The training hall felt different today.
Not quieter.
Not tenser.
Heavier.
Julien stood near the center of the floor, stretching his fingers slowly as the familiar deck of black-and-gold cards hovered in a loose formation around him.
Twelve.
Exactly twelve.
No more.
No less.
He could feel the limit clearly now.
When he tried to pull a thirteenth card, a dull pressure bloomed behind his eyes, like someone pressing a thumb against his skull from the inside.
'So this is the strain…'
Across from him, Alicia finished tightening the strap of her rapier's sheath.
She looked relaxed.
Too relaxed.
"You look like you're about to take an exam," she said lightly. "This is just sparring."
Julien laughed nervously. "You say that like you're not ranked A now, whose poteintial rank is SSS, and show exceptional combat power although a healer and nature affinity like elves ."
She drew her rapier in a single smooth motion.
The blade caught the light, silver and clean.
"I'll go easy on you....and you praise me a lot...."
He didn't believe her for a second.
Helior stood at the edge of the hall, arms crossed.
"This match is not about winning," he said. "It is about control. Julien, remember your limit. Twelve cards. Do not exceed it."
Julien nodded. "Understood."
Alicia raised her blade.
"Ready?"
"Ready as I'll ever be."
She vanished.
Not literally.
Just… moved.
In the blink of an eye, she crossed half the distance between them, her footwork precise, her posture flawless.
Julien barely had time to react.
"Barrier!"
He thrust his hand forward.
Water vapor rushed together, forming a thin translucent shield just as her rapier struck.
Clang.
The barrier rippled violently, cracks spreading like spiderwebs.
Julien stumbled back.
"So this is your defense," Alicia said, already shifting her stance. "Not bad. But too slow."
She attacked again.
Julien sent two cards forward.
They intercepted her blade, spinning, deflecting the thrust just enough for him to step aside.
Wind surged around his legs.
"Dash!"
He shot backward, skidding across the floor.
His heart pounded.
'She's not holding back much at all.'
Alicia smiled.
Good.
She wanted him serious.
She lunged again.
Julien spread his hand.
Four cards shot forward in a fan shape, each one infused with wind.
Alicia twisted, her rapier moving in sharp, efficient arcs.
Ting. Ting. Ting.
Three cards were knocked aside.
One grazed her sleeve.
She raised an eyebrow. "Nice angle."
She flicked her wrist.
A thin arc of mana-coated steel swept toward him.
Julien raised a barrier again.
This time, the impact sent him sliding several meters back.
The pressure in his head spiked.
Six cards active.
Seven.
Eight.
He tried to reposition.
Alicia didn't give him space.
She pressed forward relentlessly, her movements fluid, almost beautiful.
Every step forced him to react.
Block.
Deflect.
Retreat.
His breathing grew heavier.
Nine cards.
Ten.
'Too fast… she's too fast.'
He tried something risky.
Two cards shot low, skimming the floor, aimed at her ankles.
Alicia leapt cleanly over them and twisted mid-air.
Her blade tapped his shoulder lightly.
"Point," she said.
Julien froze.
If this were real—
He exhaled shakily.
"I'm getting destroyed."
"That's the point," she replied. "You're thinking too much in patterns. Cards aren't swords. Stop treating them like one."
She stepped back and raised her blade again.
"Again."
This time, Julien changed approach.
Instead of attacking, he focused on movement.
Three cards formed a rotating shield in front of him.
Two hovered at his sides.
Wind gathered around his feet.
Alicia advanced more cautiously.
She feinted left.
Julien reacted too quickly.
Two cards shot in the wrong direction.
Her real strike came from the right.
Barrier up.
Too late.
The blow shattered the water shield and sent him tumbling.
He rolled and barely stood in time.
Eleven cards.
The pressure in his head intensified.
A dull ringing filled his ears.
His vision blurred slightly at the edges.
'This is the limit…'
Alicia paused, frowning.
"Julien, you're pushing too hard."
"I'm fine," he lied.
She attacked again.
This time, instinct took over.
All twelve cards surged forward.
They formed a complex formation around Alicia—above, below, behind.
For a moment, she was surrounded.
She smiled.
Then moved.
Her rapier flashed.
Three cards were deflected.
Two were knocked off course.
She burst through the opening and closed the distance.
Julien felt something snap.
Not physically.
Mentally.
A sharp spike of emotion surged up from his chest.
Frustration.
Fear.
The feeling of being completely outmatched.
The ringing in his ears grew louder.
His breath came in short, uneven gasps.
'I'm going to lose.'
'I'm useless again.'
'I can't protect anyone like this.'
Alicia saw it instantly.
"Julien, stop—"
Too late.
Something deep inside him shifted.
A strange calm washed over his mind.
The panic vanished.
The fear receded.
And his lips—
Curved upward.
Slowly.
Into a wide, unnatural smile.
Alicia froze.
Helior's eyes widened.
The pressure in Julien's head disappeared.
The world became… quiet.
Clear.
Light.
He could feel every card.
Every movement of air.
Every droplet of moisture.
His body felt weightless.
His smile widened further.
Not joyful.
Not mocking.
Just… wrong.