The next day, William was standing in the same place as he had the day before, with the same determination shining through his eyes.
Ara too was standing in front of him; she wore the same light battle armor she did yesterday, with her hair tied into a bun.
But what's different about her is the slight hint of caution in her eyes as they darted around the training grounds.
'I have to be careful and not fall for his tricks.' She resolved inwardly as she nodded her head, signaling the start of the training.
William didn't respond but dashed toward Ara using wind.
BOOM
Shock waves echoed through the training grounds as his speed surpassed the speed of sound. Just like before, he aimed for the shield while conjuring an ice shard from her behind.
'I will make both me and the attack the bait while the real attack swoops in on her.' He mumbled inwardly as he added another layer to his previous plan.
BANG
Just like before, he punched the strengthened shield, causing it to crack slightly while he jumped backward.
"You can't repeat the same attack twice, William. I won't fall for it," Ara said with confidence and jumped to her right.
FWOOSH
BANG
The ice shard landed where she stood with a bang, creating a crater. Ara turned to see William smirking at her while he mumbled, "I wasn't."
"Earth!"
Using earth, he raised a pillar of earth under Ara, trying to overthrow her from her stance, but his smirk faded when he saw Ara's smile in amusement.
"That won't work, William!" she jumped back.
WHOOSH
A giant pillar rose from the ground where Ara stood; it shook the entire training ground as it rose high into the sky.
William opened his mouth in shock; he thought his plan would definitely work. But he didn't expect his mother to realize his plan.
Ara landed softly on her feet. Her movements were elegant and filled with grace as she turned her head toward William.
She smiled softly when she saw her son's astonished expression. "Listen, William," she said softly, grabbing his attention.
William turned toward his mother as she continued, "You cannot always add another attack to the previous one. It will become quite easy to deduce what you are thinking. You should always try something new; keep your enemies guessing about what attack you are going to send in next."
Ara's words hung heavy in the air as William pursed his lips. He knew that what his mother said was true and that she wouldn't say something that would harm him in anyway.
'Its disappointing that I keep failing.' He mumbled inwardly as he clenched his jaw in sorrow.
SNIFF
He sniffed as he held back the tears that were threatening to spill from his eyes.
Ara watched her son go through turmoil; she knew that it must have been hard for him as he was failing. She stepped forward, immediately reaching William, hugging him tightly.
"I know it must be hard on you, son." She mumbled while kissing the top of his head. She felt the same feeling as he did. After all, no mother would like to see her son being sad.
"But this is necessary; people learn through their failures, and that's how they grow. Likewise, you must learn from your failures and grow and evolve from them."
Her grip around him tightened while a complicated light shone through her eyes as she continued, "Many might say otherwise; they might mock and say what you are doing is useless. But you must hold on. You must hold on and prove them wrong. You must evolve from your mistakes and make sure that whoever said that you are a waste, even if that is your inner self. You must prove them wrong."
Her solemn words echoed through the training grounds as William sunk it all in like a sponge. He thought that her words might not be just for him but for her as well. 'I love you, mother.' He mumbled inwardly as he swung his arms around her, hugging her back.
The mother-son duo hugged each other for a few minutes before Ara pulled away. A complicated smile, filled with sorrow and pride, filled her face as she looked at her son.
"We will stop here for now, William. We will continue tomorrow." She said and walked away without waiting for his response.
William absentmindedly nodded his head while his mind recalled his mother's words. His mind had turned complicated as he wanted to learn more about why his mother had that complicated look, but he also knew that this wasn't the time for that.
He pursed his lips and muttered, "I will ask her when she has cooled down." He then began to walk out of the training hall.
STEP
STEP
STEP
William's steps reverberated through the empty yet heavily decorated mansion halls. But William's eyes didn't linger on them much longer as his heart still wanted to know what had happened for his mother to say something like that.
"Those words definitely just weren't for me!" he muttered with confidence; he had seen the complicated look on her face and knew that something was up.
"Should I ask father?" He mused as he thought of asking his father, but he then shook his head and mumbled, "No, I should wait for Mother to tell me herself," he decided.
He then resumed his walk toward his room. After walking a few more minutes, he reached his chambers and knocked on his door before entering.
KNOCK
He opened the door, entered, and turned toward the two women sitting on the couch that was by the window.
"William, you're back!" Seraphina exclaimed in happiness as she stood up.
Achlys also copied her sister and stood up while saying, "Welcome back, William."
William nodded his head and said, "I am back." He trudged toward the couch and fell onto it with a soft thud.
Achlys and Seraphina frowned at William's actions, as he was usually very energetic and would tell them about his day.
"What happened, William?" Achlys asked, surprised. Ever since she had kissed him on his cheek, she was opening up to him more and more.
Seraphina, too, looked at him with concern as she sat beside him.
SIGH
"I lost today too," William responded with a defeated sigh. His shoulders were slumped while his eyes drooped as he recalled his fight with his mother.
"Nothing to worry about, William; you can always plan more and win against your mother," Seraphina reassured him while placing a hand on his shoulder.
Achlys, too, nodded her head in agreement.
SIGH
William sighed once again and said, "I know, Mother told me the same thing. She said I need to think of something new instead of adding another attack to the previous one."
The girls narrowed their eyes as they thought about what William had said. They knew it was true, as the same attack wouldn't work twice, at least on the intelligent ones.
"Then why don't you think of something that you have never done before?" Achlys asked in confusion; after all, that was what he had done yesterday. He spent the whole night planning his attack with the ice shard and practiced it in his room on a small scale.
"I am trying, but I can't think of anything. What does it mean to think outside the box? How can I attack differently?" he questioned, but that wasn't for the girls; it was for himself.
His mind raced as he simulated various attacks in his minds.
Achlys and Seraphina kept their silence as they knew that William was thinking of something. They too began to think of forming an attack that they had used before.
The trio sat in silence until William jumped off the couch in excitement while yelling, "I know!"
His lips widened into a smile while he clenched his jaw in excitement. His mind began to review his plan for any loopholes when Seraphina interrupted him by saying, "Know what, William?"
William came out of his daze listening to Seraphina: "I thought of a new attack plan that is entirely different from the one before."
"Oh!" both the girls exclaimed in surprise when they heard him. 'It has only been a few minutes, and I've already thought of a plan!' Seraphina muttered in amazement.
'I hope it's really a new one and William doesn't come back hurt,' Achlys prayed; she didn't want to see him hurt.
But both the girls wished the best for William and wanted him to succeed.
William smiled brightly as his eyes shone with anticipation, 'I can't wait!'
.....
The next day,
William is now standing at the same spot as before and looked at Ara, who has now returned to normal.
"Shall we begin?" Ara asked, curious to know what her son had in store for her this time.
William nodded his head in agreement and asked, "Mother, I want you to promise me something."
Ara raised an eyebrow at her son's words,
CHUKLE
She chuckled lightly and replied, "Yes, what is it, son?"
William clenched his fist with determination and said, "I want you to tell me your story. The reason why you were sad yesterday."