NOVPUB"…Then, while running away from the stone monster, she fucking stumbled! How does a half snake woman manage to stumble?"
While sitting in the garden, Yvonne began telling stories from the expedition to the East.
Both Vicky and Thea died of laughter as Yvonne told them a story when she and Kim went on patrol in the wilderness alone.
They ran into a few Horrors, but they were some sort of stone monsters, so Kim's power didn't affect them… She found that out a bit too late though, which meant she had to scurry away!
"Anyway, I jumped forward immediately, and together we took those creatures apart! We thought they only had stone skins, but after cutting them open, we only found more stone… How do they even survive without organic tissue?"
Vicky still giggled about the earlier part of the story, while Thea regained her ability to speak.
"I mean, they were Horrors. Those are basically Stellars corrupted by Madness. As a Transcended neither of you really need food to consume, it's just the body's habit to demand nutrition!"
Yvonne and Vicky looked at Thea aghast, like she just blasphemed and cursed all their ancestors.
"But food is amazing! I love to eat! I don't care what my body thinks! If I want food, I'll eat!"
The tall woman placed her large arm around Vicky, and while staring daggers at her sister, she said, "Wise words, new Little Sis! We eat for enjoyment! Nutrition is our lowest priority."
Thea raised an eyebrow at her sister, then sighed and shook her head with a small chuckle.
They continued sitting in silence for a few minutes, basking in the late May warm sun. The nice breeze felt especially great in Vicky's sweaty clothes.
After an hour's break, they all got up and began walking towards the underground passage to the training hall.
"Hey, Vicky. Where's that auburn-haired girl who always followed you around in school? I thought she would accompany you even to my teaching sessions, but she never came!"
Thea asked, while Vicky just shrugged and smiled at the ground.
"Lydia's also training! She wants to become a Transcended as soon as possible! Astrid and Kim taught her how to fight before they left for the expedition, and now that they returned, her training continues!"
"Huh, really? So that's why she beat me without much effort…" Mumbled Thea to herself.
She remembered her last school day, when she beat up the Princess. Back then, Lydia effortlessly took her down… Well, it wasn't like she even tried to resist!
"You know, if you want to join them, I'm sure they would happily teach you too! Lydia is only an Ascended, so fighting against Transcended must be awful… I'm sure she could use a training partner on her Rank!"
Thea, still preoccupied with her thoughts, just absentmindedly nodded at Vicky's words, without actually processing them.
Only Yvonne placed her long arm around her little sister did Thea react. She looked up at the tall woman with confusion and scrunched eyebrows, clearly showcasing her annoyance.
"Then it's settled, Little Sis! I'll talk to Astrid! She always loves to teach and beat up people!… Anyway, I'm sure you'll be fine!"
The younger sister's eyes gradually widened as she recalled Vicky's offer and her accidental agreement.
Her eyes widened in terror, and she opened her mouth to refuse the offer. However, before words could've left her mouth, she realized how beneficial such training could be.
While attending school, she began slacking off in her physical training. With the approaching war, she needed to get back into her best possible shape…
It would be perfect if two of the best fighters within the Angelic Order taught her! She could even improve, becoming more powerful than ever!
A small glint appeared in Thea's eyes as her greed for knowledge and power grew. She didn't say anything else, letting both Vicky and Yvonne believe she actually paid attention to them.
They soon arrived back at the gym. Thea went back to her bench, while Vicky and Yvonne walked back onto the metal mat.
The maids cleaned off all the blood and sweat while they ate. However, the mat's cleanliness didn't last long, as the fighting began!
It seemed Vicky didn't forget her progression during their break. She kept up with Yvonne's fists and continued improving.
Thea watched her improvement with amazement and deep concentration.
Her clumsiness from the morning was almost fully gone. Everyone of Vicky's movements had thought behind them.
She didn't just swing her sword, hoping to hit Yvonne. The practice blade carried precision and cunning intent behind each slash.
Each movement became more refined. Her firm steps provided enough power to match Yvonne's brutality.
As the hours passed, their exchanges lengthened. Initially, their fights lasted about three seconds, since they only exchanged a few dozen moves.
They also constantly had to reset, since either Vicky landed a blow on Yvonne, or she got knocked into the metal mat.
Then gradually, their session grew longer. Even Thea hardly noticed it at first. However, when they fought for nearly four seconds, it became obvious.
Strangely, Vicky wasn't the only one getting better. As her ability to fight grew, Yvonne's hand-to-hand combat also increased. This meant their fights remained mostly the same, except both moved much faster and with greater precision.
The sun was already touching the horizon when Luzia came down to check on the Princess's training. Nobody noticed her entering through the passage.
Thea stared at the ongoing duel with mouth agape, while Vicky and Yvonne couldn't see anything beyond the training mat's edge.
They were in their own world, where nothing existed except the need to beat their opponent!
Yvonne leaned away from Vicky's sword while trying to stay close. She punched into the Princess's side, sending the small girl flying.
She landed a few meters away, using her off-hand she stabilized herself and sprang back to her feet. With the momentum, she thrust her blade forward faster than anyone could've tracked.
The tall woman's reflexes kicked in, barely avoiding the blunted weapon. However, Vicky never intended for the fast stab to do any real harm. Its only job was to halt Yvonne's approach.
Her actual attack came in the form of a dozen well-placed slashes and thrusts.
The Princess aimed at her neck, then just as her teacher leaned away, she pulled her arm back and stabbed towards the torso.
Yvonne took one step back, so only the tip of Vicky's blade caught her stomach. She winced at the sudden pain, but didn't let her movements slow.
Vicky chuckled at her teacher's expression and pressed forward.
Her blade cut at Yvonne's midsection. Reflexively, she leaned away from the blade, giving the small girl time to jump forward and deliver a kick to her head.
The tall woman stumbled a few steps before regaining her stance. Even so, Vicky provided no opportunity to counterattack.
Like a beast let out from her cage, Vicky prowled onward. She stabbed forward once more, and just as expected, Yvonne stepped into her blow instead of evading it.
A grin appeared on Vicky's face, while she whispered to herself… "Got you!"
Yvonne's left hand caught Vicky's sword arm, while her other tried delivering a clean right hook.
Suddenly, Vicky let go of her sword, then crouched down, dodging Yvonne's fist. With her leg, she swept out her teacher's own.
The tall woman began to fall, but her right arm stayed firmly on Vicky's. That's when the young Princess grabbed the still falling sword's handle with her off-hand.
She hit Yvonne's left wrist as hard as she could, breaking most of her bones. As pain assaulted her teacher's mind, she lost her grip and fell heavily on the metal mat.
Yvonne tried jumping to her feet, but she was too late, and soon Vicky pressed her weapon's tip right to the woman's neck.
Time seemed to stop as both Vicky's white eyes met with Yvonne's metallic gray ones. Both girls breathed heavily, as if they ran a marathon. Sweat covered their bruised, bloodied bodies, but neither cared.
Her teacher's eyes glowed with pride and a bit of surprise, while Vicky's showed clear excitement and uncontainable joy.
As seconds passed, they both burst into exhausted laughter. Vicky moved her sword away and held out her hand.
Yvonne graciously accepted it and let herself get pulled to her feet.
While continuing to chuckle, she hit the young Princess on the back, nearly pushing her to the ground.
"Congratulations, Princess! This is your first actual victory! How does it feel?"
Vicky took one deep breath, sighing away her exhaustion. She then turned towards Yvonne with a wide grin.
"Pretty fucking good! But also kind of painful…" She said while touching her side, which Yvonne hit during their fight. A few of her ribs broke, but they were already healing themselves nicely.
"You're telling me?! Look at my wrist!"
Yvonne's wrist indeed looked much worse than how Vicky felt. A few bone fragments even pierced her skin, letting blood well in the wounds.
"Anyway, that's it for today! Since you improved much faster than I predicted, I will also use a sword tomorrow, so be prepared!… It won't be as easy to beat me!"
Vicky snorted and shook her head after hearing Yvonne's words.
"Easy? You think this was easy?… Actually, don't answer that! I don't want spoilers for tomorrow!"
Even after getting her ass kicked most of the day, Vicky's excitement hadn't wavered. It only grew, as she finally came over an obstacle after countless tries.
While Vicky and Yvonne chatted on the mat; at the sidelines, Thea continued gazing into emptiness with a shocked expression. Luzia stood next to her cross-armed, however her daughter failed to notice her presence.
The older woman stared at her eldest child and the Princess with a satisfied smile.
"Her progress is monstrous, as expected from the Goddess's daughter!" She whispered to herself, causing Thea to yelp in surprise.
Luzia didn't seem to care though. Her eyes stayed solely focused on Vicky's laughing form.
