All the soldiers looked with interest towards the test that Soukaku was about to do.
-I know that most of you are not used to this kind of things, in fact I bet most of you like to beat the crap out of everyone," she said with a side to side smile.
While she was explaining I simply looked at the ground, avoiding any kind of contact with the rest of the people present in the courtyard.
-Now we're going to start," she said finally.
Soukaku approached me and stood a few meters away from me.
-Here- She raised her hand, giving me a small knife- I need you to attack me with all your will- She seemed confident.
-I looked at her confused, I was not brave enough to attack a soldier of division 6. Most likely she would simply block my attack perfectly to show the others how it's done but.... What if she didn't?
-...- I didn't know what to answer- Are you sure about this, I asked unsure?
Soukaku gave me a big smile as he answered me:
-If I wasn't, I wouldn't give you a knife to attack me, don't you think?" he asked as he continued to offer me the knife once again.
In the end, after thinking about it and analyzing what he had just told me, I slowly raised my hand to take the knife.
-Remember, attack with all your might, don't cut yourself, and I don't mean that literally- He laughed in a strange way, very confident, I hope he knows what he's really doing
We both walked away, each to a corner of the small makeshift battlefield they had set up in this outdoor courtyard.
-Go ahead, come and get me!" she shouted playfully, it seemed that all this didn't make her in the least bit nervous.
I started running straight towards her, knife in hand. I didn't know what exactly she wanted me to do so when I got to her I threw a slash towards her stomach.
I closed my eyes in fear of having really stabbed her, I didn't know what was going on, I only heard the murmurs and the astonishment of some people around. I opened my eyes slowly, seeing how Soukaku was no longer in the same place as before.
-Uf, it was close, but I'm fine- He said very cheerful- It would be very good if next time you didn't close your eyes, you have to see where your enemy is going.
-Wh-what..." He mumbled in confusion.
-The ethereal beings did not carry knives, but some have limbs similar to these- Soukaku grabbed his iconic metal banner, apparently he had dodged me deflecting the attack with the banner. I hadn't noticed...
-Speed is important in this kind of situation, of course.... Resistance to attacks also plays an important role, but I'll explain that another day. Okay, launch another attack but this time do it from the side.
I looked at the knife again, I was already confident, I knew I was not going to do anything to it, so there was no problem with giving 100%. I accelerated again and ran towards her current position, this time without closing my eyes I launched another attack as she asked for it. She wasn't moving, she wasn't fidgeting, she wasn't nervous. The world began to go in slow motion, my attack seemed to go at 0.5 speed, it was strange. Out of nowhere, Soukaku, changes her look to an extremely serious, concentrated one. He moved one foot to act as a support so he could propel himself somewhere. He placed his standard in the form of defense towards the knife and with the supporting foot he propelled himself to the left. The glare from the shiny metal of the knife blinded me but that didn't stop me from seeing how Soukaku even managed to knock me to the ground
-Hehehe... You're not bad at it...- He said while wiping his forehead- But you have to improve those moves, they're very cumbersome.
His affirmations left me astonished, apparently I had to take the positive things with tweezers since I probably had more bad things than good.
Soukaku turned back to the soldiers with the same smile as always.
-You see? It's not that complicated, you just have to have a vision about your environment. In the real battlefield you will most likely be surrounded by quite a few ethereal beings, that's why it doesn't hurt to recognize the territory. To be able to dodge the attacks of weapons like these it is best to move to another side since most of the time the simple attacks usually go straight - Everything he said showed his skill in this field, although it seemed that his attitude is not suitable for this kind of things when it came to acting showed what he was worth.
-Now, put yourselves in pairs, as if you were small children and so you can practice defense, then I will explain how to be a great support in the team.
I looked around looking for Sergio, it was clear that if we had to pair up I had to be with him. While I continued with the search I noticed how a hand rested on my shoulder, causing all the hairs on my body to stand up. I turned around and I could see Soukaku, smiling and with a smile on his face.
-Could you... give me back the knife," he asked.
I raised my hand to look at the knife. As much as I had it in my hand, I had completely forgotten that I had it.
-Oh, sure, here," I offered the knife for him to take it.
Soukaku took the knife
-Thank you," she thanked me.
She seemed to be a woman of few words, I didn't know how to generate some kind of conversation with her.
-I know... -I cleared my throat- You are very good at defense- I said trying to generate some kind of friendly bond -I hope I can defend like that sometime- I was nervous, the words were coming out of me, but not in a good way.
Her look showed how little shame she had when it came to talking and doing things.
-Hehehe... it's very funny to see how to try to generate a conversation" She said while she laughed lightly in between.
My face turned as red as skin burning after a hot summer day, Soukaku had no shame whatsoever....
-W-well, this... Thank you..." It was clear that talking to women was not my thing. I gave a little sigh to speak again- I hope you understand my nerves at the time of attacking you with the knife- I said.
Soukaku gave me a look of sympathy.
-Don't worry, I know, I'm an agent of division 6, one of the best, it's normal that you have that kind of nerves when doing things- He said- By the way.... You are... Lucas?" she asked for the first time of her own free will.
I don't know why, but his question made my mood improve considerably.
-Yes, yes... it's me," I said with a lot of encouragement.
-So you're the one who got the best score in the previous test. .... I think I was right to choose you for the demonstration... I like your fighting style, even if it is simple- He laughed a little- but you have to improve in many aspects, starting with agility.
I laughed slightly when I saw how difficult it was to start a conversation but how easy it was to receive criticism, but leaving that aside, what excited me the most was to know that he recognized me.
-The one who made the most points? Out of all of us? Na...- I pretended not to know anything to see how he would react.
-Don't let it go to your head too much, believe me it's better to keep a low profile in this kind of places- he said to start walking away slowly.
-Keep a... Low profile?" I asked in the hope that he would hear me.
-Calling attention from the first day may be a good thing from your point of view, but you'd better relax if you want to go far, says a professional.
-I still don't get it," I mumbled, 'I still don't get it,' I shouted with the same hope as before, but it was too late, she had gone far enough away.
I became pensive again, it was already part of my routine to look at the ground with nothing but a white background in my mind. "At last I find you" I heard from the distance. I looked up, it was Sergio
-Fuck man... I thought you had left or something" he said worried.
-You can't spend even a second without me, huh? -Followed by that, I gave him a pretty hard punch in the shoulder.
-Why did you do that?" he asked with a little bit of anger.
-I owed you from before, for making me go out for the test," I crossed my arms in rejection of any answer.
-Come on, admit that at least you loved being near the blue demon," Sergio said while giving me harmless little pushes.
-But look how obsessed you are, if you like it so much, go and declare yourself," he said, 'I'm sure she'll accept you'.
I started to laugh
-Well, as handsome as I am, I'm sure he will, but I'm not going to do it because I know you like him, that would be very ugly of me.
-Agh, shut up at once and let's practice before they see us doing nothing.
After finishing with the conversation, we started to practice our defense, thanks to that I realized that Sergio was quite good at this kind of exercise since, as he usually does improvised fights in the modules, he has a lot of stamina and agility. We were like that for a while until Soukaku stopped us all.
-It seems that you are starting to master it," he said as he walked among us, "Now comes the moment that I like the most, the support and as I have done before I need someone to help me.
I was calm as I thought that he was not going to choose me again but nothing further from the truth. Soukaku stood in front of me with a determined look on his face.
-You know what to do, don't you," he asked.
-Do you want me to go out again," I hesitated.
Before I could decide anything I could see how Alex appeared from among the soldiers present, hugging Soukaku from behind on the spot.
-Good morning," he repeated cheerfully, 'I hope everything is going well for you,' said Alex.
Soukaku gave a big smile as he replied with laughter.
-Alex! It's good to see you. Everything is going great," she replied as she turned around and reciprocated his embrace. When the two of them finally separated, Alex looked towards us.
-But look who it is..." He said as he offered me his hand, 'It's literally two minutes since we last saw each other, but it's good to see you again...'.
I didn't know why it happened to me, but my brain rejected the idea of shaking hands with him.
-This... Yes, it's good to see you again too..." I murmured.
-What's with the long face? Oh... Is it because this little oni here has humiliated you in the test? - Alex started to stir Soukaku's hair a bit aggressively.
-Alex... hehe, don't do that, you know it bothers me when they touch my hair," he said between laughs and small blows towards Alex.
I didn't know what kind of relationship these two had, but I didn't like it too much.
-Didn't we have a test to do," I asked trying to end this moment of what seemed like flirting.
Soukaku stopped smiling, leaving a more serious face than the one he had so far.
-Yes, that's right, come on Lucas, let's go," he said while he grabbed me by the arm.
-I think... I should be the one to do the test with her this time- Alex said with a rough and superior tone.
Soukaku stopped in his tracks, letting go of my arm and looking at Alex.
-You're already part of the team, Alex, the ones who have to learn are them, not you- Soukaku was trying to look cheerful, but it was clear that it seemed it wasn't the first time something appreciated happened. I was confused once again,s implemente looked silent, without saying anything.
-I know... but don't you think it's better.... I don't know, practice with someone who has experience to demonstrate what a real combat could be like," Alex proposed.
-Well... maybe," said Soukaku before being interrupted by me.
-I volunteered because I was the best in the previous test (And shit, it was all Sergio's fault).
-What does that have to do with it?" asked Alex while he crossed his arms.
-Well, I think I am moderately qualified to be part of the test for the rest, obviously you are better than me, but as Soukaku said, the ones who have to learn are us" I felt with very little authority to speak, I was very nervous.
-I know I'm better, you don't need to say it and... No offense, but that argument is like something out of a kindergarten", he said.
I didn't like that comment at all, which caused me to become alert.
-Come on guys, that's enough" said Soukaku "This time .... Alex will come with me, he's right, it's an important test and...- It was clear that it wasn't what he wanted- It's better that he does it, don't be offended Lucas, you have been a great help to me.
His words felt like a slight pang in my stomach, he just excluded me in less than 3 minutes.
-Pay attention, yes?" said soukaku giving us a smile and disappearing in the crowd together with Alex.