Raia raises her longsword and deflects his attack without blinking. Raiden smiles and leaps backward as she lunges at him, thrusting her longsword forward to his midsection, her gaze cold and merciless.

Raiden dodges her cold-blooded attack with a pounding heart.

Damn! She's really scary. Was she really going to stab me if I happen to fail that escape?

Raia quickly shifts her position and swings her sword left, taking advantage of his momentary shock - but Raiden jumps, terrified of being stabbed or even cut in half. He pushes himself against the wall to gain momentum.

The sound of blades clanging fills the air as Raiden and Raia erupt into a full-fledged sword battle, sparks flying everywhere as their swords collide in midair.

Raia's exceptional swordsmanship demonstrates her two years of training under Apostle Simon. She can deflect each of Raiden's blows with ease and without blinking, and she would never hesitate to launch an attack whenever the opportunity arose. Raiden, on the other hand, has no intention of losing. His three days of training with Nathan paid off. Nathan is undoubtedly faster than her and equally aggressive, so he must know how to deal with her.

She doesn't show hesitation. I should treat her the same way.

Raia advances again. Raiden ducks beneath the gleaming blade, narrowly avoiding his tragedy by a fraction of a second. He rolls forward. Once he regains his footing, he spins and aims a thrust at her back. But Raia immediately turns her body. She alters the trajectory of her sword and parries his attack, her calm expression remains unbroken. Their gazes lock, then she flips her weapon in a reverse grip and slams the pommel into Raiden's side, hitting his ribs. Raiden gasps in pain. Now that she has the upper hand, she swings her foot and kicks him hard.

"Dammit," Raiden groans as he slides down the wall. At the very least, she didn't stab me.

Raiden's eyes widen upon seeing Raia approaching him again. He gathers himself quickly and throws himself to the side as Raia swings her longsword downward.

This fight is dragging on. Let me put an end to this right now.

"Raia!" Raiden yells as he rushes toward her.

Raia takes a defensive stance and raises her sword, her listless gaze fixed on him. As he draws closer, Raiden jumps and positions his sword for a downward strike - but it's all a bluff. Raia, as expected, leaps backward to avoid his impending attack.

Raiden grins. "Cypress!"

A thorny vine encircles the blade of his sword. He tightens his grip on the hilt and asks his Blessing for more power. Multiple vines spring up from the blade's base and span across the room, wrapping around Raia. He swings his weapon and slams her into the wall using the vines.

Raia lets out a wince, which he tries hard to ignore.

"W-whoa!" Nathan blurts out. His jaw nearly drops to the floor. "You did it, Kara! Damn, that's my apprentice!" He pumps his fist in the air.

Raiden smiles and looks at Raia, who is still entangled in the vines on the wall. She raises her head and meets his eyes. Her face, to his surprise, isn't as cold as it usually is. Instead, she's looking at him with astonishment. Of course, she doesn't expect Raiden to perform a skill he hasn't done before.

Raiden approaches her. "I won," he says, a soft smile clinging to his lips.

His Blessing reverts to the form of an earring. Raia's feet land on the ground with a dull thump as the vines that had encircled her vanish. She stares at him for much too long, causing Raiden to break out in cold sweat. He gulps, expecting to see her gaze turn cold. But it doesn't. And for a moment, he catches a gentleness in her eyes.

His stomach does a somersault as he feels an unexpected warmth tickle his insides. His breath hitches, finding himself stunned, unable to look away. For a fleeting moment, he has the urge to reach out his hand and touch that gentle face of hers. But then Raia blinks, and that look in her eyes vanishes as quickly as it appeared, her face resuming its cold and disinterested expression. Her shoulder brushes against his arm as she walks past him, and her sword vanishes from her grasp and reappears as a necklace.

Raiden blinks. He watches her walk away, a sliver of disappointment on his face. He won't deny that he hoped to hear at least one word from her about his progress. But that's Raia, and he should know better than to expect anything like that from her. However, he can't brush aside his frustration.

I just can't understand her!

But then Raia pauses in the doorway.

"I look forward to working with you," she says in a low, almost gentle voice without a glance and then closes the door after her.

Raiden's eyes widen and his lips part in astonishment. It's not what he expected, but it's still a compliment! Those few words from her are enough to brighten his day. Three days of intense training may be too short, but they are not a total waste. He had previously been training himself to at least master his Blessing, but with Nathan's help, the outcome is far superior.

"Thank you," Raiden whispers, staring at the closed door, hoping that his words reach Raia.

"Damn, Kara! That was incredible!" Nathan exclaims and smacks Raiden's back, breaking the stillness.

"Yeah, that's amazing!" Sunshine praises.

Raiden laughs. "Thanks. I just got lucky though. I doubt she'd be defeated so easily. I believe she lost on purpose."

Nathan squints his eyes and puts a hand to his chin, adopting a thoughtful pose. "Yeah, that's what I'm thinking as well. I think . . . she saw something in you."

Raiden cocks his head. "Saw something?"

"I hate to say it, but I guess I'm going to agree with Nathan this time," Sunshine says. "Raia appears to have seen something in you, such as determination. She could see how adamant you are to improve yourself."

Raiden's lips form a gentle smile as he feels a solemn sense of happiness.

I hope so.

I want to improve so that I can fight alongside her without being a burden.

"But I owe this to you, Nathan," Raiden says, a look of gratitude on his face.

Nathan grins. "Told you I'm the best." He then glares at Sunshine when she snorts.

"Anyway, let's go to the kitchen and get our breakfast," Raiden says, breaking up a fight that was about to break out between the two.

"But I won't deny that I was nervous the entire time, praying inwardly that you'd still be alive after the fight," Nathan states, scratching his temple, and the three of them burst out laughing.