A Journey Across Terra

30

It was the next day as Yuki had been called to the training arena of Rhodes Island. The second he arrived in the arena, the sound of weapons clanging resounded throughout the arena as many operators trained for various reasons...One of such is the Combat aptitude test for new operators to see their combat abilities and how they can be used in battle.

"Yuki, you're late!" A stern voice echoed throughout the arena.

Yuki covered his ears as he sauntered towards the person responsible for the yelling. "And you wonder why Catapult hates you."

Standing on the sidelines of one of the training areas was a perro woman. She had long straight black hair that reached down to her back. Her brown eyes flickered between Yuki and the trainees, showing a sense of firmness and caring. In her hands was a whip with a sharp metal point.

"To be prepared for combat, you must first be prepared for some rough training. Catapult just hasn't grasped that yet."

"Yeah whatever you say." Yuki crossed his arms. "I didn't need any rough training."

"Oh yeah, would you like to join the trainees then?" the perro girl smugly smiled.

"I'll pass. That's too much effort." Yuki boredly waved her off as he leaned on the railing overlooking the training arena. "Doberman, mind explaining why you dragged me out so early?"

"Early? It's only 6." Doberman had a face that showed a sense of confusion.

"Riight..."

"Anyway, as to why I dragged you out, it's because of the new recruit you recommended to Rhodes Island."

"Cantabile?" Yuki raised a brow. "What's up with her?"

"There's nothing wrong with her per se...But she's far ahead of the newbies in terms of combat ability." Doberman motioned towards Cantabile, sparring with another trainee.

Just from looking at their stances, their skill gap was obvious. The trainee stood there with a rather uneasy expression on his face as he stared at the stone-cold glare of Cantabile. The trainee held a stiff position, his shoulders were as stiff as ever as he had his knife in a vice grip as his knuckles turned white. Cantabile stood there with a relaxed expression, she had her arms close to her as she assumed a fighting position with her hands held up just above shoulder level.

Almost instantly, the trainee rushed in and swung his knife, putting his full force into the knife as he tried to end the spar in one hit.

"Too slow." Cantabile said quietly as she pushed the trainee's hand away, knocking the knife from his hands. She then kicked the trainee on the shins, sweeping him off his feet.

The sparring session ended with a low thud as the trainee fell to the floor.

"Ahhh." The trainee rubbed his butt as he got up. "Doberman, are you sure she's just a trainee?"

"Obviously not." Doberman replied before turning to Yuki. "Yuki, I called you down to test her combat abilities."

"Eh, you sure?" Yuki sighed as he hopped over the railings. "Alright."

the trainee was stunned from Yuki's nonchalantness. "Wow, are you sure man. she's a monster."

"we'll be fine." Yuki began to do some warmup stretches to get his body moving.

"Hello Coral." Cantabile walked towards Yuki. "It's nice to see you again."

"Nice to see you too Cantabile." Yuki replied. "You ready for the hardest sparring session of your life?"

Cantabile tilted her head, confused. "I know you're good at fighting, but are you sure you should be so confident?"

"Of course. We're going all out here." Yuki walked over towards one of the weapon lockers and picked up a katana. "So pretend as if your life was on the line."