"Is it really okay for me to walk beside you like this?" Caelum asked, his voice soft, as he attempted to step one pace behind Elias. His effort was futile, however, because Elias maintained a firm grip on his arm.
"If I'm the one who ordered you to, then you will," Elias stated, a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"Yes," Caelum replied with a faint sigh, accepting the arrangement.
When they arrived at the knights division, where sword fighting was the first class of the day, Caelum immediately became the target of intense glares. The other students were clearly jealous that he had the privilege of sharing a room with Elias and being his training partner.
Amanda and Nathaniel, who had paired up for the knights division, approached Caelum.
"What are you doing with His Highness?" Amanda demanded, her eyes narrowed and a look of pure, cutting jealousy on her face, as if she were ready to run Caelum through with a sword right then and there.
"I'm His Highness's sparring partner," Caelum answered calmly, completely unperturbed by the fierce expression Amanda was sporting. He bent down, picked up two practice swords, and handed one to Elias, who accepted it with a polite thank you.
Nathaniel abruptly grabbed Caelum by the collar of his tunic. "Don't get so arrogant just because I didn't hit you in the practical exam," he shouted, his face inches from Caelum's. "I was going easy on you because Father asked me to," he declared, before roughly pulling Amanda away by the arm.
"Did he really go easy on you?" Elias asked, leaning in close to whisper the question to Caelum.
Caelum shook his head slowly. "He was giving everything he had, just trying to land a single strike," he confided. "He's just too embarrassed to admit that he actually lost to his younger brother," he added with a knowing glance.
Elias simply smiled in response, an amused glint in his eyes.
Suddenly, the attention of the students was drawn by the loud sound of metal clanging against the ground. They all turned to look at the entrance to the training ground and saw the imposing figure of Arnold Vans Solas, the commander of the Third Order of the Imperial Knights and Elias's fourth uncle, stride in, fully clad in polished armor.
"Pick your partners and get ready," Arnold commanded, his voice booming across the training field. Students scrambled immediately, rushing to select their practice swords and pair up with their partners.
Since the Valtheron siblings, Amanda and Nathaniel, and Elias and Caelum already had their partners, they took their positions in front of Arnold, their swords held ready.
Once every student had secured a partner, Arnold surveyed the groups and nodded his approval.
When his gaze fell upon Elias and Caelum, it seemed for a brief moment that Arnold let out an almost imperceptible sigh.
'Underestimation?' Caelum pondered inwardly, a subtle challenge blooming in his mind. 'Very well,' he concluded, a faint, confident smile gracing his lips, a look that Elias did not miss.
"I want each pair to fight me for fifteen minutes," Arnold announced clearly. "If you manage to land a single strike on me, you win. If the time expires, I win, and you will all be training for two extra hours after your regular classes."
"Can we know why we have to train extra?" one of the students hesitantly inquired.
"If you were deep inside a dungeon and suddenly found yourselves surrounded by monsters, do you truly believe you could escape unscathed?" Arnold challenged. "I want all of you to train yourselves until you can visually track my full speed. Only when you achieve that will you have a genuine chance at defeating the monsters found in the deeper levels of the labyrinth," he explained, looking intensely at the students.
The students collectively nodded, taking his words seriously.
'That is sound reasoning,' Caelum admitted to himself. 'But I still won't forgive you for underestimating me.'
Elias and Caelum were scheduled to fight last, so they took the opportunity to observe the other pairs and attempt to familiarize themselves with Arnold's incredible speed.
"He really got under your skin, didn't he?" Elias murmured, leaning closer to Caelum.
Caelum looked at Elias, who was watching him with a knowing smile, and gave a slight nod. "He did," he confirmed. "That's exactly why I intend to prove to him that I can actually land a strike on him."
"Do you think you can?" Elias asked, gesturing toward Arnold, who was effortlessly dodging the combined attacks of the two students currently sparring with him.
"We can certainly try our best," Caelum replied, his eyes locked on Arnold's movements.
After approximately seven pairs of students had already failed to strike Arnold, Elias turned to Caelum again. "Do you genuinely believe we can hit him?" he asked, a genuine curiosity in his tone.
Caelum nodded with confidence. "From what I'm observing, he is very skilled with his footwork. He possesses both exceptional speed and power," Caelum analyzed meticulously. "He is also using magic to reinforce his blade, which looks like light magic," he noted. He then looked directly at Elias. "Can you employ your ice magic to coat your sword?" he inquired.
Elias confirmed with a nod.
"Can you make that ice coating strong enough to shatter the strength barrier on his sword?" Caelum asked, his plan beginning to form.
"I can attempt to," Elias stated, his expression determined.
"If we manage to break his defensive barrier, then we will have an opportunity to hit him," Caelum explained, his voice low and focused. "However, that opportunity will be a very brief window."
"How brief?" Elias pressed for detail.
"About one or two seconds, at the most," Caelum specified.
"Can you land a strike within that tiny gap?" Elias asked, already anticipating Caelum's answer based on the eager grin spreading across his face.
"What do you think the chances are?" Caelum countered with a playful challenge, which only made Elias smile wider.
"Alright then," Elias agreed enthusiastically. "If we successfully manage to land a strike on him, I will buy you that extra luxurious cheese hamburger my mother couldn't stop talking about yesterday."
"Get ready to purchase those hamburgers," Caelum said with a radiant smile as he looked at Elias, who was happily smiling back at him.
'Finally,' Caelum thought, a surge of excitement running through him, as it was now his and Elias's turn to step forward and face Arnold.
"I sincerely hope you don't disappoint me, my dear nephew," Arnold taunted them lightly.
The moment Elias took a step forward, intending to charge at Arnold, Caelum's sword flashed out, expertly blocking an immediate counterattack aimed at Elias's neck. "He's trying to provoke you," Caelum whispered quickly to his partner. "Don't react emotionally. Maintain your composure."
Elias took a deep, steadying breath and tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword. "Give me five seconds," he requested.
Caelum nodded his understanding, focusing entirely on skillfully defending both himself and Elias from the swift, continuous barrage of Arnold's attacks.
'One. Two. Three. Four. Five.' Caelum counted silently in his head, marking the passage of time precisely. Then, at the critical fifth second, he executed a rapid sidestep, just in time for Elias's ice-coated sword to swing right past Caelum's head, connect with Arnold's weapon, and successfully shatter the opponent's strength barrier with a clean crack.
Caelum moved with extraordinary, almost supernatural speed, far faster than his normal pace. He zipped behind Arnold in a blur and brought his own sword down sharply, striking the commander's armor and causing Arnold to stumble a few steps forward unexpectedly.
Elias was beaming, a wide smile of success on his face as he looked at Caelum. "We did it!" he whispered triumphantly.
Arnold looked intently from Elias to Caelum, and then, surprisingly, a genuine smile broke out on his face. "Well done, both of you," he praised them sincerely. "You two will be exempted from the evening training session," he declared, acknowledging their skill.
Elias walked over to Caelum and tapped him lightly on the chest with his fist in a gesture of celebration. "The plan actually worked perfectly," he said.
Caelum nodded, a bright smile on his face. "Your ice magic was absolutely incredible," he complemented Elias. He then gently took Elias's hand and focused his healing magic into it, ensuring that the strenuous effort of using his magic didn't cause the characteristic tremors in Elias's hands.
"Thank you so much," Elias replied, appreciating the thoughtful and immediate care Caelum always provided.