Again.

B-Bumpkin?

Valentine gritted his teeth.

Me?

His grip on his sword tightened; the gravel beneath his fingers shifted.

"Again."

"Gotcha." With an expectant expression on her face, Lillith turned around and walked back to where she started, her body breathing with excitement.

Valentine stood up carefully, still holding onto the side of his torso.

It was the only strike she landed on him; granted, it didn't take long for it to happen; barely ten seconds passed after their spar started.

It hurts.

He winced before looking at his hand gripping the blade.

My wrist feels like it's about to twist off...

Despite having such a small stature, the female knight was strong. Exceptionally so.

He's never seen someone as strong as her, perhaps except for Noah and his steel punches to the gut.

He didn't want for something like this to happen again, but here he was, getting his ass handed to him in the most embarrassing way he could have ever imagined.

People are watching.

He sensed a couple of gazes on him, all watching him get struck down with little to no effort.

What would they be thinking of him? That he's a nobody who came here to get beaten up and leave without gaining anything?

Why was he even invited here in the first place? To train? Yeah right.

If they wanted to train him, they would do it in a classroom or a field or anywhere that is just not a public space for people to judge him.

It hurts a lot.

He grimaced as he let go of his side, his free hand retreating behind his back.

What would a couple of strikes of a wooden sword do to him? Kill him?

He was already on the brink of death once, and compared to this, it was nothing.

Taking a steady breath, he looked back at Lillith.

If I can't fight back, I need to defend.

Steeling himself, he took a step forward.

The gravel parted beneath his feet as Lillith disappeared from her place, darting towards him like an arrow.

Her body moved faster, but Valentine was already prepared, focusing on observing her next move.

She shifted her weight, preparing to strike him from above.

Top left!

Clenching his jaw, Valentine raised his sword horizontally, blocking her strike before she could even reach him.

The two blades collided, letting out a loud clank that rang in Val's ears.

However, the next moment his sword flew back towards him, striking its very wielder in the head.

Before he knew what had happened, the boy was already on the ground clutching at his head, rolling on his side with his sword landing on gravel.

How the fuck did it hit me?!

"Just cuz ya know where it hits don't mean you can block it; the recoil can still hurt ya." She said from above, throwing her sword over her shoulder.

"Again?"

"Again."

She walked back to her spot as if already getting used to it; their bouts were getting shorter each time, taking a second less than the one before.

Valentine's face hardened as he watched her leisurely walk away and turn around with a relaxed expression.

You got this, Val, just... don't get hit, that's all you have to do.

Closing his eyes for a moment, he steadied his breathing, his throbbing headache getting drowned out by the sound of crackling forming all around him.

As his eyelids opened, the world was covered in colorful sparks that seemed more alive than the people wearing them.

Noah's lightning sparks were the loudest of all; they were made of lightning after all, cracking and popping while maintaining their initial shape. A cycle of destroying themselves and creating new ones to replace the old ones.

Like before, he could see nothing on Ramona, perhaps because she was similar to him in a way; it was as if she could block him from seeing what was covering her, hiding what lay beneath her mortal shell.

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In front of him, though, a new set of sparks manifested; it was a dull yellow color, similar to her glistening blonde hair tied in a bun.

They didn't blink like other sparks; instead, they were all gathered in a big, unmoving cluster that clung to one side of her body.

He could see her face and chest, but her limbs were hidden beneath the cover of dirty gold.

Strange...

He grumbled as he took up his sword, wrapping his fingers around the rough handle.

He thought he could have gotten a clue based on what Ignis she used, but all he learned was that it looked slightly different, nothing more.

Murmuring to himself, he took a step forward, watching Lillith dash in his direction like before.

Her sword came from the side, flashing past his chest like a guillotine.

One!

Sweat rolled down his face as he blocked her next strike to his face, his sword barely staying in his grip.

Two!

She kept coming at him like a serpent, lunging at his weak spots with a sinister smile.

Her shortsword passed by Valentine as he tripped over gravel, dodging a strike to his neck.

Three!

He screamed to himself in his mind, his body telling him to focus and go on.

Valentine hadn't gotten this far yet; three strikes and he was still standing on his feet! He couldn't be happier.

But it was no time to celebrate; Lillith never gave him room to breathe.

Everything was happening too fast despite being so slow in his eyes that the seconds stretched out for minutes.

Another slash came; it landed on the middle of his blade, pushing him back across the field.

Four.

Bottom left, side slash.

He held his weapon with both hands, the impact sending shivers down his back.

Five.

Middle, thrust to the gut.

Barely dodged by twisting his torso.

Sixth... was when he finally fell.

Sixteen seconds was how much he could last before she struck him down with the blunt of her sword, the polished wood cracking as it landed across his temple.

Valentine's body wobbled for a second before collapsing backwards on gravel, his messer flying out of his grip behind him.

From his lips, a short scream escaped as he clutched his head in pain, his legs kicking the ground wildly.

Lillith didn't help, only watched him gather the attention of the entire field.

The group of five that they mentioned was already next to Noah; he had called them earlier to watch.

"You're already done?" Lillith muttered from above, sounding disappointed, her grin disappearing from her face.

"I thought there would be more to someone who managed to overcome charring, but I guess the rumors tend to be exaggerated." She looked at Noah, her voice displeased.

"Because you let him call you names, I thought he was an exceptionally strong believer, but he was just a small fry with a short temper?"

"Why would you do that, Noah?"

She looked down at Valentine, her expression twisting in disgust.

"You're weak; even with an exceptional body, you can last three to four hits to the head." She leaned forward, her words cutting through his chest like a searing knife.

"You don't deserve the strength you were given. I bet you never had to pay for it as the rest of us did."

Valentine didn't respond; he couldn't.

She was right; he was only here because of Sunday.

Everything he had came from him; he was ashamed to admit it, but it was the truth, an embarrassing truth to say the least.

If not for people helping him through it, he would have died back on his deathbed without ever knowing of this world, only the cold warmth of his bedsheets covering his skin.

"Again."

He said, hiding his expression from her judging gaze, standing up and searching for his lost sword. His eyes soon found it; it was lying a few steps behind him as it flew from his lousy grip.

Grabbing it, he turned to Lillith, meeting her gaze; his sapphire met her jade as he flicked his wrist, splattering blood across gravel.

His forehead was bleeding; her previous strike was so strong that it cut through his skin and made blood flow down his wrist.

Ha?

Her grin returned at the sight of his unshakable pride, becoming even more amused the more she looked at him.

"Haven't had enough, did ya!" She said before walking back to her spot, taking on the same stance she did twice before.

Strangely, her body wasn't shaking as much as before, showing little to no signs of fatigue, as if they had disappeared after the two exchanges they had.

On the other hand, Valentine could barely keep himself from toppling over; his legs were trembling, his hands felt numb, and his head felt like it was splitting open.

In his eyes, something flashed.

A tiny light that disappeared in an instant, like a stray spark.

Again.

Exhaling a slow, shaky breath. His feet... moved backwards.

"Hm?"

Noah raised his brow, watching Valentine walk backwards step by step, his movements rigid but deliberate.

"What is he doing?" He said his thoughts aloud, to which Ramona responded with an intrigued expression.

"He's using his Ignis." She said as she held up her palm in front of them, creating a tiny red spark that blinked in front of Noah's eyes.

"He sees something we don't, a new layer created just for him alone. Its form is based around sparks that appear and disappear without a clear meaning."

"It seems that he has to figure out what they mean before actually making use of them, an Ignis based on meeting the right conditions. Strong when used properly."

"I see..." Noah nodded to himself in thought; he knew that Lady Ramona was a powerful woman, but he hadn't expected her to reach the level of reading others.

It was more of a reason for him to respect her as a veteran and Valentine's caretaker.

Ramona closed her palm, hiding it in her long crimson robes.

"Stubborn boy." Muttering, the two returned to watching.

Valentine was almost twice the distance from Lillith as they usually were; he stopped only when he thought it was enough, which was approximately twenty-five steps away from her.

The rule was that we start when I take a step forward.

And thankfully, she followed it.

Honestly, he didn't expect her to accept it and start the second he moved in any direction; at the very least, he had a chance to take his time and put some distance between them.

She's fast, and hits like a hammer.

Blood was dripping down the side of his face, creating a clean line of hardened blood across his cheek.

Lillith could move over three times faster than Valentine while also creating much stronger force behind her strikes. If it hadn't been a spar, he would have been cut in half... twice!

So I have to adjust.

His best bet was his durability; even when getting beaten by Noah, the knight was surprised by how strong it was.

He was also quite strong, enough to break the teeth of a shadow anglerfish and fight back with them.

However, he was too slow; even if he had an opening to land a hit, Lillith would dodge it without breaking a sweat.

There was also the matter of her condition improving. For some reason, each time they fought, she became stronger and faster while he kept getting injured.

It didn't take a genius to realise what was happening here.

She can swap her condition with others by having physical contact.

That was the reason behind her becoming stronger the longer it went on, and most likely why she wanted to spar in the first place.

Lillith knew about his attitude toward Noah and, because of that, didn't hesitate to punish Valentine for it by having a sparring match with him.

Was it stupid?

Yes, it was stupid of Valentine to accept it.

But he wouldn't regret it.

Because around her wooden sword, a single white spark was dancing in the air, taunting him and calling out his name silently.

The only way to have a chance... is to adjust.

He took a step forward.