Marked Ones: Advent of the Demon Prince

"Next!" a deep and gruff voice shouted at people who appeared to be students that were waiting in groups on either side of a rectangular arena.

This mock battlefield was designed to help put into practice the lessons these students have been practicing for the last few months. At the age of ten, all children in Eroa were required to join various academies that were pocketed around the kingdom. These academies trained them in the ways of war and battle.

Some classes did provide education in reading and arithmetic, but the primary focus was on swordplay and magic. Most other kingdoms did not open these kinds of academies up to students until they were sixteen, basically adults.

Eroa did it this way because they could also monitor nutrition and training, and tailor it to the growth rate of the individual's body from a young age. It took quite a lot of effort and funding to get off the ground, but once it had been in place for a few generations of warriors all the clans understood its value.

Sure, at one time the secret family techniques and fighting styles that used to be the only way of passing down the art of combat were effective, but if everyone in the kingdom had a shared base knowledge, then as an army, the entire kingdom would be more effective.

These were things that had been drilled into Kalliope's head since the age of ten, and now that she was fifteen, she understood and believed in these truths with her entire being.

"I said, next! That means you Kalliope!"

"Sir!"

She walked up to the center of the arena and bowed to her opponent. It was a student from the year above her, as were every person on the opposing team. They were in their last year of training and soon would leave the academy and join the military or go on to live a normal life as a farmer or merchant, or something else mundane.

After raising their respective heads from the bow, both students readied themselves. Today's combat training was in unarmed fighting, so Kalliope steadied her fists and settled into a slight squat. Her opponent matched her positioning and they stared at each other, waiting for the signal to begin.

The proctor for the training whistled, starting the fight. In less than an instant, Kalliope shot forward, cracking the floor beneath her feet. Her opponent jumped backwards while initiating a block in an effort to lessen the impact damage gained by Kalliope's momentum, but still took a powerful hit to the chest.

The other student coughed as the air was forcefully expelled from her lungs, but recovered quickly enough to throw a counter attack. She jumped in the air and came down with an axe kick aimed at Kalliope's head. It was a rather slow attack, so it was dodged with ease forcing the impact into the ground.

Kalliope took advantage of the slight opening to go in for a grapple, but the dust from the kick had lessened her vision and sense of smell, so the effort was in vain. Dust continued to spread with the assistance of the slight breeze and acted as a cloak for both students. Neither one seemed at the advantage at the moment.

Kalliope's ears were very sensitive naturally thanks to her lupine heritage, so they came in handy during this fight. However, the opponent was of reptilian descent so she likely had a general sense of Kalliope's body heat.

Both students appeared to circle each other for several moments before the opponent closed in on Kalliope. This was exactly what she had been waiting for. She managed to dodge a punch, then a kick, then a grapple. When the reptilian student went for the grapple, Kalliope was able to hide her footwork with the dust and trip her up just enough to create an opening for a swift chop to the neck.

Without much else fanfare, the opposing student fell to the ground, unconscious. The proctor was able to keep an eye on the entire fight, and the moment one student fell, cleared the remaining dust with a swipe of his fist. Such was the power of a Master Rank Brawler.

"Excellent work Kalliope. Next!"

Kalliope bowed and left the arena, allowing herself to be briefly examined by a light magic user. She only suffered minor bruising, reminders of her mistakes, so no treatment was provided. After the short evaluation, she returned to the back of the line where a few other students were discussing the fight.

"You know, you do pretty good for someone who doesn't use any Brawler Arts." One said.

"Yeah, you'd think you were a natural." Another admired.

"Not by any means. Everything I have is because of hard work. Besides, I'm already Intermediate Rank and well on my way to Advanced. It gives me an edge in all fighting, not just those in which I have Arts."

"Of course, the great Kalliope of the Gray Wolves, first in our class to make Intermediate." Yet another student groaned.

Their complaint earned a few chuckles and jeers from other students. Most of them were annoyed that she had been the first to make Intermediate. Everyone had already caught up for the most part, though they were at the lower end and still getting used to their powers, while she had been in Intermediate for the better part of a year and had acclimated to her current body strength by this point.

Out of all her many siblings and cousins, Kalliope's heart beat the strongest for battle. From the moment she could walk, she fought. When she was just a toddler she was prevented from playing with other children her age because of her penchant for violence.

Of course, now that she was older, she had reined in those tendencies and molded them into the drive to seek out strength and discipline. Luckily for her, she was born in Eroa where she could put that work in from an early age and get a head start on other children her age.

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