Tap. Tap. Tap.
The sound of footsteps striking the ground echoed in the forest. A figure slowly made its way across the moss-covered floor. Monstrous trees rose on either side. Their bark was old and withered, a sign of their waning age.
Occasionally, the sound of a chirping bird or the slight rustle of the bush would catch the figure's attention.
Dressed in jet-black clothing that was a size too big for them, they clamped down on the uneasiness of being back in such an environment. Every new sudden sound would cause them to flinch, their nerves taut, fearing that a predator would come out and eat them whole.
Feeling the wind blow through his clothes, the figure shifted their attention to the canopies above. They acted like a verdant net barring any of the forest dwellers from getting a glimpse of the sky.
Not that there was much to see.
Overcast clouds had dispelled the sunlight of the day before.
Still, small beams of light pierced the natural barrier, illuminating the path and the many branches that littered the ground.
Carefully, the figure clad in black skirted along. His brown hair fluttered quietly in the wind. He firmly gripped the spear in his hands, his knuckles white.
Inhaling to steady his emotions, Nico stared at the path ahead of him.
After Phantom had called him a little hen - something that sent another wave of shivers through his body - the man with the eyepatch wasted no time and began leading Nico down the path that merged off near the gate.
There, they continued travelling forward.
What caught the brown-haired boy's attention almost immediately was the fact that his instructor ghosted along the trail quietly, his feet producing no sound.
In addition, with every step, Nico felt as if Phantom's figure had blurred and vanished, only for it to reappear a second later, a few meters down the path.
'Just like a Phantom.' Nico chuckled at the apt name of his instructor.
If not for the man's unique nature, the brown-haired boy felt that such a display would have awed him. As it was though, Nico was still getting over that astounding encounter.
Time passed as they headed deeper down the trail.
Sweat covered Nico's forehead. The exertion of the walk was getting to him. Never mind the fact that he still felt his muscles after the morning workout.
Scanning his surroundings, trying to minimise the noise of his laboured breathing, Nico tried not to think too much about the possibility of a sudden attack.
Although still traumatised by what happened the last time he had travelled deep into a forest, the brown-haired boy comforted himself by remembering that they were still in the outer regions of the East Leaf Wilderness.
Nothing too threatening dwelled here.
Besides, Nico was confident that Phantom could deal with any threats.
More time passed before the trail branched in two. Not skipping a beat, Phantom chose the path that diverged to the right.
A powerful gust of wind blew through the woodland creating an incessant cacophony of rustling sounds that caused Nico's back to be drenched in cold sweat.
Speeding up, the boy clamped down on his fears.
After a few more minutes, Phantom soon stopped. In front of him, a large azure lake glimmered slightly. The surface of the water was calm and still.
Beside the water body lay an open clearing, perfect for training.
"We're here," he called out.
Unbeknownst to the trainee, his instructor had a serene expression on his face. Phantom's eyes mirrored the lake. His sharp aura became gentle and smooth, a far cry from the previous piercing one.
Something in nature had always evoked this gentle side of him. Perhaps that was why Mother Nature was always one of his favourite things to draw and paint.
Nico, who standing further back, silently took in the sights surrounding him. His gaze lingered on the lake, where a copse of trees rose at the far end of the shore.
To his left, the clearing - where he assumed he would spend most of his time training - stretched out, the blades of green grass swaying lightly in the wind.
Following his instructor, who made a beeline for a large, ancient oak tree that stood on the western edge of the meadow, the brown-haired boy attempted to guess what he would learn now that the time for weapons training had arrived.
It was his dream ever since he was young to wield a weapon effectively, after all.
Like those heroes of yore.
'I can't wait!'
Turning around, with his back to the tree, Phantom had his hands behind his back. He wore a neutral expression, which with a never-before-seen solemn bearing, combined to give Nico pause.
"What are we going to do first!?" the boy asked quietly for fear of shouting at the top of his lungs. He momentarily forgot about the bearded man's unique nature.
The Spear instructor quietly stared at his student. Strands of his black hair frolicked in the wind. "We'll be continuing to build a good foundation…" Phantom's critical gaze lingered on Nico's body. "... In order for me to impart my insight of the spear to you, we're going to have to raise your endurance by a few notches."
'Dammit!"
Nico cursed internally between breaths.
Hell awaited him again.
With a resigned sigh, the brown-haired boy sat down cross-legged on the grass awaiting instruction, unaware of the sly smile on Phantom's face.
***
'Blazing fates! This bastard…'
Nico clenched his teeth and shot a scathing look toward his instructor. There, leaning against the bark of the ancient oak tree was Phantom, who whistled a merry tune to himself.
A small portable canvas propped up in front of him.
A delicate paintbrush in his hands.
The reason Nico was mad wasn't because his instructor was leisurely painting. No, the reason he was unhappy lay with what he was doing.
Sitting cross-legged in the centre of the meadow, the brown-haired boy had to keep his spear above his head in a horizontal position.
Now normally hoisting a spear above your shoulders wasn't an issue. Hell, even an eight-year-old could do such a thing. No, what made this exercise excruciating was that Nico had to continue to keep the spear aloft and not let it drop.
If it touched his shoulders, head, or any other body part, Phantom would start the whole exercise again while extending the duration of the drill. For the first minute or two, Nico managed well and even believed that this would be a piece of cake.
Oh, how sorely mistaken he was.
After about the second minute, the brown-haired boy felt his shoulders burn. Then came his arms and fingers. In a matter of seconds, Nico found the difficulty of the task had exponentially risen.
Beads of sweat slid down his face, leaving tiny remnants of perspiration in their wake.
What made matters worse, was that every so often Phantom would shout out some instructions like 'A little to the left.', 'A little to the right.' or 'Just relax.'.
The third one had incensed Nico the most.
'Like hell, I could relax while doing something like this, you scary clown!' the brown-haired boy cursed internally.
The damned bastard of an instructor was painting him struggling to hold a spear!
Nico's face burned with barely suppressed rage. A pulsating vein throbbed on his forehead.
"S-Sir, can we stop now?" he asked through clenched teeth.
"No, not yet my precious little specimen. We still have ways to go." Phantom replied without looking up. An evil grin etched across his face.