The Academy had a whole arena just for the students to battle and test out their skills they honed from training. Wooden bleachers surrounded the whole circular arena, which had a star logo right smack in the middle. The legs of the star were flowy and curved out as they encircled the star, much like a spiral. The arena was humongous, and Ara wondered just how many people could fill out the entire place whenever a battle was ongoing.

The thought made her shiver, even if her test was only going to be monitored by her classmates and her teacher. Having to defeat your opponent in a battle was hard enough, and having multiple pairs of eyes watch you in the process was downright nerve wrecking. And to mention that Ara had no idea how to fight, she was sure she was going to make a fool of herself, even if she had an S-ranked card.

“Kim Ara.”

This class introduced her to the infamous Miss Dylan, who was known to be one of the most skilled trainers in the Academy. Ara had learnt from Yuna that the teacher was part of the Academy’s alumni, and had volunteered to return to teach the various batches after graduating from the Academy as one of its top students. Miss Dylan was also one of the youngest trainers in the Academy, and already had many victories under her belt despite her young age. Ara gulped as she stood up at her teacher’s call.

“You will be undergoing the Placement Test so I can get a better sensing of where you are with your skills,” Miss Dylan explained in a firm tone. “The random name generator will be picking one of your classmates for battle, so all of you better be prepared with your cards.”

I have to fight one of my classmates?

Ara could feel her whole body start to shiver as she made her way down the steps and into the arena. The poor eighteen-year-old felt even smaller now that she was standing on top of the cold, stone floor of the gigantic circle, waiting for the monitor that was installed in the arena to reveal the name of her opponent.

Please don’t let it be Yuna.

She didn’t know any of her classmates, and she was definitely sure that all of them would have the upper hand in battle if they ever went up against her. They had the experience and training after all, and she just hoped that it was anyone but Yuna. She was her first friend after all, and she didn’t want this test to drive in any awkwardness between the two. Ara waited with bated breath as the numerous flashing names on the monitor slowly came to a halt.

“Lee Hyuk, come down to the arena right now.”

Ara let out a sigh of relief that the name was not her friend’s. She was still anxious though, because she had no idea who her opponent was and how strong he was. It was only until the boy reached the end of the steps and stood just a few meters away from her did Ara finally take a good look at his face, and the sight made her jaw drop open.

It’s the boy from earlier!

As soon as her opponent stepped foot into the arena, did Ara realise that an invisible, protective barrier had been put up to surround the arena and separate the spectators’ area from the battle area. Which meant that nothing could interfere with the battle, and the people watching wouldn’t get hurt unexpectedly.

Every muscle in Ara’s body seemed to tense up as she saw a countdown timer appear on the monitor above. She had five minutes to take her opponent down, or hold out long enough for Miss Dylan to call it a tie. Since she had no idea how to fight, she figured the best idea would be to follow the latter.

I just have to hold out for five minutes. I hope I don’t die.

♤ • ♡ • ◇ • ♧

“3, 2, 1, and begin!”

As soon as the airhorn was sounded, Hyuk pulled out a card from his hand and placed a kiss on the rectangular material. The blonde female appeared once again, and now that she was facing her, did Ara realise that the Warrior looked gorgeous, but deadly. Her big, fox-like eyes seemed to bore into her soul, and her blood red lipstick was especially prominent against her pale skin. The Warrior bore no emotion, and only crouched into a fighting stance once she was summoned.

Ara saw her opponent’s lips move before his Warrior was dashing straight towards her in a whirl of blonde locks. The female was incredibly fast, and if Ara didn’t do something soon, she was sure she was going to die in the first thirty seconds. The realisation of defeat broke Ara out of her stupor, and she frantically whipped out her Warrior card before placing a chaste kiss on it.

Her card glowed a goldenish hue before her blonde Warrior materialised before her, his broad back facing her as he took in the scene before him. Realising that her Warrior was doing nothing without her command, Ara just screamed the first thing that came to her mind.

“Protect me, damn it!”

It felt like the fighting instincts of her emotionless Warrior were instantly switched on, and the blonde boy barely ducked his head out of the way just as the female’s palm flew past his cheek. Ara noticed from behind her Warrior’s back that the female’s claws were incredibly long, and was painted with a heavy coat of red that matched her lipstick. The eighteen-year-old’s legs turned to jelly at the thought of how she could have been stabbed like meat on a skewer.

Her Warrior made her move once he blocked the attack, and used his right arm to grip strongly onto the female’s forearm, rendering her right arm motionless. What he didn’t expect, however, was for the female warrior to immediately twist her arm such that her claws now sunk into the male’s arm in a deadly grip. The pain caused the blonde to swing the Warrior away like a doll, and the sheer force of his throw caused the female to fly a few feet behind her Master, a strong gush of wind following. The female didn’t seem fazed at all, as she twisted her body mid-air so that she could land herself properly once she made contact with the ground, her form hunched in a kneeling position on one knee as her nails scratched against the stone floor, the friction helping her to skid to a stop.

Almost immediately did the female charge forward once again, her fists positioned right in front of her face to attack as soon as she got within a meter radius from the blonde warrior that now bore a scratch on his right cheek and five bloody indentations on his right forearm. He dodged all of the punches that were aimed at him, and threw back a few of his own, his speed almost unimaginable compared to the female’s. Ara hadn’t expected her Warrior to be so fast, his fists flying about in a blur. But Hyuk’s Warrior was not to be underestimated as well, as she gracefully dodged most of the male’s attacks, although some not fast enough which resulted in a few cuts and bruises on her body. Her flexibility and agility were an advantage as well, and Ara watched with her jaw slack open at how the female effortlessly brought her leg back, over her head and landed a kick right into her Warrior’s face. Other than that, the female couldn’t effectively land a critical hit on Ara’s Warrior, as he had quite the upper hand in the game of speed.

However, the male hadn’t expected the opponent to suddenly dodge between his legs with a single split and appear behind him, leaving his back exposed. Ara let out a surprised shriek as the female clawed his back with one move, and kicked him squarely at the center, causing the male to stumble forward, his back hunched. The female then used his back as support and flipped herself over the injured warrior with just one arm, now standing in front of him, ready to attack once again now that his guard was down. But she hadn’t expected that the male would recover so fast, and the Warrior flew back against the wall with a loud ‘thump’ as Ara’s Warrior stretched out his palm and landed a critical hit to her stomach. His movement was fluid and fast like the wind, and Ara saw how his attack seemed to have been infused with the power of the wind. A strong gush of wind erupted from the attack, and flew in all directions before the air settled down again.

Ara winced as the female’s back collided harshly with the wall beside her master, and she was almost sure that she heard a crack in the Warrior’s back. She was absolutely dumfounded at how powerful her Warrior’s attack was and strong he must’ve been to be able to send his opponent flying that fast.

Pissed at the result of the physical fight, Hyuk let out a frustrated shout. “Enough with the jokes! Jo, fireballs. Now!”

The blonde Warrior was very obviously in pain from the previous hit, but she got up nonetheless, more afraid about angering her Master even further. She conjured up numerous fireballs effortlessly, and directed each of them at Ara’s Warrior who had just managed to stand up on his feet.

Ara was worried, because she knew exactly how destructive and precise those attacks could be, judging from the damage she had seen earlier in front of the school. She desperately wanted to do something, but her brain could not think of anything to say because she had absolutely no idea what her Warrior’s powers were. She felt like a complete idiot, and with the rate at which the fireballs were approaching, her brain flew into a frenzy. Her blonde Warrior turned to look at her then, his eyes oozing with desperation to get another command to proceed with his attacks. He was ordered to protect her from the physical fight, but was given nothing about how to deal with power-infused attacks. In her panicked state, Ara just shouted whatever came into her mind.

“Just do whatever! Just attack with whatever you have!”

Her Warrior took that as a command to start using his element, and just before the closest fireball had the chance to land a hit on him, he stretched out his palm and a strong burst of wind immediately gushed out, effectively stopping the incoming fireball right in its tracks. The fired attack stopped just centimetres away from his outstretched palm, refusing to go any further because the gush of air was just too strong. The Warrior then out the oxygen surrounding the fireball, and its flames immediately extinguished into thin air, leaving nothing left. The other fireballs had also stopped in mid-air, blocked by a barrier of strong wind that was pushing them back. The air surrounding them stilled, and soon, all of the incoming flames were extinguished by what seemed to be the same method that the blonde warrior had used.

Ara could hear the surprised gasps from the spectators above, because rarely anyone could stop a whole wave of fireballs just like that. Especially from an A-ranked warrior! An S-ranked Warrior was truly very powerful.

The female Warrior had flew around the whole time she fired her shots, much like how she did when Ara saw her training. Her movements were still graceful and quick despite her injuries, and Ara admired her for that. She hadn’t expected that the Warrior would pick her last landing at a spot in front of her however, and before long, Ara saw a huge wave of fire coming in her direction. The Warrior had blown a whole wave of fire out of , and Ara was seconds away from being burnt to a crisp until her blonde Warrior appeared right in front of her, his instinct to protect his Master coming alive. He sent an equally strong gush of wind that rivalled the intensity of the fire, and everyone watched with amazement as the power of the wind overpowered the power of the fire easily. The female’s fiery attack was pushed back, and she stopped when the blonde Warrior’s gush of air sent her flying back yet again.

Enraged by how ridiculously weak his Warrior appeared next to the newbie’s S-ranked Warrior, Hyuk called out a final attack that he was positive would land a hit on his opponent. “Jo, Phoenix. Now!

At the command, the girl’s whole body begin to glow an orange-y hue, and Ara watched as flames began to encircle the female and engulf her entire being. Not long after did the Warrior emerge from the flames, her limbs aflame. Her blonde hair had turned a fiery red and flew around her head like a halo, her eyes ablaze. She was like a walking fireball!

The female charged forward at full speed, the tracks left behind lighting ablaze with the amount of friction that was being produced. Ara knew things weren’t going to look good, and she didn’t know whether her Warrior had enough wind power to extinguish that one. She had to think fast, despite her frantic state and the fact that she just wanted to collapse from exhaustion right then and there.

Earlier, blondie managed to still the air around the fireballs and caused them to extinguish. What extinguishes the fire?

Water immediately came to her mind, but she was sure her Warrior wasn’t able to condense the water vapour in the air that fast to put out the flames. Even if he could, the water wouldn’t be enough.

Think, Ara! Extinguishing a fire without water by stilling the air around it…you can only do that if you…!

“Hey! You! Create a twister around her and cut off her oxygen supply!”

The blonde Warrior heeded his command immediately, and instantly whirled up a twister that trapped the female in like a cage. The wind was so fast it acted like a barrier that prevented oxygen from ever coming in, and the male then proceeded to out the oxygen supply within the twister.

Ara’s idea seemed to be working, as slowly but surely, the fire engulfing the female Warrior began to die out, until her pale skin and blonde hair returned. She fell to her knees soon after, gasping desperately for air as her fire needed oxygen to burn. She was a Fire Element, and without air, she would soon die out.

“Alright! That’s enough! Release her!” Hyuk frantically shouted as he saw his Warrior on the verge of passing out. He was disappointed in her, undeniably, but that didn’t mean he wanted to risk heavily injuring his strongest Warrior. So he swallowed his pride.

The twister didn’t stop, however, despite his pleas and admittance of defeat. “Drop her!” but the blonde Warrior hadn’t seemed to listen to his Master’s words. Ara looked at her warrior, and she couldn’t help but notice the slightly crazed look in his eyes. It was like…he enjoyed destruction.

“Okay. Hey, that’s enough!” Ara put her foot down, and only then did the Warrior release his hold on the female. The female Warrior returned to her card, clearly very injured while the blonde only bore a few physical wounds on his body, no burns whatsoever. The Warrior returned to her side, and even though he had stopped, Ara saw how he continued to stare at the empty space that was previously occupied by the female.

♤ • ♡ • ◇ • ♧

“Master, I am sorry.”

Once Ara had finished with her battle and emerged victorious, her Warrior was ordered back into his card while the girl collapsed to her knees from exhaustion. She hadn’t exerted any of her physical strength, but the whole whirlpool of emotions and panicked frenzy sure sent her senses into an overload, and she really wanted to just sit down. Her legs had given up once the danger was over, and she was just proud that she hadn’t died.

The protective dome was taken down once the match was over, and Yuna had immediately ran down to Ara’s side to check on her. Most of her classmates had remained seated at the bleachers, although their gazes expressed genuine amazement at what an S-ranked Warrior can do. After admitting defeat, Hyuk had retrieved his card and instantly stormed off, face red with embarrassment and anger. His Warrior was definitely going to get it.

Miss Dylan had also went down to check on her student, and Ara could see the slight surprise in her teacher’s stoic and stern face. Miss Dylan may have had her share of victories and high-ranked cards, but seeing an absolute newbie with completely no experience take down one of the class’s strongest students with no idea what she was doing half the time was really an interesting surprise.

“What you just did had absolutely no structure! You couldn’t think on your feet, had no battle strategies, and have absolutely no idea about the nature of your Warrior’s element at all! You were just like a prey that was simply dodging death from its predator, you had no aggression or initiative whatsoever!” Ara’s head drooped lower with every scolding Miss Dylan threw at her. She knew her teacher was right, she felt like a complete idiot during the whole duration of the battle. So what if she had a high-ranked card? If she couldn’t understand how to use his powers and protect herself, how was she ever going to survive in her society? She would just look like a joke, a loser that got lucky, and she was sure if Somin saw her now, she would definitely had cackled in her face.

A few seconds passed by in the arena that was now completely deserted except for the two of them, and Miss Dylan spoke again once all her students had left, including Yuna.

“But I could see that you adapted from what you had observed in battle. You figured how your Warrior had stopped the fireballs, and what effect it had. I would say I’m pleased that you managed to think of a logical strategy to stop your opponent once you knew a bit about your Warrior, but I’m not impressed. You may have the highest-ranked card in this class, but if you continue the way you are, you will not last a month in this school. And so, I would have to put you in the first level of Basics class. Understood?”

Ara would be lying if she said she wasn’t embarrassed at having to be put in Basics when everyone her age was obviously levels higher than her, but she knew she couldn’t complain. She was years late on her training after all, and it only made sense that she needed to know how to properly command her warrior first.

“Sorry? For what?”

After the talk with Miss Dylan, Ara was dismissed back to her dorm. Yuna had already left, so no one was waiting for her. Ara had dragged her feet back to her house which was at least twenty minutes walking distance away, and half-way, she summoned her blonde Warrior because it was getting a little lonely. He had instantly materialised beside her, and fell into a walking pace. Ara noticed how his wounds from before were still present, but also noted how they looked considerably better compared to when he just finished battle. Warriors healed on their own once they returned to their cards, and within hours, they would be as good as new. But that also depended on how serious the injuries were, and how long the duration was until they were summoned again.

“You told me to stop the first time, but I didn’t. I’ve disobeyed you.”

Ara stopped in her tracks then, just a few meters away from where her house was located. She turned to look at her blonde Warrior, who had his head down and the same cold expression on his face. but she noticed how tight his fists were beside him, and she knew then that the Warrior was worried for himself.

She had only seen these expressions from afar from when she observed the Warriors that belonged to others, and she had felt bad for them. But now that her very own warrior was looking like this right in front of her, that feeling increased tenfold, and she felt disgusted at herself.

Ara then lifted her arm, her palm out, and she saw how the Warrior had flinched minutely at the movement. But the Warrior simply let his eyes widen when a gentle pat on the head was felt instead of the stinging of a slap.

“Its…alright. You stopped anyway,” Ara retrieved her arm and watched with amusement as the blonde Warrior remained stunned by her unexpected gesture. It was interesting seeing him with expressions. She then gripped her Warrior’s wrist, noting how he visibly tensed, but brushed it off. “Come on. Let’s go treat your wounds.”

♤ • ♡ • ◇ • ♧

“Master, this is not right.”

“Come on. I know your wounds are getting better, but they still look pretty nasty. Think of it as relieving my eyes from the gore,” Ara assured her still confused Warrior as she continued to dabble some antiseptic cream on the claw marks on his back. They were noticeably smaller than before, but they still looked raw and painful. It would speed up the healing process if she disinfected them anyway.

“Yes…Master.”

After spending a few minutes on his back and sticking on a bandage, Ara moved to sit in front of her warrior, eyes trained on the wound on his forearm. The small cut on his face had already healed, so Ara knew that her warrior had no other major injuries on his person. She wiped the indentations in his arm with an alcohol rub, and she could feel his muscles tense with the pain. She took the moment to sneak a glance at his face, and she saw how he bit his lower lip as soon as she applied some cream. It was like witnessing a robot express emotions for the first time, and Ara was highly amused.

“So, you are an Air Element, am I right?” Miss Dylan had told her how she didn’t understand her Warrior’s powers, so Ara figured this would be the perfect time to know. She had seen him in action earlier, but she wanted to confirm it.

“Yes, Master. I can control the air around me, but my biggest strength is the wind,” Ara nodded in understanding as she wrapped a bandage around his forearm. The blonde Warrior seemed disturbed by the patches on his arm and back, but he didn’t say anything. His Master was the one that wrapped them after all, and he didn’t want to disrespect her.

“I see. No wonder your movements were so fast earlier, exactly like the wind,” Ara said as she leaned back, putting some distance between her and her Warrior. “You seem to be quite swift in close range combat as well.”

“The wind aids in my speed, so I would be considerably faster than most Warriors. But my strength is still long ranged attacks, because its easier to gather a larger amount of air from a distance,” that was probably the longest sentence the blonde Warrior had ever said, and Ara had to admit it was nice having a decent conversation with her Warrior instead of him just obeying orders. She suddenly thought about the destructive and crazed look in his eyes when he trapped the female warrior in the twister, and she grew curious.

Are all warriors supposed to look like that in battle?

Ara looked at her warrior in the eyes, his expression returning into a blank one. She was curious, but she doubted that he would explain himself fully with the relationship they had. So she dropped it off for next time, and plastered on a smile before picking up the first aid kit and leaving the room, leaving the quiet warrior to his own thoughts.

Why is she being so nice?

He turned his head to face the direction his Master had left. He was confused, shocked and in utter disbelief, although he didn’t show it. It was not everyday that your Master would patch you up, talk to you nicely and tell you that it was alright. It just…didn’t sit with the rules at all! Although the Warrior had a feeling that maybe this was just temporary because he was her first card after all. After spending time with all the other horrible dealers in this god-forsaken society, he was sure that she would become like them sooner or later.

Is this a trick?

♤ • ♡ • ◇ • ♧

After returning the first aid kit, Ara decided to explore her new house before fully unpacking all of her stuff. Her books had arrived just ten minutes ago, so she figured she would read up a bit before washing up.

Her house was a two storey building, the flooring made of a smooth pine wood and the walls painted white. The first floor contained a huge walk-in kitchen with counters made of black marble, and in the centre of it held a big island. It was also connected to the small patio just outside that overlooked the beautiful forest. The space in front of the kitchen contained a long dining table with five chairs on each side and one each at the head of the table. The living room was just diagonally across the dining area, and held a spacious black sofa and a large flat screen TV. Once one entered the hall, one could already see the wooden staircase that led to the second floor.

The second floor contained Ara’s bedroom, along with a standard bathroom just across. A few more rooms lined the hallway of the second floor, and at the end there was a small storage room. A turn to the left at the end of the hallway would lead one straight to a small balcony which housed a sitting nook and a few plants.

By the time Ara finished her tour and ate dinner, it was already eight in the evening. She headed to her room to shower, only to find out that her Warrior was no where to be seen. He must’ve returned to his card once she left the room.

Feeling refreshed after washing up half an hour later, Ara spent the rest of her time unpacking her stuff in her room, and when she was finished, she sat at her little study area to read up. There was old information that she already knew, as well as new knowledge that she wouldn’t have understood if she still didn’t have her card.

There were five main elements that a Warrior could have in their nature, which was Earth, Air, Water, Fire and Spirit. The four natural elements were the most common among Warriors, and Spirit Warriors were pretty difficult to find, although not uncommon. These Warriors had abilities that were specialised and unique, and their powers never extended from the other four. It was like they were in a league of their own, and those Warriors were tricky to defeat, although it wasn’t unheard of to have Spirit Warriors defeated by Warriors of the other elements.

Unclaimed cards had a Heart, Diamond, Spade and Club arranged in a circle ontheir surfaces, and it is said that there are thousands of them scattered around the world. In order to bond to a card, one had to drip his or her blood on the card in order to create a ‘blood bond’ that would tie the Warrior to their Dealer for as long as their Dealer shall live. This creates the sense of loyalty between the Warrior and the Dealer, and allows the Warrior to sense whenever their Dealer was injured, regardless of where they may be. This allows them to immediately aid their Dealer in times of danger because if their Dealer ever dies, their Warrior would suffer a tremendous amount of pain that would be worse than dying. This prevents a Warrior from ever betraying their Master, and attempt to kill them themselves. Which explained why Dealers always had the upper hand in the relationship, because their Warriors were created to serve their bidding, much like a dog.

Having their Master die is also not the only way to cut off the connection between the Warrior and the Dealer. In duels, Dealers were allowed to wager their cards and whoever won would get to keep all of the wagered cards. The connection is broken once the Dealer draws a circle on the card with their blood and allows the release of their Warrior. This can only happen in duels though, and if one tried to get rid of their bonded card this way without battle, all their remaining cards would be confiscated. The purpose is to ensure that even low-ranked cards could serve a Master.

The final, and the most brutal way to cut off a connection was to burn the card while the Warrior is not inside, as this deeply weakens the soul energy of the Warrior tied to it. Their card was like their home, their healing place, something that was a part of them. And if that was taken away, the Warrior would surely perish forever. This was the only way that actually kills a Warrior instead of just disconnecting with them. Watching a part of them burn into ashes right in front of them is extremely sadistic, especially when they were going to die afterwards.

Heading the card-wielding world was five extremely powerful Dealers that could only be chosen by their previous generation, and they formed a group called The Council. They overlooked all important matters in the card-wielding society, and are said to be the ultimate protectors of all the cards around the world. They were the ones who made up the rules regarding the ownership of a Dealer’s cards, and if anyone disobeyed, they would be talking straight with the Council. Disobeying their orders could be considered as heavy offences, and the heaviest punishment would be to strip the Dealer away of all their cards.

The council is like the government of this world, although much stronger and scarier.

Ara hoped she could keep up with the many rules of her society, and prayed her ignorant self wouldn’t ever land her in any sort of trouble. She just got her first card after all, and she would explode if her Warrior was ever taken from her. She just hoped that she would be good enough one day.