Alice and Beatrice looked at Richard, a little confused.
"Spar?" Alice asked. "Why?"
Richard, seeing they were confused, sighed and stood erect. "Well, I need to know your combat level right now."
Beatrice, looking ticked off, says, "Don't you already know it. I mean, you did watch that asshole beat the crap out of us right?"
"Ah." Richard muttered as if he just had an epiphany. "Rigghht. But anyway, this spar is to help you guys coordinate your attacks together by fighting someone stronger than you. Both."
An angry, or is it annoyed, vein appeared on Beatrice's head as he said that, twitching violently.
"Stronger than us both. Oh really..."
Alice just interrupted her before she could do or say anything further and asked Richard, "For what purpose? For what purpose is us coordinating our attacks important. Especially right now. When the town is under attack."
Richard looked at Alice with a calm demeanor. "Because you're weak."
As he said that, Alice's eyes widened. Beatrice grit her teeth, but Richard continued on.
"You're weak. Weaker than every single person or thing attacking this town. But you have one thing better than them..."
He paused, then continued. "You have me teaching you. Also you have a higher mana pool than most of them. But mostly you have me."
He then took a stance again, the fire blade still in hand.
Beatrice, and surprisingly Alice were now motivated by anger and irritation at Richard's words and took a stance as well.
Richard smiled, while looking at them, "Now come at me."
Beatrice conjured her staff of fire again, the red-orange flames spiraling up from her hand with a whoosh before solidifying into a molten rod.
The flames still danced along its length, giving off a subtle crackle.
Alice conjured her own blade made of light, the sword forming with a sharp zing of radiant magic, it's glowing edges humming softly like a tuning fork touched by divinity.
Without waiting for another word, Beatrice let out a short yell and charged. Her movement was fast–emotion-driven–but sloppy.
She swung her staff horizontally, the flame leaving a burning trail in the air.
Clang!
Richard parried it with ease, his flaming sword barely budging under the pressure.
Alice came in next, blade raised in a vertical arc, aiming to cleave down from Richard's blind side.
Clash!
He raised his sword and met her strike, blocking it with a single arm. With a simple twist of his wrist, he redirected her blade and forced her back a step.
"Sloppy footwork," he said calmly, voice unshaken by the double assault.
"Beatrice, you lead with your shoulders. Your opponent can read your attack before you swing."
Beatrice growled and pulled her staff back, thrusting it forward with a jab.
Fwoosh!
The tip exploded in a burst of heat, but Richard simply sidestepped it and smacked the staff downward with the flat of his sword, causing Beatrice to stumble.
"Alice," he continued without missing a beat, "You're too hesitant. Your stance is too open. Don't swing like it's a damn decoration."
Alice clicked her tongue as she adjusted her grip, circling around him as Beatrice recovered and joined her.
"Bow," Richard called, deflecting another strike, "Why don't you trying augmenting your bodies. Pour your mana into your muscles to increase your speed, strength, defence, etc.".
The girls did as he said. Their bodies glowed faintly, around their limbs and their whole bodies.
But yet, as they dashed forward again–
Thud!
Crash!
–they both stumbled. Alice tripped mid-swing, her blade flying off balance, while Beatrice's staff flickered and fizzled at the edge, her movement jerky and uncontrolled.
"It's not working!" Beatrice snapped, her frustration glaring in her tone of voice.
"That's because you're trying to do too much at once!" Richard countered, his voice rising.
"Don't augment your whole body. You're not ready for that yet. Just focus on one part that you want to augment. Just one."
Alice and Beatrice glanced at each other for a moment before nodding.
Alice drew in a breath, then concentrated the mana around her legs. It shimmered, more stable this time.
Beatrice narrowed her eyes, focusing on her right arm. The mana coiled tightly around her limb like a gauntlet.
They dashed forward again.
Boom!
Alice moved quicker now, the glow around her legs giving an extra burst of speed.
She slid past Richard and came around with a sharper slash. He blocked it, though it had more force than before.
Wham!
Beatrice came in next, swinging her staff down on him. Richard quite easily blocked it, but due to force, even he had to give a short nod.
"Better," he said. "Still predictable, though."
The fight grew more frenzied. The room echoed with the constant clashes, thumps, and whooshed of elemental power.
Beatrice spun and sent a crescent of fire toward him.
Fwoooosh!
But Richard just sliced it in half with a lazy swipe of his blade.
Alice followed up by conjuring a blinding flash of light before swinging.
Richard winced slightly at the brightness, but still was able to duck under her blade and tap her in the ribs with the flat of his sword.
Thwack!
"Don't use light just for distraction. Turn it into a spear next time," he commented as she staggered back.
Beatrice tried again, forming a fireball and hurling it toward him.
Boom!
It exploded on contact. And yet as the smoke cleared, Richard stood there untouched, using his augmented arm to shield himself.
"You're getting the hang of it," he praised as he parried their next attacks. "Bit by bit."
Alice dashed in low, her blade slicing at Richard's legs. He hopped over it effortlessly, retaliating with a spinning kick that sent her sliding across the floor.
Beatrice lunged again, screaming as she poured more fire into her staff. She swung with all her might.
KRAK!
Richard met it head-on, the shockwave blasting air outward. Beatrice was knocked back, but remained standing, panting.
Then the two girls attacked in sync.
Alice aimed high; Beatrice struck low.
Clash! Clang!_ Thrum!_
Their attacks were coordinated now, if only slightly. They moved with purpose. Their footwork, though still amateurish, was less wild now.
Overall, they were beginning to flow better, even if Richard still batted them aside like gnats.
After a final sequence of clashing blows and elemental bursts–
Richard decided to end it.
He disappeared from their sight.
Boom!
In a blink, he was behind them both, his sword at Alice's neck, his hand on Beatrice's shoulder.
"Dead," he said calmly.
They both groaned in frustration and dropped to the floor, exhausted and out of breath.
"You didn't get me out of the circle," he said, glancing back at the circle he drew on the floor.
"But, you did improve if only barely."
Alice, still catching her breath, flopped on her back and grinned tiredly. "Barely huh."
Beatrice muttered something under her breath and nodded. "...yup. You're a monster."
Richard simply dissolved the flaming sword, the fire dissipating into embers.
Then, he walked over to the small clock on the table and checked the time.
8:00PM.
Still about 30 minutes before they had to move.
With a casual wave, he used wind magic to clear the living room again–chairs and tables sliding across the floor with a loud shhhrrrrk–then turned back to the girls.
"Well then," he said with a small smirk. "Hiw about round two?"