'Am I rushing… or am I dragging?'
Quies deflected another blow from Evengarde, stepping back and waiting for the heartbeat once more.
-Dump
'Nevermind…'
Evengarde stepped up the pace and made his attacks less predictable, challenging Quies' endurance and awareness.
This spar… didn't really look like the traditional duel. After every attack, Evengarde always blitzed—which he didn't really have to do. Because, if the fight was like a traditional duel, then he would easily outskill and outwit Quies in terms of swordsmanship. His mastery over his tempo was superb, in fa-
Ba-
Quies extended his right hand, ready to block the incoming attack…
-Dump
'...what.'
But there was none.
He had gotten too comfortable in this spar, forgetting that Evengarde also had a goal in this battle. That goal was to land a single slice on Quies.
It was quite obvious that Evengarde wasn't going to make it easy on him.
Ba-
The start of Evengarde's heartbeat came faster—much faster—than he expected. His body didn't have time to adapt to the new tempo!
Slash!
-Dump…
Blood began to trickle down Quies' injured back. Evengarde had feigned an attack, making Quies block when he didn't need to, and dashed behind Quies.
'Sss…'
Quies hissed as the air exposed cut began to sting.
And then, he took a deep breath after realizing that he had been holding one in for the past couple of seconds from shock. Reflexively, his blood gauntlets were also reabsorbed into his body…
…Currently, he was only able to make a few basic shapes with his blood manipulation. The most complex shape he could form–and sustain somewhat comfortably—was that of the blood zweihander. The rest either relied on existing structures or were inherently simple shapes. An example for the former would be his blood gauntlets, which was a simple shell around his forearm and parts of his hands.
"Hmm… Did you learn something new? You must have…"
Evengarde wiped his face with the back of his hand.
"I did, actually. I learned how to follow people's heartbeats… somehow. I think it was something to do with my mantra."
"That's rather interesting, to say the least. Tracking people's heartbeats…"
Evengarde extended his Katana in a direction away from Quies and flourished it, the small droplets of blood falling off of the sleek blade.
"It helps me keep track and pace myself. I can line up my heartbeat so I'm the same… agh- what's the word for it?"
Quies stared at the ground intensely before Evengarde interjected: "Tempo."
"Yeah… uhh- what does tempo mean?"
Sheathing his Katana, Evengarde raised an eyebrow at Quies' lack of knowledge.
"You don't know what tempo is?"
"You could say I had a… quiet upbringing. I don't know many things that, to put it bluntly, people like you and Valerie would know. Goodness, the amount of things she referenced… I had no idea what she was talking about."
He smiled lightly.
"Speaking of which…"
He looked at Evengarde earnestly. Studying his face, it seemed like Evengarde got the idea of what Quies was trying to ask him.
"She's- uh… not doing so well."
His look was grimly stoic.
"It's hard to explain. It was like, whenever you looked into her eyes-"
"There's nothing." Quies interrupted.
"Exactly. That's what I'm so worried about. I'm sure if you've ever made eye contact with her, there was always some presence—a pressure, if you may—that she exuded. It's the same for me. Now… that's gone."
Evengarde walked across the room to pick up the coat he had dropped earlier, his head seemingly tilted slightly lower this time.
What could have caused that change in Valerie?
Quies didn't have a definitive answer, but he could definitely make conclusions. There was one thing he was sure of, though. He knew, with his whole heart and soul, that the reason Valerie is in the state she is currently, is because of the Lord Regent. He didn't know what he did in her Illusory Realm, but he was glad he wasn't there for it.
'I might have to thank Valerie for knocking me out and sending me out of her realm…'
But alas, he didn't know where she was. Perhaps the Vigils were trying to figure out a solution for her problem. He overheard earlier that there were still traces of Lord Regent's presence in her mind or something…
Truth be told, he was worried for her.
Despite their short time together—and his initial, gruesome encounter with Valerie—he still had that feeling of connection with her.
She was like an older sister that he never had. Most of their conversations were just the two bantering, trying to pass the time during periods of boredom. She would always cover his expenses, like booking him a room at the inn for a week, or paying for all of the food that he bought.
'I need to get employed!'
He shuddered at the thought.
All in all, it was quiet without Valerie…
"I believe that's all for today."
Evengarde linked the chain of his coat again.
"Quies… you've really surprised me today, did you know that? I have always thought of you as that scrawny bloodrender Valerie brought around with her everywhere… for some reason. In other words, you've proved your worth to me."
Quies didn't know how to respond. "Uh… thanks."
He picked up the tunic and slung it over his shoulder, waiting for Evengarde to catch up so he could follow behind him.
"Ah, I almost forgot. Have you considered my earlier proposition?"
Evengarde tilted his head slightly towards Quies as they walked up the tall staircase.
The Forge of Sin… it seemed like a huge task for someone like Quies. Did Evengarde think that Quies would be able to retrieve the Forge of Sin for the vigils?
'Way above my paygrade… but technically, he only said I needed to secure the Forge of Sin…'
"Do you think I can even do it?"
"Sure I do. By secure, I mean find wherever the Forge of Sin is located in Erisia. It would also be helpful if you were able to obtain its fragments which are scattered around the island as well, but simply finding the Forge of Sin is immensely beneficial for us Vigils. It will certainly help expedite our… preparations. Plus, I heard you're somewhat familiar with the island."
'Only the lower half near the shore…'
Quies gave Evengarde a glum look. After a moment without a response, Evengarde inquired one more time.
"So, what will it be?"