The rain in Rivervale finally stopped. The sun came out, making the wet tiles of the Vane Family estate shine like gold.
Kaelen was bored. He wandered around the mansion holding a fancy gold silk pouch. Every few seconds, he reached into the pouch, pulled out a white chunk of root, and chewed on it like a snack.
Only Kaelen knew the truth: the pouch wasn't filled with candy. It was filled with expensive medicinal herbs he had chopped up.
This was his brilliant plan. He carried the herbs everywhere so he could eat them secretly and gain Divine Essence points anytime, anywhere.
Kaelen walked into a quiet courtyard.
"Hah! Hup!"
He heard loud shouting from behind a red wall. It sounded like people fighting.
"This must be where the guards train," Kaelen thought. "Let's take a look."
He walked through a round stone gate.
The Vane estate was huge. Because they were so rich, they needed protection. They hired many strong guards to stop thieves and bandits from climbing the walls.
Inside the courtyard, there was a large white stone square. Dozens of muscular men in tight clothes were punching wooden training dummies. Thwack! Thwack!
A few older men walked around with their hands behind their backs, correcting the younger guards.
Kaelen walked in. A burly man with a thick neck saw him and bowed.
"Young Lord! You are up early today."
This man was Captain Garen. He used to be a famous bodyguard at the Ironshield Escort Agency. Lord Vane had hired him to train the family guards.
"I'm just walking around," Kaelen said, munching on a piece of root. He pointed at the men hitting the dummies. "What are they doing?"
"They are practicing the Tiger-Crane Dual Style," Captain Garen said.
"Oh," Kaelen said. "Is it hard to learn? How long does it take?"
Captain Garen shrugged. "It's not a secret technique. If you just want to get strong muscles, one month is enough. But to be a master? That takes years."
Kaelen thought about his stats. Thanks to the Super Assistant System, his strength and speed were now normal. But he didn't know how to fight. If a bandit attacked him, Kaelen would just be a strong punching bag.
He needed skills.
"Teach me," Kaelen said.
"That is not proper... wait, what?!" Captain Garen's eyes went wide.
Did the sun rise in the West today? The lazy Young Lord wanted to work out?
Lord Vane had always wanted Kaelen to be a hero—good at archery, sword fighting, and writing. But Kaelen was spoiled. He hated sweating. He hated studying. He couldn't even cook a bowl of noodles.
But today, he asked to learn kung fu.
"Young Lord, do you really want to learn the Tiger-Crane Style?" Captain Garen asked.
"Yes. Is it a problem?"
"No! No problem at all!" Captain Garen smiled happily. "Come here. I will teach you right now."
Kaelen was actually very interested. In this world, martial arts were important. There were "Heroes" who flew over walls and fought evil.
There were also bad guys. Pirates on the Silver River robbed boats. Bandits in the mountains kidnapped people.
Rich families could hire guards. Poor people had a hard time. Learning martial arts was expensive. You had to pay a master, and you had to eat a lot of meat to get strong. Most people couldn't afford it.
But for Kaelen? It was easy. He had the best teachers and unlimited food.
Captain Garen led Kaelen to an empty wooden dummy.
"Every fighting style has a pattern," Captain Garen explained. "If your enemy knows your pattern, they can predict your moves and beat you. So, you have to be smart."
"The Tiger-Crane Style has six main moves. The first move attacks the chest. If the enemy blocks it, you switch to the next move instantly."
Captain Garen raised his hands.
His hands looked strange.
• His Right Hand was a fist (The Tiger).
• His Left Hand had the fingers curled together like a hook (The Crane).
"Captain, why are your hands like that?" Kaelen asked.
"Watch," Captain Garen grinned.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Captain Garen moved like a blur. His right fist smashed the dummy's chest. His left hook pecked the dummy's head. The wooden dummy spun around wildly, its wooden arms swinging back.
Captain Garen blocked the wooden arms easily.
"First Move!" he shouted.
He finished the set and stopped the spinning dummy with one hand.
"Do you understand, Young Lord?"
Kaelen looked closely at the dummy. The wood was very hard, ironwood. But there were deep round dents in it. Those dents were made by Captain Garen's fingers.
His fingers are like steel hammers, Kaelen thought. If that hit a human skull... crack.
"The Tiger is for power. The Crane is for speed and poking," Captain Garen explained. "You can switch them. Left hand Tiger, Right hand Crane. It confuses the enemy."
Kaelen nodded. "I get it."
"Good. Now, I will show you the moves slowly. Copy me."
For the next hour, Kaelen practiced.
Having a good teacher made a huge difference. Captain Garen fixed every mistake Kaelen made.
"Don't stiffen your shoulders!"
"Bend your knees more!"
If Kaelen had tried to learn from a book, he would have hurt himself. But with Garen watching, he learned safely and quickly.
Kaelen punched the dummy. Thud. It felt good.
"Young Lord," Captain Garen said, looking impressed. "You learn very fast. If you keep practicing like this, I will teach you a Stance Technique later."
Kaelen stopped punching. He wiped sweat from his forehead.
"What is a Stance Technique?"