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Clang! Clang! Clang!
The clear and crisp sounds of metals clashing could be heard bouncing off the corners of the training area.
In the small arena situated at the center of the training room, two figures could be seen sparring. One was lithe and agile; the other was solid and strong.
The arena was walled with hard-light projections, preventing the results of the clash from hurting the audience. Said audience were obviously the students who were also using this facility.
The majority of them, especially those who were new to all of this, were shocked by what they were seeing. The two contenders fought with grit and seriousness. They were intent on wounding each other, and no one was holding their punches.
In their eyes, this was scary. Some even started to think that these two might actually be trying to kill each other and were tempted to call the professors to stop this fight. Well, they can't be blamed; after all, both participants were already wounded.
But even if they were to call the professors, this wouldn't stop. If anything, the professors might even scold them instead of interrupting the spar.
Besides, how can they not know what's happening? There were cameras all over this room.
But beyond the nervousness and fear, there's also awe. Mostly because what they're seeing right now is exactly how combat pros spar. They used to only see this on videos and such, and it was much more hectic in person; it felt more real too.
Seeing their classmates already moving like this made them feel a suffocating pressure. They were so far behind compared to them that it's not even funny. The sparring sessions they had in the camp were nothing but child's play compared to what they're seeing right now.
What's even more shocking is that this performance didn't come from the repeaters. It came from their batchmates, two of the very few who had already reached 2☆ Novice Rank.
Hell, even the repeaters were speechless. Some cursed that they, once again, had to compete with absolute monsters in this batch.
The ones sparring in the arena right now were none other than TJ and Sieg.
While their spar might be intense to the eyes of their peers. To them, this was just the usual. Since the very first time that they decided to be each other's sparring partners, they never pulled their punches. It's a silent agreement they made for themselves.
Of course, they know how to hold back and avoid fatal injuries. But aside from that, it's all fair game. Even dirty tricks were permitted.
Sieg was tall and a budding force of nature. Every swing he does with his great axe splits the wind and is incredibly threatening. His expression was also quite scary; it's like facing a bear that was roused from its slumber.
Meanwhile, TJ was swift and cunning; he's also very flexible. He moves with absolute confidence and certainty, narrowly dodging blows, seemingly dancing at the edge of death, and he stings like a venomous snake, aiming for the vulnerable spots.
If any of Sieg's attacks land on him, TJ would be pushed into a very dangerous position. And because of his audacity, by narrowly dodging attacks at the last moment, he makes everybody feel nervous about his well-being.
That said, TJ was an absolute nightmare to fight against. He was quick and flexible; he aims at tricky angles with those needle swords of his. He pokes at the squishy parts: the head, eyes, joints, hamstrings...basically any vulnerabilities he could see in his enemies. And with his blistering speed, it was hard to defend against him.
Furthermore, TJ can perform a feint as naturally as breathing. Sieg had lost count of how many times he fell for TJ's tricks and suffered from it. He's like a slippery loach, truly an absolute nightmare to fight against.
And it's not like Sieg was slow. In fact, he moves much faster for someone his size and strength level. Due to his constant sparring with TJ, he's been conditioned to sense danger and react to it before he even sees it. It's not a hundred percent success, and sometimes, TJ uses that against him, but compared to most, he was definitely quicker.
It's just that TJ was much quicker and more deceiving.
Also, TJ walked on the hard-light walls like it was a flat surface, further extending the flow of his mobility. He doesn't trip, doesn't fall, and doesn't stutter in his steps. He's stable, calm, and quite sinister when he needs to be.
Because of this, Sieg's basically covered in shallow cuts by now. He looked wretched and desperate, yet he's still standing. TJ was also injured, but compared to Sieg, he's mostly fine.
"Alright, stop. I yield." Sieg raised a hand and sighed. TJ landed nearby like a falling feather, light and weightless.
He then walked to the control panel and removed the hard-light walls before assisting Sieg out to sit on the nearby bench.
"Your speed is becoming more and more insane as days pass. Are you sure you haven't transitioned to another class yet?" Sieg grumbled as he limped towards the nearby bench.
"Oh, trust me. If I had, you'd know right away. But we both know that's not possible."
"I know. I know." Sieg continued grumbling like a sulking child. "It's just... sigh, I guess I need to work on my speed more."
"Not speed," TJ corrected. "With your physique, I don't think speed training will help you much. I'm not saying that you should neglect it, but that's not your priority."
"You should focus on strength, endurance, and more importantly, reaction speed and body coordination. You're still pretty clumsy even with the level of your footwork; if you don't fix that, that's going to become a huge problem for you in the future. That's what you're missing." TJ explained his ideas to him and made a suggestion.
"That so? Huh. Okay, I'll give it a shot."
"Good work, you two. It's a bit scary, but it looked very cool!" Lily praised from the side.
Sieg suddenly went still before a foolish expression appeared on his face. His ears reddened quickly as he began scratching his head in embarrassment.
"Thank you, hehe."
His dumb face turned even dumber when Lily leaned in and began using a healing spray on his injuries.
"Uh, y-you don't really have to," Sieg hesitantly said, torn between wanting her to stop but also not.
"It's okay. It's no trouble, really. Just stay still and behave; this will be fast."
Sieg turned his face and met TJ's deadpan expression. That, of course, didn't deter him. He's having the time of his life, and no amount of sarcasm from his friend could ruin this moment for him.
The big oaf then barely stopped himself from emitting a squeak when Lily touched his biceps and said,
"Come on, big guy, show me your back so I can spray it too."
Sieg obeyed like a well-disciplined dog. Not a trace of shame could be seen on his face at all. His face was flushed now, by the way, and it's very obvious to everybody that he's really flustered by what's happening.
"Alright, done," Lily cheered. "I didn't miss a spot, right? If I did, just tell me."
"N-no, no! You got everything! Thank you very much." Sieg shook his head fiercely in denial and thanked her.
"How about you, TJ? Need me to spray you too?"
"Just pass the spray to me; I can handle it," he said, refusing her good intentions and being a solid bro to Sieg so that he can have this moment.
Consider this his compensation for putting those wounds on Sieg, if you will.
"Alright." Lily passed the spray on to him, and TJ began treating himself.
This healing spray contains about 500 grams of healing mist. It can heal surface injuries for novice and apprentice-ranked professionals. As for deeper injuries, the mist can at most alleviate them.
Healing sprays aren't included in the free stuff provided to them by the school. This one came from Lily's own pockets.
Yes, these healing sprays are quite expensive. This one in particular costs about 25,000 geos on the market, and that's just for the 500-gram version.
But of course, for Lily, this much was nothing. Besides, she's the daughter of the Medical Saint. She has crates of this thing in her inventory, so she wouldn't sweat about giving out a single one.
"I'm going for a shower. How about you, Sieg?"
"I'll go as well," he replied, timidly standing up and following after TJ.
"I'll wait for you guys outside," Lily stated before she started walking away.
Both boys nodded before they made their way to the showers. When they were near the cubicles, TJ passed the healing spray to Sieg and said,
"Here, use this on your remaining injuries."
Sieg just sighed and accepted this.
Yes, he lied to Lily. He had more injuries, specifically on his thighs and legs. He didn't want to risk any bad rumors or misunderstandings happening, so he lied to her.
"Fortunately, she didn't notice," Sieg whispered to himself as he began spraying the shallow cuts on his thighs.