Today's training won't be like before; today we'll learn defensive techniques. According to Sir Gareth, if Jina and I master defense well, we'll be ready to face increasingly larger slime groups.
― "I see you're still wearing the weights, good. Now, begin your warm-up," ordered Sir Gareth with a satisfied look.
Without wasting time, we started with walking and, after 10 laps, moved on to running. Since we'd spent the previous day hunting with the weights, the warm-up was relatively easy, allowing us to complete 25 laps without collapsing from exhaustion—though we were still panting.
― "Very good… I see you're adapting well to the weights. I thought it would take longer to overcome the 10 kilograms, but you managed quickly. By the end of the day, I'll increase the weights to 15 kilograms."
"Seriously… even more weight? Sir Gareth was truly a sadistic teacher," I thought, but I didn't dare say it aloud, fearing he'd make the challenge even harder.
After repeating the previously taught movements several times to refine them, Sir Gareth, satisfied, gathered us and explained the new defensive techniques we'd learn today.
― "In this defensive training, you two must help each other. Jina will deliver lateral and vertical strikes while you defend. After 10 repetitions, switch roles: the boy will attack, and Jina will defend. Initially, communicate your attack intentions, but once you get the hang of it, stop revealing your movements. Understood?"
― "Yes, sir!"
― "Yes, Dad!"
And so we began: Jina struck at me until we finally found good synchronization. Sir Gareth watched us closely, correcting every mistake in our movements.
We practiced for a while, and when it seemed we'd mastered the technique, we were ordered to stop telegraphing our attacks. Jina started again, and… wow, I ended up taking a beating, hehe.
When it was my turn, I tried to retaliate a little, but she was too fast, anticipating my moves and defending with mastery.
― "Hey, hey, Ishida, if you keep attacking like that, you'll never hit me," Jina teased with a mischievous smile as she parried my strike.
― "Now, switch positions," ordered Sir Gareth.
I looked ahead, startled, seeing Jina's wicked grin, and thought: "Yeah… I think today's gonna hurt."
And so the training continued; sometimes Jina outmatched me, other times I came out worse. But the session wasn't just about defeats—I began identifying some patterns in her attacks and managed to block a few, maybe one out of four.
― "Excellent, you both did very well. Now, we'll move to another drill. This time, I'll be the assistant. I'll attack, and you must evade, using your spears to maintain distance. Remember: spears aren't made for close combat, so keeping the right distance is crucial."
Jina went first. Sir Gareth explained where he'd strike, wielding a dagger. Jina did very well, though she failed to evade some attacks. Meanwhile, the problem was that Gareth himself stopped his strikes before causing damage—unlike with Jina…
Then it was my turn. Sir Gareth rushed at me with the dagger, announcing he'd perform a thrust. Using my spear's shaft as defense, I blocked the attack and, with good footwork, retreated to maintain distance before countering with a thrust of my own.
― "Well done, Ishida, but now I won't announce my attacks. Focus, observe my movements, and try to read me."
We continued training, and though I didn't have much success, at least it was less intense than the session with Jina. We trained until the afternoon when Gareth granted a 10-minute break.
― "Breathe, drink some water. From now until the end of the day, you'll be opponents. You'll duel using only the techniques I've taught."
After the break, Jina and I began our duel, with Sir Gareth acting as referee and signaling the start of the battle.
Jina advanced swiftly, delivering a thrust. With no time to block, I retreated to keep my distance. But she gave me no time to think, following up with an overhead strike. I raised my spear's shaft and managed to block, leaving her guard exposed for a few seconds—an opening I exploited with a lateral strike. However, my agility wasn't enough; Jina retreated quickly and reset her stance. "This isn't good, she's really fast," I thought, circling her while studying her posture.
Again, she attacked, this time in zigzagging motions as if dodging bamboo poles. With each step, her guard alternated between high and low, making it hard to predict her next move.
"It won't be that easy," I thought. I halted my advance, waited until the last second, then leaped forward and thrust, aiming to surprise her and disrupt her rhythm. The strategy worked—I executed the thrust, then shifted stance and attempted a horizontal strike. Jina seemed surprised by the sudden change, but once again, my speed fell short. Before I could finish, she blocked, forcing me back.
The battle continued, and Jina ended up surpassing me. She used my own strategy against me, and before I could react, she thrust. At the last second, she adjusted her position and struck my side with another blow.
― "Very well, I think that's enough for today," said Gareth, looking slightly surprised. ― "You both did excellently in this first duel."
― "Hey, hey, Ishida, you surprised me. You almost hit me," Jina remarked, impressed.
― "Yeah… but it still wasn't enough. You're really fast."
― "See? I am fast, hehe."
― "There are opponents who are extremely swift. You rely on brute strength, boy, but how will you fare against someone who rarely makes mistakes? Start thinking about how to land a hit on Jina—otherwise, defeating her will be very difficult," advised Sir Gareth.
― "Now, changing topics—take your new weights. You're dismissed for today. I'll see you the day after tomorrow."