By the time Fang showed up, it was already sunset. He had looked around the school for Charlotte before heading to the Field; He saw him dodging and swinging at the air. His footwork and stance needed work.
Although he was tapped out on Chi, Charlotte had calmed down after training; his storage had grown slightly. He would most likely reach the second stage by the end of the week.
Charlotte was about to stop training and get ready to spar, but Fang held up his hand and got into the same stance as him. Charlotte looked at him, a bit confused, as he began to swing and dodge around; he was mimicking his footwork perfectly. Fang stopped to look at him as if waiting for him to comment.
"Uh...Very nice; this explains why our sparring session ended with me on my ass. I can't believe you can replicate me so well after a day."
He was genuinely impressed and slightly disappointed. Was he that easy to copy?
Fang frowned and shook his head; it seemed he was expecting something else. Charlotte just scratched his head, trying to figure out what to say. Fang pointed at Charlotte, then at his eyes before pointing to himself.
Charlotte nodded and looked at him, waiting to see what he wanted to show him. Fang once more mimicked his movements before they started. His swings started becoming more compact and faster, and that's when he noticed his mistake. His attacks always went wide; they were fast because he used Chi to increase his speed. The attacks themselves weren't very good against opponents of similar feats. He felt embarrassed that Fang had to show him his mistake; he wouldn't have noticed it otherwise.
"I...Thanks, Fang; I see what you were trying to say. Please stop showing off; you're going to make me embarrassed..."
Fang flinched and nodded as he quickly stopped; Charlotte put his face in his hands. The two stood there for a few seconds before he slapped himself on the cheek and took his stance.
"I'll consider your lesson and advice, Fang; now, put them up. This won't end like yesterday."
He smiled quickly and tried to push this behind them; Fang seemed to agree as he took his stance. It wasn't long before the two fought again; it got much worse for Charlotte this time. He didn't have the Chi to close the gap between the two, so he was getting tossed around, slammed, and struck at almost every turn. He was slowly overcoming that gap despite being tossed around like a sack of potatoes.
At first, he dodged Fang's attack and even threw a counter, although it didn't hit. The two fought for hours, and he got hurt and tossed around less. He was also regaining his Chi, but he refrained from using it. He was beginning to read his intent, or maybe it was just his instincts helping him. Either way, he was getting better; at some point, he threw a punch before Fang moved, and it hit. Fang didn't seem annoyed. If anything, he smiled before he threw him onto the ground, of course.
That was how their final spar went, with him on the ground, his clothes in rags, and himself in the same boat. His body felt sore and was in pain, but he was also pleased. He had gotten stronger; although it wasn't a physical change, it was most definitely a mental one. His mind was also cleared of his worries and doubts from before.
"Well...I should go; I don't think my bones can take much more..."
He chuckled, looking up at Fang; the two were sweating quite a bit. But unlike Charlotte, he wasn't covered in dirt. Fang helped him up and pointed at his stomach as he headed into the forest.
"Have a good meal. I'm going to find somewhere to wash up and possibly rest."
He still didn't circulate Chi through his body; he would heal without it. He needed to save his Chi to increase storage and move onto stage two as quickly as possible. He was planning to head to that stream behind the tree; he wanted to wash his face at least.
As he walked down the path, his mind wandered once more. As he got slammed In the back and launched forward, he hit the ground and slowly got up. He turned to see the same guy as the morning, Grinning as air gathered around his arm. He was alone this time as he walked around him whistling.
"Look at you—quite the tough little peasant, aren't you? How about you hand over those gauntlets, and I might decide to let you go?"
He grinned as the air gathered under Charlotte and launched him upwards; simultaneously, he swung his fist and hit him across the face. The wind surrounding his arm wrapped around his face, leaving his face full of cuts as he got sent flying back and rolling on the ground.
Charlotte cursed under his breath, Chi quickly coursing through his body as he got up. He put on the gauntlets as he glared at him.
"The only thing I am gonna be handing over to you is your teeth after I beat them out of you!"
Charlotte spoke harshly, but he laughed in his face as the wind swirled around him.
"Try it then; let's see how badly I must leave you to change your tune~."
Although Charlotte didn't notice it, a few other students were watching from their homes, and some had made their way, overhearing the commotion.
Charlotte was being played, and they were trying to get him to act up. Charlotte wasn't a fool, but unlike everyone else, he was powerless for now and couldn't even show him anything special. The bad news is he was exhausted and using Chi to help him fight, so at most, he had a few minutes of fight left in him. He didn't care; he was tired of having everyone push him around and underestimate him.