The teacher-disciple duo moved a couple of yards away from the center of Alchemy's territory and decided to hold their training session here.
It was far enough away to where Nera wouldn't be alerted when Alchemy inevitably got sent flying several meters into the air. Nothing of too much importance would get destroyed as well, but primarily the first thing.
"Firstly, I need to ask. Do you plan to use any sort of weapon?" Gravana asked.
Alchemy shook her head while raising her arm and revealing her [IDOL].
"Do you remember the chains I used on you? They have special properties that stop me from wielding a weapon. It's complicated, so I'd rather not get into it right now." She responded.
In response, Gravana nodded.
"I'm not worried about the specifics anyway. And we can worry about those chains of yours at a later time. They do interest me greatly. Just remember that your small stature will make everything harder if you don't have something like a spear or sword."
Naturally, Alchemy knew that. She wasn't particularly worried since she could eventually get skills to make up for her lack of range.
After confirming that Alchemy was sticking with the way of the fist, Gravana adjusted his gi.
Instead of the black one he wore yesterday, this one was navy, causing Alchemy to wonder if Gravana had an entire wardrobe solely of different gi.
"Alright! Now pop quiz, disciple! What are your strongest and weakest points?"
'My strongest and weakest points? I assume he doesn't want my answer to be my APM while playing RTSes…' Alchemy joked to herself.
Her strength was rather obvious. The issue was her weakness. Up to this point, she has been an active participant in seven fights in her entire life. Since coming to this world, she has fought more in less than a week than the rest of her life.
Any number of things could be her biggest weakness.
'Something generic. Something that's vague enough so I can't realistically be wrong.' Alchemy hummed.
"Uhm… My eyes and inexperience, I guess."
Rolling his eyes, Gravana dashed behind Alchemy, swatting at her only for her to step to the side, making the attack miss everything but a few strands of hair.
"While you're correct, such an answer is boorish." Gravana shook his head.
"Your eyes are a treasure. I closed the distance between me and you within 600 milliseconds, and you managed to follow me into your blind spot. You have damn near future sight with those eyes of yours."
Although she thought future sight was a bit of a stretch, Alchemy knew her eyes were good.
Whether it be visual acuity, ocular motility, or her wide field of vision, she had always been in the top percentile of the top percentile.
"Despite this amazing ability that any martial artist would wish for, you're pointlessly wasting it. What's so good about being able to dodge? If you're in combat with anyone with half a brain, you'll run out of stamina before they do. You need to always be weaving in attacks."
"Yeah, obviously, I know that, but it's easier said than done. You're so much faster than me that even if I found an opening, your next attack is already prepared."
"But it's not." Gravana sighed.
"The speed I moved at during our battle was carefully tuned to yours. I want a good fight, not a one-sided slaughter, after all. Clearly, you don't know how to use your own body. Do you understand?"
Alchemy pondered his words for a while before shaking her head.
"No… Not really. Fighting has always been my Sister's area of expertise. I've always been more of a scholar." Alchemy responded, turning away
Alchemy's words caused Gravana to let out a second sigh.
"Fine, I'll show you. Come here, stand just outside of my striking range."
As soon as Alchemy did as he said, Gravana took an offensive stance, reaching out his arm to make sure he couldn't touch her.
"You have one goal. Either land a solid hit on me or force me to take a single step backward. I'll even make sure I move slower than you. Simple, yes?"
It sounded simple, but something told Alchemy it'd be anything but.
"Good begin!" Gravana ordered, throwing a straight punch at Alchemy.
Immediately, she ducked underneath the punch, only for his elbow to come crashing down at her, stopping right before it hit her.
"Too slow! Reset and do it faster next time!"
"Y-yes."
On his call, the simulation began again. Alchemy ducked again to dodge the straight punch, and dodged to the side for the following elbow.
At the same time, she tried to get a hit in, only for his other arm to come crashing toward her, stopping centimeters away from her face.
"I have five limbs! Just because you managed to evade one doesn't mean you're safe! Again, reset."
This time, she opted to move to the side instead of down this time, only to be struck by the fanning out of his striking arm.
"You're dodging too early! The moment your opponent recognizes that you dodged is the moment their next attack comes. Again! Reset!"
Pivoting to the opposite side of Gravana's striking arm, she tried to punch him in the head, but to stop her, he kicked at her legs. Instead of dodging back like she usually would, she jumped up and continued her strike, only for Gravana's free arm to actually hit her and send her flying back into a tree.
"Good! You saw an opportunity and took it, but be careful of feints and fake-outs! Also you can't jump carelessly like that. If you're not grounded, you can't throw a proper punch. Remember that you have to walk into your opponent's striking range. Because of this, you can't let them control the flow of the battle. Now, reset! Come again."
"Right!" Alchemy nodded.
As soon as she got up, the test began again. The end result was no different.
"Sometimes, you must take one yourself to get a hit in. It's all about dealing more damage to your opponent than they can deal to you! Don't be scared of the pain; embrace it! Reset! Again!" Gravana said, sending Alchemy flying again.
'Is it that I need to make my opponent mess up? Do I need to throw in a feint?' Alchemy pondered, approaching her teacher again.