Theo explained the whole thing to him, even though he felt a little uneasy about the whole situation.
When the baron finished listening to all of it, he remained silent for a mont.
Theo glanced to the side and froze as he saw sothing right by the campfire. His eyes widened in shock, and he instinctively moved to approach it.
But before he could, sothing happened, and Theo felt a sudden change in the air around him.
His face turned sharply to the left on its own, and Theo found a large fist rely inches away from his face.
He looked forward only to find his father with a casual expression on his face, an arm extended toward him to attack.
"Wha..."
Before Theo could ask what he was doing, the baron moved the fist that was already heading toward Theo’s face at point-blank range.
In that instant, everything slowed.
Theo felt the fist move toward him. His body reacted instinctively, his head snapping back, his spine arching backward as he leaned away.
The baron’s fist swept horizontally where his face had been just a mont ago, missing him by a hair’s breadth.
Before he could do sothing again and regain his balance, Theo felt hands at his sides. Elias and Clara were right by his side, helping him stay upright, a task which he felt was far more difficult than it should have been.
"You... Your senses have heightened, Theo," the baron said, retracting his hand.
"I was striking slowly. But that last attack was sudden enough that it should have at least brushed your face. And clearly, you didn’t see it coming, yet still reacted." The baron said before humming in thought.
His gaze shifted to Clara. His eyes sparkled faintly, and Clara imdiately felt like sothing was about to happen.
"Clara, have a hand-to-hand combat with Theo. No weapons for now."
The authority in the baron’s voice was unmistakable, and he had ordered this way after a long ti, making Clara move upright and nod.
Theo was confused, yet he himself also wanted to know what was happening. He t Clara’s eyes and gave her a small smile.
Clara stepped back, creating so distance between them while Elias moved aside.
Theo adjusted his stance, taking a small sidestep to steady himself. He was subtly tilting without realizing it, sothing that didn’t escape the baron’s notice, which he also found weird.
Clara closed her eyes for a brief mont, then shouted, "Here I co!"
With that, she dashed forward and threw a full-speed jab toward Theo’s right shoulder.
She didn’t want to hold back this ti, not when the baron had ordered it. Though a trust had ford between them over the past few months, disobedience had never been an option for her anyway.
Theo frowned in confusion when he saw the punch coming at him...
But it seed to be coming slowly.
That mont allowed him to move just enough for her jab to miss.
When Clara saw him move, she adjusted her jab mid-strike, angling her fist to hit no matter what.
Yet sohow, it felt as if she simply couldn’t reach him.
Theo took a step back to widen the distance between them and drove his own punch forward.
Instinctively, Clara moved to block it with one hand and strike him in the abdon with the other.
But midway through her motion, Theo stopped and drove his left fist straight into her abdon with his left hand.
A light ’BANG’ echoed, and Clara’s eyes widened as she staggered back a few steps.
Theo shook his wrist once; her abdon felt very tight, as if he had just punched the trunk of a hardened tree.
"You need to fight with your all, Clara," Theo said, slipping into his fighting stance, his footing still unstable, almost like a stumbling drunkard.
"I have been trained by the best."
Upon hearing his words, Clara took a deep breath, and her eyes sharpened.
She dashed forward with explosive strength, then hyperjumped forward instead, closing the distance instantly.
Theo saw her speed multiply almost tenfold, and in a blink of an eye, she was already upon him, her clenched fist ready to hit him at the side of the face.
Yet he frowned; the mont she crossed a certain point, Theo could feel it, her speed slowing down.
He stepped back just once, narrowly slipping out of her reach, and instead kicked forward at the spot she was going to land.
Clara adjusted herself mid-motion, turning her punch to guard herself, making Theo’s kick strike both her forearms instead.
The instant she landed, she unleashed a flurry of jabs at Theo, only to see him dodge her every attack with a calm expression.
"He is dodging with the smallest movents possible... just enough to avoid getting hit and to move forward," the baron analyzed aloud.
Hearing his words, Theo was forced to think about it.
And he imdiately realized that was true.
By now, Clara had tried hitting him almost ten tis, using both her legs and fists, but only a few even managed to graze him.
But even those attacks were blocked despite their speed and unpredictability.
The more the baron watched, the wider the grin on his face beca, until he finally couldn’t hold himself and suddenly shouted, "That’s it!"
Both Clara and Theo stopped, breathing heavily. Their eyes were locked on each other, with identical, happy grins spreading on their faces.
"You were amazing, young master!" Clara cheered, jumping once in excitent, making Theo giggle in happiness too.
"Half the ti, I didn’t even realise I was dodging or blocking your attacks, Clara," Theo admitted. "If it was before this evolution, I would have been forced to quit a few tis."
"You’re quite sneaky with your attacks," Theo added in praise, making Clara giggle this ti.
"Alright, that’s enough. Co here, Theo," the baron called.
Theo walked over to him, though his center of gravity was still at its worst.
When Theo got close, the baron placed a hand on his shoulder, which Theo didn’t bother to dodge even though he had seen it moving toward him.
"You were moving like a spatial affinity type beast; I have seen those annoying dodgings as an Auramaster," the baron spoke, nostalgia flickering in his eyes.
"If you were to hone this skill and beco normal again, not in this drunk situation you’re in, you could beco one of the best swordsn. Maybe even better than !" the baron said, his eyes burning with passion.
He seed very happy about it.
But Theo didn’t share the sa feelings.
His father had wanted him to gain aura. He had gained it, but at the risk of his life. And now he was being told that he could beco the best swordsman.
For so reason, Theo could only awkwardly chuckle at that.
From where he stood, he could already see the journey ahead.
And it felt like one of those long ones.
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