Christopher focused on the small, jagged pebble. It was red-brown in color, just like the paving stones.

He did his best to clear his mind of all distractions, but given that the entrance to the maze was just a couple of meters away, it proved harder than it should have been.

Triangulation Beam, Triangulation Beam, Christopher repeated the Enigma’s name over and over in his mind, but to no avail. No matter how much he tried, the pebble stood as still as before.

Why isn’t it working?

Jules had told him to mark the stone. Maybe that’s what he should do instead.

He focused again, staring at the pebble with such focus that his eyes started to water.

Mark, he said in his mind.

To his surprise, the stone immediately shone with a dim blue light. But at the same time, a sharp ache pulsed through his head, causing him to flinch and lose focus. The blue light quickly faded away.

“You did it!” Jules shouted with happiness. The boy had been watching him silently by the sideline.

“Almost,” Christopher said, massaging his temples.

What followed was a game of cat and mouse.

Christopher easily marked the first pebble before rushing to mark the second. However, either because he lost concentration or was too slow, he never managed to.

When he finally managed to pull it off, his head was already pounding with a massive migraine. But as the blue light on the two pebbles grew brighter, a wave of happiness washed over him. Two perfectly horizontal beams of blue light shot out against the third pebble.

Woosh!

A sharp, hissing noise, followed by the pebble violently bursting into pieces.

“Great! Now that’s some good firepower,” Jules congratulated him. “Do you think you can do it again?”

Christopher shook his head. It was hurting so much that he could hear his blood throbbing loudly. Using Triangulation Beam just once had been enough to exhaust him–not physically like when he used Crimson Proof, but mentally.

“That’s what I thought,” Jules said. “I’m sure you’ll get better over time, but it’s not something we can rush. Besides, it will be even harder to use during battle.”

“I can see now why people avoid it,” Christopher said, nodding in agreement.

The difference in difficulty between using Crimson Proof and Triangulation Beam was appalling. Not only did the Enigma require absolute focus, but he also had to worry about making precise calculations to ensure it would hit its mark.

“Is the beam horizontal to the marked targets, or is it parallel to the ground?” He asked, curious.

“No idea,” Jules replied. “But forget about it for now. You can find some time to practice later. Go and grab your spear.”

“What for?”

Jules threw him a knowing smile and straightened his back, adopting a teaching stance.

“For drafted and fabled–at least those not born into a ruling family–it's often wiser to focus on physical builds. Breath and Grace naturally increase your survivability, and by investing a couple of points in Blood, you can withstand at least a couple of non-critical injuries up to the tenth floor.”

Just as I’ve thought, increasing my stats does reflect directly on my physical body. Christopher considered. I wonder where I should put my points. Breath is out of the picture, but maybe I can invest in my Grace and Blood.

“Also, as I’ve told you before, Breathing Arts are more intuitive to use. There’s one in particular that can be found on the 3rd floor Outskirts that can drastically improve your survivability on the subsequent floors.”

“So you want to teach me how to fight?” Christopher asked.

“Exactly. I would’ve skipped it if you had shown a good affinity for your Enigma. Maybe we could’ve thought of a way for you to use it in the darkness. However, as things stand, I believe your best bet to survive the Prelude will be to improve your fighting skills–even if your synopsis doesn’t give you any physical bonuses.”

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Christopher agreed with him. Using his Enigma was too difficult for now. At best, he could use it to complement his fighting style later.

“Why are you helping me?” He asked.

“What do you think?” Jules smirked.

“Did Lisa ask you to?”

“Not only are we planning to go back into the maze together, but we’ll also be taking the Prelude at the same time. Don’t you think it will be useful for me to have you fight alongside me?” Jules replied with a question.

Christopher shrugged his shoulders. “Ok, I’m ready.”

“Good,” Jules replied with a mischievous smirk. “Grab your spear with both hands and set your feet shoulder-width apart.”

Christopher did as instructed.

“Not like that! Your non-dominant foot should be slightly back, with the heel lifted off the ground for better mobility,” Jules paused, giving Christopher a moment to do the corrections.

“Good! Now bend your knees slightly and make sure you are distributing your weight evenly between both feet.” Jules kept instructing. Despite his usual easygoing attitude, he proved to be a very competent teacher.

After ensuring Christopher’s stance was passable, he showed him the best way to keep his grip on the spear–with his non-dominant hand two-thirds down the length of the handle and the other closer to the spearhead.

“You’re holding it too strongly,” he complained. “Relax. Wielding a spear is all about fluid movements and quick adjustments… Good!” Jules encouraged, lightly hitting the spear with his hand.

“There are more than a dozen basic spear-fighting techniques good for beginners. I’ll teach you two. One will be very useful inside the maze, as you are mostly limited to basic thrusts, and the other is a bit more advanced, but it might be useful during the Prelude.”

Christopher nodded, eager to learn. He felt this was an opportunity he couldn’t afford to pass on.

Jules took the spear from Christopher and demonstrated.

“This is a basic thrust,” he pushed forward with his dominant hand, guiding the spear with the other. “Target the torso instead of the head. Aim small, miss small.”

He threw the spear back to Christopher.

“Show me.”

Christopher caught the spear and imitated his thrust, stabbing the empty air. As far as he could tell, it wasn’t so different from what he had been doing inside the Labyrinth. Jules, however, wasn’t happy.

“Did you just forget everything I’ve taught you?” He berated. “Those feet should be further apart and your knees bent. And stop gripping that spear as if it will run away from you.”

Christopher rushed to fix his mistakes, thrusting his spear over and over again until he was covered in sweat. But even then, Jules wasn’t satisfied.

“Stab me,” he requested, stepping in front of him.

“What?” Christopher hesitated. “Are you out of your mind?”

“Don’t be an idiot. You won’t be able to hit me,” Jules mocked. “Don’t stop until you do.”

Christopher wasn’t very confident but went ahead with his request. After all, he couldn’t forget how Jules had defeated five ghouls by himself despite being surrounded by complete darkness.

He assumed the basic stance and stabbed forward towards Jule’s lower abdomen.

Unsurprisingly, Jules easily dodged the attack with a simple side step. However, as Christopher pulled his arm back to prepare for another strike, the boy quickly stepped forward, grabbed the shaft of his spear to prevent him from retracting it, and headbutted him, sending Christopher sprawling to the ground.

Christopher fell butt first, with tears in his eyes and using his hands to cover his nose.

“Was that really necessary?” He asked.

“Pain is a great teacher,” Jules said, rolling his eyes back. “Do you understand now?”

Christopher frowned. Despite the pain, he did understand where Jules was getting at. Every time he thrust, a hole opened in his defenses, and he became vulnerable.

“I need to be faster,” he replied.

“Exactly. Now get up and start practicing again.”

Christopher did as ordered. He stood up and started practicing. He swiftly pulled the spear back each time he struck, adjusting its direction to cover any opening he might have exposed. He felt his movements were still amateurish, but he could tell they were already a great improvement.

“Good,” Jules praised him. “Now, let’s try it again. Atack me.”

Christopher nodded and assumed his stance. He knew the chances of him hitting Jules were still none. However, he set a goal for himself. This time, he would at least last four strikes.

He viciously stabbed Jules's torso, anticipating he would dodge. As expected, Jules sidestepped the attack again, but this time, Christopher was already retracting his spear, ready for the next move.

It only took Jules a split second to appear right in front of Christopher, moving so fast that Christopher's mouth opened with surprise.

“Ouch!” He cried out in pain as Jules headbutted him again, causing him to fall on his butt.

“This is the second technique I’ll teach you today,” Jules said with a smirk, taking something out of his pocket while Christopher rubbed his nose in pain.

“Catch this,” Jules threw him a short, handless blade that Christopher awkwardly grabbed, trying not to cut himself. “You can call this Jules’ Ultimate Technique,” he bragged.

“A dagger?” Christopher looked with confusion at the handless blade.

“Yes, a dagger,” Jules paused and smirked. “This is a special technique. It is not for terrors but for Authors.”

Christopher froze. “What do you mean Authors? I’m not going to kill anyone.”

“I’m pretty sure you’ll regret those words later,” Jules sneered.

Christopher shook his head vehemently.

“That’s a good way to die during the Prelude,” Jules said. “I’m not mocking your morals; it’s just how it is. The Prelude is not simply a trial to be overcome. To a select few, it is an opportunity.”