Chapter 104 - Light Flash Student Vs Master Possession
As the sun rose and illuminated a field, there were three people spectating from a distance. A disciple and his master could be seen a few feet away from each other as they readied their stance with their daggers in hand. One was a young boy, while the other was a young lady.
As the pebble which was thrown into the air slowly descended, the pressure being emitted by them increased.
The instant the pebble touched the ground, there was a flash, and they clashed.
The lady won the class in terms of power and pushed the boy a few meters back. However, he maintained his balance and pushed back. He leaped at her swinging both daggers in irregular unpredictable patterns.
As she paired some and avoided other swings, she began to chant. Seeing this, in a near-instant, he froze her legs, then swung both daggers simultaneously. She raised both daggers to parry them. The moment she did, he sent a kick straight at her open belly. The original swings were fake.
Right before he felt contact, she disappeared, leaving a trace of a dark air that instantly dispersed.
Without having to look, he could already feel her presence. He changed stances and shifted his body from one side to the other. This caused him to avoid her dagger thrust, which came from behind.
But his attack didn't end there, first a kick, then swings. The perfected version of the irregular pattern with most people wouldn't be able to dodge, much less predict, was being used against him.
He was being pushed back, with no openings to attack, he remained on the defensive, for a slight moment, he left an opening, and in that moment, he was kicked straight in the face.
The kick had so much power in it that it sent him rolling back over 50 feet. When he managed to regain his balance, he stopped the momentum. His master's presence was gone, as he hurriedly looked up, only to see her suddenly appear right in front of him while swinging down her dagger.
With no other options, he played his trump card.
"Fulgurationem" Translation: Lightning Flash.
Electricity started to pass through the boy's body, and to him, the lady's movements had slowed down. The speed of his senses had also increased.
He moved his body downwards and to the right, barely avoiding the swing in the process. Yet despite it missing, he was still hit.
He stepped back and looked over at her eyes as he heard her mutter "Possesion". A cold, visible sweat was starting to form on his face. It was a move he was all too familiar with, and there were only two words he would associate it with.
Impenetrable horror. He knew that his master was no longer planning on holding back. So he himself would give it his all. His master's eyes became clouded in darkness and the air around her turned black.
After that, it ended in a blink. Without chanting she disappeared, and before he could even react, she had grabbed on to him from behind and pointed her dagger at his throat.
With no other options, he surrendered.
"I give..." He muttered with an annoyed expression.
"Good fight" Said his master, somewhat impressed with the results.
"That's not fair master... Using possession... And Shadow step," He complained.
"But freezing my legs and using Fulgurationem to dodge mine was?" She asked.
Without being able to retort, he hung his head.
"Raise your head, John. You fought well. To reach this point after only a year and a half." She said with a proud smile.
A year and a half had passed since that day. John was now 13 turning 14 soon, Ariel was the same age and Serena had turned 16. John settled his birthday on the same day as Ariel's as he wasn't sure which day was the day where he came to this world.
His master had started to smile more often, John wasn't sure when it started, but when he first saw it, he thought that it fitted her.
"You should smile more often, that way you'll get a-"
Before he could finish, she suddenly punched his head.
"Sorry..." apologized John
But he was being honest. He genuinely believed that she was good looking and would be a lot more popular with the guys if she wasn't so scary and anti-social all the time, but he decided not to give up on the topic. He had no right to.
"Oh John, that was amazing!" Said Ariel cheerfully.
"The first fight I see after all that training you've done, and you've become less human..." Said Serena.
"Oi." Said John.
"Now, now, let's not misunderstand, John was never human to begin with." Said Eleanor.
"I see... I guess it's only natural that I wouldn't be human," Said John with a poker face.
The group chuckled at John's reaction.
Ever since that day, there hasn't been any progression in his relationship with either of the two girls he liked. And when he finally noticed his feelings for them, they just kept growing bigger and bigger, and he was more conscious around them.
"Hm..." Muttered Serena as she stared straight at his eyes.
"W-What?" He asked as he turned his head while trying to hide his slightly reddened face.
"When did you get so tall?" Asked Serena as she stood beside him.
He had passed her in height by a few centimetres. When John met Serena, she was around 5 foot 1, and now she was 5 foot 3, and yet John had easily passed her despite only being 13. Seeing this, she felt a sense of defeat. She was always the tallest of the group, but that was recently taken from her.
"It's fine, at least I grew in other departments..." She muttered to herself, while holding back her tears.
"Now that I'm taller, I can do this." He said.
John who saw this, took off her mage hat and patted her silky silver hair.
"There, there." He muttered.
"Stop..." Said Serena with a bright red face, even her cute pointy ears were red.
Seeing this, John couldn't help but tease her. But without saying anything, she suddenly grabbed onto his hand and took her hat back before putting it on. She then hid her expression under her hat.
'Did I go too far?' He wondered.
Then, all of a sudden, Ariel came over and stared at John with a determined look. Without her saying anything, he already knew what she wanted. He also patted her darkish, slightly long hair.
Ariel had started to grow her hair. She hadn't cut it at all for the past year, John liked the new look and thought that it suited her.
"Hehe..." She let out while making a cute expression as he patted her.
It was so cute that he honestly believed that he could die right then and there.
Ever since that day, there hasn't been any progression in his relationship with either of the two girls he liked.. But even if it's slow, he feels that with every passing day they were getting closer and closer.