Theun POV

I wake up satisfied with the happenings of last night. Who knew my first time could be so wondrous? I bask in the afterglow as I feel the blood rushing through my veins, towards my relaxed muscles. Oh, what a feeling.

Sleeping, what a wonderful feeling it is. Well, technically there is no feeling and the waking up part is what feels good, but I digress. The feeling of your mental and physical fatigue lifted from your body, feeling refreshed and anew. I sit up and stretch my muscles a bit before leaving my tent.

I'm greeted with the sight of Alexandra training with a rod. Going through the forms, I see that she has practiced them many times. When she cycles through the forms, I've noticed that her body is exactly as it was the cycle before. The position of her hands and feet and the distance between them are perfectly identical to what they were earlier. Each strike was fast and accurate, each transition smooth and flowing. She is keeping her balance and adjusting her centre with each movement. I admire her determination as I look to the East and see that the sun has barely risen.

After her training is done, Alexandra looks towards me with evident surprise on her face. "Mornin' Princess" I say with a smile.

"My name’s Alexandra Dalton. Just call me Sandra like everyone else."

"Why not Alexandra?"

"It sounds too much like my father's name, Alex. Can you believe he named me with such a tomboyish name?"

Seems to fit you just fine. But Alex Dalton Huh? Sounds familiar, but then again, everything sounds familiar when you hear everything.

"You’re up early, did I wake you?"

She seems to have cooled off since our "interrogation" yesterday. She doesn't seem to want to lob my head off and is rather calm compared to how she was yesterday.

"Oh no, I don't normally sleep much (or at all), so I woke up early. You seem to have mastered the forms of your style. That's very impressive." -Theun

"Thank you. But forms can only get you so far; to master a style you need to fully understand the meaning and use of each form and adapt to every scenario. Using the forms as a guide and not a rule, you need to be able to change. I am still far from becoming a Master of my Father's art."

"Oh? The King made that style?"

"Yes, it's an amalgamation of the techniques he learnt when he travelled the continent to defeat the Devil Lord and his Generals. The style itself is no secret but my father doesn't bother teaching just anyone, so only a few people know it."

"Mhmmm... Is that why you and your sister are here for? Experience?"

"Well yes and no. Originally I planned to head out by myself and stick along the edge of the forest, but my father insisted on a few guards. Then my sister wanted to come along for the fun of it and more guards were forced upon my small group."

I give her a wry smile as I gaze at the numerous tents sheltering the Knights that are here with her.

"So what's the no part for?"

"Yesterday morning we saw a strange beam of light coming from further in the forest. Apparently it could be seen all the way back in Sanctium, so I received orders from my father to take our group further in and investigate. Since the light didn't come from very deep in the forest, the Royal Guards and I should be able to make it there safely and investigate. Reinforcements would take a full day to reach us right now and if there isn't much danger then we might as well journey ourselves."

I'm pretty sure I caused that light when I came to this world but its better that I don't say anything about that.

"Aren't you a little too trusting of me? Telling me your plans and all?"

"We you don't seem like a bad guy. You charged in headfirst to save someone you didn't know and endangered yourself to protect her. Not many people would do that even if they weren't evil."

"Hmmm, I'll take that as a compliment. If it helps you, I believe the light came from that direction." I say as I point towards the direction I came. Hopefully no one realises this.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"Yes I believe it did. Anyways, since you are up, would you like to spar with me? Using rods, of course. You seem well trained to reach my sister yesterday, considering the distance."

Hmmm... Apparently my dash yesterday isn't considered average for a normal civilian, but rather of a trained individual's. Sandra also seems to have some history when it comes to combat, so it's safe to assume she would be stronger than your run of the mill villager. It'll be a good idea to gauge her strength to see what humans are capable of.

"If you would have me."

I pick up the rod lying on the ground and grip it with both my hands. Readying myself, I adjust my feet to stand firm and place the rod between me and Sandra. I eye her carefully, watching for signs of an attack.

Third Person

Pointing the tip of the rod to the ground, Sandra lunges towards Theun and swings the rod in an uppercut fashion from her left to right. The rod carries considerable force and impacts with Theun's as he deflects it towards the sky in hopes of disarming Sandra. Realising his intentions, Sandra kicks herself off the ground and tries to plant a kick on Theun's chest as she follows the momentum of the sword into the air.

The kick is blocked by Theun as he jumps to join Sandra midair shooting out his leg to her stomach. As she is adjusting her body, Sandra is surprised to see Theun before her is kicked by him, sending her down towards the ground. She manages to land on her feet but is immediately slashed by Theun. Rolling forward, Sandra sweeps at his feet with the rod in hopes of toppling him. Theun dodges backwards and the two are both on their feet facing each other once again.

The second round begins, as Theun launches himself towards Sandra. Sandra is able to the block the attack but is disarmed by a quick strike on her forearm before she could even react. Following through with the movement, Theun uses the momentum by jumping and twisting his body to kick Sandra. Unarmed, Sandra raises her arms and blocks the attack with them but staggers backwards in the process. Taking the opening in his staggering opponent, Theun continues forward and sweeps his legs into hers, causing Sandra to fall onto the ground.

Sandra is looking up at Theun as he approaches her lying on the ground. His clothes are unblemished and his breathing, steady. Meanwhile, she's breathing in heavy gasps and she's got a footprint on her blouse. She's been defeated, rather pathetically in fact, but she can't help but to admire the man before her. He looks about her age, 23. Maybe a year or two older at most. A demon's and a human's physical body is practically identical, with demons only having an advantage in mana control. True he might have a bit more strength than she did with Enhancement Magic but that wasn't what defeated her. Pure skill and adaptability did.

Everything Theun did seem planned and calculated. When he deflected the first attack, he knew the rod would be flung upwards. When she went along with the blade, he adapted. Instead of attacking the unarmed opponent he had planned to, he adjusted to attack where the blade would’ve been flung. He was living the moment, adjusting to conform to the events around him. Yet he was always one step ahead, planning his next move and anticipating his opponent's. Battle experience was what she needed and this spar further proved that point.

She looked up at Theun as he held his hand out to help her up. His silver hair glistening in the rising sun. His deep red eyes only reflecting her. She couldn't stop herself from blushing as she took his warm hands and was helped to her feet. Hopefully this time, she won't have to take her blush back.