The next day,
After breakfast, Lila and Sylvester are led by Rai to a sparring room, where they find Dahlia waiting for them.
The room is dimly lit by the sun's rays filtering through the windows, with a long wooden table in the corner of the large space. The walls are lined with old weapons: swords, daggers, shields, and armor of all sorts.
"Welcome," she says, as they enter. "I'm glad you could both make it."
Sylvester looks uninterested and bored, but his eyes flicker over the room, taking in every detail.
His words are curt as he says, "I wish I could say the same."
Dahlia rolls her eyes and gestures toward the center of the room. "A little late to be so sullen, Sylvester. You're here now."
Sylvester raises a brow at her, "what are we meant to expect from this?"
"The usual," she says. "It's about time I know your progress since the last time we met," Dahlia states bluntly.
Masking his displeasure, he sarcastically comments. "You have no idea how excited that makes me feel."
Lila hugs Sylvester's leg and skips on the interlocking black floor mats as she makes her way over to the corner of the room.
"You can do whatever you want, little one, as long as it doesn't interfere with the training," Rai instructs with a smile.
Lila nods her head while she walks in circles before spotting the softest place to sit.
Sylvester looks around the room, taking note of the empty seats numbering a total of twelve. He's quickly drawn to a chair near a window.
"I'll take that seat," Sylvester says, walking over to it and sitting down.
Dahlia shot him a glare and exclaimed, "It's not training if you're not participating!"
"I'm not in the mood for a fight today," Sylvester replies, looking away.
Dahlia's brows twitch in frustration, but she refrains from making another outburst.
Instead, she calmly walks over to an open spot next to Sylvester. "All we need to know is your capabilities and what you can contribute to the team. The rest will be taken care of."
Sylvester looks at Lila and notices her watching him with curiosity, wondering how long it could take before he makes her regret her daring attitude.
"Dahlia…"Sylvester begins, his voice low and serious as he locks eyes with her. "Are you sure you want to see what I'm capable of?"
There was something about the way he said it and the glare that made Dahlia retreat a few steps back.
Sylvester rose to his feet and stood in front of Dahlia, his eyes narrowing as he warned her, "I'd be careful if I were you, pushing yourself too far isn't a good idea."
"Brother Sylve!!!" Lila shouts out and waves her hands as she tries to get his attention.
Looking toward her, he raises a brow and asks, "yes?"
"Please don't hold back too much," Lila pleads.
Sylvester places his hands behind his back and turns to face Dahlia as he replies. "Why would I ever do that?"
'This isn't going to end well,' Rai thinks to himself as he wipes his face and retreats to an empty chair.
Dahlia turns towards Rai, who is silent and staring straight ahead, before turning back to Sylvester.
"Well, this should be interesting," Sylvester murmured.
The air becomes tense as Dahlia clenches her fists and grins.
"How about we make this more fun?" Sylvester suggests.
Easing up her tense muscles, Dahlia nods and says, "it depends on the condition, but, why not?"
Those words were like music to Sylvester's ears, as he responded. "Whoever wins this gets to request anything from the loser."
"That's a lot coming from someone with a lot on his mind," Dahlia adds.
"If you win, I'll have to listen to your orders," Sylvester answers with a grin.
"And what if I lose?" Dahlia asks, her hands still tightly clenched.
Sylvester lets out a deep breath and says, "then you must obey my commands, no questions asked."
"What makes you think I'd agree to such a thing?!" Dahlia exclaims, her arms shaking in anger.
Sylvester shrugs and asks, "why not? Even you have to admit that you are scared of my abilities, yet you cling to being the leader of this poorly trained team. Not even the rest of your team has what it takes."
Rai clears his throat, feeling as though he was caught in the middle of a wartorn environment with stray bullets striking at his weakest points.
Dahlia glares at Sylvester, but instead of backing down, he finds himself smiling in response.
"For someone who doesn't have full control of his ability, you're overestimating yourself," Dahlia retorts, her voice filled with anger.
'Dahlia, you're digging your own grave,' Rai thinks to himself as he starts to laugh. 'As you said, no reports have ever been recorded.'
Sylvester nods his head as if agreeing with Dahlia's words, but deep down he knew that he didn't need to be at his best to defeat her at her current level.
"I'm not afraid of anything," Dahlia states, her tone becoming even more heated.
"After this, you'd wish that you were," Sylvester casually replies.
Rai glances down at his wristwatch, swiftly typing on a holographic keyboard that appears in front of him.
[You might all want to be a part of this. This might be the only chance you get to know how far you've gone with your training]
His hand hovers over the send button, waiting for a moment to make sure that it was set to deliver to all teammates before clicking on it.
[Message delivered]
'How about a little challenge, Sylvester?' Rai asks in his thoughts, waiting for Sylvester's reaction.
A sly smirk appeared on Sylvester's face as he looked over at Rai.
Getting the answer he needed, Rai leans back in his seat and continues typing on his holographic keyboard.
Before long, he takes pictures of the soon-to-be sparring session between Sylvester and Dahlia.
Taking a look at the numerous pictures to choose from, he picks out the best with the right lighting and captions it: 'Training just got a hell of a lot more engaging, don't you think?'
He then clicks send, watching as the image is delivered to all members.
Lila watches with amusement as Sylvester's face goes from calm to deadly in an instant.
The hall trembles under the bulk of the numerous spiked vines that are slowly and methodically making their way down the walls, covering every inch of space in front of them with the thick foliage. The vines grow thicker as they approach the middle, reaching for Sylvester like grasping hands.
Sylvester nonchalantly removes his tie and discards his jacket over a nearby chair, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips. He beckons Dahlia with a flick of his hand, his tone daring. "Let's get this show on the road, shall we? And Dahlia, for your own sake, don't hold back."
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Author's note
¶ Do check out the weekly auxiliary chapter[Bonus chapter task] to know how you can participate.