"It's time for your training you brat!" Lionel Duncan descended the stairs wearing only his underwear, his muscles exposed.
He still wore his glasses as he held a wooden odachi over his shoulders, looking very imposing.
"I just got home..." Evan faces him with a pleading look. "How about you let me rest for a couple of minutes and we can then do the training?" He asked.
"No can do. After all the crap you sprout this morning, do you think I will let you go so easily?" Lionel laughed haughtily, his eyes staring daggers at Evan.
Evan knew that look well and could only sigh before heading to the dojo with his adoptive father. If he were to decline then Lionel Duncan would have surely attacked him right then and there.
He thought logically. Weaponless, Evan would stand no chance against him!
The two headed outside. Evan wasn't even given a chance to change his clothes.
"Is Alexa home yet?" Evan couldn't help but ask.
"You two got so close already?" Noticing the way Evan spoke of her name, Lionel could not help but smirk.
"Well, I won't say we're that close..." Evan blushed slightly at Lionel's question making the old man smirk grow.
"I told you boy, hesitation is defeat. It seems you listen well to my advice!" Lionel remarked proudly.
"What crap are you saying again? I swear you need to stop playing those games, it's getting to your head." Evan rolled his eyes before he took a closer look at his adoptive father's attire.
"Why are you only in your underwear anyway? This house is filled with females you know, one of them being our guest." Evan inquired with a cold yet embarrassed look. Lionel Duncan might be his adoptive father and the person he admires the most but the things he says and does make Evan want to hide the fact that he knows him!
"What do you mean? We are all family, including your fiancé. Besides, the less clothes I have on, the more powerful I become!" Lionel exclaimed while puffing out his chest, a powerful, suffocating aura emitting off his body making Evan feel like vomiting.
"Old man, you are too shameless!" Evan blurted.
"Heh, one can't reach my level without losing dignity," Lionel stated, not minding Evan's words.
"Where's your previous sharpness old man!"
"I don't need to bring out that side of me to deal with you."
"Arrogant words, just wait till I make you eat those same words back!" Evan rolled up his sleeves, his eyes brimming with confidence and the will to win.
"Excited now? You gonna make my blood boil boy!" Lionel laughed before patting Evan's back hard causing a shaky feeling to shake Evan's body.
"Let's get this over with." Evan did not feel any pain from his pat. He walked into a shed beside the Duncan House.
Underneath this shed was a dojo. Training equipment lay around the dojo and on the walls were real-looking weapons organized neatly.
Evan went to one section of the wall. This wall had wooden copies of the real weapons.
Evan took up a wooden tachi and felt its weight. It was heavy which was to his liking. He believed the only way to crush an individual was through skill and brute force.
The heavier the weapon, the less likely an average individual could counter or take a full-on blow from it.
Although made of wood, this tachi would take three normal bodybuilders to lift it.
This is Evan's strength. Before linking with Sam, this wooden tachi would need him to use both hands to wield it.
However, after linking with Sam his strength has grown by a margin at least. Now, he could wield the tachi with one hand allowing him to utilize it to its full potential.
Evan held the wooden tachi in one hand, his other behind his back. He believed with his new strength and this tachi if he played his cards right he could beat Lionel Duncan.
Lionel Duncan also took the same stand. He held the long wooden odachi in his right hand, the odachi nearly as tall as half his body.
"Are you ready to be beaten, my boy?"
"Sorry old man but the one getting beaten today is you!"
"Good then let's begin!" Lionel yelled, starting their training or what I should say, their match.
Evan was the first to move. He took in a large amount of breath and rushed at Lionel, his wooden tachi in front in case his opponent chose to attack his front.
Lionel saw this and smiled. He titled the odachi in an unusual manner, the blade hitting the floor before he swung it with all his might at Evan who was closing in.
The wooden odachi blade's length was very long so Evan did not dare to be careless. His eyes concentrated on the odachi and with one swift motion, he moved his tachi to parry the swing!
The two wooden blades connected creating a snapping sound. The two stare at one another smiling.
Evan once again was the first to initiate an attack. He put strength into his feet and jumped slightly off the ground to Lionel's left to gain some distance.
However, Lionel as if reading Evan's movement did not move, instead he swung his wooden odachi to his left catching Evan off-guard.
Evan panicked, placing his wooden tachi at the place where he believed the wooden odachi would be struck.
Clang! Clang!
Instead of once, the wooden odachi hit twice sending Evan tumbling three steps back. Lionel was able to hit Evan's wooden tachi once before swiftly moving his odachi in time to land another blow.
Evan was visibly shocked. Lionel seeing this did not waste time as he ran towards Evan at full speed planning to end their duel!
"You underestimate me, old man!" Evan smiled as he gained his footing just before Lionel approached him.
Lionel only smiled, not minding Evan regaining his balance. He only swung his wooden odachi at him with no care in the world!
The wooden odachi hit Evan or rather what was left of him as his figure vanished into the wind.
It was an aftermath!
Lionel was stunned which gave Evan plenty of time to seal the win! Evan launched an attack from behind Lionel!
His attack landed but Lionel's figure only vanished the same way Evan did.
He was also an aftermath!
"Duncan Family Movement Technique: Slight Second Aftermath. So you finally learn it! I am very proud!" Lionel stated with a wide grin. He was very satisfied at this moment.
"Tell me when did you learn it?" He questioned. From what he remembers Evan has been trying to learn this technique from his family for close to a year now. For him to learn it in less than a year told Lionel that he was a very rare genius!
"Will you believe me if I told you it was just a while ago?" Evan scratched his nose a bit embarrassed at the praise. Forgetting all about the duel.
"Eh?" Lionel sounded startled. This technique is not what you think. It does not let a person vanish nor does it have anything to do with speed.
This technique is using the right moment to sidestep a strike. What Lionel did when attacking Evan was strike down causing his wooden odachi to cover nearly half of his eyesight.
Evan used this opportunity to time his dodge while going behind him which led Lionel to believe that he hit Evan.
In a sense, it works as an illusion created by the odachi to confuse Lionel.
The only way to learn this technique is by having precise timing and good eyes. The same way to counter this technique is by having fast and good eyes.
"So you learned it in the heat of battle? Good! Then let's end training for today. It may not look like it, but we have been going head and toes with each other for nearly an hour."
"It's been nearly an hour already?" Evan looked at the time and was shocked. It was nearly 5 PM.
"Oh crap, I might miss dinner at this rate!" Evan shouted before he ran outside the dojo. Heading to his room, he took off his uniform and lay on his bed to rest for a while.
Feeling pleased with finally learning Slight Second Aftermath and his performance today, Evan chose to browse the internet for a while before taking a shower.
News Today! The mad killer has finally been caught. However, it was not easy! Over a dozen police officers were killed while trying to detain him before he was finally caught by an officer from Authority! Rest in peace brave soldiers and wow to Authority! This new special force looks very strong!
The workers at Phantom Radio Station still have not been found! Where in hell could they be? Are they dead? We do not know...
The Warrens Family, the most prestigious business in Francis Bay has taken over Mount Phantom High! I wonder what their end goal could be?
The flames of the disaster five years ago still burn. How is this possible? Join us tonight as we discuss with a group of scientists from SparkLab who have been studying this case for the last five years.
"So the mad killer has finally been caught." Evan sighed in relief. That criminal has been on a killing spree for the last decade or so. Every month, there's news of his victims. Now they can rest in peace as Evan was sure with the hundreds if not thousands of crimes he has committed and lives he took, he will be sentenced to death.
Evan took a quick bath before coming downstairs in a new set of clothes. He had to throw away the ones he wore yesterday since... they were torn apart and had burns covering them.
"Is dinner ready?" Evan asked as he smelled the aroma coming from the kitchen.
Coming down the stairs, he saw everyone home sitting around the dining table.
Including Alexandra and Amber.