Ever since the battle with his clone began, Ruvian had been unable to discern what it was that he lacked.
Every possibility he considered failed to strike the truth, and the more he observed, the more it seemed that his opponent was deliberately concealing the answer from him.
At first, he suspected that his deficiency lay in the size of his reservoir, yet that theory quickly collapsed when he saw that the clone never attempted to overwhelm him with greater mana output.
He then wondered if the flaw was a lack of creativity, since the duplicate fought with a constant stream of surprises and unpredictable maneuvers.
Yet, even that explanation rang hollow, because those same tactics were well within Ruvian's own capability.
He already thought of that option.
However, if he understood them and could replicate them, then why had he not been the one to act first? Why had the initiative always belonged to the other?
