I wasn't completely satisfied by Crystal's spell gains, but she was too tired to keep going. Her mana was low as well, so she couldn't train [Fire Bolt].

I didn't admit it, but the training had drained me as well. I'd used [Burst] even when Crystal had to pause to let her mana regenerate, eager to get the skill as high as I could.

So I sat with her in a little area cleared of snow; the wet grass - yes, it existed - made our butts super wet, but it was worth it to get a chance to rest our legs.

"We need to come up with proper battle tactics," I said, growing bored of the silence.

"We already have one."

"Yeah, but one isn't enough. We need to plan for different situations, different classes, different everything if we wanna do our jobs right."

She frowned. "Guarding a castle we have no knowledge of and no memory of ever having been inside."

"Exactly that," I said. "It sucks that we're stuck out here in the cold but at least we're getting fighting experience and the {Elite Guards} are getting fat on roasted turkey, mashed potatoes and..."

I trailed off as I realized that I would like to get fat on roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, and more. It was hard fighting invaders and constantly dying and standing out in a snowstorm. When was the last time we actually ate food? Do we need to eat food?

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Sighing, I shook these thoughts out of my head. It was no use thinking about how bad we had it. We just needed to suck it up and kick invader butt.

"Our job is actually trash," I told her. "But it's our trash and we're gonna defend it to the best of our ability. And for that we need-"

She dropped her head onto her chest. "Battle tactics."

"Right on! Okay, so, let's say we're in this scenario..."

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Scenario One - Fighting against a lone {Archer}

1. Crystal - duck as soon as she hears the whistle. Then, run over to my post and we make a break for it toward the {Archer}

2. The {Archer} will shoot at us again and we split up; I head to the left while Crystal goes to the right. We keep zigzagging and dodging arrows until we reach the {Archer}

3. I'm [Charging] the enemy while Crystal casts [Fire Bolt] at them.

4. I engage in close combat; Crystal stops casting and lets her mana regenerate as she waits for an opening

5. I try and deal enough damage to kill the {Archer}. If I get hurt too bad, I fall back and let Crystal finish them off with some [Fire Bolts]. If Crystal can't use magic to kill them, she uses my dagger.

6. We win!

Scenario Two - Fighting against a {Warrior} and {Archer} duo

1. I [Charge] the {Warrior} while Crystal attacks the {Archer}.

2. I stall the {Warrior} long enough for Crystal to (hopefully) kill the {Archer}

3. If I get too injured, we switch opponents. Crystal's [Fire Bolts] should be enough to handle the {Warrior}

4. I finish off the {Archer} and help Crystal with the {Warrior}

5. We win!

Scenario Three - Fighting against a lone {Warrior}

1. Crystal stays back while I [Charge] the {Warrior}

2. When I [Burst] an attack, Crystal casts [Fire Bolt]

3. Repeat until we win!