"Too slow! Faster! Be decisive! Did you skip breakfast? Put some effort into it!" It was morning, right after breakfast, and Kay was back on the Knights' training grounds after a ten-year absence, coaching his younger brother, Arthur.
Just like ten years ago, a younger brother was still a younger brother. The grown-up Arthur was still completely outmatched by Kay. His wooden sword hadn't even touched Kay once since the spar began. Even though Kay was wearing armor, his flexible footwork and movement made Arthur look like a big bear trying to catch a bee. All Arthur could do was clumsily swing his longsword and watch as Kay deftly dodged it, then snap his own wooden sword across Arthur's body.
Although Kay was pulling his punches, and the hits were mostly just painful stings without causing real damage, each successful strike dealt a ton of emotional damage to Arthur.
Kay was Arthur's first teacher, and all of Arthur's swordsmanship was taught by him. Back then, Arthur was small, and it was normal for Kay to constantly rough him up. But ten years had passed, and Arthur had assumed the gap between them would surely have narrowed. Arthur had even fantasized about surpassing Kay. After all, Arthur's talent was obvious to everyone; over the years, he was virtually unbeaten among the Knights, which had led to a slight case of overconfidence.
The result? Our young Arthur was facing a harsh reality check.
Just like ten years ago, he was completely helpless, and Kay wasn't even fighting seriously.
"Footwork! Footwork! I've always told you, your stance must be stable. You can be slow, but you must be stable! If you can't even stand steadily, how are you supposed to fight anyone?" After dodging another one of Arthur's attacks, Kay flicked his wooden sword and tapped Arthur right behind the knee. From just that slight tap, Arthur lost his balance and stumbled forward.
This left Kay extremely dissatisfied. Before he joined the military in his previous life, Kay had graduated from a martial arts school and considered himself a martial artist. He had formally apprenticed under a master, who, while not famous, was a legitimate disciple of family's Baji Quan (Eight Extremities Fist) .
Due to limited natural talent, Kay could only make a living through the martial arts school, but since he came from an authentic lineage, the demands on his fundamentals were very high. Furthermore, since Kay had formally taken the master as his teacher, the master had been unreservedly strict with him from a young age.
Kay didn't think much of it while he was in school in his past life because neither his master nor his family allowed him to fight or cause trouble; he was just physically stronger than average. It wasn't until he joined the military that he understood the profound importance of those fundamentals. In the military, Kay's solid foundation allowed him to excel in daily training, progressing much faster than his peers, which eventually led to his selection as a scout.
And among all the fundamentals, the stance (or lower body, xià pán) was the most crucial. A weak stance leads to "floating feet" (xū fú). The whole person looks weak and airy, and they can be easily knocked over with a sweep.
Most of the energy-generation logic in martial arts starts from the lower body, with the waist doing most of the work. For example: Plant feet – twist waist – turn hips – send punch. That's how the power is generated.
Without a stable lower body, you can't borrow enough external force, and your punch will feel weak and floaty, unable to unleash its full potential. If your stance is stable, your stability increases, you can maintain balance while twisting and maneuvering, and your counters will be faster and stronger.
Kay's master once told him, "When judging a martial artist, look at their legs first. See if they walk with power and stability. If their steps are weak and airy, they're definitely just showing off. No matter how pretty they look while fighting, in a real fight, the truth will be immediately obvious."
Kay remembered this principle his whole life. That's why he never missed a day of performing horse stance and standing pole exercises. Naturally, he taught Arthur the same things. But after ten years, Arthur had apparently forgotten all of Kay's instructions.
This annoyed Kay.
Arthur was Arthur!
He was destined to be King! In this era, a king must possess strength, because the times were not safe. Take that griffin the other day, for example. Was that the only griffin in the whole world?
Come on!
Monsters like that were abundant outside human territory! In this dangerous age, only strength could guarantee survival.
Again: Arthur was Arthur!
The name "King Arthur" was no joke. Even in his previous life, Kay, who knew little about foreign culture, knew a few stories about the Knight King.
After encountering so many figures from ancient mythology—Zeus, Gilgamesh, Odin—Kay wasn't sure if Arthur getting that name was a coincidence anymore.
If even Zeus, Gilgamesh, and Odin showed up, why couldn't King Arthur be here too?
"Get up!"
Kay decided to give Arthur a serious lesson, to teach him the price of complacency! Arthur was meant to be King Arthur!
If he was truly this weak, how could he change the legendary tragic ending? If Kay didn't know Arthur, it wouldn't matter. But now that Arthur was his little brother, he couldn't let Arthur suffer that horrible fate!
Though Kay's knowledge of the Arthurian legend was limited to the basics—Arthur was awesome, then he was cheated on, then he was betrayed, and then he died. He didn't know the specifics of Arthur's downfall. After all, Kay in his previous life didn't have a specific interest in that area; he grew up in a traditional household and rarely sought out foreign culture, aside from listening to foreign music and watching a few blockbuster movies.
However, Kay held a very simple belief: if Arthur was stronger than he was in the legends, he could definitely change his destiny.
Arthur was no longer a child; he wouldn't cry after a fall. He quickly got back up and raised his sword again. The education he received did not allow him to surrender easily.
Seeing Arthur's resolute appearance, Kay felt a bit of relief.
"Now that's more like it. Otherwise, I'd have to wonder what you've been doing for the last ten years." With that, Kay picked up another wooden sword from a nearby rack. He was a dual-wielder; he didn't care for the sword-and-shield style most knights preferred.
Kay executed a flourish with his right hand, holding the wooden sword in a reverse grip, while the wooden sword in his left hand pointed directly at Arthur.
"Begin!" Following Kay's shout, he used a sliding step to charge at Arthur, the wooden sword in his right hand swinging diagonally down toward Arthur's head.