Chapter 106: Rinse and Repeat
The first few days were quite miserable to endure at first but eventually I started to practice the Lunar arts stance. It was something that took a bit of patience to get used to.
"It seems like you are starting to catch on a bit more. That’s good." Alarion says with a bit of an impressed tone in his voice.
I’d hope that it was good since I’ve been getting my ass kicked for the last few days while trying to get a hit in. Mostly I’ve been learning about the defensive side of the fighting technique.
He’s shown me a lot without having to do very much.
Just constantly deflecting each of my attacks with ease as I continued to struggle against him.
"I’m trying my best to get this down." I respond with a bit of irritation in my voice.
I was frustrated with how long it took me just to get used to doing the damn stance but nothing is going to come easy. Training is always going to take a bit of effort, otherwise there wouldn’t be a need for it.
"You’re practicing something that is only known to our family so it’s normal to be frustrated or irritated about it. The solution to it all is just to rinse and repeat." Alarion speaks with a bit of understanding behind each word.
"I appreciate you helping me with all of this." I respond while positioning my feet properly.
Getting into the stance was the easy part, the perfection of the counter attacks was the hard part. He was also a lot faster than I expected him to.
"Do your best to deflect my attacks. Let us begin!" Alarion shouts before charging in.
His hands were positioned a bit differently from before but staying calm was key. I took a few deep breaths as he made his way towards me.
Smack! I barely managed to push his hand away as it went towards me, before I knew it though... His other hand was already coming towards me.
Something felt as if it was taking over me and I started to dodge his attacks while also deflecting them occasionally. My body was finally adjusted to the stance and how to use it.
"This is the first sign of positive results." Alarion says calmly as he continues to rush me with his attacks.
He is quite the teacher. You also seem to be picking up on his fighting technique quite well. The stance, putting it into action, and even learning from combat.
I’ve had to learn a lot of other things from experience so this kind of felt very similar in that sense. He is also a lot tougher than I previously imagined him to be.
It makes sense why the family is full of SS ranks but I didn’t think there were so many of them up here. The rumors only talked about a couple of them being here.
Rumors are rumors for a reason. Be glad that they are willing to help us with anything instead of making us an enemy.
You’ve got a fair point there.
Also you’ve been managing to handle this fight while talking with me which is also an achievement in itself.
Shifting my focus back towards Alarion I realized that she was right, the fight was still going on and I was doing everything as instructed.
Dodge, weave, counter, repeat. Each step was crucial for me to get through or he’d land a hit on me.
This was the first day that I wasn’t met with immediate pain from each hit he threw so it was a nice change of pace. My power was also flowing through my body as the fight went on.
Slowly activating to increase my speed passively while avoiding the hits.
"Alright, that’ll be enough for now. A few days went by and you managed to get this far. That means the offensive portion will be even easier for you to learn." Alarion says with confidence as he stops where he is standing.
"I’ve just been doing my best to watch everything you are doing and I made sure to listen to your instructions." I respond before giving a respectful bow.
"Then I am 100% confident that you can handle the next portion of training without a problem." Alarion says with a smile.
"Thank you for having confidence in me." I reply with an appreciative tone.
The rest of the day was spent learning another portion of the stance.
"This is known as The Variseth Eclipse Arts. It is more of a hybrid fighting art that we developed to be utilized instead of an only offensive style." Alarion says as he begins to go into the stance.
He planted his feet in a wide crescent like stance. One foot forward while the other remains anchored back behind him. He extended one arm forward with his palm up, ready to strike at any moment.
The other arm was drawn back near the hip, hand clenched and beginning to glow faintly.
"I’ll now demonstrate." Alarion says with more of a serious tone to his voice.
As soon as he shifted his weight forward it felt as if the air thickened. It was kind of hard to explain it. It was even staring to feel as if gravity itself doubled, I could feel it in my chest.
A strong pressure starting to force itself upon me. Before I knew it he was already standing in front of me with his hand extended towards me.
The silver glow radiating from the tips of his fingers as it suddenly connected with my chest. The power surged right through my chest as it pushed me back a few feet.
Dust clouded my vision for a few moments before I could finally see again. There wasn’t really any pain in my chest but when I looked around me I noticed that a lot of the arena was destroyed.
The walls were cracked to hell and he just stood there staring back at me.
I didn’t feel any pain because he sent most of that power around me instead of directly at me from the start. It is insane to think about the kind of power he possesses.
"At least now you understand how strong the eclipse arts is." Alarion says before lowering his hands again.