After the distribution of martial cards, Professor Marcus separated the classes to their respective instructors. Professor Lin signalled for Class A-2 to follow him to another training platform.
"Very well, today we will practice some basic arts and refine their use through your training partners." Once again, the students were paired up. However, team members would take turns training with each other. Every 3 minutes, there would be a short break, followed by a new training bout.
As always, Kizaer and Ciona began their sparring session. Nearby, Shen and Joane had also started their fight. Both pairs were accustomed to each other's fighting styles for various reasons, so nothing surprising happened in this first round.
When the training time was up, it was time for rest. The Team 6 members gathered and discussed how they would rotate combatants.
In the end, they decided to rotate normally. The next fight would be between Kizaer and Shen, Ciona against Joane. Then the pairs would switch positions, and it would be Kizaer against Joane and Ciona against Shen. The cycle would repeat, returning to the original Kizaer-Ciona pair and Shen-Joane pair.
The combat between Kizaer and Shen surprisingly proceeded quite normally. Shen emphasized that it was just practice, and Kizaer followed his teammate's instructions. However, of course, the training fight had no incidents, mainly due to Shen's agility and perception.
Noticing that Kizaer was getting caught up in the battle sensation, Shen consistently voiced his concern and advised him not to lose himself in that feeling. Nevertheless, despite the warnings, some of Kizaer's strikes still carried tangible lethality, forcing Shen to retreat or respond with martial techniques—deflecting Kizaer's attacks at the cost of strained joints. By the end of the training, Shen was sweating and breathing heavily.
Some sore spots on his body spoke volumes about Kizaer's power. Yet, Kizaer also bore his share of bruises and marks. To the spectators, their fight seemed calm, but only the two combatants knew what was truly happening during their exchange of blows.
The fight between Ciona and Joane was fluid. Ciona was fast—very fast and flexible—while Joane was dominant and sagacious. The duo exchanged good blows, but neither managed to subdue the other. Occasionally Ciona's critical strikes found opportunities in some openings, and somehow, she sensed that Joane was intentionally baiting those openings in her defense, luring Ciona's movements and then subduing her with her own battle art.
It was practically a mind battle, the first who took the bait would be the first to be defeated. Ciona dancing between Joane's claws. Joane's openings attracting Ciona's strikes. It was a intense fight.
Everything had been going well until Kizaer and Joane paired up to spar.
Right from the start, Joane provoked Kizaer. "So, strange boy, are you going to fight seriously, or are you treating this as a joke?" Ciona and Shen, who were about to face off against each other, froze—the memory of the other day crossed their minds. Something bad was about to happen.
Kizaer, on the other hand, stood still, staring at Joane. His gaze had turned cold, and Joane merely smiled, saying, "That's right, strange boy. I like that look in your eyes, show me how one should fight a serious fight."
However, before Joane could finish her sentence, Kizaer moved with ghostly speed. In an instant, he was above Joane, ready to strike her heavily on the temple with a swift high kick. Joane responded immediately, shifting her center of balance, and preparing to intercept Kizaer's blow with brute force. She also took the opportunity to grab his knee, keeping her leg raised and aiming a low kick at his supporting leg, intending to send Kizaer to the ground.
However, Kizaer's strike turned out to be heavier than it initially appeared. Joane received the impact, which was slightly deflected from her temple to her shoulder, dislocating it instantly. Despite her exuberant appearance, which already exuded a soft femininity, Joane in that moment only showed a cold look of a shrewd fighter. Even with a broken shoulder, she only gritted her teeth and pushed the forward with her plan.
Joane forced herself to grab Kizaer's knee with her dislocated arm and countered with a low kick aimed at his base. She projected her body closer to Kizaer, preventing him from moving away. Kizaer's response was equally devastating. As he noticed Joane's kick attacking his supporting leg, he simply jumped and spun. His supporting leg became a second kick, once again directed at Joane's temple, another vile movement.
The impact would be brutal, and Joane would likely lose consciousness. However, as Kizaer's body rose due to the jump and prepared to spin, Joane stretched her free arm and grabbed his clothes at his torso, taking advantage of the inertia that reduced her opponent's weight and pulled him towards her. Kizaer's foot missed the target, and Joane, who had pulled him mid-air closer to herself, attacked him with a headbutt right to his face.
Kizaer defended Joane's headbutt with one hand and bent the knee of his second kick, while curling his body. He lost the initial power of the kick due to this rapid movement, but his knee hit Joane's ear.
Joane released Kizaer and leaped backward. Kizaer spun in mid-air, landing on his feets and one hand before quickly getting back up. Joane had a bleeding cut on the side of her head, and despite the ringing in her ear, she wore a smile—a mix of enchanting charm and excitement bordering on madness. Joane was exhilarated by that brief exchange.
Kizaer, on the other hand, maintained an impassive expression and cold look.
Although this perception might seem prolonged, in reality, the exchange between Joane and Kizaer occurred within a span of 3 seconds, fast and fierce—a testament to the capabilities and potential of both fighters.
Before the pair could engage in a second move and potentially inflict serious injuries, Ciona and Shen stepped between them. Ciona practically shouted at Kizaer, "What are you doing bedwetter? I've told you several times—this is a training fight, and Joane is our teammate, she is not…" Ciona didn't finish her sentence, realizing she had become too agitated. However, her actions of shielding Joane from Kizaer's view and her words snapped Kizaer out of his battle trance, and the friendly boy quickly returned, and Ciona let out a relieved sigh.
Shen, meanwhile, remained silent but maintained eye contact with Joane. His expression clearly conveyed his dissatisfaction with what had just transpired.
Joane merely flashed a mocking smile and asked, "What's the matter?" Blood dripped from the side of her head. "Joane, you create unnecessary problems. If Kizaer had seriously injured you, the entire Team 6 would be compromised for future missions."
Joane didn't respond to Shen; she simply spat to the side and wiped the sweat from her lips. Shen continued after sighing. "Do you still intend to go through with that thing?"
This time, Joane's challenging and mocking expression faded, replaced by a cold stare directed at Shen. "It's do or die—you already know the circumstances, something you shouldn't. So, mind your own business." With that, Joane half-turned and headed toward the edge of the platform.
Before descending to request permission from Professor Lin to leave the training and visit the infirmary, she turned back to Kizaer and said, "Good fight, strange boy. Or rather, Kz—I'll call you that from now on. Haha." Joane added, "The fight was really good, Kz. Thank you."
Kizaer stared, somewhat puzzled, and replied, "You're welcome Joane, I guess." The remaining trio stood there, facing each other without know what to do. After a few moments, Professor Lin, who had already sent Joane to the infirmary, approached the trio and resumed their training. This time, they would fight in a two-against-one scenario for 30 seconds and after the time is up, the roles would switch. One of the attackers would take the role of defending and vice-versa.
At the end of the class in the Martial Pavilion, the fourth member of Team 6, Joane, had returned and was waiting quietly alongside her teammates while the instructors finished gathering the three Class A groups.
Kizaer, with a timid voice, apologized, "Joane, I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm sorry." The realization that he had injured Joane, even if she was only a teammate for a day, weighed on him.
Joane turned to Kizaer and stared at him for a few seconds before flashing a smile. "You worry too much, Kz. It was I who provoked you in the first place. The apology should start with me. I knew about your… 'condition,' and yet I still provoked you to find out if you were merely pretending all this time or if you truly fought as fiercely as you did against Arthur."
Ciona and Shen observed the interaction but refrained from intervening. Ciona let out a small sigh of relief; she wasn't sure how Joane would react after the fight. Shen, having sparred with Joane several times, had a rough idea of what might happen.