I sat at the edge of the floating island with a smile on my face. Nearby, each of my family was working hard in their own way. After our talk the day before, my dad and Charly had doubled down on the massive series of glyphs they were carving into the floating rock. They did not rest as they continuously etched their designs into the stone, sweating despite the brisk air. The only time the two stopped working was the meals my mom required us to eat together. Even then, my dad did not truly rest. Instead, he used the time to practice his new domain. He had not yet succeeded in condensing his domain into armor but he was making progress in shrinking it down a little more with each attempt.

Not far from where my dad and Charly were working, my mom and Donte were also using every moment available to increase their strength. The Sword Saint Sigmund spared with the two of them constantly. Even when it was two against one, Sigmund was able to easily defeat the two. He even had time to talk while doing so, pointing out each of the flaws in their movements and demonstrating how to correct them.

Donte especially was growing at a frightening pace. The side effect of his talent let him go days without sleeping and boundless stamina. I knew from my connection with Sigmund that the boy spent the entire night while everyone else was sleeping to get pointers from the master swordsman. He never took a break, constantly pushing his body to its limit. He kept training until he collapsed, unable to move anymore.

I could not help but feel proud seeing how far each of them had come in the short time since we left that little village at the edge of the Novus kingdom. Seeing them work so hard inspired me to do the same. With some effort, I was beginning to stabilize my domain. It was still small, even smaller than my dad’s but I still considered it an accomplishment. With the strength of my body and the constant drain on my flames required to prevent my internal injuries from flaring up again, any normal person would have never been able to create a domain at all. It was only thanks to my familiarity and skill with the process that I was able to do so earlier than other people.

Being able to use a domain allowed me to further study the blue fire and learn how to better manipulate it. This made it possible for me to create glyphs using the two flames much quicker and opened up new possibilities for using them as more than just controlled explosions.

I was practicing with one such glyph right now. The golden flames ignited in front of me to form a semi-circle that floated in the air. While it was not very useful against physical weapons, this semi-circle would be able to act as a shield against some talents. It was just one of many experiments I began in an effort to find a defense against Sebastion’s innate talent as well as anything I might face in the future. Using different combinations of the glyph I was beginning to understand how to change the size and thickness of the shield in a single motion. It would take time before I could mainipulate it as freely as I wanted but it was a good start.

While practicing with the shield, I watched as my mom and Donte tried and failed to get even a single hit on Sigmund. Donte lunged at Sigmund’s throat with his wooden sword but before it could even get close, Sigmund’s own wooden sword snaked around Donte’s in a blur. Before the boy could even process what had happened, his weapon clattered to the ground.

Sigmund barely even looked as he parried two of my mom’s thrusts while speaking to Donte. “Do not always grip your weapon with all your might. It leaves your attacks rigid and easy to predict. You must keep your movements fluid, shifting between hard and soft, relaxed and firm.”

Donte nodded solemnly as he ran over to retrieve his weapon. As he did so, he spotted me watching with amusement. “Wren, come help us! With three of us, maybe we can wear him down.”

I dispelled the blade of golden flames. I stood up and stretched my muscles before walking over to one of the extra training blades nearby. “Sure, I can use the exercise. Just do not get all pouty when I get the first hit.”

Sigmund’s eyes seemed to twinkle as I lifted my wooden sword. He was not fighting my control as before but through our connection, I could feel… amusement at my approach. It was an animalistic emotion, like a cat that spotted an unaware bird.

I turned serious as I bent my knees into a readied stance. Sigmund did not say anything as he raised his own weapon. Before I could mentally prepare, Sigmund had already moved. With a single step, he had closed the distance between us and brought his blade down towards my shoulder.

I shifted on the balls of my feet and deflected the strike with surprising ease. Through my connection with the undead swordsman, I instantly realized what he was doing. He had matched his speed and strength to be a hair less than my own. He was toying with me.

Annoyed at the swordsman’s confidence, I danced past two more of his strikes, determined now to hit him squarely in the chest. Unfortunately, while I was able to dodge or parry Sigmund’s strikes, getting a hit of my own was easier said than done. Even with the man lowering himself to my level I could not find any openings. Every strike I made was easily deflected. Even though I knew it was just the man predicting my movements, it felt like every attack was drawn to his blade by a magnetic force.

Barely thirty seconds into the fight, Sigmund attacked from an angle I was not expecting. My foot stumbled as I tried to dodge, causing me to tumble to the ground. before I could recover, Sigmund’s blade was already at my neck.

“I see now where the boy picked up his bad habits,” Sigmund said in a chastising tone that made my face flush red, “You are using advanced footwork to compensate for your small body and lack of reach. Unlike the boy, you understand what you are doing and why. It is surprisingly skillful. I would love to meet the one who taught it to you. The problem is, you are not a swordsman. You do not fight as if you are holding a sword. I would much rather fight you using your preferred weapon.”

“I wish I could,” I mumbled in frustration as I stood up and brushed the dirt off my clothes. “My preferred weapon is a mace, a heavy one. As I am now though, I can’t even lift a mace, let alone swing one.”

I heard Donte snort as he suppressed a laugh. “You swinging around a mace? With those little arms? That would look so funny.”

I glared at Donte in annoyance but Sigmund just nodded knowingly. “I understand your problem. In my life, my body constantly withered away. I became weaker and weaker until I could not even hold a blade anymore. However, I never stopped practicing. I adapted. When I could no longer hold steel, the wind became my blade. When my body could no longer stand, my domain became my legs.” Sigmund paused as he looked at me seriously. “Now, it is your turn to adapt. You cannot use a mace but that does not mean you should use a weapon you do not feel comfortable with. You are not a swordsman. Pretending to be one only limits your strength.”

I fell silent as I considered Sigmund’s words. He was right. I had never cared much for swords. I had started practicing it more since my rebirth because it was the best option available to me at the time but was it still that way?

The dagger I always used served me well but I had never been skilled with using it in battle. The short reach of the dagger mixed with my own diminutive size meant that I always had to get right next to the enemy to attack it. With the massive bulk of some Demonkin, I just could not fight as freely as I would like. I needed to find a fighting style that suited me better.

Spending several minutes in silent contemplation, I considered my options. I could not swing a heavy weapon. Anything too short range would be no better than the dagger. I wanted something more flexible than that.

I remembered the shield of fire I had been playing with before and an idea struck me. However, to make it work I would need my dad’s help. Excited, I ran over and explained my idea.

A few hours of experimenting later, a glyph floated in front of me. It was the fruit of my dad’s tireless labor and Charly's book smarts brought together. It took them a while to create a design according to my specifications but they had managed it.

When the glyph formed, it created a saber of golden flames in my hand. The glyph itself acted as the hilt and with a thought, I could manipulate it to change the shape of the blade. Almost instantly, the blade of flames could lengthen into a spear or coil into a whip. Allowing it to strike at an enemy in unpredictable ways.

The idea behind the glyph was based on an insidious weapon of my teacher’s own design as well as the favorite technique of the Void Calamity when he fought seriously. It was a fighting style I was intimately familiar with. Most importantly, while sustaining the glyph to maintain the weapon did drain energy, it was not nearly as costly as creating multiple explosions. With the upcoming war likely to involve thousands of Demonkin, or more if Envy succeeded in entering the realm, I needed a way to fight the horde without exhausting myself instantly. With this new weapon, I would be able to fight from whatever distance I felt was best for the situation, adapting to whatever the Demons threw at me.

Delighted at the success of my dad’s creation, I familiarized myself with the different shapes I could turn my new weapon into, shifting the blade into a sickle and then a trident. There was no weight behind the weapon but with the extreme heat of the golden flame, it was not needed. I could twist and bend the flames however I pleased. The weapon struck as if it were a living serpent.

My delight was short-lived though when Svend stepped onto our island with a solemn expression. “My spies just sent a report. News of your resurrection has reached the Novus kingdom. King Sebastion has disappeared from his palace. None of the servants know where he has gone but I do not think we need to guess.”

The blade of flames I had been playing with dissipated into smoke as the glyph collapsed. I looked up at the blue sky then closed my eyes. “Looks like your prediction was right… Three more days. We will meet again in three days Sebastion. I will be waiting for you.”