Tiel's legs felt weak, and he couldn't do anything but bend his knees as he tried to stand firm. The strength behind Mo'an's kick was terrifying, making him grind his teeth while the ground under his feet cracked. It was a miracle that his wrists, which were in front of his face, didn't snap in two; they bore the brunt of the kick, and for a second, Tiel had feared they would break, but they luckily didn't.
After the torturous training of his scary teacher, his bones were much sturdier than average – Tiel still didn't know whether he should be grateful or resent his sadistic master for this. The pain he went through to strengthen his bones, as well as the rest of his body, was unbearable, making him wish to drop dead every time he had to train. Sometimes, he regretted the choice he had made as a child.
Back then, little Tiel was in awe of his father, La'en. One day, that man had decided to let everyone know just how robust his body was and had asked other warriors to hit him to their heart's content (no sure-kill moves were allowed, though). The result was that before his father admitted defeat, they all fell to the ground, their hands and feet throbbing – some even broke their bones.
Of course, La'en was bruised from head to toe, but he was still standing on his own two feet. Little Tiel had found it so cool that he had decided to follow his father's path, going as far as to choose the same master. Little did he know that what awaited him was years of hell.
But at least, that hell allowed him to stand on his own two feet when he faced monsters like Mo'an. Otherwise, he wouldn't even be able to block one of his friend's attack without being severely injured or blow away. Just that single kick made his whole body cry in pain, and he didn't have the time to catch his breath that another flying kick flew toward his head. His heart skipped a beat while his body acted on reflex, slightly rotating his torso to dodge the incoming feet. Despite his fast reaction, it still grazed his cheek, leaving a bloody scratch in its wake. The red particularly stood out on his white skin, making the spectators gasp. If Tiel had been any slower, his nose would have ended up busted.
In mid-air, Mo'an used the momentum of her kick to spin, her elbow targeting once again her friend's head. He swiftly blocked her attack with his hand, trying to grab her arm in passing. He was thinking of immobilizing her. However, she had already moved out of reach, and Tiel's finger grasped nothing but air.
Mo'an's landed on the ground, crouching. A cloud of dust rose, hovering between the two fighters.
The teenage girl stared at her prey, her golden eyes shining with excitement. A bit earlier, the prospect of a good fight had awoken her inner beast and put her in a predatory state. She was only thinking about fighting and subduing the prey in front of her. The excitement was growing stronger and stronger, and all of her senses became much sharper.
Before pouncing on Tiel again, Mo'an took a second to quell her bloodlust; she had realized her mindset was dangerously changing, becoming less and less rational. The one standing in front of her was her childhood friend. She didn't want to go into a frenzy! Although it would boost her physical capacity, she would also be too engrossed in her fight, unable to stop until her opponent was lying on the ground, half-dead. She loved to win, but not at the expense of her friends. She didn't want to wound Tiel seriously, much less kill him.
Her synergy with her inner beast was indeed high, but with that came strong bestial desires. Therefore, every time she fought with a comrade, she also had to fight against herself to maintain her humanity. In a few years, resisting her inner beast's bloodlust would become easier, but right now, she was still too young to control her other half completely. It was something that came with time, and until then, she could only try to compromise with her inner beat's desires.
Licking her small fangs, she glanced over at her brother, who stood on the side. When Shi'an felt her gaze, he discreetly nodded. Then, her attention immediately turned back to Tiel. She was distracted for a mere second, and since Shi'an stood behind Tiel, her friend didn't notice her inattention. Instead, he welcomed the breather with open arms, thinking she was pondering on her next move.
Although the young man was standing on the ring with a straight back, Tiel was drenched in sweat and blood. They had been fighting for over 10 minutes, and that gave her ample time to cut the upper layer of his skin over and over again. Even if she had been careful not to lacerate her friend to the bones, she still ended up cutting his body a few times. She was too used to use her claws when she fought; the movements were engraved in her body, and she couldn't always restraint herself. Luckily, it was all flesh wounds that could be easily treated.
However, Mo'an could tell Tiel was nearing his limits. He had been defending himself against her consecutive attacks for so long already, which required all of his concentration. To follow each of her every move, he couldn't afford to be distracted, not even for a second. He wasn't as fast as her, and thus he had to compensate for the lack of speed by eliminating unnecessary movements. Every time he moved, it was for a particular purpose. He didn't waste any energy, but it was mentally taxing.
Moreover, Tiel was barely able to protect himself and always dodged at the last moment. In the back of his mind, he also knew his friend wasn't fighting with all of her might. If she decided to fight seriously, he wouldn't last a second.
Without any warning, Mo'an leaped, disappearing from Tiel's sight. Alarm bells rang in his head, and the young man instinctively threw himself onto the ground, rolling in the sand. A loud 'bang' resonated throughout the training ground, sending a shiver down his spine. When he lifted his eyes, all he saw was a small crater where he had previously stood, but Mo'an was nowhere in sight. The strength being her attack was so monstrous that it had broken the sturdy stones beneath the sand, leaving many spectators dumbfounded.
Weren't the stones they had chosen for the training ground ridiculously solid? How come they broke so easily!?
Tiel could care less about the spectators' mood; his own mood wasn't that good. Again, he didn't think before rolling on the side, avoiding another deadly attack.
Panting, Tiel looked at Mo'an with a heavy heart. If he weren't a beastman who entirely trusted his inner beat's instinct, he would have died by her hands a few times already.
While Tiel was preparing himself for her next attack, he suddenly heard Nael's voice, "Tiel wins!"
Only then did he realize that Mo'an had stepped out of the ring. When he had previously dodged, he had gotten closer to the edge, and after escaping her flying kick by rolling on the ground a second time, Mo'an missed her target and landed outside the ring. She had lost, and he had won.
"Why did you dodge my last attack?" pouted Mo'an with pursed lips.
For a moment, no one said anything, and the training ground was so quiet that people could hear their own breathing. No one made a sound until someone burst out laughing. It wasn't long before the rest followed, and everyone shook with laughter.
Amidst the noise, Tiel answered with a helpless tone, "Because I value my life!"
In response, Mo'an stuck out her tongue. Soon, she shooed him away, and Tiel didn't hesitate to drag his tired body out of the ring for fear of a second round.
Her eyes scanned the crowd, and Mo'an asked with a playful smile, "Someone else is up for a sparring match with me?"
One fight wasn't enough to satisfy her beast, and it also wasn't enough to get used to her new body. Although the sparring match with Tiel gave her a rough idea of what she needed to be careful of when she moved around, she still needed to fight many times to fully understand how the changes in her body affected her fighting style.
However, Mo'an didn't have much hope. Almost no one had the capacity to confront her in a fight, after all, and no one dared to propose themself only to court death. When she was about to call Nael over, a hoarse voice unexpectedly answered, "How about me?"
Mo'an lifted her eyes, and she couldn't conceal her surprise when she saw to whom belonged the voice.
"Master Ru!" she exclaimed, looking at the man whose age was impossible to tell. He was standing in front of the crowd with an upright posture, his hands behind his back.
A smile bloomed on her face, and Mo'an added, "It would be my pleasure!"
On the side, Tiel felt conflicted. Should he be cheering on his friend or his master? Because both were monsters, he decided that neither of them needed his cheers. He might as well sit and rest while he could. After all, that friend of his could very well call him over later. He didn't believe that girl would be satisfied with only two sparring matches.