It caused him to tense up and he reached for the cane at his side, standing and facing the chancellor's general direction.

"Ardyn."

He had a lot of misgivings when it came to the chancellor.

"What are you doing here?"

Seeking a moment of solitude within a park that was nestled to the side of the main road, Ignis had been deep in thought while on his own. It was peaceful despite his turbulent thoughts.... that was, until he heard an all too familiar voice ring out.
+

𝘞𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘮? 𝘞𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴? 𝘞𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦?

Gladio teased him but assured Ignis that their friend was doing fine.

It was during the colder months that Ignis decided to travel, taking the time to seek out Prompto.

[Solo: The beginnings of perpetual night; Ignis' ongoing training] bsky.app/profile/dagg...

Ignis was determined to overcome all obstacles he came across.

His current path was different from the one he had started out on... but it would nonetheless lead him to where he needed to be.

A faint smile formed on Ignis' lips and he called up his ice daggers, taking a few steps back.

"Of course. No one to blame but myself for such an ill-advised decision."

The training began anew. +

Ignis was right. The man had to learn one way or another and he was determined to do so.

"If you get knocked out just remember that you asked for this," he bit out, scowling as he picked up the heavy greatsword from the ground and backed away to take an attack stance once more.+

Gladio clenched his jaw, still wishing to speak out against Ignis' decision to join the hunters in actively destroying daemons.

"I'm doing this for him."

Gladio's eyes flicked sharply towards Ignis at the soft admittance, narrowing after a moment and he sighed heavily. +

"I need this.... I need to know what my limits are and how much I have learned. I need to improve because I cannot afford to make mistakes while out in the battlefield.... and no, you will not change my mind in this matter. I have made my decision." +

"I know, Gladio," he said softly, calming down from their clash. "But you know very well that I can handle myself." He approached the man, standing before the larger male, his silvered eyes raising. +

"I just have to get over my misgivings about this. It's not like before, y'know? You're not the only one to face these changes on your own, Iggy."

Ignis had recalled his weapons, huffing out a breath as he straightened to stretch his sore shoulders. +

Gladio sighed, relaxing as he stepped away from the other male and reached up to push his long hair out of his face.

"You're right.... I know what I'm doing. I just...." He grumbled, slamming the heavy greatsword into the ground to lean on. +

to see what he was fully capable of in battle. If this meant he had to take a hit or two while training then so be it. That was part of the learning process and Ignis had been training long and hard to overcome one of the greatest challenges he had been faced with; his blindness. +

Gladio knew he had done wrong. He had been holding back, not wanting to hit his friend, only going as far as baiting the man's attacks.

But Ignis had made him promise to not hold back. He had sought Gladio out for this reason alone; to test his limits. To push the boundaries of his training, +

"You promised!" he bit out, silver eyes narrowed.

There was only the sound of their harsh breathing, the exertion of their session showing in the sweat that ran down heated skin—hair messy, clothes disheveled from activity. +

That small moment was something Ignis knew Gladio would not grant to his enemies.

With a low growl, Ignis ducked as the greatsword was swung over his head and he lashed out, swinging his duel blades upwards to halt seconds before slicing the other male's neck. +

The contact with Gladio's weapon was jarring and Ignis staggered slightly as he realized the man had parried him. The swing of the large blade was to be expected but there was a mere second's worth of hesitation. +