Yuurei was planning on training with a lot of people within the guild. There was one person he wanted to see succeed. That person was someone who was close friends with him. He had told Renji to go get the dwarf and bring him to the dome. This training area was a perfect place for people to train. He wanted to see how far Brone had gone since the last time they had trained. It would be a perfect thing for them both. The Nephilim had to see how much growth he had from since when Brone had fought him. There were things that he had learned from the fight that he would have to use now.

The berserker was moving around the training dome, and he would attack a few of the dummies. Each of his hits taking out the dummies in front of him in one hit. It was easily done, and he didn’t have to spend a lot of movements in doing this.

Renji had gone all the way to Brone’s room, and he would knock on the door. The Exceed would wait for the dwarf to open the door, so he could explain why he was here.

“Brone, Yuurei told me to come get you. Today is the day you two were going to be training with each other.” He said him as he would move with Brone when he made his way towards the training dome.

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Brone Heavyaxe stood in front of his mirror, inspecting his new tattoo on his right shoulder, the emblem of his new guild, Paradise Dawn. It looked powerful and he was grateful for it, though when the artist offered to remove the Blue Pegasus emblem from his left shoulder, he decline and actually asked for a touch-up instead with specific details. He turned and observed the modified tattoo, the blue color of the Pegasus had intentionally faded and was slightly hidden behind a bouquet of flowers, specifically light blue Forget-me-nots. He smiled, satisfied with the work.

Just as Brone finished donning his armor so he could do a patrol of the guild grounds, a knock came at the door. He was surprised to see Renji, he looked around, but there was no Yuurei. The feline delivered his message and the dwarf shrugged with a smile before following Renji. "I figured this day will come, was just wondering when is all" Much have happened, so there was little to no time to be able to spar with Yuurei again. And despite the power Yuurei had shown against Astarot the dragon, Brone was excited to face the half-elf, though he couldn't deny that he felt a bit of worry and surely a bead of sweat dropped from his brow. The image of the angelic form was frightening as well as awe inspiring, Brone wasn't sure if Yuurei would call upon the power, he knew so little of it, but he well to not question it; this was more than just sparring for fun, this was to test each other, to make sure they were ready for any trouble that may come their way. The two had great responsibility to the guild now that they are core members.

Brone reached the dome, fully armored, fully armed, and fully ready.

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Renji would walk with the dwarf to the dome, and when they got there, he would run to the sideline. He wasn’t here to help Yuurei, but to watch the two go into battle. The Nephilim would see the arrival of a good close friend of his and it seemed like he was ready. This was good because he cracked his knuckles and then finally his neck. Once he was ready, he would look at the dwarf with a serious expression on his face.

“Alright from the top.” He said to Brone.

Yes, he was going to use the ability of his gauntlet from the start. This was something he didn’t do the last time they fought. This time it would be different. Yuurei poured his mana into his gauntlet and in return, he would get power surging through his entire body. He fed his weapon, so his gauntlet granted him more power.

Brone was basically around the entrance of the dome, so he figured he would be the one to close the distance between them. He would get ready and soon enough Yuurei ran straight towards Brone. It had gone from jogging to a full sprint within a few seconds, and he would close the distance between the two of them in two seconds.

He would use his right hand to punch Brone at his armor first. He was going straight for his chest, but he was also paying attention to both axes. He figured if he saw the sign of movement of Brone’s tactic to get hit and attack at the same time, he would jump back five meters to avoid the attack. It would cancel his own attack, but he wanted to be smarter when attacking the dwarf.

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Brone entered the dome and saw Yuurei across the way, ready to start, the gauntlet already equiped, "From the top" the dwarf answered with a smile, seeing that his friend was also looking forward to this exchange as well, so as Yuurei began making his way across the way to him, Brone began to run as well to meet him, his axes both drawn. For this, he needed make sure that every exchange they have needed contact that was worth it. He watched Yuurei's movements as they neared one another, his gauntlet was ready and his fist was clenched.

Once the gap was closed, Yuurei cocked back his gauntlet ready to deliver and punch and Brone was already in the motion, swinging his steel axe with great might, but something unexpected happened; Yuurei jumped back, canceling his own attack to avoid the axe. The steel axe swung, cutting the air between the two, the sound of metal whistling in the air was audible to the corners of the dome. The dwarf took a few steps back, not expecting this, he needed to gather himself. Yuurei had changed up his tactic and now Brone needed to make sure that he wouldn't be thrown off by anything new.

Brone then moved in, knowing that someone was going to move, might as well be him. As he would near the half-elf, he would swing his steel axe diagonally at the light mage, but made sure to position his iron axe at the ready in case there was a counter, and if there was, the iron axe would intercept the gauntlet.

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Yuurei expected that much. When he had attacked his friend, it would seem like Brone had gone straight into it without hesitating. He was ready to take the damage and at the same time attack Yuurei. He couldn’t be too careless as he knew from experience that he hurt. Still, now that he had moved back, it would seem like his friend was doing the same. He watched the dwarf as it seemed like he was thinking about what to do next.

This was good, and he was glad to see that Brone had grown since their last battle and even the battle with Ansem. They continued to get stronger while being by each other side, and it was all that he could ask for. Still, the fight wasn’t over, and it had only begun. He prepared himself, as he could feel that the dwarf was going to go on the offense.

It wouldn’t take long, but Brone would start running towards him. He was a bit slow, but once again he was faster than he was before. Yuurei rushed towards him as well now and he would soon see the attack of his steel axe. It would come from a diagonal motion, and in a way to avoid it he would have to move towards the side of his other axe. That was clever of Brone and it would bring him to have to get be on the side where he might use his other attack to clash with his own weapon.

Yuurei would welcome it as he would dodge the incoming attack from the steel axe and moved to the side of his other axe. The light mage would be quick to punch straight towards Brone’s chest. He would see that Brone’s other axe made its move the moment he would go for the jab. If they clashed, Yuurei’s gauntlet would take damage from Brone’s gauntlet, but Yuurei would shatter his axe and would continue his jab straight towards his armor as well. He was prepared for this, and he was glad that his friend was fully equipped for battle. It was the same thing for Haru as well she was always ready for battle.

Once that exchange would be over, Yuurei move back as he would be ready for Brone to either continue running straight towards him or for the man to gather and then go back on the offense. He could feel it on his right arm, but that attack did hurt his gauntlet, which was not a good sign for him.

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Just as Brone suspected, Yuurei had dodged the steel axe swing and was countering. The dwarf raised his iron axe to deflect the blow, but as the gauntlet hit the blade, the axe shattered on impact, no surprised to him, Yuurei has been showing vast improvement in his abilities and unfortunately, Brone had lost one of his axes so soon, but it was a necessary sacrifice and he needed to take advantage of it now.

As the half elf moved back, Brone tried to follow him by lunging forward, trying to keep their breathing within the same area, shortening the distance as his steel axe was coming in for another another swing, but this time it was a wide horizontal swing, "Don't back up now" the dwarf chuckled, feeling the adrenaline rush. He had no assurance that he would get the upper hand on the half elf, but allowing the taller being any time to gather his wits would be a risk to the dwarf.

After the swing connects or misses, whatever happens, Brone would tumble away to try and gain some form of distance, knowing Yuurei would be able to deal a devasting blow, and he knew well to keep his eyes on him too, for he was able to close the gap of distance within a blink of an eye.

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Yuurei was fighting with the dwarf, and it would seem like the man’s axe would break. It wasn’t just that, which would break. He had aimed for his armor as well. The armor would also break as well and he would also feel damage as he would damage the man’s chest as well. He was strong enough to break through it all in one punch, which meant that his friend needed better equipment. He would feel the pain soon, but it would seem like he was pushing through it. He saw him coming straight for him and the steel axe was coming straight for him.

He had two choices right now. One he could dodge the attack, or two he could go for an attack as well. He was able to take the man’s armor and one of his axes right now. He figured that he would weaken the man, especially after the comment he would say to him. The swing would go to his abdomen as he would feel the wound opening up on his stomach. The axe cut through him and dealt him damage that he couldn’t protect or soften. While this was happening though, Yuurei figured he would put him on the same boat as well.

Yuurei’s right hand was moving straight towards the dwarf’s helmet. If he connected with his attack, the helmet was sure to break. Still, it wasn’t just that, but Brone would also feel the pain from the blow of his attack. He would move back from the blow as he would grab his stomach with his left hand. The blood covered his palm as he chuckled. He thought about Brone needing better equipment, but he also needed equipment, to begin with.

“Seems like you didn’t notice, but your armor isn’t on you either.” He said to Brone.

Yuurei had gotten immensely stronger, and it made those who fought him a bit nervous if they didn’t have the proper stuff to protect them.

The Nephilim would get back into a fighting position as he wasn’t done yet. The blood dripping from his abdomen, but also now on his hand as it would dry up slowly. He wondered what Brone would do next, and he would ready himself. His fight with this guy was different and always so direct. It seemed like that was their way of fighting with each other, and he was fine with it.

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To the dwarf's surprise, the steel axe managed to hit the half-elf's abdomen, a successful hit. As he planned, he would try and tumble away, but Yuurei's speed proved too great and a powerful fist came flying straight at him, slamming into Brone's helmet, cracking it and shattering it completely.

Brone managed to barely tumble away. He struggled to get back on his feet. At first he questioned why he was finding it difficult to gain his footing, then he felt something run down his forehead. He touched it and looked down upon his hand to find blood. As he chuckled, he ruffled his white hair and the remaining shards of his helmet fell away. Though he wasn't surprised about that, what did catch him off guard was what Yuurei said about his armor. Brone looked down and saw the rings of his armor fall away, clattering to the floor and beyond that, there was a pain on his left side. He then realized the punch from earlier had connected, shattering not only the iron axe, but bypassed it to hit the armor and still bypass that to land a blow upon his body, "Damn, ye gotten that fast, huh?" the dwarf laughed.

Though he was smiling and enjoying the fight, the dwarf was all concerned about the next move. Yuurei had just showed that his punching speed could barely be noticed and can shatter two layers of defense. Brone tossed away the handle of the iron axe that was completely gone. Now he held his steel handle in both hands. He stared at Yuurei while standing at the ready, his armor was gone, both the ringmail and the helmet, he was exposed which meant the battle probably wouldn't last long, either Brone dished out everything he could to end it in the end two moves, or he will fall like before before he realized it.

He needed a new factor to play in this fight, his tactics were limited and with Yuurei's speed and knowledge of him, it would be too easy for the taller man to counter him, so Brone acted by kicking one of the shards of his helmet, sending it flying towards Yuurei's head, all the while, the dwarf rushed forward towards him, this time he kept his body low, once he closes the gap, he would swing his axe upward towards the half-elf, from this position, Yuurei would be face the short dwarf who was now crouched lower and with the axe's arc in the way, it would be difficult to strike at the dwarf without getting hit by some part of the axe and even if the Yuurei would wait until the axe finished it's swinging arc, Brone would try to lunge away before the half-elf could let off a hit; was he sure Yuurei wouldn't be able to hit him with this plan? No, but he needed some new strategy the half-elf didn't know about, every time the two exchanged blows, they knew more about one another's fighting tactic.

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Yuurei would wait for Brone to gather himself. He knew that his friend was wondering what was going on and everything was finally catching up to him. He would hear his words and he would laugh with him. The Nephilim had gotten faster since the last time they fought. It wasn’t just that, Yuurei had continued his training ever since those days in the Marchen Mountain past them. He wasn’t going to go through any of that ever again, and he had to make sure that he was truly prepared.

The light mage was ready for the fight to continue. His eyes stared into Brone’s eyes, but he was paying attention to the guy’s movements. It wouldn’t take long, but he would start by kicking something straight toward his face. He didn’t expect that from Brone, which caught him off guard as the piece of one of his equipment was coming straight for him. He would dodge the attack as he moved his head out of the way, but the sight of Brone was gone. When he got back to his fighting position, he would see that Brone was no longer where he was standing.

It confused Yuurei for a second and when he looked down, he would see Brone was in front of him. His eyes widen as he didn’t think Brone would do that, but a smile would grow on his face. He would feel the blade cut him from below and upward. It would start from his stomach, and it would cut him right up to his chest. He would stumble back, and he would see that Brone would lunge away from him. That was nice to see. Their distance wasn’t too far from each other. It was about thirteen meters from each other, and he was going to return the favor.

While Yuurei was in pain, and he wanted to scream and hold onto his wound he wouldn’t. Instead, he would dash straight towards Brone. His right hand was already extended as he closed the gap between the two of them before Brone could get his bearing. He wasn’t sure if his friend could dodge the attack, but he was moving quickly and he knew that he wouldn’t be able to attack before actually touching the ground.

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The axe's blade soared upward, slicing through Yuurei's shirt and drawing more blood, Brone accepted this and made the attempt to lunge away, however Yuurei was quick to retaliate, even a moment's notice, the half-elf was already catching up the dwarf and before Brone could touch the ground, his fist was flying towards him. For a quick moment, Brone though about blocking the attack with his steel axe, but he remembered a single punch from Yuurei was able to shatter both the axe and his armor while still dealing a blow to him and for him, he wasn't as proficient with hand-to-hand combat as Yuurei was, so his only form of offense came from his remaining weapon, so he had no choice but to take the hit.

The punch landed and the world began to spin and blur as Brone was sent flying, pain surged through him and for a moment he was mentally gone while his body tumbled away. After some distance, the dwarf regained his consciousness and used the blade of the axe to slow his tumbling. He used the axe as a hook against the ground until he finally came to a halt. He wanted to say something clever, but the amount of pain he was in threw off his focus. His eyes blurred slightly and as he began to rise onto his feet, his legs rattled, making it difficult for the dwarf to get back onto his feet. This was similar to the situation when they had fought a red dragon and the dwarf was unfortunate enough to be blasted by a breath of fire at point-blank range; the searing heat rattled his nerves with pain to the point what kept him from blacking out was his fury and anger. Now Brone found himself forcing his legs to settled, gripping his knee tightly with his free hand while he tried to stand up.

He wanted to comment on something, but this moment proved to be the possible last exchange for the both of them; if the dwarf didn't come up with a descent tactic for their next clash, he was sure to be done for. Eventually, he was standing back up on both feet, wielding his mighty axe, staring at Yuurei, thinking about what could he possibly do for the next bout. The half-elf had both his hands and his magical gauntlet while the dwarf lost his line of defense and one of his axes, albeit the weaker axe, it didn't proof much of a positive, just a better option than relying on the iron axe solely.

Brone thought about his previous moves, even though the last one seemed to be his best move, now that Yuurei knew it and experienced it first hand, it would probably be near impossible to replicate that move once more. Then an idea came to mind. The only reason he was able to land blows on Yuurei or any of his great foes in the past was mainly playing small tricks and attacking in their blind spot to throw them off, all he needed to do was to use a bit of sleight of hand and he had played enough card games to pick up a trick or two.

Now he was ready to try, even though he was confident in his ability, he was fearful this would be his last move if he didn't avoid the half-elf's next attack. "Here's all or nothing" Brone ran forward, both his hands on the handle of his axe. He cried out a battle shout, letting Yuurei know he was fully serious.

As the gap closed, Brone swung his left arm but letting go of the handle at the last moment, feinting the attack, but swinging his right hand that still held the axe soon after, hopefully this feint will throw off Yuurei while allowing the axe to slip through the defense and landing home and regardless of it hits true or not, Brone would try and lunge away again.

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Yuurei’s attack would hit, and it would cause the dwarf to tumble away from him as he would stop moving. He would look at him as if it would seem like he was trying to stop moving from the hit. He didn’t knock the dwarf back, which he knew he couldn’t. Still, it was a good way to gain distance for the time being and he would wait for Brone to get up from the ground. When he looked at him, he could see that he was trying to get up. This was good it would seem like he was still ready to fight. The light mage would pour mana into his hand. Why might you ask? Well, he was feeling the attacks from Brone and the blood loss was starting to get to him. He knew that he could only take a couple more shots from Brone and he would be gone too.

Yuurei gauntlet would glow, and in return, it would grant him a large amount of power throughout his body. This was good, but he wouldn’t stop there, no he would give his friend the option to fight him with his wings and all. While Brone spoke to him, his eyes would become golden as he would look over at his friends as the wings would sprout out from his back. He had transformed but kept the same size that he was. This was not the transformation he saw when he fought against the dragon. It was a lesser form, and he would prepare himself. His friend would find himself weaker within his presence, but it wouldn’t matter. He was still waiting for his friend to be clever.

When Brone got in front of him, Yuurei would see his left hand being swung. The light mage would sidestep to avoid the attack, but he saw that his left hand was no longer the hand that was truly holding onto the axe. It was a feint, which Yuurei would give him the enjoyment of hitting him. Still, while the right hand was coming straight for him, he would launch a rising uppercut straight into Brone’s abdomen. He would strike him from below the axe, so it wouldn’t be easy for him to see coming. The axe would cut Yuurei on his waist as he felt it opening his flesh, but the dwarf would find it hard to dodge an attack that was coming while he swung his weapon.

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As Brone got closer to Yuurei to initiate his attack, the half-elf transformed before his eyes, wings sprouting from his back and his eyes glowed golden, this wasn't exactly the angelic form he saw when they had fought the red dragon from before, but it was similar, meaning the half-elf chose to tap into his full potential, regardless of what was happening, Brone was already too close to turn about or stop, he needed to see this attack through to the end, so he commenced with his plan of action.

As the blade swung, Brone hoped it would hit true and as the blade landed, he would cry out in victory if it wasn't for the counter. All sound vanished as Yuurei's angelic fist slammed into the dwarf's abdomen, slightly rising him up from the ground. All went slow for a moment and the steel axe that had landed it's mark, had fallen away, as it hit the floor, Brone couldn't hear the clatter, all he heard was his heartbeat as his feet eventually touched the floor again.

The dwarf was standing on his feet as Yuurei's fist pulled away, and all Brone could think about was whether or not the fight ended. He tried to move his hands to grab his axe, but when he realized his body was not responding at all, that is when he came to the conclusion that the battle was lost and he was beginning to collapse. He then fell to his knees, yet again, no sound, just his heartbeat, now his vision was beginning to blur. The only thing he saw before his sight was completely gone and he blacked out was the angelic form of Yuurei; that moment Brone felt some form of victory, the half-elf had to shift into his Nephilim form, even though it wasn't the full form, in order to finish the fight, regardless if it was just the last few seconds; that much was enough for Brone and to prove to him that he did indeed grow in strength.

His body fell forward, now hitting the ground, once again, no sound, just the heartbeat. His eyes fully blurred, no longer can provide him a picture of what was before him and his thoughts were slowly fading as unconsciousness was claiming him. What could he do to win next time? Continue to get stronger or acquire better armor as Yuurei himself had suggested? Regardless, compared to the last fight, this was great progress which is saying a lot, given that Yuurei had not slowed in his own training. Even though this had ended in a loss for the dwarf, it was a personal victory in the long run, for he had shown the fruits of his labor and possibly next time he may catch up and win against Yuurei whether he was in full angelic form or not.

Brone now laid upon the middle of the dome, unconscious, leaving Yuurei the victor of the battle once more, two for two, though one thing was odd about the dwarf's position, his left hand still clenched into a fist, as if his body wasn't entirely given up, the fight within him still raged on, and maybe one day he may prove a great threat in battle.

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[Exit]

Yuurei was in pain alright, and he would see that his last punch had landed. Still, he would see that Brone hadn’t lost consciousness. That meant the fight was still going to continue. He would get ready to see what the dwarf would do next. Yes, he would see him reach for the axe, but then it happened. The light mage would see him fall to the ground. It would seem like he was trying his best to keep his consciousness, but it wasn’t working. He would wait a bit to see if Brone would get up from the ground, but nothing. The battle was over, and it seemed like he had won again.

There were a few things he learned about this battle. He couldn’t allow himself to be the one to be caught flatfooted. Another thing he learned was that he needed armor or some protection when he fought against anybody. There was also the fact that his friend was very crafty when he fought, and he was going to have to take a page out of his book. He hoped when they fought next time, he would be able to come up with new things. He was also hoping Brone would have better armor and weapon for their battle to come.

Yuurei would disperse everything he was using right now and he would sigh with relief. He would grab his body as he would feel the pain and he would crouch on one knee. Renji would walk over to him as he was not a part of the fight the whole time. When he got to Yuurei he would look at him.

“You need to make sure your vitality is better than this. Brone almost took you out, so we need to change that. Back to the drawing board, but first, let's get you two to the infirmary.” He would say this.

Yuurei would nod as he would agree with him. He would get up and he would move to Brone. He would lift his friend and walk out of the dome. He knew they could come for his stuff later as nobody would take a bunch of broken equipment. He would bring his steel axe with them.

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