SSS Awakening: I Can Class Change at will

Sierra continued.

"Second. Environmental interaction. Every environment reacts to mana releases in specific ways. A dry field carries fire farther than a humid one.

Water conducts lightning more than other things. You have to know the environment before you engage in it. In the Second Sanctuary, this is critical. Beasts can feel mana signatures from significant distances. If you don’t read the environment before you fight, you’re fighting blind."

She gestured across the training range.

"For example. My range here is calibrated specifically for archery. The wind currents have been tuned to be predictable at every distance. That’s why all arrows travel cleanly. In the Second Sanctuary wilderness, wind could be erratic. You’ll need to compensate constantly."

She glanced at Selene.

"For mages, environmental interaction matters even more. Choose your engagement locations based on your preferred element. When possible, you would want your enemy to be in your terrain of choice."

Selene’s eyes were shining. Sierra was offering the wisdom that only came from experience. Whilst some of that knowledge she had known about, it was still good to be reminded of its importance.

"Third. Timing beats power in most scenarios. Of course, the power differential needs to be reasonable. No matter how much you tried, you could never beat an Ascender as a Surpasser or Evolver. The power differential is too big to bridge."

"You will encounter enemies stronger than you throughout your career. All three of you will. That’s just how progression works. There are always going to be fighters above you. The question is whether you can beat them anyway. The answer, most of the time, is timing. A well-timed strike from a weaker fighter lands harder than a poorly-timed strike from a stronger one. Because damage is a function of momentum, and momentum is a function of when the strike arrives relative to the target’s ability to defend."

She lifted her bow.

"Watch."

She nocked an arrow, drew, and released. The arrow flew at moderate speed toward a moving target on the automated track. The target was moving faster than the arrow. The arrow should have missed by a wide margin, striking behind the target’s trajectory.

But it didn’t miss.

Sierra had released at the specific moment the target’s automated track was going to change direction. The target moved into the arrow’s path a fraction of a second after the release, and the arrow struck the exact center of the target as it passed through the intersection point.

She lowered her bow.

"I didn’t out-speed the target. I didn’t out-power its evasion. I read the movement pattern and released into the space it was about to occupy. That’s timing. It works on humans and it most definitely works on beasts. Timing is the great equalizer in combat."

Moon nodded slowly, this was something he incorporated in his own fighting style. But it was still good to let Selene and Yara learn these things. During a fight to the death, sometimes, these core principles are easy to forget, it was always good to be reminded of their importance.

"Fourth. Focus on minimizing the cost per outcome. If you achieve the same outcome with less mana or stamina, you can sustain longer engagements. Learn to be efficient before you learn to be powerful."

She walked to the equipment rack and picked up a normal arrow.

"For archers, this means learning to hit critical points on your targets. A shot to the throat drops most beasts in one arrow. A shot to the center of mass takes multiple. The single-arrow drop costs the same mana as the multiple-arrow drop, but you conserve arrows, time, and energy. Learn where every creature you might fight has its weak points. Study beast physiology. It’s the least glamorous kind of training and the most valuable."

"Fifth. Trust your team. You already have that with each other. I can see it. Don’t waste it."

The three of them were quiet.

Sierra let the silence hold for a moment.

Then she smiled.

"Alright. Enough philosophy. Back to shooting. Yara, come up next. Moon, take a break and watch. Sometimes learning by watching is better than learning by doing, especially when someone else is executing something you haven’t seen from that angle before."

The three of them nodded and moved into position.

The training continued.

By the end of the session, Moon had learned more core principles about archery than he had expected to absorb in a single day. Sierra covered many concepts which Moon and Yara absorbed the way a sponge would absorb water.

After the training block ended, Sierra was kind enough to invite them for lunch.

The meal was luxurious. Multiple courses, prepared by Sierra’s personal chefs, featuring rare meat and delicacies imported from across the kingdom. She was a gracious and hospitable host. Selene and Yara relaxed visibly under her care.

After lunch, Sierra continued teaching them.

Selene, who had come only to keep her friends company, ended up benefiting more than she had expected. By the end of the afternoon, her notebook was full of principles she wanted to learn.

As the sky began to darken outside the range, Sierra finally set her bow aside.

"Alright. That’s a full day. You three did well."

The session was officially over.

She turned to Yara.

Her expression softened.

"Do you want to be my disciple?"

Yara’s eyes widened.

Her mouth opened, then closed, then opened again.

Since arriving on Earth, she had been treated like a lesser being by nearly everyone outside her small circle. A monster. A slave. Only Moon and Selene had loved her without hesitation, and their love had slowly rebuilt the sense of worth she had lost.

Now an Ascender, one of the most powerful humans alive, was asking her to be their disciple.

Her eyes filled with tears before she could stop them.

"I... I would love to, teacher."

Sierra chuckled softly at her reaction and stepped forward to pull her into a warm hug.

Moon and Selene watched the moment with open eyes and big smiles.

’Perfect.’ Moon thought.

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