Chapter 12 - Testing You (1/2)

After five minutes of walking around the mansion, Nathalia and Luke finally reached their final destination.

There was a huge hall with three training dolls, which varied in size. There was a dummy that was only five feet tall, another that was six feet tall, and lastly, one that was two and a half feet tall.

”What will this so-called test be like?” Luke questioned as he entered the hall, which seemed to be a hall specifically for sword training. He could deduce this because there was a shelf with various types of swords.

There were curved swords like the one he got as a gift from Ynosuke, and also large swords like Claymores and other types.

”Simple fencing, how about it?” The half-wolf didn't hide the confused expression he had gotten, and Nathalia realizing this, began to explain: ”The goal is to touch the opponent with the saber. Every time you are touched or touch me, a point will be counted. Is that clear?”

”I believe I will understand it better in practice.” Luke said and dropped his bag of luggage on the floor beside the door.

Nathalia smiled and walked over to the vase where some wooden swords stood. They both didn't understand the difference between saber and sword back then.

”Take that!” The young woman threw a wooden sword to the half-wolf. Knock! The boy caught it with ease. ”Let's make it the best of three.”

Although he was a little nervous, Luke felt he would be fine as long as he wasn't provoked. Since he felt that Nathalia was not that kind of woman, he was more relaxed.

Nathalia moved to one side of the room and Luke walked to the other. It was still early, so not much light was coming in through the huge panes of glass in the room, however, the cold wind was.

”Do you need a count?” The young lady asked.

”No. You can come.”

— At the same time, in the twisting alleys of Oukiwa. —

Zeld, an eleven-year-old teenager, who had joined the Revengers Thief Gang less than a year ago, arrived in desperation at a busy tavern. As he was only a child, he was received courteously by the young nobles in the place.

That day, legends about The Beast of the Oukiwa Woods began to spread like a plague through the city.

*

”Ah, how can you be so quick?” Nathalia, frustrated, asked Luke. She could barely make the attack movement before she felt the quick touch of the sword tip.

”You had said it was best of three, and it's already five to zero. I don't know what it's like here in Vasconcelos, but where I come from, things don't work that way.” Luke teased her.

Nathalia smiled and invested again against the boy. With minimal movements, the half-wolf made all the girl's attempts fail disastrously.

He didn't want to humiliate her. He was just enjoying the moment to have some fun too because the girl was not bad at all.

Although the young lady looked very pretty with a ponytail, nothing could take the half-wolf's attention away from her feet, which moments before denounced where she would attack. Since the half-wolf made the same mistakes as a teenager, he thought about giving some hints about this, only it surprised him that the Class-B instructor did not point out this mistake.

With a quick jab, Luke aimed to hit the girl's shoulder like the other times. However, Nathalia was no idiot who would be caught without realizing her own mistakes. The young girl changed the support of her left foot for the right one at the last second and this made her manage to dodge, only dodge and not attack.

As both were too fast, the shock was inevitable. Toomp! Her head hit the half-wolf's rigid abdomen. The wooden swords flew into the air and made a noise as they hit the ground. Tock! Tock!

Luke couldn't support the girl's weight with only one foot on the ground, which caused them both to fall to the ground as well.