Asher followed Captain Darius through the corridors of the orphanage, his eyes darting around as he absorbed his new surroundings.
It was his first time in this part of the main building, an area strictly off-limits to the orphans.
Asher noticed a few guards patrolling the area, each giving Captain Darius a respectful nod as they passed, casting curious glances at Asher. However, the captain paid them no mind, striding forward with purposeful steps.
After navigating several twists and turns, Captain Darius led Asher into a spacious room, its walls adorned with impressive weapons and training equipment. Shelves in the center held various types of body armor.
"Quite impressive, wouldn't you agree?" Captain Darius remarked, sweeping his hand towards the weapons display. "This is where true warriors are trained."
Asher nodded in agreement, his gaze lingering on the weapons. Though authentic, he couldn't imagine himself wielding them.
Before Asher could voice his confusion, Captain Darius anticipated his thoughts and spoke.
"Yeah, we won't be using those," Captain Darius clarified, following Asher's gaze. "The practice swords are at the back."
With a wave, Captain Darius motioned for Asher to follow, leading him toward a section behind a shelf.
Wooden equipment filled the shelf in the hidden section. Various weapons adorned the walls, many of them showing signs of wear and tear.
Swords with chipped edges, spears with dented tips, and shields bearing the marks of countless clashes. There was not single pristine weapon and Asher realized that they were not just for show.
Asher noticed the captain picking up a pair of wooden swords, their edges worn from countless practice sessions.
As Asher followed Captain Darius, they made their way to the last room in the corridor after exiting the armory. Stepping inside, Asher's eyes widened at the sight of the training room.
The space was modest yet functional, with wooden training dummies positioned strategically around the perimeter.
The center of the room was a cleared area reminiscent of a traditional dojo awaited, its polished wooden floor gleaming under the soft glow of the room's lighting.
But Asher's attention was drawn to the sturdy metal staff mounted directly on the front wall. Its surface gleamed in the dim light, and he could almost feel the history in it. However, Captain Darius's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Alright, lad, here's your weapon" Captain Darius said, his voice brimming with confidence.
With a nod, Asher grasped a wooden sword. He lifted it, testing the weight and balance with a practiced hand. The sword felt comfortable in his grip, its familiar weight reassuring him as he swung it experimentally through the air.
Satisfied with its handling, Asher nodded to himself
"Let's see what you're made of." Captain Darius said after he stopped swinging the sword.
Asher noticed that he had moved to one side of the center ring.
With a quick nod, Asher assumed a defensive stance, his muscles tensed and ready for action.
Simple swordsmanship is not something new to me, not to the original and neither to him. But until now, he had just continued to swing the weapon in the way that he copied from the memories.
The training session started slowly with simple slash, strike, and thrust. He easily parried or block the attack. Asher found himself falling into familiar patterns.
But as Captain Darius launched into a flurry of attacks, Asher realized that simple swordsmanship would not be enough to best the captain.
Sparring while holding a sword is different than just using martial arts. His balance is different, his stance changes at different times, and his feet had to move in specific ways.
The major difference he noticed was the lack of fast response. He was not attuned with the swords. Where as it was easy to determine the attack strength and speed with martial arts as all the attack landed on his body.
Using sword produce a lag as he couldn't quite place the strength. The weight of the wooden sword felt familiar in his hands, but the force it send back with each strike was different.
However, with each exchange, he could feel himself improving, his muscles adapting to the demands of swordmanship as he pushed himself to exert more force.
Meanwhile, Captain Darius moved with a fluidity and grace that spoke of years of experience. His every motion was deliberate, calculated, as if he anticipated Asher's every move before it even happened.
Though Asher found himself on the receiving end of Captain Darius's blows more often than not, he refused to relent. He continued to swing his sword in between to not neglect his offense strikes.
With each strike, he focused on strengthening his stance, minimizing the impact of his opponent's attacks to reduce the risk of injury.
The gap in skill and experience between them was vast, with Captain Darius boasting superior swordsmanship and stats honed over countless battles.
Asher felt the wooden sword pierced through the air toward him, as the captain stabs his wooden sword at me.
He avoided it with the barest of margin and only because of reading his moves and the captain holding back.
He shifted his body just enough to evade the blow, though he still felt the impact jolt through him, forcing him to stumble backward.
But the captain wasn't finished yet. H quickly withdraw his sword and Pressing forward with another attack. There was strange woosh as Asher felt that the sword shouldn't move that fast. But he didn't get time to ponder on it.
He parried the second thrust and block the slash which followed. The captain moves backward a little to covers his exposed weakness but Asher only got time to notice it and lost the opportunity.
The difference between them was evident, especially in their body positioning.
With his martial training, Asher can easily see the difference between them. The captain effortlessly maintained a poised stance, always ready to maximize the effectiveness of his strikes.
The man always has a position ready to fall back on or move to the next strike.
In contrast, Asher had to rely on his martial skills. He didn't have those muscle memories of positioning, so he compensated with his martial training.
It was a rigorous training he realised that the Captain was testing him, with the training consisting of him getting more and more bruises. The Captain made good on his promise not to hold back.
But the man always tried to point out his mistake whenever he struck, and Asher already had some basic muscle memory ingrained.
Now it was just to practice more as he knew that the attack and defence he performed were perfect but his positioning was faulty.
He already knew that it would be the bottleneck and it seems that only fighting others will help him overcame the gap.
As the training session closed, Asher found himself covered in several bruises., a testament to the intensity of his efforts. Captain Darius handed him a towel, his expression unchanged save for a few wrinkles in his attire that he smoothed out with a practiced hand.
"You can rest here before the councilor meeting in an hour," the captain informed him. "I must attend to my duties."
As Asher settled onto the floor, he couldn't help but feel the ache in his body, a reminder of the hard work he had put in.
Yet, as he looked up at the ceiling, he also felt a sense of accomplishment. It was not without its gains, he reminded himself, glancing at the notification that had appeared before him.
New Skill Learned!
Swordsmanship Lvl 0
Swordsmanship Lvl 0 > 7
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