The sparring circle was silent.
Kazimir stood at its center, daggers in hand, the cold stone beneath his boots grounding him. The bruises from his last fight with the statue still ached, but his mind was clearer now, focused.
Across from him, Selis watched him with her pale silver eyes. She still held the wooden sword from earlier, turning it slowly in her hands, fingers gliding over the smooth surface as if lost in thought.
Then, finally, she spoke.
"Your daggers are faster than a sword," she said, her voice steady, commanding. "But a sword has reach. If you face an enemy with a longer blade, how do you close the distance?"
Kazimir tightened his grip on the daggers.
"I move fast," he answered. "Get in before they can react."
Selis gave a slight nod.
"That works," she said. "If your opponent is slow. But if they're fast, they'll cut you down before you get close enough to strike."
She lifted the wooden sword and pointed it at him.
"Let's begin."
Kazimir barely had time to react,
Before she moved.
Faster than he could track, her sword lashed toward his ribs.
His instincts screamed. He twisted away, narrowly dodging, feeling the air shift as the wooden blade barely missed him.
Selis didn't pause.
She stepped forward, pressing the attack, her strikes coming in fast, fluid succession, left, right, downward, feints, angles he didn't expect.
Kazimir had no time to think, only react.
He could do nothing but dodge, duck, and deflect, his daggers feeling small and fragile against her relentless assault.
There was no opening. No room to counterattack.
"Your movement is good," Selis noted between strikes, her voice as calm as if she were commenting on the weather.
Kazimir barely managed to parry another blow before stumbling back.
"But you hesitate."
She feinted a high strike,
Then swept her leg low.
Kazimir saw it too late.
Her foot hooked behind his ankle, and before he could recover,
He was falling.
But before he hit the ground, Selis caught him by the collar of his cloak.
With effortless strength, she pulled him upright, dusted off his shoulder, then took a step back, lowering her sword.
"That hesitation will get you killed," she said, her silver eyes watching him closely.
Kazimir gritted his teeth and pushed himself upright.
"Again."
A flicker of approval crossed Selis's face.
"Good."
She raised her sword once more.
"Now, attack me."
Kazimir didn't wait.
He rushed forward, twin daggers flashing, aiming for her midsection,
But the moment he struck, Selis angled her blade slightly, parrying his attack effortlessly.
She slid his strike aside and countered with a swift thrust toward his chest.
Kazimir twisted his body, barely dodging, feeling the tip of her wooden sword graze his cloak.
He countered immediately, aiming low, trying to strike her leg,
But Selis simply stepped back, his dagger cutting through nothing but air.
"Your attacks are predictable," she observed.
Kazimir scowled and tried again.
This time, he feinted, pretending to aim for her shoulder before shifting low at the last second.
But Selis read him instantly.
Before he could follow through,
She slammed the flat of her sword against his wrist, knocking one of his daggers from his grip.
"If your opponent is stronger, you can't fight them head-on," she said.
Kazimir clenched his jaw.
He snatched his fallen dagger off the ground and stepped back, trying to catch his breath.
Selis let him recover, but did not lower her stance.
"You rely too much on speed," she said. "Speed is a weapon, but it's not enough. A skilled swordsman won't let you control the fight just by moving fast."
She took a slow step forward.
"Think. What advantages do you have?"
Kazimir exhaled, gripping his daggers tighter.
"I…" He hesitated, then forced himself to analyze the fight.
She was stronger. She was faster. She read his movements like an open book.
But,
He had something she didn't.
Two blades.
Selis fought with a single weapon, while he had one in each hand. That meant more angles, more unpredictability,
And if he used his shadow sense, he wouldn't have to rely on just sight.
He took a deep breath.
Then, he moved.
This time, he didn't attack directly.
Instead, he sidestepped fast, circling her, feinting a low slash with one dagger while keeping the other raised, waiting.
Selis, as expected, parried low.
That was the moment he had been waiting for.
He shifted his weight mid-movement, bringing his second dagger up in a sharp arc toward her side.
For the first time, Selis had to move back.
Her sword barely caught the second blade in time, deflecting it, but she tilted her head slightly.
"Better," she murmured.
Kazimir didn't stop this time.
He pressed forward, using his twin daggers to strike from different angles, alternating between feints and real attacks, pushing faster and sharper than before.
Selis blocked each strike, but now, she had to adjust.
Kazimir felt it.
His breathing was ragged, his muscles burned, but for the first time, he wasn't completely outmatched.
Selis twisted her wrist, deflecting both his daggers with a single movement before stepping back.
Then, she lowered her sword.
"That's enough for today," she said.
Kazimir panted, his chest rising and falling.
"You were testing me," he realized.
Selis nodded slightly.
"Of course," she said simply. "There's no point in teaching you if I don't understand your strengths and weaknesses first."
Kazimir wiped sweat from his brow.
"And? What do you think?"
Selis gave him a long, measured look.
Then,
"You have potential."
Kazimir blinked.
Selis turned, placing the wooden sword back on the rack.
"Your daggers give you more offensive angles, but you need to refine your technique. You rely too much on dodging and not enough on control. Against an enemy with a longer reach, you need to make them react to you, not the other way around."
Kazimir nodded, absorbing every word.
Selis glanced back at him.
"We will train again tomorrow."
Then, without another word, she strode out of the sparring circle, leaving Kazimir standing alone,
Still holding his daggers.
Still feeling the weight of the battle lingering in his bones.
For a long moment, he stood there, catching his breath.
Then he noticed his body was covered in sweat.
Then, he focused on the shadows surrounding the bathhouse and teleported to it.
As his surroundings shifted, the sound of falling water filled his ears.
Without a second thought, Kazimir stepped into the central pool, not even bothering to take off his armor.
The warm water eased his tense nerves, washing away the sweat and exhaustion of his bronze skin.
As he sat back, he closed his eyes and exhaled.
For the first time in a long while, he wasn't just surviving.
He was becoming something more.
And that thought,
Felt strangely liberating.