Within a dark and somewhat dusty room, stood a grey-haired girl and wrinkled old man; they were both clad with somewhat priestly clothes resembling a profession in magic. The room was clad with bland, greyed stone. A single shard imbued with light that hung from a plain, metal chandelier, lit the chamber dimly.

"So why do you think it is they've sent summons for us this time?"

The old man with greying brown hair asked with a raised eyebrow. The girl next to him clacked her metal, jeweled staff gently against the stony floor with one hand and curled her face in suspicion at the man.

"Don't ask, don't tell, Mr. Kalinfyre."

"Please, just call me Clarke, I'm not as old as you think I am."

"That's what all old people tell themselves."

The man, perhaps taken back by this, gives a wry expression.

"You're not exactly as young as you think you are either, Arciel."

Arciel furrowed her brow.

"I started honing my magic at The Andestine School of Crafts, when I was nine, thank you."

"And it's been six years since then, you need to start acting like a young lady and not a spoiled daughter of a duke."

Clarke sneered at the girl. She blushed in anger, clearly taking full offense.

"You! You-!"

"Yes, we common people have a few tricks up our sleeves; it comes from needing to work for our positions."

Arciel looked as though she were about to explode with the anger of a noble when a loud and dull rumbling sound screeched from the far end of the room, a place scarcely covered with light.

"I don't see why the council have to be so sketchy all the time, the honorable leaders of Andestine, perhaps the best human country, meet in a hole in the ground."

Clarke whispered, slightly agitated.

"Don't you know anything about those who threaten us?! It's those dammed sub-humans to the south-they're scarily good at infiltration!"

Arciel responded in a rushed whisper.

Clarke, wanting to desperately quip back, shut his mouth when he heard the sound of multiple footsteps. Out of the darkest wall of the room stepped a semi-circle of people. All of them wore extremely unique and gaudy outfits, signifying their status as leaders from of different aspects of a country. Some wore differently colored and finely woven robes while others wore suits and long cloaks with different sorts of trousers.

This is like a fashionista meeting.

Thought Clarke, now furrowing his brow. It wasn't the first time him and Arciel were called by the council; but their methods to achieve secrecy had become more and more convoluted as time went on. All of it was caused by the paranoia of infiltration and spies from the northern kingdoms or maybe the most infamous, the 'empire' to the south. Andestine was an island continent with a strong naval presence, how anybody snuck in left the council and Clarke himself scratching their heads. Although, compared to the few times Andestine was breeched, the two human nations on the main continent of Aleeze had a serious problem; spies and infiltrators were everywhere, no one could be trusted over there.

"We call you here on account of a very important discovery: Two new summoning tablets have been found."

A female dressed in dull white robes announced.

Arciel and Clarke both flinched.

"We've been extracting them from very deep within Sidonian territory, we'll need you to make sure it gets back to Andestine to be used."

An old and slightly cynical male voice continued on.

"Y-you mean...we will be the s-summoners?"

Arciel asked nervously.

"Yes! You are Andestine's next in line for hero handlers are you not?"

A loud voice boomed from within the circle.

"R-right!"

Arciel replied, clutching her staff.

"The tablet has already made its way in secrecy to Qutrya. You'll be there to get it to the town of Foksly, where we'll have a ship ready to take you and the tablets back home."

An old, hunched over man said calmly.

"It's already made it so far east within Sidonian territory?"

Clarke piped up, asking with a hint of concern.

"Yes, thanks to our scarce agents within the region. However, after every time they gave the tablets to another agent for further travel, they were snuffed out and killed by the Sidonians; They are not dim, they know something is happening, we are on a time limit here before the tablets are compromised."

The same old man replied.

"Make sure you do this right; we've lost more than three quarters of our Sidonia-based agents already just from trying to keep the tablets in our hands and moving."

A mature lady with dark sunglasses and high heels said in a diva-like voice. Clarke and Arciel nodded solemnly.

"We understand. We'll make best haste toward Qutrya at once." Arciel said, nodding.

"Hmph. Do not disappoint us."

...

Hearing what Daventdale had to say is really putting me on edge with this apprentice. I'm going to have to make sure I can trust her. This next month will be solely that: The testing and recording of my apprentice's performance. It would be hard for anyone to teach combat if they didn't know the learner's style of fighting and general attitude.

The sun had not risen yet, a dim, pale blue covered the sky, with his hands on his hips, he was waiting for his apprentice to arrive at the Nuam training field. It was essentially just that, a plot of open, slightly treed land outside the third wall reserved for Nuam Household troops to prance about and train. It's also where the 2nd Army -the one more primarily backed by the Nuam house as opposed to the Salchyon-backed 1st Army- prepared before heading out. Lucky for him however, both the 1st and the 2nd army had left on a long-distance expedition right after his apprentice's ceremony. His father and Lord Salchyon were sent out with their armies by Sidonia to the Far East. Not many knew about the small and loose Sidonian presence in the Far East thanks to the large ocean between it and the main continent that the Sidonian peninsula rested on. The Far East was no exaggeration, it was far past the island-continent-country of Andestine, which rested a little off east of the main continent. The main continent itself held The Irine Principality, it occupied the entirety of the continent's west coast; there was also the Jedathari Caliphate, which owned the majority of the eastern coast. These two powers occupied practically the two halves of the continent. The only land not under their control were some far northern countries which seemed as though they'd be gobbled up by the massive giants in the coming future; and of course, the tiny peninsula to the far south, wherein the Sidonian Empire projected it's power from. There were only three places Sidonia had under control with the loss of the Regadonian Keep a few decades back, the peninsula, the Far East, and two moderate sized islands south of the peninsula that acted as a major supplier for raw resources and for a un-cramped place to live once one retired.

This is why, when reports slowly stopped coming in from the Far East, it meant a huge problem for the Nekomata and the Sidonians. From what Alisson had heard, the Far East was mostly tiny islands with a snowy climate. Sidonia was lucky enough to get an Expeditionary Fleet out there a century ago: now upon most of those southern islands was a Sidonian populace. They were as of now, self-sufficient, and acted mostly on their own, this was unheard of with Sidonia, the all controlling, ageless being around to lead the Nekomata.

But, the ships that came every few years have been sporadic at best in the past decade; Sidonia has no idea of what's causing it, so, the 1st and the 2nd have been sent as to either help, or report on the demise of the Far Eastern Sidonians. They aren't expected back for quite some time; perhaps even years could pass.

If anything, sending out nearly two hundred thousand troops across the seas is a show of force to whatever the hell is threatening Sidonia's eastern counterpart.

Alisson sighed as he watched his apprentice scrambling towards him from the direction of the Capital.

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A dark blue cloak fluttered behind her, covering up whatever she was wearing underneath.

There it is, that uncomfortable feeling I'm getting from her like yesterday.

He'd told her to meet him here by daybreak last night, and yet here they were, before the sun even rose, both early. They'd both had to have made their way from the inside of the first wall to the outskirts of the third; for Alisson, it was a daily routine, for his apprentice, an annoying journey just to report for training.

Celistine stopped in front of Alisson and brought a closed fist her chest.

"Master. Reporting as ordered."

She spoke in a fatigued and monotone voice clearly not fully awake yet.

"Hmph. And early as well. I see your motivated for morning PT. One hundred jumping jacks. Now."

While his apprentice proceeded on with jumping, Alisson paced in front of her. From her jumping, her cloak opened and fluttered about, revealing what she was wearing underneath.

It's practically the same as my armor, a little darker in color with a little blue. Maybe it's time for me to get a more personalized color style instead of the Sidonian-white-blue. If all the members of the Storm Brigade sport their own colors, why shouldn't their leader? Anyways, time for the talk I now give to all my apprentices.

"From this point onward, you are under my watch, it is my responsibility to make sure you do not die and are of at least some use to Sidonia and to myself in the future. It is your responsibility to follow my orders. You no longer have no other obligations but to do exactly as I say, are we clear?"

"Y-yes master."

She says under a gasp of air.

I feel bad for being so pushy, but I need to assert myself somehow.

His first apprentice, Bunzen Al Suzu, walked all over him thanks to both his inexperience and general meekness. Of course, when his third apprentice rolled around, coincidentally the younger sister of his first, she'd gotten the message and didn't try any funny business. Though it seemed that as of now, his apprentice, Celistine, was quite the stoic one.

Training always leaves a bad taste in my mouth, I'm a softie with watching other people suffer.

Celistine let one last gasp out and stopped jumping.

"Done so soon? A lap around the third wall. Now. And make it quick!"

This is going to be a tough month for me mentally...Leukini and Jackson gave up on their first day, let's see how long it'll take for Celistine to break.

...

This past week has been hell.

That's the only thing I can describe it as.

On my first day, he told me to run around the third wall! That's half the circumference of the Capital of the Sidonian Empire! No, wait, correction, the whole circumference; Once I got the eastern coast, he told me to run all the way back to the west! I have not a clue in hell how he just runs along without even breaking a sweat. I was not prepared for this amount of physicality at the Academy, nuh-uh, worst school ever when it comes to preparing me for the crap my master is asking of me!

Or should I say devil!

I swear to god this guy is a sadist.

I jump over a small stream on my evening run through the forest outside the capital. It's really dense, if I don't pay attention, I could slip and crack my head open. I hope to god I never get a growth spurt; I don't have massive breasts as is, but it feels like I'm carrying a metric ton of deadweight even though they're basically mosquito bites. My entire body is sore or burning. Anything that doesn't hurt, I can't feel at all.

I'm really surprised I haven't thrown-up from the physical exertion.

Sleep.

It's something that I'd love.

This week has really made me feel old, who wants to sleep?

Me.

I want to sleep for an entire week.

I've never wanted a rest more badly in my life. I get, maybe, 2 hours of sleep if I'm lucky; and I get to eat ten minutes twice a day.

What the hell.

I knew the real world was going to be tougher than the academy, but what the hell is this. I feel like everybody I've known have deceived me on how hard life actually is. I lived for thirty-five years, and I've got another thousand if I don't die by the end of my apprenticeship.

If.

Yeah. I'm going to die. No debate about it. I would sigh if I could, but that would mean spending unnecessary time for my mouth when it needs to be breathing constantly. I feel like a dog, panting all the time.

Phew. I've finally left the forest...and there's my master just sitting there with his hands on his hips, watching me like a hawk. I stop in front of him, breathing heavily. I stand up straighter with a hand behind my back and a fist on my heart.

My stupid pride won't let me bend over with my hands on my knees.

I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out, only a gasp of air. As a bead of sweat rolls down my forehead, my master furrows his brow. What in the hell is he ever confused about; I do exactly as he says, and he looks as though he's still not pleased.

"Hmph. You're done for the day, Celistine. Look forward to tomorrow, you'll be sparing against some other apprentice's, maybe me if you do well enough."

He turns, does a double-take, and starts walking toward the third wall's gate without another word.

"Hah...Yes, master..."

My body slouches and like spring, a wave of tension is released from my muscles. Jeez. We normally continue on till it's practically black out, but today we stopped pretty early; just as the sun has set. Man, six days into my apprenticeship and only now am I actually going to touch a weapon. I wonder how large the gap is between me and Alisson, tomorrow I'll find out. There's no way I'm going to lose to any of my fellow fresh graduates.

Yes, time to show him my ability...after a night of sleep of course...

...

"Wow..."

Alisson mumbled under his breath. They were currently in sandy training ground adjacent to the Nuam Keep; and time after time, his apprentice had simply beaten any challenger into the dirt.

She's already blown me away with her not giving an ounce of dignity up during what was basically me torturing her; but on top of that she has combat skills like these straight out of the academy.

A few meters in front of him, a flash of blue deftly evades under the swipe of a wooden sword. It's cloak twists in a turn and a roundabout thrust with a short wooden knife and meets the opposer's exposed belly.

If the rest of the academy's students have even half her poise, I'd be happy.

That wasn't necessarily a complement; Celistine was beating her peers yes, but that didn't say anything for how she'd put up with a real fighter. He could already spot more than a few things in her stance and strikes that needed to amended. In a fight against even a mediocre human fighter, one of tens of millions, she'd be beaten by lack of experience. It still filled him with pride to know that his apprentice was the best among of the rest.

Alisson, furrowing his brow, called the sparing match. He watched as his apprentice happily skipped over with a small smile of glee, apparently pleased with herself. Although upon realizing her own status she tensed her body and face with a blush of embarrassment.

"That's ten for ten, Celistine. You’re going to make me look bad if you keep beating up everyone even though I haven't even touched on your combat."

Alisson gave a small smirk and showed a small amount of approval for his apprentice.

I have been pretty hard on her, but this isn't a time to be stuck up for the purpose of training mental fortitude.

Celistine shot up in a brief moment of surprise, shock even. A split second later her posture was corrected, and she'd straightened her face, however.

"..."

Awkwardly, she opened her mouth to reply, but evidently couldn't find the right words.

"C'mon. We're going to spar."

Alisson said with a hint of childish excitement in his voice.

Celistine gave a nod, and Alisson swore he'd seen a little drop of eagerness from her as well.

Within about five minutes they were both prepped and armed on field. Alisson raised his rapier.

"We'll go to whoever gets the first hit."

Celistine nodded and raised her two shabby wooden knives.

She uses stilettos, so it's disappointing we don't have any training ones in stock; but she's stuck some regular old knives.

The stiletto was, like Alisson's weapon of choice, a thrusting blade. A stiletto was thin and rarely had sharpened edges, just like a rapier but much shorter.

"Five seconds, starting now."

Celistine and Alisson tensed deeper into their stances. Celistine had both her knives in front of her body with a reverse grip. Alisson's wooded rapier rested gently on his left elbow, it's handle was held high and close to his face with his right hand. Their knees were bent, and their backs were poised to action.

Three...two...one-!

After five seconds had passed Celistine blurred into a charge, her body low. Alisson stepped back and sidestepped her charge with a trip. She fell face first into the hard, sandy ground.

"Not everyone will choose to try to block or counterattack you. You weren't paying any mind to where my foot was either."

Celistine scrambled to her feet and nodded. She lunged to the left and then to the right, feinting twice. She then wrapped her two knives inward for a strike straight on Alisson's face. Alisson's rapier blurred and caught both of the knife’s dead in their tracks. After a second of the weapons being locked together, he pushed them away to the right. Celistine's body followed and she spun a 360 on her feet, barley managing to keep upright.

"Always assume an enemy will call your bluff, no matter how improbable or inexperienced the enemy is. You should never lock blades, especially since you use stilettos, it's better to simply disengage as soon as you feel resistance."

...

Wh-what is this?! I can't get a single scratch on him! He's not even attacking either! This is really killing my self-esteem. Not that I had any to begin with. Call it, feeling a lull of confidence, perhaps.

But nope. Shutdown.

Another clash of blades, another retreat with my tail between my legs. I shakily bring my blades up once again with a curt exhale. Here I thought I made my master proud by winning ten times in a row; but now he's just furrowing his brows, looking like a scorpion because of his stance. I would sigh, but I don't wanna look displeased in front of my master.

"You need to mix in your feet more offensively, I've read your report, you’re an apparent close quarters combat expert."

Sorry I don't have strength to spin my entire body around for a single kick like you do, I've been kicked three times in the stomach now by that; him just side stepping and kicking me! Oh well, I'll get stronger and more skilled, I hope.

He's not lying about the CQB part, I'm pretty well versed in hand to hand. That does not include hand to kick, thank you! But he is right, in a real fight, playing dirty doesn't matter when your life is on the line. I should ask him how he able to blend kicks in with not only his fists, but with his rapier too. Alisson told me that he mainly used rapiers, almost always had some throwing knives on him for utility, and he occasionally used a small buckler or normal broadsword to fit a situation if need be. I wouldn't wanna even think about what would happen if he had a buckler right now, that's just another way he can hurt me non-fatally.

As I briefly shiver over that last part, I quickly develop a new plan of attack. I'll try to shatter his defense, but to do that, I need to close in to make the best of having more mobility thanks to my shorter weapons. If I can shake up his balance, I'm pretty sure I can land a hit, I think. With this plan in my head, my body subconsciously sinks low. Alisson's brow piques in interest and his body tenses.

I charge.

I make sure to watch his feet and his entire body, so I'll be ready if he decides to sidestep and trip me again.

But before I can close the distance...

"Guah!"

A sharp pain smashes into my stomach. I look down to see Alisson's wooden rapier, digging into my gut.

"Fool! Just because I haven't attacked with my weapons doesn't mean I will follow that pattern!"

I barley hear what Alisson says as I collapse to my knees while clutching my belly. This is gotta be the most pain I felt this week, hands down...-!

"W-w-what's wrong Celistine?"

Alisson says in a rushed and concerned voice. I can't hear him, the only thing my body is focused on is my stomach. My eyes are probably wide open in pain or shock.

Alisson runs over and slides next to me putting a hand on my falling head. His face is of genuine terror of my state of being. I'd probably laugh if recognized his panic then.

"W-wait! I'm sorry I-I shouldn't have--!"

With those words, my vision turns black, cutting off the panicked Alisson.

***