Kanon levelled his polearm and charged straight at Haks, each step pounding with raw determination.
Haks watched the boy's approach, noting the stance, the grip, and the fire in his eyes.
[Rough around the edges… but at least he knows the basics.]
With a smooth spin, Haks swept his polearm outward, knocking Kanon's weapon aside. The boy's momentum betrayed him, carrying him stumbling past.
Kanon skidded to a halt, pivoted sharply, and raised his weapon again.
"The kid's quick on his feet," Bang remarked from the sidelines, arms folded.
Vons gave a silent nod, while Baryl only watched with unreadable eyes.
"You can do it!" Maria's voice rang out, bright and hopeful.
Kanon surged forward once more, this time slashing diagonally for Haks' head.
But Haks barely shifted—half a step back, and the strike cut only air. "You're reckless, kid. Didn't Beryl teach you? Never swing wide unless you're certain of victory."
Seizing the opening, Haks thrust his polearm straight for Kanon's stomach.
At the last instant, Kanon twisted, letting the force of his own swing whirl him aside. His weapon swept low, aiming for Haks' legs.
Haks' brow lifted in mild surprise.
"The kid's got instincts," Vons admitted.
"True," Bang added, "but against him…" His words trailed off as the clash unfolded.
Haks dropped his polearm to intercept, pinning Kanon's strike beneath his foot.
He leaned forward, eyes narrowing. "So, what now? Going to give up?" he taunted.
Kanon strained, pulling against the weight pressing down. No boy his age should have been able to move it—yet his grip didn't falter.
Bang sighed knowingly. "He's at it again."
Maria tilted her head. "At what?"
Beryl gave her a troubled smile. "Let's just say… Haks has a difficult personality."
"If Kanon wants to learn Spearmanship, he is the best. However, for him to teach you, you must prove yourself to him."
Kanon was growing increasingly frustrated; he felt as though he was being toyed with. Haks wasn't truly fighting him. Instead, he seemed to be playing games. Kanon was presented with nothing but what he already knew, leading him to his current predicament.
At last, Kanon's patience was running out, so he decided to stop holding back. And use a bit of the strength he is holding. He kicked hard, dislodging the weapon from under Haks's foot and forcing space between them. His eyes blazed.
"I'll show you," Kanon declared.
"The boy's stronger than he looks," Vons muttered.
Beryl nodded. "Yes. He's been holding back all this time."
Maria gasped. "What? You mean… he wasn't even serious all this time?"
"Exactly," Beryl confirmed.
"I noticed it a while back, teaching him. I think he has a special constitution," he speculated.
"A special constitution—that makes sense," Bang and Vons nodded like they understood something.
"What's that?" Maria asked.
"It's quite rare, but sometimes individuals are born with a stronger body that enables them to harness more of the body's strength than usual," Baryl explained.
"Yes, there are a few in the history of martial arts who had such a constitution, and each was a pinnacle master of their craft."
Marie was surprised to hear that. "Does this mean Kanon can also become like them?"
"Yes, he certainly can, but he wishes to explore other martial arts, which makes his future somewhat uncertain," said Beryl.
"Well, with his constitution, it might be feasible, don't you think?" Bang said.
"Yes, if he's able to pull it off, he might become the greatest martial artist in all history." Vons thoughtfully looked at the other two.
Hearing that, three of them looked at each other, a plan forming in their minds.
"I see." She watched as the three hatched out a rough plan for Kanon's training.
[Alisia won't be pleased when she hears this], she thought.
Haks' gaze sharpened. "So, you're finally going to stop holding back."
Kanon flinched; his body stiffened for the moment.
Haks snorted, "You thought you could hide your true strength from me. Don't overestimate yourself. You are still too green for that."
He lunged first this time, his strikes sharp and deliberate. Kanon barely dodged—though Haks allowed him that escape.
[It seems my plan worked.] Kanon inwardly smirked.
He had long realised that he couldn't hide his strength from the masters like Beryl, so he devised a plan to gradually reveal his hidden abilities, and it appeared to be working. As for the reason behind his strength, he was confident they would come up with a plausible explanation. After all, this was an anime world; there were bound to be bullshit explanations for such things.
As the spar continued step by step, Kanon started to mirror his opponent's movements. Initially rough, his defence sharpened with each exchange, and his counters became more precise.
Haks noticed that.
[Just spar with him, you'll see.] he remembers Beryl saying that.
[I see it now, Baryl… a monster indeed.] Haks grinned.
After minutes of back and forth, the spar drew to a close.
Beryl and the others approached. "So? What do you think?"
Haks gave Kanon a single glance, then grunted in acknowledgement.
"So, you'll teach him?" Beryl pressed.
"...Yeah. Sure, I guess."
Beryl smiled, turning to the others. "And you two?"
Bang nodded. "I've seen enough. I'd be honoured to train such a child."
"Same for me," Vons agreed.
"You hear that, Kanon?" Beryl smiled.
For some reason, that smile sent chills down his spine.
"Kanon," Beryl said, his tone shifted to a serious one.
"As you requested, we will teach you various martial arts, but in return, we expect diligence from you. You will not be allowed to slack off. Do you understand?" Beryl and the other three stared at him.
"Yes."
And so began the hectic days of Kanon…
…
..
.
After my spar with Haks, my training officially started. First, I received a schedule outlining who would train me and at what times, which occupied most of my free time. With my studying and school responsibilities added to that, I realised I had less time to visit the other world.
Still, by cutting my sleep short, I spend about three hours visiting the other world and steadily increase my status by hunting monsters. But even then, I didn't have much time to explore the deep forest. A part of me was also afraid to go deeper; what if I came across a monster that I couldn't hope to defeat? I would be dead.
So up until now, I've been hunting the monster that comes to a certain area near the barrier.
Also, I had noticed that killing the monster not only levels me up, it also provides points called 'BP,' which, if I wanted, I could also use to further increase my stats.
This other world sure runs on some video game logic.
After calculating a few things, I decided to save the points for future exploration of this world.
Did I mention how intense the training was?
Beryl was already strict with how swords were handled, but then, after an arrangement with the other three masters, he started acting like a drill sergeant, putting me through repetitive training of swinging the sword till I mastered the forms.
Then came Bang, a master of hand-to-hand combat. I heard he had created his own style called the 'Water Stream Crushing Fist.' This martial art emphasises mastering the flow of the body, understanding movement dynamics, redirecting and blocking attacks, and increasing one's strength to overpower opponents. In a one-on-one fight, a Water Stream Crushing Fist master would easily dominate the opponent.
Then there was Vons, the master of an ancient archery art, which was once said to be ripping lives through countless battlefields. But nowadays, because of the peaceful era, this ancient form of martial art has almost gone extinct.
Well, after hearing the history, I was quite impressed, and this archery seemed to be perfect for me; it would definitely be useful in the other world.
And finally, Haks, the spearmaster; he is the youngest of all my masters. Based on what Beryl and others told me about him, he is regarded as a genius. It took him only a year and a half to master his martial arts and go on to defeat his seniors and then the instructors.
Hearing that story made him sound like one of those Chinese MCs.
While training with him... how should I say? He is more of a type to teach by fighting, so his training of me ended up with him beating me up and me learning from each session.
Each of them put me through a rigorous process. Despite the difficulty of the training, I persevered for three years.
And this is how Kanon has lived for the past three years.
...
Chapter end
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==Insert IMG of your waifu==
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