Chapter 246 – Combat Class Concludes

“If I’m not running away, I’m getting hit. The moment I manage to hold my own, new water balls join in! It’s too cruel!” Today, Vasida had gained a few extra shades of despair.

Mo Lan had pretty much figured it out by now: “Lady Amisha will keep increasing the difficulty based on our abilities. There’s absolutely no way she’ll let us coast through this class comfortably, so everyone should mentally prepare for that.”

The young witches shared her dread: “But it really does hurt!”

“That’s not even the half of it!” Mo Lan thought to herself.

She had discovered today that the pain from the water balls wasn’t constant either.

She had finally managed to endure the pain without crying out, without panicking, responding calmly—only to find that before long, the water balls that had felt like getting punched now seemed to sprout invisible spikes, each hit piercing into her body like an awl, shifting to an entirely different and worse kind of pain.

She endured for a long time, but still couldn’t fully adapt.

Just thinking about being pummeled by these progressively upgraded water balls for an entire month made even her scalp tingle with dread.

If she hadn’t felt that in just these first two sessions, her pain tolerance, combat ability, evasion skills, and dagger proficiency had all improved considerably, she might not have been able to persevere.

Military training back on Earth couldn’t compare to even a ten-thousandth of this.

Setting aside the difficulty of the training itself, at least military training was primarily group-based, with companions at your side. But in combat class, though everyone was on the same training ground, there was no cooperation whatsoever. At most, when you were beaten so badly you wanted to quit, seeing your friends suffering just as miserably provided a small measure of comfort.

Witches rarely huddled together for warmth—you could see it in the Academy’s teaching philosophy.

Witches were naturally kind, especially toward their companions. By all logic, uniting would create a greater force. Yet witches never specifically trained group combat capabilities. What they learned was always how to survive without relying on anyone else.

Independence and freedom were a witch’s lifelong pursuit.

Any effort made toward that end was willingly given.

And precisely because of this, the young witches persevered through combat class—a class that could only be described as torment—simply because it brought them tangible benefits.

From flat ground covered in gravel, to uneven rocky terrain, to complex thickets of small trees—as the number and attack patterns of the water balls changed, so too did the training grounds.

A month’s time was long when measured in suffering, but endured day by day, it passed all the same.

When Lady Amisha announced that combat class had officially concluded, the young witches felt as though they had lived through an entire era. After the cheering subsided, they found they weren’t as happy as they had imagined.

“How strange! There wasn’t a single day I didn’t wish for this class to end sooner, but now that it’s actually over, I don’t feel that happy about it. I even feel a bit… reluctant to let it go?”

Vasida said with a peculiar expression on her face.

Sylph stroked her chin: “Could it be that the water balls beat some affection into us?”

“I definitely don’t want to get hit anymore!” Iris said hastily. “The water balls hit harder and harder. I feel like even if I ended up in a mage’s laboratory from centuries ago, I could endure the torture for quite a while now.”

“The class was brutal, sure, but the results were remarkable! At the very least, everyone’s escape skills are now top-notch, our focus has improved, casting spells while running shouldn’t be a problem anymore, and we can all handle a weapon or two now, right?”

Mo Lan said: “We’ll probably never have another training opportunity this thrilling yet this safe again. Looking back, it’s only natural to feel reluctant.”

“Yes, yes, exactly! It’s not that we fell in love with getting beaten—we fell in love with the feeling of gaining strength!” Vasida finally felt at ease.

She hadn’t been beaten into some strange condition—the feeling of progress was simply too satisfying.

“Combat class may be over, but we can’t neglect this kind of training on our own, or after a while, we’ll regress right back to where we started.” Mo Lan reminded everyone: “Third and fourth years explore the inner zones, and fifth year has the outer zone survival trial—these skills could come in very handy.”

“But without the Headmistress’s water balls, how do we train on our own?” Sylph asked.

“How about we set aside some time each week to spar with each other? Without the water balls, each of us can be a water ball! As for safety, the Guardian Headmistresses are all watching over us! And without using magic, the damage we can cause is limited anyway.” Mo Lan proposed. If the young witches hadn’t mostly yet to study magic in depth, Mo Lan would have even wanted to add magical dueling into the mix.

Training Dummies were just too rigid, after all.

“That sounds fun!”

The young witches hit it off immediately and decided on the spot: every Friday after Magic Q&A class, they would spar for one hour at the training ground to continue practicing combat.

As for the training format, it was primarily designed by Mo Lan, and quite simple—the ultimate goal was to knock every other young witch down.

The first sparring session took place the very day after combat class ended.

The training venue was the Outdoor Training Ground with the forest terrain that everyone was fairly familiar with.

The young witches set their brooms and Wands down at the edge of the training ground, then called out to their Guardian Headmistresses in unison.

“Headmistress, Headmistress! Are you watching?”

“If something goes wrong later, please take me to the infirmary!”

“Headmistress! Unless my life is in danger and I call for help, please don’t intervene!”

“We’re starting in five minutes!”

……

In the Headmistress’s Lounge, twenty-seven Guardian Headmistresses sat together, each with a light screen before them displaying the young witch under their charge.

“These girls are certainly bold—using drawing blood as the elimination marker! Aren’t they afraid of accidentally getting killed?”

“Looking at them now, who would have guessed that just a month ago, a single water ball hit would have them howling?”

“The fact that they can organize training on their own initiative is already quite commendable. Isn’t this exactly what we’re here for?”

“Let them handle minor injuries themselves. We’ll only step in if things get serious—we certainly won’t let them lose their lives!”

……

Though the Headmistresses’ workload had increased, they were more than happy to see this development.

“Train as much as you like! We’ve got your backs!”

With the Guardian Headmistress representative’s declaration, the young witches’ last traces of worry vanished.

One by one, they drew their weapons and slipped into the forest.

One of their greatest gains from this past month was learning how to use terrain to evade and pursue enemies.

Only Mo Lan stood where she was, unmoving, waiting in silence.

By the end of combat class, she had been facing forty water balls on her own—the other young witches were far behind her.

If today’s training session were a hunt, she was the apex predator. No need to hide. She could simply charge straight in.

Five minutes later, training officially began.