Chereads / Rise of the Blacksmith / Chapter 33 - Excitement

Chapter 33 - Excitement

The classes had finally finished, and most students were making their way to the field, as they all seemed to split into groups. They all had an even number of members as they began training and chatting with each other. The fights didn't seem bad, as people seemed to be fighting without using Chi to enhance or use their powers. 

The one part that stuck out was that none of the people who wore white tunics were around; they didn't seem to be there. The other thing that stuck out was that despite them not using any Chi, or at least it didn't appear so, some fights were brutal. People are being slammed onto the rough ground or repeatedly struck in the face.

After each fight, they would usually shake hands and rest. The victor and loser meditate in silence before talking as if nothing happened afterward. Their wounds healed relatively quickly, and although they took damage, it wasn't immediately debilitating. 

A few people looked over at Charlotte, and Fang came out of the forest; they looked at her hands, Charlotte bandaged up, and gave him looks of pity before talking once more. A few moved away as the two got closer; they looked to be avoiding Fang more than him. Which begged the question of what made them so scary that people didn't like being around them.

He turned to look at Fang as he began stretching; he had already increased his storage a bit more when he ate the rabbit. He was also filled to the brim with Chi again, so it seemed like the perfect time to find out.

"Let's train then; you might as well get started, right?"

Fang looked at his hands and back at him and frowned slightly; he probably thought his hands were still injured. They did sting a bit, but he was fine.

"I'm fine, let's go. I need to train, and so do you. How will I get out of my current state if I don't train often? I wanna reach the very top, you know?"

They would frown a bit more before shaking their head; it seemed he had finally given up. He points to his chest and shakes his head.

"No, Chi?" 

He nodded and took his stance; he was crouched down slightly, and his hands remained open as they waited for Charlotte. Even crouched down, the height difference was still apparent; he had to use that. He brought both his hands up and clenched his hands into fists. A few people nearby got noticeably further away from the two. Some were still training, but the few talking kept looking at the two.

The two remained still for a moment. Charlotte opened his right hand and shifted his stance so that his right hand was ahead of the other. He wanted to try and parry any attack that came his way and strike with his left. Fang slowly approached as he changed how he stood, his hands still open, and he crouched down.

He remained just outside of Charlotte's strike range but inside Fang's. He would probably have to take a step closer if he wanted to hit him. Without Chi, he would have to move fast and without mistakes. His height always put him on the back fo-.

He could probably kick Fang from this range, and his current stance would allow him to gain a lot of momentum to land a pretty good kick. He grinned, and Fang didn't seem to react; his hand moved at quite the speed as it reached to try and grab his tunic. Charlotte smacked his hand away and spun to try and kick him.

Before his kick could reach, though, Charlotte had a memory flood their mind. The last time they tried to kick someone was with Iza; she slammed him to the ground. He stopped his kick and pulled his leg back at the last moment, and that appeared to be the right call as Fang had almost held onto his leg. 

He did recall how firm his grip was, so he had to be careful to avoid being grabbed. He took a few steps back out of his range, and the two were again staring down at each other. He had to thank his instincts for having seemingly saved him.

Fang didn't approach slowly; this time, quickly closing the gap, his hand shot forward again to aim for his chest. He tried to parry his hand away again and stepped forward to strike him; sadly, as he tried to parry his hand, Fang held onto his sleeve. 

Charlotte tried to strike his face and make him let go, but with a simple tug, he threw him off balance, and Fang stepped forward as he let go of his sleeve and wrapped his hands around Charlotte's waist. Charlotte kicked him, and he shrugged it off as he slammed him to the ground.

Charlotte's back hits the ground hard as he seemingly lays still; Fang sighs and lets go of him, and as he tries to step away, Charlotte's hands hold onto his head as he kneed him on the chin and kicks him away.

Fang and the people watching the fight were stunned as Charlotte jumped to his feet and rushed towards him. Fang turtles up as he blocks his head, and Charlotte maneuvers to his side and strikes him in the ribs. He kept attacking him till Fang swiped at him with his hand and forced him to step back.

He had regained his senses; that blow to his chin had done quite a number on him and left him helpless to Charlotte's attacks. 

Fang kept staring at him and pointed to his chest, seemingly asking if Charlotte had used Chi.

"Sorry, my body is just naturally tough...although I'll admit that hurt like you wouldn't believe, I think you dropped me right on a rock." 

Fang looked at where he had dropped him, and to his surprise, he had dropped him on top of a rock. The rock was now in pieces, though, so it seemed he had come out in that exchange, having won.

Fang seemed to smirk as he nodded his head toward Charlotte; he seemed to have believed him. However, that smile felt like bad news.