Spar

Spar

"Huh?" Christopher said, sounding genuinely surprised at the sudden request.

"I know it's sudden, but please sir, be my teacher. I promise to be loyal and hardworking." Titus said and bowed, showing his seriousness.

It was strange, he had seen so many powerful individuals, and some he was sure were stronger than Christopher, and yet, he never actively wanted them to teach him. But for some reason, there was just this deep sense of admiration Christopher invoked in him.

"..." Christopher didn't respond and Titus became anxious.

"Sir, if it's about benefits then I promise you that there will be many. But please, be my teacher!" Titus bowed even lower.

'Hm. I've never had to teach anyone before. Is it worth it though?' He thought and looked at Titus' bowing figure.

'Well, he's been nice to me, and it's not like I'm in a huge rush or anything.' Christopher rubbed his chin and then suddenly asked.

"What magic can you use?" Titus' eyes widened and he straightened his back.

"My primary affinity is wind magic, but I have some attainments in light magic as well." He said seriously.

"What weapon do you use?" Christopher asked again.

"A sword, just like you sir." Titus answered.

"How old are you?"

"I'll be 17 this year sir." Christopher nodded.

"Hm. Alright, I have no issues." He nodded. Titus' eyes widened, and then a huge smile formed on his face and he bowed again.

"I won't disappoint you sir- no, Teacher!" He said seriously.

'He's so extra. But I don't hate it.' Christopher smiled and helped him up.

"Run along now. I still want to train with my sword and I don't want you to be injured in the process." He said and Titus nodded.

"When should I come for my first lesson?" He asked.

"Hm. Are you free this evening?" He asked and Titus nodded.

"Alright, come then." He said. Titus bowed again and left the training room happily.

"What a strange kid." He muttered as Titus left.

"Whatever. Now then." Christopher grinned as he held his hand out.

"Come out."

***

Paul was in his office, reading reports given to him by his subordinates and couldn't help but frown.

'Those Voidwalker people are really bold, even going as far as to attack my son. Just what do they have that prevents them from even fearing my wrath?' He thought and shook his head.

"Luckily, that Christopher guy happened to be there. Speaking of which, I wonder how he's doing. I sensed a large magic fluctuation just now, so he must be training." Paul muttered and took a sip from his cup.

However, at that moment, his eyes widened and he immediately vanished from his seat.

An instant later, he reappeared at the entrance of the training room in time to see a beautiful yet terrifying red blade appear in Christopher's hand. The chain attached to its handle wrapped around his hand and the blade glowed an ominous crimson.

'That blade… Is it an artifact?' Paul thought with genuine surprise as he watched Christopher silently.

He had a big grin on his face as with a thought, he activated Annihilation Aura and around the swords, tendrils of crimson colored energy surged out around the blade.

He recalled one of the techniques in the Ultimate Blade Works Manual and decided to use it.

He took a breath and positioned one foot in front of the other and bent his body slightly. He raised his arms and focused his will on the sword as he called out slowly.

"Mirage Sword Style, First Form: Sever!" The muscles in his arms then bulged, and far faster than a normal person could capture, he swing down the blade.

At first, nothing happened, and then a fine red line suddenly appeared from his feet to the end of the wall.

Then there was a loud sound as that part of the room, was completely bisected.

'Mirage Sword Style? I don't think I've heard of it before. But it is still very impressive. That cut just now severed the atoms directly into two. A single target move that can kill an enemy in one hit if they aren't careful.' Paul thought with some praise in his eyes.

'Let's see what else he can do.' He thought and decided to observe a little longer, and Christopher was indeed not finished as he then stood straight, then placed his right foot behind his left and twisted his body slightly.

He then raised the sword to his chest horizontally and said lightly.

"Mirage Sword Style, Second Form: Haze." His body seemed to vanish and then reappear at the far end of the room in the exact same stance.

Then, the floor, walls, and ceiling were covered in hundreds of red lines that intersect with each other, and a moment later chunks of square shaped material flew out in different directions.

"Phew." Christopher smiled looking pleased with himself and turned around, and he about jumped out of his skin when he saw Paul watching him silently.

"Ah! Family head! I didn't know you were here." Christopher said and bowed, but the man just waved him off.

"Ignore me. I was just passing by." He said dismissively.

'I'd rather not have him watch me train, but I can't turn down a man in his own house, so it is what it is.' Christopher let out a breath and nodded.

"Mirage Sword Style, Third Form. Speed Blitz." He said again and he moved even faster than before, as if he had teleported and appeared right in front of the wall before his hand blurred and unleashed hundreds of stabs in a second into the wall, filling it with red marks of annihilation energy. At that point.

"Christopher." Paul suddenly called out and Christopher spun to face him.

"Yes?" He asked.

"Do you mind sparring with me?" Paul said and Christopher blinked.

"And no, I am not joking. I want to have a small spar with you. And do not worry about your safety, I'll restrict my strength to your level." He said.

'... If I refuse, I might end up on his bad side.' Christopher was reluctant, but he ended up agreeing.

"Good." Paul smiled faintly and started to walk forward.

"Attack me with any means at you disposal. Summon your beast if you please. I really want to know the extent of your strength." As Paul said that, he stretched out his hand and a long yet thin blade appeared, and the moment it did, an oppressive aura suddenly oozed out of his body.

'Damn, is this how Titus felt?' Christopher thought with shock. Even though Paul said he'd restrict himself, Christopher felt as if he were staring down a monster.

"I'll let you have the first move." Paul said and held his sword out in front of him.

Christopher nodded and decided to use one of the techniques he'd learnt to find a weak spot to exploit. And to his utter horror, there wasn't a single opening on him.

'Heh. Guess I'll just have to hope.' He said and swallowed involuntarily.

Then he calmed himself down and his gaze turned sharp. He took a step, and then he was in front of Paul.

He gave a swift horizontal swing, and yet Paul covered his blade with Ice magic and expertly parried the attack away.

'Interesting, that red energy seems to make my magic unstable.' Paul noted as Christopher feinted and swing left.

Paul however sidestepped the attack and swung his blade. Christopher used his sword to parry and spun before performing a wide swing. But Paul jumped out of the way, completely undeterred.

"Interesting. You seem inexperienced fighting other people." Paul said and Christopher used the Third Form of the Mirage Sword Style and got in front of Paul in an instant.

He unleashed the torrent of stabs, but Paul didn't even appear fazed and he redirected all the stabs. Christopher clicked his tongue and raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

Paul's eyes widened slightly as he hopped back just as white flames blazed from the floor and melted everything close.

'White flames? That's rare.' He found himself becoming more and more surprised. And his surprise peaked as all of a sudden

"Silver!" A huge white wolf appeared out of nowhere and like lightning, struck at Paul with it's claws.

'A lord level beast? But Titus said it was most likely at the General rank.' He thought as he easily turned away Silver's claws.

He then ducked under a swing from Christopher.

'This boy, is really exceeding my expectations.' Paul found himself smiling slightly.

The soar continued and he couldn't help but marvel at how quickly Christopher was adapting.

Initially, he was just attacking straight on with whatever he had in his arsenal. But far faster than a normal person, he was already adapting and using tricks, thinking ahead and setting traps ahead of time for Paul

Initially, Paul could easily turn away his and Silver's attacks, but as time went in, he found himself starting to get pressured and even pushed back a little.

'Amazing.' He thought as he stomped on the group and created numerous ice spikes which forced Silver and Christopher backwards.

However even as he was backing off, he swiped his hand and created two serpents made of the same white flames.

'His thinking much faster. He's like an unpolished gem.' He marveled as he swing his sword and frigid air caused the serpent's to disperse.

However, Silver flashed behind him while that was happening and milky white energy coated his claws and he swung them down.

Paul raised his own sword and parried, and the resulting force caused the floor beneath him to shatter.

'And his beast is also displaying very high power for a Leader ranked beast.' He thought.

Christopher exploited the opening and dashed in before swinging his sword at Paul's torso.

Paul threw off silver and turned to parry the attack. However the instant he did, the chain wrapped around Christophe's arm suddenly unfurled and the sharp blade at the end of it shot it.

Paul's eyes widened and he tilted his head to the side, barely avoiding the attack. However, he still felt a stinging sensation in his face.

He backed up and rubbed his cheek, and to his surprise, there was blood.

'He actually managed to hurt me.'