A week changed the field.
The metallic frames no longer felt foreign.
Bruises had become common. Sleeves were rolled higher now, revealing faint discolorations along forearms and ribs. Students no longer flinched when constructs activated.
They adjusted.
Adaptation had replaced panic.
Cain stood in formation , though formation was looser now , wooden training blade resting lightly in his right hand. The academy-issued weapon was balanced but plain, reinforced just enough to endure mana contact without splintering.
Across the field, the metallic frames hummed softly.
This time, when constructs emerged, their outer shells pulsed brighter.
Thicker.
Denser.
Halden's voice carried evenly.
"For the past week, you have learned to destabilize."
A construct stepped forward.
"You will now learn to finish."
The first construct advanced.
A student launched a fire burst immediately. The spell struck cleanly against the shell.
It held.
Ripples spread across its surface, but no fracture formed.
The student hesitated.
The construct did not.
It drove forward and struck him squarely in the chest, sending him stumbling back three full steps.
"Mana alone is insufficient," Halden said calmly.
The next group moved more carefully.
A wind blade struck, followed by a compact lightning pulse. The shell flickered , destabilized for less than a second.
That was enough.
A wooden blade cut across the exposed section, striking the core beneath.
The construct collapsed instantly, dissolving into threads of mana.
A murmur of understanding moved across the field.
Destabilize.
Then strike.
Cain exhaled slowly.
Two constructs activated simultaneously on his side of the field.
Rei stood one pace behind him, blade drawn this time instead of relying solely on casting.
The first construct lunged directly.
Cain stepped forward instead of back.
A short, precise fire burst impacted the construct's left shoulder joint , not to break it, but to weaken the rotation.
The shell shimmered unevenly.
Rei moved in without needing instruction.
His blade struck clean against the destabilized section.
The shell cracked.
Cain pivoted and drove his wooden blade straight through the exposed core.
The construct dispersed before it could counter.
The second construct redirected instantly, angling toward Rei's flank.
Rei adjusted late.
Cain didn't.
He shifted one step into the construct's path, wind-enhanced footwork shortening the distance just enough. A low slash cut across the weakened lower shell , not destroying it, but altering its center of balance.
The construct staggered.
Rei recovered and finished it.
No wasted spells.
No shouting.
Just sequence.
Across the field, other students were beginning to show similar rhythm.
Spell.
Disruption.
Strike.
Some overcommitted. One student attempted to shatter a shell outright with excessive mana output. The backlash left him open, and the construct clipped his leg sharply.
He went down.
"Efficiency," Halden's voice echoed. "Not aggression."
Three constructs activated at once.
One targeted a tight cluster of four students.
Another moved unpredictably along the outer edge.
The third advanced straight through the center.
This time, students didn't collapse inward.
They rotated.
The frontline destabilized the first construct with coordinated bursts. The backline held mana in reserve instead of casting blindly.
The shell flickered.
A blade struck.
Core shattered.
The outer-edge construct attempted to flank.
Cain noticed its acceleration shift , the faint pulse at its joints just before it changed direction.
He didn't warn.
He moved.
A narrow wind current redirected its momentum slightly , just enough for another student's blade to intercept cleanly.
The final construct accelerated faster than before.
Forty percent output was gone.
Fifty.
Its shell absorbed two spells before showing signs of instability.
Rei inhaled sharply beside him. "Harder."
Cain nodded once.
He stepped in closer than before.
Riskier.
A compact fire burst struck the upper torso.
Instead of retreating, Cain followed the spell with a direct blade thrust into the same point of impact.
The shell resisted.
For a fraction of a second.
Then fractured outward in sharp lines.
The wooden core was exposed.
Rei's strike landed a heartbeat later.
The construct dissolved mid-motion.
Silence followed.
Students were breathing harder now.
But fewer were on the ground.
Halden walked forward slowly.
"You are beginning to understand," he said.
No approval in his tone.
Just observation.
He gestured toward the metallic frames again.
"Today, you relied on both mana and steel."
A pause.
"In reality, you will not have the luxury of choosing one."
He looked across the class deliberately.
"Next session, the constructs will not resemble constructs."
A few students exchanged uneasy glances.
"They will not move predictably."
Another pause.
"They will not attack uniformly."
Rei exhaled through his nose quietly. "That doesn't sound comforting."
Cain's grip on his blade remained steady.
"Comfort isn't the goal," he replied.
Halden dismissed them.
As students began dispersing, Cain glanced back at the metallic frames.
The shells had been thicker.
The response times faster.
The academy wasn't merely teaching them to react.
It was teaching them to operate under layered pressure.
Spell alone had been insufficient.
Steel alone would be reckless.
The combination required precision.
As he walked off the field, the faint tightness beneath his ribs returned for a brief moment , subtle, almost indistinguishable from exertion.
Not instability.
Not yet.
Just awareness.
Behind them, the frames dimmed once more.
Next session, the constructs would no longer look like practice.
And the line between artificial and real would grow thinner.
Cain had the quiet sense that the academy was preparing them for something far beyond controlled bruises.
The question was not whether they would be ready.
It was how many would remain standing when preparation ended.