Seeing that, Mike's hands moved reflexively to protect himself.
*Bam*
A heavy blow hit Mike's crossed arms and sent him flying several meters back. Even so, he was still able to stabilize himself to land on his two feet.
"Oow..." Mike looked down at his red, sore arms. That old man held back quite a bit, but it still hurts.
"In a battle, you must not distract yourself from your opponent, Mike-sama. Show me your speed and defense." Alfred gave a little direction and performed a barrage of attacks as if not giving his opponent a chance to take a breath.
And, of course, Mike maximized his performance to parry and dodge all of those attacks. He couldn't avoid everything.
Nevertheless, he managed to dodge the fatal direct blows. Even so, he didn't have the chance to strike back.
"Oh my... Is this what I see with my eyes real? Mike-sama is able to keep up with the speed of a Master-level? Even though Master Alfred is holding back, but Mike-sama is the younger generation who can keep up with the senior?" Minako rubbed her eyes gently as if she couldn't believe what she saw with her eyes.
"What you're seeing now is real, Minako-sama. My Mike hasn't honed all his skills properly. He's just honed his agility, speed, and defense to an impressive level." Yuna smiled to convey that. She felt proud and happy for some reason.
"Ah, so it's like that. But, yes, we haven't had enough time to hone all of our skills to the best level. However, uhm, yes... If I may ask, how old is Mike-sama and what rank is he at?" Minako nodded in understanding and asked Yuna frankly.
"Ah, uhm... For that, you'd better ask Mike directly." Yuna was having trouble in her mind because of her worry. She wasn't very good with words in this matter, considering Mike's was only sixteen.
Even so, she had some plans for Mike, and she needed to talk to him privately later.
"Mm, okay~ I'll ask him later." Minako hummed with a mysterious smile.
"Try to deal with this or avoid this. Final Blow, Aero Fist." Alfred unleashed a final blow without holding back for a final test.
Mike widened his eyes when he realized this old man's attack was more potent than the previous one.
*Swoosh*
*Bam* *Thud*
Mike had no idea what was going on, but he was suddenly knocked a few meters off the field even though Alfred was still one meter away from him. He then crashed against the wall and fell to the floor.
The pain receptor nerves were too late to convey an effect. Mike felt his stomach hurt so bad right after that, but he couldn't do anything but wince in pain as he clutched his stomach. "Ugh..."
"Mike!" Yuna was the first to rush over to Mike's side. She then questioned her butler with some irritation. "Alfred, what are you doing!? Why did you use your full power for this test?"
"Ah, my apologies, Yuna-sama. I got carried away because Mike-sama was able to exceed my expectations." Alfred put his hand to his chest and walked over. The others also stood up and approached Mike.
"It's okay, I'm fine." Mike propelled his body to sit up, but the excruciating pain was still there and made his face grimace slightly.
"You're clearly not okay. Doctor, doctor, yeah. I need to get the best doctor right now." Yuna took out her smartphone in a panic, but Mike put his hand on her.
"No need. Just give me a few minutes and I'll be fine." After saying that, Mike sat cross-legged and put his hands on his stomach with his eyes closed. He used his inner strength to ease the pain and speed up his body recovery.
'Phew... It's a good thing I have the technique for this emergency healing. Learning and honing this technique almost every day makes me feel grateful.' Mike muttered in his mind. Yet, the memory of being bullied by the seniors crossed his mind even though he didn't want to.
'Tch. Anyway, let's just hope that the latest side quest didn't fail because I fell because of an invisible air blow...' Mike sighed and opened his eyes again. He felt somewhat relieved to see the worried expressions directed at him.
"You, are you all right?" Yuna felt entirely flustered to see Mike's smile.
"Yeah, I told you that, didn't I? I'm pretty decent in terms of speed and defense. Otherwise, I would have died at the unexpected moment of our first meeting." Mike nodded slightly and stood up. The pain was still there, but it wasn't significant enough for him to wince again.
"How impressive. I thought you only had the power of rank two initial stage, but now I'm not so sure anymore. I apologize for getting carried away and giving you a pretty serious attack, Mike-sama." Alfred gave a slight bow of apology.
"It's okay, you don't need to apologize, Sir Alfred. So, what did you have in mind after exchanging moves with me?" Mike patted his robe a little, then he just allowed Yuna to hold his arm as if she wanted to support his body so he wouldn't fall.
"I would appreciate it if you could address me by Grandpa instead on a non-formal basis. However, allow me to answer your question at a later opportunity. Truth be told, you are an unpolished gem with a lot of potential. Even so, you're still very lacking in offensive technique." Alfred smiled faintly in reply.
"Hum-yes, I think so too. Even though your speed and endurance are quite impressive, it's still not enough to beat Austin-sama. You don't intend to just dodge and defend, right? He's someone who doesn't possess any techniques other than offensive ones. The exact opposite of you, Mike-sama." Minako covered her mouth with her folding fan to express her opinion.
"Hm, I'm aware of that. I have a few tricks in my pocket, but it would be much better to have some more aces. I need to make sure that guy loses for all his arrogance and bad behavior." Mike nodded in understanding, but he was a pretty optimistic person.
"Hehe, I'm happy with your response, Mike-sama. Just a little information from me. Marsh Austin is now at Rank three peak stage and has the technique to carry out attacks at Rank 4 initial stage. Besides the other risks, are you still confident after knowing about it?" Minako squinted her eyes with a mysterious smile.
"Oh, thanks for the information, Minako-sama. After all, he's still below rank five. No matter how strong he is, he's still a man and a human." Mike replied with a calm demeanor. That simple information was enough to help him remember the cunning teaching of a flirtatious teacher.
"As long as he's still under rank 5? Are you actually at rank 5, Mike-sama?" Minako widened her eyes with some surprise.
"Who knows." Mike decided not to tell the facts because Minako was still a third party.
"Hum-mm~" Minako closed her eyes and fell silent.
"Very well, Mike-sama. I have a suggestion for your training. I have a place in mind that I think is very suitable for it. If allowed, we can depart as soon as possible." Alfred made a suggestion.
"Mm, all right. I appreciate that, Sir Alfred. But what kind of place do you have in mind?" Mike had predicted that. He certainly felt happy to be helped in his practice, especially receiving teachings from a Master.
"Aokigahara Forest." Alfred answered curtly.