Chapter 90: Back to Training (Patreon)

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Bz79SdsWhK-zSA6tpngaoU0r2sBmXMW6zjBTJ6MYC90/edit?usp=sharing

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Cayden stepped back as the sword swung at him from his right side, exploiting the weakness that was his missing arm. His eyes told him that he needed to retreat further, that the tip of the sword would catch his chest, carving a shallow gauge, but he trusted what [Blade Sense] told him beyond his own eyes. His opponent was right-handed, and the awkward nature of swinging at Cayden's right side meant that his opponent wouldn't be able to extend his sword as far out as he normally would. And even if he did, at that angle the sword wouldn't have enough force to so much as scratch his skin.

So Cayden maintained his position, the sword missing Cayden's bare chest by only the slightest of distances before he surged forward to take advantage of the opening in the wake of the attack.

But while he only had a single arm, the same could not be said of his opponent, and his charge was met with a raised shield, the edge catching Cayden in the chin. Cayden wasn't deterred, grabbing at the shield in an attempt to yank it from his opponent's hands. But he was too slow, and his opponent swung again with his sword, this time at Cayden’s left side and with much more force than the initial swing, and Cayden was forced to either dodge back or get slashed.

Cayden chose neither, abandoning his efforts to grab at the shield and meeting the sword with his claws, trusting in his durability against the bladed edge and locking the blade against the palm of his hand with his [Claw Mastery]-enhanced strength.

With the ability to [Save Progress] on [Taunt], he'd re-learned [Claw Mastery] in its place and leveled it up to two, giving him a [Boost Passive] boosted forty percent increase to both his strength and dexterity, and he was able to lock the blade in place. But for all that his new class gave him new tools to use in this fight, his opponent hadn't been stagnant over the previous months either, and suddenly Cayden felt the force behind the blade double as it pushed against his palm.

Caught by surprise by the sudden surge and without his [Inertia] boosted beyond its normal amount, Cayden could do nothing against the seemingly inexorable force behind the blade, and his opponent bore him to the ground, the shield against Cayden's chest and sword still clutched in his grasp. He was trapped, unable to gain any leverage or exert any force against his opponent without a second arm. But with the sword still locked in Cayden's claws, there was similarly little his opponent could do to him, and for the next few seconds they rolled around in the sand, the powerful force behind the sword pulling Cayden's singular arm back and forth, but unable to break from his grip.

Sensing the futility of his current strategy, his opponent abandoned his grip on the sword and pulled a much smaller dagger from a sheath on his chest, stabbing it into Cayden's unprotected side before Cayden was able to react. The sharp, metal edge hit his bare skin...and was stopped in its tracks, the tip digging no further than a millimeter before being halted by Cayden's combined defenses from his vitality, [Skin of Stone], [Resistance], [Resilience], and [Power from Experience's] extra resistance from [Claw Mastery].

A quiet chime sounded from the edge of the ring, the runed timer signifying the end of their spar, and Jeremy rolled off of Cayden, tucking away his dagger and picking up his discarded sword before helping Cayden to his feet. Together, they walked to a water dispenser at the edge of the arena and drank their fill.

"That's just not fair," Jeremy complained after catching his breath. "Did I even leave a mark there at the end?"

Cayden smirked, looking down at his side where Jeremy had tried to stab him with the dagger, then exaggeratingly squinting and bending further over to get a closer look. "No, I...wait, yeah! I think I might see something. I might need a magnifying glass, though."

Jeremy just shook his head. "Did your new class even increase your durability? Or is that all from what you already had?"

"Eh...a little. Not much though, most of it I already had."

"...and I couldn't even leave a scratch," Jeremy said, shaking his head again.

"Hey, I know you weren't using your full strength there, though. Your dagger didn't have nearly the force that you were putting into your sword."

"Yeah, well I know you said I didn't have to worry, but it's hard to not hold back at least a little bit when you aren't even wearing armor. Guess I shouldn't have, though." In contrast to Jeremy's armored form and bared blades, Cayden was bare-chested, his claws still sheathed to protect his less-durable friend from Cayden's strikes.

"I'm tired of having to buy so many new sets of clothes," Cayden complained before holding up his hand to examine his claws' sheaths, squinting at the gouges carved into them from where he had blocked and grabbed Jeremy's blade. "Looks like I'm gonna have to get some new sheaths though." He shook his hand, and one of the sheaths fell free from his claws and flopped about in the air, only connected to the rest of the material by the barest string of leather. "What was that sudden strength, by the way? Your sword had way more force behind it than I've ever seen you use before. If the dagger had had that much force, you might have even been able to injure me."

"Which is why I didn't...not that I think it would've made any difference. You're just too durable," he complained again. "But yeah, new skill. I finally took my team's advisor’s advice and replaced my perception skill. It was useful on my old adventuring team but wasn't doing much on my current team. And if I continue down the frontliner route, it's probably more important that I have something like this than the perception skill."

"Makes sense," Cayden said, before finishing off his water and dropping the empty cup in the bin next to the dispenser. "Ready to get back to it?"

Jeremy agreed, and without further fanfare, then began their next round of sparring.

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They sparred for the next hour, occasionally taking breaks to catch their breath and drink some more water. None of the sparring sessions ended before the chime sounded from the timekeeper at the edge of their ring. Jeremy maintained the upper hand in all of their spars, his fighting prowess and new skill too much for Cayden to keep up with only one arm, yet he was never able to decisively 'win' a spar. Cayden's passive defenses were simply too strong for the other boy to overwhelm. If Cayden had just lay there and taken Jeremy's attacks, his friend was strong enough that he probably could have done Cayden some serious damage, but even with only one arm, Cayden fighting back was enough to prevent Jeremy from seizing complete control over any match.

Cayden was still waiting on Elise to supply him with various buffing potions so that he could get accustomed to fighting with them in conjunction with [Alchemical Assitance], but even without the potions, Cayden considered it good training. He was now confident that his arm would grow back, as in the week since losing it the itching had never diminished and a small, articulating nub now grew from what once was his bare shoulder. But at the rate it was growing, it would be at least another month or two before his arm was completely restored, so practicing to fight without it was useful.

"Have you heard anything about your test?" Cayden asked as they walked side-by-side away from the training arena after their last spar. "Any word on when they'll reschedule it?"

"Nothing so far, at least nothing official," Jeremy responded. "Recent rumors are that they might never reschedule it. Just cancel the test entirely."

Cayden's eyebrows rose. "Really? Why?"

"Apparently some of the nobles' parents are raising a stink. Bringing up questions about whether the academy can guarantee their children's safety, and calls for restructuring the way they do some of the tests." He shrugged. "The academy is independent from most of the kingdom's politics, but it's not immune to them entirely. If enough nobles call for it, there's a serious chance the academy will have to cede to the demands."

"What would they do in its place? How can they have an adventuring academy without any danger?"

"I don't know, it's still just a rumor. But maybe something similar to the first test? More closely monitored, with Cassius nearby ready to pull anyone injured out."

Cayden hummed in consideration and resolved to mention the rumor to Velic.

It had been strange interacting with his noble roommate over the last week. Neither of them – nor Marvenal – had mentioned the events that took place in the dungeon, and Velic had greeted Cayden the first time they ran into each other in the dorm with the same congenial smile as always, not even glancing to the space where Cayden’s arm used to be. In many ways, it felt exactly the same as it had before their test – yet in others, there seemed an even greater gulf between the two of them.

But regardless of his feelings about Velic, the noble boy was still acting as their team's captain, and Cayden would pass Jeremy's rumors along on the off chance Velic hadn't already heard them. Until the end of the semester, they were still on a team together, and Cayden was resolved to win the first-place prize.

But after bidding goodbye to Jeremy, walking up the stairs of his dorm, and opening the door to his room, all thoughts of reporting to Velic fled. Because waiting for him on the mat behind the door was a note from the princess.

It was time, once again, to meet with his sister.

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