I let out a satisfied grunt as I stretched.

It was dusk the following day and I was once again in the barracks’ courtyard.

The day had been similar to the previous one.

After waking early in the morning— and again I had not managed to sleep well despite how exhausted I had been —I went for a jog around the Glade; however, I heeded the warnings and did not go into the forest and, when I felt my body was properly pumped, I came back, washed up, ate breakfast and was ready to go to work.

Before that, though, Ria surprised me with a pair of earplugs. Where I expected them to be some simple balls made of cotton, while the material was part of them, they were also made of a wax that according to her explanation— and what I confirmed later —was solid enough that they’d fit inside my ears without deforming their shape too much while also being less prone to melt and allowing for longer use without needing replacement.

I, of course, thanked her profusely before going to the storehouse as Brianna had said.

From there, and along with the rest of the lumberjacks, we set off with the wagons to the same spot in the forest as yesterday to continue working.

Nothing of note happened for the rest of the day. Although I did learn how to prepare the ropes and harnesses for the groups of woodcutters assigned to climb one of the Elderpines, once again the most I did was to focus on limbing the branches they were cutting.

Other than that, and getting to know more about my co-workers, everything went smoothly until it was time to come back, get paid and everyone went home.

Except for me, of course, who went to the barracks for my second training session.

The guards at the entrance, the same ones I had met the day before, recognised me and led me inside without wasting any time.

Knowing that Reinhilde wanted to include martial training, whatever that entailed, I took advantage of the time I had until she came to wrap my hands and legs, and start doing some stretches to warm up.

My ears soon perked up when they heard the murmur of Reinhilde's hooves and turning around I smiled in her direction as I waved my hand.

"Hello Reinhilde!" I greeted her warmly.

"Noah, good afternoon." She said more calmly after coming to my side, crossing her arms and giving me a glance, her eyes passing over the wrappings. "I see you're already prepared."

I nodded animatedly, hopping from one foot to the other. "What are we doing today, the same as yesterday?" I asked.

"Partly." She replied. "I was thinking about what you showed me yesterday. At first, I had the idea of following the guard training regimen; but with the work you already put into your fighting style, it seems to me that it would be a waste not to take advantage of it."

I nodded slowly, showing that I was following her words. "What does that mean, exactly?"

"That aside from physical conditioning, which it seems to me you've been doing some of it already." She gave me an expectant look which I answered in the affirmative. "We're going to focus on polishing your style."

"So I'm not going to learn how to use weapons?" I asked curiously.

"Maybe later on. I think it's best to make sure what you already know is a solid option for your protection before we start on something new." She replied confidently.

Though part of me felt jubilant that so many years of work, nights spent racking my brains trying to remember everything I could about martial arts, hadn't been in vain, a smaller part was a tiny bit disappointed that it didn't look like I'd be wielding swords any time soon.

"Okay. What do I do then?" I asked, watching as Reinhilde moved to stand a few paces in front of me.

"We're going to have a spar." She said and began to stretch.

My gaze was lost for a moment in her movements before my mind comprehended what she had said.

"Sorry? A spar?" I repeated after a blink.

"That's right." She confirmed as she crossed one arm straight in front of her chest, resting a hand on her elbow before switching arms. "Most problems with your style can be boiled down to lack of experience. If we want to polish your fighting style, you need to experience combat."

"Alright, that makes sense." I said, starting to realise this was happening. "Um, just out of curiosity. A bar fight doesn't count as experience, no?" I asked curiously, shifting from side to side restlessly.

To this she snorted in amusement. "No." And gave me a scrutinising look. "Nervous?"

I opened my mouth to answer yes, but stopped myself. Was it nerves I was feeling? I took a moment to analyse myself. The pounding in my chest had increased considerably and my body was vibrating in what I originally thought was nervousness; however, I realised that it wasn't just that. It wasn’t even a major part of what I was feeling.

"Surprisingly, not at all." I said in a surprised tone and she looked at me intrigued. "I'm more excited than anything else." I continued, putting into words what I had just realised.

"Uh." She said and looking at her, I raised an eyebrow seeing her face of mild disbelief.

"What?" I asked and she shook her head, her expression returning to a more neutral one.

"Nothing." She said and raised her arms in front of her with her shoulders squared. "Ready?"

I spread my legs apart, bending my knees as I angled my body with one arm raised in front and the other curled back at my waist.

"Ready." I announced with a steady voice and my gaze locked on her as something occurred to me. "Hey, how serious are we—?"

I had to cut my question short as I was forced to move my arm and block the sudden fist in the direction of my face.

I guess that answers my question!

My lips pursed into a grimace as I felt the impact of the blow and I responded with a small jump and a kick towards her abdomen, which she blocked with her other arm and a grunt.

My eyes widened as her block turned into a grip on my outstretched leg and I let out a yelp as she threw me into the air and to the side.

I hit the ground, losing my breath in the process, and rolled a couple of times while kicking up dust with me until I came to a stop.

"That was a good follow-up, but you should be more mindful of possible retaliation." She commented several paces away from me.

I huffed— nose wrinkled at the small amount of dust my action kicked up in front of me —and grunted my assent as I stood up.

After standing up, I took a second to shake myself and assess my condition; but, apart from the arm I used to block her blow— which I shook a little in an attempt to get past the vague sensation of pain —I was in perfect condition.

Glancing at Reinhilde, I saw that she was waiting for me and with a nod I resumed my stance. "Again?"

For some reason, her eyes widened a tiny bit in what I took to be a hint of surprise before her expression turned serious again and she returned to her fighting stance.

This time I decided to be the one to take the initiative.

I bent my knees and leapt, closing the distance between us in an instant, and had to adjust my trajectory with a hasty roll to her side to dodge a punch she tried to intercept me with, slipping under her attack.

I'd already taken one of those and I wasn't about to take another if I could avoid it, thank you very much!

Before I could think to retaliate, my ears twitched and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Without thinking I leapt upwards, just in time to let a sweeping hoof pass beneath me.

Backflipping in the air, my eyes met Reinhilde's for an instant before they were covered by her forearm blocking the kick I sent in her direction.

I frowned slightly. My other foot was already stomping on the arm I had hit to leap up and away before she could try to grab me again.

I flew through the air for a second, keeping my eyes and ears on Reinhilde as I spun around and ended up pointing my feet towards the ground.

Something strange had happened.

The blow I had delivered had felt different from the first. Before, the block had felt like hitting a sandbag while that last one was like the times I had practised against the rock pillars of the underground caverns with how hard and unyielding it had felt against my foot.

Sadly, I had no more time to ponder it as she charged at me faster than I expected.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

A quick, panic-filled leap to the side was all that saved me from not being rammed by her; however, any relief I had was short-lived as she dug one of her hooves into the ground and spun in place as if inertia was a suggestion before lunging at me again.

Well, two could play the same game!

Narrowing my eyes, I planted myself in front of her. Arms half open at my sides and legs apart, slightly flexed. My heart was pounding wildly in my chest, adrenaline flowing to every corner of my body, while my ears were ringing with the sound of Reinhilde's footsteps.

My focus was completely engrossed on the woman charging at me.

I was only going to get one chance and I didn't have time to think, let alone hesitate.

So I didn't.

In an instant she had reached me, practically on top of me with her body slightly bent to ram me with her shoulder when I leapt low to the left, letting her pass me by.

As I was expecting, she had already dug her hoof into the ground to repeat her sudden change of trajectory.

However, unlike my previous escape, this time I had not moved more than a few steps away; instead, I stepped onto the courtyard floor with my left foot in a similar fashion to hers and— gritting my teeth and tensing my muscles —spun in place like a spinning top, raising my right foot and performing a spinning kick towards her.

Something must have shown in my previous stance as Reinhilde swung an arm out as she shifted position to block and sweep away my attack.

But it wasn't going to be that easy for her!

The calf of my right leg collided with her forearm with a muted sound of impact; and, where normally that would be it, I instead used her outstretched arm as if it were a lever, using it as a support to lift myself up and without stopping the swing of my body— aided by my relative lightness —I rose above her defence with my left leg outstretched towards Reinhilde's surprised cute face.

It was exhilarating! A perfectly executed move with a level of grace worthy of the martial arts movies of my past life!

It was also ineffective as she managed to pull her head back, avoiding the blow and allowing my attack to pass her by.

Uh-oh, popped into my head as I spun around, hanging in mid-air with nothing to hold on to. The contours of the courtyard, and the people watching, flashed before my eyes before my spin brought me face to face with Reinhilde once again.

I barely managed to cross my arms in front of me to receive her answering punch.

A grunt came from between my teeth. I was sure that if the previous one hadn't left a bruise, this one certainly did.

Being in the air, I had no choice but to fly a good several metres before hitting the ground for the second time.

Fortunately, this time I was already prepared and curling into a ball, I rolled to absorb the force of the blow until I was able to stop, lying face up on the ground.

For a moment I remained unmoving, just breathing without thinking, until I heard the sound of footsteps and I lifted my head to see Reinhilde walking towards me.

"Do you want a moment to rest?" She asked, to which I snorted.

"As if!" Bending my legs towards my stomach and resting my palms on the ground on the sides of my head I propelled myself upwards with a flip to end up on my feet. "We're just getting started!"

She blinked and gave me a curious look. "Uh, you're smiling." She commented with the corner of her lips turning up slightly.

"Yeah?" I asked and raised my hand to my face to find that I did indeed have a smile on my face. Thinking about it for a bit, despite the pain and poor treatment my fur was receiving, I found the fight very entertaining. "Heh, the things one learns about oneself; though it seems to me that I'm not the only one having fun."

She made a questioning sound and I gestured in her direction.

"You're smiling, too." I said and she seemed to freeze in place for a moment before clearing her throat.

"N-no, it's not that." She stammered and I tilted my head.

"No? Then what?" I asked curiously and she shook her head.

I looked at her for a moment before shrugging my shoulders. "Alright then. Ready!" And I took up my stance again.

I'd like to say that my situation improved after those two initial bouts, but I'd be lying.

Reinhilde was a very skilled woman. While her fighting was very straightforward, mostly using her arms to deliver strikes or perform submission moves, her experience showed.

She almost always seemed to be anticipating my moves, ready to receive them and force me to face retaliation.

And while I managed to slip the occasional punch or kick through her guard, they didn't seem to do much damage.

In the end we traded blows for the better part of an hour or more— breaks included —before she decided it was enough.

"Fuaaaa~!" I exclaimed as I dropped onto my back on the courtyard floor. "That... Was... Intense..." I declared between mouthfuls of air.

"It was." She said, bringing a bag in her hand. Although Reinhilde didn't look as worn out as I did, I could see the traces of sweat on her face that told me I had at least made her work a bit.

That thought was enough to make me smile, though it soon turned to a grunt as my body decided that now that I wasn't in the middle of the action it was a good time to bring to my attention the beatings I'd taken.

"Ugh, this is going to hurt tomorrow." I groaned and slowly sat up. "It was a lot of fun though, when do we do it again?"

"Probably in a few days." She replied, sitting down across from me and rummaging through her bag. "It's best to wait for your body to recover, but this should speed up the process." She said, pulling out a small jar and passing it to me. "This ointment is good for treating wounds like bruises and small cuts, speeding up the healing process." She explained as I removed the lid and gave it a sniff, catching the scent of medicinal herbs. "It's also good for pain relief."

My ears perked up at that. "And I just have to smear this on my skin?"

"Just a dab. You take it and gently rub it over the affected area until you feel the skin cool and the pain subside." She said and I nodded.

Following her instructions, I carefully scooped some of the ointment onto the pad of my index finger.

Gently, I began to rub the ointment onto the skin between the fur on my arm. My expression was one of mild annoyance at the thought of how the ointment was going to make my fur all sticky and the work I was going to have to do to clean it off; although, it was soon replaced by interest as I began to feel a cool sensation spread across my skin and with it the pain faded into a dull sensation.

"Wow, this is amazing!" I exclaimed. I was no stranger to ointments, they were common in Underhill; however, this was the first time I had used one as fast or potent as this.

"Isn't it? Aunt Ria does an excellent job." Reinhilde commented and I shot her a surprised look.

"Ria made this?" I asked and she nodded.

"Ria is the apothecary of the Glade. Didn't they tell you?" She asked curiously to which I shook my head.

"No, though it's not like I asked either or that it came up during the conversations we've had." I replied with a shrug at the end as I made a note in my head to see what else Ria could have available.

If I had any luck, maybe I could even restock the oils for my fur.

I was going to take some more of the ointment, but I stopped and shot her a worried look.

"Ointment like this must be expensive, right?"

"Mm, I'd say a little. About 12 pieces of silver." She said after some thought and I choked up at the amount.

Twelve pieces of silver! That was like the equivalent of a little over a month's worth of food!

"And it's fine for me to use it? Wouldn't it be better to save it for something more important?" I asked, looking at the small jar in my hand apprehensively.

"This is important." She said reassuringly. "I promised to help you and that's what I'm going to do, as best as I can. If your body recovers faster, that means we can get more out of these sessions. Put more pressure on your training."

"I guess..."

"Then don't worry about it." She gestured to the jar. "Trust me, it's no problem."

"Okay, fine." I acquiesced and continued to smear the ointment on my arms and legs.

When I was done with those, I lifted the edge of my shirt and, taking some ointment, began rubbing it on the side of my ribs where I had taken a hard hit after failing to dodge in time.

A sigh of relief left my lips as I felt the throbbing pain of that particular hit recede.

"Ah~ that feels good~." I exhaled and, closing the jar, I handed it back to her with a smile. "Thank you, Reinhilde."

"You're welcome." She murmured in a quiet voice as she took it without looking at my face for some reason.

I took a moment to get comfortable before asking. "Meditation now?" To which she nodded before a red aura covered her.

I closed my eyes, took a breath and began the process of trying to feel the magic.

= = = = = Line Break = = = = =

Reinhilde waited until Noah was deep in his meditation, truly focused on the process, before she allowed herself to relax.

She could say, much to her pleased surprise, that the session had ended up being more intense than she had anticipated.

It had certainly been worth it, though.

The idea of having a spar between them had come to her during the day as she reminisced about what Noah had shown her yesterday while rethinking about the best way to approach his training.

And while she had been honest when she told him that what she thought he needed most were real opponents to face and hone his fighting sense, the truth was that the biggest reason she had opted for that course of action was because she was eager to see what it would be like to face such a different fighting style.

In other words, she had been driven by curiosity and a desire for a challenge.

Part of her was a little ashamed of herself for her motives while another was satisfied that she had followed them.

And another tiny one she didn't think to mention was even more pleased with Noah himself.

If there was one thing Reinhilde knew, it was how intimidating she could be to others.

She was not blind to the way people acted around her, with few being able to look her in the eye without feeling uneasy at best or frightened at worst.

And while she had always tried to remain proper and professional as she had seen her father do so many times to try to convey confidence, she couldn't deny that there were days when it was a little difficult not to let it get to her. Especially when her responsibilities took time away from talking to the few people who didn't treat her differently.

So she was rather grateful that Noah didn't seem affected in that way by her appearance.

The memory of their first meeting flashed to the front of her mind and she took a deep breath to suppress the urge to blush.

It certainly had been different.

At least it wasn’t like some weirdos she had the displeasure to find.

She shook her head. The important thing was that he didn't seem to be walking on eggshells when he interacted with her.

Still, for a moment when she'd seen him fidget in place after mentioning they were going to spar, she'd thought Noah had finally caught on to the size difference between the two of them and it had intimidated him.

She had felt her stomach sink at that moment, but she still made sure not to show anything in her countenance and forced herself to ask.

Her surprise, and hidden relief, was immeasurable when he replied that he was excited instead of nervous.

Even more so when throughout the afternoon, after each bout and despite each fall, she could see how much the Bunyar was enjoying himself.

As much, if not more, than herself.

It was so nice to be able to train with someone and just enjoy it.

A slight throbbing coming from her forearm made her wince a bit and reminded her that she hadn't come out unscathed either and that she had made her own mistakes.

Carefully, she reached up and rolled back her sleeve to reveal a bruise.

In her eagerness to test herself against Noah and knowing that he had trained on his own and had no real combat experience, Reinhilde had acted carelessly.

Instead of somehow augmenting herself with her magics, she confronted him with her base capabilities. Those of a well-trained half-minotaur. Her heritage was already such that her physique alone was far stronger and more resilient than that of several other races, allowing her to normally shrug off non-powered blows from smaller creatures.

So, she was caught completely off guard by the pain she felt in her arm when she blocked his first kick.

She supposed that in a corner of her mind she had dismissed Noah as a threat, and as such had paid the price.

If nothing else, it served as a reminder that she should never underestimate her opponents, no matter how fluffy or cute they looked.

From that point on she had started using incantation-less spells to raise her physical toughness and to help with her movement. Nothing that raised her power, though. It was still training, after all.

She wanted him to fight, not tear him apart.

Luckily, the pressure only seemed to make him become even more focused.

Reinhilde smiled.

She couldn't wait for Noah to create his Fount so they could start working on using his magic to enhance his capabilities.

Speaking of which, Reinhilde turned her attention back to the Bunyar sitting across from her and narrowed her eyes.

She thought she had sensed something.

Concentrating, her eyebrows raised and her smile widened a bit when after a few moments she sensed the slightest of stirrings in the magic flowing around Noah; and she held back a chuckle as his brow and nose puckered endearingly while his ears twitched.

For a while she did nothing but watch him, but beyond his sporadic success and the increasing contortion of his face, there was no further progress.

"Stop." She instructed and Noah's posture relaxed before he opened his eyes with a wide grin blooming on his face.

"I felt something." He murmured in a voice full of wonder and fascination.

"Can you describe it?" She asked with interest.

"It was like a warm, vibrant current caressing my fur. At first, I wasn't sure if I had imagined it, if it was just my tired mind playing tricks on me; but after it repeated itself several times, I realised there was something odd about it. And when I tried to concentrate on it, it was as if it responded!" He narrated with great excitement in his voice before his ears and mood dropped slightly. "But as fast as it came it would go away and I'd lose the feeling."

Reinhilde nodded. "What you felt was the magic around you and what felt like a response to you was, in fact, it responding to your will, if for an instant. Which is normal. It's going to take work, but now that you felt it, it's just a matter of putting forth the effort to be able to manipulate it consistently." She assured, remembering her own attempts in her youth along with all the frustration that came with them.

Which made him being able to begin to feel the magic around him in his second session rather peculiar.

Noah was nodding excitedly at her words. "I see. So this is what magic feels like?"

"Yes and no." She replied. "It varies from person to person and any similarities can be chalked up more to place or medium. As we are in the middle of a forest, which is teeming with life, it is common to feel it 'vibrant'." At least for what she was told.

"I see, I see." He said with an intense, thoughtful look that lasted for a couple of seconds before nodding to himself. "I'll continue." He said in a tone of voice that let her know it was a clear statement of intent and not a question or request.

Again, she found herself raising her eyebrows. She thought she had understood how much he wanted to learn; clearly, she had fallen short in her assessment.

Still, seeing him so determined made her smile and nod in silent assent.

In front of her, Noah closed his eyes, took a deep breath and visibly forced his excited body to calm down with the speed that only long practice could provide.

And once more, Reinhilde watched him closely with a pleased smile that refused to fade.