To Be Young

After a bit of introductions and conversation, it was time to head to class. The group walked together toward the first course. Since they were all in the same year, Tessvulin's friends had a few of the same professors.

The main class for the day seemed to be focused on action. Shu handed the lioness her bag before sitting against the wall with the other attendants. It was a large gymnasium that the students found themselves in. They all sat on benches to the side while an owl man gave a lecture.

"Evasion is an important part of battle and warfare. Today we'll cover all forms of dodging and any skills related…"

The class went on for what felt like hours for the students. This owl professor didn't grow tired even once, his voice resounding nonstop. He would call out anyone that stopped paying attention for too long. Only the booksmart students listened intently while jotting down notes.

From time to time, Tess would glance at Shu, who was already in dreamland. Several girls couldn't help but envy the fierce woman. Why didn't they get to have such a laid back and good looking attendant? Some of her suitors looked at the sleeping man with disdain. How dare he receive so much attention from Tess? She's the best fighter among all the first year students!

"All right, class. That's enough lecturing for today. Now we'll apply these theories. Everyone come down." The owl beastkin said.

All of the students rose from their seats and approached the gym floor. Some of them took out their weapons without even being asked. The professor cleared his throat.

"Would anyone like to provide an example for the class?"

A hand rose into the air. It was Lulu the rabbit woman. Her ears moved slightly as she hopped with excitement.

"Lulu, you will be the attacker. Who would you like to be the defender?"

The rabbit thought for a moment. As the seconds ticked by, a mischievous grin appeared on her face. She then pointed toward the wall, where the attendants were. Everyone frowned while looking toward the source. Those frowns quickly turned into delight. It was the guy who was sleeping!

"Shu." Lulu said. The professor shook his head.

"You want an attendant to receive your attacks while trying to evade? That seems a bit cruel."

"Does he look that weak to you? Look. He's still holding that skinny twig of a sword!" A random student spoke from the crowd.

"Kayne, is there a problem?" The owl questioned.

A young man with long black hair separated himself from the group. There was a silver streak in his hair. He moved with elegance. Tess immediately huffed in annoyance.

"Damn vampire. Are you trying to cause harm to my attendant?" She growled. Kayne smiled.

"Of course not! Lulu was the one who brought it up anyways. We just want to see if he deserves to be your attendant. There shouldn't be anything wrong with that, right?" He bullshitted.

"Tess is mine!" The rabbit muttered under her breath. Tessvulin sighed. Everything was getting out of hand. At this moment, the professor spoke up.

"It seems that the new attendant has riled everyone up. Let's wake him, shall we?"

After hearing his words, one of the nearby attendants gently nudged the sleeping samurai. Shu slowly opened his eyes. A huge yawn escaped his lips.

"...What…" He grumbled.

"Attendant Shu. The lesson today is about evasion. Lulu and Kayne would like to use you as an example. What do you say to that?" The owl spoke while gesturing to the duo. The samurai rubbed his eyes before glancing at the two.

'Lulu huh. I'm not surprised, but who is this other guy?' He thought.

There was a moment of silence. Each of the spectators were waiting for him to accept the challenge. No attendant in the history of attendants has defied orders, even if they're disguised with polite words. The weak must obey the strong.

"No thanks." He grunted before closing his eyes once more.

The students looked at him weirdly. He just blew them off! The man treated them like grass! Who does he think he is? Kayne frowned before walking up to him.

"You're just another slave. Do as you're told, mutt."

"........"

Shu was unresponsive. He continued to lean against the wall and rest. His action brought forth an untold fury to the vampire. The Vampire Clan was another noble house that focused on politics. Almost all of them were arrogant to the bones. Kayne had been courting Tessvulin for a long time, thus seeing a random man hanging around her wasn't acceptable. It rubbed him the wrong way.

"Kayne. Don't push your luck." Tess threatened.

"Don't worry, Tess. I'm just going to educate him a little! I'll be confiscating his weapon. A mutt doesn't deserve it." He explained.

The arrogant noble reached for Shu's katana. Right before he grasped it, the sleeping figure disappeared like a ghost. The young samurai instantly appeared behind Kayne with a dull expression. As he stared at his back, Shu debated cutting him in half. How dare this random nobody try to steal his weapon!

Grabbing the back of his collar, the lazy swordsman threw him toward the middle of the gym. Kayne flipped elegantly before making a perfect landing. An expression of disbelief adorned his features.

"So fast! When did he move?!" The vampire muttered.

"...Come. We will be the examples. I'm willing to give you 15 seconds to land a hit. After that, I'll fight back." Shu muttered while casually approaching. He ignored Lulu, as he wasn't going to humiliate a friend of a friend.

Kayne's face turned solemn. The aura being emitted from this attendant wasn't weak at all! Who the hell was this guy? Where did Tess find him?!

"So you're a little bit strong. It changes nothing. You are still a glorified slave." He grumbled.

The vampire unsheathed the weapon on his hip. It was a normal steel sword. A double edged longsword. There didn't seem to be anything special about it. Kayne placed his free hand behind his back, portraying an elegant battle stance. At this moment, the professor spoke up.

"Sorry, Lulu. The match has been made. Kayne and Attendant Shu. Begin!" The owl declared.

After slightly tapping his foot on the ground, Kayne burst toward the samurai. Multiple thrusts pierced with adequate strength. Shu narrowly tilted his body and evaded with little effort. Three seconds had passed. A few more exchanges were made.

Kayne made an elegant twirl before cleaving at the sleepy man's neck. He leaned back slightly, avoiding the attack once more. The vampire's left hand suddenly burst into grey flames. Using his hand as a sword, he swiped at Shu's thigh. A smirk graced Shu's face as he flipped into the air. It was an acrobatic display for the viewers.

All of the people watching couldn't help but fall into a daze. Their exchanges resembled a dance of the highest caliber. Whenever there was something that took too much effort to dodge, the lazy swordsman would deflect it. Now there were five seconds left.

The arrogant noble was drowning in frustration. How were all of his attacks missing? He had made sure to lay several traps. He was one of the best fighters in his grade, second to Tessvulin! This attendant was not the average servant. Kayne knew for sure now.

"Five. Four." Shu began to count down.

Kayne ran his flaming hand over the edge of his blade. The silent grey embers danced on the weapon. He then wiggled his longsword, which caused it to separate and hang to the ground by a sharp wire. It was a whip sword! He didn't waste time and swung the flaming whip.

WHAM

Shu jumped back as the weapon cut into the ground. A couple more scars were put into the gym. As all of this went down, the young samurai was still counting.

"Two. One."

He instantly burst into motion, accelerating toward Kayne. Fear engulfed the vampire as he denied the situation. This was the first time his attacks had been treated like air. It was preposterous! Not even Tess could do that.

Shu dashed through each of the attacks. He leapt over a low swipe, but a high slash was waiting for him. The lazy swordsman flexed his abdomen which forced his body to backflip. The blade whizzed over his face. Since he was still moving, the momentum resulted in him landing right in front of Kayne. The young samurai jammed the hilt of his sheathed katana into the vampire's diaphragm.

BOOM

"Ughf…"

Spit flew out of Kayne's mouth as the air left his lungs. His eyes looked like they would fall out. The arrogant noble was unable to control his bodily functions. A loud sound resounded as his weapon fell to the ground. The vampire dropped to his knees while holding his stomach. He then collapsed on the tile with an expression full of pain. He was unconscious.