Sparring Partner

POV: Rai Shinsei

After Rylie explained her absurd requirement in order for me to pass her exam, I left the classroom with Aria, who decided to accompany me as we left the academy and headed towards the food court.

"Are you alright, Rai?" Aria asked with concern.

"I'm fine. Is there something wrong?" I asked, confused.

"You seem to be down, that's all." Aria answered as as she chose an açai bowl shop for us to eat at, prompting me to follow her as the moment we entered inside, Aria's expression seemed to brighten as she began scouring over every option while the interior piqued my interest as it had a colorful abstract splash art across every wall.

"I wouldn't necessarily say that I'm down. I'm more frustrated with myself than anything as I realized today how weak I truly am." I replied nonchalantly.

"Weak? What are you talking about?" Aria questioned incredulously as she began ordering our food, chatting about frivolous matters with a female employee amidst her order as I stared at the back of her head with dull eyes.

She didn't even ask what I wanted…

Despite the unreasonable prices of the açai bowls, Aria bought our food without any hesitation as I glanced at her credit card, which was an obsidian black hue with a golden frame.

She's a noble from the Akari family and the esteemed granddaughter of Joseph himself.

I guess it's no surprise that she's loaded.

"Back to your ludicrous statement, what in the world are you talking about?" Aria questioned once more as we sat down across from each other at a booth furthest away from the few students who also chose to eat inside.

"As I said before, I'm frustrated with myself because I didn't realize how weak I am." I answered as I took my first bite of my açai bowl and to my surprise, it was quite good until I noticed Aria staring at me in utter bafflement, ruining my delight as I sighed from anticipating a long, yet unnecessary rebuttal from Aria.

Here we go.

"You're not weak, Rai. In fact, you're strong, so why do you believe you're weak? Is it because you were unable to conceal your lightning? Do you understand that you are a first-year who is not only capable of concealing their Aspectual Force, but you're also capable of manipulating your own Aura? In terms of Aura Manipulation, you're already ahead of every first-year within this academy and in terms of Aspectual Force Manipulation, you're ahead of most second-year students, so why are you being so hard on yourself?" Aria questioned as she took her first bite of her açai bowl, which uplifted her disappointment as she smiled joyfully.

While all of that is true, it's far from enough.

If you were aware of my ambition, Aria, then you would understand my frustration.

In order to fulfill my ambition, I have to surpass your own grandfather in terms of power and yet, I can't even comprehend something as simple as concealing my own lightning.

Maybe if I was a genius like Arthur or Ryan-

Snapping me out of my deep thought was none other than Aria, who flicked a raspberry into my forehead as I caught it before it fell while my startled reaction caused her to stifle a giggle.

"What was that for?" I asked, waiting for Aria to finish chewing in order to hear her answer.

"You were spacing out after my question, so I wanted to make sure-"

"I understand, but you shouldn't waste food on something as trivial as that." I replied after flicking the raspberry into her mouth amidst her sentence, causing her to accidentally swallow it as she went on a minor, yet quiet tantrum—fussing at me about germs as I felt a smile grow along my face from her agitation.

"Have you decided on who your sparring partner will be?" I asked, changing the topic as Aria gave me a glance of vexation before indulging into a bite of her açai bowl.

"You're going to be my partner." Aria replied casually.

"Huh?" I uttered in confusion.

"Originally, my partner was going to be Sarah, but one of her friends already asked her, so I decided that you're going to be my partner as after witnessing your flawless display of Aura Manipulation, there's no better partner to learn from than you, right?" Aria asked as I sighed.

"Aria, surely there is a better partner for you, right? I understand that I'm capable of teaching you Aura Manipulation, but as for sparring, I prefer not to put my hands on you as I don't want to accidentally hurt you." I replied as my response seemed to irritate Aria.

I guess I did come off as arrogant, but it's the truth.

In order for me to fulfill Rylie's requirement, my ideal sparring partner would be Arthur as I could go all out without having to worry about his safety.

Aria may be strong, but there's a clear difference in our strength.

Even with our Aspects, there's no benefit in sparring with her as there's nothing for me to gain, but more importantly…

She's the last person I ever want to fight.

"How incapable do you think I am? You may be stronger than me, but I was trained in hand-to-hand combat since I was a kid, not to mention, I also have noble blood running through my veins. I can assure you that there is no need for you to be concerned for my safety and besides, I wouldn't underestimate me as I believe that my aptitude for hand-to-hand combat will surprise you." Aria asserted with a proud smile as her confidence in her own abilities aroused my curiosity.

I'm glad she's confident, but I have no intention of having her as my sparring partner, so in order to resolve this…

"Alright then, Aria. Let's make a deal." I proposed as Aria furrowed her eyebrows.

"This evening at the evaluation facility, if you can land a single attack on me within three hours, I'll be your sparring partner for the month and if you're unable to do so, then you're on your own. Do you accept my terms?" I asked with a nonchalant smile as I extended my arm towards her in the gesture of a handshake, prompting her to accept it immediately as my arrogant proposal seemed to provoke her pride.

"You're going to seriously regret underestimating me, Rai." Aria said with a determined smile.

I'll make her face reality.

~ 

POV: Aria Akari

Later on that day, I decided to spar with Rai in the evening as he chose the evaluation facility for our sparring ground.

Hand-to-hand combat was always one of my strong suits, despite being a last resort in case I reached my Exhaust Limit as my Aspectual Power overshadowed my hand-to-hand combat skills, so I was fairly confident in my spar against Rai, despite witnessing his power first-hand as I was trained by my very own father, Apollo Akari, who was known for his prowess in hand-to-hand combat.

Yet, I laid on the ground of the evaluation facility, enervated as I bathed in the shimmering moonlight while gazing at the numerous stars that brimmed with luminosity within the vast night sky.

You've got to be kidding me.

Hearing Rai's footsteps approach me, I directed my attention towards him as I found him looking down on me with an amused smile, but despite how much I was annoyed by his nonchalant attitude, I was met with a cold reality as a single glance at his face destroyed my confidence.

I knew he was strong, but not to this extent.

Within the one hour of sparring against him…

Rai didn't even break a sweat.