"Your second stage has gotten much more natural in its usage," Pyle noted. "I agree. That was a fairly impressive display just then, Thoma," Taegin added. While I wanted to be proud of the compliments, Ren had already shown me just how far I really was from their level. "Thank you, masters, but I still have a long way to go," I replied, showing my gratitude. "What did you do with the rock earlier?" Taegin asked. "Did you unlock the third stage and just didn't tell anyone?" he continued.
I didn't know how to reply to that question. "I'm not sure. I felt a connection to the rock, almost like I could feel it being a part of me. It was like I knew its strength and it knew mine," I tried to explain. "This fucking kid, I swear," Pyle muttered under his breath. Taegin heard it, but said nothing. Frankly, I couldn't say anything either, otherwise the smug, shit-eating grin I was hiding would've outgrown my ability to hide it. "Thoma, I know we're still sending you to Caegwen for third stage training, but I feel like you're almost ready to begin right now," Taegin said confidently. "Tomorrow, you'll be sparring with me," he continued, the most subtle grin on his face beginning to show.
Fuuuuuuuuuuck, I thought.
"I understand, Master," I replied with a bow. "Good, now go to Meliss, lover-boy," Pyle said, jokingly. "I think you should see how she's doing," he continued. About as gracefully as a goose, I took my leave with a slighter bow than I had intended, and went over to where Meliss was conducting her drills.
"Again," I heard Rosie say, deflecting a short chain of basic attacks. Meliss' form looked decent for someone who had never trained with a sword before, let alone hold one for more than a minute. I remembered the first few swings she took with mine in the privacy of our room at the palace, but without any instruction, she was as clumsy as a newborn mountain cub. Since those first few days, I had given her some guidance, but what she was showing now was on a different level entirely.
She learns quickly, I thought.
"Again, but now at full speed," Thorn chimed in, hoping to test her limits. Breathing heavily, Meliss grunted forcefully, and swung her sword in as quick succession as she could manage. Rosie, for the first time that day, backpedaled about three steps, sparking curiosity visible by way of Thorn's raised eyebrow.
"Good enough," he said, holding up a hand. "What did you think, Roburn?" he asked my senior. "She's doing well for her first day, and she seems to pick up on complex movements quickly," he said. "Her physical fitness is a little lacking, but we can always fix that," he said, not meaning any malice, but I knew what he meant. Rigorous training exercises were some of his favorite things to do, particularly with large amounts of mana manipulation involved.
"Thoma, what do you think?" Meliss asked me directly. Stunned by her question, I wanted to be as fair as I could in regard to her training. "I think you did well enough for your first day, and that you're going to pick the basic forms up quickly. However, I do have to agree with Roburn on the physical fitness part," I said, not meaning anything by it.
"Did you mind your breathing when you were swinging?" I asked, genuinely curious. She pouted a little bit, as I think she expected more praise from me out of anyone. After a few seconds, she nodded her agreement. "I did, but I guess I'm still far and away from where I need to be," she said reluctantly. "I just want to get to a point where I'm not a burden to you, and be able to walk alongside you," she continued, a small glimmer of hope shining in her eyes.
"I know, my love," I said, making all but Thorn flinch at my show of affection. "And I will always do my best to support you however I can, even if that means being brutally honest or honestly brutal," I said, moving a loose strand of hair away from her face and tucking it behind her ear.
"Alright, lovebirds," Roburn said playfully. "We'll continue her training tomorrow. For now, Rosie, take her to the baths to clean up and get ready for supper," he continued. The pair nodded, and walked off together. Rosie seemed to carry a somewhat playful tone, even after being pushed back a little during training. My guess was that she was praising Meliss for being able to do that.
Thorn and I began walking back to our dorm, as the remaining duels behind us were wrapping up. "After you," I gestured to Thorn after I had pulled the door open for him. "Is that common human behavior?" he asked. "Well, it's polite to open the door for someone. At least that's what my mother taught me when I was younger," I added. "Normally, where I come from, following someone into a doorway either means that you're going to assault the building, or drag their lifeless body into the corner," he said plaintively without missing a beat.
"I promise I mean nothing so nefarious," I said, holding up a hand. "If you say so," he said. "I understand you and your people have spent centuries fighting against all manner of enemies, but is everything so black and white for you?" I asked, my curiosity peaked.
"Normally, we're very pragmatic about things, though I can already tell that humans are a lot less so. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, perhaps it's something even I will come to learn at some point," he said. I couldn't feel or detect any sort of dishonesty in his voice, and so I simply nodded my agreement, and gestured for him to go in once more. "After you," I said again.
Just as I was closing the door, I could see Edryd pulling Bernar aside to have a chat, but I couldn't make out what they were saying.
I'm sure he'll tell me later, I thought.