Your Best

The spark reflected in his eyes, dancing around the tip of her wooden blade.

It was jumping at it wildly, sometimes circling the sword and its wielder in a hurry, as if trying to tempt Valentine. Trying to call him and make him capture it in his hands.

Within his mind, a low, wordless whisper was coming his way, inviting him towards the danger lying beneath its glow.

There was no mistaking it. That was the very spark that guided him before, seemingly saving his life in the process.

The sudden appearance of the white light stood out from anything he'd ever seen before, and the one thing that could help him save face in front of the people he knew... was that.

Taking a deep, shaky breath.

Valentine hesitantly closed his eyes, separating himself from the colorful world.

Everything turned dark, with a single, tiny exception.

The spark remained in front of him, moving as if it had a mind of its own.

Now, he wasn't going against a female knight, but a burning flame that could not be extinguished no matter what. It crackled with life, always on the edge of burning out.

Exhaling, he breathed in and held his breath, steeling himself for what was to come.

Let me trust you once more...

He spoke to it before taking one step forward and finally starting the fight.

Identically to him, the spark moved, fast.

The distance he created was cut in half instantly, not leaving him any breathing room to prepare for the incoming attack.

In a few seconds, the fifteen meters of distance between him and his assailant were gone, only the sound of footsteps on gravel counting down until his fall.

Lillith's sword was already above him, her grip firm as she brought it down upon him, ready to cut into his shoulder.

Valentine's already seen through it, the spark guiding his movements toward the opposite direction, dodging the mental guillotine and hearing it hit the ground with a dull thunk.

However now, he could adjust.

I dodged it!

Right as the spark was coming down on him, he dashed to the side with all his might, pushing his legs to their absolute limit.

It was enough.

He smiled internally, not out of joy but out of the alien sense of exhilaration filling up his chest.

But there was no time for celebration, it was just the start. Before he could catch his breath, the white spark moved again.

Lillith's sword ignored its mistake, immediately shifting and changing directions while aiming for his ankles.

Valentine jumped out of instinct, barely managing to save himself from getting crippled.

Gritting his teeth, he took the newly created opening and attempted slamming his messer at her head.

Thunk!

The blade collided, but not with her skull. Her hands were already raised into a high guard.

His sword slid down her blade seamlessly as she redirected the strike into the ground, parrying it and cutting into his shoulder flawlessly.

Valentine yelped, but didn't stop.

While she was retreating her sword and preparing to strike him again, Valentine lunged in her direction like a log, ramming his uninjured shoulder right into her chest. And, ignoring the soft sensation, he drove it further, shattering her stance.

Caught by surprise, Lillith could only try to drag him down as her sword fumbled from her grip on the gravel beneath.

"What are you doing!?" She screamed as she lost her balance, tumbled and rolled backwards, quickly regaining her composure with a long breath.

Valentine didn't waste time, he couldn't with the kind of opponent he was wasting.

If he could land a hit, she could make him bear its weight.

Prolonging the fight was the one mistake he couldn't afford, and she knew that too, looking at him with a smirk, her sharp voice echoing from beneath the shadows of his eyelids.

"I see, so you finally started using it." Sounding like a child finding a new toy, her sharp voice once again rattled his insides. "Don't disappoint me now!"

She didn't have to say it, watching Valentine dash in her direction, winding up for a swing with his right hand.

His legs tensed as the spark in front of him flickered quietly, shifting away from his attack.

The next second, he turned his head sideways, dodging a fist aimed for his nose.

Right after, her elbow greeted his jaw, jolting awake his brain with a fresh dose of pain.

His amateurish slash missed her chest, whistling through empty space up front.

Falling on his knee in a daze, he held his jaw in his palm, supporting himself with his sword.

Blood dripped from his lips, staining his pale fingers crimson.

Tasting his own blood for the first time, bitter tears were gathering at the corners of his eyes as he tried to lift himself up and attack her once more, just to see her vanish from his field of view, the spark long gone.

Then-"You didn't think that the sword is the only thing I know, did you?"

Behind his back, her voice lit his sight like a match, making his neck snap in her direction and watch as she brushed gravel off her sword's handle, throwing it over her shoulder.

"So what is it?" Lillith asked as she stepped closer, her curiosity blinding her desire to fight. "Reflexes? Speed? Heightened Senses?"

She stopped for a second, her head cocking to the side.

"Future-sight perhaps?" She said confidently before her brows furrowed and she started talking to herself in a hushed tone. "No... that would burn too much pyra for one to use in a fight, then what is it? He can somehow predict my attacks, but not all of them? Is that a condition or a flaw? Maybe something else entirely?"

Scratching the back of her head in frustration, she cut the air in front of her, smirking at the boy eagerly.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

"Show me!"

Crazy! She's crazy!

Massaging his chin, Valentine pushed himself up, grunting but trying to not let it show that her hits were getting through him.

To think the other knights were so different from Noah, should I consider myself lucky then?

He shook his head, not letting the blood get to his brain. His judgement was already clouded enough by the pain of his muscles tearing at any moment, but here he was, still standing, still holding onto the little hope of winning against her.

I'm satisfied.

Valentine smiled to himself as he made a fist, brandishing his sword in another.

But I won't stop.

He took a step forward, clenching his teeth as hard as he could.

Lillith sensed the will inside him, leaning forward, pulling her sword back and leaping in his direction like a sparrow, her blade meeting Valentine's flying fist.

Punching the sword away, he swung at her neck only to get parried a second later and get hit in the legs with a blunt slash. He endured, proceeding with a rough punch to the gut that ended with his hand getting cut twice and a step back.

Valentine groaned. Dammit!

The sword spun in his hand fueled with frustration.

He held it like a long curved dagger, pulling his hand from one side to another in an uneven arc.

But as fast as he was, there was no way for attacks to land, watching her appearing on the other side of his sweep and sending more strikes for his forearm to endure.

The spark danced around him, flying from one side to another each time he turned to face it head-on. It slipped away from his grasp like an elusive firefly, taunting him with every thunk that banged against his bruised skin again and again.

Time passed, blood trickled.

He didn't know how long he'd been doing it for, the attacks just kept on coming without a stop.

His eyes could barely keep up with the spark, its tempo increasing the longer he tried to endure.

While blocking a slash to his chest, the wooden blade brushed past it, making it seem as if he were cut without even destroying his clothes.

Valentine's ears rang only with the sound of wood clashing and gravel shifting beneath their feet.

"Already finished?" Lillith said from behind her endless barrage of attacks, her tone taunting, almost mocking.

Valentine's face flashed red, his face bulging.

Not... yet!

Holding his breath, he tried to retort her claim in one desperate slash of his sword, but just like before, she easily dodged it without breaking a sweat, repaying him with a quick stab to the thigh.

Her next attack was even faster, blinking in front of his eyes before darting to the side in a flash.

Valentine prepared for what was to come, raising his hands above his head with his sword hanging before his eyes.

The spark twisted and crackled at his side, quietly going beyond his arms and guard set to block her next attack.

However... Something else happened.

Although unable to see with his eyes closed, he could hear it.

The faint, distinct rustle of her clothing behind his eyelids.

He didn't have time to react before something hit him straight in the chest, knocking the wind out of him.

Valentine's whole body folded, flinging backwards like a broken straw ragdoll.

He tasted the cold stone once again, his face cut by gravel, his clothes catching dust of the aftermath before finally landing on his back, twisting and coughing up his saliva.

Valentine's eyes snapped open, vision blinded by the glaring sun staring at him from above. He had almost forgotten they were in the training grounds due to his focus shifting to Lillith alone.

The surroundings were still the same, hard, grey ground surrounded them by a thin line of grass before stopping at the tall, square stone barriers.

Valentine felt the wet grass squelching in his hands. Indicating he was launched so far that he almost collided with the solid fences.

Biting his lip, he winced and held onto his stomach where a dust imprint of a foot was planted all across his dark sweater.

His fingers felt around his chest, sinking into his skin before freezing and holding onto the wound.

She cracked my ribs...

The supposed kick didn't feel human at all, it was more like a horse or an angry bull was the one he was facing rather than a slightly shorter girl his age.

With a groan, he pushed himself off the ground, turning to Lillith, who was casually making her way towards him.

"What now?" She muttered under her breath, her voice but a whisper. "Again?"

Scrambling to his feet, Valentine gritted his teeth, tasting the dry blood on the corner of his lips.

Damn it...

Behind Lillith, his sword lay on the gravel, torn in half like a used-up toothpick.

Looking down at his hands, his face twisted.

The brief burst of adrenaline he had gotten for the spar was already over, the pain was already flooding into him like a lake, filling him in places he hadn't known could feel pain.

It may have been the effect of her power, as he bore not only his own pain, but hers as well, even if forced to.

His palms were torn apart, bleeding all over with tiny cuts and torn skin.

It was the fault of his stubbornness in holding onto the sword despite it being a great disadvantage for him, not knowing how to wield it, it might as well have been a stick from the side of the road.

No better than his fists.

Yet even his hands could barely turn into proper fists, barely moving with pain coursing through his body like broken static.

He was in no condition to fight her.

With a bitter expression painted over his face, he turned to Lillith, his voice strained.

"I... lost. I can't fight anymore."

Swallowing, his face dropped, looking at his dirty clothes catching wind.