The next day, the students shuffled in, looking suspicious.
"Alright," I said, clapping my hands once. "We're doing practical dueling. No magic. Just your weapons, your footwork, and the three brain cells you share between you."
Felix immediately raised a hand. "Professor, what if our opponent is scary?"
I tilted my head. "You're in a combat academy. The walls are scarier than you."
Mira smirked. "So, can we fight each other, or do we get the pleasure of sparring with the walking corpse again?"
I held a hand over my heart. "Mira, if I had emotions, they'd be hurt."
The training field had been reset with a simple circular platform.
"Step in the ring. First to disarm, knock out, or knock out of bounds wins. Winner gets a snack token. Loser gets mockery."
Leo muttered, "So basically, we lose twice."
"Exactly," I grinned. "Now, who's first? Volunteers or victims?"
Garrick and Wallace stepped up first. It was like watching a gorilla fight a cat with a toolbox.
