Upon arriving at the training room, Aster realized just how wide and spacious the room was.
The floor was made of polished wood and there were wooden racks arranged neatly against the wall.
Sara picked up two wooden swords before tossing one over to her prince.
Aster caught it midair, noticing that it wasn't too heavy for him, meaning that he could swing it around comfortably without having to worry about his hands getting tired easily.
"Alright, Your Highness, how about we make this sparring session a bit more interesting?"
"Okay, so what do you have in mind?"
"How about a bet? If you win, I'll make you a meal that's even more yummy than anything you've ever eaten before and if I win, we get to spend time together doing what I want."
Aster pondered over it and found nothing wrong in making their first training session a bit more exciting, so he agreed. "Alright, you've got yourself a deal."
"Really?"
"Yep."
Sara beamed and the two of them shook hands.
"Alright, Your Highness, here's the deal. The first to score three points wins. You can score a point by either touching or making a clean strike on your opponent. Is that clear?"
"Yes."
"Shall we begin?" Sara asked and Aster nodded.
The competition began with the two of them slowly circling each other, neither of them eager to make the first move.
Meanwhile, seeing that Sara wasn't going to move first, Aster's grip on his wooden sword tightened and he decided to launch the first attack.
He lunged straight for her left flank, and Sara had already expected him to aim straight for her left arm or leg. But to her surprise, he swiftly switched his sword to his left hand before tapping the tip of his sword against her right thigh, giving Sara no time at all to react to his attack.
*Tap!*
"Ha!! That's one point for me." Aster said confidently as he took two steps backwards.
"That was pure luck, Your Highness."
"Who cares. The point still counts and I'm leading right now."
"Oh really?" Sara asked with a mischievous smirk on her face as she tightened the grip on her sword.
This time around, she swiftly charged forward and Aster raised his sword high, planning to strike once Sara had gotten close to him, but to his surprise, she swiftly spun around at the last minute to evade his attack.
But then, a loud thwack echoed in the training hall as Sara slapped the flat side of her sword against Aster's butt.
"Oi! That was a cheap shot!!" Aster grumbled as he clutched his butt with an annoyed look on his face.
Meanwhile, Sara couldn't help but find his expression cute so she stuck out her tongue to annoy him even more. "It's now 1-1, Your Highness. So try not to leave your back exposed again."
Aster furrowed his brows as he held his sword tightly.
Although Sara had lowered her power rank to match his, she still had an advantage over him due to her experience in battle.
But Aster wasn't going to give up so easily.
And so, the battle continued once again with the sound of wood striking against wood echoing throughout the hall as Sara and Aster tirelessly launched their strikes simultaneously.
Even though close combat wasn't her forte, Sara's movement was without a doubt fluid as she easily handled her sword and evaded all of Aster's attacks.
But by sheer luck, Aster was able to duck under one of her attacks before jabbing his sword into her side.
*Tap!*
"Ha!!! That's two-one!!" Aster called out in excitement as he raised both hands, almost as though he was about to yell BANZAI!!!
However, his victory was short-lived because Sara didn't waste a second before slapping the flat side of her sword on his thigh, causing Aster's jaw to drop in surprise.
He had barely even enjoyed his victory before the score had gone back to being a tie.
"Now, it's 2-2, Your Highness. Are you ready to admit defeat?" Sara asked with a confident smile on her face as she took a few steps back to create some space between the two of them.
But Aster remained calm.
He wasn't really bothered by the results because to be honest, he had previously thought that Sara would win their spar by a margin of three to none, but since he had already gained two points, Aster was prepared to go all in with his final attack.
"Let's end this," Aster said with a determined look and Sara nodded in agreement.
"With pleasure."
They both charged forward at the same time, raising their swords high above their heads while they yelled, as though they were in a real battleground.
Sara swiftly aimed for his arm but Aster activated his dragon eyes, allowing him to easily match Sara's speed.
Since she had matched her strength with his, his dragon eyes were able to easily detect her movement, but it could only last for a fraction of a second due to how strong Sara's current strength was in comparison to that of Aster's.
However, the time limit of his eyes was more than enough for Aster to swiftly spin around and evade her attack. Then he retaliated with a sweet smack of his sword straight on her soft, jiggling behind.
*Thwack!!*
"Eii!!!" Sara shrieked cutely as she immediately clutched her soft butt with a surprise look on her face.
Aster, feeling satisfied with his attack, then decided to return her other gestures, so he flashed her a wink, accompanied by him sticking out his tongue.