Eugene arrived sometime after the sun had already set. Though this time of year, that wasn't exactly very late, but they did have dinner ready and waiting.

"I hope I'm not too late," Eugene called through the house upon his entry, "my sister made a fresh batch of bread, and I had to wait so I could bring a loaf over."

Still being quite young and not having a family of his own, Eugene still lived with his parents and younger siblings. He would usually contribute in some form when he came over for dinner, which is how Lucas knew his younger sister was an excellent baker.

"Don't worry, you're right on time!" Mary let him know as he walked into the kitchen. "We are just about to dish up the food."

She and Lucas had collaborated in the making of the meal, transforming the carolf meat into a hearty stew with a good amount of spice. They would need to pick up some more vegetables at the market tomorrow, as their stock was running a bit low.

"Perfect! Mind if I borrow a knife for this?" he asked, holding up the bread.

Lucas moved to the small circular table on the other side of the room to make space. The stew was soon deposited into three different bowls and accompanied with equal slices of bread. Eugene gave his thanks for the meal, to which both Lucas and his mother responded with thanks for the bread, extended to his sister. After that though, they ate in relative silence. This time was meant to enjoy the food and any conversation would be picked up later. Lucas finished first and went to fill three mugs from the water barrel to help wash down everyone's food.

"Mm, mmm," Eugene set down his dish and took a swig from his mug. "That hit the spot."

"Agreed," Mary responded while scraping the last dregs from her bowl.

"Perfect food to have before patrol, really. It'll keep me warm and full all night."

"I could never do that," Lucas grimaced. "I may like being awake, but no way I could be out in the cold till dawn."

"Hah--I used to think the same, but every guard has to pull night patrol duty sometime," Eugene explained. "You get used to it, and we do have ways to stay warm. It's only for this week, anyway."

"When do you have to head out?" Mary asked.

Instead of answering right away, Eugene took a sip of water and his eyes unfocussed as he checked the time with a Skill. "Still a couple more hours; the second shift doesn't go out till then." He turned to Lucas. "However, if you want to get any practice in tonight, you should head outside. I left the training spears resting beside the door."

Lucas hopped out of his seat, then paused. "You're not coming out with me?"

"I'll be out in a few minutes," Eugene answered.

That was good was good enough for him. He may not be able to stay out all night, but Lucas was not going to miss working with the spear before heading to bed.

Outside, he found his training spear--little more than a large, heavy, slightly-pointed stick roughly his size, really--precisely where he was told it'd be. Lucas did a few quick stretches and started warming up with the basic movements he was regularly drilled in. That meant the most basic of basics, like how to properly run with tripping on his supposed weapon.

Partway through his laps around the perimeter of the house, he ran into Quinn on his way over.

"About time," Lucas told the boy. "If you want to practice with me, you need to come out sooner."

"Mom didn't want to let me out till she saw you running around. Besides, you said you'd wait for me," Quinn countered.

That was true, he did give that promise. He pretty much forgot all about it over dinner.

"Ah...you're right, sorry about that. Come on, though. I'll start over and lead you through warmups."

Quinn took the other short spear and Lucas swiftly guided him through stretches and into the laps once more. Laps turned into marches back and forth with spear at the ready, making sure their back foot never got ahead of the lead foot. Lucas's companion for the exercises hadn't been joining in them for very long yet, but even though he went a bit slower, he didn't make a lot of mistakes here. Quinn may have got into it only to imitate Lucas, but he clearly enjoyed the exercises and was quite devoted. Maybe the younger boy would pick a physical combat Class at his own unlock in a couple years.

They finished all the warmups just as their arms and legs started to burn and, as if he was watching over them the whole time, Eugene exited the house and joined them.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"Hey there, Quinn. I had a feeling you'd be joining us tonight."

Quinn's stance straightened with the address. "Yes, sir! I told Lucas I was gonna be here earlier."

Eugene chuckled. "And here you are. Good thing, too, 'cause we will be trying something new tonight."

"Something new?" Lucas echoed. Eugene always preached the importance of the basics when it came to the use of a weapon, very rarely introducing something new to their routine.

"Yes. Get into the ready stance, leading on the right for now," he instructed. The boys did as they were told, getting into the same stance they were just marching in side by side while he waited. "You should spread apart a little more, may want the extra distance for this," the man advised.

Once there was around eight paces between Lucas and Quinn, he continued. "Alright, we'll start slow, breaking the move down at first. I want you to duck into a crouch--make sure to keep your eyes up while you do--and put your weight on your back foot."

So far, this was just like any strong thrust. Lucas didn't see anything new about it, but he was told the move would be broken down so he obeyed quietly. It made sense for the new thing to branch off what he already knew anyway. He needn't have worried over it, as the next instruction was indeed unlike every other move he'd been shown.

"Next, push off your left foot and move to the side," Eugene demonstrated a sharp leap to the left. "Stay low when you do this. It may feel weird, but just take it slow. Your weight will go on your right foot when you land, and from there you want to angle the spearpoint up slightly and push off the ground at the same angle."

Lucas tried it out, taking his time to ensure he did it right. It was different, alright. The move didn't feel weird at any point, though. "Like this?" he asked.

Eugene watched him as he went through the move piece by piece, nodding along. "That's good. I can see you were ready for this. Go over it a few more times, picking up a bit more speed each time. Stop if you find yourself falling out of balance," he instructed before stepping closer to Quinn.

Once again, Lucas did as he was told, repositioning after each leap and thrust before doing it again just a bit faster. Balance didn't really become an issue but he did catch himself rising out of the crouch too early a few times. As he practiced, he got to wondering what exactly this move was for. Such a dramatic repositioning wasn't really practical when fighting with a spear--if an enemy was close enough to warrant it, he would have already failed and it was time to move on to some other weapon, if not just grappling. The question kept bothering him till he eventually decided just to ask.

"You're right," Eugene answered, "this move would almost always be impractical when fighting people. This isn't meant for an enemy like you or me though, it's meant for monsters."

"Monsters!?" Quinn echoed.

"Mm, hmm. To be precise, it is meant for those of medium size with flesh and blood. You wouldn't exactly want to try this with a golem or elemental of some kind," Eugene paused. "Or use a spear at all, I guess, but the point stands."

Lucas nodded in understanding. He could see it now. The crouch and initial leap were probably meant to dodge a strike and set up for a counter. He went through the move again--this time imagining a fearsome lycan swiping its claws at him before dodging to the side and thrusting his spear into its heart. Eugene had only shown Lucas moves meant for combat with other people while in a group before now, that's why he didn't get it at first. After a little bit, he and Quinn were made to switch their leading sides and drill the same move. They switched multiple times, rehearsing enough to bore most other kids their age.

All things must end sometime, however, and they were given their cue when Penelope stepped out of her home and called her son back inside.

"Thanks again, Mister Eugene! I'll see you tomorrow, Lucas!" Quinn passed his spear over before hurrying back home. Lucas made sure to thank Penelope again for her earlier gift before they could disappear for the night.

"Well," Eugene said. "Ready to head back in as well? I've still got a bit more time before I have to leave, but I'd like to say bye to your mom."

"Gross," Lucas joked, laughing a little when the man's face took on a slightly darker shade of red. "Let's definitely go inside, though. The cold is starting to get to me--don't know how you'll survive later."

Lucas made his way to the door ahead of the man, putting the spears back where he'd found them.

"Ahem~ Right, lets go," Eugene said a moment later.

They found his mother resting in a comfortable seat in the clinic with three cups of tea prepared, reading a book by candlelight. Lucas would need to come back for the tea, as he needed to wipe the sweat from the workout away urgently. He could only use a bucket and rag at this time of night and the hot tea would be welcome as it surely would not be the warmest rinse.

He came back a short while later to the adults already deep in conversation.

"You will be careful, though. Won't you?" Mary worried. "I don't like how many guards are needing my treatment lately. Not just for accidents, either. Monster incidents, one and all."

"I'll be careful," Eugene grinned. "It's really not that bad, though. There has been more monster activity lately, but it will die down soon. Those guards probably just haven't been taking it seriously."

"No little monster is going to get him, mom," Lucas assured her while moving toward the tea. "I bet he could take on an alpha drake and not receive a single scratch!"

"An alpha drake, huh?" Mary smiled, though some worry still showed on her face.

Lucas took a sip of tea and sat down. "Mm, hmm."

"That's some confidence he has in you," she directed at Eugene.

The man responded with a shrug, his grin that much wider. "Kid knows what he's talking about."

"Well you better not let him down, then."

He responded much more seriously, with a solemn nod this time. Before long, it was time for Eugene to get going and Mary and Lucas to head to bed. They wouldn't be able to have dinner together again tomorrow, as Eugene had the first shift of night patrol then, but they made plans to do so as soon as he was moved back to a diurnal schedule. Then, he would be able to help Lucas level his initial Skills too.

Lucas said goodnight to his mom right after Eugene left as well. He wanted to get a good night's sleep so he could be up bright and early once more. He still needed to figure out how to salvage his mana plan before his System unlock, and the meeting with the Elder would probably take up most of his free time tomorrow. Those thoughts lulled him to sleep, and he dreamt of a super-healing spearman fighting off lycans with a wooden stick.

[Time left till System unlock: 3:01:05:18]