Faced with the sudden news that William had pushed the trials forward; the trainees exercised with frantic urgency. As a result, they ended up choosing heavier-weighted bands, and shockingly enough… they did not complain.
Not even once. Something that surprised William greatly.
His students just got on with what they were supposed to do in silent determination.
Nico, who was at the sit-up station gritted his teeth as the burn in his abdomen became more and more intense. Not giving up, though, he fought the pain with every fiber of his being.
'The pain is a sign of me making progress.' he chanted to himself.
Like the mantra that he had used back in the lavatory during the beating, he now used that sentence to spur him on and exert himself to the maximum.
After all, time was of the essence. He had to take advantage of the little time left in the Training Camp. However, meager it was.
Time continued to tick by. For once the trainees were grateful that the session felt slower than usual. Even if they could carry out just one more repetition, that could be the difference in them being successful in the Awakening Ceremony or joining the ranks of the mundane humans.
Squatting as he felt the fierce heat of agony suffuse the muscles in his legs, Nico recalled the reaction of his peers to the announcement instructor William had made during Sally's goodbye.
Most turned pale, suddenly regretting the fact that they hadn't tried very hard in the earlier days of the Camp. Others had their brows furrowed yet showed no other sign of being perturbed by the news.
Henry fell in the former category. His green-eyed companion had turned very pale - something that Nico felt was becoming something of a recurring theme.
He could even see hints of hysteria and panic before the farmer forcefully clamped down on his emotions.
Nico smirked although his legs were trembling as they desperately tried to resist the heavy weight the bands burdened him with.
Leon, meanwhile, was part of the latter category. Those who were confident of their constitution and in turn, their strength. Nico was a hundred percent sure that in the future not many could not best his burly friend when it came to constitution alone.
A body that would be further enhanced and perfected after forming a mana core should he pass the Ceremony...
'Blazing Fates! It hurts… not yet. I can't give up just yet!'
Nico cursed as the exertion of the exercise increased rapidly. His legs trembled even more.
"Time's up! Your one-minute break starts now!"
He slumped to the ground, saved by his devilish instructor. As he panted, a look of resolve crossed Nico's face.
He would give this his best shot!
Nico shifted his gaze toward the pushup station where a certain spiked redhead was training. Anger and suspicion flashed through his eyes.
Looking out through his peripheral vision, he noted that the other trainees had the same reaction. Only, they had gone one step further and displayed a look of…
…fear.
The empty space around Lucas further proved that. No one dared to get in close proximity to the noble heir.
Not if they wanted to continue living. Or so they thought.
Nico shook his head and returned his focus back to training. He wouldn't give the haughty noble any more attention.
He had better things to do.
***
"Again."
A spear sailed through the air filled with power in a lethal thrust.
"Again."
This time, the spear shifted and arced menacingly in a wide sweep.
"Again."
The black-clad figure changed the grip on his spear and hoisted it above his shoulders and slammed it down. The imaginary opponent in his mind dissolved to pieces.
Nico panted. He wiped the sweat on his forehead with his sleeve.
To the side, his instructor Phantom stood with a critical gaze. No doubt inspecting his progress. Strangely the blue-eyed man was not painting.
'For once he's actually paying attention.' Nico chuckled to himself.
Phantom who scratched his beard absently, witnessed his student going through the motions. Compared to the first time he had held the spear; the boy was more assured. Not to mention he possessed some real bite now that his body and consequently his skill had improved.
He was shaping up nicely.
Thinking of the more time he could have spent with his student had those vile bandits not attacked the Camp, Phantom issued a vexed sigh. He needed more paintings of his little hen!
Phantom's thoughts turned toward the death of Sally. His eyes narrowed.
He did not slack off in patrolling the Wilderness, so how had the trainee died?
That begged the question of whether she had ventured further than the ten-mile boundary or had the people who had killed her managed to get past him easily, without giving the sign of anything amiss.
Phantom's expression turned grim. The latter option would just make this whole situation even worse.
He cursed in his heart before he released another vexed sigh.
Phantom turned his attention back to Nico.
"Good job. You're making substantial progress." the Spear instructor remarked to his student. Normally he wouldn't have done something like that, but since their time together was ending, he thought some encouragement was due.
He had grown fond of his brown-haired hen during their sessions together. Not to mention that Nico was the perfect specimen for his artistic ventures.
A sly grin split the dark-haired man's face.
Nico who had become used to that gaze during his time spent with Phantom merely shook his head. What type of fantasies was that man dreaming of now?
He did not want to know.
"Can we have one last spar?" Nico asked in return.
Phantom shrugged and nodded.
A bright grin formed on his student's face. The bearded man had to suppress the urge to paint, something he did quite often lately.
A devilish expression formed on his face. This one different from usual. It promised a ton of suffering and pain.
Nico laughed, "Bring it on, old man!"
Phantom's eyebrows twitched. His student had some nerve, he would give him that.
Once in position, the Spear instructor and brown-haired trainee faced each other. A small breeze blew through their bare surroundings. They were not in the East Leaf Wilderness - William had forbidden any trainee from venturing out from the safety of the metal gates.
Rather they were in a secluded spot toward the rear of the enclosed perimeter.
The duo locked eyes, their lips curled up into barely discernable smirks.
"Let's begin!" Phantom announced.
Nico dashed forward instantly. Even though he was tired out from William's training session earlier in the morning, he was determined to give it his all.
The brown-haired trainee gripped the shaft of his spear tightly before he launched a devastating thrust. The man with the eyepatch remained unfazed and calmly deflected the attack and stepped into the boy's guard.
Now armed with more experience with the spear, Nico did not panic. Like so many times before, he inhaled and allowed the air to boost his movements. The sleek weapon in his hand shot upward in a vertical cut.
Phantom lips curled up, a wide grin on his face. He laughed boisterously and responded in kind, easily blocking his student's strike before he sent one of his own.
Nico pushed himself to the limit evading the blue-eyed man's clever strikes. Often his instructor's attacks missed him by a feather's breadth. It was as if he was walking on a tightrope.
One misstep would plunge him to his doom, except in this case, he would lose the spar instead of falling to his death.
Releasing a fierce shout as his and Phantom's spear clashed, Nico strained his eyes and peered closer.
Phantom's words regarding tempo and control flashed through his mind.
Although he was faring much better than the first spar he had had with the bearded man, so far Nico was able to perceive that his instructor was the one who had the upper hand in terms of tempo and control.
He was utterly at the whims of his 'unique' Spear instructor.
'How do I go about changing this?'
Nico gritted his teeth as he slid back under Phantom's weighty and eerily precise strikes. No matter how much he racked his brain, he couldn't overturn the situation.
The gulf in skill was just too big.
With his heart racing in excitement, Nico flashed a slightly manic grin. Phantom did the same before he shot off and dashed toward the scrawny form of his student.
Time slowed to a crawl as the brown-haired boy narrowed his eyes. He paid close to his instructor's steps. Their cadence and speed, in particular.
'Tempo…'
Nico's eyes widened. A flash of inspiration lit his brain like a lightbulb.
'That's it!'
Nico grinned wildly and sent a burst of strength to his legs doing his utmost to mirror Phantom's speed. Soon, the two combatants were within a mere metre of each other.
Bellowing, the young teen unleashed another devastating thrust.
Out of the corner of his eye, he paid careful attention to the older man's footsteps.
Just as Phantom planted his right foot on the ground, Nico noticed an imperceptible change so small he would have missed it, if not for his extreme attentiveness.
The Spear instructor had slowed himself. It may not have made a huge difference as the bearded man's speed was still very rapid. However, Nico watched the man easily deal with his thrust, its tip deftly glancing off his instructor's spear shaft.
'That minute change in speed allowed him to render my strike useless and overextend myself. Now I'm wide open.' he realised with stark clarity.
In one fluid motion, Phantom disarmed him, using the flat of the blade to strike at his hand. In the next, the brown-haired trainee found his instructor's spear right up at his throat.
Nico cried out as he instinctively dropped his spear. His expression darkened, "That was unnecessary,"
"No, it wasn't. Now you have a sign of our time together. You better not forget about your dear Uncle Phantom after you graduate from the Camp," the Spear instructor replied shamelessly.
Nico gazed at the quickly reddening skin on the back of his hands. His mouth twitched.
"Besides, it's you who should be honoured to have been marked by such a mighty Descender," Phantom raised his nose in the air haughtily.
"..."
Nico's mouth continued twitching.
He sighed before a smirk formed across his face.
He would miss his instructor's antics… just a little.
'Never thought I would ever think that.' Nico shook his head, his eyes full of mirth as he picked up his spear that had clattered to the ground.
He locked eyes with Phantom. A battle-crazy grin adorned his features.
With the exhilaration of enlightenment flooding his veins, Nico's grin stretched, "Let's have another round, old man!"
Phantom just laughed boisterously in response.
Soon, laughter and the clangour of steel intertwined in a content melody.
The instructor and student duo enjoyed themselves to the fullest...
…for the final time.