The duel started in the blink of an eye.

Both of my bodies lunged forward with speed, aiming to take the first strikes for myself. Instructor Liz merely took a single step forward in anticipation.

Her eyes remained sharp. Her smile remained silent.

I didn’t know what she was thinking, so the plan was to play it safe for now. Stick with the basics and gauge her abilities and weaknesses.

Carine veered right. Feyt veered left.

The aim was to split her attention between the two of me.

Immediately, her eyes began darting between my bodies, possibly determining which one was the bigger threat. I deliberately eased Feyt’s stance, and thankfully, it seemed to work.

Her eyes completely locked onto Carine’s, and in a split moment, her body shifted to the side. My sword barely grazed her shoulder instead of meeting her head on. But it was a chance nonetheless.

An opening!

As Feyt, I immediately closed the distance for a swing, aiming at her abdomen.

Her eyes moved straight onto Feyt’s, as if expecting my every move. My blade swung, but it hit nothing, as she had moved once more, the tip of my blade barely grazing the pin on her clothes.

Without losing a single momentum, she used her sword in one smooth motion to deflect my momentum upwards, as if to prove a point.

As soon as she was in the clear, she took a couple of elegant steps back, creating some distance between us once more.

Okay. This wasn’t the time for panic yet.

She watched my fight with Cornellia; of course, she would expect it if I used the same kind of tactic again.

But the way she had dodged my swings and deflected Feyt’s momentum so easily, all with such ease, I had a feeling this would be a tougher battle than I thought.

I adjusted my footing, both bodies circling slightly instead of rushing in immediately. If the first exchange didn’t work, then I just had to build something more layered.

Her gaze began to scan once more. But this time, it didn’t settle into just one of us. No, it was as if… it was looking at us both.

Most opponents would lock onto one target, even if only for a moment. Even Instructor Cornellia, with her experience, had that flaw. But Instructor Liz… her eyes moved, but her focus didn’t feel like it split between any of me at all.

I stepped in again, but this time, I didn’t commit immediately.

Carine moved first, blade raised as if to strike, but I held it just at the edge. A feint, but not one meant to deceive, one meant to observe.

I wanted to know how much it would take for her to commit.

Her shoulders shifted, very slightly. Not enough to block. Not enough to dodge. Just enough to be ready to respond.

She’s hesitant… or at least, likes being open-minded.

With Carine still on the verge of a committed attack… I surged forward as Feyt, and immediately followed suit closely as Carine.

It was a quick step in, faster than before, aiming to catch her during that moment of indecision. My blade cut low, angled to force her into either a retreat or a guard.

But, she chose neither.

Her foot slid back, not a full step, just enough to pull my strike short again. At the same time, her sword came down. The contact between the wood was light. Instead of stopping my swing, she redirected it again.

Perfect!

I immediately moved in as Carine to capitalise on that moment of contact.

“Haah!” I shouted as I swung down.

I got it!

My sword struck true. But not against her. Instead, it was caught by her sword.

How did she—?!

Before I could react accordingly, she raised her foot and firmly pushed Feyt away, sending him back straight to Carine.

It took a bit of effort to catch my own body to make sure it won’t fall off-balance. Before long, we were at neutral distance again.

This time, though, I had a small sense of her game plan.

Knowing just how much I could overwhelm someone with my attacks, she aimed to keep her body and her weapon available at all times. That was why she deflected my attacks instead of blocking it. Just so she could react to my attack faster.

Well… this is troublesome…

If that was her plan, then I just had to push harder than she could keep up.

Two would always be better than one, after all.

I stepped in again.

This time, no more observation projects. I’d go all-in, find a way to break her cool, her focus, anything to break the illusion she had with options.

Carine moved and struck first, a sharp diagonal aimed to draw her guard. The moment her blade rose to meet it—even if only slightly—I was already moving as Feyt. A low swing followed immediately after, tighter, faster, leaving no room for her to reset.

Wood met wood, but this time I didn’t give her the chance to redirect cleanly. The moment I felt the impact, I pushed through it.

Carine’s blade slid off hers, but instead of disengaging, I forced the motion into a second strike. Feyt’s swing came in just as the first left her range, the timing layered so closely it almost overlapped.

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Unable to block both at once, she jumped back. Our swords cut air, but it was enough to tell me that I had a chance.

I heard a single scoff coming from the instructor. Her smile remained plastered on her face

I didn’t know what she scoffed at, but overthinking it would just ruin my rhythm.

So, I pressed once more.

Carine aimed low. Feyt aimed high. Then reversed. Carine moved slow. Feyt moved fast.

Before long, a rhythm formed. A flurry of swings, a cacophony of wood against wood. It was a continuous chain of motion, each attack feeding into the next, each body covering the other’s recovery. There was no pause, no reset, just pure pressure.

Her blade moved quickly, intercepting, redirecting, never fully committing. She didn’t try to stop me anymore; she just guided, slipped, and adjusted as needed. Each strike I did began to push her back little by little, the edge of the ring finally in sight.

Every step she took back, I matched.

Every angle she avoided, I replaced with another.

Her space shrank.

Her options narrowed.

I could feel it.

This was it.

This was the flow I was used to.

Against Cornellia, this was where it began to fall apart for her. The moment where confusion turned into hesitation, hesitation into openings.

But—

Something felt off.

She wasn’t breaking.

Her breathing stayed even.

Her eyes remained sharp.

Her smile… remained.

Even as she gave ground, her posture never collapsed or in a rush.

If anything…

It felt like she was letting it happen.

She was meeting my every attack from every angle. Be it with a block or a deflection. Never once did I strike her true, not even the tiniest of taps.

A thought flickered in my mind.

…This stance… this movement…

It wasn’t standard. It wasn’t something you’d use in a proper duel.

It was reactive. Adaptive. Focused entirely on maintaining options, on never overcommitting, on staying just out of reach of a follow-up.

As if it was a style meant to deal with multiple angles at once.

As if it was a style meant to deal with…

…Me.

My grip tightened.

No way…

She didn’t research a whole new style just to counter mine, did she?!

Before that thought could settle, I pushed harder.

Carine’s strike came down faster and heavier. Feyt stepped in closer than before, closing the gap completely, aiming to turn the pressure into something uncontrollable.

The ring was finally in sight. All I needed to do was widen my approach angle to prevent her from escaping.

But then, amidst the flurry of attacks, she moved. Not back, as she had been for the past few seconds, but forward.

She stepped into Carine’s range, her blade catching mine at an angle and sliding it off to the side. At the same time, her body turned, slipping past Feyt’s line of attack entirely.

For the first time since the duel began, she turned on the aggression.

I quickly tried to take it back with another string of attacks. But her blade slid along Carine’s to deflect it, and in that same motion, she closed the distance on Feyt for a strike.

I immediately dodged as Feyt and moved in again as Carine, but without even looking, she twisted her body to deliver a swing that lifted my sword up, carrying the momentum with it.

I tried to pull back, but she didn’t let me.

Feyt moved in to follow, hoping I could put some pressure back on her… then her leg came up.

It was a kick. A precise, strong kick. I couldn’t bring either of myselves to counter it. It struck Feyt square in the chest.

“Ugh—!!!”

The impact was solid and sharp. It sent air out of my lungs and my body flying.

My body lifted off the ground before I could even brace, the world tilting as I was thrown back several paces before crashing hard against the floor.

Despite the training mat, the pain still echoed, and the pain didn’t stay with Feyt. It carried over to Carine, which was enough to make me flinch and shift my footing as I was regaining balance.

It was just a single misalignment. A fraction of a step where my weight wasn’t where it should have been.

But in a fight like this…

That was everything.

With no hesitation, Instructor Liz stepped in fast. Her blade rose, and in a clean, direct arc, began cutting down straight for Carine’s neck.

I saw it, yet I knew I couldn’t stop it.

Feyt was too far.

Carine was off-balance.

My guard wasn’t there.

My eyes shut on instinct.

…

…Nothing.

No impact.

No pain.

Just the faint sound of wood stopping mid-air.

I opened my eyes.

Her blade hovered just moments from reaching my neck.

I looked up. Her eyes were bright, her smile… almost warm. Then, with a grin, she tapped the blade on my neck with a wink.

“Gotcha~!”

Her voice was bright. Too bright for what I had just witnessed.

For a moment, I didn’t move. I was still processing what happened. Then, the world came back to life… or not.

The training hall was eerily silent.

No whispers.

No shifting.

No nervous laughter.

Just dozens of eyes, all fixed on us.

It was then that I became aware of Feyt again, still on the ground, breath uneven, ribs aching faintly with each inhale. Just how hard had she kicked me?

Slowly, I straightened as Carine, and gradually stood up as Feyt.

Instructor Liz stepped back just as casually as she had stepped in, lowering her sword and rolling her wrist and neck as she had just finished a warm-up.

“Man…” she exhaled, stretching her shoulder a little. “That was fun! Wasn’t it?”

Fun, huh?

I wasn’t sure what part of that qualified.

She glanced between the both of me, eyes sharp again despite the relaxed posture.

“Seriously, though,” she continued, tapping her blade lightly against her palm, “you two are quite the interesting pair.”

A few students shifted at that, but no one spoke.

She tilted her head slightly, looking at Carine first, then Feyt, then back again, like she was trying to line something up in her mind.

“You’ve got this whole… thing going on,” she gestured vaguely between us with her sword. “That rhythm, that timing. I can’t even begin to imagine how you two trained to fight like that. You two must trust each other really well!”

Her smile softened just a little.

“A bit too much, actually.”

My breathing stalled.

“You cover for each other before you even need to,” she went on, tone casual, almost conversational. “The moment one of you is in trouble, the other jumps in without thinking.” Her gaze sharpened just slightly. “That’s why I could break your rhythm.”

I felt my grips tightened as she continued.

“I didn’t have to outpace both of you,” she added with a small shrug. “Just had to make one of you react. The other one follows. Then it’s just a matter of picking the right moment.”

She paused for a moment, then tilted her head slightly.

“But hey… that’s what you’re here for, right?” Her smile returned, a little lighter now. “Wouldn’t be much of a class if you already had it all figured out, wouldn’t it?”

Instructor Liz paused, then casually rested her blade on her shoulder, her expression turning a bit more thoughtful. “Though, I dunno. That kind of flaw’s not exactly bad either.”

She hummed quietly, as if deep in thought. Then, just as quickly as it came, that thoughtful look disappeared. She clapped her hands once, the sharp sound breaking the tension in the room.

“Anyway!” she said brightly. “Good stuff! That was a solid fight! I hope the rest of you have been taking notes, yeah?”

Just like that, she was back to her usual self.

The room slowly came back to life after that.

Whispers crept in, hesitant at first, like no one quite knew if it was safe to speak yet. The tension that had filled the air began to lighten, bit by bit, as Instructor Liz waved the next pair forward like nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

But I barely heard any of it.

My attention lingered on the space where her blade had stopped, my hand resting on Carine’s neck and Feyt’s chest.

One kick and one slash.

That was all it took to completely dismantle me.

In plain terms… I lost. There were no tricks, no excuses; we simply lost.

My eyes lowered slightly.

For a long time, I had believed this way of fighting, this perfect coordination between myselves… was something special. Something unbeatable. A style no one could replicate.

But a style no one could replicate doesn’t mean a style no one could counter.

She saw through it. Broke it apart. Turned it back against me.

A faint, bitter feeling settled in my chest.

So this is how it feels.

To have something you were proud of… reduced to just another flaw.

I let out a quiet breath.

But… that feeling didn’t last long.

Because underneath it… something else stirred.

Realization.

A small smile formed on my lips.

Finally.

Finally…

Against all odds…

There’s actually something worth learning here!

Not just drills. Not just empty repetition.

Not another year of mind-numbing fundamentals.

For a moment, I thought I would be bored out of my mind for a full year…

But this…

This was what I had been waiting for!

For the first time since entering this academy…

I felt like I could truly learn something.