Chapter 227 — Eight Representatives

Chapter 227: Chapter 227 — Eight Representatives

~ Raven ~

Raven arrived at the meeting room a few minutes before the appointed time and immediately regretted not asking Instructor Berry whether attendance was absolutely compulsory.

The four Cardinals were already present, with Cassian, Dante, Rowan and Nikolai occupying one side of a long table. Several Linkslates and a stack of documents had been arranged in the middle, while Adelaide sat opposite them alongside the women holding Fourth and Fifth Seats.

All seven looked up when Raven entered, although Adelaide’s expression was considerably less welcoming than the others.

Goddess, that woman really needed to learn how to let things go.

"Raven," Nikolai greeted with an easy smile. "We were beginning to wonder if you’d changed your mind."

"Don’t tempt me," she muttered, earning a quiet laugh from him as she approached the table.

Rowan gestured toward an empty chair. "Sit down, Rivers. Berry will be here shortly."

Raven obeyed, although she became aware of Dante watching her as she moved past him. Their eyes met briefly, and he acknowledged her with a small nod that she returned before continuing toward her seat.

It was the first time she’d seen him since their confrontation at the training court, and she still wasn’t entirely sure what she was supposed to say to him.

He’d asked for time before that disastrous fight with Cassian, and Raven had intended to respect his wishes. Unfortunately, seeing him again reminded her just how much remained unresolved between them.

Cassian, at least, seemed considerably more comfortable, offering her a small smile when she settled into her chair.

Before Raven could say anything, Instructor Berry arrived carrying a folder that she placed beside the documents.

"Excellent. Everyone’s here." Berry took her seat and activated the Linkslate in front of her. "We have quite a bit to discuss, so I’ll spare you the usual speech about the honor of representing Valerius."

Raven appreciated that. She’d already heard enough speeches about the Concord to last several years.

A list of three competitions appeared above the table, accompanied by a simple diagram of the championship arrangements.

"As you should already know, the Concord Championship consists of three principal events," Berry began. "Each event counts as one victory for whichever academy wins it. Take two of the three, and we become the champions. It’s that straightforward."

She indicated the first event.

"We begin with the Sigil Trial. Both academies will receive identical damaged defensive structures, along with the same amount of permitted material. Your task will be to identify the faults, repair the inscriptions and restore the structures to working condition before the time limit expires."

Raven studied the example Berry brought up on the Linkslate.

Several inscriptions were connected across a defensive structure, although some of the lines had been deliberately broken while others appeared to lead in the wrong direction.

She recognized the general principle from Advanced Sigil Writing, where Berry had been teaching them to repair increasingly complicated patterns.

Unfortunately, recognizing the principle and fixing something like that under competition pressure were two entirely different matters.

"Remember that speed isn’t everything," Berry continued. "The officials will test the completed structures, so your repairs must be accurate and stable. A structure that collapses during testing is hardly going to earn us a victory."

Adelaide leaned forward slightly. "Then we’ll need to divide the work properly. If everyone starts correcting whatever catches their attention, we could end up interfering with one another."

"Precisely," Berry agreed. "Someone needs to identify the faults before anyone begins making repairs."

Cassian nodded thoughtfully. "We should also examine how the inscriptions are connected. One overlooked fault could affect everything attached to it."

Raven turned toward him, remembering the protective sigils he’d drawn for her and her roommates.

"Like those sigils you made for us? They had several connections working together, didn’t they?"

"Exactly," Cassian replied, the corner of his mouth lifting. "One misplaced connection could affect the entire structure."

"Then I’m glad you knew what you were doing."

His smile widened, and Raven couldn’t help returning it.

Across the table, Dante’s brow furrowed briefly as he glanced between them, although he lowered his attention to the documents almost immediately.

Raven suddenly remembered that this probably wasn’t the best place to be exchanging amused looks with Cassian.

Fortunately, Berry was already moving on.

"Night Pursuit. Unlike the Sigil Trial, this event will test how well you work together under pressure. All eight representatives from each academy will participate, and the competition will follow something similar to Capture the Flag."

She replaced the inscription with a map of a large warded course containing wooded areas, abandoned structures and several connecting routes.

Two locations were marked on opposite sides.

"Each academy will have a flag positioned inside its designated territory. Your objective is to capture the opposing academy’s flag and bring it back to your own base while preventing them from doing the same to yours. Whichever team accomplishes that first wins."

Raven studied the distance between the marked locations.

"So we’ll have to defend our flag while trying to capture theirs?"

"Precisely. You’ll need to decide how many representatives remain behind to defend your territory and how many attempt to capture the opposing flag. Naturally, your opponents will be doing the same."

Berry enlarged the map slightly before continuing.

"You may intercept opponents, set permitted traps, use defensive wards and engage in controlled combat. However, deliberately inflicting permanent injuries is forbidden, and anyone defeated during the competition will be removed from the course."

Rowan studied the different routes, his expression growing thoughtful.

"The changing boundaries will make communication difficult. If we divide our forces carelessly, we could end up with half our team unable to support the other."

"Which is why coordination will be essential," Berry replied. "Having eight powerful representatives won’t help if you spend the entire competition getting in one another’s way."

Nikolai leaned forward to examine the map.

"And we’ll have to account for the vampires attempting to draw us away from our flag. They might send several competitors down one route while someone else approaches from another."

"That could be a problem," Raven admitted, considering the different paths. "What if we leave two people defending our base and send the remaining six to search for an opening? We’d have more people available to attack."

Adelaide immediately shook her head.

"Two defenders wouldn’t be enough."

Raven turned toward her, but Adelaide was already indicating the boundaries on the map.

"Suppose the vampires send four or five competitors toward our territory. Those two would have to hold them off until reinforcements arrived, and depending on how the boundaries change, the rest of us might not even be able to return in time."

Raven examined the routes again and quickly realized that Adelaide had a point.

She’d been thinking about reaching the opposing flag as quickly as possible, but there was little point capturing it if their own base was left completely vulnerable.

"Fair enough," she admitted. "Then we’ll need a way to defend our territory without leaving too few people available to attack."

Adelaide seemed momentarily surprised by the agreement, although her expression settled almost immediately.

"Exactly. And we should assign responsibilities before entering. The middle of a competition isn’t the place to discover nobody knows who’s supposed to be doing what."

"I agree," Rowan said, taking over the discussion. "We’ll test different arrangements during preparation and see which ones work best."

The Fourth Seat suggested practicing defensive formations, while the Fifth Seat pointed out that their recent training had focused heavily on individual performance rather than coordination.

Berry listened to their suggestions before making several notes.

"Good. Those are the things we’ll need to address during preparation. I expect all eight of you to understand how the others fight before the competition begins."

She returned her attention to the Linkslate and brought up the final event.

"The Grand Concord Duels will consist of five sanctioned matches. The academy that wins at least three takes the event, and the officials will consider Power Class when approving the matchups."

Raven was relieved to hear that last part. She might have reached Tempered, but that certainly didn’t mean she was interested in being thrown against someone a class above her simply because she’d managed to become Second Seat.

"Victory can be achieved through surrender, incapacitation, a valid ring-out or an official stoppage," Berry continued. "You are expected to fight seriously, but anyone who deliberately ignores the safety rules will face consequences."

Her attention lingered briefly on the four Cardinals.

Raven pressed her lips together, deciding that laughing would probably be inappropriate.

"Now, regarding your preparation," Berry continued, looking around the table, "we’ll begin joint exercises to assess how well you coordinate under pressure. I expect everyone to participate seriously, particularly those of you who are accustomed to training alone."

Rowan nodded in agreement, while Nikolai asked whether they would be changing partners throughout the exercises.

"Yes," Berry answered. "I don’t want you becoming so accustomed to one arrangement that you’re incapable of adapting when something goes wrong."

The discussion continued for several more minutes as they considered their individual strengths and the areas that needed improvement.

Adelaide proved particularly knowledgeable about the Concord, pointing out several difficulties the others hadn’t considered. Raven found herself agreeing with her more often than she’d expected, although the woman still seemed irritated whenever somebody directed a question toward Raven instead.

By the time Berry finally dismissed them, Raven had acquired a considerably longer list of things to improve than she’d arrived with.

Goddess, she was beginning to wonder whether there would ever come a day when somebody told her she was sufficiently prepared for anything.

She was gathering her belongings when Cassian approached.

"Raven, do you have a moment?"

She looked up. "What’s wrong?"

"Nothing," he assured her. "I wanted to discuss your combat preparation."

Raven raised an eyebrow. "What about it?"

"Your essence control has improved considerably since you advanced, but you’re still reacting too late whenever an opponent changes their approach."

"And how exactly would you know that?"

"I passed the training court while you were sparring Brielle."

Of course he had.

Cassian continued before she could complain.

"You’ve developed a reasonable foundation, but you need more experience recognizing what an opponent is preparing to do. I could help you with that."

Raven considered the suggestion.

She knew perfectly well that her fighting experience remained inadequate, especially compared to students who’d been training for years. Brielle had been helping her improve, but Raven still spent a frustrating amount of time getting knocked onto the training floor.

Besides, refusing an opportunity to learn from Cassian would have been stupid.

"Alright," she agreed. "But I want an actual lesson, Cassian, not three hours of you proving how much better you are."

His mouth curved with amusement. "I’ll do my best."

"That’s not particularly reassuring."

Before Cassian could respond, another voice interrupted them.

"Raven."

She turned to find Dante approaching, his books tucked beneath one arm. His attention moved briefly toward Cassian before settling on her, and for a moment Raven found herself wondering whether he intended to bring up what had happened at the training court.

Instead, he spoke about something entirely different.

"If you’re preparing for the Concord, there’s something else you should be working on."

Raven hesitated before asking, "What exactly?"

"Pressure," Dante answered. "Cassian can teach you how to recognize an attack, but that won’t do you much good if someone stronger doesn’t give you enough room to think. You need to learn how to fight when an opponent keeps forcing you onto the defensive."

Raven considered that, unable to deny the point.

Dante had trained her often enough to understand her weaknesses, and she knew from experience that he was particularly good at exploiting them.

Still, she hadn’t expected him to approach her like this, especially when they hadn’t properly spoken since their argument.

"I could help with that," he continued, watching her expression. "If you want."

Raven glanced briefly toward Cassian before returning her attention to Dante.

She’d spent the past several days wondering what she would say when they finally spoke again, but somehow, of all the conversations she’d imagined, discussing a training arrangement involving both men had never occurred to her.

Dante adjusted the books beneath his arm before making his offer.

"I could join you."