While the Jade Dragons kept training at their residence, June and Maya had been struggling to keep up with the rest.
Maya had been acting as the leader of the Gamma Team, which specialized in stealth missions more than direct combat.
After the two ex-detectives joined the Jade Dragons, Alice was sent to the Oga Team to learn to control her umbra, while June was sent to the Gamma Team since her abilities matched with them better.
Even though the won's abilities placed them at the level of so of the best agents in the world, they still couldn't keep up whenever they joined the Oga Team's training— After all, they were technically two ordinary humans next to the warlock's team.
The only tis when they felt they had a slight advantage over an Oga Team mber was when they practiced their close-combat skills, as the two of them were experts at it. Still, as soon as magic was added to the mix, they couldn't stand a chance.
For so ti, Maya and June considered making a contract with Dante to gain power like the others. However, noticing that Master Hayato could keep up with them without using any magic made them change their minds.
Takeshi Hayato was a sword master who had been staying at the Jade Palace for over a month.
He was a mber of the Kuroi Tengu, a ninja organization that originated in Japan in the 1600s, and had been allies with the Jade Dragons since the faction's creation.
Compared to the people in the Oga Team, Master Hayato didn't use any magic when fighting. However, he was still able to keep up with their training and even beat all of them during their spar sessions—except for Dante.
One morning, as the Gamma Team was walking to the training room, they saw Hayato in the inner garden ditating, prompting the won to approach him for guidance.
They wanted to know his secrets for being able to sense magic when he himself wasn't a mage. Knowing what they would be up against when fighting the cartel—it seed like a valuable skill to have in order to survive.
As the two girls interrupted Hayato's session, he glanced at the won, but they couldn't see his expression as he was wearing his black tengu mask.
Still, the man nodded and agreed to train the Gamma Team for a few days. However, he stated that if the team didn't show any desire for growth, he would stop and return to practice with the Oga Team.
That sa day, Maya, June, and the two Tylers joined Master Hayato in the inner yard, next to a zen garden that made the area feel quite peaceful.
Saris, the banshee, also joined them in the training since Camille recognized her as a mber of the Gamma Team. However, she had no interest and left as she could already see magic.
The group thought that they would be having an intense battle session with Hayato. Instead, the man asked them to sit down and ditate with him, which was a concept that the Gamma Team mbers didn't entirely comprehend.
Still, they followed Master Hayato's directions and sat on the grass with their legs crossed, awkwardly waiting for the next step.
"The reason you aren't able to feel this "magic" is because you aren't aware of everything around you…" Hayato muttered, his head slightly looking down.
"Close your eyes… Make yourself one with the environnt… Feel the difference in temperature in the wind, the grass grazing your fingers, the air entering your lungs…" Hayato continued.
As the four of them took a deep breath and closed their eyes, Hayato kept speaking, giving them directions with a soft-spoken voice.
"That supposed magic warps this peaceful environnt… If you can feel the disturbance, then you will be able to stand against it," he continued.
Nevertheless, Hayato's teachings weren't sothing that the group could learn in a few days, so he told them to be patient and focused.
"Desperation will only lead to your doom…" Hayato muttered.
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A week later, the Oga Team was training as usual in the T room when the Gamma Team arrived to join them.
It wasn't uncommon for them to practice together once in a while, but they hadn't been around since they started their training with Master Hayato.
"Dante, can we spar?" Maya asked the warlock, who seed slightly surprised about her invitation.
"Of course," Dante replied, curious about her newfound determination.
Initially, the warlock believed they would practice their hand-to-hand combat. However, when Maya asked him to cast magic against her, he was slightly taken aback.
"Are you sure?" Dante inquired, making sure the woman knew what she was asking for.
"I am. Let's do this," Maya replied with confidence.
'I'll aim for non-vital spots… Just in case,' Dante thought, raising his arm forward.
As the warlock aid his palm at Maya, he uttered "Rapture" under his breath and released an invisible slash in the air that was aid at the woman's arm.
If she weren't able to avoid it, it would've sliced her arm clean. However, Maya's eyes widened as she stepped to the side, opposite to the direction of the attack.
The slash traveled all the way to the back of the T room, leaving a gaping slit on the back wall and prompting Maya to close the distance between her and the warlock.
Dante was pleasantly surprised to see her avoid the attack. Even if he had shot it slightly to the side to avoid hitting any vital spots, he could tell that the woman was able to sense his magic the sa way Hayato did.
When Maya caught up to Dante, they exchanged a few punches and kicks that were all deflected, making the warlock smirk.
"You've been practicing so advanced techniques, huh?" Dante comnted as he deflected a kick.
"We wouldn't have been able to stand a chance if we didn't," Maya replied, ducking and avoiding a punch.
After a quick exchange, Dante released a blast of umbra that pushed Maya back, noting that while she had improved a lot in the past few days, she still needed practice maintaining her focus.
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