Just A Little Spar... Or Not!

The next morning, Clyde arrived at the training ground holding his sword. It was way too early, and the sun hadn't fully risen yet. He still remembered seeing that intense sword aura that Celina showed off yesterday. He clenched his fist and looked around.

'She's late! I'll have a reason to punish her'

He thought to himself, folding his hands. It wasn't up to two seconds when he felt someone nudging him from behind.

"Are we waiting for someone?" The voice asked.

"Yes, I'm waiting for that tiny... Huh? When did you get here?" He swiftly moved away from her. He didn't even feel her presence behind him.

"I've been here the whole time. You told me to come before sunrise" she replied, wearing an innocent look on her face.

Clyde silently stared at her from head to toe, noticing something different about her. Her gaze, the way she spoke and the air around her has changed.

'Maybe I'm the only one seeing this'

He thought to himself. However, it was true.

Celina, after Clyde had ended their little training yesterday, felt the annoyance in his tone as he walked away. She thought something bad would happen to her if she dared to disobey him during today's training.

She also never expected that kind of jealous behaviour from Clyde. He had been together with her when she was a baby, but never thought he would get jealous of her just because of her aura.

"Since you're here, let's get started. Before the sun fully rises, swing your sword five hundred times. Don't even miss a count. Swing it downwards, now!" He ordered.

Celina wasted no time in wrapping her fingers around the handle as she started swinging the sword downwards while counting. Clyde stood close to her, correcting every one of her postures.

"Widen your legs. Straighten your back, you're not that tall" he gently hit her back.

"I'm just five!" She replied.

"Say another word and you'll start over again!"

Celina stopped talking and continued swinging her sword. Her hands were hurting, but she didn't stop. Sweats started rolling down her face as the sun rose to the sky slowly.

"497"

"498"

"499"

"500"

Celina was finally done. She dropped her sword and fell on the floor.

"You'll repeat this every morning till you are done with my lessons. This is to increase your strength and also your muscles. I don't care if you're 'five years old', but as long as you can form an aura, you're strong, Celina. Get up here now, let me show you how real swordsmen fight"

"Eh?" Celina furrowed her eyebrows as she raised her head to look at Clyde. He unsheathed his sword. "What are you talking about?" She asked.

"You'll be having a little spar with me. Don't worry, I won't hurt you even if I'm using a real sword. I'll go gently on you since you're just a child," he smirked.

Celina knew he was going to do otherwise. She was using a wooden sword and he was using a real sword.

'He's not planning on killing me, is he?'

She wondered and she stood up from the floor, holding her sword tightly. Celina doesn't know anything about sword fights except for the ones she had read in books.

The stance. How to defend. How to strike.

She exhaled deeply and took her first stance. The grin on Clyde's face widened.

'This brat is smart after all, I just need to teach her a lesson'

.

The sun was shining brightly, hitting its golden light on the training grounds. Clyde and Celina faced each other, their swords locked. Everyone that had gathered could feel the tension in the air. It was quiet except for the gentle sound of leaves rustling and a few murmurs.

"Is that tiny human going to face Clyde?"

"Does she have a death wish?"

"Wouldn't it be better if Clyde gets rid of her once and for all?"

Celina shook her head, listening to every one of their words. It's not enough to let her lose her confidence. She knew that she wouldn't be able to win in a spar with Clyde.

Clyde's eyes sparkled with curiosity as he looked down at his smaller opponent. Celina stood firm, her small body full of determination.

"Are you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be" she replied.

Immediately, the duel kicked off. Their swords clanged together, making a loud noise that rang out. Clyde moved swiftly, his sword slicing through the air like it was second nature to him. But Celina didn't back down. Her sword, even if smaller, moved with a fierce red energy that surprised everyone.

"Is that aura?"

"How can that little human use aura already?"

As the fight went on, Clyde found himself struggling to keep up. Celina had a unique style that was partly instinctive and partly powerful. She landed several solid hits, forcing Clyde to back up more and more. For a brief moment, it felt like Celina was taking charge of the duel.

'How is this possible? How can I be getting pushed back by this toddler?'

Clyde tightened his jaw, clearly annoyed. His eyes were fixed on Celina, who looked like she hadn't used any strength at all.

'Ha! I underestimated this little monster. Seems like I'll have to speed things up'

He wasn't going to let Celina beat him, no way. Not in front of these people that were watching. With quick moves, he launched a series of tricky attacks, aiming for different spots.

Clang!

Their swords clashed, and sparks flew everywhere. Celina was doing her best to match him, but it was tough. Her sword was a wooden sword. It would have broken if it wasn't embedded with aura.

'Or is it because I'm physically weak?' She thought to herself.

Suddenly, Celina hesitated. Her eyes widened as she realized she was caught off guard. Clyde seized the moment.

'It's time!'

His sword got past her defence and hit her on the shoulder with a loud thump. Celina stumbled back, dropping her sword. She heard the machine's voice in her head and let out a sigh.

Everyone who watched started cheering after Clyde had won.

Once everything calmed down, Clyde stood tall and proud. He was breathing hard from the fight. Celina rubbed her sore shoulder and looked at him with a mix of respect and disappointment.

"You cheated," She said, a small smile on her face.

Clyde chuckled, not feeling a tad guilty.

"Hey, there's no fair play in a fight" he replied, reaching out to help her up. Celina took his hand and stood up. Her shoulder was still throbbing in pain. It would have flown off after getting hit by Clyde; again, it was thanks to the aura she used to strengthen herself.

"That's it for today. Tomorrow, we'll continue. Same time, same place. Don't even think about coming late" he waved, as he walked away.

Celina didn't feel the jealousy in his voice this time since he won this fight. She was sure she put her best in striking back. She gazed at her palm, still wondering if she was lacking in strength or if it was because she was physically weak.

She has forgotten that she's just five years old. Finally deciding to ignore it, she raised her head and looked at her stats that increased after the little spar with Clyde.

'Stats!'

Name: Celina Sawyer

Level: Level 15

Title: Enemy of humans

Race: Human

HP: 67/100

MP: 100/100

Job Class: None

Sub Class: None

Aura: 52

Strength: 30 (+5)

Agility: 26 (+2)

Vitality: 15

Intelligence: 50(+1)

Sense: 80

Skills: None

[Affinity]

Earth: High 

Fire: High 

Water: High 

Wind: High

[Elements]

Dark: Locked

Light: Locked 

Unlucky Point: Max (+100)

She rubbed her chin, staring at the extra hundred unlucky points. That's what she got when she missed and got hit by Clyde.

But, when she was sparing with him, she didn't get any notifications from the system.

'Ah! I see. So, this is how it works?'

She grinned, as angry veins popped at the corner of her head. She only gets unlucky points if she gets hit or whenever she's unable to protect herself. However, if she's able to protect herself from a hit that could cost her her life or cause any injury, she'll have some points deducted.

While fighting with Clyde, none of his hits were heavy enough to take her life or cause any injury; that's why there was no notification from the system.

'This fucking blue box! How am I supposed to protect myself if you're this mean?' She clenched her tiny fist and started stomping her small foot on the floor.

Unknown to her, she was being watched by a pair of red eyes.

"Oho! The scrawny human isn't that bad. I can't wait to train her mercilessly"

Since Celina's sense was over average, she felt someone watching her. She stopped her little drama and immediately turned her head but there was no one around. Just the kids playing, the wind and the leaves.

"Am I being watched? Maybe it's a mistake" She picked up her wooden sword and went to the person who always healed her to get her shoulder fixed.