Cassian woke up sometime after midnight, feeling unusually well-rested. It was the longest sleep he'd had in months, a result of the exhausting events from the night before. Now feeling refreshed, he glanced over at the side of the bed, only to notice Katherine wasn't there. In fact, she wasn't in the room at all. He let out a sigh of relief.
The fact that she wasn't present meant she hadn't discovered his outrageous behavior from the night before. He was safe for now. Shaking off the lingering anxiety, Cassian quickly checked the system tasks and hurried to clean himself up. When he returned, he found Katherine sitting at the table, calmly reading a book.
As soon as she noticed him coming out of the washroom, she spoke without looking up, "Eat something." She gestured to a plate filled with fruits on the table.
Cassian nodded, feeling a bit awkward. He wanted to greet her but found himself unsure of what to say. Normally, he'd say "good morning," but it was still night, and "good night" felt more like a farewell than a greeting. He stood there for a moment, lost for words, before deciding to sit and eat in silence.
Cassian quietly sat down and began munching on the fruit. He ate quickly, almost too quickly, prompting Katherine to comment without looking up from her book, "I wanted to bring more, but that's all they had. It's well past dinner hours."
"It's fine, my lady. This is more than enough," Cassian replied, offering a polite smile. "Besides, it'll be time for breakfast soon, so I can eat then." After finishing the fruit, he asked for permission to go train. Katherine simply waved her hand, still engrossed in her reading, signaling her approval without saying a word.
With that, Cassian made his way up to the deck. It was quiet, with only a few crew members tending to the ship at such a late hour. Last night, he had been too exhausted to stay on deck and take in the view, but now that he was well-rested, he was eager to appreciate the serene beauty of the night sky.
He strolled over to the railings, feeling the cool breeze and taking a deep breath as he gazed out into the vast expanse of stars above.
Cassian stood by the railing, mesmerized by the sight before him. The ship floated gracefully atop a sea of clouds, bathed in the soft, ethereal glow of moonlight and starlight. The clouds themselves seemed almost magical, their billowy forms shining faintly with a blue hue that gave the scene an otherworldly quality. It was as if they were sailing through a dream.
Every so often, as the ship passed through thinner patches of the clouds, Cassian caught glimpses of the land below. To his surprise, the terrain wasn't as dark as he'd expected. The silver light of the moon illuminated shimmering lakes and winding rivers, their surfaces reflecting the celestial glow. Small villages and distant cities stood out in the landscape.
The villages, though tiny from this height, pulsed with life. Pinpricks of light dotted the darkness, likely from lamps, torches, or fires burning in hearths. Larger cities glowed brighter, like clusters of stars scattered across the ground. Cassian could even make out the faint outlines of roads winding through forests, connecting these distant places.
Cassian leaned against the railing for another ten minutes, lost in thought, before sighing and muttering, "System, show me today's tasks again."
[Daily Training Tasks:
Block 50 Overhead Slashes: 0/50
Deflect 20 Moves: 0/20
Dodge 30 Attacks: 0/30
Dodge 10 Feint Attacks: 0/10
He frowned slightly at the tasks. They were familiar but still a bit daunting. The first time he'd gotten them, it had taken him almost the entire day to complete everything—not because they were impossibly difficult, but because he hadn't fully understood the difference between certain terms. He'd thought everything just meant blocking the attack in some way.
It was only after trial and error that he learned the nuances. Deflecting wasn't just blocking—it was redirecting the attack, changing its course. Parrying, on the other hand, involved deflecting and then following up with a counter-attack. Dodging was straightforward, and feints were tricky, but at least now he understood them better.
The real issue wasn't the training itself—Cassian knew he was improving—but the embarrassment of doing it in the open, where anyone could see him. It wasn't that he was a beginner or worried about his skills. The problem was that the system created a shadow avatar, only visible to him, so from an outsider's perspective, it would just look like he was swinging and dodging thin air.
People would see him jumping around, blocking, and countering… nothing. It made him feel ridiculous.
'Well, it has to be done, so no point worrying about it,' he muttered, shaking off the embarrassment. He stretched to loosen his muscles, preparing himself mentally and physically for the challenge ahead.
"System, make the shadow use all the moves from the daily task while attacking me. Mix them up and keep them coming until I finish," he instructed, steeling his nerves.
[Whenever the trainee is ready, say 'Start shadow training.']
Cassian finished his stretching, took a deep breath, and settled into his stance. With a firm voice, he said, "Start shadow training."
As he spoke, dark fog coalesced from the shadows around him, swiftly forming a shadowy figure that mirrored his own stance and appearance.
The tasks were focused on defense, so the shadow moved at impressive speed—not inhuman, but still quick. The first attack was an overhead slash. Cassian raised his sword in anticipation, but to his surprise, the shadow delivered a powerful kick to his chest instead. The force of the blow made him wince in pain as he clenched his chest, muttering, "fuck, those feints..."
Though Cassian was in pain, anyone observing would only see a person working on his acting skills rather than his swordsmanship.
The shadow paused, not advancing as Cassian took a moment to reassess before resuming his stance. When the shadow attacked again, it began with a slightly tilted overhead slash. This time, Cassian kept a vigilant eye on the shadow's legs as well, raising his sword to block the strike only when he was sure there were no additional tricks.
[1 overhead slash blocked successfully.]
The system's voice echoed in his mind, marking the start of his daily training. Cassian was learning quickly, aided by the relentless shadow sparring partner that showed no mercy in its strikes.
Once again, Cassian failed to dodge a feigned attack as the shadow raised its leg but then slashed down at his shoulder. However, catching the rhythm of the fight, Cassian began to block and dodge the attacks with increasing skill, and occasionally deflected them.
[Overhead slash blocked successfully.]
[Overhead slash blocked successfully.]
[Dodged the attack successfully.]
[Dodged the attack successfully.]
[Deflected the attack successfully.]
As he settled into the rhythm, Cassian found himself blocking and dodging with growing ease, managing to parry one of the shadow's attacks. When he landed a counter-strike, he couldn't help but smirk as he watched the shadow dissipate like liquid smoke.
The shadow seemed enraged by Cassian's success, its speed increasing and its movements becoming more erratic. The attack pattern shifted from straightforward overhead slashes to more complex maneuvers, including Zornhaws and Underhaws. The Zornhaw was an overhead slash at a precise 45-degree angle, while the Underhaw came from below, slashing upward.
These new attacks were trickier to block, though dodging them remained somewhat manageable. If executed correctly, they could deliver either a devastating blow to a sensitive area or a painful cut to the shoulder. Cassian was fortunate to only receive a searing blow to his shoulder, which left him wincing in pain.
Enduring the pain, Cassian pressed on, knowing that this amount of discomfort was preferable to losing a limb or his life. Despite the pain, he was now halfway through his training tasks, and it had only been about fifteen minutes since he began.
The session seemed to be wrapping up quickly, with the shadow increasing its speed and incorporating more feints into its attacks. Cassian managed to block some and dodge others without taking any direct hits. He handled the other attacks without mistakes until he faced a simple overhead slash.
A sudden voice broke his concentration. "My friend, what are you doing? Are you training for some kind of play?" The distraction made him look toward the voice, and before he could identify its owner, he realized his mistake. The single word 'shit' echoed in his mind just before a sharp blow to the head sent him crashing to the deck.