"You?" Rock raised his eyebrows. "Well then, please join us…"
"Not me," Lumi laughed. "Mei!"
Rock shifted his gaze to Noble, who coughed. "Dreamer Mei is being volunteered by Dreamer Lumi to face your current champion."
The professor gently indicated each princess.
"Ah, you can only volunteer yourself, not someone else." Rock shook his head.
"But Mei is the best fighter!" Lumi persisted.
"I'll do it," Mei answered calmly. Her tone sounded reluctant, but Noble could feel the excitement bubbling up in her.
Rock was going to tell her that she did not have to fight because someone else told her to, but he saw the subtle shake and small smile from the professor.
"Please join us in the arena."
Mei stood, straightened her robe, and headed for the center of the room. Sparks appeared in her hands as twin daggers appeared. Suddenly, the room was filled with bright light, as if the weapons were made of the sun overhead.
'Starlight?' Noble wasn't sure, but the blades did not seem just to be glowing. They seemed to be made of something that inherently shone.
The young man opposing her, the one who could control his weight and had won the last few rounds, held a bludgeon in his hand.
Mick spun his weapon and bowed to welcome his new opponent.
"To a clean match."
The blades dimmed as Mei entered the arena. She bowed to him in turn.
"To a clean match."
Mick furrowed his brow. He knew better than to be fooled by a pretty face. Mei was very calm even after seeing how he had just sent the last Sleeper to the infirmary.
A smile split his face. "This should be good."
Rock raised his hand. "Ready? Begin!"
Mick immediately lunged for Mei. He believed firmly that the best defense was a good offense, and since the girl already knew his aspect, the advantage was already on her side.
Mick lifted his weapon, aiming for the chest of the woman.
His body became heavy, adding power to his tremendous swing.
Rock hadn't asked the Sleepers to pull their punches, and while Mick wasn't aiming to kill, he did wish to subdue his opponent as quickly as possible.
Unlike Mei's daggers, which emitted light, the bludgeon seemed to absorb it instead in its menacing arc. The world around it lost color as it passed, ready to deal the deadly blow.
Mei rolled to the side, the hem of her robe billowing as she did. Mick's bludgeon hit the ground, cracking it and making the arena rumble.
Mei didn't flinch. She lashed out with her right dagger, catching the leather strap that connected Mick's metal boot to the rest of his armor.
The strap received a deep gash but refused to give way. Mei continued to roll until she was clear of the devastation.
Mick chuckled as he pulled his bludgeon from the cracked ground.
"You know you could call your own armor instead of trying to take mine."
Mei flashed a brilliant smile. "What's the point? A good hit from that stick of yours will knock me out with or without armor. I'd rather keep my mobility if it's all the same to you."
"Fair enough." Mick shouldered his bludgeon as if it were made of feathers.
The words were barely out of his mouth before he mounted his next offensive.
He spun, making the bludgeon look more like a hurricane than a weapon.
Mick's body seemed to weigh nothing at all, letting him get caught in the storm and chase after the princess.
Reach was certainly in the man's favor. Mei was not short, but her arms and torso were inferior in size. On top of that, she had chosen daggers instead of longer blades.
Mick could extend his weapon and hit the girl without concern for his body. The only way Mei could make a difference in the match was to put herself within striking distance of the studded club.
Yet somehow Mei was managing. Each time Mick moved to strike her, Mei slipped through his grip like a wisp of fog.
Mick didn't back down or even get frustrated. With each stroke, he learned and adjusted. This wasn't his first or even second duel of the day, and he put all of the skills he had learned to good use.
Mick was determined, tenacious, and unyielding. The club followed its master's lead, raining down blows that tore at the very foundation of the self-healing floor.
Mick's weight changed to match his goal. When he needed to turn, he became like a cloud, and when he made a downward stroke, his arms became like two mountains.
One moment, he was light as a breath, gliding and leaping effortlessly after his prey. The next, he became inconceivably heavy, his metal boots cracking the ground beneath him. The opponents who had tried to grapple him had found themselves suddenly pinned under a weight they couldn't hope to move.
Dust rose around him as his steps broke the floor over and over. His bludgeon was more like a wrecking ball. Its movement was wild and unpredictable.
It was no wonder that so many had fallen to him already that morning. He was a force to be reckoned with in combat.
But then there was Mei. With catlike reflexes, the princess had managed to stay ahead of the weight-altering warrior.
Her feet barely seemed to touch the floor as she tiptoed around the damage her opponent had caused. With each pass Mick made, Mei scraped her dagger across the metal of his armor, looking for any breach she might exploit.
However, Mick's armor was barely marked by the blades of light, making Noble wonder what rank and tier it might be.
The man was more concerned with landing his hit on the woman than with the minimal damage to his armor. He grinned fiercely.
This time she would not get away.
The weapon was brought down with such frightening speed that the air whistled as it passed. Mei dodged the hit as she had before, a flurry of crimson fabric following in her wake.
Mei struck out with both blades of light, causing sparks to fill the air as they glanced off Mick's breastplate.
This time, the young man lightened his body and shifted his strike. Instead of hitting the floor, his weapon twisted toward the princess and threatened to strike her tightly wound bun and the beautiful head beneath.
Noble panicked for the slightest moment. A princess of Song being hurt only hours after her arrival was not a good look for the Academy. While Noble didn't think that Queen Ki Song would blame her directly, the Provost might be less understanding.
And if the Queen decided to be less than gracious and pulled her support from the school…Noble didn't even want to think about that!
Thankfully, she didn't need to. Mei was already aware of the change in momentum as she spun away. The tie on her bun might not have been able to escape the spike at the tip of the bludgeon, but her head remained unharmed.
Her hair fanned out in a spray of silky locks. Mei landed with one hand to the ground, her hair falling around her shoulders as she stared at her opponent.
Her almond eyes burned with an insatiable heat.
"You've had your fun. It's my turn."