Easton grips his fist. "You're pissing me off. Go away."
Israr laughs. "You have good restraint! A lot of people would've fallen for that one." He walks up to Easton. "How about this? If you can land one hit on me, I'll leave you alone."
"One hit?"
"Yep. But if you don't hit me, you have to try and be more patient and nicer to others."
A vein pops in Easton's head. "Am I a joke to you? Is this because of what happened?" He snarls and looks at his shoulder, then back at Israr.
Israr raises his hands. "No, not at all! Your technique is amazing. That's why I want to spar. I want to learn more."
"How can we spar if I only have to hit you once?"
Israr smiles. "Because I know you won't train with me. Besides," He stands in a fighting position. "I don't think you'll be able to hit me."
"You sure are confident. One hit and you'll leave me alone?"
"Right. Hit me once, and you win the spar. But it has to be a hit. Not a touch."
"Seems fair."
"But remember. If I win-"
"Not happening." Easton jabs at Israr's face.
Israr pivots his head. "You don't even let me finish my sent-"
Easton spins to backhand Israr, but the target ducks and hurries away.
"Whoahoa! That's intense! Each strike seems like a knockout punch!" Israr stands in position again.
"What's the point in throwing a punch, if it's not to knock someone out?" retorts Easton.
"Well, it makes sense when you put it like that."
Easton goes in again and Israr evades. "But it makes your punches easy to telegraph," Israr smirks.
"Tch! It's because I haven't taken this seriously yet!" Easton releases a barrage of rapid strikes. Israr parries and dodges each attack. He then counters with a body shot right into Easton's gut.
"!!!" Easton takes a step back and holds his stomach. "S-S***! That was hard…"
"Come on Easton. Don't tell me one hit applies to you too?" Israr shuffles his feet and re-enters his stance. "You're the one who said that each punch needs to be a knockout. Guess I still have a way to go."
"Don't get cocky now. You don't know how much I've trained. How much I've refined my technique. All on my own." Easton closes in.
"Me too." Israr intercepts and side-kicks Easton in his stomach.
Easton lands hard on his back. "Urgh!"
"Should we call it there, Easton?" asks Israr.
"Fat chance."
"Thought so."
The two initiate their spar once more. Again, Easton is on the offensive. He throws another set of punches. Israr evades them all and goes for a body shot, but Easton blocks with his left arm.
"I'm not falling for the same thing twice." Easton throws a right cross. Israr dodges at the last second. "Crap!"
Israr locks his arms around Easton's body. Easton's left arm is trapped between his and Israr's body.
Before Easton can retaliate, he's lifted off the ground. Israr turns to the side and body-slams Easton on the grass.
Easton gasps for air as his wind gets knocked out.
"Are you okay?" Israr tries to help Easton up but gets pushed away.
"No! This… is not over." Easton steadies his breathing and gets back up to his feet.
Israr chuckles as Easton spits to the side. "I didn't expect anything less. Let's go!"
The spar goes on for a while – until nightfall comes. Easton and Israr exchange blows, but neither lands a hit. Each shot is blocked, dodged or parried. Both continue relentlessly.
Each breath Easton takes becomes harder. The battle drags on.
"I'm moving slower… This guy doesn't even look tired yet!"
Israr grins. "What's wrong? Exhausted? Push on! One hit! That's all you need!"
Easton grinds his teeth. "I've got you now!" He launches a hook.
Israr pivots back and uppercuts. It lands straight on Easton's chin. He plummets on his back.
"RRGH! A-Again. We go… huff… again!" Easton claws on the ground. He tries to stand, but all his muscles shake.
"Sure! But tomorrow. Then we can both do one hit again. Heh heh." Israr smiles and stands over Easton.
"What? The rule… huff… is only for you." Easton gazes at the stars.
"Well actually, we both did it."
"Huh?"
Israr looks at the stars as well. "In the last session, I only landed one hit – the uppercut. You evaded all my other attempts." He thinks, "It's crazy how quickly he adapted to my fighting style."
Easton stares at his hand. He slams it into the ground. "The only reason you held out so long is your gift! I saw it back then, your wounds healed by themselves. You have regeneration! You probably use Soul Potential Energy to replenish your stamina! That's cheating!"
Israr chuckles. "Hahaha. Man, if I could do that, I would be amazing. Unfortunately, I can't control how my regeneration works. It just happens on injuries and then I feel more tired. That's why I am red-rank." He takes off his jacket and shirt.
Easton sees all the scars on Israr's body. Countless scars. He can't even tell which wounds could be from Bone-monster.
"That's why these scars don't disappear. Not that I'd want them to. They remind me of my hard work."
In the moonlight, Israr's muscles are exceedingly defined. "You're right. I have a lot of stamina, but that's because I trained it. If I need to survive more blows, I must be fit. I don't have the luxury of having a strong gift to turn the tide of a situation. If I'm not good enough, I'll get killed before my gift can heal me."
Israr looks at his fist and grips it tightly. "I only have myself, my body and my determination. That's how I survive. That's how I grow." He smiles at Easton. "That's why I want to spar with you, Easton! It will help me. I think it can help you too. And besides, the deal stands. If you hit me, I'm gone."
Easton lies back and breathes out. "Fine. We can spar again tomorrow." His stomach starts to growl.
"Heh heh, awesome! Let's go back and get something to eat. I'm starving. I heard the chef is making something good tonight!"
"Don't we have to go to our cabins for curfew?"
"Protectors don't follow those rules."
Israr and Easton walk back.
"Have you eaten in the Guild Hall before?" asks Israr.
"No," responds Easton. "I don't want to be around others. I'll go eat somewhere else."
"Nope."
"What do you mean 'nope'?!"
"I won today's spar. Which means you have to be nicer. That includes eating with guild members. If you beat me, do as you please."
"Tsk. Treating me like a child. I'll eat breakfast there tomorrow. I'm not in the mood for people now."
Israr smiles. "Sure. I'll let you off tonight."
"Why are you acting like my senior?" growls Easton.
"Because I am, kind of." Israr rests his arm over Easton while they walk back.
"Don't push it."
"Ha-ha! Sorry!"