"Are you the kiddo who sent Sergeant Red's leg flying?"
An unfamiliar man approached Han at the stamina training center. He was a tan man from Southeast Asia.
He had incredibly high cheekbones and sported a five o'clock shadow, which gave him a sharp look. He was on the shorter side, but had a sturdy physical build. He had a boxer's physique.
"If I had been the one to personally send it flying, I would be more at ease," upon Han's words the man roared with laughter.
"I thought a cute stray cat had arrived, but you are just a baby tiger."
Han had become accustomed to the third year's speech patterns the last few days. The soldiers who resided in the same dorm as he did, referred to him as a rookie as well.
He tried alcohol for the first time in his life in this place. The soldiers of Ark are constantly dispatched out together with the first generation veteran soldiers. Many people who resided in this place had taken part in the first wave of aggression. No one in this place held prejudice against psykers.
"I'm Han Lee."
"I'm Laocha . Welcome to third year, kiddo."
Han felt strange. Laocha's height didn't reach 170 cm. Han had met an adult shorter than himself for the first time. He suddenly felt how huge his own body had become.
"Corporal Laocha ?" Han called wondering if he got the other party's name correct. Laocha eyes widened slightly.
"How did you know?"
"I read your name on your jacket when you were hanging it up over there."
"As the rumors say, you've got good eyes." Laocha already read over Han's profile. He's a long time military veteran with many experiences under his belt.
He was dispatched during the first wave of aggression. The psykers were not the only heroes of war during those days. There were many regular foot soldiers fighting against the minions as well.
"Do you have any business with me? Corporal Laocha."
Laocha was only dubbed a corporal, but he was different from any common corporal that could be found in Ark. The titles given to the soldiers of Ark were merely for formality and convenience's sake.
They were all the elite amongst the elite, and were the heroes of their own countries. They were all the protagonists of their own movies.
"I heard you fight well. I heard your constitution and weapon handling skills are amazing."
Laocha's enthusiasm seemed to burn fervently. One could feel the aura of the strong from the man. There was a difference between those who were self-proclaimed strong and those who were actually strong.
Instructor Wei, Silence, Dimitri…. they're prideful warriors who do not dwell on failure.
'Does he want to fight me?'
Han looked toward Laocha. Laocha's body was densely packed with mostly muscles. He was like the smelted blade of a knife.
"My grades were good."
"Let's see your skills, kiddo."
Laocha who was shorter, continued to refer to Han as kid. Nonetheless, he was a seasoned soldier and he didn't make the atmosphere awkward at all.
"I have no reason to fight against Corporal Laocha."
"Are you scared? Or maybe you're a dunce head that can't fight without psychic powers." Laocha sneered. The other soldiers training in the physical fitness center laughed. The third years pushed Han into agreeing to spar.
"I don't care if you get hurt, Corporal Laocha." Han said while taking off his shirt. Han wasn't the type to depend on psychic powers to fight in battle. He continued to train his physical body every single day without a day of break.
He always ranked high for close combat during all of first and second year. He was always known as a squad leader so this fact had been forgotten, but Han was very strong even based on battle skills alone.
"Ooh, I'm scared."
Laocha raised his arms and pretended to tremble in fear. Han was confident in his own skills. Not to mention, his bone density and muscle fibers were stronger than your average human.
"OOOH, a fight!"
"That asian is the new transfer, good luck!"
The soldiers cheered for Han. Han suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
'They're cheering for me, instead of Laocha. Usually, people would cheer for the one who would most likely lose. Are they implying that I will lose?'
Han temporarily became lost in his own thoughts. In that moment, Laocha's fist came flying.
Hwiik!
Laocha's fist skimmed past his ears. His punch was shockingly fast. He was like a boxer.
'He didn't hit me on purpose.'
Han could tell Laocha went easy on him. Laocha noticed since long ago that Han had something on his mind.
"Bring it, kiddo."
Laocha sneered and beckoned him with his finger. Han opened his attack with a standard attack combination of a one-two punch and a kick. It was simple, but a strong and effective attack. With the additional power of his artificially strengthened body, this attack wasn't to be looked down upon.
Kwajik!
Laocha took a step back. The one-two punch swooshed and just missed his chin. Then, he swiftly raised his knee to block the kick.
'Heavy punch. His bone density is tougher so it feels like he attacked me with a hammer. This is proof that he has been consistently training his physical body.'
Laocha felt relaxed. He was a master of martial arts. Before he was a soldier, he was already trained in Muay Thai.
Just like the youths of Ark, he was separated from his parents at 10 to master the art of Muay Thai. This was a common path in his home country.
'An artificially strengthened body becomes a critical weakness.'
Laocha laughed and threw a punch. The straight punch was like a flashing light as it attacked Han straight in the face.
Kwa-jik!
A rough sound resounded in the physical training center. Han blinked his eyes. He was having a hard time believing this moment was not a dream. His nose just broke. Before he had a moment to breathe, Laocha kicked Han's flank.
Bbu-duk!
A crack formed in his ribs. Han gritted his teeth and grabbed onto Laocha's arm.
'I can't win against him with simple attacks. I have to get a hold of him to defeat him.'
Han's quick wit shined a light of hope. He pushed forward with this plan.
"Good decision!" Laocha said as he was getting pushed back by Han. He let himself get pushed back until they were just before some exercise equipments, and lowered his body.
Han couldn't land his attack and crashed into the exercise equipment. Heavy metal rods and dumbbells poured down onto him like rain.
He would have had many broken bones and would have been knocked out with critical injuries, if not for his artificially strengthened body.
Wooong!
Han's eyes momentarily glowed with light.
"Stop! We'll end our spar here," Laocha shouted. Han suddenly realized he was going to use his telekinetic powers. He almost sent the steel bars and dumbells flying in the air.
He had been training himself to react instinctively without having to process every single detail of battle. He felt that his life was in danger, and forgot this was to be a bare-handed spar.
Laocha was just that strong.
'I almost seriously injured Corporal Laocha.'
Corporal Laocha was just a normal human. Steel bars and dumbells would kill him.
"Apologies."
"No, any man should have that much aggression and spirit. It's better than hiding your tail like a rat."
Han cooled his body off with an ice pack. He was black and blue all over. He used some bandages to patch up his broken nose. Han reviewed the short battle like a professional go player would, after the fact.
'The speed of his legs and hands are no joke. It's the first time I've seen someone move so fast. His center of balance is also kept in perfect position. I was thrown by my own strength and caused my own downfall.'
Han recognized he had fought blindly without any sort of plan or technique. Han's battle style was geared more towards intelligence, but in the face of Laocha's skills, all was for naught.
"… Limbs become many times heavier for those with artificially strengthened bodies. Our muscles are many times stronger, but our bones are also that much heavier…"
"The muscle fiber and bone density is increased by many folds, and as a result, the body becomes that much heavier. You're able to physically withstand the worst attacks, but on the flip side there is a huge weakness. Though your muscles have bulked up, you must also use twice as much energy to attack your opponent. A strong physique like yours is a requirement for piloting psychoframes. You shouldn't have blindly attacked me if you correctly observed my physique. I've trained myself to effectively evade most attacks."
Han felt a fog of his mind clear. All his thoughts became well organized upon Laocha's words. Artificially strengthened bodies excel in all aspects versus the normal counterparts. However, there is a limit to mastering a certain martial arts to its best form.
"I see."
"I've heard that you have good judgement. However, matters such as this can only be learned through personal experience. That is why you're still a student. Kiddo. You still have a mountain of things to learn and master."
Laocha lent Han a hand and helped him up. Han felt that Laocha's hands were rock hard with calluses.
"Did you pick a fight with me to teach me this?"
Laocha scratched his chin.
"I'm not one to enjoy the art of lecturing. If that was the case, I would have become an instructor."
Han observed Laocha's eyes and behavior. He mentally thought back from the beginning of the first day, to when he met Laocha just now.
"I see that Sergeant Red especially requested you to help me. Maybe it was Instructor Wei?"
Laocha flinched. He stared into Han's eyes.
'You're really quick to catch on.'
Laocha was a longtime close friend of Sergeant Red. It was decided that he would be the one to temporarily train Han until Sergeant Red made a full recovery.
-We have to continue to train him to become the best striker that we can get. It's not possible for him to become a pilot candidate for psychoframes based on strong leadership alone.
These were the words that Sergeant Red relayed to Laocha. Laocha confirmed Han's observations with silence.
"Come out here again at this time tomorrow. If you don't feel that it's necessary for me to help you, then it's fine not to come here. We don't force any sort of training on anyone here. You should judge what you think is best for yourself."
Han believed he still had a lot to learn from Laocha. Han already realized how important 'actual' battle experience was during his past fights.