Chapter 7: Chapter 6: Is this how martial arts training looked like?

 

~hahh

 

I let out a large breath before taking another huge gulp of fresh air. My ragged breathing echo in my ears. My legs felt heavy as I struggled to walk even a step further.

 

I collapsed on the floor. Breathing raggedly as I gasped for air.

 

“Finally….”

 

“20 laps finished…”

 

I muttered to myself. Ryan came over to my side bringing a bottle of water. He sat down beside me before handing the water to me.

 

“I was surprised you actually managed to finish all 20 laps around the field.”

 

I layed on the ground gasping for air, not speaking further to Ryan remarks.

 

“Don’t underestimate me….”

 

“Something on this level is not hard for me at all…”

 

Despite saying so, my body is seriously fatigued. My body was screaming in pain, demanding a rest urgently. My muscles hurt all over, making it troublesome to take even a single step.

 

Yet in this condition I still wish to continue training. After all, no pain no gain.

 

Ryan stared fervently at my body before making his decision.

 

“Our official training starts next week. Continue working on your stamina in the meantime.”

 

Instead of doing the training immediately, he postponed it to next week. Perhaps it was his way of taking care of me? I carried my own weight, forcing myself to move every step further. I lie on the bed, getting the rest my body always wanted.

 

‘This way of training is really painful.’

 

The moment I lay on the bed, streams of fatigue washed over me. Knocking me out cold instantly.

I woke up the next morning, noticing the pain of yesterday gone. As if the torturous exercise I did yesterday was nothing but a dream. Instead of feeling tired, a sense of vigor and strength seems to erupt from within me.

 

‘Is this the result of yesterday's exercise?’

 

I ran through the streets before stopping in front of the barracks. I came earlier than my scheduled time, starting my daily training earlier. The field were empty, the other cadets don’t officially start their training until dawn breaks or 3 hours from now. By then, I would have finished my morning routine.

 

I ran through the fields, occasionally switched to jogging to regain some lost stamina. Compared to yesterday torturous exercise, today was a little bit easier. However running 20 laps around the field was still no small feat. It took me weeks of exercise to just run 20 laps without breaking a sweat. Nonetheless, it still counts as a huge improvement in the span of a day. Maybe after 2 years of continuously training, will I get infinite stamina, I wonder.

 

I repeated the same exercise, slowly increasing the amount of laps I did each time. I pushed my body muscles to the very limit, pushing the boundary of what my body can do. The intensive exercise along with my hastened recovery speed allowed me to exercise for longer periods of time. In the course of one week, it was possible for me to run 10 laps around the field without breaking a sweat. It seems that the dream of running 20 laps around the field without breaking a sweat was not really far-fetched.

 

By the end of the week, my body had truly grown. The rapid growth of my muscles allowed me to grow an additional 0.7 cm. The actions of pushing my body to the very limits could have said to stimulated my growth potential.

 

I continued my routine for a week. Improving my stamina as well as my strength. Soon the one week training period was coming to an end.

 

Today was finally the day. The day where my official training starts.

 

I woke up earlier than usual. Getting ready to head to the barracks to begin my training. I couldn’t contain the immense excitement in my heart. What will I be taught today? Will I be taught how to use firearms? Or will it be something else?

 

I sprint my way towards the field. My newfound stamina allowed me to sprint for longer periods of time. Reducing the amount of breaks I took before reaching my destination.

 

The field was empty upon my arrival. It seems that I may have come a bit too early. The dawn sun hasn't risen yet. Instead of waiting, I continued with my usual routine. I jog around the field less than usual, preserving my strength for later training.

 

I was in the midst of running when Ryan showed up on the fields.

 

“Ryin, you are quite early today.”

 

I put my training on hold for a moment.

 

“Good morning, Ry- father”

 

I almost called him by his name again. No matter how many times I do it I still can’t get used to it.

 

“Don’t need to force yourself to call me father yet. Take your time slowly. Not everything in this world can be rushed.”

 

Despite saying so, he let out a face of disappointment. Perhaps he wanted to be called father that much huh. I’m sorry, I will call you father next time. I promised.

 

I quickly continued my training, avoiding the feeling of guilt in my heart.

 

“Seeing that others haven’t arrived yet. How bout’ I start your training earlier?”

 

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I immediately nodded my head toward his remarks. I could help but felt once again excited over what I’m gonna do next. Will I finally obtain my chance to try out a firearm?

 

“Oh, I forgot to say, we not doing firearms training today.”

 

He immediately let out a smug face upon saying so. His smug grew larger upon seeing my expressions, as if he had anticipated what I were thinking.

 

"Don't worry today training not gonna be boring either."

 

"Today we be training in some martial arts"

 

Martial arts training? Does those even worked on monsters I wonder?

 

"You probably thinking, does it even work on monsters?"

 

I was slightly taken aback by his sentence. Can he read I was thinking?

 

"Of course it doesn't work on them. Just one smack from those things and you are a meat paste. Monsters aren’t the only threat in this world. Bandits, fanatics and cultists roamed all over the world. God knows what they're gonna do to you the moment they lay their eyes on you.”

 

Fanatics? Cultist? Aren’t they all the same as us? Why are they killing each other? Their behavior is really confusing. I didn’t dwell on the matter anymore. Focusing once more in his talk.

“They are still weaker then people with firearms. But what would happen if you don't have any firearms on you at the moment or you ran out of ammo? That is when martial arts truly shines. That why today I be teaching you the basics of Karate and Aikido. Both has their pros and cons but when combined they can create various possibilities”

 

Various possibilities. That word alone had sparked my interest in these two martial arts. Maybe today isn’t really a disappointment after all.

 

Before I realized, the surroundings of me were full of other cadets who came for their training. Some of them chattered amongst each other while others were staring expectantly as if something were about to happen.

 

“We are starting the training today. So get ready.”

 

Ryan went back into one of the barracks store rooms. With him, he brought out a couple of outfits along with gloves. It seems to be made from quality material, which was rare especially after the apocalypse. He threw the clothes and equipment at me.

 

“Wear these. They help lessen the pain.”

 

I wore the clothes and equipment according to his instructions. I turned on my back, noticing the huge crowd that had gathered. All of them were staring at me, waiting for something.

 

“Look like a newbie is going for Captain hellish training. I wonder who the poor kid is.”, one of the men in the crowd said.

 

“That newbie is really just courting death. I bet 3 Das that he will only survive for less than a minutes”

A/N: Das is a method of currency in this series.

 

“I bet 5 Das that he will survive for a minute at most.”

 

Some people started betting on my survival rates in the background. Is Ryan training really that hard?

 

We moved from the fields into the hall. In the middle of the hall stood an arena. It was obviously made for combat training purposes. The crowd followed us into the arena, where they sat on the sidelines.

 

I went up to the arena. In front stood Ryan, all suited up as if he were preparing for battle. His demeanor as well as his intimidating looks made my hair stand on an end. He is definitely not gonna go easy on me. But if he did, where is the fun in that?

 

“Please take care of me.”

 

I greeted him in a bow before getting in position. It made me recall the martials arts movies I once watched with big brother Ren. It made me wonder if this is really training and not sparring.

 

His loud voice started the match between us. He stepped forward in a dash before letting out a right jab towards my abdomen. I took a step backward trying to reduce the effect of impact as much as possible. His powerful punch temporarily stunned me before he came forward and released a right uppercut towards me.

 

I narrowly dodged it by a hair breath. I step sideways before letting out a kick with my right leg. My movements, as if it was predicted, were dodged by him with ease. I let out a flurry of punches towards him. Yet his simple sideways steps manage to render it completely ineffective. He took the opening I created after the attack to place a huge blow on my side. I staggered on my feet as I were struggling to keep standing.

 

My breath is getting shorter and shorter as fog starts to cloud my judgment. All of his movements were sharp and precise, rendering my hits ineffective.

 

‘Why can’t I hit him!’

 

I thought to myself. What was the thing I was lacking compared to him? I regained my composure before staring straight in his eyes. I focused on his movements instead of his hands. Perhaps the trick lies in the footwork.

 

I focus my eyes on his footsteps with every step he makes. I took countless hits. Analyzing his movement with his every step. Matching his movements along with his attacks.

 

~Ahh

 

There was it….the pattern.

 

He let out a quick jab towards my side. Repeating the same footwork pattern as before. But this time I managed to dodge it cleanly. I countered his attack, landing my punch on his stomach. Perhaps shocked by my counter, he left an opening. Seizing the chance, I striked forward, not allowing him to catch a single breath. I copied some of his techniques as well as footworks from my previous battle analysis. Forcing Ryan to go into defense.

 

I strike forward, attacking the opening he made, before realizing it was a trap.

 

I was knocked out cold.