In the morning, a hurried breakfast is all that Daniel has time for before he rushes over to the training hall. Litzburn is already waiting and directs Daniel to join the other trainees in a slow warmup jog around the hall. The remainder of the day falls into the pattern of the previous day –calisthenics and weight training for a few hours before they dive into the meat of the program, focusing on the use of his mace and shield. Outside of a short lunch break, Daniel is given very little time to rest, which makes him truly grateful for the packed lunch that was pressed on him by Elise as he left that morning.

By the time late afternoon has come, Daniel is beaten and ragged.

Numerous other trainees have come and gone throughout the day, most only spending only a few hours in the hall before leaving to run other tasks. Only a few trainees stay throughout the day, each of these is given extra special attention by Litzburn for their dedication. Daniel is focused on a paired movement and striking exercise, attempting to keep his feet, shield and mace moving together and so he never notices Mary’s entrance and silent consideration.

“Hold!”

Caught in the middle of a swing, his opponent freezes and steps back, putting distance between himself and Daniel. Daniel freezes too, his shield half-raised to block the blow, his mace swinging from below in return and paused too. Daniel stands there, frozen for a moment before he remembers to step away from his opponent as well, ensuring a safe distance is created. Only then does he look over to Litzburn who is gesturing him over to where he and Mary stand.

“Take a ten-minute break. Then you’ll be sparring with Mary,” Litzburn calls out to Daniel as he nears before turning away from the tired young man and walking over to address the rest of his students.

Stifling a groan, Daniel flops down in the corner of the training floor before reminding himself to grab a drink of water. As he rests, he stares at his newly updated skill screen, the second one to appear after his rests.

Skil Increase

Clubs (Basic): 37/100 (+3)

Skil Increase

Shields (Basic): 11/100 (+5)

I’m learning very fast, muses Daniel as he dismisses the skill screen. I guess that’s what a real trainer and training ground will do.

Even to his untrained senses, Daniel can sense the Skill stones that dot the building, helping him to learn faster, even while Litzburn corrects his mistakes with a critical, experienced eye. Still, he can feel a wave of apprehension rising in him at the thought of actually sparring with Mary. He could tell that she was going to be significantly more experienced.

Damn it. Stop worrying. She isn’t going to hurt you. Drink some more water and let’s get going. Chiding himself, Daniel pushes himself up and walks over the water barrel again before approaching the waiting senior Adventurer.

Mary’s dressed in a near replica of her clothing from yesterday - a simple white blouse with a black lace vest and tight, brown pants that show off her trim body. Her sword is strapped to her right side, still sheathed, and in her left hand, she holds a training sword. She looks Daniel over critically, her bright blue eyes clinical in their assessment before she waves him onto the training floor, before following along behind.

A brief salute is exchanged, and immediately, Daniel hunkers down beneath his shield, his mace at his side near his waist as he circles her probing for an opening. Mary turns, only shifting her blade slightly to cover the exposed angles until Daniel lunges forward, committing to an attack. With the barest of motions, the attack is deflected, and Mary returns a riposte aimed at Daniel’s shoulder which he barely dodges by jumping back. Regaining his footing, Daniel hunkers back down and works to calm his nerves, the barely moving form of Mary an intimidating presence. Again, he begins to move forward, this time attempting a blow from over his shield. Mary catches his mace in a casual block, and as he recovers, she casually strikes him on his upper arm.

He growls, trying another attack which is just as quickly and neatly defended before her words ring out, “Stop leaning in before each attack.”

The sparring continues for an hour with short breaks as she corrects his form and attacks. Not once does he even come close to landing a blow on her, each attack nonchalantly deflected with a flick of a wrist or twist of the elbow.

After each committed attack, Mary launches a single return blow of her own, forcing Daniel to scramble to block or dodge in turn.

“Hold!” she says. Daniel pauses and steps back, ensuring he is safe from a return attack before lowering his tired arms.

“Good. We’re done. We’ll work on what we talked about tomorrow. I’ll see you for dinner at the Top.” With that and a final salute, Mary turns and strides out of the training ground. Daniel sighs, watching her go and feels somewhat inadequate at his failure to land a single blow. Before he can begin to get too morose, a hand lands on his shoulder.

“Don’t worry about it. Even experienced Adventurers had a hard time landing a hit on her – and that was before she first entered the Dungeon and leveled up. That girl, her ability, it isn’t normal. You did well for your first

time.” Chuckling, Litzburn pushes Daniel towards the racks. “Best get dressed and moving; she hates to be kept waiting.”