The early sun split through the high lattice windows, casting golden lines across the stone courtyard like divine runes from the Architect Above. Opposite Fenric Vaelthorn Vareldis stood the Knight-Class Dummy—an eight-foot, armor-clad automaton forged from Orichalum alloy and embedded with multiple mana cores tuned for combat simulation.
This wasn't target practice.
It was war rehearsal.
The construct bristled with reactive defenses, intelligent counter-spell routines, and kinetic resistance designed to break unrefined casters. In short: a rite of passage for real combat mages.
Fenric inhaled slowly, fingers twitching faintly. His mana sea—once chaotic—now shimmered with clarity, calmed and tempered by a month of Mavis's brutal "training," a word far too soft for what he endured.
"Combat protocol: Initiate," he said.
The dummy's chest flared to life, mana rings igniting in pulsing layers.
"Tier 1 engagement confirmed. Begin."
