Raze's group had split up into two halves, in order to continue improving as quickly as possible. People were getting used to the free relaxation period they were in, and were slowly getting accustomed back into the academy life.
They were all still slightly on edge, even the teachers knew this because every time they saw them they would slightly flinch and even head back in the other direction, and the teachers themselves didn't appear to even want to look directly in the faces of those that had survived.
Regardless, the students started to train again, all of them waiting for the next order. Currently in the red headband courtyard, nearly everyone was outside apart from Safa and Raze.
Meanwhile, at the very back of the courtyard next to the outer wall of the academy, both Liam and Simyon were sitting on the floor.
"You know I worry about when Raze is doing his crazy things," Liam commented. "I mean, you remember what happened in the Dark Faction, right?"
"Yes, I do," Simyon replied. "And do you remember who was the one that managed to help her in the end? It was Raze while we were unable to do anything, so she's with the safest person."
"You say that, but you know right now Raze isn't, the same, you know?" Liam replied.
Simyon didn't know how to reply to that; it was obvious to everyone that Raze was still being affected by the scuffle he had with Feebie. They had seen him step outside sometimes, trying an odd move or two.
Although the movements he would do would look sharp and on point, with plenty of gathered power, he could still only perform one movement before getting out of breath.
Raze could do something like the two-step shift, but then his breathing was out of sync for him to perform an adequate sword strike with Qi. Maybe if his opponent just ran right for him, he could perform a single slash, but then what?
"Why do you think he won't let Safa heal him, does that guy get off on pain?" Liam replied.
"Why don't you guys focus on your two's training rather than someone else," Dame annoyingly complained. "I finally thought that I could focus on getting myself stronger, and yet here I am again, looking after you guys."
Although Dame was still figuring out how he could go against the statue away from the eyes of the Academy. His best shot might be to talk to the teacher Gunther; maybe he could use the facilities at the back that led to the mountain.
But to activate the statue, he would also need either Safa or Raze in the first place, so he could kill some time.
"Do you remember what the teachers said to you, to get the full effect of the Qi pill, you need to train hard and drain all of your energy. This is true for both of you, and I want you to focus on your techniques.
"Simyon, your body is strong as a weapon, but it is not a weapon meant for attacking; yours is more like a shield. Liam, your skills are great with using the sword. To put it simply, you are shield and sword.
"Rather than just focusing on expending all of your Qi through useless moves, I want you to do it in ways that will improve yourself. Simyon, I want you to only use Qi to enhance the strength of your body, especially when blocking attacks.
"Do nothing else, and consume the pills; we aren't only aiming for both of you to reach the fifth stage, but to be useful in many ways to Raze and the rest of us! Same to you, Liam, I want you to focus on strength in your Qi, placing all of it in the strike of your weapon.
"The two of you can work together perfectly, Liam, you will do everything in your strength to try and hurt Simyon as much as possible, only using Qi in your weapon, not in your movements or techniques but to make the single strike as powerful as possible, only powering the Qi.
"Then, when you have run out of Qi, absorb the pills; you two can do that right?"
The two of them glanced at each other. They didn't like the idea of working together. Liam and Simyon regularly got into arguments, and on top of that now, Simyon was going to have to let Liam hit him nonstop.
"Haha, hit Simyon as much as I want, of course, I will allow our mighty meat shield to become meatier."
"Man, even your sentences are perverted," Simyon replied back. "And do you really think you could even begin to hurt me, you have no chance, you're someone that just flunked to be here by spying on us, like the pervert you are."
Steam was coming out of Liam's nostrils as he held the wooden sword in his hand tighter.
"Oh, thank you for not making me feel bad about hitting you."
Dame shook his head, but he felt like it was better for the two of them to be energized than to not go into this full force. Just looking around, he could see that Tinson and the others weren't doing so well still.
Even Mada, he was sitting at the staircase that led to the main building. Only Ricktor was the other one that was fully training.
'I don't have time to focus on the others; they will need to figure out how to pull themselves out of the rut that they are in. I should at least go ahead and see Gunther to see if I can use that other space, and then, I'll come back and see how Raze is doing,' Dame thought.
Simyon and Liam got to work, and Dame had gone off to the main academy building. After an hour or so of their training, they both began to absorb the crystals, and in a way, seeing how hard the two were working had somewhat inspired the others as well.
Especially, a particular main disciple.
"Are you really going to let those guys surpass you?" Ricktor asked. "If there is one thing we have, it's the fact that we are main disciples. Could you imagine, a world where no names are stronger than us that have been raised with a golden spoon in our mouth?"
Those words had caused Mada to stand up and grab a wooden sword, getting straight to work, and that's when everyone could see someone else standing by the stairs, it was none other than Raze.
When he had entered the courtyard, everyone's heads turned to him, but they didn't stare, looking away. They were still keeping an eye on him but decided to not make it look so obvious.
When in the center, Raze then went ahead and grabbed a wooden sword, as he did, he approached one of the wooden beams that were made for striking. He picked it up and swung down, forcing it with Qi, hitting it.
As soon as he did, the wheezing had gotten heavier in an instant. It looked as if he almost dropped the wooden sword, but he hadn't done so, he held it, and waited. Slowly Raze counted in his head, and then after 40 seconds, he picked up the sword and struck down again.
After he had struck it two times, he did the same with the two-
step shift, performing one, waiting, and then performing it again. He would alternate between the two, and after an hour, he
had headed back inside.
"It's sad to see, honestly. I can't believe someone who was so strong, who had taken out all of those rabid students, can now only produce so little," Mada commented.
"Is that what you see, a sad sick person?" Ricktor replied with a smile. "Because I was watching carefully, and in my eyes, it looks like a monster is rehealing his wounds, and is coming back even stronger than before."
Mada laughed, but it was one out of pity.
"You and your delusions, what you said makes no sense. He couldn't even beat me right now if he wanted to."
"And why don't you, I thought you hated him?"
"Because, I owe him now, right, we all do. I won't help him if it means death, and besides, it looks like he's been punished enough."
Ricktor was about to continue his training, and as he held the sword in his hand, he had a few last words to say.
"Next time when you watch him, count how much time is in between each strike, then you will start to know how much of a monster that guy is."
