The lush green grass folded under Elianna's and Nicholas' feet as they made their way toward the royal guard formation. Their eyes were locked on the group of knights and mages, hearing a chorus of yelling, cheers, and explosions.

  Elianna had a gleam in her gaze as she caught glimpses of two knights dashing and jumping around, while clashing blades in an intense spar.

  Nicholas also had an interested expression, as he noticed there were two mages involved in the spar as well, one with each knight. He watched the mages intensely and curiously as they waved their staff and wand, conjuring a variety of spells.

  The yelling from the knights increased as Elianna and Nicholas arrived at the formation, standing in a spot where they could see the four individuals involved in the spar inside the formation. Two male gavarian knights, one holding a short sword and shield, the other a battle axe, could be seen dashing around each other in a circular pattern, both coated in mana guards.

  The one wielding a battle axe engulfed his weapon in fire magic before dashing toward the sword wielder. The sword wielder got into a defensive stance and stuck his shield out. Earth magic began to swirl around their shield, then extended outward to form an earthen wall, with the shield at its center.

  The axe wielder closed in on the sword wielder and swung his weapon down. His axe struck the earthen wall with a loud explosion as the flames coating his weapon burst out in all directions. The strike from the axe knocked chunks of earth off the wall, with the remains of the earthen wall looking burnt.

  The axe wielder gritted their teeth and lifted their fire-coated axe into the air to deliver another attack. However, he suddenly went wide-eyed and looked to the side, seeing a blast of ice magic heading directly toward him. The axe wielder backed up a step, but knew he didn't have time to dodge. He tensed, preparing to be hit by the ice spell, when suddenly a wall of fire erupted in front of him, blocking the ice spell with a hiss. The axe wielder smirked and looked over his shoulder at his mage partner, nodding.

  The wand-wielding mage returned the axe-wielder's nod before flicking their wand. The wall of fire she created broke apart, forming several bolts of fire the size of chicken eggs. The mage swished her wand through the air, shooting the firebolts toward her mage opponent.

  The staff-wielding mage lifted his staff, seeing the oncoming fire attack. He thrust out his staff, shooting forward a strong gust of wind in the shape of a cone. The gust of wind collided with the firebolts, slowly extinguishing the flames as it propelled forward.

  The axe wielder grunted as the wind hit him, and he stumbled backward.

  The wand-wielding mage quickly raised her wand into the air, forming a mana barrier around her, blocking the wind.

  Seeing that the opponent mage was preoccupied with defense, and the axe wielder stumbled, the sword wielder quickly dismissed his burnt earthen shield and dashed toward the axe wielder.

  The staff wielder watched his teammates' movements and canceled the stream of wind just as they closed in on their opponent. He twirled his staff, gathering the wind into a ball the size of a coconut. He flung the wind spell at his mage opponent, keeping them occupied so they couldn't help the axe wielder.

  The axe wielder looked to the side and went wide-eyed just as the sword wielder closed in on them and bashed them in their side with a mana-clad shield. The axe wielder grunted and fell to the ground on their back with gritted teeth.

  "No!" The wand wielder yelled as the wind blast hit her mana barrier, and was about to cancel their defensive spell.

  However, a moment later, their gaze snapped to the staff-wielding mage, watching as they shot a stream of fire at her. The wand wielder clenched her jaw as the fire spell hit her mana barrier, and she knew she needed to maintain it. Her eyes flicked to her teammate, watching as the sword user dismissed their sword and lifted their mana-clad shield with both hands. She cursed as the shield user slammed their shield with its pointed end into her teammate's chest.

  The axe wielder couged out from the blow, with the impact putting enough force on his mana guard to break it apart, and it dismissed.

  "That's a match!" A tall, muscular man, with short black hair and a beard, dressed in formal Gavarian military attire, yelled and raised his arm into the air.

  The two mages quickly canceled both their spells before nodding at each other.

  "Woah," Elianna whispered with awe. She watched as the shield wielder dismissed their shield and took a step back from the axe wielder.

  "I know, right?" Nicholas said, his eyes sparkling at the display of magic he had just witnessed.

  "That sword wielder was so quick," Elianna said, watching as the sword wielder reached their hand out, helping the axe wielder to his feet. She watched the axe wielder pick up his axe and store it in his spatial ring.

  Nicholas nodded, "Yeah, he was. He didn't even give the axe guy time to get up." He looked at Elianna with excitement, "And did you see how he used his shield as a weapon to break the axe guy's mana guard? That was so cool!"

  Elianna looked at Nicholas and smiled, "My father once told me that even though something isn't classified as a weapon, it can still be used as such in the right way."

  "That is true," The corporal assigned to Nicholas and Elianna commented. And when Elianna and Nicholas looked at him with curious expressions, he quickly added, "Your Highness and My Lady."

  Elianna looked back at Nicholas and smiled, "Those mages were pretty cool, too, do you think?"

  Nicholas looked forward, with his eyes falling on the four individuals who had just sparred, speaking to the person who had called the match over. He nodded, "Yeah. They had good spell manipulation, too."

  "What about their teamwork? Your Highness, and My Lady." The corporal asked.

  Elianna and Nicholas both looked at him curiously.

  "What do you mean?" Nicholas asked.

  The corporal gestured to the four, "Did you happen to notice their teamwork?"

  Elianna's brows furrowed, "I mean, it was a two-on-two spar."

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  The corporal tried to contain his humorous grin. "Yes, My Lady. But, did you see how they were working together?"

  Elianna and Nicholas shared a gaze, confused by what he meant.

  "Alright!"

  Nicholas and Elianna looked forward, watching as the four who sparred went back to stand in formation, while the one in formal attire stepped into the center of the formation. Elianna and Nicholas looked at his collar, seeing two golden triangles, which indicated that he was a captain.

  "That was a good spar!" The captain began, and several soldiers cheered. He clasped his hands to the small of his back as she slowly turned, with his eyes flicking between the guards. "Remember, the point of this training exercise is to practice teamwork. Mages and knights are paired together in squads, so we must know how to fight and work together. Knights and mages have different tasks, and we must be familiar with those tasks. Understood?"

  There was a collective of answers, all of which mostly said yes or indicated understanding.

  "Good," The captain responded, as he continued to spin around while looking into the group slowly. "Now, who would like to go n—" The captain stopped, and his brows shot high as he noticed two individuals who looked out of place in the formation. He looked at them for a second or two before he realized who they were. The captain quickly stood straight and spoke loudly, "Good morning, Your Highness and My Lady."

  There was a collective murmur and gasp as the guards in formation all followed the captain's gaze. Several of the guards began to whisper.

  "That's Prince Nicholas? I've never seen him before."

  "S-Should we kneel?"

  "Who is the girl next to him?"

  "I don't know, but she's not hard on the eyes."

  Nicholas felt a wave of annoyance at that last comment, while he noticed Elianna blush slightly out of the corner of his eye. Nicholas nodded slightly and smiled at the captain, "Good morning, Captain." He gestured to Elianna, "We were just interested in what was happening, so we came to take a look. I hope you don't mind."

  "Not at all, Your Highness," The captain responded. "We were just conducting a group sparing session. Two on two with knights and mages. It is good for physical exercise and building teamwork. I was just about to pick out the next two groups."

  Nicholas nodded, "Sounds good, Captain. We're looking forward to the next match."

  "You sound so official," Elianna whispered humorously.

  Nicholas shot Elianna a jestful glare, "I was raised as a prince, remember? I know how to be official when I need to. Now shush."

  "And if I don't?" Elianna challenged with a giggle.

  Nicholas' cheeks reddened as his eyes flicked to her soft-looking lips.

  Noticing his gaze, Elianna's lips curved slightly, with a hint of a blush appearing on her beautiful facial features.

  Nicholas quickly cleared his throat and looked forward, seeing the captain looking around the formation. "Then maybe I'll just have the captain make you spar next."

  Elianna's brows raised, and she looked at the captain. She thought for a moment, then looked at Nicholas, "Can we?"

  Nicholas looked at her curiously, "Can we what?"

  "Go next."

  Nicholas looked surprised, "Wait, what?"

  "Here me out," Elianna began, and turned to face Nicholas fully. "You and I have both gone through training. I trained with my father, and you with your aunt. I was trained as an augmentor, while you were trained as a mage. But we were trained individually, and we never really trained together. Maybe this will be a great opportunity."

  Nicholas' brows furrowed, "I don't know."

  Elianna smiled, "Come on, it could be fun and we could learn a lot."

  Nicholas looked forward, contemplating Elianna's words. He thought that she could be right in the fact that they could learn a lot during a spar. Plus, he too thought it could be fun to fight alongside her.

  Making a decision, Nicholas called out loudly, "Captain!"

  The captain, who was pointing at a mage and a knight, turned to look at Nicholas with a curious expression. "Yes, Your Highness?"

  "Would it be possible for the two of us to partake in this next spar?"

  Elianna smirked, "So official."

  Nicholas smiled, shooting her a subtle side glare.

  The captain's brows raised, looking completely caught off guard. "You and the lady would like to spar, Your Highness?"

  Nicholas nodded, "Yes, Captain." He gestured to Elianna, "She's an augmentor, and I'm a mage. So, we can be on a team."

  The guards around the area began to whisper among themselves.

  "Are we even allowed to spar with the prince? What if he gets hurt?"

  "That girl thinks she can spar with us?"

  "I know, right? She's so petite, she won't last a second."

  Elianna's eyes narrowed, feeling irritated at the guard's comments toward her.

  Nicholas, too, felt annoyed, since he had seen Elianna practice countless times and knew she was an excellent swordswoman. He didn't appreciate the guards underestimating her.

  The captain's eyes darted between Nicholas and Elianna, seeming hesitant.

  Nicholas tilted his head slightly to the side. "Is that okay?"

  The captain nodded, cleared his throat, and smiled slightly, "O-of course." He swallowed hard, seeming nervous. "Well then, let's find you two opponents." The captain looked around the crowd, "Sergeant Felix, and Adeptus Leeman, step forward."

  Elianna and Nicholas watched as two individuals, a knight and a mage, stepped forward. The knight appeared to be a tall, muscular male with short brown hair and dark eyes. The mage was another male, who was head shorter than the knight, with long green hair and blue eyes. Both of them looked a little hesitant.

  The captain looked at Leeman and Felix, "You two will be their opponents."

  Leeman and Felix both nodded and said, "Yes, Captain."

  The captain cleared his throat and said loudly, "Alright then, both teams, take the field."

  Elianna smiled and looked at Nicholas, "Our first team spar. How exciting."

  Nicholas returned her smile as they began to make their way to the center of the formation, "Yeah." He looked at her curiously. "Should we make a strategy?"

  Elianna shrugged, "You watch my back, and I'll watch yours."

  Nicholas chuckled and nodded, "Sounds good. You handle the knight, and I handle the mage?"

  "Sounds like a plan," Elianna said, as she and Nicholas came to a stop, standing across from their opponents.

  "Alright," The captain began, looking between the two groups. Though his eyes lingered on Elianna and Nicholas a little longer, looking a little nervous. "Here are the rules. Do not try to harm or injure your opponent seriously. I will stop the match at any point in time if I deem it necessary for safety reasons. The match ends when one of the knights' mana guards is broken, or if one of the knights tags their opposing mage."

  The captain looked between the two groups, "Understood?"

  Both groups nodded, saying they understood.

  "Good," The captain said, and looked at Elianna and Nicholas. "Your Highness, and My Lady. What are your mana core levels?"

  Nicholas smiled, "I'm a third circle in the shimmer stage."

  Elianna shrugged, "I'm a four-star, also in the shimmer stage."

  The captain looked astonished, while Felix and Leeman looked surprised and confused.

  The group around them broke into whispers of disbelief.

  "There is no way!"

  "She's telling the truth, look at her core!"

  "How is that possible? She's like fifteen, and I'm twenty, and I'm still a second star."

  Elianna shot a look at the person who said the last comment, "I'm sixteen, actually." Elianna looked back at the captain, seeing he was staring at her with a widened gaze.

  Nicholas leaned close to Elianna and whispered, "Just goes to show how amazing you are."

  Elianna's lips curled, and her cheeks reddened.

  The captain cleared his throat, "I-I see." He looked at Leeman, "No spells higher than third-level."

  Leeman nodded, "Understood."

  "Alright then," The captain began, taking a long breath. "Both teams, take your positions."

  Elianna looked at Nicholas, "Ready?"

  Nicholas nodded, "Ready."

  Elianna shot Nicholas another smile as she stepped forward, and took her sword out of her spatial ring. A couple of complimentary comments could be heard from the group, talking about Elianna's sword. Elianna took a defensive stance and surrounded herself with her mana guard.

  Nicholas took a step back and pulled his staff out of his spatial ring, getting into a ready stance.

  Nicholas and Elianna watched as Felix and Leeman both got into ready stances, with Leeman pulling out a staff and Felix taking out a spear from their respective spatial rings. Felix took an offensive stance, pointing his spear at Elianna.

  Elianna narrowed her eyes on Felix, gripping her sword tightly. She felt excited yet also nervous, as she had never sparred with anyone outside of Tri-Union City. She was eager to see the difference in Felix's fighting style.

  "Both teams ready?" The captain yelled, looking to his left and right. Once he got a nod from everyone, they took a deep breath and raised their arm.

  "Ready! Begin!"