Woon approached the door of the training room, his eyes scanning for any clues. There, on a small table, sat a jar filled with what looked like grain pills, clearly left by Ron.
"So, these are the grain pills he mentioned?" Woon muttered, his curiosity piqued.
He picked out two, popping them into his mouth. He chewed slowly, savoring the bitter, earthy taste, determined to make them last. The flavor wasn't pleasant, but he had no other choice.
"Definitely not good," he winced, swallowing hard.
"Alright, back to work!"
He plunged the room back into darkness, the faint outlines of his training space fading into black. Woon settled into a focused stance, his mind's eye already seeing the swirling orbs. He targeted the one that had consistently eluded him before. With a deep breath, he unleashed a lightning-fast thrust, followed by a flurry of slashes. Yet, each time his blade neared, the orb danced away, mockingly just out of reach.
'Adapt!'
Woon pushed through his frustration, launching another series of rapid thrusts. Then, he executed a precise, clean sideward slash. The orb, predictably, shifted direction. But this time, Woon's katana didn't retreat. Instead, he fluidly maneuvered his blade, slicing down through the orb. It split cleanly in two, a phantom victory.
Without a moment's hesitation, he shifted his focus to the smallest orb, no bigger than an ant. It was nearly invisible, a near-impossible target. Still, he pressed on, unleashing a barrage of thrusts and slashes, but to no avail. This orb wasn't fast, but it was three times as elusive as the previous one.
"Hoooh! This one's tough!" he grunted, sweat beading on his forehead.
Woon flicked the lights back on, the harsh glow illuminating his weary face. He returned to the worn book, poring over its pages, re-reading sections until he felt he'd absorbed every last detail. His mind raced, replaying simulations of the tiny orb, searching for a solution. It wasn't about speed or trickiness; it was simply its minuscule size.
"I just can't come up with anything!" he exclaimed in frustration, running a hand through his hair.
He decided to try a different approach: sensory training. He extinguished the lights once more and sat in the center of the room, still and silent. He focused on every sound around him—the distant footsteps outside the training room, the rhythmic clang of iron being hammered in the forging area. He smelled the faint scent of metal and the grain pills beside him, felt the warmth of the room on his skin. His senses sharpened, reaching their peak, but still, no breakthrough.
"This won't do!"
Woon switched the lights back on, slumping down to think. As he pondered, Eric's words echoed in his mind: 'Calmness, precision, and timing.'
"That's it!" he whispered, a spark of understanding igniting in his eyes.
He killed the lights again, picturing the tiny orb. His stance was subtly different this time. His katana pointed directly forward, his left foot slightly behind his right, a posture of absolute focus. As he concentrated, the orb seemed to appear clearer, his perception so sharp it felt like it could pierce through anything. The orb drifted closer, and then, Woon unleashed a lightning thrust.
But this was no ordinary strike. It was a perfectly straight thrust, without an inch of deviation at the blade's tip. The force was immense. At the exact moment the orb shattered, the wooden hilt of his katana splintered into pieces.
"I hit it! But… my hilt's gone," he said, holding up the broken weapon.
Woon switched on the lights. A single strike, yet his body was drenched in sweat, droplets pooling on the floor. His arm trembled from the sheer power of the impact, the ruined hilt a testament to his breakthrough.
"I gotta get Ron to fix this!"
After quickly tidying the training room, Woon exited and found Ron in the forging room, meticulously cleaning his tools.
"Yo, Ron!" Woon called out.
Ron looked up, a surprised grin on his face. "Oh, Woon! You're already done? It's only been a day and a half!"
"Yeah, well, finished faster than expected," Woon shrugged.
"So?"
"Can you fix my katana?"
Ron's brow furrowed. "Break it? What in the world did you do in there?"
"Just the hilt," Woon clarified sheepishly.
"I knew this might happen! Good thing I prepared a spare," Ron chuckled, already reaching for a new wooden hilt.
"Nice! Are the weights finished?"
"Yep, they're over near the anvil!"
Woon walked over, his eyes widening. "Whoa, these are pretty heavy!"
"Fifty kilos each?"
"Yeah, they're substantial, but you've been growing fast, haven't you?" Ron said, already expertly working on the katana.
Woon strapped the fifty-kilo weights to his wrists and ankles. The sudden heaviness was palpable, but still manageable.
"Hoooh, these feel good!" he exclaimed.
"Here's fifty gold," Woon said, holding out a pouch to Ron.
"Just ten! That's way too much!" Ron protested.
"Nah, keep the change. You know, I had a bit of luck yesterday. Ran into some con artists dressed as knights!"
"You mean those guys causing a ruckus yesterday?" Ron asked, his eyes still on the katana.
"Exactly! One hundred gold just for beating them. Easy money, hahaha!"
"It's finished!" Ron declared, handing Woon his newly repaired katana.
"Perfect! I'll be heading out now!"
"Yeah, good luck!"
Woon left Ron's shop and headed towards the inn, only to find Eric wasn't there. Remembering Eric's usual haunt at his family residence, Woon decided to just change at their room in the inn before heading to the mercenary guild.
"I guess I'm going solo for now," Woon sighed.
He entered the bustling mercenary guild and made his way to the request board, scanning the various postings.
"Hmm…"
As he was deciding, Jol spotted him and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Hey, Woon! Remember me?"
Woon turned, a smile spreading across his face. "Jol! Yeah, long time no talk!"
"Just finished a request?" Woon asked.
"Nah, we're about to grab one. How about you?"
"Same, but my friend's not with me, so I was thinking of going solo."
"Wanna join our party?" Jol offered, his eyes twinkling.
'Hmm, this could be a good idea,' Woon thought. "Yeah, sure, why not? That wouldn't be bad at all!"
"Great! Come on, my team's waiting over there!"
Woon followed Jol to where his party was gathered.
"As you all know, this is Woon. We crossed paths last time!" Jol announced.
"Oh yes, I remember him! He was with that handsome guy," a girl from the party chimed in, a playful glint in her eye.
"By the way, this is Sol, my sister. And this is Ken, and Anna!" Jol introduced them one by one.
They exchanged pleasantries, briefly catching up on what had happened since their last encounter. Jol, ever the pragmatist, quickly got down to business.
"So, our current client needs an escort to the capital. The reward is a hundred gold, so we'll each get ten gold after we finish. Sound good, Woon?"
"Yeah, perfect! And I wanted to go to the capital anyway!"
'i want to go through a lot of places anyway!'
"Awesome! Just a reminder, our client's a noble, so everyone needs to watch their every move, okay?"
The whole party nodded in agreement, then set off for the grand, white manor with its tall iron gates and fences where the escort mission would begin.
'Definitely a noble's residence. Tall fences to keep out the riff-raff, I suppose!' Woon mused to himself.