"Alright, today we'll work on improving our skills, and also adjust our fighting style. You saw the bandit earlier? They weren't fighting like Ken, so l suggest we build another fighting technique." Arthur stated as he sat on the floor crossed legged.
"Ooookay... but who's that cat? Looks nasty." Iris replied with a disguised expression as she pointed the animal beside Arthur.
Arthur gazed at the direction Iris was pointing, and sighed loudly after remembering he didn't announce Storm's presence infront of his friends. He sighed again and immediately replied, "right this cat, well he's officially our new team member, his name is Storm. He has a negative energy but you'll get used to him, don't get bothered by his mean act okay?"
After introducing Storm infront of his friends, they seemed unfazed, then...
"Meow, the names greatest of all time baby! Now before me humans, or suffer the eternal terror!" Storm growled, raising both his hands with a villainess grin.
"...okay..."
Iris wasn't impressed with the introduction that she even yawned in the process, for the first time and probably the last, Blake wasn't even fazed seeing a talking orange cat. This action surprised both Iris and Arthur, after Blake noticed they were staring at him, he immediately panicked and passed out.
Guess his friends looked much more scary.
"Either ways, let's continue training."
"Gah!"
Storm felt a sharp pain, his pride was shattered. The glory of taking over the world, terrorising nations, and spreading fear, crumbled by a single unfazed gaze. Though most part weren't true. Even Arthur didn't bother defending, Storm lowered his hands, and walked away still with his villainess grin, as if plotting something evil.
Anyways, Arthur pulled out his wooden practise sword on his right hand which he took from the training room, on his left hand held a book, first generation. It was a book which he gathered swordplay techniques under the subject of the first generation swordplay. He opened a page residing short notes, he read aloud...
"Impact shot."
Information based on this technique wasn't much like other techniques he tried learning, he was young so his body wasn't ready to learn some techniques.
According to the book, impact shot allowed a swordsman to send a thrust accompanied by an impact, the technique activation didn't require specific domain range but precise body control. It take a a lot of energy to use, energy needed for fast travel, energy is also required to create the impact after contact.
"These little details yet the technique sounds difficult to pull, unless..." Arthur smirked as he looked at his wooden practise sword.
Arthur wasn't a master level divine energy control, he still lacked big time, even if he has learnt how to activate the flowing flower technique, use air slash, and learnt how to sense his surroundings using divine energy, it still wasn't proof he was at master rank yet.
But that fact didn't stop him, he always had an alternative, it was...
"I'll use a high reserve of divine energy to safely glide me through my target, it's risky but worth the try." Arthur concluded as he stepped infront of a tree.
The tree he was standing next too had a hard touch, perfect for practise using his wooden sword.
Arthur's plan was stand as far away as possible, not that far, but a ten metre distance. He held the sword with both his hands pointing directly at the target—the tree infront. A surge of divine energy poured out his body, a yellow light covered his body like aura. He kept pouring out without losing concentration, but the pouring started causing his body to tremble. It felt like he was carrying a boulder, and divine energy carried so much heat that the human cannot handle.
"Ngh!"
Quickly changing the uprising energy direction, shifting it straight, an easy way could be, Once divine energy pours out it has an upward direction, Arthur changed its direction to move straight towards the tree. A connection was made between Arthur and the tree, he sighed in agony.
"Hiyah!"
Arthur then imbued divine energy on his sword, and simultaneously dashing forward with amazing speed, his movement was quick, his legs didn't even touch the ground, he was sliding on the air. At that instant, the tip of the sword made contact with the tree and an explosion erupted making a bang sound. Birds in the forest scattered in fear.
The tip of the sword penetrated through the tree, thereafter an impact was created shattering the tree into pieces. He finally did it, it was a success on his first try.
"Ack! My hand." Arthur muttered as his right hand felt excruciating pain from overusing divine energy, "talk about victory, and..."
Arthur accomplished two things, using impact shot on his first try, and...
"The wooden sword didn't break this time, hooray!" Arthur cheered gracefully.
His body continued trembling till it gave up, he fell on his back while admiring his accomplishments. If Ken was around to watch, he'd be proud of him. The boy was proving himself as a genius at a young age, a boy with potential.
"I can't wait for the day we meet, l want to show you how much l've improved." He whispered, letting out a smile.
"Meow! Impressive!"
Taken by surprise, Arthur turns his head and sees an orange kitten approaching him.
"Storm? Hey what's up? Did you see what l just did?! Amazing isn't it!"
"That wasn't amazing..."
"Huh?"
"It was spectacular! I've never seen a sword wielder improve their techniques that fast like you do, you've quite the talent."
"You think so? Not sounding greedy but, l feel it wasn't enough. I was this close to draining my cage empty."
Arthur expresses his consequences on the technique he performed, it was a reckless idea, high risk with high reward. They may have been chances that his cage might've overdrive if he made a single mistake, but luck was on his side.
Storm didn't seem to care about he said, but simply praise him. Arthur stretched out his clenched hand directly at Strom. Storm slowly did the same by stretching out, then poking Arthur's hand with his claws.
"Ouch! Why'd you do that, stupid cat?!"
"Humans getting too comfortable with a weird cat, it was sign to not simply trust someone just because you recently befriended them." Storm stated sounding like a genius.
"What's with the random quote all of a sudden? Man, this world knows nothing about fun. Atleast l'm not too bothered by it, we simply go with—"
"You must be Aisha's son, right?" A sudden voice appeared.
Arthur was taken by surprise as he leaped, keeping his posture straight with his sword on his hand while trembling.
There was a man with red cloak, brown and grey coat that reached his knees wearing a gold necklace, his blonde hair fluttering, as his blue eyes gazed down at Arthur. The man had a wide smile and intimidating look.
"Why the sudden look?" The man calmly asked, his cloak dancing with the wind.
"Wha-ack- who are you? I didn't even notice your arrival, and—"
As the man's cloak was fluttering, it revealed a sword on its sheath.
The man came unnoticed, his presence alone made Arthur drop his sword and fall on his knees, and his entire body dripping in sweat.
"I'm a candidate of the heavenly Knights, the names Reid Rivers." The man introduced himself bowing before Arthur.