Jacob's stance was still.
Korreth didn't wait.
Whoosh!
With a surge of speed and control, he lunged forward, right foot sliding, palm angled at Jacob's collarbone. A classic opener; tests balance, disrupts breath and stance. Simple.
WOO!
The strike struck the air.
Jacob had pivoted.
Not back... but sideways:
'He read it. Before I moved.'
Twisting mid-step, Korreth lashed his elbow from the opposite direction. Planning to whip into Jacob; faster, sharper.
WOO!
He had ducked....
No wasted motion, he had ducked beneath it. His body moved as though the strike had already missed him.
Not reacting.
Anticipating.
Tap
Posturing upwards, Jacob stepped forward this time.
Korreth met him with a faint shift of weight - subtle, but intentional. Twisting his stance, he was baiting Jacob to overreach.
Slip
Jacob wasn't biting.
Instead, he advanced, his heels barely lifting, weight perfectly balanced.
Korreth watched him edging closer.
He was clearing the void.
SWOOSH!
Ducking low, Korreth launched a low sweep aiming at his shin....
But it was a feint.
WHIP!!
He feinted the sweep, whipping his body round to strike Jacob on the head.
The strike hitting the air like a lash.
There was no time to duck...
This attack was sharp, sharp enough to cut the air.
In-front of this attack and all the other attacks, Jacob didn't move faster than Korreth, and he certainly wasn't more powerful.
But still.
His positioning. Pre-emptiveness maybe.
Meeting the strike, he'd already side-stepped the lash.
No wasted motion. A textbook side-step.
Korreth's eyes flashed, it seemed he'd expected this.
And so before his body could fully turn, he struck out a spinning back kick.
THAK!!
But before it could hit Jacob, he'd lowered his body, just enough so his head would be lower than kick, deflecting it upwards.
BUFF!
The collision overhead was still loud enough to ring a bell.
Not skipping a beat, with Korreth's foot in the air;
Quick, clean, deliberate.
A clean 'hit' on Korreth's shoulder.
huff~
Jacob stepped back, exhaling softly.
It wasn't much; just a short breath, but the stillness that followed, it sounded like a release from a fight far more demanding than his face let on.
No smirk, no celebration. Just a relaxed calm as his chest rose up softly.
The room was the opposite.
The air remained taut after Jacob's display, the silence to thick for comfort.
Until-
"Well" Fayl Kera said, clapping slowly. "If we're handing out shoulder taps for excellence, someone get ready to pat me when this is all finished."
His voice cut through the tension like spark; drawing a few smirks, some reluctant, some amused.
Selle Varn rolled her eyes, tilting her head, causing her blonde braided hair to sway. "You'd miss the shoulder and hit yourself in the face."
"huh"
Fayl gasped, clutching his chest as if he was offended. "From my own teammate? The betrayal. Varn?"
"You're not my teammate. We're classmates. Big difference."
"Temporary semantics", Fayl waved her off, "I'll be your favourite eventually. I grow on people"
Selle shot him a side glance, "Like mold."
The silence broke completely, a few quiet laughs escaping as the stares went to dynamic of the two.
Even Korreth's expression relaxed for a breath, before straightening, "Enough".
While Fayl and Selle exchanged jabs, drawing quiet chuckles, Seris remained still; gaze stuck on Jacob.
He hadn't returned it, seemingly in his own world.
He stood there, chest rising slowly, a faint sheen of exertion on his brow.
But ever composed.
Her fingers twitched at her side, a memory surfacing; uninvited. That night. The words. The silence. She wondered if he remembered.
Her throat felt dry.
Across from her, Kalen saw that look. The quiet watching.
His jaw tightened, the faintest click of his tongue escaping
click
Before he looked away...
Veyna leaned toward Seris, an unreadable smile present, "He's impressive huh?", she said, voice casual. "Wonder what it's like, standing next to someone like that."
She didn't answer.
But her eyes might have said something.
.....
The final match ended not with applause, but a quiet stillness that settled over the chambers. Sweat clinging to foreheads. Breaths coming slower, tamer.
Korreth stood in the centre, arms crossed. He looked them over - one by one:
"Most of you failed", he said, no venom in his words. "And that's fine. For now."
A pause carried.
"What you hold is potential. How you act with it, is dependant on you. Don't be fooled by titles of grandeur given to you...instead, take them."
Silence lingered, the words heavy and clear.
"Nice quote", Jacob exhaled softly.
"Wasn't a quote", Korreth stated, not looking at him.
It was then his gaze drifted to Jacob, then to Kalen. Then to Seris.
"Class dismissed. Reflect. You'll need it."
And with that, he turned, walking out as his boots echoed against the worn stone floor.
Creak
The door shut behind Korreth.
For a moment, nobody moved.
The weight of his words - the fights - still hung in the air.
Then:
"Well", Fayl muttered, adjusting his collar, "that was humbling."
Selle chuckled beside him. "You barely moved before he dropped you."
"And yet I still looked better than Torin." Fayl grinned, throwing a glance at the giant, who just shook his head.
Aelana Cael brushed dust from her sleeves with a delicate annoyance, "So we're supposed to accept getting destroyed like that?"
Lyria, calm, spoke from the side. "That's the point."
Kalen stood silent, eyes flicking briefly toward Seris.
The one in question, hadn't moved since Jacob's match.
In fact she was still staring at Jacob...
The boy lingering near the centre, breath now steady, arms folded behind his back.
Whatever happened between them, nobody knew.
Kalen felt however, deep in his gut...something unsaid, something that stung.
Veyna, watched this all with a sly smirk, not voicing out her thoughts.
Jacob finally turned, walking past them without a word.
As he passed, Fayl raised an eyebrow.
"Hey golden boy. Want to teach me how to dodge before I lose another rib?"
Jacob's reply came with a half-smile, turning to look at Fayl, "You'd need to have rhythm first."
huff
"What does that even mean...." Fayl said out loud, causing Selle to laugh.
By then, Jacob had already sauntered out of class.
With that, the others began to disperse as well.
Tap tap tap
Boots tapping against the stone floor, Veyna's voice cut through the slight conversations.
"Didn't expect a wall to move that well." Her smirk was thin, eyes flicking to Torin, with just enough disdain to be noticed.
Torin paused mid-step. Not looking at her.
"Didn't expect a viper to talk this much..." he said, voice as calm as ever.
"hmpf"
"Let's hope that spine of yours doesn't crack under real pressure," Veyna added, already turning away.
.....
A few heads saw this little scene.
The tension had arrived.
"First day and we're already ready to kill each other", Fayl muttered. "Gonna be a fun year", he gestured.