Not long after walking, they all stopped at a bunch of different stages all over a field. Archer looked around but was interrupted by Jade's voice.
''Archer! You will be fighting the new combat professor Samara Grayleaf.''
When he heard this he nodded his head but soon heard Teuila's voice in his ear. ''Don't fight like a wild beast Darling. Use what I've taught you.''
He smiled and kissed her cheek before making his way to the stage Jade was pointing at. As he got closer he spotted a blonde muscular woman standing there.
She had beautiful orange eyes that were staring at him with excitement in them. Archer thought she was stunning.
The woman was built like a warrior and was holding a spear, Archer examined her and enjoyed every second of it.
When the combat professor felt his gaze her eyes softened as she watched him. But she soon spoke. ''So you're Archer. I apologize for what my older sister put you through.''
He nodded his head as he didn't have an issue with her, but that's when it came back to him. Archer looked at the woman and saw the resemblance.
''Don't apologize on that woman's behalf. You didn't do anything to me.''
The woman smiled and introduced herself. ''I'm Samara Grayleaf, youngest daughter of Duke Eldric Grayleaf. It's nice to finally meet you nephew.''
Archer grinned when he heard her and spoke. ''Well, it's nice to meet you too. But do you want to fight now?''
Samara got excited and nodded her head as he unsheathed her sword and got ready to fight as Archer summoned his claws and wings.
They faced each other on the grand stage, the anticipation in the air almost palpable.
The arena was filled to the brim with students, including Archer's girls, who eagerly awaited the duel.
There were two combat professors overseeing the battle who had ensured that the stage was prepared for the third test.
Samara, who was known as a renowned sword master, gripped her gleaming spear tightly, her eyes locked onto Archer, who stood ready.
His claws, powerful tail, and majestic wings were his weapons in this duel. The crowd fell silent as the professors announced the start of the duel.
"Let the duel between Archer and Professor Samara begin!" one of the professors declared, and the audience erupted into cheers and applause.
Samara wasted no time. She lunged forward, her sword a blur of steel as it sliced through the air towards Archer.
Her precision and speed were unmatched, and the crowd watched in astonishment.
Archer reacted swiftly, his claws parried Samara's strikes with a combination of agility and raw power, the clashing of their weapons ringing out in the arena.
The duel was intense, with Samara's swordplay and Archer's clawwork creating a mesmerizing dance of combat.
His girls and the students were on the edge of their seats, their eyes glued to the stage.
Archer's tail became a versatile weapon. With a flick, he managed to entangle Samara's sword, but he was kicked away.
It was a move that brought cheers from the crowd. However, he was not one to stay down for long.
When he got to his feet Archer pounced at her and swiped but with incredible agility, she swiftly dodged his claws.
She quickly closed the gap between them once more, launching a series of powerful strikes. One of the strikes managed to land on his chest.
Even though she punched his scales he still felt it but he blocked the rest of the attacks but jumped back and used his wings.
With a powerful flap, he created gusts of wind that threw Samara off balance. But she quickly corrected her footing and charged at Their duel raged on, and both of them were pushing the other to their limits. The stage seemed too small to contain the sheer intensity of their battle.
Archer's girls shouted words of encouragement and support, their faith in their husband unwavering.
Archer used his wings to jump back and dodged one of her kicks. When he got away from her he looked in her direction but she vanished from where she was standing.
He went to cover his body with his wings but was too late when she reappeared and threw a combo of attacks at him.
Archer couldn't keep up and more attacks landed on him. She dodged his tail swipe and kicked him in the chest.
Samara's attack sent him flying and crashed to the ground. But he got to his feet and cast Blink and appeared behind her.
But the woman was too quick as she turned around and threw a right hook that connected with his temple.
Archer was sent flying but this time he was completely dazed. He crashed to the ground but Samara followed behind.
When he came to a stop he went to sit up but she pounced on him. She was sitting on his waist with her sword on his throat.
His head was spinning but he nodded at her. Archer expected her to get up but she leaned forward and with a bold voice, she whispered into his ear. ''We will fight again nephew. That was exciting.''
Samara stood up and bowed to the crowd followed by Archer getting to his feet as he brushed the dust off him.
When he was done a man approached him, Archer noticed he was a demon. He had a pair of black horns on his head.
His skin was crimson and had completely black eyes. The man stopped in front of him and nodded his head as he spoke. ''What are you, boy?''
Archer looked at the man and replied. ''A dragon.''
After he spoke to the man he walked toward the girls while the crowd cheered. He joined the waiting girls who started pampering him.
[Ophelia Blackfire's POV]
Ophelia started watching the boy who just fought one of the college's sword masters. She knew he wasn't an expert fighter but used his claws with skill.
That was when she saw Alistair Shadowthorn the Magical Creature professor talk to the boy but she could see Archer wanted to get back to the girls.
She smiled at the results and knew the boy would go far in the future and probably compete in the Celestial Magic Tournament.
Ophelia remembered what he said and felt her cheeks go red. She quickly shook her head and mumbled. ''Stupid dragon.''
The group continued to watch all the duals the students were undergoing, it went on for hours until everyone was done.
They were led back to the courtyard and told to sit down. When Archer and the girls took their seats he noticed the sun was setting as the headmistress appeared and started speaking.
''Come to this courtyard tomorrow afternoon. If you don't have a place to stay tonight stay behind when everyone leaves. There will be a board that will tell you which classes you are in.''
She looked around and continued. ''Now the tests are completed you all will embark on a journey to become something better. I shall be cheering for you all and I will see you in the college.''
After speaking she cast a spell and vanished from the spot, and all the students started leaving. Archer turned to the girls and sent each one back including Leira who was shocked.
Before he could leave he heard Lioran speak from behind him. ''Oy Archer.''
He turned around and spotted the lion boy, Nala, and the two girls from earlier but there was one extra just standing there.
It was the exotic snake girl from the affinity tests. As he was looking at her one of the lion girls whose name was Nalika spoke. ''This is Halime Nagendra, the fourth princess of the Nagendra Kingdom in the south.''
''People seem to avoid her like she's ill but she seems like a sweet girl,'' Lioran commented from the side.
But he didn't listen to the boy as his eyes widened as he remembered the Earth Dragons so he asked the girl. ''How did the kingdom recover from the dragon who was running wild?''
The girl named Halime looked at him with wide eyes as an exotic-sounding voice came from her. ''How do you know about that?''
Archer stared into her golden snake eyes, now he was closer he got a closer look at her. She had short black hair with Turkish-like jewelry.
She was slender and had a modest-sized chest. Archer saw that she was wearing a black kaftan which suited her well.
He shook his head after hearing Lioran laughing. ''I fought with the beast as I was traveling north. The beast was starving and went mad but she is in a better place now.''
When Archer stopped speaking the snake girl was looking at him before bowing her head as she spoke. ''Thank you for helping my kingdom. I'm sure Father will reward you once he visits the college.''
Archer looked at her and nodded. ''Okay, we shall wait until then.''
[A/N - Leave some comments, power stones, and gifts. It all helps support the book. Artwork in the comments or discord]