Chapter Fifteen[XV]: Training, That's the Plan (VI)

Xenos Waters looks at Mr. Balanius, suddenly very uneasy. "How so?"

Mr. Balanius' smile widens, and Xenos immediately regrets even asking without needing to hear his answer. "Well, considering you two can't use your mana properly, you'll be virtually defenceless if someone attacks you. I figured I could beat some hand-to-hand techniques into the two of you to compensate for this."

Felix and Xenos look at each other. "Should we run?" Felix asks, glancing wearily at the vicious Mr. Balanius.

"Probably, but can we outrun him?" Xenos feels defeated, accepting his fate before it even began. Mr. Balanius is able to technically teleport, after all.

Felix's head drops. "It's been nice knowing you, soldier."

Xenos' face is solemn. "Same to you, captain."

"Are you done?" Mr. Balanius asks, making Xenos and Felix nod as they step forward and into the ring.

Immediately, Xenos can feel that the gravity in the circle is nearly doubled, pressing his head and shoulders down as his legs struggle to keep him standing upright. Felix is in the same position as him, perhaps slightly better off but struggling nonetheless. Xenos can only look at Mr. Balanius in awe, it's clear the same pressure is affecting him, yet there isn't even a single bead of sweat on his forehead.

"You've probably noticed the increased gravity," Mr. Balanius said, calmly walking a few steps forward as if he was just going for a stroll. "Now, any human without mana would probably fall to the ground. However, you two have accessed your mana now, which strengthens your body autonomously. Can either of you tell me why?"

Xenos ponders the question for a moment and asks one of his own, "Does it have anything to do with using magic?"

"Oh! Would the pressure be too much for the normal human body to handle?" Felix seems very interested all of a sudden.

Mr. Balanius nods. "Both of you are correct. The inner pressure from releasing your mana into the outside world from your two cores would make the normal human body collapse from the inside. That's why, as your control over mana and your reserves grow, mana naturally imbeds itself into your skin, muscle, organs, and bones at higher levels to compensate."

"Could you die if you released too much mana at once?" Felix asks.

"Of course," Mr. Balanius confirms. "This is especially the case for the people who come from Okubo since they aren't able to even access their mana with the limited amount in the atmosphere." He suddenly claps his hands, startling Xenos. "Enough talk, I think it's about time we begin. Let your familiars go to the benches."

Xenos hesitates before sighing, crouching down so that Inari has an easier time jumping down. She does, sensing Xenos' intent. Before she goes over to the bench, though, she nudges Xenos leg in silent encouragement which immediately makes him feel better. He scratches her ear and stands up as she bounds toward the bench, finding a nice spot in the sun to curl up in to watch Xenos.

Faeryn and Igneel follow her example. He feels slightly more confident since Inari was watching him intently, plus, he was sure that Mr. Balanius wouldn't hurt them too badly. . . probably. Actually, now that he thought about it, he was probably going to get beat down into the ground. Xenos holds back a grimace, limiting himself to an unsure frown.

"So," Mr. Balanius smiles, "who's going first?"

Felix glances at Xenos. "I'll do it." Felix winks at Xenos. "Watch and learn." Xenos laughs, shaking his head in disbelief. He walks over to Inari, sitting down next to her and gently patting her head. Igneel slithers over, gently flapping his wings as he wraps himself around Xenos' arm, his head on Xenos' shoulder. Faeryn simply lays down in front of Xenos' legs, watching Felix intently.

Mr. Balanius gets into what appears to be a boxer's stance, feet spread, knees bent, and hands raised by his chin but not too close to each other. Felix simply bends his legs and brings his hands close to his chest, it looked like he was used to fighting bare-handed. At least, that's how it appears to Xenos because of how naturally Felix fell into his stance.

It looks like Mr. Balanius caught onto it as well, since there's a certain glint in his eyes that wasn't there before. After a moment of silence, Mr. Balanius strikes. It happens quickly and without a single sound other than the slight rustling of grass, the distance between the two is closed in the matter of a second and Felix's eyes widen. Still, he doesn't appear to panic, if anything, his eyes are more focused.

Felix hurriedly brings up his arms in a cross position to block the punch, grunting at the force. Mr. Balanius grabs Felix's forearm tightly, sliding his foot right before aiming another punch at Felix's ribcage. Felix is forced to block it with his arm, eyes widening further when Mr. Balanius' punch lands on his back instead and he stumbles forwards.

Before Felix can regain his footing, Mr. Balanius moves behind Felix, pulling Felix's arm with him and jerking Felix's entire body backwards. Felix is pulled against Mr. Balanius outstretched arm, he winces as Mr. Balanius pulls his arm further back into what is definitely a painful position. "I surrender," Felix wheezes, not having regained his breath fully.

Xenos can only watch in awe as Mr. Balanius releases Felix from his grasp, stepping back with a benevolent smile on his face as though he didn't just make Felix lose in ten seconds flat. What Felix hadn't noticed was the gentle golden smoke escaping Mr. Balanius' palms the moment his fist impacted with Felix's arms. Mr. Balanius made a portal without Felix noticing and used that to redirect his punch!

Faeryn perks up, ears swirling as she sits up, watching Felix intently like a concerned mother. Igneel's wings were fluttering, a little agitated. "He's okay," Xenos says quietly, scratching behind Faeryn's ear and carefully using his finger to stroke Igneel's wings. "Felix just needs to get his bearings back and he'll be as good as new, except with a new bruise or two."

Igneel hisses and settles down, Xenos could feel some of the tension leave Faeryn but she remains sitting, looking ready to interfere should she deem it necessary. In the end, Xenos is right, and after a few seconds Felix straightens up with a wince. "You punch hard, Mr. Balanius. Are your fists made of stone?"

Xenos smiles, giving a quick laugh. It seems that Felix really is fine, considering he can joke like that. Mr. Balanius shrugs, the smile never leaving his face. "Maybe, maybe not. You're going to have to get hit a few more times to find out." Felix grimaces. "That aside, you did quite well, considering your reaction time is slower due to the heavier gravity."

Felix makes an expression that Xenos can't quite identify. "All I did was block once, get punched in the back, and then have my arm almost broken. I think most people will agree that was the opposite of 'quite well', Mr. Balanius."

Mr. Balanius dismisses the comment with the wave of his hand. "Oh please, most people from your realm wouldn't have been able to block my punch in the first place. You're doing quite well for someone who got to Vaedreola not even a week ago. Also, your instincts are good, I saw your head turning towards your back right before my punch landed."

"If you say so," Felix says, sounding a tad disappointed in himself. "I want to try again."

"I was going to make you whether you wanted to or not." Mr. Balanius walks to his original spot and gets into his boxer's stance.

"How comforting to know," Felix mutters sarcastically, preparing himself.

Xenos can only hope Felix survives this.