The afternoon sun burned high overhead.
By now, the training yard behind Brannic's forge looked less like a practice field—
and more like a battlefield survivors had abandoned.
Footprints tore through the dirt in every direction.
Wooden barricades leaned crookedly from repeated impacts.
Rope obstacles sagged where bodies had collided with them.
One training dummy was missing an arm entirely.
Another appeared to have exploded.
Bunny denied responsibility.
No one believed her.
At the center of the chaos—
Jax stood with his arms crossed calmly.
Not sweating.
Not tired.
Watching.
"New scenario," he said evenly.
The Vixens groaned collectively.
"Two-person rotation."
Nyxian immediately pointed toward Bunny.
"She's carrying me."
"I HEARD THAT," Bunny protested.
"You were supposed to."
Jax ignored both of them.
"Bunny leads. Nyxian rear coverage."
Nyxian blinked.
"…Walking backward?"
"Yes."
"That sounds terrible."
"Yes."
Nyxian sighed dramatically.
"Cruelty. Emotional abuse. This is what my life has become."
"Move."
They started.
Three steps in—
Bunny hesitated adjusting around a barricade.
"Again."
They reset.
Five steps.
Nyxian stumbled slightly over uneven terrain while maintaining rear awareness.
"Again."
Bunny pointed accusingly.
"Jax!"
"Again."
Nyxian narrowed her eyes.
"You enjoy this."
"No," Jax replied calmly.
"You just make the same mistakes repeatedly."
"That somehow feels worse."
Again.
Again.
Again.
Eventually—
something clicked.
Bunny stopped consciously thinking about movement.
Nyxian stopped overcorrecting her footing.
They simply flowed.
Jax nodded once.
"Good. Switch."
Nyxian immediately grinned.
"Oh this should go horribly."
It did.
Bunny nearly walked directly into a post.
Nyxian drifted too aggressively left.
"Again."
They reset immediately.
Sweat dripped.
Breathing deepened.
The afternoon heat became oppressive.
"Bunny out," Jax ordered calmly.
"Zee in."
Zee straightened instantly despite visible exhaustion.
"Same formation."
Nyxian stretched dramatically.
"Excellent. Now we protect the adorable fragile healer."
"That is exactly the assignment," Jax confirmed.
Nyxian blinked.
"…Wait really?"
"Yes."
The succubus frowned immediately.
"That seems inefficient."
"That," Jax replied calmly, "is reality."
The mood shifted slightly.
"Not everyone on a battlefield is a frontliner."
Zee swallowed quietly.
They moved.
Too slow.
"Again."
Zee drifted too far back.
"Again."
Too close.
"Again."
Nyxian finally snapped her fingers in frustration.
"She's going to get hit eventually no matter what!"
"Yes," Jax agreed immediately.
"Unless you move better."
Silence.
Again.
This time Bunny adjusted instinctively.
Nyxian widened her angle slightly.
Zee stayed centered.
Ten clean steps.
Jax finally raised one hand.
"Stop."
Zee exhaled shakily.
"That was harder than actual combat…"
"Because combat is reactive," Jax explained.
"This is preventative."
Then his gaze shifted.
"Llandra."
The elf stepped forward immediately.
"Rear awareness drill."
She frowned slightly.
"With a bow?"
"With your eyes."
Interesting.
They started moving.
Llandra immediately began calling obstacles:
terrain dips
blind spots
narrow angles
unstable footing
Her awareness was excellent.
Then Bunny tripped.
Llandra reacted one second too late.
"Again."
They reset instantly.
Again.
Again.
Again.
By mid-afternoon—
everyone was exhausted.
Nyxian collapsed backward onto a crate dramatically.
"I would like the record to show," she announced weakly, "that I officially hate tactical movement."
Bunny flopped beside her.
"My legs are vibrating."
Zee sat carefully against a post breathing heavily while mana slowly restored itself.
Even Llandra looked worn down.
Only Jax remained standing.
Watching.
Thinking.
Planning.
Nyxian finally looked up toward him.
"We're already stronger than most adventurers in Solmere."
Jax didn't answer immediately.
Instead—
he changed the exercise entirely.
"Full rotation," he said calmly.
The girls blinked.
"You don't get me this round."
That got their attention.
"You get each other."
The Vixens exchanged looks.
Then slowly formed up without him.
And immediately—
everything fell apart.
Bunny overcommitted forward pressure.
Zee drifted too wide.
Llandra hesitated between leadership and support.
Nyxian surged ahead trying to compensate for everyone simultaneously.
"Again."
They reset.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Frustration started replacing exhaustion.
Because now—
they understood the problem.
Without Jax stabilizing them—
their formation collapsed.
Eventually Zee stumbled hard enough that her mana destabilized entirely.
She dropped to one knee gasping.
Jax moved instantly.
One second he stood across the yard.
The next—
he was kneeling beside her.
"Drink."
He uncorked a mana elixir and pressed it into her shaking hands.
Zee obeyed immediately.
The others stared slightly.
No matter how hard he pushed—
Jax never stopped watching them.
Never stopped protecting them.
Once Zee recovered enough to stand again, Jax helped her back to her feet carefully.
"No apologies," he said quietly.
"You hit your limit."
Zee looked down slightly.
"…I slowed everyone down."
"No," Jax corrected immediately.
"You exposed weaknesses."
That made all four girls pause.
Then Nyxian finally stood slowly.
"…Why is this so important to you?"
The humor disappeared completely now.
The yard became quiet.
Jax looked at all four of them carefully.
And for the first time that day—
something heavy entered his expression.
"Because I don't know what happens tomorrow."
No one spoke.
"I don't know when we'll be separated."
His voice stayed calm.
Almost too calm.
"I don't know when someone stronger appears."
"When we're ambushed."
"When enemies target you because of me."
The girls went completely silent.
Because suddenly—
this no longer felt theoretical.
Jax looked away briefly toward the distant walls of Solmere.
Then back toward them.
"I need to know…"
His eyes met theirs one by one.
"…that if something happens…"
The words came quieter now.
"…you survive."
That landed hard.
Bunny's ears lowered immediately.
Zee swallowed.
Llandra straightened slowly.
Nyxian's expression softened completely.
Because for the first time—
they understood what was really driving him.
Fear.
Not for himself.
For them.
Jax stepped backward again.
Then pointed toward formation positions.
"…Again."
This time—
they moved differently.
Not harder.
Not faster.
Better.
Llandra trusted her instincts.
Bunny trusted her positioning.
Zee trusted her teammates.
Nyxian stopped trying to compensate alone.
And slowly—
they began flowing together.
No wasted motion.
No hesitation.
No confusion.
A real unit.
By sunset—
they stood in formation breathing heavily beneath the orange sky.
Bruised.
Sweating.
Exhausted.
But together.
Jax finally nodded once.
"That's enough for today."
The Vixens collectively sagged in relief.
Nyxian immediately collapsed sideways against him.
"You're cruel."
Jax smirked faintly.
"You'll thank me later."
Llandra looked toward him quietly.
"…We already do."
That hit harder than she intended.
Jax looked away first.
Naturally.
As they slowly walked back toward the city together, Bunny stretched painfully.
"So…"
She grinned slightly.
"…another round of training tonight?"
Nyxian immediately perked up.
"Oh absolutely."
Then she pointed dramatically.
"But this time we start in a bath."
Zee turned red instantly.
"…Together?"
Nyxian looked offended.
"Obviously together."
Jax sighed deeply.
Doomed.
Completely doomed.
"…I'll order dinner to the room."
The girls cheered weakly.
And as the sun disappeared behind Solmere's walls—
the Vixens walked home beside him stronger than they had been that morning.
Not because of stats.
Not because of power.
But because they were finally learning how to move as one.
Again.