunted blade immediately.

A small smile crept across her lips as she remembered the numerous young men challenging her to spar, thinking an 'upstart' woman to be an easy target. Many of them were now nursing broken hands by the medic's pavilion, a painful lesson not to underestimate their opponent. The Lord Arn from Arnst had provided a much better challenge but she had still prevailed multiple times, choosing to stick with the man as a sparring partner as he could keep up with her. Nevertheless, her thoughts drifted to the more sobering event; the duel in which Sir Henry had been wounded by foul play. Normally she would not care for a man of another nation but she found herself fond of the young man's idiotic chivalrous disguise; the duel had brought out a ruthlessness in him which she had been surprised to see. Nearby she could hear her familiar, the large black dragon the other noble students were afraid to go near, snorting in irritation.

[i]You know there's real fighting to be had elsewhere. A short trip to the medical ward...[/i]

She gave the dragon a sharp look, cutting off the end of his sentence.

[i]It is none of my business. I did not come here to get caught up in another country's affairs.[/i]

[i]We shall see...[/i]

Standing up she flicked up the steel blade and strode through the rings marked in the mud, signalling the sparring rings the students were commanded to duel in. She eyed the blood splatter on the ground near one, one of the sharpened steel blades still stuck in the ground where Sir Henry had leaned on it earlier to prevent himself keeling over. Ignoring it she pressed on towards the archery range; she was in too foul a mood to be challenged to a duel by any more fools.

As she left the sparring area some tension was let out but was quickly regained with the Arms Master noticed the slacking off and roared at them to carry on.

"No one leaves until they've won at least three bouts!"