Female Novel
Ready or not
I was the one who wanted to participate, and I was the one who agreed to be tested, but I hadn't
expected a brutal wake-up before sunrise! Nonetheless, fifteen minutes later, I was wearing sports
shoes, leggings, and a spandex top, following Draven to the training hall. It was still dark outside and
hardly anyone was around the area, except for the patrolling guards, who were bowing to Draven as
we passed them by. As soon as we walked inside, Draven went towards the table where a few swords
and knives were prepared.
"Pick your weapon," he said, pointing at the series of short, sparkling blades.
I grabbed a ten-inch long tanto knife with a dark wooden handle. It was light, comfortable to move, and
sharp enough to cut through werewolves' thick flesh. I raised the blade, presenting my choice to
Draven, and he nodded, approving it. Then he smirked and walked to the middle of the training hall,
dropping his sweatshirt along the way.
"Attack me, Lilith." He grinned daringly, his arms spread and ready to welcome my charge.
Confusion painted my face as I entered the fighting mats. "But… you don't have a knife… I won't attack
you while you are unarmed."
He burst out laughing. "If you manage to make even the smallest cut on my skin, I will let you join my
warriors."
"I will not fight you like this. This isn't fair," I claimed, crossing my arms on my chest.
Draven looked at me, amused. "Lilith… I am an Alpha werewolf. My whole body is my weapon. I have
fangs and claws sharp enough to cut the little blade you've chosen."
"Not when you are in human form," I argued.
A soft chuckle left his throat, then he cautiously scanned me from head to toe. "Then attack me without
a blade… if you dare." His intense stare sent a chill down my spine, but I wasn't going to back down.
I dropped the knife on the mat and ran straight at Draven. I could see his predatory eyes registering my
every single movement. He had seen me fight, but I had only a small glimpse of his abilities. This
worked to my disadvantage. I knew I needed to act fast and be less predictable. Being two meters
away from him, I bounced off the ground and did a front flip right above his head, dodging his hit. I
landed in a crouch down and instantly swung my leg into a low roundhouse kick, knocking Draven
down to the mat. He laughed and jumped back in an instant. He was fast, perhaps even faster than I
was. He threw a few punches at me, being an inch away from contact. I was learning him, but it wasn't
fast enough, and his attacks were only becoming more aggressive by the second. Avoiding his
punches was exhausting me fast, and finally, his powerful punch reached my chest. God, it hurt!
I took a few fast steps back just to get out of his range and restore my breathing, but before I could
forget the pain, this powerful Alpha stormed right at me. Watching his violent glower aimed at me, I
began to regret not using the damn knife. I wanted to flip back, giving myself a few more seconds to
regenerate, but Draven was faster. He grabbed my neck and tossed me onto the mat. With his hand
slowly crushing my throat, he leaned down, watching me squirm on the floor.
"Are you giving up?" he snickered.
I hated that superior expression of his, and I wanted to wipe it off his face. He underestimated me,
thinking that he knew all of my abilities, but even I kept discovering them every day. I smirked, looking
straight into his eyes. From the consternation surfacing in his eyes, I knew that he didn't realize I usednovelbin
that time to study him, and now… I was ready to attack.
I used a brief moment of his distraction to kick his stomach and push him away. I jumped back to my
feet and before he straightened up, I threw another kick at him, aimed at his chin. He stepped back with
a low growl. Only then did he start to take me seriously. His pupils burned with flaming fury as he
swung his fist, aiming right below my ribs… Predictable. I dodged, with a savage satisfaction buzzing
within my veins. I knew his precision would decrease along with his rising anger. That made me daring
enough to throw a few more kicks, landing them where I wanted. Just when I became comfortable and
confident that I could even win against him… he took a couple of steps back.
"Enough for the warm-up." Draven hissed with a cold grin, making me swallow hard as he turned into
an enormous, onyx-black wolf.
Draven's wolf form reflected all of his captivating features yet added the raw, uncontrollable force that
only an Alpha could possess. The wolf's eyes stayed locked on me and burned even more intensively. I
cringed as he snarled, presenting his pointy teeth. At that moment, I knew I lacked a weapon that I
could use against him.
I didn't want to hurt Draven. I couldn't bear the thought of using a real knife on him, but he didn't look
like he was equally concerned about not hurting me… He pulled out his claws and bent his wolf legs in
preparation to storm at me. I gulped and abruptly traced the knife I dropped somewhere on the mat. At
full speed, I ran to grab my weapon, hearing the black beast roaring behind me. I grasped the blade
just a second before Draven's paw smashed the mat where my hand was.
Draven certainly didn't go easy on me. I rolled on the mats, trying to escape his aggressive hits, with
his claws scratching me more than a few times. Even his powerful growl made me want to cover my
ears and cringe into a ball. Everything about Draven's wolf was deadly, but I had to stand against his
power.
I was still reluctant about using the knife, but as his aggressiveness increased, he soon left me without
a choice. He pushed me as far as I could go without aiming to cut him. Once I took a glimpse into his
eyes, I saw nothing but bloodthirst. It stopped looking like a test long ago. This beast with Draven's
eyes wanted my life, and it was time I started to think of it as a real battle as well.
Clenching my teeth, I ran to the end of the hall, putting greater distance between us, but I knew Draven
was right behind me. I sped, breaking my limits. As I hit the wall, I bounced, turned around, and
charged back at him with a sharp blade in my hand. The black beast roared with his teeth greedy for
my flesh and lunged at me. I was scared to death, but my instincts took control of me. Before his jaw
could tear my skin, I did a long slide underneath him, cutting all four of his legs.
He bellowed with wrath mixed with pain. I flinched and looked at my knife covered with his blood. My
hands were shaking. I wanted to scream that I was sorry, but it took less than a few seconds for Draven
to shake off the pain I inflicted, and he jumped at me. I had already gone beyond my limits, and I could
hardly keep my balance, but I couldn't surrender after all I had gone through. I roared, knowing that he
wouldn't stop until one of us was close to dying. He came in a flash, but I managed to duck, avoiding
his teeth, and then hit the bottom of his jaw with the back of the knife, but his concussion was far too
brief. I nearly escaped the claws he pulled out trying to cut my legs.
I swung my knife to draw him away, but that merely slowed him a bit. In a desperate resort, I flipped
forward and jumped on his back. I knew that all I had to do was to stab his neck… but I hesitated. He
used my distraction, sinking his teeth into my thigh. I screamed but managed to cut the nape of his
neck before he threw me off his back.
I was lying on the floor, bleeding, unable to fight any longer. The black beast panted above me, looking
down at me with his blazing eyes. Suddenly, the drops of blood from the cut on his neck started falling
on me. Draven turned back to human form. His naked body, supported on his hands and knees, was
hanging over me. His gaze stayed dangerous and savage and kept piercing through me. I held my
breath.
He burst out laughing, and I froze. I lay petrified, glancing at him, overwhelmed with anxiety. He finally
gently fell down on me and embraced me, making me even more petrified than before.
"You won, beautiful." He breathed into my ear, his hands hugging me tight against his body. "I'm taking
you to a war with me."
I smiled faintly, but my heart rate didn't slow down. I was insanely happy that I survived Draven's
dreadful test, but…
"Um… Draven…?" A soft hysteric laugh escaped my throat while I was still lying stiffly on the floor.
"Could you get dressed now… please?"