Chapter 28 – Martial Arts
Bryn was going all out against Gabriel, all the training he had accumulated, the statuses he gathered from all the passive skills he unlocked or even created. Since this fight had Taekwondo rules, there was no funny business like when sparring with Amelia, many times she would just hold him in place or even break his balance with a low kick to the hooves.
Also, knowing that anyone he faced in sparring or a fight would be stronger than him allowed him to step on the gas tank and go full-throttle. After reaching the range he felt comfortable, and he started to throw a few kicks in the mix.
Looking at the little faun go, Gabriel felt almost emotional… He was so extremely weaker than him, but the dedication behind every strike, faint, or move was surreal. His eyes fixated on Gabriel's body positioning and movement as well as his mind centered on how to take advantage of that.
There would be a few levels 1 up to 3 who would be able to take so many attacks. Maybe even level 4 humans would have a hard time against this kid. The amount of time he dedicated to mobility training gave him an understanding of his body that few people do… Let's see if he can deal with a few evasions…
Up until that point, Gabriel was simply blocking the hits without moving, which made Bryn go in circles around him to try and find an opening.
As Gabriel's feet changed positions, Bryn instantly reacted by going backward one step.
"That was a smart move, Bryn, you never know what your opponent can throw at you after he has already moved. But be careful, giving him space is not always the best choice because now I have time and distance to regain my footing in this fight."
Bryn couldn't even speak from how much focus he dedicated to try and use all he could to score a point.
As the fight went on, Bryn's energy started to fade. He was a level 1 after all. Gabriel gave him a few other pointers before it all ended with the faun as defeated.
"Amazing movements Bryn, though I think this kind of training is not the best suited for a real fight," said Gabriel as he looked at the young faun's face. The previous focus had been exchanged by googling eyes as Bryn's elation radiated outwards.
It is finally here!!
– Skill Acquired –
Martial Arts Mastery LVL. 1 (99%)
– Skill Created –
Taekwondo LVL. 1 (99%)
Getting two extra skills for the price of one is much better than I asked for, time to check them out! Appraisal.
– Skill Description –
Martial Arts Mastery LVL. 1 (99%)
Increases your damage, precision, and defense when fighting barehanded by 1%.
On every level, the bonus will increase by 1%.
Skill will receive a bonus from mobility passives.
– Skill Description –
Taekwondo LVL. 1 (99%)
Skill Created from the individual knowledge of an unknown Martial Art.
Increases your damage and precision when using any type of kick by 0.5%.
Increases your kicking speed by 0.5%.
On every level, the bonuses will increase by another 0.5%.
Wow, considering that the average adventurer or soldier probably has Martial Arts Mastery, it means that if I'm in the last stretch, without any weapons I'll be a little faster when using my legs, that is amazing! Still, this time I created a new skill and no title appeared… Nothing I can do about that…
While he was going back and forth with ideas, he remembered that Gabriel was with him.
"Mr. Gabriel I'm sorry. I just got the Martial Arts Mastery and was considering its possibilities," he said.
"Very good job, usually it takes a few fights for you to unlock the skill, you probably have been training for a while now. Tell me, was that all you unlocked just?" Gabriel's deep blue eyes were glistening as he looked at Bryn. From the amount of interactions they already had, Bryn would not lose himself over a regular skill.
Seeing the man in front of him, standing like a mountain curious to see what he had figured out, Bryn could see no way out. Even though Gabriel looked a bit maniac about the topic, Bryn didn't feel threatened at all. He could tell that the man in front of him was hungry not for him, but for knowledge and strength. What Bryn failed to recognize was that his face was telling on him.
If he had a mirror right about now, he would realize that the smile on his face was similar to Gabriel's. The only difference was that Gabriel was oozing curiosity out of every pore in his body while Bryn was simply hyper ecstatic.
"What do you mean?" Bryn asked.
"Come on now, there is more behind that smile of yours…" Getting closer to Bryn, he said calmly as he opened one of his eyes a little more.
Anyone seeing the conversation would be worried sick about the mental health of both faun and man.
Bryn had to give into reality, there were so many more benefits to telling Gabriel and even teaching him the skill than to hide it. Devising a plan in the short moments before Gabriel reached him, he said.
"Fine, I'll tell you, but it will have to be an exchange once again…"
Gabriel's back was arched so he would be closer to Bryn's height. His hands forward as if he was about to snatch the faun out of the floor and shake him for the knowledge he desired. Suddenly listening to Bryn, his head shook and all the craziness mixed in with the curiosity evaporated away.
"Perfect!" He exclaimed. "Let's leave this skill between us so I can surprise Jonas on our next match…"
For a second there I fought my days were counted, hahaha… It seems like Gabriel is every bit as excited about training as I am.
Deciding there was no time to lose, Bryn opted to rest his body while he explained to Gabriel the skill he had just created. Of course, some secrets were better kept under the rug. He wouldn't tell this random man about his life in another world where he trained a few Martial Arts unknown to any other creature here.
Bryn came up with a story to explain the thought process that allowed him to create the martial art. The fact that his hooves were the inspiration for him training more with them than other parts of his body. The envy he felt looking at feet as big as other people's and considering how to transform his hooves into the ultimate weapon.
The rules of engagement were a way to stimulate speed over power and allow for small and intense engagement with limited options, creating a situation where the fighters had to sharpen those weapons to a higher degree, knowing that their opponent was also only allowed to use the same moves. Freedom gave fighters so much possibility that a person could win fights without punching, kicking, grabbing, or using them all. The style of engagement Bryn explained to Gabriel only permitted limited weapons and the area where they could hit.
As he spoke more and more, he felt embarrassed out of his mind. Still, Gabriel felt dumbfounded listening to the entire story. He even asked Bryn if he was a fighting genius, but the faun denied it. Claiming that the creation of the skill was absolute luck.
After the explanation and judging from the position of the sun, Gabriel proposed they stay there training for a few more hours before dinner. That way he would be able to comprehend Bryn's new fighting style even better.
In the village, Kwame remained close to Daniel's side until the man went to sleep. After that, Kwame went out to look for Jonas. He was easy to find, the man was near the village square in one of the main buildings.
Coming closer to the building, Kwame announced himself before crossing the doorway. There was no door at the entrance, so he wanted to make sure no problem would arise from his presence.
Jonas looking back at the entrance said, "Come on in Kwame, we are at the back."
As Kwame entered the room, a few weapons and armor plates were lying around. A counter across the room caught his attention because some shortswords were over it.
Using appraisal he was impressed by the quality of a few of the items. As he neared the counter, he heard a familiar voice.
"Not again, I'm still not familiar with your forge, its temperature control is horrible, how are you even able to use something like this?"
Going around and crossing another door, Kwame found a dark room, lit by a flaming forge, sparks flying from a hammer striking an incandescent shortsword above an anvil.
"Thrain??" he said.
"Kwame, what are you doing here?" the dwarf asked.
"I was looking for Jonas and… Wait, I'm supposed to ask you that question!" still confused by the three people in front of him.
Thrain was holding one of the shortsword extremities and hitting it with a hammer. As Kwame looked to his side, his heart stopped.
In the flickering glow of the hammer strikes, he saw her for the first time. A few strands of chestnut hair not confined by her bun swayed with the air pressure coming out of the forge and anvil. Her eyes expressive eyes, matching the color of the scolding metal were the most beautiful things Kwame had ever seen. Focused on the task at hand, she didn't notice the man trying to engrave her image forever into his memory.
"I think I'm in love…" Kwame thought out loud.
"Hello Kwame, how are you doing?" Jonas said, bringing him back from the trance state.
"Hello Mr. Jonas, I'm ok thank you… What are you guys doing?"
"Your friend Thrain was anxious to forge a shortsword for some reason. When I read him asking about a forge in the village I brought him here. To meet Seraph, our village blacksmith."
"He was talking about shortsword for a while on the road, but I thought he forgot about the subject after a while. Where is this Seraph? I can only see Thrain and the woman helping him…" Trying to play it cool about the fact he almost drooled not many seconds ago.
"That is her, Seraph is short for Seraphina. She has been helping us with whatever the villagers need to perform their tasks."
"Dazzling and skillful…" Kwame was having a hard time controlling his tongue. He coughed and said, "I mean, is she that skillful?"
Jonas held his laughter for later, as today's events were embarrassment enough for the newcomers.
"She really is, you can only find work as good as her at the main cities of the kingdom," Jonas affirmed as he placed his arm on Kwame's back guiding him towards the door he had just crossed. "Let's leave the two working and talk outside so as not to interrupt the creation process."
The two walked back to the entrance area of the building to continue their conversation.
"You were looking for me?" Jonas asked.
Kwame was still looking back, trying to get one last glimpse of his muse. "Yes yes, I was."
"What can I help you with Mr. Kwame?"
"Focus Kwame. You can think about her later… Now you have to make sure what you saw was not your imagination and if so, you have to ask for Jonas to be your mentor in the arts of magic. There is no reason for him to accept, but no reason for him to deny me either." Kwame thought to himself.
"Mr. Jonas, first of all, congratulations on your fight against Daniel today…"
When Kwame began his second sentence, one of Jonas's eyebrows began to rise, curious as to where he was going with these compliments. He thought it was funny to see a man of that size fell so insecure at the start of a conversation.