Cleaver Of Sin

Chapter 440: Habit

Then Rachael’s voice echoed through the training chamber, snapping Asher out of his thoughts. ”Brother Asher, if you just keep standing there without attacking or moving, it’ll look like I’m fighting a statue or a scarecrow.”

Hearing her words, Asher paused for a brief moment. His purple eyes shifted toward Finch, who stood off to the side, quietly observing the spar without interrupting. Finch let out a soft sigh and nodded slightly, acknowledging Rachael’s complaint. However, before he could even open his mouth to respond, Rachael had already closed the distance between her and Asher. The instant Asher’s attention drifted toward Finch, she moved, ruthlessly capitalizing on the brief moment her opponent was distracted.

Her rapier thrust mercilessly toward Asher’s ribcage, the blade aimed with lethal accuracy. Asher saw the attack closing in. Since Rachael had just complained about him not moving or attacking, he decided it was time to comply. His body shifted to the side with the same speed Rachael herself had been displaying throughout the spar, his movement smooth and precise.

Asher did not hesitate. His hand moved, his rapier streaking toward Rachael’s head in a clean, decisive counterattack. Rachael caught the motion from the corner of her eye, but she did not panic. Instead, she ducked low like an agile cat, her body flowing naturally beneath the blade. Asher’s rapier cleaved through the air where her head had been only an instant earlier. Yet even as she evaded, Rachael moved her own rapier, seamlessly linking evasion and offense together as though they were a single unified action rather than two separate techniques.

’Such battle sense...’ Asher thought as he retracted his rapier to parry. ’Is she actually growing as this spar continues, or is this the progress she mentioned earlier?’

Just as metal was about to meet metal, Rachael’s blade shifted its trajectory mid-motion.

’Another feint,’ Asher thought as he adjusted his defense to block the incoming attack. But to his surprise, Rachael’s rapier changed course yet again, this time tearing toward his shoulder with sharp intent.

’A double feint. She already knew the first one wouldn’t work,’ Asher realized, a genuine smile finally breaking across his face. For the first time since the spar began, he felt true amusement.

Asher ducked, mirroring Rachael’s earlier movement almost perfectly, his rapier thrusting toward her feet as he copied her technique with exact perfection. Rachael’s eyes flashed with surprise when she realized Asher had replicated her own maneuver so effortlessly. Still, she did not allow that surprise to slow her down. She leaped into the air to evade, her body twisting midair, her hair following the arc of her motion.

’Wrong evasion choice,’ Asher noted silently.

He moved immediately, his rapier slicing toward Rachael’s arm while she was still airborne. As the blade closed in, Rachael’s own rapier snapped upward, and she blocked the strike using only the tip of her weapon. Steel kissed steel. Using the force from the clash, she pushed herself backward while still midair, her body twisting into a clean backflip before she descended. She landed on three limbs, balanced and low, her final limb holding her rapier extended to the side in a calm posture.

Her blue eyes snapped toward Asher’s position, but he was no longer there.

Asher had already moved. He was beside her now, his rapier already in motion, striking like a viper. Rachael reacted purely on instinct. Her body rolled sharply to the side, narrowly avoiding the blade. The next second, she rose to her feet, but the moment she did, all she saw was a rapier driving straight toward her chest. Her arm moved almost automatically, and within a single second she managed to block the attack, though the force behind it sent her sliding backward across the floor.

Asher did not pause. Until now, Rachael had been the one attacking endlessly. He wanted to see how his nine year old opponent would react when she was pushed to the edge, even if only slightly. Rachael did not hesitate. She stopped trying to parry and transitioned fully into evasive maneuvers, her body tearing sideways as she barely dodged each incoming strike.

’She knows her stamina is depleted,’ Asher thought. ’So she’s conserving what little strength she has left for attacking instead of blocking... smart.’

Despite that realization, Asher did not slow down. His rapier slashed toward her shoulder.

Rachael copied one of Asher’s evasive maneuvers on the spot. Though her execution was clumsy compared to his, it was just enough. The blade tore through the space where she had been a moment earlier. Her small hands shot forward, catching Asher by the elbow. Using every ounce of strength she had left, she tried to lift him and slam him into the ground.

Asher twisted his body with almost insulting ease, landing cleanly on both feet even as Rachael maintained her grip. In the same fluid motion, he lifted her instead and hurled her over his shoulder, as though he intended to slam her into the ground in return.

As Rachael felt herself airborne, she released Asher’s arm and used it briefly as a foothold. She leaped backward, flipping away and creating distance between them. The moment she landed, her head snapped forward again, but this time, all she saw was a blade resting lightly against her neck.

Asher did not speak. He simply nodded, then withdrew the rapier from her throat. The instant he did, Rachael dropped to her knees, panting heavily. She had been running on nothing but pure instinct, adrenaline, and willpower. Her stamina was completely depleted.

As Asher turned to walk away, Finch’s voice came from the side. ”Asher, give her a bit of advice.”

Asher halted. His steps stopped, and his purple eyes shifted back toward the small girl sitting on the ground. Rachael looked up at him with her bright blue eyes, clearly waiting, clearly listening.

”I’ll only give you one piece of advice today,” Asher said calmly. ”You have plenty of room to grow, so there’s no need to overwhelm you with too many things at once. You can correct most issues naturally as you grow stronger.”

He paused briefly before continuing.

”But one thing you should change for now is your habit whenever you’re midair.”

”My habit?” Rachael asked, tilting her head slightly in confusion.

”You have a habit of taking your eyes off your opponent whenever you maneuver midair,” Asher explained evenly. ”That habit is the reason I was able to close the distance so many times without you knowing, and it’s also why you lost just now. And also learn to listen to the sound of the wind and air around you. With that method, you can sense any incoming attack while it’s being made.”

”I understand,” Rachael said softly. Then she smiled brightly. ”Thank you, Brother Asher.”

Her cheerful, innocent side returned the moment she exited combat mode, as though the fierce warrior from moments ago had never existed.

Although there were still many flaws in her attacks and movements, Asher felt no need to point them out. From the spar alone, he could tell she was still in the process of understanding several fundamental concepts. Bombarding her with corrections would only hinder her progress.

She was still only nine years old. There was time. There was room to grow. And there was no need to rush what would inevitably become something terrifying.