As Ilaya was pointing her sword at, she heard Ivana said to her while grinning
"Hoho. How dare you point your sword at me? Are you really looking for a beating? Are you perhaps a masochist?"
Ilaya became flustered as she panicked
"N-No! I felt it's kind of cool so I did it! Is there a meaning to pointing a sword at others? I didn't know!"
Ilaya feels like she's forgetting something important. She then exclaimed
"And I'm not a masochist!"
As Ilaya panicked, Ivana sighed and said to her
"What a pathetic reason. But I'm not proficient in using short swords. I can teach you some basic katas, but that's it. You need to figure out how to use it on your own"
Ivana then thought of something as she looked at Ilaya's eyes. For some reason, Ilaya suddenly had a bad premonition as she shivered. Then, Ivana said to her
"I'll teach you some of the basic katas of short sword, so watch carefully"
Then, Ivana took her short sword as she performed slashes from high, middle, and to low. Ilaya became mesmerized by her movements. She felt that her motivation to be like her is increasing rapidly. Ilaya really thought like Ivana was a dancer, performing a lively dance on the stage. As she looked at her with sparkling eyes, Ivana noticed her paying attention to her, but not the sword movements
She suddenly changed her direction as she slashed Ilaya near her face. Ilaya belatedly realized what just happened as she felt the cutting wind. Then, she hurriedly jumped back as she yelled at Ivana
"Hey! You almost hit me!"
Ivana stopped her movements as she said to her
"You're not paying attention. Do that again and the next strike will hit you"
Ilaya became embarrassed and nervous as she nodded seriously. She really knows that Ivana will hit her again if she becomes distracted. Ivana started her movements again. Ilaya noticed that her movements are just slashing, stabbing, and parrying
In Ilaya's eyes, it's like she's fighting some invisible enemy
'Slash, stab, and parry. Rinse and repeat. Is it the essence of this style? It's not like the vicious katas that she taught me a while ago. Where the strikes were headed towards the head, neck, or wrist'
Ilaya observed Ivana as she realized that the style that she's performing is for defending. Like protecting the wielder. She immediately became elated as she felt that it was perfect for her
'This style is perfect for me! Not violence, but protection!'
Ilaya excitedly watched Ivana's movements as she concentrated in memorizing the katas of the style. Then, after a while, Ivana stopped and she handed the short sword to Ilaya
"Now, you do it. I noticed that you're paying so much attention. Have you noticed something?"
Ilaya excitedly said to Ivana
"Yes! It's the repetition of slash, stab, and parry! The style also protects the center or the wielder! It's perfect for me!"
Ivana nodded and said to her
"You got it right. It's a sword style that originates in China. It's an ancient sword art. To master it, you need to have an unbreakable focus. So…"
Ivana smirked at Ilaya as she said to her like announcing her execution
"You need to make at least 1000 slashes in the morning, and another 1000 in the afternoon. Congratulations, your exercises had increased"
Ilaya's excitement plummeted as she looked blankly at Ivana. She observed her to see if she was joking. She isn't
'Is… she for real? 1000? I just slashed about 30 just now and my arms felt like they were about to fall off!'
Ilaya whimpered as she said
"Can I make at least 500 slashes? I'm just starting to train my body so it's not that tough yet"
'That means! Have mercy on me!'
Ivana looked at her strangely as she said
"We have an inhuman recovery speed aren't we. We must take advantage of that. Also, I have to thank you for reminding me. I can implement some training method for you that will speed up your progress"
'Me and my big mouth!'
As Ivana gave Ilaya a smile, for some reason, the short sword in Ilaya's hand almost flew towards Ivana's face. She held back the impulse as she took a deep breath. Then, she started mimicking Ivana's katas that she showed earlier
Her memories easily remembered the movements and easily replicated the moves. Although, it's still clumsy. As Ilaya was getting busy. Ivana observed her
'She's still clumsy but she's picking up skills so fast. Is this innate to her? But, it's still not enough. The fight is going to start soon, so I'm not going to be able to train her that much. I need to speed up her training. There's a saying that a practice can't compare to a real fight. So, do I need to fight her? Or send some enemies where she'll be forced to fight for her life'
She pondered for a bit before she rejected it
'There's a high chance that she'll go into a rampage if she's forced into a corner. Then, she'll be traumatized again and delay her training. I guess I'll just need to beat her up. Or make Nicole do it'
Then, after 15 minutes. Ilaya finally managed to ingrain the knowledge into her brain. Of course, she will need more practice to use it. As she's feeling happy, Ivana said to her while walking in the center
"Ilaya, let's go spar. You will attack and I will only defend. If you hit me once, you win. And if you win, I will do a request from you. Of course, I will counter attack. And if you surrender, I win and you will do what I request"
Ilaya looked at her doubtfully. She said hesitantly
"You know that I've learned just now, right? No. You're even the one who taught me! That's not fair! At least remove the bet!"
Ivana rolled her eyes at Ilaya as she said
"Alright, you won't need to do what I ask if you lose. So?"
Ilaya thought for a bit
'I'll be the one who's attacking, so it's free hitting her. She will be in a passive position and will only counter when I attack. There's also the prize if I win'
Ilaya then said to Ivana
"Alright. I agree. Let's spar"
Then, two readied in the center. Ivana held the wooden tachi and Ilaya took her stance. As the red and blue eyes met, Ilaya dashed forward as she waited for what Ivana's move would be
'If she moves, I can block her, then connect my other movements that will force her to have an opening. And I'll seize that chance!'
However, she noticed that she didn't move. The move that she's waiting for didn't appear. She suddenly stopped and looked at Ivana dumbfounded. Suddenly, the room became awkward. Ilaya couldn't help but awkwardly asked Ivana
"Why didn't you move?"
Ivana looked at her funnily as she said
"I clearly said that I'll only counter attack. So, you need to attack first before I move"
Ilaya felt embarrassed as the serious atmosphere vanished, replaced by a comedic situation. Then, she took a deep breath as she said
"Let's start again"
Ivana nodded and waited for her. Then, Ilaya dashed forward
'If there's no opening! Make one!'
Her short sword flew only to be met with the tachi
Tak!
Then, the clashes of wooden swords reign in the room