"Wake up Yuki! We will start training again."
I woke up from my sleep when I heard Grandpa Arvin's voice.
'What time is it, Karen?'
[4 am, Master.]
'HAH?'
"Yuki, come out quickly!"
Grandpa Arvin's voice came again. I was forced to get up and go out of the tent.
I saw Grandpa Arvin standing in front of my tent.
"It's still very early, the sun hasn't even risen yet."
"We can't waste time, Yuki."
"I know, but my body still hurts a lot from yesterday's training. And last night you beat me to the punch."
At first, I thought that I would only practice from morning to evening, however, I didn't expect that I would also have to practice at night. Moreover, training at night is very different from training during the day.
Night practice starts after dinner, and ends at midnight.
And now, I've only had about 4 hours of sleep, and I'm going to practice again?
"Can we practice after sunrise at least? I'm still sleepy too." I said while yawning. I'm really sleepy now. Really.
*Bam
"cough... "
I sat on the ground holding my stomach while wincing in pain.
"Now you won't be sleepy anymore, Yuki."
'Damn it, this old man is crazy. Of course I won't be sleepy again, if you hit my stomach suddenly.'
"Now change your clothes, I will wait for you at yesterday's place. Don't take too long or I will punish you."
"Understood."
I stood up and went back into my tent to change clothes.
After finishing, I got out of the tent and walked to the training ground.
It was a place not far from our tent. It was like a large field, and suitable for practicing there.
Arriving at the practice site, I stood not far from Grandpa Arvin facing each other.
Even though I couldn't see very freely like during the day, I could still see Grandfather Arvin quite clearly.
"Now, I want to see the results of yesterday's training, Yuki." Said Grandpa Arvin.
Yesterday afternoon, right after we were here, training immediately started.
Grandfather Arvin's lesson yesterday was about How to attack an opponent, how to avoid attacks, how to block attacks. And also I learned the weak points of the human body.
With my ability to learn things quickly, I can absorb Grandfather Arvin's lessons quickly. Like a sponge absorbs water.
And now is the time to put it into practice.
"Are you ready, Yuki?" Ask Grandpa Arvin.
"Yes, I'm ready."
"Then you can attack me now. Use everything you witnessed and learned yesterday."
I nodded my head and started to get into a fighting stance. The old man was still standing as he continued to watch me.
Then I started my first attack.
I attacked with my right fist, I aimed for Grandfather Arvin's mandible.
*Wosh
My attacks can be dodged very easily.
I again attacked with my right foot trying to kick his stomach.
*Wosh
Like before, Grandfather Arvin was able to dodge my attack so easily.
'Damn it! How can that old man move quickly?'
Then I returned to attack Grandfather Arvin.
I attacked Grandpa Arvin madly with punches and kicks but None of my attacks hit him.
Not only that, I also attacked with elbows and knees, but it's still to no avail.
"Huft... Huft... Huft..."
I was exhausted and out of breath, but what annoyed me even more was that all of my attacks could be dodged.
"Very good, Yuki. I don't think I was wrong to choose you as my successor. You are a genius."
My gaze fell on Grandpa Arvin who was smiling.
'This old man is crazy. He wasn't even tired at all. And, is he mocking me? Calling me a genius when he dodged all my attacks.'
Perhaps noticing my gaze, Grandpa Arvin said, "That's a compliment, Yuki. You managed to memorize the attack moves I taught you very well. You absorbed my lessons very quickly, so I can't mistake you as a genius. "
"Even like that, you can still dodge all of my attacks." I said
"I have experience. I have experienced many battles, and some of them were life and death battles. Even if you managed to remember the moves I taught you yesterday, you still don't have experience. I know you are not used to fighting or maybe this is your first fight. Your attacks are easy to read. And not only that, you lack both speed and strength."
My body got goosebumps when Grandfather Arvin stared straight into my eyes.
"That's why, while we're here, I will train you to the fullest, Yuki."
-----
Day 4 of Training.
Night.
I sat by the fire holding my dinner.
'I have no appetite at all.'
[Why?]
'I feel that this is a waste, Karen.'
[What do you mean?]
'Every time I eat dinner, I'll spit it back up later.'
[Ah, I see. However, you still have to eat, Master]
'I know.'
Then, I ate my dinner reluctantly.
the more days of my training I get heavier. The training menu didn't change, but the old man was getting meaner.
After dinner, I will rest for at least 30 minutes, before the night training begins.
I walked to the practice site and Grandpa Arvin was already standing there.
Seeing at night in the forest is difficult. No lights or anything. I only rely on moonlight.
What's worse, I have to train in these conditions.
"Are you quite used to it?" Ask Grandpa Arvin.
"Yeah, it's better now than when I first practiced at night."
"Good, then let's start. As usual, you should dodge or block my attacks first, Yuki. Remember, always use your instincts. When your vision is limited like this, you should be able to use your instincts."
The purpose of training at night is to train my instincts. In battle, vision is important.
You can see how your opponent attacks you, where his attacks are coming from, and much more. however, at night in a forest like this, vision becomes limited.
If I just relied on sight alone, I would be beaten by that old man.
"Let's start." Said Grandpa Arvin.
I immediately got into a fighting stance and looked at Grandpa Arvin. I still had a pretty clear view of Grandpa Arvin in front of me, but when the fight started, it was a different matter.
Arvin's grandfather moved.
*swosh
I moved left when I felt an attack coming from the Right.
*tap
I parried using my hands when Grandpa Arvin tried to attack the right side of the stomach.
Grandfather Arvin's attacks continued, and I was able to defend myself by parrying and dodging his attacks.
*Bam
"Cough..."
My body crashed into the ground when the attack from Grandfather Arvin managed to hit me.
'Looks like this is a new record, I can parry and dodge Grandfather Arvin's attacks 8 times in a row.'
Even so, the old man really couldn't hold back his strength at all. Well, I know he's not serious yet, but it still hurts.
If it continues to be attacked like this, the dinner I had earlier will come out again.
"Very good, Yuki. I'm really proud of you." Praise Grandpa Arvin.
Somehow I feel that every time Grandpa Arvin compliments me, it sounds like sarcasm. Even though I know he really praised me.
This old man was not bothered in the least by this darkness, he was moving around as usual as if it made no difference to him be it day or night.
The movement is fast, the attack is fast and strong.
I immediately stood up and got into a fighting stance again. All my focus was on Grandfather Arvin.
Then, Grandpa Arvin moved again and started his attack.
*swosh
The attack came from the right, and I managed to dodge it.
Grandfather Arvin's attacks continued and came from the left, right, and below.
Not only with fists and elbows, Grandfather Arvin also attacked with feet and knees.
Parrying the old man's attacks was really painful. My hands and feet went numb from constantly enduring his attacks. Grandfather Arvin's attack power was really strong.
The training continued, and my condition got worse. I'm tired and it's hard to focus.
When I lost my focus for a few seconds, Grandfather Arvin who should have been in front of me disappeared.
*Bam
My body flung forward and fell to the ground.
The old man attacked me from behind and kicked me in the back.
Even though I knew that Grandfather Arvin would attack me from behind, my body's reflexes couldn't keep up.
I turned my body to lie on the ground.
My gaze fixed on the beautiful night sky With so many shining stars.
"Let's rest for 30 minutes before we practice again." I glanced to the side and saw Grandpa Arvin standing near my body looking up at the sky just like me.
"Thank You. "
-----
Day 7 of Training.
Midday.
"Come on Yuki, use all your strength!"
Ignoring Grandfather Arvin's words, I continued to attack.
My kick that led to Grandpa Arvin's chest was blocked.
I stepped back and attacked again.
I attacked with a straight punch, but it was still manageable.
Even though my body was covered in sweat, even the clothes I was wearing were wet, I was still very focused on this fight.
Grandpa Arvin continued to block and dodge my attacks, but I didn't feel pressured or discouraged.
My goal in this fight is clear, I want to beat Grandpa Arvin at least 1 time.
*Bam
Grandfather Arvin's body took several steps back the moment my attack managed to hit him.
I stared at my right fist which had just managed to hit Grandfather Arvin's right cheek.
"FINALLY!!! "
My scream echoed throughout the forest. But I don't care. I'm too happy now.
After practicing for approximately 20 hours a day, day and night for 1 week, my attack finally hit the old man.
I know it's only 1 attack, but it's a big achievement.
That old man was unbelievably strong, even though my improvement was so rapid that he always complimented me, my attacks could always be dodged and parried.
Was the incident just now intentional by Grandfather Arvin? Hahaha, I don't care.
"Have you finished celebrating? We have to get ready to leave here, Yuki."
"Yes, I will get ready now."
I sighed as Grandpa Arvin ruined my excitement just now but he was right. It's the last day of practice, and we're going back to Tokyo.
-----
After packing, and making sure nothing was left behind, I looked at the scenery around me.
There were no more tents, and only a former bonfire which we used for 7 days.
The river where I bathed and cleaned myself, the field where I practiced, I will remember this place for the rest of my life.
This will probably be the last time I come here. But who knows? Maybe in the future Grandpa Arvin will bring me here again to train.
However, for now I will enjoy this scene and keep it in my memory.
"Have you made sure nothing is left behind, Yuki?" Ask Grandpa Arvin.
"Yes, I have confirmed it."
"Then let's go now."
Satisfied with the view, I followed Grandfather Arvin to leave this place.
"So why are you only teaching me about how to fight with bare hands, Grandpa Arvin?" I asked.
"This is your initial training, Yuki. From the beginning I knew you couldn't fight, so I decided to train you here day and night for 7 days. I had to make your body and mind understand how to fight. And, the results were amazing. "
"So that's the reason, I see."
Just like Grandpa Arvin said, before I trained here, I couldn't fight. But now, hehehe, I'm sure that I'm proficient. Of course, I am still incomparable to Grandpa Arvin.
"I know you may want to learn how to fight using weapons like katanas, knives, and other similar types of weapons. However, if I directly train you to fight with weapons like that, I'm sure you will die, Yuki."
"So when are you going to train me on the use of weapons like Knives, or Even Katanas?" I asked enthusiastically.
"I'll tell you later."
I was a little disappointed to hear Grandpa Arvin's answer.
"Then, how about a weapon like a gun or something?" I asked.
"I'll tell you later."
While I was expecting the answer to be the same, it's still disappointing.
"Don't be disappointed like that, I have already decided on your next training, Yuki."
My disappointment immediately disappeared hearing that, even though the training with Grandpa Arvin was very painful and stressful, it proved to be successful in making me stronger.
"What kind of training?"
"This isn't an exercise where you need strength like now, but it requires brains, Yuki."
I looked at Grandpa Arvin confused.
"Yuki, as my successor, you will not only be training how to fight, use weapons, or killing techniques. However, there are also other important things that you must learn.
You will learn how to disguise yourself, how to gather information, learn ethics, learn languages and more."
"Why do I have to learn these things?"
"That's very important, as important as anything else."
"I know, but what about studying ethics and learning languages?"
Do you think you will carry out missions only in Japan? As my successor, you will travel all over the world. You must be able to use another language. At least you should be able to speak English. It's mandatory.
And, just like learning a language, you need to learn ethics. The mission that you will take on in the future is not only to kill ordinary people, there is a possibility that you will kill the richest person in the world, president, royalty, King or Queen.
You know that there are still royalty in this world, an example is the British empire.
Nobles pay great attention to ethics.
If you get a mission to kill nobles, you will have to act like one to approach them. So studying ethics is also important.
"Wow, I didn't expect that I still have so much to learn to become an assassin." I said.
It seems that I completely underestimated this point.
"So how do you practice this thing?" I asked.
"Books and Videos. I'm not going to teach you directly about these things, so you have to read the books and watch all the videos to learn."
"I see, so after we arrive in Tokyo, I have to come to your house first?"
"Yes, you should come to my house and pick up the books and videos. I'm sure you'll get the hang of these things quickly, Yuki."
-----
After an hour's drive home, we finally arrived in Tokyo.
I didn't go straight home and stopped by Grandpa Arvin's house to pick up the books and CDs that contained the videos.
After that, I said goodbye and went back to my house.
The home I miss. Entering the house, I tidied up the books and CDs from Grandpa Arvin. And do not forget also about other items.
After finishing everything and changing clothes, I immediately lay down on my bed. Soft and comfortable mattress.
Perhaps due to fatigue, I became very sleepy, and I decided to sleep.