After a few more sparring matches, Nesto and I were tied. Neither of us wanted to overdo it, so we decided to take a small break.
"This is exhausting," Nesto exclaimed as he stretched himself out across the grass.
I looked down at him and sighed. "I agree, but it's necessary."
We'd both gotten slightly better over the course of our matches, although it would take a lot more training before either of us made any real progress.
I looked down at my hands.
Who knew they'd hurt this much after only a few rounds? They're still shaking from all those clashes.
Nesto opened his mouth to say something.
"Stop!"
The veiled Disciple's voice carried across the field.
I looked over and noticed him speaking with Ms. Lena. Vira and Daleon stood behind her, both looking pretty worn out.
After exchanging a few words with Ms. Lena, the veiled Disciple turned toward the field.
"Alright! I feel like you all deserve a special reward for today's work."
Everyone's attention shifted toward him.
"You may now use your Lathium."
The field erupted with cheers.
Nesto practically jumped to his feet.
"Of course," the veiled Disciple continued, "we don't want anyone getting hurt, so from this point forward, you'll be doing stop-short duels. Anyone who breaks this rule will be severely punished."
The excitement across the field died down slightly.
"You may continue."
He returned to the bench and took a seat.
Nesto looked like he'd just been handed the greatest gift in Mozoa.
"Oh yeah! Let's do it, Kroven. I'm gonna destroy you."
I barely heard him.
My attention had shifted toward Vira.
She had taken a seat on one of the benches beside Daleon, with Ms. Lena joining them shortly after.
Almost as if she'd noticed my gaze, Vira turned her head toward me.
Our eyes met.
She gave me a slight smile before looking away.
Interesting.
Something poked me in the side.
I jumped back and looked at Nesto, who stood there holding one of his Splinters with a stupid smirk across his face.
"W-why did you do that?"
"You weren't paying attention."
He turned away like nothing had happened.
"Hey, also, what does stop-short mean?"
I quickly adjusted myself.
"It's when you stop before landing a decisive blow on your opponent. Basically, you win without actually following through."
Nesto and I started walking back toward our starting positions.
"Okay, simple enough."
He gripped both of his Splinters and cleared his throat.
"Round five. Let's get on with it."
I wrapped both hands around the hilt of my Shard.
"Agreed."
This time, I was going to take the initiative.
I let the Lathium in my stomach flow outward.
Down through my legs and into my feet.
Up through my chest.
Through my arms.
Until finally, it reached my hands.
I felt the power flow into the pure-white bone Shard. Its surface seemed brighter now, almost as if the bone itself had begun to glow.
I tightened my grip.
A deep breath entered my lungs.
Then I exhaled.
The moment the last bit of air left them, I lunged forward.
The distance between us vanished.
The distance between us vanished almost instantly.
Nesto was caught off guard.
I went for a greedy vertical slash, bringing my Shard down with as much force as I could muster. Nesto jumped back at the last second, narrowly avoiding the attack.
I quickly brought my Shard back up.
Nesto was nearly ten feet away now, regaining his balance.
Then he dashed forward.
He reached me impossibly fast.
One of his Splinters shot toward my throat. I barely reacted in time, knocking it aside with the blade of my Shard.
But Nesto wasn't stupid.
His second Splinter came from the other side, aiming for my face.
I twisted my Shard sideways and blocked it.
The impact sent me flying backward.
I hit the ground and rolled across the grass before landing on my side.
Nesto was already on me.
He brought one of his Splinters down, forcing me to roll out of the way. I pushed Lathium through my body and threw myself backward, creating just enough distance to get back onto my feet.
Nesto's offense is terrifying.
I tightened both hands around my Shard and tried to regain my composure.
Then I lunged forward again.
Nesto didn't hesitate.
We clashed.
His first Splinter struck my Shard.
Then the second.
I blocked again.
Another strike came from the opposite side.
Then another.
Every time I managed to stop one, the other was already coming.
I couldn't keep up.
Eventually, I made a mistake.
I reacted too slowly to one of his attacks, and Nesto took advantage of it immediately. His Splinter slammed against my Shard, knocking my hands aside.
Before I could recover, his other Splinter shot forward.
It stopped just short of my throat.
"Dammit," I muttered.
Nesto pulled the Splinter back, breathing heavily.
"You got destroyed," he said between breaths.
Then he dropped onto the grass.
I followed right after him.
For a while, neither of us moved.
Using Lathium took a lot out of the body. Having my speed, strength, and endurance practically doubled sounded incredible, but there was a drawback.
It did nothing for my stamina.
If anything, being able to push my body that much harder only meant I exhausted myself faster.
Everything needs a flaw, I guess.
I gave myself a few minutes to breathe while thinking back over the fight.
I should've known. The Shard has better reach and probably more power behind each strike, but none of that matters if I let Nesto get close enough to overwhelm me.
I gave him an opening, and he didn't let go.
I looked toward the Shard lying beside me.
I have a lot more to learn.
After a few more minutes, I forced myself back onto my feet.
I looked down at Nesto.
"Round six. Get up."
Nesto took a deep breath.
"You're serious?"
"Get up."
He groaned before pushing himself onto his feet. He bent down, grabbed his dual Splinters, and walked back toward his starting position.
I returned to mine.
I wrapped both hands around the hilt of my Shard and tightened my grip.
Across from me, Nesto stretched his arms and let out a heavy yawn before settling into his stance.
I moved one foot back, giving myself a more stable base.
Nesto lunged forward.
He wasn't as fast as before.
But he was still fast.
He closed the distance and immediately unleashed another combination.
One strike.
Then another.
I blocked the first and dodged the second.
Another came from my right.
I caught it with my Shard.
Then another.
But something was different this time.
His attacks were getting slower.
The pressure wasn't the same.
He's tired.
Instead of trying to beat him at his own game, I pushed Lathium down through my legs and into my feet.
Then I jumped backward.
Distance.
That was what I needed.
Nesto rushed after me, but this time his movements were staggered and noticeably slower.
Nesto rushed after me, but this time his movements were staggered and noticeably slower.
I immediately sidestepped.
Nesto shifted his body with me.
He wasn't falling for the same trick twice.
Good.
I hadn't expected him to.
For just a moment, everything seemed to slow down.
I watched his movement, waiting for an opening.
There.
I twisted my Shard and lunged forward—not with the blade, but with the blunt end of the hilt.
It struck the back of Nesto's hand.
His grip loosened, and one of his Splinters dropped into the grass.
But knowing Nesto, there was no way he'd give up that easily.
He immediately swung with the other.
I deflected the hurried attack with my Shard. Before he could regain his balance, I grabbed his arm and swept his leg out from under him.
Nesto hit the grass.
I flipped my Shard around and brought it down.
Nesto tried to raise his remaining Splinter, but he was too slow.
I stopped the Shard just short of his face.
For a second, neither of us moved.
A smile crept across my face.
"I guess we're even."
Nesto let his Splinter fall into the grass.
I lowered my Shard.
"Only for now," he replied, completely exhausted.
I dropped to my knees and planted my face into the grass.
"That's all I've got. I don't think I could do another round even if I wanted to."
My voice came out hoarse.
"Yeah, me neither," Nesto exclaimed.
A small chuckle escaped him.
I couldn't help but laugh with him.
This felt refreshing.
"Are you both done?"
A familiar voice came from behind me.
I lifted my head.
Vira stood there looking down at us, with the veiled Disciple beside her.
"Yeah, we're done," Nesto said.
He pushed himself to his feet, and I reluctantly followed. We both picked up our training weapons.
The veiled Disciple looked between us and sighed.
"Open your ears next time. We've been waiting for you two."
I looked behind him.
Everyone else had already gathered near the benches. A few of the trainees were drinking from their water sacks, and most looked just as exhausted as we were.
"Sorry," Nesto and I said in unison.
"Just put your training weapons back, and let's go."
The veiled Disciple turned and started walking away.
Then he stopped.
"Also…"
He glanced back at us.
"That was impressive. I see potential in both of you."
He continued toward the others.
Nesto's face immediately lit up.
He looked at me, then back toward the Disciple.
"You hear that, Kroven? I have potential."
I chuckled.
"I think he said both of us."
"Yeah, yeah. Let's go."
Nesto barely seemed to hear me.
I looked from him to Vira, who was still standing in front of us. She looked exhausted.
"Yeah. I'll catch up."
Nesto looked between Vira and me.
A small smirk appeared on his face.
He didn't say anything this time. He simply turned and walked away.
I waited until he was far enough before looking back at Vira.
"Vira."
"U-uh, yes, Kroven?"
I took a deep breath.
"We need to talk."
Her expression shifted.
"About what?"
I glanced around, making sure no one was close enough to hear us.
"It's better if we talk somewhere private. How about the belfry?"
Vira looked away for a moment.
"May I ask why?"
My expression turned serious.
"It's about that book…and what happened the other night."
She looked back at me, confused.
"What about the book? And what are you talking about?"
I sighed.
"Again, somewhere private. It's serious."
She studied me for a moment.
"Yeah. That's fine."
I turned to leave.
I turned and started to walk away.
"After supper," Vira called after me. "Meet me there."
I glanced back.
"Okay."
Then I continued toward the others.
A few hours passed before it was finally time.
I reached the stairs leading to the belfry and began making my way up. When I reached the top, I pushed open the hatch and pulled myself inside.
Vira was already there.
She stood across from me near one of the closed shutters, quietly peering through the narrow gaps.
I stood and brushed myself off.
"Vira."
She turned toward me.
The expression on her face was far more serious than before.
"Alright, Kroven. Explain."