CHAPTER 58: LEARNING THE PHANTOM STRIKE

The siblings needed a whole day before they managed to grasp the timing of swerving their attacks around the pole, finally achieving the requirement to learn the phantom strike, according to Draven.

But they only succeeded after Draven had told them what they were doing wrong.

"Don't attack with all your strength, that'll just make it harder. Do it slowly while keeping the pace and slowly increase the speed from there." It was after that the siblings realized what they were meant to do and slowly began to fix and improve their timing.

"Good, you two have finally gotten your timings right. So you can start learning the actual technique." Draven said with a small nod.

"Now, just know that you control is going to be crucial when using this technique, otherwise it will fail." Draven explained as he made an arm blade and performed the phantom strike, showcasing the control he had over his muscles.

"Now you guys try." Stepping away from the dummies, giving way from the siblings and allowing them to attempt it themselves.

Gideon and Victoria walked up to their respective dummies and got ready to attempt the phantom strike.

*SHWAH SHWAH*

The two of them missed horribly.

Forgot simply overdoing the attack or not doing enough, their arms completely went off course and missed the target completely.

It the failure caught them off guard to the point that they forgot their mental training and blushed I'm embarrassment from the pitiful display.

"Try again." Draven instructed and the two immediately gathered themselves before deciding to attempt once again.

'The moment I tried to a swerve after achieving the 'peak flex', I lost control of my arm and I went completely off course. I wasn't even able to use my new sense of timing. But then what am I meant to do?' Gideon's brows furrowed as he was unable to come up with a solution for his predicament, and Victoria seemed to be in a similar situation.

Regardless, the two of them tried again. They would only make progress through trial and error.

*SHWAH*

A miss.

*SHWAH*

Another miss.

*SHWAH*

And another miss.

And another.

And another.

And another.

And another...

5 Hours Later

Gideon stopped swinging and folded his arms in annoyance. Even after five whole hours of constant swinging, he nor Victoria came even close to swerving, talk less of hitting the dummy.

And if that was the only thing, then they wouldn't be to annoyed, the issue was that they made virtually ZERO progress throughout. They had tried the whole, 'going slowly and increasing force from there', but when they had to swing with all their strength, it was as if their bodies completely lost control.

The duo unwillingly looked at Draven for help, but to their dismay, he simply looked back at them without any intention of helping.

'Okay, okay. We know the steps, but our execution is terrible. But what do we do to fix it? Speed isn't an issue, neither is strength, so it all boils down to control. But what do I do to control my muscles properly?' Gideon thought before closing his eyes and started to run several simulations in his mind. And then it clicked.

'Oh? Seems like he got it.' Draven thought as a slight smile crept on his face behind his mask.

"The technique requires us to have an extraordinary level of control no doubt." Gideon started as he turned towards the dummy with his dagger.

"But control alone won't be enough, since striking at full strength and then exerting even more strength to perform the swerve creates a massive amount of stress both for the arm and the mind due to such a quick movement with such a small window for movement. So this is where timing comes in. But even with exceptional timing, it doesn't reduce the stress a bit." Gideon continued while entering a striking position.

"But you aren't meant to use you full strength for the swing aren't you?" He looked at Draven with a hint a pride.

"Instead, the strike is meant to be around normal strength, it's when you need to perform the swerve that you use your full strength before going back to normal. Am I right?" Draven's smile widened when he heard the last part.

"So you figured it out, not bad." He remarked as Gideon swung his dagger towards the dummy. But instead of his usual all out swing and then exertion, it was a normal swing, one you would see when he is holding back or testing the waters.

*SWOOSH*

His arm suddenly blurred and in the next moment, was in at the back of the dagger and struck the dummy. Flawless.

That was one of the things one needed to know about the phantom strike. You don't need to use all your strength simply because it's a surprise attack, and one wouldn't expect it, especially when it was at the beginning of a fight where the opponent wasn't expecting you to go all out right off the bat.

Excellent control as well as the element of surprise and speed. That as the essence of the phantom strike.

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This chapter is going to have to be extra short because I had to go out earlier and am exhausted. Sorry (⁠๑⁠•⁠﹏⁠•⁠)