In the following days, Mercedes started her training with Caesar. The first training she had to go through was one of the close-combat arts, hand-to-hand combat. It was the most basic and can be considered a foundation for close combat.
The first day of training was hard for someone like Mercedes. Even though she had gained more strength than an average person, she was still weak when applicating the fighting techniques taught to her by Caesar.
Her refined muscles weren't used to it, making her resemble a child mimicking an adult.
During the entirety of the first day, Caesar did nothing more but laugh at her. He kept teasing her about how she was beginning to look more like a duck than a human. It was a humiliating experience for Mercedes. But she kept it within herself.
The second day of training. Mercedes started training in the basics of footwork and general techniques. What should she do if an opponent throws a straight punch? What should she do if an enemy does a high kick? These were the questions being thrown at her.
Of course, nothing would be better than a practical demonstration that Caesar led. Mercedes was being beaten back to back. Caesar was even trying to hold back, but it didn't stop bruises from emerging throughout her body.
Though, Mercedes didn't give up and continued training.
On the third day of training, she finally grasped the entire footwork and was able to apply it without that many issues. Although her posture resembled a novice, Mercedes's learning speed was surprising for Caesar.
A noble girl that should be inexperienced in fighting might have a knack for close-quarters combat. Due to this, Caesar didn't hesitate and increased the difficulty of her close-combat training.
After the third day, Caesar changed a lot of things in Mercedes's training schedule. She was forced to spar against him the moment she made a mistake in her training. And at the very last hour of the day, she would have sparred with Caesar no matter what.
Of course, Mercedes felt a shiver in her spine after hearing the change that Caesar brought. Mercedes cursed him under her breath, wanting to punch him in the face as retaliation. She wasn't a masochist that wanted torture.
She hated the experience of being tortured through training.
Nonetheless, for the sake of learning something from Caesar, she had no choice but to grit her teeth and train along the way.
A week then passed after Mercedes and Caesar entered the fortified city. Mercedes was training at an old warehouse that had been bought by Caesar at a lower price than the usual real estate. Unfortunately, it didn't have a roof, but it was better than nothing.
Her close-quarters-combat was becoming better, with her footwork being incredibly efficient. Mercedes also took her time to revise some of the footwork to fit her physique. She was also adaptable, as she wasn't completely rigid to the footwork.
When sparring against Caesar. She could finally last for a couple of minutes before falling down due to exhaustion. Fighting against Caesar was extremely difficult. It was fast pace and immediately burned through her stamina.
But lasting over a minute against Caesar was something that should be rewarded in itself. Even if the old man in question was clearly holding back against her.
Anyhow, Mercedes could feel that her mastery over close-quarters-combat was reaching its limits. From pummeling, restraining, disarming, throwing, choking, and slitting the throat. She was beginning to master all of them.
Caesar, who had observed the growth of Mercedes, felt like he was seeing a younger version of himself. It looks like his instincts were still as great as before. The disciple he had picked up in the middle of nowhere was a talented one.
Now that she had almost mastered close-quarters-combat. It was time to move on with the specialized ones. A dangerous and dirty technique that intends to kill or cripple enemies.
It was a technique from his homeland, the Imperial Grim Art.
Despite its lousy name, the art was feared throughout the Imperium and the continent. It was a dangerous technique since anyone that experienced it would be dead or crippled for life. The core concepts within it were dislocating, breaking, gouging, and severing.
It was a savage first specialized technique that his disciple must learn. After all, she must learn how much her body could hurt others. It was better to be straightforward than for something to happen accidentally.
In any case, Caesar taught Mercedes the Imperial Grim Art for the second week. As Caesar explained the techniques, she was obviously distraught. It was too merciless and dirty. However, she also understood that there was no honor in a fight to the death.
The first thing that Caesar taught on the first day of the second week was the technique of dislocating. The bones of humans, while strong, were also somewhat fragile. If one understands where to hit, a bone can be easily dislocated.
Mercedes was practicing with a training dummy and went through the techniques by doing it over and over again. Dislocating the elbows, knees, arms, ankles, and many more. Of course, unless she tested it on a normal human, no one would ever know if it was effective.
So out of nowhere, Caesar brought a criminal out of nowhere. It was a criminal that had recently murdered someone in the slums. Loaded with adrenaline and fear, the criminal attacked Mercedes after hearing that he would be freed if he killed her.
And that was what brought Mercedes to the current moment.
*Huff—!* *Huff—!* *Huff—!*
Mercedes was deeply panting under the heavy rainfall. Water droplets dripped from her brunette hair as they slid down to her pale skin. Her expression was dark as her eyes emanated bloodlust. Crimson blood was smeared all over her knuckles before realizing it to herself.
She had killed someone.
"Wha- What the..." Mercedes was barely holding on while glancing at the frozen body before her. The body's limbs were pointed in several directions, which shouldn't be possible. His face was also caved in from her continuous strikes of punches.
It was congested with blood as pieces of bones were everywhere throughout his face.
She couldn't remember it clearly, but Mercedes was forced into the ground by the criminal. He was making moves at her, telling her that he would kill her while violating her. It was a horrifying experience, and Mercedes lost a boundary of herself.
"You killed a human, kid. How does it feel?" Caesar questioned from afar, silently gazing at Mercedes. Hearing his voice, Mercedes's furrowed her eyebrows and looked at him. "Why didn't you help me while I was knocked to the ground!?"
She was angry that he didn't move a single muscle to save her. She felt a bit betrayed by his inaction. After all, she previously thought that he was a good old man.
"Kid, you can't expect that every time you're in danger, someone will save you."
"With that kind of mentality, how will you save anyone that's important to you?"
Caesar calmly replied while returning back to the inn. But before leaving the old warehouse, he stopped and looked back at Mercedes. "Clean up the body and return to the inn."
Without waiting for a response, he left the old warehouse and walked through the streets while heavy rain fell on his body.
Mercedes gritted her teeth in annoyance before glancing at the corpse. She wanted to puke but couldn't. It was a mess, to be honest, though luckily, the old warehouse didn't have a roof. The puddles brought about by the rain cleanse the blood splattered on the ground.
The only thing she needed to do was drag the body away from the old warehouse.
As she dragged the corpse, Mercedes was cursing under her breath regarding the old man. She wished for him to have his toe hit by the edge of the table. After leaving it in a corner, Mercedes decided to leave it here.
Burying the man would be a waste of time. Besides, he was also a criminal in the fortified city. The only ones that would be seeking him would be his gang. She also didn't have a shovel and didn't want to waste time.
After all, the more time Mercedes spent right beside the body, the higher the chance she would become compromised.
It took ten minutes to clean up her mess, and afterward, she returned back to the inn. The old man was sitting at a table, eating his meal. Mercedes walked up to him and sat at the front. Noticing a figure in front of him, Caesar turned his head upward and exclaimed.
"Didn't expect that you'd return, kid."
"You shouldn't underestimate me, old man," Mercedes smirked while her wet hair kept dripping with water. The experience she had gone through moments ago was horrifying. But she adapted from it at a terrifyingly fast pace. It was the humble effects of her skills.
"The reason why I don't have any disciples despite being a paragon is because of my nature. Most people fear the way I train my disciples. Too savage, ruthless, and bloody. But I don't know what they're expecting from the so-called War God."
"I'm not as heroic as they say."
"Yeah, yeah, shut it with that Ted-talk old man." Mercedes expressed while ordering some food for herself. She wasn't in the mood to hear some backstory about him. She was too emotionally unstable at the moment. Mercedes needed food to calm herself down.
Hearing her, Caesar couldn't help but shake his head.
"*Sigh...* You're the same as before, kid. A piece of shit."
Caesar then stopped and glanced at Mercedes, who was beginning to devour the meal before her. She didn't have any worry on her face, adapting to the horrors of killing. The edges of his lips rose as he couldn't help but smirk.
"Just like me."