A/N: First things first...
Sorry for not uploading the past few weeks! Things have been hectic since my internship ended. College life started again, and I underestimated how bad college life was, holy. Not only that, I had some IRL urgent stuff that had to be completed, too.
I'll make it up to you! From today (Wednesday) to Friday, I'll be uploading a chapter every single day. 3 chapters this week.
After that, from next week onwards, it's 2 chapters a week! Schedule is not confirmed yet.
Again, sorry for the wait! I hope you enjoy the coming chapters in the next few days!
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[5/18 (Sunday) - Afternoon]
"Ahem! So, let's begin our second team training session now with the attendance of our fifth member, Clerval," Jaune announced, clasping his hands together as Nora blew a loud whistle.
"Thank you, Nora—"
"You got it, fearless leader!"
"—So," he continued, glancing down at the notebook where today's agenda was carefully planned. "Last session, we got to gauge everyone's fighting styles and skill levels... even if mine was horrible—b-but! At least we got to see how everyone goes about fighting!"
He flipped the page. "Um, this time, I think we should run two-versus-two matches to get a better feel for our cooperation and teamwork. Pyrrha suggested we draw lots to decide partners. What does everyone think?"
He looked up with a sheepish grin, shoulders loosening in relief as nods and murmurs of agreement circled the group.
"Question!" Nora shouted, shooting her hand into the air. "How're we going to do 2v2 if we've got five people?"
Jaune blinked.
"Oh. Uh." He glanced back down at his notebook, flipped a page and stared at one that was very clearly blank. "Right. That."
Ren's lips twitched. "It would appear that variable was overlooked."
Pyrrha cleared her throat gently. "We could rotate one person out each match. That way, everyone still gets time to observe, analyze, and adapt."
"Ooh! We let the odd one out be the referee!" Nora added brightly, hopping to her feet. She reached behind her back and produced an object from seemingly nowhere. "Behold—my emergency referee whistle! I knew this would come in handy someday!"
… Why would she even have an emergency whistle?
Jaune scratched the back of his head, thinking it over. "Rotating sounds fair. One person sits out per round, watches the fight, and then we switch teams."
With the decision settled, everyone reached in to draw the lots Jaune had prepared beforehand, now with an extra slip added marked by a black dot.
Clerval and Nora unfolded theirs first, each revealing a red line. Nora let out a triumphant laugh and immediately seized Clerval's hand, yanking it up to give herself a forceful high-five.
Jaune flinched as he opened his own slip, a blue circle staring back at him. Ren's slip matched his moments later. The two boys exchanged a brief look, then nodded.
That left only one.
Pyrrha glanced down at her lot, then smiled softly as she turned it around for the others to see. She received the slip with the black dot.
"So it's Jaune and Ren versus Clerval and Nora," Pyrrha noted as she stepped out of the ring.
She took up position at the edge of the arena as she assumed the role of referee, while the two teams moved to their respective corners.
"The match ends when one team is left standing with Aura above red level! Good luck, everyone!"
In a flash, weapons were drawn and bodies tensed; every Huntsman-in-training stood waiting for the signal.
A second later, the sharp chirp of Nora's borrowed whistle cut through the air.
Metal clashed with metal with a sharp screech.
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"Persona!" With the pull of the trigger, Clerval surged forward, willing the power of Odysseus into existence; his massive xiphos formed in an instant, crashing downward in a vertical Cleave aimed straight for Pyrrha.
But Pyrrha met it head-on. With unbelievable strength and timing, she brought up her shield, catching the blow and redirecting it in one fluid motion. The enormous blade slid aside as she stepped in with a heavy foot, thrusting her spear—xiphos—rifle forward in a lethal strike toward his skull.
Clerval barely managed to raise his sword in time, steel screaming as it intercepted the strike. Using the opening, he forced Odysseus to linger in the world, the Persona pressing forward relentlessly, sweeping, cutting, and striking in succession with the attempt to box Pyrrha in to limit her movement while he himself slipped through the gaps, striking wherever an opening appeared.
Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the arena, the situation was far less controlled. Jaune was struggling just to stay upright as the Mistralian unleashed an onslaught of swift but powerful punches and kicks, each blow slamming into his shield.
His arms shook and legs buckled, but thanks to the blond boy's colossal amount of Aura, Jaune stayed firm with a grimace as the blond Huntsman dug his heels in, keeping Ren's focus squarely on himself—doing everything he could to draw attention away from the intense exchange between Pyrrha and Clerval.
Sweat poured down his face as each slam onto his shield hit like a Bullhead! He can't hold on much longer, Clerval; please come over here; he needs some help~!
"OH YEAH, RENNY! BEAT THE LIVING SNOT OUT OF JAUNEY!" And Nora, the referee, was being absolutely, unapologetically biased. Standing near the edge of the ring like an enthusiastic coach to a boxer, she hammered the ring's floor with her fist as she shouted encouragement at the top of her lungs.
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Persona Change, Apsaras.
"Bufu!"
Persona Change, Pixie.
"Zio!"
Strength left his body.
Persona Change, Odysseus.
"Tarukaja, Single Shot!"
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Clerval breathed heavily as he sat on the floor, shoulders slumped from the utter drain on his stamina. His body ached from repeated use of his Physical Skills, his head throbbed with a dull migraine from the strain of channeling Magic Skills past his limit, and his Aura sat at a dangerously low level after enduring three sparring sessions back-to-back within the span of two hours.
He looked over at his team members of Team Juniper.
They were tired. Sweaty, breathing a little harder than usual, but otherwise standing strong. Even Jaune, who was the weakest physically out of the five, was in a better state than he was. Compared to them, Clerval looked like he had been dragged through hell and back without a break.
He mulled over the three spars he had taken part in.
The first match, Jaune and Ren versus Nora and himself, had ended in victory, but only because Nora had eliminated Jaune early via ring out, smashing him clean out of the ring with her hammer-grenade launcher weapon. What followed was a straightforward two-on-one, and despite Ren's composure and skill, he was eventually overwhelmed.
The second match paired him with Jaune against Pyrrha and Nora—and that one had been brutally one-sided. Pyrrha outclassed him in nearly every category: physical strength, technical skill, and combat experience. No matter how hard he pushed himself, he simply couldn't break through her defenses. The loss came swiftly and decisively.
He hadn't been selected for the third bout, but he watched closely as Ren and Nora faced Jaune and Pyrrha. It was not even close. Jaune struggled to keep up at first, but Pyrrha more than made up for it, frequently drawing both opponents into a two-versus-one situation. Jaune seized the openings she created whenever he could, but Pyrrha dominated the entire fight.
The final match of the day placed him alongside Ren, facing Jaune and Pyrrha once more. Surprisingly, he and Ren were far more in sync, with their movements flowing naturally, each covering the other's blind spots. Perhaps it's due to how similarly they approach fighting? But Jaune and Pyrrha's teamwork was tighter, with the win going to them.
Clerval didn't mind the record. If anything, it gave him valuable points to review about his own fighting style and a clearer understanding of his teammates' strengths and areas of expertise.
Coming to this session had been well worth the effort; he could feel his proficiency greatly improving from all that training.
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[5/18 (Sunday) - Evening]
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Back in his dorm room, he was lying on his bed, idly scrolling through the internet on his Scroll when a notification chimed softly. Tapping the screen, he found himself pulled into a chat, Jaune had initiated the conversation.
[Conversation with: JAUNE ARC (Online)]
[Jaune: Hey Clerval, thanks again for joining the session. I really appreciate it!]
[Clerval: No problem. It was enlightening for me as well.]
[Jaune: But man, was it tiring. My arms and legs are sore from all the swinging and blocking!]
[Jaune has sent a sticker of a tired golden retriever sleeping on the floor.]
[Clerval has sent a sticker of an ash-blond boy sitting on a bench, utterly spent.]
[Jaune: Still, I can't get over how you have to shoot yourself to summon your Semblance. Doesn't it hurt?]
[Clerval has sent a sticker of an ash-blond boy giving a nonchalant shrug.]
[Jaune has sent a sticker of a golden retriever giving a yawn.]
[Jaune: Well, I'm spent. Gonna hit the hay now. See you tomorrow in class?]
[Jaune has sent a sticker of a golden retriever with hopeful eyes.]
[Clerval has sent a sticker of an ash-blond boy giving an emotionless thumbs up.]
[Clerval has sent a sticker of an ash-blond boy sleeping in a bed.]
[Clerval: Goodnight.]
[Jaune has sent a sticker of a golden retriever saying "Goodnight!"]
[JAUNE ARC has gone offline.]
Putting his Scroll to the side, he made sure to write down his to-dos for the next day, making sure nothing slipped his mind.
Tomorrow marks the start of a new week.
With a quiet breathe, Clerval turned off the light and let exhaustion finally claim him.
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NEXT UPDATE: 9 April, Thursday
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