10 Sparring

Present Day.

Ye Han still in his hospital gown, took the envelope lying on top of the cabinet by his right. It was just sent earlier the morning. Opening it he pulled a black card from inside of it. It was the same card that old man Arthur used during that time. "Maybe, I should have accepted his proposal?"

***

Flashback.

"Let me reintroduce myself, I am Sir Arthur Byron. The Grand Knight of the Chivalric Order." A blinding brilliance engulfed the old man.

"And I invite you to become my direct disciple and succeed me as the Grand Knight of the Order." After the light died down, the old man now donned a golden armor. His cane has turned into a majestic looking sword.

"Why?" Ye Han asked.

"I have seen your potential as a knight. And seeing your talent for wielding a sword, I'll say I'm fairly impressed. So how about it?"

But before he could make his choice, let us go back 20 minutes ago.

20 minutes ago.

"Say, old man, based on his form I could say he could be a competent fighter." Diane, who is back from her errand commented. She has been observing Ye Han the ever since she went into the restaurant. And have come to the conclusion that Ye Han is a fighter.

"Yeah, once he's back we should put him to the test."

Diane was startled by the old man. Only a handful of people can get him riled up. Her grandfather is mostly a mild-tempered person, but for him to torment someone is weird even for him. "You sure? Why?" She asked.

"Let's just say I feel kind of bored." He said. Diane did not miss the mischievous light in the old man's eyes. 'I hope he doesn't beat him too hard.' She wondered if he would be the one who will test him.

When Ye Han finally came back, the old man called him. "Follow us, Ye Han." The group went out of the establishment. A staff escorted them out. Ye Han did not miss the reverent look of that certain staff.

After 2 minutes of walking, they finally reached some sort of a training area. Various weapons and types of equipment littered the place. At the center is a fairly large sparring area.

But before Ye Han could fully take in all of the details of the place he was interrupted by the old man. "I actually changed my mind. Call me petty but you really did eat a lot. Say, if you could put up a decent fight against my granddaughter I'll pay the whole bill. If it was not up to my standards you'll pay 50% of it."

Ye Han almost wanted to punch the old man on his face. But he is technically at fault also. He really did a lot. So, with no way to get out of the situation, he is forced to spar against Diane. "Sure." He answered meekly.

"Good!" Arthur is very delighted by his approval. "Now pick your weapons.

Ye Han's opponent widened her eyes in shock. 'He's not going to battle him?' But she also has no choice, it was an indirect order from the old man, better comply.

Diane picked a spear placed at a rack. Meanwhile, Ye Han just picked a random sword lying at a corner. They then slowly walked towards the sparring area. Facing each other 5 meters away. Both combatants put on their respective stances. 'I don't really like where this is going.' Thought Ye Han. 'I'll probably restrict my performance. Low-key is key.'

"At my signal, you start the fight. Go!"

Diane then took an aggressive approach. Dashing towards him with the spear pointed at him. 'She's fast, but not fast enough.' Ye Han thought. With the tip of the spear inches away from his face, he tilted his head away from the trajectory. As he was preparing to give a slash, he was greeted by a blow to his face which sends him skidding across the arena.

'So she gave up her hold to the spear to land a punch on me. Tch, time to take it up a notch.' Dodging a spear thrown at him, he zigzagged his way towards her. Now equipped with gauntlets, Diane threw an overhead punch. Ye Han ducked, feeling the wind generated by that blow. He sent a slash towards her which connected. But Diane was not fazed by the wound. Sending a roundhouse kick towards Ye Han, which he dodged by jumping away, saving himself from the blow.

Borrowing the momentum of his fall, he sent a downward slash. But was defended by Diane's crossed arms. Seeing his failed attempt he launched himself away backflipping in the process. Ye Han is now getting annoyed. His opponent proved to be a bit tricky than he anticipated. He doesn't want to reveal any of his skill, on the other hand, he doesn't want to get in debt.

It seems his earlier passive approach should be replaced. He propelled himself towards Diane, literally becoming a blur. Diane's eye went wide open in shock seeing the astounding display of speed. Concentrating in anticipation of any incoming slash, she punched towards the left meeting with Ye Han's blade. This only served to annoy Ye Han even more, earning herself a 'Tch' from him.

Vanishing again, he slashed against Diane's back. This time Diane was not able to react in time and was cut by the blade. But before she could register the full brunt of the pain, she felt another slash against her thighs. This time Ye Han's speed was a whole lot faster than what he has shown earlier. She was then pelted by a barrage of slash coming from every direction. Curling herself to defend any vital areas, she waited for an opening.

On the sidelines, Arthur was quite impressed by the show of talent by Ye Han. To overwhelm his granddaughter a member of the Chivalric Order, to this degree is very commendable. And seeing Ye Han skilfully wield his sword brought a certain idea inside his head.

Diane found it difficult to fight against Ye Han. As a high ranking member of the Order, she must put on a limiter upon herself so that the ordinary would not be affected by her overwhelming aura. Moreover, her inability to suppress her aura is another factor. Lifting her limiter would really be overkill against "someone" like him, her pride preventing her from doing it. With a frustrated growl which somehow released few of her abilities, she pounded both of her arms towards the floor. This sent shockwaves all around, thankfully the floor was able to take the beating and did not crack because of it. Ye Han, of course, dodged away to avoid the incoming shockwaves. Diane finally found an opening.

Mustering every ounce of strength she could manage in her limited self, she sent it towards her legs. And with a speed rivaling Ye Han showed earlier, she quickly arrived in front of him. Ye Han as the former hero could've easily dodged the attack, but he thought. 'I should have shown enough for that old man. I could have sworn that I saw an approving gaze directed at me. I should probably let her hit me. I've taken a lot of blows befo- hurk.'

What he did not expect is for that blow to be packed by a "woman's frustrations and grievances," which of course made the punch to be more devastating. It was so hard that he flew away 50 meters, embedding himself towards the wall.

"Stop the fight!" Called Arthur. Diane plopped down on her back, while Ye Han fell from the wall face first. The old man let the two fighters rest for a couple of minutes while casting healing magic towards them.

'Thank the heavens I did not puke.' Ye Han thought. He stood up and walked towards where Arthur is, albeit slowly. "Despite your very respectful attitude earlier, you really went serious on that spar. You're lucky no scars were left with your slashes or else, hehe." Ye Han instantly felt a shiver went up to his spine. Vowing not to fight against the terrifying woman for the foreseeable future, he turned his attention towards the old man.

"I'm very satisfied with that fight. To overwhelm someone like my granddaughter is something to be proud of. Although she had a limiter on herself, she is the 7th seat of the Chivalric Order. Fighting someone against her caliber, while in her weakened state is truly nice."

Inwardly Ye Han let out a sigh of relief. Whatever the Chivalric Order is, he's glad he held back during that time. He can't imagine if he beat her without the limiter. But outwardly he showed a thankful smile. "Thank you for your praises, Sir Arthur."

"I have an offer for you." He said.

"But first, let me reintroduce myself."

***

Present Day.

He obviously chose to reject the offer. Why would he be living in such a miserable condition? He rejected the offer for various reasons, but the main reason is he doesn't want to be tied in an organization. He could probably mop the floor using the old man and he's even wanting to take him as a disciple, although he really did enjoy their surprise gazes.

Still, he's glad that the old man gave him that super exclusive VIP card. Sadly it can only be used on establishments affiliated to the Chivalric Order. Nonetheless, it still has its uses.

'Why am I in this era though?' He lied back on the bed deep in contemplation. But his musing was cut short by a charming voice. "Your lunch is ready sir."

Seeing the wide array of food presented to him, all of his problems were thrown away at the back of his mind. 'Heh, who cares.'