"Why didn't the particles do anything master?"

"What were you thinking off when you were injecting magic into the particles?"

"I was thinking of the dragon you made, master."

"Then, of course, it wasn't going to do anything. That's way above your level. Try again, but this time, think of something simple, like a ball."

I listened to master's advice and tried again, but I thought of a shape instead. After a few minutes of concentrating, I opened my eyes and saw that the particles had come together to form a mound of sorts, a long way off of being a ball.

"As you can see, Azrail. This isn't easy. Keep trying until you run out of your mana reserves."

"I understand."

I followed Master Costanzo's order and kept trying to form a ball with the particles. However, each time I tried, I failed. On the last try, I was once again greeted by a mound of blue sand.

"I'm sorry master. I'm not making any progress."

"No. You're mistaken. You are making progress. The mound is more compact than the first mound you made. Don't feel discouraged. Patience is key."

I looked at the mound in front of me again and noticed that it was slightly more compact than the first mound I had created. It was progress all right, but not a lot. Well, beggars can't be choosers, I suppose.

"What should I do now master? I don't have any mana left to give it another try."

"Follow me."

"Yes master."

Master Costanzo brought me outside into the frigid environment.

"Attack me."

"Huh?"

"I said attack me. Attack me as if you want to kill me. Use every trick you know."

"Bu—"

"DO IT!"

Seeing Master Costanzo's serious expression, I knew he wasn't joking around. I proceeded to stabilize my breathing before charging at Master Costanzo.

Master Costanzo is in his senior years, right? He shouldn't be very hurt from this, right? The last thing I want to do is hurt him. Wait. Is that the sky?

I found myself lying atop the snow. Wasn't I charging just then? What am I doing on the ground right now? I proceeded to push myself up but collapsed when I suddenly felt a sharp pain from the right side of my stomach.

"You shouldn't charge at your opponent when there is so much distance between you and them. Once you charge, you're committed to that charge. It's an all-or-nothing move. Anyone experienced, such as myself, will easily exploit that. Plus, you're right side is completely open as you're charging. You need to fix that."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Do you not know what happened?"

"I was charging, and then all of a sudden, I'm laying on the ground."

"You are laying on the ground because I easily knocked you down."

"Really?"

"Really."

"…"

"If you were thinking of going easy on me because of my old age, you've made a big mistake. We're in completely different leagues, and let's make a bet. What do you say?"

"What's the bet?"

"If you manage even to scratch me, I'll award you with something you'll like. If you lose, you must run three laps around the school."

"All I need to do is scratch you?"

"Yes, that's all you need to do."

"I think you're going to regret this, master."

"No. I don't think I will."

"I'm not going to hold back this time master."

"Show me what you've got."

BAM! I was once again pushed back by master.

How the fuck are his attacks so heavy? He's got the figure of a stick. I could even see the outlines of his bones! It doesn't make sense that his punches are lifting me off the ground!

"Are you going to give up now Azrail? You haven't even been able to touch me, let alone scratch me for almost ten minutes now."

I'm sick of master's little quips now. I know he's doing it purposely to irritate me, and I should ignore it, but I can't help but feel annoyed. My pride is at stake here!

"Are you going to come at me or just sit there on your arse?"

I didn't reply to master's question and got back onto my two feet. I quickly approached master again and kicked towards his stomach. As I had expected, master easily dodged my kick. I followed my kick with a tackle to get master onto the ground, but he rolled over my back to avoid it. What kind of fucking move is that, by the way?

"You know, a famous person once said the definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting the results to be different. How about you just give up. You're not going to be able to scratch me anyway.

"Keep talking. You're going to feel really stupid when you lose this bet."

"Hahaha, I like your spirit! C'mon, make this old man eat his words!"

I got close to master and proceeded to punch towards his face. Master was dodging and weaving between my attacks as he slowly stepped backward. I then saw my chance. I dropped low and swept at master's legs. Seemingly having already predicted my move, master rendered my attack useless by simply jumping over it. I wasn't done yet. From my low position, I violently twisted my body and exploded my back leg towards master.

BAM! It made contact! However, I was quickly disappointed afterward to discover that my attack did not inflict any damage and only served to help master create distance.

"Good transition to that kick. I liked it, but if that's all you've got, then we might as well call it a day and head back inside."

How do I win this bet? Master has far more experience than me, and he's faster, stronger, and tougher than I am. He's treating this like it's a picnic. Wait a minute. I could use that to my advantage.

"You done thinking yet?

"Yeah, I'm going to win this bet."

Master Costanzo simply grinned in response.

Like my previous attempts, I once again charged at master and attempted to tackle him.

"Didn't I.. hmm?"

Master's statement was quickly interrupted when I raised from my prone position on the snow while chucking a lot of snow towards master to obstruct his vision.

<Master Costanzo's perspective>

What is Azrail planning here?

From the wall of snow, I saw something quickly approaching my face. Haaaaa, although Azrail had a good idea, I'm afraid it isn't going to cut it. I smiled at the thought of what my disciple's face will look like when he discovers that his attack was useless.

Wait a minute… That's not a fist. That's a snowball! But it was already too late. Crashing through the wall of snow was my disciple pouncing towards me with the eyes of a hunter. I was still in the motion of dodging the snowball. I won't be able to dodge this!

POW! The sound of my disciple's fist finding its mark on my right cheek was deafening. Although there wasn't enough force behind to punch to push me back, I could still feel a slight sting on my cheek. I saw a smile gradually starting to plaster onto the face of my disciple. This doesn't sit well with me. I should return the favor.

My disciple's face immediately morphed when I grabbed onto his face.

"Master?" That was my disciple's last words before I flung him away.

“AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!” *CRASH*

I moved to where my disciple landed.

"You lost kiddo, go run your laps now. That last move was a good move, but there wasn't enough impact behind it."

"But—"

"You know the bet. Go run now."

Azrail eventually complied and started running three laps around the school campus in the freezing temperatures while feeling dissatisfied.

"You can show yourself now."

The space beside me rippled as a figure revealed itself.

"You don't have anymore more important to do, Headmaster Bonner?"

"How could I miss my best friend's first time training a student."

"What did you think of that last move."

"I don't think I could've dodged it either."

"The kid has got some serious knack for fighting."

"It does seem that way. You could also stop hiding that bruise on your face with an illusion now. You can't hide it from me. I've always been better than you when it comes to illusion magic."

"I know. It wasn't meant for your anyways."

"Hahaha. Why don't you just let your disciple enjoy some glory?"

"You would've done the same in my shoes. I've got my pride on the line. I can't be losing against a young cub."

"True."

"…How strong do you think Azrail is going to become in the future."

"With you taking him under your wings like this and his talent in fighting. He's got a shot at becoming a big shot in the future. Except—"

"His vision. I know. They're going to hinder his potential."

"Actually, it might be an opportunity for him."

"What do you mean?"

"We could bring Azrail to him."

"Him? You mean that mad scientist?"

"Yes, that person."

"What is he going to do."

"He'll work his magic. Turn this obstacle into a strength."

"Why would he even help us?"

"He owes me a favor."

"What'd you do for him."

"I got some special materials for him."

"Illegal?"

"Yes."

…

"I've never liked that guy. Something always felt off about him."

"There's not many people you like."

…

"You really think this could work?"

"Maybe. We'll never know if we don't try though."

"I'll trust you then."

"I knew you would."