Before the Third Trial

With the final planned duel completed, the three teams gathered once more to discuss the results.

Since the main purpose of this match was for Hannah to experience Aurora's unique magic combination, the post-match strategy discussion remained fairly straightforward, focusing primarily on countering unfamiliar opponents.

"When facing someone new, I tend to focus more on my own abilities and magic," Jace explained. "There's only so much you can predict about an opponent you've never fought before."

Harper jumped in. "And beyond that, if you predict wrong, like thinking your opponent is a long range fighter like Jace, only to realize they're a speed type like Lyra or Vincent, you could end up getting speed blitzed."

"So should we avoid trying to predict our opponents altogether?" someone from Christian's team asked.

Jace shook his head. "Predicting your opponent isn't bad. The problem is when you overcommit to that prediction."

"Exactly," Harper agreed. "The key is knowing when to trust your read on an opponent and when to abandon it entirely."

Hannah crossed her arms. "So, basically, you don't want to put all your faith into a single plan before seeing how the fight actually plays out."

Jace nodded. "Yeah. It's fine to have an idea of what you think they'll do, but you need to be flexible. React, adapt, and don't get tunnel vision."

Aurora, who had been quietly listening, finally chimed in. "There's also a difference between gathering general information and relying too much on it. I knew Hannah was a well rounded duelist, but that didn't mean I went in expecting her to use any one particular strategy. I just prepared for adaptability."

Lyra tilted her head. "But isn't it useful to prepare countermeasures? Like, if you know someone prefers a certain style, shouldn't you try to shut it down?"

"It depends," Harper said. "If you know for sure they're going to rely on something, then yeah, countering it can be a good strategy. But the problem is, most strong duelists have backups. If you put all your effort into shutting down Plan A, you might just walk right into Plan B."

Aurora nodded. "And that's the point, reacting in the moment is more important than going in with a rigid plan."

One of Christian's teammates frowned. "That sounds… difficult."

Jace laughed. "Welcome to dueling."

Harper grinned. "Trust me, it's a lot more fun once you get used to it. Fighting a predictable opponent is kinda boring."

"That's only because you two are battle junkies," Ethan muttered, shaking his head.

Jace and Harper exchanged looks before shrugging simultaneously. "Not denying it," Jace said with a grin.

The conversation continued, moving into personal experiences and strategies for handling unknown variables. It was clear that the discussion wasn't just useful for Christian's team but for everyone involved. The more perspectives they heard, the more they all grew as duelists.

As the three teams wrapped up their discussion, they began to split off, each returning to their own training regimens. Team Aurora, as expected, headed toward their usual late-night training session.

Given that the third contest was scheduled for tomorrow, they decided to keep things relatively light. Pushing too hard right before an event was more likely to be a setback than a benefit.

For Jace, this was especially true. Not only did he still need to figure out how to regain that strange energy he had tapped into during his duel with Harper, but he had also already endured an intense battle earlier in the day.

Fortunately, they had already covered most of the topics they wanted to discuss beforehand, so there was little left to go over during training.

Once they wrapped up their session, they headed back toward their dorm, ready to rest before the challenge ahead.

Jace entered his room, already looking forward to a well earned break. Instead of planning his next steps or pushing his limits like usual, he let himself unwind. A rare moment of relaxation.

Lying down, he let his exhaustion take over and quickly drifted into sleep.

The next morning, Jace woke feeling refreshed. He went through his usual routine before heading to the arena, where he unexpectedly ran into Aurora along the way.

After greeting each other, Jace smirked. "What are the odds your sister's team is in the first contest again?"

Aurora didn't even hesitate. "It's not even a question at this point. If they were willing to put her team first for two contests, they're definitely willing to do it for three."

Jace laughed. "You're not wrong."

They made their way to the waiting area to check the schedule. A quick scan of the match list revealed that their team was set for the fourth round of the day.

"Nice," Jace said, pumping his fist. "I prefer being earlier in the day."

Aurora nodded in agreement. "Yeah, not having to sit around and wait until the end of the day helps keep my energy up."

"Agreed." Jace nudged her playfully with his elbow. "Now I just have to wait for you to figure out what the other challenges are."

Aurora shot him a side-eye glance. "Listen, I have a plan. At least one that should work."

Jace grinned. "Don't worry, we trust you, Captain." He gave her a thumbs up.

"Thanks," she chuckled.

Jace settled into their seating area, mentally preparing for their match. He doubted he'd be in the first couple of rounds, but just in case, he'd be ready.