Nix quietly gazed at the duel occurring between the brown-haired boy and the taller girl. His silver brows furrowed in contemplation.
The first thing that he had noticed when the duel began was the slight awkwardness in Nico's movements, every time he and Kayara had clashed. Inevitably, the maroon-eyed trainee was on the losing end, Kayara's strikes were too swift for him to handle.
That was not what had garnered Nix's attention, though. As a retired soldier who had served the mandatory service of a year that was required for males between the age of eighteen and forty, the silver-haired man knew a thing or two about determination and grit.
There were many a time, he and his fellow soldiers had run into difficult situations, their bodies strained to the limits. Subjugating mana beasts and the like. Yet, what kept them going were their goals and the people they had waiting for them back home.
However, Nix felt the brown-haired boy was different. Yes, he had those two qualities driving him and solidifying his resolve, however, to the retired soldier's surprise, he found the boy's determination far surpassed others his age.
'What's got him so fueled?'
Normally, a youth the boy's age would still be at the beginning of their journey, whether that be in life or toward achieving their goals. They would not yet need to have so much resolve. Yet, the exact opposite was playing out in front of Nix.
Each of the brown-haired trainee's strikes carried a firm purpose and conviction.
With the Demons slowly but surely gaining the upper hand in the long drawn-out conflict with Crelerath, the former veteran knew any young people recently born would have to shoulder the possibility of losing their world. This would make them more determined than their predecessors.
War created the strongest people, after all.
Still, Nix felt that the young man's determination differed from the norm. Sure, it had the classic 'I will get stronger to repel the Demons taking over our world', but there was something deeper, more… pressing behind it.
It was as if Nico shouldered an unspeakable burden. One unable to be shared.
A curious glint appeared in Nix's eyes as he further examined the trainee, who was currently gritting his teeth after the latest collision with his lean opponent.
With the droplets of rain falling from the heavens above, his nut-brown hair was drenched, and the damp black Camp uniform stuck tightly to his figure outlining some of his improved physique.
That was not all, as the growing wind pressure because of the storm caused strands of the boy's hair to sway back and forth over his jagged birthmark.
Nix's curiosity deepened after seeing the slight hollowness present in Nico's eyes. The instructor could tell the young man had experienced a deep trauma that still haunted him to this day.
A bitter sigh escaped Nix's mouth as he recalled his own inner demons.
A moment later, however, he shook his head and focused on making sure the duel ran smoothly. Now was not the time to brood. He had a job to do.
The clangour of blunted metal rang out, the two trainees clashing with steeled determination. Nico took a step back, shifting his weight as he thrust his spear forward. Kayara remained calm and carefully nullified the threat posed by the elongated weapon.
Then, just as calmly, she disengaged and unleashed a flurry of swift strikes, her eyes still rippling with unspoken boredom. Nico gritted his teeth, and spun his spear, using the lengthy shaft to block the quick-fire attacks.
His expression was grim. His injured shoulder burned and sent pulses of pain through his mind as he strained it while preventing the onslaught of strikes that sought to connect with his body.
Nico had to bite the inside of his mouth to keep his wits about him.
'I won't last much longer. She's just too quick.'
The boy strained his eyes and focused on his opponent's footwork. Kayara was just like him. She was light on her feet, yet upon closer inspection, Nico found what helped her be faster than him. And when he did, he couldn't help but whistle to himself in appreciation.
The somewhat gangly female looked frail at first glance, but that assumption would immediately fly out the window once someone had crossed her blade. Kayara used a mixture of anticipating her opponent's attacks and utilising the momentum and power contained within each one to increase her speed.
Whereas Nico only stayed light on his feet so that he could react in time to a sudden jab, she combined the lightness of her feet with the other two aspects to create a rapid battle style. Coupled with him not being in an optimum state, the brown-haired trainee quickly found himself on the defensive.
This one much more tricky and difficult to get out of than his previous duel against Favian. Kayara was relentless.
Nico gritted his teeth for the umpteenth time, feeling his jaw was going to hurt a lot after the duels ended. Shifting the thought aside, Nico inhaled deeply and sent a burst of power to his legs. If he was going to have any chance of winning, he had to finish this in one strike.
A battle of attrition as he waited for his opponent to tire was only going to be disadvantageous for him. What with his injury that effectively hampered his range of motion.
Doing that would only play to Kayara's strengths, as she could use more and more of his power and momentum to fuel her attacks the longer this went on.
As such, the battle would be decided in a near-instantaneous clash. Whoever was faster would be the victor. Quietly hissing in pain, Nico gathered his strength and thrust his spear forward, augmented by the synchronisation method.
'First form - Horizon's Dash!'
The weapon shot forward, streaking through the air full of dark promise. Kayara remained unfazed, however.
The sword in her hands blurred and flashed.
'W-what!?'
Nico's eyes widened at the speed of her attack. Alarm bells rang in his mind. The boy gritted his teeth and tried increasing the speed of his weapon. Unfortunately, however, in a bid to match his opponent's strike, Nico lost control of his spear.
His unfamiliarity with the first form proved to be a detriment in this moment. Nico groaned as he stumbled, his shoulder screaming in agony.
'Blazing Fates!'
Nico felt paralysed, witnessing Kayara's sword shoot forward like a meteor. His eyes appeared destitute. The blade soon stopped within inches of his neck.
As he gazed into his opponent's lacklustre eyes, a tired sigh escaped Nico's mouth. Rivulets of sweat slid down his face. His chest heaved up and down from the exertion of the fight.
As he moved his attention upward toward the gloomy skies, Nico's shoulders dropped despondently.
'I lost…'