Chapter 40: Sparring
Clank!
Alexander jumped back in a hurry to avoid the attack aimed at his chest. He held out the sword in his hand, the light of the bright combat room glinting off its pristine edges.
Arbus smirked a bit as he stared at him, causing Alexander to sport a similar grin on his face.
"Not... bad. I'm starting to sweat a bit," Alexander wheezed, his hands still feeling sore from taking the full brunt of Arbus's attacks.
This was already their fourth match together, and yet he still couldn't believe it.
That a half-Human was capable of matching a white Mornan so easily. In fact, no one in the room could.
White Mornans were considered one of the elites in the Mornan race because of their strength. They were almost five times stronger than a blue Mornan, and seven times stronger than a red on average.
A half-human being able to compare to one was unheard of for most. Everyone already knew he was also half-Tarokian, but none of them really kept that in mind. After all, half-Humans were usually significantly weaker than their Human and non-human parents, often never developing traits beyond physical appearance from either. But clearly, Arbus wasn't one of those.
That fact scared a few of the trainees, but the majority no longer cared. They were here to train, not obsess over every detail concerning a half-Human outcast. If the organization had confirmed he wasn't human, then that was enough for them. They seemed to see him like the three white Mornans now. The top brass that they shouldn't bother competing with.
"Are you really sure about that? Because you don't look as confident as you sound," Arbus said, excitement flickering in his expression as he charged at Alexander.
He was so fast that the Bocheanders present had trouble keeping up with him using just two eyes. So they made more on their faces, causing their Mornan classmates to feel creeped out.
"So cool," Nota blurted out from the side as she watched the fight. That earned her a glare from a few of the trainees present.
Arbus kept pushing forward, forcing Alexander back with each attack and causing him to parry relentlessly. He slipped through each block and each deflection, tagging him more times than he could count in the heat of the moment. The reinforced training suits they all had on were the only thing stopping the attacks from reaching Alexander's pale skin.
Alexander's face tightened as he kept trying to block, no doubt feeling the jolts going through his body after every hit that got through. His eyes suddenly widened as he finally managed to deflect another attack, only to see Arbus's other hand shooting forward to clamp down on his wrist. "You're too focused on my weapon," Arbus said, repeating the same thing he'd heard dozens of times from his master. "That's a rookie mistake," he added before leaning back, and then head-butting Alexander, sending him flying across the room.
Several eyes went wide at the scene.
Alexander grunted at the sudden attack, twisting midair as he regained his bearings and landed with a glide.
He stabbed his sword into the floor to steady himself, breathing heavily. "Well, damn. That was unexpected. Thought we were focusing on just swords, Teacher?" he asked Instructor Harves, who was watching from the side.
"You are," Instructor Harves said with a laugh as he walked in between the two fighters. "That's what kept you distracted, wasn't it? You have to remember that just because you're using a weapon doesn't mean the rest of your body stops existing," he said, glancing back at everyone in the room.
Alex grunted, scratching the back of his head with a sigh. "I guess that's fair. Oh well, it's not like swords are my specialty anyways."
Harves turned to Arbus with a smile. "Good job, Arbus."
"Thanks, instructor," Arbus said with a bow. He had grown to like Harves more than the other instructors, since his praise always seemed more genuine.
"There's no need for that. I'm just telling you the obvious," Harves said with a dismissive wave.
Clap!
"Okay then! That's it for today, I believe. I'll see those of you interested in spear training here tomorrow," Harves said before turning toward the door and leaving, his tail dragging across the floor behind him.
The handful of trainees in the room filtered out after him, likely heading to other areas of the facility to continue training.
Arbus glanced at his roommate that he'd gotten a bit closer with over the weeks, a faint smile playing on his lips as he placed his sword on the podium that emerged from the ground.
"Are you sure you're cut out for this knight stuff? You're really terrible at even holding a blade, aren't you?"
Alexander glanced towards Arbus incredulously. "Oh, you sound so confident just because you can swing things around. Alright then, how about we head to the gun range next and shoot a few rounds? I would like to see how a legendary knight trainee like you performs."
Arbus remained silent for several moments before glancing away. "Well... I don't think there's any need for that, really."
"Oh, what's that? It sounds like you're scared," Alexander said with a smile.
"No, definitely not. It's just, I'm so tired all of a sudden, y'know. It must be because of the mental training room. I think I need to lay down for a bit."
"Yeah, right. That's definitely it," Alexander laughed as both of them walked out of the white room as well.
They walked down the hallway toward their quarters and passed several other students. Among them was Rin, scion of the Dune clan, followed closely by a clique of blue Mornan girls.
Arbus's gaze met hers almost immediately. Her blue eyes were cold, housing a mix of resentful emotions directed at him.
"You don't belong here." Rin said without slowing.
Arbus frowned but said nothing as they passed each other. Alexander shot her a frown as well but didn't respond, respecting Arbus's choice to ignore the taunt.
'What could have possibly happened to her to generate that much hatred in her?' Arbus thought.
He wasn't actually sure if he ever wanted to find out.