Chapter 33 - Desire

The second week became harder.

The drills Daniel assigned to Vincent became intense and because of how intense they were Daniel insisted that they must meet everyday.

That one week, he made Vincent skip school throughout and promised to be totally responsible for it.

Vincent was at first scared. Of course, he wanted to learn boxing, he wanted to be able to do it right but what would be the use of all that passion if he missed school and still got in trouble.

"You are naive…"

Was what Daniel had said to him.

He was very naive and Daniel couldn't help but wonder why such a naive person was blessed with profound intellect of martial art.

When he decided to teach Vincent in one month, in Daniel's mind he had a perfect understanding that it was impossible for Vincent to beat him in one month.

What he wanted to do was train the young boy, give him the foundation and thirst of what boxing feels like then beat the shit out of him again.

With the bet already in place Vincent would become his slave and he could practice forever with him. Till he molded him into a boxer capable of defeating anyone.

Who knows he might even get to enter the ring not as a boxer this time but as a coach.

He'd be the youngest coach to ever exist.

Daniel's eyes had sparkled with determination and fantasies when he thought about it.

However, by the end of their second week of training dread began to wear thin on his face.

Vincent had started throwing jabs, the stance drills and physical drills he did had tremendously boosted his state.

In just one week?

'Is that even possible?' Daniel thought as he watched Vincent jab at the punching back.

"Oof! oof!"

Pow

Pow

The boy would shout and throw punches succeeding his voice. His hands were not fast but the basics were completely ingrained in him.

The way his legs pounced left and right, the subtle pivoting of his feet, his head movement before each swing and his waist.

He had diligently mastered everything in one week.

Daniel was sure that there would be no one with his kind of brain for martial arts. He believed what he had was heavenly and only meant for kings.

And yet a peasant.

At that moment he was about to frown grimly when Vincent stopped, holding the punching back and turned to Daniel.

"Master, am I just going to punch the bag all day or are we moving on to the next lesson you outlined?"

Daniel froze for a moment, his pupils dilating. His expression eased up and a chuckle escaped his lips.

'Seriously, what's wrong with me? Was I just getting jealous of my student?'

Daniel shook his head at himself and looked at his student. He walked closer with a small smile adorning his handsome features.

"Oi oi… since you have surprised me with this level of hardwork I have decided to teach you one of my special jab moves before we move onto the next."

Vincent's eyes lit up.

"A special jab move?!"

His eyes shone with so much excitement, over the past few weeks, he had grown to see Daniel as a very talented boxer and respected him as that.

Of course, his naivety still had a role to play to how he could easily submit to someone that beat the shit out of him just a couple of weeks ago.

But it was that naivety that made Vincent quite the intriguing person.

'When I think of how naive he is and the kind of fight he put up with me that day… it's just not matching'

It was difficult to picture Vincent as someone ferocious. Which even interested Daniel the more.

What could be done to break this naive boy and make him so ferocious.

He had spent a few weeks with him but there was no answer. The only thing he could look forward to was the duel that approached them.

As they continued to spend more time together. A lot more began to depend on the battle that should happen between them.

For Daniel, he didn't want this to end, he wanted to teach him more, he wanted to defeat him and he wanted to see that face of despair so badly… and the passion to see it only grew more intense as he saw how kind Vincent was.

He just wanted nothing more but to break that naive face of his.

Vincent on the other hand just wanted to complete the damn quest and move on with his life.

He wouldn't even had gone this far if it wasn't for the quest.

He just didn't want to lose the system at this point. And he would do anything to keep it.

Daniel stood in front of Vincent.

"I will demonstrate it for you, let's see if you can grasp it quickly."

Daniel after speaking breathed in and as his breath seeped out, his form shifted into a defensive stance.

Immediately, the air crackled with anticipation as whispers of energy seem to form around the boxer.

Vincent's gaze was deftly fixated on him, unwavering.

With another intake of breath, this time sharp! Daniel lunged his hands, the leading fist slicing through the air with lightning speed.

A barely perceptible gust accompanied the movement, carrying the essence of their focused energy like a fleeting whisper.

The jab found its mark with pinpoint accuracy, the impact resonating through the punching bag like a sudden gust of wind.

"Aah…"

A gasp escaped Vincent lips as he staggered backward, momentarily stunned by the unexpected force behind the seemingly ordinary punch.

Daniel smiled and looked at his shocked student.

"There it is… I call it Whispering Gale Jab, it's lame I know, let's see you come up with something better"

Vincent just stared at him, unable to speak, his mouth was agape and even though some words tingled at the tip of his throat, none made it out.

Daniel smiled smugly.

'I have successfully instilled fear in his heart. Now he'd be more scared of facing me…'

He raised his chin as he looked at Vincent.

Vincent stood frozen, staring at Daniel. The jab throw he had seen just now was peak.

It was the best he had seen.

It was so ordinary yet so powerful.

It made his heart beat so fast.

Butterflies fluttered in his stomach.

Something…. Something was wrong.

'I‐I—I love it!'

His eyes glittered with sparkles.

Daniel's biggest mistake… was thinking he could instill fear in the heart of this young boy.

By his own hands, he had given Vincent a passion. Something to pursue, to enjoy and to fight for.

*

*

*

*

*

*

No apologies can be enough. I feel so bad that I had to miss out on update for an entire week but nothing could be done about sickness.

I'll work harder guys.

So support me with your power stones and comments.

I'd like to personally see how Vincent would grow from a naive guy to an extremely vicious monster. Won't you?