17 — Lorelai's Strength

The harsh sunlight torched the skin of his face, and heated his heavy, dark clothes, drenching him in sweat. In front of him, stood two fully-armored knights with wooden swords in their hands. Lorelai was between them. Anneliese sat by the steps, watching intently.

"So, what's this again?" Joezand sighs, fanning himself. "And can I get into a different attire? It feels like an oven over here."

"Your discomfort is part of the training!" Lorelai says.

"And shorter clothes would be worse for you!" Anneliese chimes in from far away. "You'd get all sunburnt, Prince Joezand!"

"Ughhh." Joezand groans, wiping his forehead with his sleeve. "You still haven't answered. Who are these two?"

"They used to be my subordinates." Lorelai explains. "Before becoming Thaddius' personal knight, I used to lead a battalion during wartimes. They're just lending me a hand."

"In what?!"

"In training you, kiddo!" Lorelai replies. "Honestly, your reaction time is... too good. So I'm making it harder for you. You'll fight both of them at the same time."

"Why not stop holding back?" Joezand suggests. "You're still way stronger than me. That should make for a challenge."

"Because I'm tired. I'm working out just as much as you during our training sessions, and I'm double your age." Lorelai sighs. "I don't have your vitality, Prince Joezand."

"I see. So you're just lazy."

"Shush!" Lorelai exclaims. "Don't worry, they won't hurt you. They're using training swords."

"That's what we should've used from the start. Some of the cuts from our training sessions still sting."

"Those build character!" Lorelai quips. "Alright, let's start. Get into position."

He takes a deep breath, putting his rapier aside and taking a wooden trainer as well. He's not too worried about the two knights, as they're wearing full iron armor, but he doesn't want to dull his blade. They seem to look at each other for a bit, nod, then lunge at him.

They reach him fast. It's surprising speed from fully armored opponents. The one on his left tries to atack him, but Joezand fades to the side, parrying a strike from the knight on the right at the same time. He kicks them and cuts against the knight's forearm, the wood splintering as it collides against the metal. The knight stumbles to the ground. He feels a strike to his back, as the other knight was able to sneak behind him while he was dealing with their partner.

"Almost there, Joezand." Lorelai says. "Try again."

He sighs.

He's not going to get anywhere like this. He can deal with one of them just fine, but there's no way he can pay attention to both at the same time.

He decides to take a different approach. The knights close in on him, trying to attack at the same time, but he just jumps back. The knight on the right lunges and he parries it, but Joezand doesn't stay in the same place for long, sidestepping a strike that the other knight tried to deal to him. He keeps making them run towards him, making sure to barely attack while they waste all of their energy trying to close in. He parries a cut coming for his leg while ducking out of range of a high cut, jumping back again to get some distance.

The two knights start to struggle. He doesn't know if he actually tired them out or if being in full armor in this heat exhausted them, but his plan worked out perfectly. Their movements are now erratic and, more importantly, uncoordinated. One knight tries cutting too early, so he's able to easily dodge and parry the other's cut, thrusting towards him and hitting his armor.

The knight falls to the ground, while he can hear the one remaining panting. They try for a final thrust, but he's able to easily counter it and deliver a cut to their side.

"There you go, Lorelai." Joezand says. "I beat your challenge. Now I want you against me. No holding back." He takes one of the fallen knight's wooden swords off the ground, throwing it towards her. It lands next to her feet. "Here. So you don't have to worry about cutting me."

"Oh, you little brat." Lorelai sighs and picks up the training sword. "Alright, be ready then."

"Don't go too hard on him..." Anneliese comments from the side. Joezand was so focused on beating the knights he kind of forgot she was there.

Lorelai doesn't answer, and the carefree expression from her face vanishes. She looks at him with steely resolve in her eyes. He raises his sword, signaling his readiness.

And he blinks.

And she's at his throat.

He hastily parries the strike coming for him, but she's relentless. She keeps pressuring, forcing him to stay on the backfoot. She goes to cut his left arm, which he moves to parry... Only to feint her attack and hit his leg instead. He tumbles on the ground, his training sword flying away.

"Ouch, ouch..." Joezand groans. "I didn't expect you... to be this fast..." He pants.

"I'm the Emperor's knight for a reason, Prince." Lorelai says. "Now get up. You wanted this, right?"

Oh.

It's going to be a long day of training.

— — —

Joezand lays flat on the ground. Battered, bruised, sweaty. Anneliese is kneeling next to him, with some ice rolled up in a cloth, applying some pressure on his wounds.

"Ow..." Joezand murmurs.

"There, there." Anneliese says. "All better now."

"I think I might have gotten carried away." Lorelai says, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "He did ask for it, though."

"Yeah, that he did." Anneliese sighs. "What happened to those two knights, by the way?"

"They watched for a bit, but left after I beat Joezand for the seventh time. I guess they got bored."

"Come on..." Joezand murmurs. "I wasn't that bad..."

"Well, I think Prince Joezand needs his rest." Anneliese says. "Could you help me carry him to his room, Lorelai?"

"Sure." Lorelai replies. "And I also think you should rest for tomorrow too. Although I'm not big on changing our schedule, you'll... definitely need it."

"I know." He groans as he's hoisted up by the two. "I just want my bed..."

And he's unceremoniously carried back to his room, as the second day of the third week comes to an end.