Noelle step-sided to avoid a downward thrust aimed at her stomach, rounding up to slash at the short-haired girl.
Due to the difference in range between sword and spear, she took too long in closing the distance to make her attack effective.
By then, the short-haired girl had pulled her spear back in a spinning arc.
As the weapons met in the middle—Noelle pushing her weapon forward and the spear being pushed upward—it caused the sword swing to go way above the target, missing the girl completely.
"She's going to lose," Peter muttered. It was pretty clear to everyone.
The spear wielder was controlling the flow of battle. He was proven correct immediately.
When the spear pushed Noelle's sword upwards, it caused her slash to go way beyond the intended range.
She stumbled, trying to pull her sword back while leaning forward, her front completely defenseless with her sword still pointing to one of the moons in the sky.
The short-haired girl didn't miss the opportunity and pointed the tip of her spear at Noelle's neck, stopping only an inch away from the soft flesh.
They both shared a glance before relaxing and distancing themselves.
"Excellent work, Sasha," the instructor clapped once to get their attention.
"You were too impatient to attack, Noelle," he sighed.
"A spear naturally has a greater range than a sword. You should have reduced the distance first, then committed to the attack. Patience is a virtue. Even a single mistake can turn the outcome of the fight," the man said, looking at everyone when he spoke the last two sentences.
Noelle nodded and stepped into the group with Sasha.
"It seems that we have a new addition in our evening sessions," the man said, smirking at Peter.
That caused everyone to finally more or less acknowledge Peter's presence.
He nodded back.
The man was built stealthily. Muscles packed into his body, strikingly so. His tall stature was daunting.
Towering with a height of somewhere close to six feet, he indeed seemed scary. The eye patch that rested over his left eye added to his whole demeanor.
The only thing that gave him away as a man of age were the brilliant streaks of grey in his hair. And his eyes had this wisdom in them that only a seasoned man could have.
"Let's have another spar, shall we?" He looked around before turning back to Peter.
"They all have higher physical stats than you, you will lose too quickly for me to see your strength and weaknesses. Come, boy. I will try to match your stats." He waved at Peter, walking toward the middle, borrowing a sword from one of the kids.
Peter followed the man's example and stood opposite him.
"Let's see how much your father taught you," the man muttered, lazily swinging his sword at Peter.
Peter blocked it, tilted his sword at an angle, and parried it away.
The man borrowed the push Peter exerted in the parry to pull his sword quickly to the center of his chest, tip pointed forward, before performing a thrust.
"Mhm, you should have counterattacked," he reminded.
Peter's eyes were too late to notice it.
He might have been hit by the fast-approaching thrust if it wasn't for his Mana Sense.
He took two steps back to get out of range, his sword coming in a circular swing from below to push the opponent's upward.
He closed the distance, followed the advice, and counterattacked by replicating the move.
A shout escaped him as he aimed at the man's stomach and thrust his sword.
The man grinned, noticing that Peter's entire focus was on him.
Now that his sword was above Peter's head from the parry, and with no obstacle blocking it, he pushed it in a downward swing.
Even though Peter's eyes were fully on him, the swing was noticed immediately by Mana Sense.
He followed the guidance of his Weapons Mastery to turn the attack into a block over his head.
Instead of retreating, he decided to follow the guidance of his skill and kicked at the man.
The man stepped back, causing the attack to go empty.
"How did you notice it?" he asked, resting his sword by his side.
"Mana Sense," Peter replied.
"Hoo… Are you able to apply intent yet?" the man asked, rubbing his goatee.
Peter nodded back. Meditating for the last year had made sure of that.
"How far?" the man enquired.
"Just leveled up my weapon skill to 10 so haven't tried it on the sword, but can do it on the body," Peter lied.
Even though he had just leveled it up today, Mana Manipulation had helped him figure out how to do it on external objects a few months ago.
"Good. Try reinforcing both of them, and if you succeed, we can continue our spar."
Peter nodded, focusing on himself and the sword.
Mana Manipulation and Weapons Mastery guided Peter as he began to circulate his mana throughout his body.
He desired the mana to strengthen him, and a familiar warmth spread through his limbs.
His muscles tightened, bones felt denser, and his senses sharpened. A faint shimmer coated his skin under Mana Sense, evidence of reinforcement taking hold.
Next, he turned his attention to the sword held in his palms. Unlike his body, the weapon didn't naturally absorb mana—it had to be guided.
He exhaled slowly, envisioning it as part of his body, just as Weapons Mastery encouraged.
'The sword is a weapon and so is my body, we are one and the same,' he thought as he channeled his mana along the blade's surface, the mana retaining his influence.
He visualized the energy sinking into the wood, strengthening it from within, sharpening its edge.
The mana responded to his intention, coating the weapon both inside and out.
Once satisfied, Peter glanced at the man standing opposite him. The man's sharp gaze analyzed the weapon, clearly searching for flaws.
He noticed the thin layer of bluish aura flickering over Peter's sword.
"Not bad for a first try. It's not yet stable though," the man muttered, stepping back. He, of course, was using Mana Sense.
"It will do for now though."
... To Be Continued