The Noble Queen-A Shadow Slave Fanfic

Rain had hoped to arrive at the opening of the school unnoticed by her mother. While she knew this was technically impossible—her mother could just feel for her emotions and know that she was nearby—the teen still wanted to be as inconspicuous as possible.

Glancing down at her shadow, Rain straightened her shoulders and melted into the crowd.

Plenty of conversations were happening as she passed through.

"I swear I saw a dragon by the palace!"

"Come on, Drill! You also saw one by the barricade yesterday and flying across the far mountains last week. By your account, this area is infested with dragons that no one else ever sees…"

"This time I mean it, Qbami! It didn't look like it was attacking though. I wonder if it was one of the princess's echoes. Imagine! There might be a dragon lurking in the halls of the palace all the time!"

Rain thought about having a dragon of her own. It sounded fun in theory, but she much preferred her mother's Symncus, and not just because it was soft and purred like she was the most important person in two worlds.

"I wonder if General Yer will come and watch us fight? I hear he was looking for new people willing to pledge allegiance to Clan Song."

"I doubt he would come today. I wouldn't want him to anyway. I would be mortified if I knew I was being watched by someone like him."

Rain wondered who this Yer was. Maybe he was one of the Saints of Song. She had already met two of the clan's generals. Just how many did they have?

But it was the last conversation that caught Rain's attention.

"I am telling you, no matter how good you are at fighting, math can help make you better."

A young woman with ginger hair and a blue scarf was explaining patiently to a few other teens.

"How in the world can math improve my strength?" a boy with rather defined muscles crossed his arms.

"It won't change how much strength you have, but it can maximize how you use it." The girl persisted. "I have seen you practice. Lowering your elbow by around five millimeters will give you a more consistent sword swing."

"You are just picking a random number, Vel. We all know you are smart, but that is too specific." One of the other listeners challenged.

"No really!" Vel adjusted her scarf. "I can do the calculations if you will give me a little time. But I assure you that the smallest mathematical adjustment can yield exponential results."

The others began to tease the girl for her confidence, causing Vel's ears to burn.

"You would all not be so dismissive if you knew how much it would help you. If you would just let me show you—"

"Show me," Rain's words came out before she had much time to think about them.

All she knew was that she didn't like how the girl was being treated and she wanted to help.

Perhaps she should have chosen other words, for Rain realized belatedly that they sounded more like a challenge than an invitation.

"Now?" Vel's eyes opened wide.

"If it isn't too much trouble." Rain winced.

Her request for help was genuine.

She had been lazy with her training since the family had decided to move. Her usually toned body was just the slightest bit rounder because she had indulged in all of her favorite things one last time before leaving. Rain could feel her muscles developing bad habits.

She needed to break that here and now with a bit of a wake-up call.

Picking up a practice sword, Rain entered the snowy arena.

"So, what do you say?"

A tentative smile formed on Vel's face.

"Alright."

Rain smiled in return. "Math me! I mean, use that math of yours to work some magic."

The statement itself was silly. Magic was meant to defy logic. It was guided by principles that mundane humanity would never comprehend.

But rather than point that out, Vel took another practice sword from the open chest.

"I am ready when you are."

The ladies faced off, garnering the attention not only of Vel's friends but most of the other potential students. They circled up, whispering about the show about to take place. 

Rain ignored them. She had come this far. She would see what Vel had to say. 

The pale teen swung twice in quick succession while the girl in the blue scarf held up her sword in a defensive position. 

Rain lowered her sword. "Well?" 

Vel frowned. "I need more data." 

The ginger-haired girl lunged forward to elicit another swing from her opponent and soon the two were locked in a duel. The crowd, which had been subdued, became loud with cheers. 

'Wow, there really isn't much entertainment around here,' Rain noted with mild amusement. 

To be fair, she had been itching for a chance to try out her skills in Ravenheart. 

However, finding someone who would engage in a friendly duel was harder than just asking someone if they wanted to fight. This chance was exactly what Rain had been seeking.

So what if others were watching? She would give them a good show!

That didn't mean Rain wasn't going full out. That would have been too much after her time of inactivity and no warm-up. All she could do was try her best to make her muscles cooperate seamlessly. 

Instead, her connections felt sluggish, and Vel took each opportunity to challenge her opponent with a hit of her own. The blue scarf waved in the wind like a victory flag, showing the quick reflexes of its owner. 

The more the crowd cheered, the more animated the two ladies became. 

'Is this how mom feels in the Dreamscape?' Rain wondered. 

She struck again, hitting Vel on the arm and earning a whoop from some of the more bloodthirsty observers. 

Vel smiled. "If you had lowered your shoulder a centimeter and lifted your arm by three degrees before that hit, you would have knocked me to the ground instead of giving me a bruise." 

"Oh?" Rain smiled. "Let's give it a try..." 

Over the years, the girl had many tutors, including her famous mother. The more she worked her way around the practice arena, the more the lessons of these people began to fuse with her mind and body. It had taken a little time, but it was coming back to her slowly. 

The pale teen spun and forced her opponent to move contrary to the wind. The blue scarf, which had looked stunning a moment before, blew in front of Vel's face. 

"No fair!" she laughed, correcting the problem before Rain could take advantage of the mistake. 

Rain smirked. 'This isn't the Fair,' she refrained from making her father's favorite joke aloud. 

Instead, she used the pause to adjust her body as close as possible to what the other girl had advised. 

Vel yelped as the next hit sent her sliding across the ground in the snow. Her sword clattered away. Rain had won. 

The crowd went wild. "Did you see that? For a second I thought that one girl had gone crazy!" 

Instead of being upset by the turn of events, Vel was all smiles.

"You see?!" she chirped, tucking her scarf around her face. 

"That felt much better, yes!" Rain lowered her sword and helped the other girl to her feet. 

"Math matters!" Vel nodded seriously. "Before you were fighting like a man. That last swing looked much more like you." 

"Fighting like a man? Now you sound like my mother," Rain threw out the words with a soft chuckle. 

"Oh really? And what does your mother sound like?" A voice came from behind her. 

Rain froze. She had really stepped in it this time. 

'So much for being inconspicuous...'