The air was cold in the training ground located at the edges of the mountains. Trees covered the land, while a towering mountain dominated the horizon. At that moment, Yu stood in front of Haruka with a calm smile, watching her carefully.
"Alright. Now we'll begin the training," Yu said in a firm voice filled with seriousness.
Haruka nodded enthusiastically.
"Yes, sir!"
He raised an eyebrow slightly and said,
"I want you to do everything I tell you without hesitation."
She replied again, her tone full of determination,
"Yes, sir."
Then he said,
"First of all, before anything else… fight me so I can assess your level."
Haruka stepped back, planted her feet firmly on the ground, lowered her body slightly, and raised her arms into a well-trained fighting stance.
She looked at him with sharp eyes and asked,
"Will you use your sword or magic?"
Yu shook his head calmly.
"Of course not. I'll face you using only my physical strength."
Her eyes widened slightly, then she said firmly,
"Then… alright."
He gestured with his hand.
"Go ahead. Start."
The next instant—
Haruka dashed forward.
Two quick steps, then she twisted her body and unleashed a powerful side kick aimed at his waist.
But Yu slid backward with incredible speed.
(So fast…!)
She didn't stop.
She followed up with a high roundhouse kick, then another low kick. Her movements were clean, continuous, and calculated.
But Yu…
He avoided all of them.
He moved with short steps, his body barely tilting, letting the kicks pass just centimeters away.
Suddenly—
Grab!
He caught her leg mid-air.
Her eyes widened in shock.
"—!"
Yu twisted his body and threw her forcefully to the side.
Haruka rolled across the ground, but quickly spun around and stood back up without hesitation.
(No time to think!)
She charged again, this time faster.
She jumped, spun in the air, and launched a double kick toward his chest.
Boom!
Yu stepped back only one step.
He smiled.
"Good."
But in the next moment—
He vanished from in front of her.
(Where—?!)
Impact!
She felt a tremendous force strike her shoulder from the side, sending her backward. She nearly fell, but dug her foot into the ground and steadied herself.
She panted slightly… yet her eyes didn't lose their fire.
"I'm not done yet!"
Another attack.
Kick, spin, slide, heel strike—
Her body was agile and balanced, her physical build strong despite her slender appearance.
But Yu…
He was on a completely different level.
He looked as if he were simply playing with her.
He dodged her attack, then stepped forward just once.
A palm strike to her abdomen.
The air froze in her lungs.
She bent forward unwillingly, and in the same instant Yu placed his foot behind her leg and pushed her shoulder—
Fall!
She slammed hard into the ground.
He then threw a punch toward her face—
but stopped just before his fist touched her.
Silence filled the air.
Yu spoke in a calm but firm voice,
"The fight is over."
Haruka gasped for breath, then let out a light laugh despite her exhaustion.
"…I lost."
Yu extended his hand.
She took it and stood up slowly.
He looked at her with a serious, evaluative gaze, then said,
"To be honest… you surprised me with your performance."
She raised her head to look at him.
"Your physical build is good, your balance is excellent, and your movements aren't random. You're agile…"
Then he added, narrowing his eyes,
"But your speed is inferior to mine, your strength is still lacking, and you leave too many openings while fighting."
Haruka groaned and complained,
"Can't you be a little gentler on my bones? I'm starting to feel like my back is broken… and my leg too."
He replied coldly,
"If you don't like the training, you're free to leave. I'm not forcing you to stay."
She glared at him and said angrily,
"You jerk… fine, fine! Let's continue. What's next?"
Yu gestured with his hand toward the nearby mountain and said,
"First exercise: run around the mountain…
Circle it 500 times."
Haruka froze in place, then shouted in disbelief,
"W-What?! Five hundred?! Are you kidding me?!"
He replied coldly,
"Stop complaining. Your speed is far too slow, and your stamina is low as well. You need to fix that."
She looked at him, startled, then said,
"O-Okay… I admit I'm slow. After watching you fight me, I could barely keep up with you."
Yu began to walk away and said,
"Alright. Goodbye.
When you finish the 500 laps, let me know."
Haruka clenched her fists, steeled her resolve, did a few warm-up stretches, and said,
"I'll start now."
To be continued