Artifacts

With no other choice, Ryan turned to someone else to sharpen his fighting skills.

He found the Spell House's Guard and brought him outside. After Ryan explained what he wanted, the Guard thumped his chest. "Combat training? Easy."

The two took their stances outside the Spell House.

Ryan and the Guard each took a wand. For the sake of training, neither channeled Magic energy into it. They fought with ordinary wands.

Without magic, a wand was just a black stick.

Even so, the Guard warned Ryan, "I'm more skilled in combat than you. That comes from years of practice. Don't be discouraged if you can't beat me."

The Guard was worried about Ryan. He knew how gifted the young Sorcerer was at Magic, but actual combat was another matter. He feared his own hard-earned fighting skills would intimidate Ryan.

He didn't want such a small setback to crush Ryan's spirit.

The Guard didn't want to damage Ryan's confidence. Ryan, meanwhile, was puzzled. Mordo apparently hadn't told anyone about their fight that day.

That meant nobody knew how well Ryan could take a hit. Resigned, he told the Guard, "It's fine. Don't hold back."

With Ryan's permission, the Guard let loose. He didn't have Mordo's Jumping Shoes, so he planted his feet on the ground and swung his wand with fierce precision.

Ryan was surprised. He had no idea where the Guard had trained, but his fighting style was quite different from Mordo's. The wand seemed like an extension of his hand.

This time, though, Ryan had experience fighting an opponent. He activated his Super Brain, which processed the battle unfolding before him with the speed of a supercomputer.

He analyzed and learned from every move the Guard made.

Before long,

The Guard's pupils contracted in shock.

When Ryan had first