CHAPTER 122: USING YOUR ATTRIBUTES

"Next bout!" Oliver called, his tone snapping through the air like a whip. "Julia Kim against Carlos Mihn!"

A ripple of surprise ran through the students. A female student against a male.

Julia, slim and flexible, with the faint silver sheen of her Skyborn heritage in her eyes.

Carlos, broad shouldered, flame touched, his steps already radiating grounded confidence.

"But professor!" Julia protested. "I already have my partner."

"And that means nothing out in the real world." Oliver grinned. "I told you all this already, but let’s see if it sticks this time."

"In battle, you don’t get to choose your opponent. Sometimes the person across from you isn’t the one you’d expect."

"Sometimes it’s a man, sometimes it’s a woman, sometimes it’s something that doesn’t even look human at all. Underestimating them," he snapped his fingers loudly. "that’s the first step to losing."

"Here, you get to fight in a controlled environment. But outside the walls of this academy, no one cares."

"Do you think if you’re attacked by a monster, it would care that you’re a Gold-tier academy student who only trained against male opponents?"

"The best skill a mage can have is adaptability. Let’s see if some of you are adaptable or not."

Julia and Carlos descended into the sand ringed circle, wearing determined expressions.

Noah leaned lazily on the rail, watching with hooded eyes. His shadows curled and hissed in the corners of his vision, but he ignored them.

"Interesting, heh?" Arlo chuckled from beside him, trying to start a conversation. "Who do you think will win?"

Noah ignored him too.

The two combatants bowed stiffly, then spread apart, taking their stances.

"Begin!" Oliver thundered.

Julia exploded into motion. She didn’t move like a student. She moved like flowing water, or more accurately, like a bird on the wind.

One moment she was in front of Carlos, the next her foot was arcing toward his ribs in a kick.

Carlos grunted as the impact reverberated across his side, stumbling back a step. His eyes widened, having not expected her speed.

But he didn’t stay surprised for long. He squared his shoulders, broad chest rising, and lunged with a sweeping punch aimed to crush through her guard.

Julia ducked under it, her hair whipping past his knuckles as she twisted on her heel. In the same motion she spun, her leg slamming into his thigh.

The students above roared their approval. It was already more dynamic than Ben and Damien’s slower, more brutal fight.

Carlos absorbed the hit with a grunt, his face tightening. He reached out, trying to catch Julia’s arm, but she bent low, slipping through his grip like smoke.

She twirled behind him, delivering another quick kick to the back of his knee. He dropped for a moment, nearly stumbling.

Julia didn’t let up, flowing around him like a dancer.

Every hit she made was a whip crack of motion. And elbow to the shoulder, her heel to his hip, a palm strike to his chest.

Carlos defended himself with sheer durability, blocking with thick arms, parrying with hardened forearms, but it was a storm.

Oliver’s booming laugh carried over the sound of the fight. "Good! Julia, you’ve got speed, agility. You’re using your attributes. Well done!"

"Carlos, hold your ground, weather her attacks. Yes, like that! No running, just stand and fight."

Carlos roared, swinging both fists in a wide arc. Julia ducked under the first, but the second caught her in the middle of her spin, grazing her side. She hissed, stumbling back.

Carlos surged forward like a wall. He slammed his shoulder into her chest, knocking her onto the sand. The watching students gasped.

But Julia wasn’t done. She rolled back onto her hands before he could stop her, pushed up, and with a gymnastic twist, flipped herself upright again.

She dashed forward, sliding under Carlos’ reaching hands, and sprang up to drive her knee towards his balls.

His eyes widened and he quickly twisted, the knee driving into his stomach. He doubled over with a groan.

Then she was behind him again, her hands gripping his collar, yanking down as she kicked the back of his knee again.

Carlos collapsed, kneeling, sand spraying. Julia darted around, planting her heel against his chest and shoving with all her momentum.

He fell hard onto his back, sending his breath wheezing out of his lungs.

The arena echoed with cheers.

Julia pulled back her fist, her eyes glinting with a savage light.

Oliver quickly raised his hand. "Enough! Bout over. Julia wins."

Julia exhaled hard, sweat gleaming on her forehead as she froze.

She dropped her fist, before offering Carlos a hand up. He took it with a grimace, hauling himself upright.

Oliver’s boots stomped across the sand as he entered the circle. His gaze darted between them, then up to the students watching.

"You saw it." His finger jabbed toward Julia. "Speed. Flexibility. That unrelenting determination. Every strike meant something. That’s how you use agility when your raw strength can’t match your opponent. Don’t waste motion. Don’t waste energy."

His hand snapped toward Carlos. "And you saw this, too. Durability. Grit. He took a beating and kept standing. Sometimes you won’t land a clean hit. Sometimes your opponent will tank your strikes and still come forward. You don’t panic. You don’t fold. You make them bleed for every step."

Oliver’s eyes swept across the gathered students, blazing with his usual fire. "Battle isn’t fair. It’s not about who looks strong or weak. It’s about who refuses to fall."

"Sometimes, you’ll have to retreat, but other times, you’ll have to stand your ground. Here, you will learn when each is appropriate."

Noah chuckled faintly from the balcony. He could almost hear Oliver’s voice echoing inside his skull from the class he’d had with the man, months ago.

"Running isn’t cowardice, it’s survival. The bravest person in any battlefield isn’t the one who charges blindly towards death. It’s the one who knows when to retreat and when to charge, even if it means death."

Noah had to admit that there was truth in every word.

Oliver strode back to the center, raising his voice. "Next bout!"

He looked up at the students, grin wide and teeth bared.

"Noah Webb versus Arlo Kael!"