Day 17:

"Now that you've learned to both attack and defend, it's time to put those skills to the test in combat."

I swing my training sword and point it at him.

"Sparring? Finally. I've been itching to pay you back for all those bruises you've given me in the past week."

"Hmph, at least you're eager to start. The rules are simple, your objective is to land a hit on me using any moves you've learned. I'll be doing the same, but i'm only going to use half of my strength."

"Huh? Only half? Are you sure you wan-!?"

Without warning, Eric closes the distance between us and strikes me with his training sword, sending me rolling on the ground.

I cough loudly as i struggle to get back up.

"Grunt! Why didn't you give me a warning!? I thought we were just sparring!"

He slowly walks towards me.

"Then you understood wrong. This is real combat. Your enemy won't give you a warning when he's going to attack you. Now, get up."

I shout loudly and charge at him, attempting to strike him.

Despite the strength i put into it, he blocks it effortlessly, his hand not wavering even slightly.

"What the-!?"

He taps my sword out of the way and strikes the side of my head, causing me to fall on my knees.

"Gah!"

"You died. Get up."

I growl at him and try to strike his feet while i'm still on the ground.

He intercepts it by stabbing his sword on the ground, then kicks me on the side, the force making me slide across the grass.

"You died again. Get up."

I try to breath calmly as i get up and take my stance.

Now isn't the time to lose my cool.

I have to approach this carefully, i need to analyze his movements and...!?

He rushes to my position and i can see him winding up his arm for a strike to my left.

Endur-!

His strike sends me flying and my back hits the big tree, causing its branches to shake and drop leaves.

He walks up to me and squats down.

"Don't tell me you're tired already, we've barely started. Get up."

I'd tell him to go screw himself, but i have trouble breathing.

"I sent Anna and Ava to Luton to buy some supplies for our departure, meaning she isn't hear to interrupt us. She'll be back in the evening, so we have the whole day to ourselves."

He sees me having trouble getting up, so he grabs the back of my collar and makes me stand up.

"Here, let me give you hand."

As soon as he lets go, i almost fall again, but i manage to stay on my feet.

"Good, you can still stand."

Before i can even raise my sword, he strikes me to the ground again.

"Augh!"

I land on my stomach, my face pressed against the grass.

"Sigh, i guess we can take a break."

He says and walks away.

This is a complete turn around of his personality, why is he acting this way?

I can taste some dirt in my mouth as i try to get back up.

"Breaks over, let's continue the lesson."

With wide eyes i turn to look at him from below when he suddenly kicks my side.

This one sided sparring is making me angry, so in a adrenaline fueled fury, i force myself to get up and charge at him.

"RAAH!"

After that it was black.

My eyes slowly open and i notice the sky has turned a little orange.

Did i pass out?

There's no way he actually knocked me out again?

Last time he felt so bad about it, so why is he acting like this now?

Not to mention my body hurts like hell.

"Oh, you're awake, good. I emptied out the shed for you."

He lifts me up by my shirt and tosses me inside.

"Ah!"

I wince as i land on the rough ground face first.

"I told Anna you insisted on sleeping outside, i don't need her healing up your bruises."

With that he slams the door shut and i can hear something click.

"Uhh..."

I crawl towards the door and try to push it.

Damn it, its locked.

Growl...

The feeling of hunger catches me by surprise, the last time i ate was before our training.

Any remaining lights coming from cracks of the shed quickly die out and i can't see anything, i guess it's evening already.

To my knowledge, we don't store any food in the shed, so trying to find anything will be pointless.

All i can do right now is to find a comfortable position and assess the damage.

One by one, i analyze every muscle in my body by slightly flexing them to see which ones are hurting.

"Nnn... ahh..."

Good, no cracks, just bruises.

Another skill i developed during my time in the WWEF, it'll come in handy in this world.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

I don't know if it qualifies as a martial technique or something similar, but it's a good thing that at least one of my own techniques stayed with me.

But that's enough thinking, i have to conserve my energy for tomorrow, just need to push aside my pain and hunger.

Day 18:

Click!

The shed door opens and the morning light wakes me up.

"Wake up, it's time for training."

"Ugh..."

I roll on my stomach and get on my hands and knees.

Eric takes a few steps back and sets down a plate on the grass.

"I brought you some breakfast. We'll start after you've eaten."

My mouth is too dry for speech, so i just slowly crawl towards the plate.

I reach out to grab it when suddenly Eric kicks me on the side, making me roll on the grass.

"Cough, cough!"

"You seem to be misunderstanding something, Alex. Right now i'm your enemy, if you want to eat, you have to get through me first."

I grit my teeth and shout at him.

"YOU BASTARD!"

My training sword is near me, so i grab it and charge at him.

Once i'm in his range, he aims his sword for my head, but i duck under it and aim to strike under his armpit.

His eyes narrow slightly and he steps back, making me miss my mark.

His sword descends upon me, but i manage to block.

Despite this however, while holding his sword with just one hand, he forces me on one knee.

With a flick of his wrist, he strikes my sword off my hands and hits my head, knocking me hard to the ground.

"What's the matter? Didn't you want to become stronger? Get up."

"Eric! Are you hurting him again!?"

Anna shouts from the backyard door.

"Stay out of this Anna! This is part of his training! He has to learn how to survive if he's meant to fend for himself!"

He extends his arm to stop Anna from coming closer.

Anna looks worried, but decides to listen to him and goes back inside.

As i don't have a sword anymore, i have to resort to my fists.

I get up and start circling around him, switching between left and right, trying to prompt him to attack or look for an opening.

I try to get closer to my sword, but he notices this and walks over to it, keeping it within his range.

My foot hits a small rock, so i pick it up and throw it at him.

His eyes lock into it, blocking it with his sword, while i rush towards him at the same time.

My body is low to the ground for an attack to his legs.

He continues his swing from blocking the rock to aiming for me, but i planned for this to happen.

The sword barely misses me as i jump, my body twisting in the air to deliver a spinning high-kick to his head.

My foot is about to hit its mark when he suddenly grabs it with his left hand, my blood rushing to my head when he begins to spin me around before throwing me hard against the ground.

"GAH!"

I feel dizzy and try to stand up, the last thing i see when i lift my head is Eric's sword before everything turns to black.

Day 19:

"Haa... haa..."

My body is hurting even more than yesterday.

Looks like i over-exerted myself more than i intended and now i'm paying for it in the form of muscle and joint pain.

I thought my training would get me much farther, but i'm being completely manhandled.

Well, what did i expect, he's an adult while i'm just a kid.

I also didn't get to eat or drink yesterday, my mouth feels dry when i breathe.

The morning sun begins to shine through the cracks of the shed walls, i guess it's morning already.

Suddenly i hear the backyard door open, it must be Eric.

His footsteps are coming closer, so I try to push through the pain to get up.

Next to me i see my training sword, so i grab it and prepare for him to open the door.

Click!

"Time to get up, Alex. Your enemy won't care if you're tired or exhausted, those are just opportunities for him to strike the killing blow."

The door opens and his eyes go wide when i lunge at him at the same time.

Time slows down for him, perhaps a testament of his skill and he twists his body to dodge my sword.

While i'm mid-air, he grabs the back of my shirt then knees my stomach, causing me to vomit... nothing.

"Bleurgh!"

He then drops me to the ground and looks down on me.

"Hmph, looks like you still have some fight left in you. Good."

Day 20:

"As i said, you get to drink this glass of water only if you manage to hit me."

My head hurts and the training sword feels heavy in my hands.

No food or water for three days, i don't know how long i'll last at this rate.

"If you won't come, then i will. Recovery is a luxury your enemy won't let you have."

Klack, klack, klack!

He strikes three times from various angles, all which i manage to block despite my exhaustion.

I jump away from him, then begin running circles around him.

"That trick won't work on me, Alex. I have no openings!"

I know that, but i have to try anyway.

At this point i've also stopped questioning the purpose of this lesson.

It's just as he says, all of this is part of my training.

I charge in, unleashing a flurry of blows.

As always, he blocks every single one with little effort.

I step back before rushing in again to strike him multiple times.

Step in, attack, retreat.

I repeat this pattern a few times.

Operating on what little energy i have left, i formulated a simple and risky plan.

Every time i moved in to strike him, i started with a downward swing, to trying instill a pattern into his subconscious.

Dirt flies when i kick the ground to charge towards Eric, and before i even raise my sword, he raises his sword to block it.

Yes, this might even work!

"Haa!"

I shout and raise my sword, then strike down.

Our swords almost touch when I suddenly drop to the ground and slide between his legs behind him.

With a loud and annoyed grunt, he turns around and sees me approach him again.

He prepares to block, but then I stop abruptly and throw my sword at him.

He's visibly surprised and strikes the flying sword out of the way, only to see me rush towards the glass of water sitting on the outdoor table.

"Don't even think about it!"

He runs after me and tries to catch me.

I feel him closing the distance, so in a desperate attempt, I leap toward the table.

I crash into it, grabbing the glass of water and bringing the rim to my lips.

Most of it spills, but I manage to take a few gulps.

Eric grabs me and i grin at him defiantly before he knocks me out.

Day 21:

"Caw, caw!"

A crow sits atop the shed under the moon light, poking its beak against the ceiling, causing dust and dirt to fall on my face.

"Shut... up..."

I barely manage to mutter, futile attempt to shoo the crow away.

My body hurts too much to analyze any specific injuries, just some more bruises and a few cracks.

What's this, day five?

Five days of merciless beatings.

I fail to understand what Eric is trying to teach me, other than that he keeps calling himself my enemy.

I understand that you have to be vigilant when facing an enemy, but there must be something else to it.

This isn't sparring or a demonstration of actual combat.

"Caw, caw!"

Sigh, at least you have something good going for you crow.

Day 22:

Eric strikes my leg and i fall on the ground.

"Ah!"

"You died, now get up."

I'm laying on the ground, face down and not moving.

"Unable to answer, huh? Are you giving up?"

Hearing this makes my hand twitch and i begin to stir.

"A... as... If...."

"Oh, still raring to go? I commend your tenacity, so pick up your sword and fight!"

"Grunt...!"

I stand up, grabbing my sword in the process, then charge at him.

"HAA!"

I try to strike him with reckless abandon, forcing my body to move despite the overwhelming pain.

This short burst of energy doesn't last long though, as my legs give out and i pass out on the ground.

Day 23:

It has been seven days since this last lesson started.

My mouth feels dry, i haven't eaten for seven days, but i managed to drink some water the other day.

Seven days of non-stop beatings, bruises covering most of my body.

I don't know what's going on, but i don't feel any pain for some reason.

I feel light as a feather, almost euphoric, i just hope it doesn't mean anything bad.

Another thing i also noticed is Eric's expression, who's standing in front of me.

He looks... worried, anguished, somethings bothering him.

Our eyes lock and he raises his sword, then charges at me.

I stay still until he swings down, then step out of the way at the last moment and swing my own sword towards his neck.

This effortless dodge surprises him and he blocks my sword with his arm, then jumps back.

"H-Heh, you still have energy left to fight, so be it."

He chuckles nervously and we begin circling each other.

The tension is intense, sweat drops on both of our faces.

Without saying anything, we both charge each other at the same time.

Once i'm in his range, he thrusts his sword for a stabbing attack, to which i answer by dodging it to my left, then swinging my sword to his exposed side.

He sidesteps away, barely missing my sword.

"You're too weak, Alex! You can't hit me!"

That might be true, but i'm running on fumes anyway, so might as well go all out!

"HAA!"

I run towards him to close the distance and strike him.

He blocks it and with impressive footwork, steps behind me for a sweeping attack.

I duck under it and try to kick him, but he manages to step back in time.

I run after him and exchange a series of blows, our wooden sword clacking rapidly.

"It's useless, Alex! Give up!"

He strikes my sword off my hands, making it fly behind me.

"Never!"

I jump at him with clenched fists.

A two-strike combination aimed at his face, which he barely manages to avoid.

He grabs me by the collar, then slams me to the ground.

I roll backwards and throw a fistful of dirt at him, forcing him to guard his face to avoid being blinded.

This left his mid-section open for an attack however, so i grab my sword and lunge at him.

I have no energy left for another attack, so i put everything i have into this last strike.

"RAAH"

Eric lowers his arms and his eyes go wide as he sees my approaching attack.

"KH!"

What the-!?

In a blink of an eye, he circles behind me.

He grabs the sword handle with both hands, then raises it up high while i'm still lunging forward.

An ominous feeling fills me with dread and i suddenly feel that tingling sensation on my back.

Without even thinking about it, i twist my body mid-air at the same time Eric strikes down.

His sword is about to hit me and i use the momentum from my spin to swing my sword faster.

Clack!

I manage to strike his hands, sending his sword flying.

"Ah!"

He reels back from the pain and i fall on my back on the ground.

"Huff, huff!"

I breathe rapidly, everything happened so fast i couldn't properly register it.

Just like last time with that arrow, my body moved on it's on.

I lift my head to look at Eric, who's looking at his own hands.

They're shaking from the strike, bleeding slightly.

He lifts his eyes to look at me with a face of defeat.

"Looks like, i failed."