VII

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Arc VII Chapter 6

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1st Aqua Solar XI AAC 753

Aurora delicately deposited her beloved Dollrora onto the ground, adjusting her skirt, her joints, her limbs just so. All with a smile on her lips. "Wait here for me, Dolly. I'll be back in a breeze~." She would be.

"... ... ..." Her doll did not respond, did not react, did not reply. As it was supposed to be.

It was exceedingly fortunate that her doll still lay mostly dormant during daytime before resurfacing during the cover of the night when the elements were favourable and the girl's essence the strongest, maintained by her own latent mana. As of now, though, little Aurora did not possess the necessary strength to manifest her essence for prolonged periods. Her soul was still weak, frail, fragile, a feeble flame to be tendered and cared for.

After the events of the previous night, the girl had returned to her state of stasis, which was fortunate. Otherwise, her sentient doll would be now forced to perform the admirable task of maintaining her rigid posture, sitting without moving and without eliciting any unwarranted attention. Fortunately for both of them, that was not the case.

"Good girl." Aurora rewarded her doll with a gentle kiss onto her forehead before departing. "Stay strong while your Edelgart is away~."

"..." Erich merely shook his head, a heavy sigh escaping him. "You and your doll ..." The judgemental undertone was hard to miss. Not that Aurora and her doll cared. People could think about them whatever they wanted.

Armed with a smile, Aurora turned her attention to her endlessly disgruntled friend. "Do you have perhaps anything to say, Erich?"

"..." Erich crossed his arms, overly grumpy and overly serious for his age, as usual. Always so strict and uptight. It would make him kind of cute, if his belligerence was not directed at her and her doll. "Ehm, never mind, forget it. That being said, I wish you luck, Edelgart. Give your best. Trust me, you'll bitterly need it. Angelika won't cut you any slack just because you're cute." That remained to be seen. Cuteness was an exceedingly potent weapon. Especially, in the hands of a little girl.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Ludolf joined his colleague. "Yes, try not to trip on your skirt, Dolly Girl. Angelika is quite the tough cookie, I tell you." Acknowledged.

"Ackn ... Got it~." Aurora smiled, playing her role of the little sunshine to perfection. At times, it was a strenuous affair to maintain her persona. It was not always easy.

Aurora stepped forwards and entered the circles, approaching her adversary. Angelika was already awaiting her, with a broad grin plastered across her face.

"Here, take one." Angelika tossed a wooden practice sword at her. A blade like those of her predecessors.

"Awww ..." Aurora caught the blade in a clumsy manner, barely able to catch it. She nearly stumbled over her tiny, little feetsies in the process. Obviously, this was all part of her act.

Angelika grinned, her grip on her blade firm. "You know, Edelgart, you've cost me quite some nerve so far, Edelgart. I hope you're worth all the trouble." And all those hot chocolates, which went clearly unsaid.

"..." Aurora inspected her blade and the ground. The blade was light and nimble. Probably a tad too light for her personal taste, but such was life. It was a practice sword, after all. Wood, and not steel. It would have to suffice. The ground, meanwhile, was covered by sand. River sand. Granular. Coarse. Not fine or powdery. A plan began to take form in her mind.

Aurora beamed, deploying her sweetest smile. "Sister Angelika~."

Angelika tilted her head, returning a gentle smile. "Yes, Edelgart~? Do you need something~?"

"Yes~." Aurora nodded vigorously, moving her little head up and down. "Do you maybe have a pair of practice daggers?"

"Daggers?" Erich wondered, dumbfounded.

"Daggers?" Ludolf questioned, dumbstruck.

"Daggers?" Angelika furrowed an eyebrow. "You're asking for a pair of daggers now?"

"Yes, daggers~." Aurora pumped her tiny fists with determination.

...

...

...

"Hmm, what an uncommon request ... How fortunate that I always come prepared." Angelika grinned triumphantly before producing a number of wooden daggers from her pouch. "Ta da, good that Sir Hartmann told me that you've not only a penchant for swords, but also daggers. Seems like he was right. How many do you need, Edelgart?"

"... ... ..." Aurora fell silent. This was unexpected, ... but also somewhat to be expected considering that Angelika was supposed to be their tutor. No wonder that she would know all about their preferences. The woman had studied their dossier well.

She had brought an arming sword for Erich. Medium length. One handed. A longsword for Ludolf. Long. Heavy. Two handed. And last but not least, a short sword and a pair of daggers for her. Light and nimble.

"Two ... I need two." Aurora motioned, her raised hand indicating the number two. Angelika handed her the weapons as requested. Unsurprisingly, the daggers were quite wooden.

"..." Erich was stroking his chin, his arms crossed. "Hmm, I think she must have some kind of plan."

Ludolf raised an eyebrow, unsure. "Are you sure? Hard to imagine anything besides dolls and hot chocolates inside that little head of hers." He sounded dubious.

His words made Erich chuckle. He shared his friend's assessment, to some degree. "Maybe, maybe not, but the girl has always been a crafty one. I can tell from experience." They were not wrong. On both accounts. She was indeed a crafty girl. Not to mention, the acquisition of hot chocolate and the welfare of her doll were indeed major considerations of hers.

"..." Aurora stuffed her daggers inside her pouches. If everything went according to plan, they would serve her well.

Angelika raised her sword, pointing the tip in her direction. Almost tauntingly. A grin accompanied her. "Are you ready, Edelgart?"

"Yes." Aurora nodded, her little short sword tightly gripped. As ready as she would be. The fight began, and nobody dared to make the first move. Neither she, nor Angelika made a move. They eyed, they gauged, they stalked one another like prey and hunter.

Aurora von Schwarz

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