For a brief moment, Natalie sidered turning the versation baille’s offer. But she wasn’t sure it had been genuine, and when it came to Camille’s eeasing, it was better to not give her more fuel. So instead, she dropped it.

  “I really don’t,” Natalie said. “I know who House Parda-Halt is, though.”

  “I would hope so,” Camille said, giving her another odd look. “Anyway, there’s not a Parda-Halt out there who isn’t a prodigy. Won’t be surprised if she’s at the top of the css. As in, top-top. Number one.”

  “Whie is she?”

  “Red hair. Over there.”

  A few sparring pads away, Natalie saw who Camille poi. With long red hair, the same vibrant color as Natalie’s, and pierg green eyes, Natalie pced the woman in an instant. “Oh,” she said. “She’s in my barracks.”

  “Poor you.”

  “Poor me?”

  “She hasn’t been awful?”

  “Haven’t exged two words with her.”

  “Suggest you keep that up.”

  “Why?” Natalie had formed an immediately poor impression of the woman, because her first experience had been Elida giving a mog, disdainful look toward Liz, clearly finding her sociable chatter as … Natalie didn’t know. Childish? Embarrassing? She supposed she was making assumptions. And that had been a while ago, and a rather minor i, but now that Natalie liked Liz, the event bothered her more. Still, she wao hear Camille’s thoughts oter.

  “Always a good policy to keep thirty feet away from any Parda-Halt. Bunch of shem.” She grimaced. “Don’t tell her I said that, though. Or anyone. My house is teically on good footing with hers.”

  Which made the point even stronger. “That bad, then?”

  “Haven’t talked to her,” Camille admitted. “But really. Parda-Halt.”

  Natalie knew Parda-Halt had a poor reputation. Not more than a tury ago, they’d tried to overthrow the monarchy. It spoke to their ing their House hadn’t colpsed for the failure. Hatred obviously lingered between Beaumon and Parda-Halt. Sialie had made friends with Liz, and Elida hadn’t set a great impression in the first pce, it was obvious which side of the lialie stood on for that rivalry. Not that she ‘stood’ in any meaningful capacity; she was a nobody.

  “Huh,” Natalie said. “And Johanna? I think Liz has mentioned her.” She retty sure she’d heard the name once or twice.

  “Not surprised,” Camille said. “They’re probably best friends. Johanna Valeria?”

  “Ah,” Natalie said. House Valeria and Beaumon were inseparable. Valeria had effectively led the military feions; they were the Beaumon family’s right hand. “Don’t think Liz’s talked about her that much, though.” Then again, Natalie had hardly spent any signifit amount of time with Liz. They’d made friends, but not to any deep degree. “She’s in css twelve, too?”

  “Over there,” Camille said. “Bloh the short hair.”

  Natalie pced her in a moment. She was in a two-on-two spar against Sofia. Johanna Valeria looked like a military woman. The effect lified by being in active bat, but her short hair, carved-from-stone expression, and powerful build radiated “soldier”. She filled out the Te uniform in a way not many others did—and that was saying something, sidering where they were.

  “Don’t stare too obviously,” Camille said, amused. “She’ll catch you. But yeah. I agree.”

  “Tank?”

  “Fighter. Tough as nails. Takes a hit better than most tanks, and’ll tear hters apart limb by limb, too. That’s a Valeria. Like Elida, I’ll eat my foot if she’s not iop ten when rankings e out. Top five, probably.”

  “That’s week?”

  “Rankings? First day of it, far as I know.”

  “I wonder how I’d fare against her,” Natalie said idly.

  “Yood, Nat,” Camille said. “But you’re not Johanna Valeria good.”

  Natalie bristled, but as she watched Johanna’s two-squad tear apart Sofia’s, making even her white-haired rival struggle to keep up, she hesitated.

  “I’ve got a while to go,” Natalie relutly admitted.

  She liked to believe she was talented, but she hadn’t been brought up uhe full support of a major Valhaurian house.

  The Valerias especially were bat-oriented in a way even many major houses weren’t. Most houses had promi delvers, but all members of Valeria were military in one way or another—even the ones who didn’t delve and reaormous personal power through their css still knew warfare. Generals, soldiers, or delvers. Johanna had undoubtedly lived and breathed bat since she could walk. Which was same for ma students, but her especially.

  Still, even if Johanna hadn’t done anything to Natalie, and even sounded like Liz’s friend, Natalie found herself frowning. She had a measuring stipare to, now. Someone she wao surpass. Though Sofia still came first. Johanna had dismantled even Sofia, and Natalie still couldn’t. Her friend thrashed her in fights.

  Her … friend?

  Natalie shivered. She’d really just thought that. Rival. Sofia wasn’t anything but her rival. Reduced hostility i weeks or not.

  She sed the rest of the fights. She and Camille were rec from their own bout, but they would rejoin the fray shortly.

  O person caught her eye. Half because of her distinctive appearance, half because of how she was, like Johanna and Elida, tearing her petition—Natalie’s cssmates—apart. With wicked twin daggers iher hand, she flowed between her oppos like water, and even that metaphor didn’t do it justice. Like smoke, slippiween attacks as if she were formless.

  Even more promily, the heavy, criss-crossing scars running across her faatalie had seen this girl ba the barracks on the first day, but now that she thought about, hadn’t since. Had she even been sleeping there? She’d seemed especially unfortable with hoeople were stuffed in the barracks; twitchy, to uate things. Had she snuck off to sleep somewhere else? Why would Te allow that, though?

  “Who’s that?” Natalie asked.

  “Not sure,” Camille said. She’d followed Natalie’s gaze even before her prompting. “But she fights like a demon, doesn’t she?”

  “Aop ten?”

  “Probably. She wasn’t put in css twelve without a reason, I’d figure.”

  “Assuming it works like that.”

  Camille shrugged. “Even their worst members are a nightmare, if you haven’t noticed. No way that’s a ce.”

  Natalie definitely had. Her first few bouts hadn’t been easy. Hadn’t even pulled out a victory today. That they were matched up against, apparently, the best css of the year only relieved her irritation at her failure slightly. She didn’t like other people beier than her. Wouldn’t have made it to Te if she did.

  “Anyway,” Camille said. “Should get back to it. Wanna have a go against them?” She stuck her thumb toward two bystanders of css twelve.

  “Might as well,” Natalie said.