Born in Blood

Noticing Liam's confused and slightly weirded out expression, Lloyd cleared his throat.

"It's for the arts... I need to know each movement your muscles make in order to correct you."

With an understanding nod, Liam took off his plain upper clothing, revealing his pale and skinny body. Even his ribcage and neckbones could be seen protruding from his skin.

Lloyd shook his head. There were many with similar situations in the peasantry, but there wasn't anything he could do by himself.

"Now," Two sword-shaped sticks appeared in Lloyd's hand. Tossing one of the sticks towards Liam, he said: "Try swinging."

"But doesn't the martial art require two blades? One longer than the other?" Liam asked with confusion.

"Did you really think we were going to start with a Rank-2 martial art from the start?"

Lloyd felt like chopping the top of Liam's head once again, but held himself back.

"I need to teach you the basics first, then we'll move to the more complicated moves in time."

Liam couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed, but nonetheless, he nodded his head and began swinging his sword.

The stick cutting through the air made a 'Fwip' sound.

Liam repeated the move a few times.

'He breathes out when striking, has a decent grip, and plants his feet. This one might be talented.' Lloyd made a mental judgment.

Still, though, Liam's form had many problems, which Lloyd didn't fail to point out.

"Keep your arms straight, but not locked, unless you want them broken."

Fwip...

"Keep your shoulders loose. When swinging, tense them up. That'll add more power to your swing."

Fwip!

"Keep your back straight and make sure it stays that way."

As such, Lloyd kept correcting Liam's form, and was surprised how fast Liam picked them up.

Liam on the other hand, felt like with each swing, his speed and even understanding of sword arts was getting better.

In just 15 minutes, Liam completed what Lloyd thought would take an hour.

Lloyd made Liam swing the sword for a few more minutes, making sure everything stuck with him, before deciding on a different topic.

"Alright, that's enough." Lloyd gestured. "Now, let's move to movement, then we'll pair the two things you'll learn together."

Lloyd provided examples each time he explained a move, and made sure Liam understood before continuing. The routine continued for two hours, before Lloyd allowed for a break.

Liam was sweating profusely, his body was sore and pulsing all over, yet there was a faint smile on his face.

Lloyd sat on the floor with Liam beside him, his hands glowed before two cloths that radiated a tender smell appeared in his hand.

Lloyd handed one of them to Liam and smiled.

"Finish this as fast as you can, we'll begin once again when you're done."

Liam happily accepted, then unfolded the cloth and began eating the chunk of meat like an animal.

A few minutes later, after finishing the last bite of food, Liam grabbed the stick again, turned to Lloyd, and said:

"I'm ready."

Hearing Liam say that, Lloyd couldn't help but feel slightly proud of the young man before him.

They continued to train for one more hour, before Liam began showing signs of fatigue.

"Alright, we'll stop here." Lloyd allowed, then gestured for Liam to sit. "Since you're already so ahead with the fundamentals, tomorrow we'll prepare for your martial art."

Liam nodded and rested with his back laying on the floor, his arms and legs laid out as there was no energy in his body.

The sun was beginning to set, casting an orange hue over the horizon. Shadows stretched and darkened, covering the region with darkness.

"Enough rest." Lloyd broke the silence after half an hour. "Wash yourself using the river water. We'll hunt some weak magical beasts when you're done."

...

Liam had finished washing in the chilling river. Feeling the wind on his wet body, he quickly dried himself off using his tattered clothes.

"I'll get you a pair of training clothes next time." Lloyd promised as Liam approached him from the river side.

At the same time, a bulky but small leather book appeared in his hand, which he threw towards Liam.

"It's a bestiary, containing knowledge of all the magical beasts I've hunted in this forest. Read it as we walk."

Liam opened the book up and began scanning its contents.

The pages on the left side had drawings of different mammals and reptilian creatures, yet they didn't resemble any type of beast from earth.

Below the drawings, were notes with a description.

The pages on the right always depicted a map. The map remained the same, but on each different page, there was a specific marking.

Liam read between the lines of Lloyd's statement.

They were getting ready for a hunt.