After the first sparring session, everyone took a meal break. Storm managed to pick every single one of Soral’s dishes out of the spread despite them being mixed with everything else. Ruena was impressed. The one weakness she had been able to think of was Soral’s food, but it wasn’t really something she could use against him.

  Blade was always eager to spill the beans, but she couldn’t do that. Whether it was seeing or hearing everything, Ruena was determined to avoid leaning on such methods as they were not her own. Just to make sure no one suspected it, she would arrange everything so she did not speak to Soral at the venue until after the battle was over.

  The next day, Ruena threw herself right back into training with Storm. During the real battle she couldn't afford to surrender and challenge her opponent again later. Every time she tried a new tactic, it would only work for a short time before Storm adapted. She needed to find his weakness. If there was nothing obvious, than it must be disguised. Bastion had told her before that sometimes a weakness can appear to be a strength at first.

  After a while of fighting with everything she had, Ruena finally started to see something. When she would attack Storm whenever he was stationary his clothes would be hardened like a shield, but there was no way he could keep that up while moving, especially at his speed. It was likely the only opening she would be able to get, but striking him while he was in motion was nearly impossible. She would need to be careful not to let on what she knew or she would lose this chance as well.

  Now! To Ruena's surprise, her strike landed and Storm even lost his balance for a moment. That moment was all she needed to keep pressing her advantage. She had to, since it was the only one she was going to get. Ruena had a new dilemma now. How far did she need to go to win? Was this something that would already be decided, or would she have an opportunity to negotiate.

  "That's good enough," Storm said, catching Ruena's next strike, "We will count this as your win. That means I am done training you, right?"

  "You didn't go easy on me, did you?" Ruena demanded with suspicion.

  "Of course not," Storm denied, "You genuinely took me by surprise."

  Relief flooded through her. Storm wasn’t one to lie. In that case, there was no reason to continue this. “Yes. I don’t think there is much more I can get out of this and I need time to recover and make sure my body is in perfect condition before the actual battle,” Ruena confirmed.

  There was still one person upset about this revelation. “What about me?” Blade demanded, “You promised you would fight me if you beat my master. I even waited my turn.”

  His master? Ruena shot Storm a look which he returned with a casual shrug. “Do you even know what I am training for?” she asked.

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  Blade nodded with an eager smile. “They explained it to me while you were fighting. You need to do a special training to defeat an opponent much stronger than you,” he recited, “I can help with that. I can show you your weaknesses.”

  That actually wasn’t a bad idea. Ruena had been so focused on learning to find the weaknesses of her opponents she hadn’t thought to study her own. If strengths could become weaknesses, then weaknesses could also become strengths when utilized correctly. The main problem was that she could not trust this battle crazed kid not to leave a lasting injury that could ruin what chances she had.

  “Can you swear not to cause me any lasting harm?” Ruena asked.

  “What qualifies as lasting?” Blade asked, “Something permanent? How much time should it take to heal on average? Storm gave you plenty of bruises and you don’t seem bothered by those. There are cuts and scrapes as well.”

  “Minor bruises, cuts, and scrapes,” Ruena pointed out, “It would be good if you stuck to the same level.”

  “I will,” Blade promised, “Storm taught me that battles are even more fun if there are rules to challenge you.”

  Was that how Storm had convinced Blade to behave? It seemed like it was working. The two stepped onto the arena, and Ruena readied herself again. Instead of facing the kid with unknown strength, Ruena found herself face to face with Storm again. She took a quick glance back and saw that Storm was clearly still watching from outside. Had Blade somehow taken his form?

  Now that she looked again, while there was no visible difference, the Storm in front of her felt far different than the one she had been facing. His stance, his expression, and even the way he gathered his magic. It was the same magic, but different. Everything gave an odd sort of feeling like facing an imposter that had undeniable proof he was the real one.

  Suddenly, the fake Storm grinned and charged. He was slower than Storm, but it still caught her off guard. She managed to evade just in time. Ruena wasn’t quite fast enough to dodge the second attack from above. As he pinned her down, he turned back into Blade.

  “Every time you fought Storm, you waited for him to begin,” Blade told her, “Real battles begin the moment you enter the arena.”

  Before Ruena could answer, he jumped off and let her get back up. She was careful this time, ready for him to strike while she was down. According to him, the battle was still going as long as they were in the arena. That was a rule she was used to, but she had gotten too comfortable with the white pawn making no move until she did. Blade was still standing close, so before she finished standing up she shifted her weight to tackle him.

  Training with Blade was both easier and harder than training with Storm. He was far more careful, but whenever he struck a weakness, he was impossible to block or evade. Each time he did, he would pause to explain what weakness he was taking advantage of. Every time she would adapt after his explanation he grinned like she had just given him one of Soral’s best cupcakes.

  Unfortunately, after battling Storm all morning her stamina could only go so far. Ruena had to call it off before either her or Blade were fully satisfied. Since they were taking a break anyway, Ruena decided to use this time to get some answers. Soral flinched when she locked eyes with him, but came over obediently.

  “I know I didn’t ask before, but I can’t ignore this anymore,” Ruena told him, “Who is this kid? And don’t tell me he is Storm’s apprentice. I already know that much.”