The second year still had combat training. So we found ourselves once more in the training area. Peter was still our teacher.

"Students, this year will be slightly different. All of you have passed the first year exam and are somewhat proficient in the use of weapons. There will still be some weapons training, to ensure you don't forget, but you are mages. Depending on your specialisation you will not face the enemy in close quarters, if things go well. But training with magic has one problem, it can be quite lethal."

Archibald was smirking at that. I guess he was not considering that it could be lethal for him as well.

Peter continued: "We do have some golems, they will help with that. Further, you will face me in duels. I can take a few hits." He smirked. "Then there will be monsters. This year will feature some excursions. As an added bonus, your class has some monsters to fight right here."

He looked towards Nyx and Hatsumi.

"All of you know Nyx." Peter said.

Nyx sat there, preening.

"Hatsumi is a new addition and she is the vampire everyone keeps talking about." Peter added.

Hatsumi gave a small bow.

"You are not allowed to destroy them, not that I think you would manage. First I need to test our vampire's strength though. Hatsumi." Peter nodded at her. She stepped towards him into the fighting area.

"Shall I use a practice weapon?" She inquired.

"What would be your natural choice?" He asked.

Blood flowed from her hands and formed claws.

Peter smirked, then he drew a metal sword. "Splendid!"

Peter was a spellblade. He touched his runes after studying Hatsumi. Then they began. At first there were some probing attacks. Hatsumi seemed to be slightly faster than Peter, she even managed a hit but failed to penetrate his skin. As they kept fighting things changed. I could see our teacher touching his runes at times and his movements changed accordingly. It seemed like he was finding the optimal configuration.

Soon Hatsumi was pushed back. Peter kept pressing her with quick attacks. It became clear that he was the better fighter. Hatsumi failed to draw blood and was not able to use her biggest advantage. The fight ended with Peter's sword at her throat.

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"Good match." He said. Then he took a step back and bowed. She bowed as well.

"Vampires can be tricky to fight. I started with a defensive configuration to protect my skin, but also to fight any blood magic, in case she scored a penetrating hit. Your own magic can fight off a vampire's poison and control. Resisting blood magic can be trained, it is an important skill for a tank. Once I had her measure I changed my runes accordingly and went on the offensive." Peter explained. "So, how would a non spellblade handle that fight?"

Archibald raised his hand.

"Archibald."

"Just burn her. A cone of flame and she will be a crispy corpse." He replied.

Peter nodded. "Not the worst strategy, but risky. Once a vampire is at your throat you have a real problem. And some of them have defensive magic, or are fast enough to evade your cone. So what did Archibald miss?"

I raise my hand.

"Koyuki."

"A shield. The first thing in combat is shielding yourself." I had experienced a few fights and so far my shields had been rather useful. You never knew if there was an archer hiding somewhere as well.

"Exactly, don't ignore defense. A shield is useful. Fire is bad at blocking a physical attack but it would certainly burn a biting vampire. There is also a way to infuse your blood with fire mana temporarily. It helps to fight off blood magic and can be used preemptively. If you have earth or water affinity your shields can be very durable and block those claws. Not every element is great at defense but even a fire mage needs to protect themselves." Peter explained.

"That is what soldiers are for. To keep the enemy from reaching me." Archibald said.

"That is not wrong." Peter admitted. "The job of the regular soldiers is to keep the mages protected. But a vampire is one of the examples where you have to keep the soldiers safe. Vampires can turn people during combat and replenish their powers with their blood. Throwing soldiers at them can make the problem worse, unless the soldiers have the proper gear to deal with the threat. Soldiers can keep something like a horned boar controlled, while you deal with it. They can also hold the line against goblins, orcs,... But they are not the solution for everything."

"I will protect Archibald." Jack said. He had an earth affinity. "Together we could easily take a vampire."

Hatsumi smiled. "I am willing to give that a try."

Peter frowned and looked at them. "No killing. You are confident against their magic, Hatsumi?"

"Yes." She replied.

I was worried. Peter looked at me, in theory I was in charge of my undead. But I would not stop Hatsumi if she wanted to fight, so I gave a nod. Nyx gave me a confident nod. It seemed like she trusted Hatsumi.

Jack and Archibald stepped into the ring. They looked confident. Jack hardened his skin and grabbed a sword and a shield. Archibald stood behind him.

"I will stop the fight if it goes too far. You can surrender at any time." Peter announced.

Hatsumi faced them with her blood claws.

"Begin!" Peter announced.

Hatsumi charged straight at Jack. He readied his shield to stop her. Meanwhile, Archibald readied his fire spell. Then he seemed to realise that his ally blocked his shot.

Hatsumi did not stop, instead she just jumped over Jack with a flip. His eyes widened as he seemed completely unprepared for the move. Archibald panicked and unleashed a cone of flame. Sadly for him, Hatsumi was fast. She sidestepped the fire and used a water shield against the heat.

Jack screamed as his back was lit on fire.

"Stop!" Peter shouted.

I reacted on instinct and conjured some water, then I threw it at Jack.

Archibald looked rather pale, Hatsumi had been really close. Jack's back was red, his uniform burned away. But his hardened skin did prevent any severe burns.

"Thank you for that water, Koyuki. That was quick thinking." Peter praised me. He inspected Jack's wounds. "A bit of salve and this will heal in no time. Good thing you did not wear metal armour. That would have cooked you even worse."

Then Peter looked at the class. "This is why teamwork is important. Archibald should have used fire bolts, not a cone. Jack should have tried to give him a clear line of fire. And Jack expected Hatsumi to just charge at him. That works with a mindless beast but not an intelligent opponent. If you simply brace for an impact your footing is off and you can't quickly react to a jump like that."

"Hatsumi is awesome." Helena commented.

I smiled. "Yes, she is."

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