The next day, Ethan and Chloe went to the Martial Hall.
Chloe planned to look for Magical Defensive Arts that would teach her how to create barriers in order to deal with unexpected surprises on their mission.
Ethan, on the other hand, browsed the different Martial Skills for polearms, spears, and even quarterstaff weapons.
‘Now, let’s see what kind of Martial Arts suits me,’ Ethan thought as he eyed the map of the Training Hall to find the location of the techniques that he was looking for.
Since the only tool that he considered to be a weapon in his life was a pitchfork, Ethan planned to check out weapons that had similar styles to it.
The Martial Hall only allowed a student to take one Martial Scroll at a time, so Ethan just took one of the most popular Spear Techniques available, which was called The Rising Dragon.
‘This technique sounds powerful,’ Ethan mused. ‘I wonder if it is easy to use.’
The Martial Scrolls had a special feature and all you needed to do was to say the name of the Martial Art Technique, and the scroll would activate.
However, it was advised that you activate it somewhere private because you would be dazed for a few minutes after you used it.
The reason for this was due to the fact the Magic Scroll would allow the user to see someone using the technique step by step, showing them how to execute it properly.
Depending on the user’s preference, they could even conduct a mock battle in a holographic world, with the person that was teaching them how to use the technique.
This was a very efficient way of getting personal with the technique itself.
However, there was a catch.
The scroll’s effect would only last for an hour at most. Meaning, you could only train in the holographic world for an hour, and would need to continue the rest of the training on your own.
The scrolls could also only be used once a day, so although it was quite efficient, it was also severely lacking in many places. Even so, Ethan wanted to be useful when he and Chloe went to do their mission, so he took his learning seriously.
“The first skill of the Rising Dragon is the Rising Thrust,” a man with short-brown hair said as he demonstrated how to thrust the spear properly. “Putting your weight behind the thrust gives it more power, allowing it to pierce through unprotected flesh with ease.
“Almost all spear techniques start with this step because its main advantage is its long reach. Only if you become proficient with the Rising Thrust will we proceed to the next step.”
The man with short-brown hair demonstrated the thrusting motion several times, and Ethan followed his every move.
In the Holographic World, Ethan was also holding a spear, which allowed him to practice as much as he wanted.
technique over time.
This learning style was similar to muscle memory. The more you do Truth be told, the Martial Scrolls’ main purpose was to embed the technique in the person’s mind, allowing them to Master the technique over time.
This learning style was similar to muscle memory. The more you do something, the more proficient you become in doing it, until it becomes second nature to you.
“This looks simple enough,” Ethan muttered as he began to imitate the spear thrust that the instructor was showing him.
However, the more he did it, the more he felt as if something was out of place.
The blue-haired boy pondered for a bit and looked at the spear in his hand. A moment later, the spear became a pitchfork, making him nod his head in approval.
‘I still feel comfortable using a pitchfork,’ Ethan mused.
As he tried to execute the technique using the pitchfork in his hand, Ethan found himself remembering the time when he, and his Grandma, defended their sheep from the wolves who raided their farm one night.
That night was a night he wouldn’t forget because his Grandma was like a demon who brandished her spiked club as if she was a Goddess of War.
Every time she swung her spiked bat, a wolf would be sent flying, while yelping in pain.
When the wolves tried to surround her, his Grandma executed a flurry of blows that protected her entire body, hitting even the wolf who tried to attack her on her blind spot.
Ethan’s role back then was to guard the rear and defend against the wolves who managed to get past his Grandma’s defenses.
Of course, the blue-haired boy was able to have a bit of the action, but the most he did was fight against a wolf, which he had a hard time beating on his own. 𝒐𝗏𝐿xt.𝗇𝓔t
After that Night Raid, his Grandma taught him how to use the Pitchfork, which allowed him to improve by leaps and bounds.
Now, he was using that same pitchfork to master a skill that was meant for a spear, which he found funny.
“Although it is a bit rough on the edges, you still got the basics of the Rising Thrust right,” the man with short brown hair said. “Now, we will move to the Rising Swipe.”
The man then demonstrated by making an upward swing with the spear, creating a swooshing sound.
Ethan found this technique to be quite interesting because it looked like you were using the spear to dig something out of the ground before swiftly raising it upwards like an uppercut. But, instead of using one’s fist, one would use the spear to strike upwards.
“Most of the time, you won’t be using this skill,” the man said. “However, it is still useful in some situations, so learning how to use it well can catch your opponent by surprise.”
“Actually this is very useful,” Ethan replied. “This is just like scooping hay at the farm.”
Of course, the projection didn’t reply because its script was limited. It could only teach the people how to use the technique, and answer very limited questions, which the makers of the Martial Scroll had anticipated to be asked by those who were learning the technique.
An hour later, Ethan was able to spar against his holographic trainer using the two techniques that he learned. However, the result was a one-sided beating, which made his heart ache.
In order to make the fight as realistic as possible, the blue-haired teenager chose to feel 50% of the pain that was inflicted to him by the attack, which made him feel like dying.
Even so, he was quite happy that he actually got some hands-on training, even if it was just in a holographic world.
When his one-hour session had ended, Ethan went to the training ground of the Dud Manor and practiced what he learned using the Moulding Ball that was gifted to him by Professor Violet.
Due to how focused he was on his training, he didn’t notice that Luna was watching him from the entrance of the training hall with a serious expression on her face.
‘Can I really awaken his magic a few days from now?’ Luna thought. ‘I hope that Chessy isn’t playing a prank on me like last time.’
As a member of Dud Manor, and Ethan’s friend, the angelic beauty truly wished that she could help the blue-haired boy realize his dream.
Unfortunately, she wouldn’t know if the spell that the Chesmire Cat thought of would work until the day of the full moon, which was the only time of the month when Luna could use her power to the fullest.