It had been two days since the Regional invitations arrived, and in those two days Valt had not stopped training for more than an hour at a time.
The rooftop no longer felt like a place to relax. The wind still blew across the concrete and rattled the fence, and Ken's puppet still made unnecessary comments about everything, but the energy had changed. There was something sharper in the air now. Something restless.
"Ahh, come on! This still doesn't work!" Valt groaned, dragging a hand through his hair as Valkyrie skidded slightly before correcting itself too late. "What am I doing wrong this time?"
Shu didn't sigh. He never did. He simply stepped forward, watching the spin settle before answering.
"Because you're launching like you want to break the floor," Shu said calmly. "Instead of gliding over it. Your angle is too sharp."
Valt blinked. "That doesn't even make sense."
"It does," Shu replied. "You're forcing entry. Valkyrie needs space to accelerate. You're diving instead of sweeping."
Rantaro leaned against the fence with his arms crossed. "Yeah, you look like you're trying to punch the stadium."
"I am not punching the stadium!" Valt snapped.
Ken lifted his puppets dramatically. "The stadium would like to file a complaint."
Valt glared at it. "You're supposed to be on my side."
"We are on the side of truth," the puppet said solemnly.
I stood a little behind them, watching the whole thing unfold for the third time that afternoon. It felt strange being here like this. I didn't have to train. I wasn't competing in Regionals. Winning the District Tournament meant I could go straight to Nationals. My schedule was different now. My pressure was different.
But standing off to the side while they struggled didn't feel right either.
Training alone was easier. Cleaner. Quieter. I could focus on Drago without distraction, without comments, without wind shifting my footing at the worst moment.
But it was less fun.
Valt reset his stance again, clearly frustrated but refusing to admit it.
"Fine," he muttered. "Then what do I change?"
Shu stepped beside him and adjusted his shoulder slightly. "Lift your launcher a bit higher. Not much. Just enough so Valkyrie enters at an angle without diving into the ground."
Valt frowned. "That's what I'm doing."
"No," Shu said evenly. "You're exaggerating."
Rantaro snorted. "He exaggerates everything."
"I do not exaggerate!"
Ken's puppets turned slowly toward Valt. "You exaggerate your denial."
Valt opened his mouth to argue again, but I stepped forward before it could escalate.
"What if you raise it just slightly," I said. "Not enough to change the angle completely. Just enough so Valkyrie glides before it bites."
Valt looked at me, narrowing his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah. Thanks, smarti pants," he said. "I'll figure it out."
I raised an eyebrow. "That wasn't an insult."
"It sounded like one."
Shu ignored the exchange. "Try it."
Valt inhaled, adjusted his grip, and lifted his launcher just a fraction higher than before.
"Three… two… go!"
Valkyrie hit cleaner this time. The slide was shorter. The correction faster. The acceleration smoother.
Valt stared at it.
"…Okay. That was better."
Rantaro nodded. "Less punching."
Ken's puppets clapped its tiny hands. "Progress detected."
Valt shot me a look that was half annoyed, half impressed. "Fine. Maybe you're a little right."
"Just a little," I said.
We kept going after that, rotating through launches instead of full battles. Shu focused on consistency. Valt focused on not losing his patience. Rantaro focused on pretending he wasn't taking any of it seriously while clearly adjusting his own angle every time Shu spoke.
I launched Drago a few times without making a big deal about it. No wings. No aggressive push. Just stable entries and clean rotations.
Valt noticed immediately.
"Why are you holding back again? I thought you said you wouldn't hold back anymore."
I looked at him with a slight smile. "Why would I go all out when we're not in a battle that demands it? We're just training. I don't want to destroy the roof — or the stadium."
Valt stared at Drago spinning calmly between us. "It still feels like you're keeping something in reserve."
"I'm not trying to," I replied. "I'm just launching the way I always launch in training."
Ken's puppets leaned closer, both heads tilting at the same time. "He is not holding back," one of them announced dramatically. "He is rationing."
"That's worse," Valt muttered.
Shu stepped forward, eyes following Drago's movement after a light collision with Rantaro's Bey. He watched the way it absorbed the impact and corrected without flaring up.
"He's controlling escalation," Shu said quietly.
I didn't respond.
Valt crossed his arms. "Then one clash. Just one. No finishers. No drama. Just to see."
Shu considered it for a second before nodding. "Single launch."
We took position.
The wind shifted across the rooftop again, carrying distant traffic sounds up from the street below.
"Three… two… go!"
Valkyrie entered fast — sharper than before, but more controlled than earlier that afternoon. Drago landed clean and steady, meeting the first impact without flaring.
The hit rang out sharp against the concrete.
A second collision followed.
This time Drago shifted slightly, redirecting instead of overpowering.
The spins stayed close. After a few rotations they separated naturally, losing energy at nearly the same rate.
Valt blinked. "You adjusted. You could've pushed harder."
"Why would I?" I said calmly. "I didn't need to."
Rantaro let out a low whistle. "That's annoying."
Ken's puppet nodded thoughtfully. "He is efficient. Efficiency is deeply irritating."
Valt stared at Drago for a long moment before breaking into a grin. "Fine. Then I'll get strong enough that you have to."
I allowed myself a small smile. "Good."
Shu didn't smile, but his eyes sharpened slightly.
"Regionals won't be forgiving," he said.
Valt's grin didn't fade. "Then I won't be either."
The wind carried the sound of another launch across the rooftop, and this time when Valkyrie hit the concrete, it didn't look like it was trying to break through the floor.
It looked like it was learning to glide.