Oromius and Astraoth face each other in the mansion's eastern courtyard, at the beginning of a training session. Oromius begins to advise Astraoth,"You have begun to use energy in battle. However, you have not demonstrated a full control over it in battle. You will attack me with all your might and I will use no energy of my own in any capacity. In addition, I will solely use defensive techniques. This will allow me to see how you will adapt to a primarily defensive opponent."

  Moving two steps back, relaxing to a defensive position, Oromius calls out,"Come when you are ready." Astraoth, summoning Essence Energy, incorporating it into his feet, shoots out at Oromius in a burst of speed, light pouring out around his feet. Astraoth, gathering energy around his right fist, punches upward at Oromius face, but, his attack a feint, transitions his fist into a palm attack aimed at Oromius' solar plexus, Essence Energy wrapping around it.

  Oromius reacts quickly, using his right hand to shift Astraoth's hand away with a quick strike, blowing the energy to the left with the hand, attempting, using his left hand simultaneously, to counterattack and push Astraoth away, his palm flying toward Astraoth's chest. Astraoth shifts his body around, flowing with the force exerted by Oromius' right hand to transition into a roundhouse kick, avoiding Oromius' palm strike, attacking back while gathering energy at the tip of his right foot, bathing his foot in streams of brilliant prismatic energy. Oromius pulls back, avoiding the kick entirely, and leans to the left, expecting Astraoth's next move.

  Astraoth, completing the kick, twists into a right hook, multicolored light spiraling around it. Oromius, already leaning to the left, catches the fist as it files at him, guiding Astraoth to the left, pulling him, utilizing his existing momentum, simultaneously neutralizing the energy. Astraoth keeps his balance, and, following a natural flow, twists his body around further, pivoting on his left foot, rotating around so his right foot connects with Oromius' right leg, attempting to trip him. Oromius, finally letting go of Astraoth's right arm, counters with an elbow to Astraoth's abdomen. Pulling back, Astraoth dashes away, avoiding the elbow.

  Pressing forward, determined to regain momentum in the battle, Astraoth swerves forward, and, his speed peaking, pivots on his right foot, sliding into a kick aimed at Oromius' solar plexus, gathering energy in his left foot and left hand simultaneously. Oromius avoids and grabs the incoming foot using his right hand, guiding it to his side, absorbing the energy gathered around the foot, and, letting the leg go, the energy swirling around him, transitions it to his right, using that to project a shield, utilizing it in an attempt to block Astraoth's incoming left hand, sweeping toward him.

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  The fist meets the shield, with Astraoth's punch losing out, unable to break the shield. Sighing, Astraoth moves away, and the two separate, relaxing their bodies after the brief but intense confrontation. Astraoth, refusing to give up, condenses energy at his fingertips and starts flinging small orbs of energy at Oromius, flicking his fingers quickly, aiming toward Oromius' shield. The bullets of energy bombard the shield and ripples begin spreading throughout it. A small section of the top of the shield shimmers oddly as the ripples spread past it, the tiniest crack appearing.

  Noticing this, Astraoth flashes toward Oromius, appearing before him, energy and light coursing through the air. The energy gathers around Astraoth's hand in an instant, the hand piercing toward Oromius' shield with the speed and grace of the mantis. The shield surface shimmers, revealing a perfect shield; Oromius smiles softly, his opponent in his domain once again. However, foreseeing Oromius' deception, Astraoth retreats suddenly, his energy flaring, and steps to the side, flowing like water around Oromius, the energy omitted covering his movements.

  The energy attack at the front fades, and simultaneously, Astraoth stabs toward Oromius' exposed back. Sadly, as the attack reaches Oromius, the energy previously released by Astraoth surges toward Oromius' back, condensing into a shield, blocking the attack. Retreating, Astraoth sighs, disappointed, and, exhausted from the fight, falls to the floor. Oromius turns back and, seeing Astraoth's tired face, smiles wryly, understanding his fatigue.

  Oromius sits on the floor, cross-legged, and begins the evaluation, announcing Astraoth's results,"Astraoth, you handle energy competently overall, but you overlook how your enemies can use your energy to their advantage. In addition, you telegraph your attacks by gathering energy prematurely near them. Always consider their viewpoint and capabilities in a fight. Regardless, you have advanced enough to the point that only experience can improve your capabilities in hand-to-hand combat and external energy manipulation."

  "You have gained physical strength and endurance, learned basic combat, and mastered the basics of energy control and manipulation. Now, you will begin weapons training, in addition to your other exercises. You will, however, not learn only one weapon. No child of mine will be so lacking. Rather, you will learn the basic techniques of one-thousand weapons. You have the rest of your two years to learn all one-thousand weapons. It is the one-hundred-eighty-sixth day of training. Therefore, you have five hundred and thirty-four days of training left to complete this task. We will begin weapons training tomorrow."

Smiling, Oromius ends his statement,"Now, you have the rest of the day off. Rest and relax."