SSS Rank: Spellcraft Sovereign-Chapter 134: Martial arts (2)
Lucen staggered back again. Didn’t fall.
"Balance," Varik said, flat. "You plant too wide when you’re nervous."
"I’m always nervous when someone’s trying to hit me."
Varik circled. "Then you should be a balance expert by now."
Lucen clenched his jaw.
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he pivoted off his back foot and fired another jab, fast this time.
Varik leaned just enough to miss it, then tapped him on the forehead.
Tap.
Like a middle school bully reminding him who ran the lunch line.
Lucen didn’t move.
Just blinked.
Then muttered, "Okay. That one’s personal."
He came in hard.
Right cross. Left follow.
Varik blocked both with the edge of his forearm, nudged Lucen sideways with a shoulder check, and stepped in.
Lucen tried to pivot.
Varik caught the elbow and hip-checked him into the mat again.
Thud.
Lucen rolled over with a grunt.
"I am," he muttered, "going to throw you through a wall one day."
Varik sat next to him this time. Cross-legged. Like they were old friends picnicking.
"You still lead with your chest. You rush."
"I’m adapting," Lucen muttered. "It just takes a minute."
"You’ll have to adapt faster when someone’s trying to kill you."
Lucen let his head hit the floor again.
"Can I get a water break before we revisit the whole ’fatal lesson’ thing?"
Varik nodded. "Two minutes."
—
At the cooler, Lucen leaned over, hands on his knees, sweat running off his face like he was melting.
Gen would’ve taken a picture and called it art.
He flicked the top off a mana tab, took two pulls, then pressed the cool can to his temple.
Varik watched him from the mat, calm, collected, like he wasn’t even breathing hard.
’Guy’s not human.’
Lucen muttered, "You know you could just teach me footwork by talking, right?"
Varik raised a brow. "You wouldn’t listen."
Lucen didn’t argue.
’Fair.’
—
Back on the mat.
Lucen tried something new.
Instead of rushing, he waited.
Watched Varik’s foot placement.
Waited for the shift. The shoulder lean.
Then he moved.
Left jab. Short.
Step right. Body turn. Fake the hook, try the low strike.
It landed.
Barely.
Skimmed Varik’s hip. Not even enough to sting.
But it landed.
Lucen blinked.
Varik nodded once. "Good."
Lucen blinked again. "You’re not gonna make fun of me?"
"No."
"Oh god. I’m dying."
Varik smirked.
Then kicked his leg out from under him.
Lucen hit the mat again.
"Balance," Varik said, rising. "You got one hit. Don’t get cocky."
Lucen just lay there, staring at the ceiling, one hand over his face.
’This is what progress feels like. It’s terrible.’
—
Lucen’s palms hit the mat first this time.
Not his back.
Progress?
Maybe.
He sat up, shoulders stiff, breathing like he’d just run from a flaming building full of debt collectors.
Varik stood over him, arms crossed, expression flat but not annoyed.
"Why’d you drop your left?" he asked.
Lucen wiped sweat from his eye. "Because your foot was in my ribcage."
"You dropped it before that."
"Great. So I’m getting punished for future mistakes now?"
Varik raised one brow.
Lucen stood. Slowly.
"Fine. Again."
—
The next round started with a low feint from Varik, just a shifting of weight, nothing flashy.
Lucen didn’t flinch this time.
’No bait.’
He stepped left, jabbed quick, and—
Varik caught his wrist.
Twisted.
Not enough to break.
Just enough to show him who still ran the show.
Lucen dropped to one knee with a grunt and barked out, "Okay! Lesson noted! Arm-breaking bad!"
Varik let go. "Your angles are better."
"Your compliments feel like medical warnings."
—
Five rounds later, Lucen was back on the floor.
Again.
Sprawled like a dropped puppet, one leg still twitching.
Varik squatted next to him.
"Want to know why I didn’t counter that last punch?"
Lucen muttered into the mat, "Because my soul was already leaving my body?"
"No. Because it was finally aimed right."
Lucen turned his head slightly.
"...So what happened?"
"You forgot to breathe."
Lucen stared at him for a second, blinking sweat out of his eyelashes.
"Man. That’s not even martial arts. That’s just basic survival."
"Exactly."
—
They moved into stance drills next.
Simple ones.
Hands up.
Feet balanced.
Lucen stood facing a wall, repeating the same two-step motion Varik had shown him ten minutes ago.
Weight on the ball of the foot. Pivot left. Rotate through the hip.
Repeat.
And again.
And again.
"You look like you’re trying to summon rain," Varik said from behind him.
Lucen didn’t turn. "You look like someone whose instructions come with hidden fees."
Varik walked up beside him.
"Keep the weight centered. You’re leaning again."
Lucen adjusted. "If I don’t lean, I fall over."
"That’s because you’re still trying to punch like a caster."
Lucen paused.
"...You’ve seen how I fight."
"You’ve seen how I move."
"...Touché."
—
Eventually, Varik let him sit again.
Not lie down.
Sit.
Lucen sat cross-legged, elbows on his knees, sweat running down his neck in slow sticky trails. His shirt clung to his back like regret.
"You know," he said, voice dry, "if you wanted to ruin my life, you could’ve just taken my wallet."
Varik handed him a bottle. Cold this time.
Lucen took it, cracked the seal, and chugged.
"I’m serious," he added. "This whole martial arts bootcamp... this is basically unpaid violence."
Varik didn’t answer right away.
He just said, "You’ll thank me when someone rushes you with no spells left and you’re not dead."
Lucen leaned back against the gym wall.
"I’ll thank you when I can lift my arms again."
Varik stood, back straight, like the entire day had been a warm-up.
"Round four?"
Lucen looked up at him.
Then down at his own shaking hands.
Then whispered, "I miss mana."
—
Lucen’s foot slipped.
Again.
He caught himself before hitting the mat face-first, but only just. Palms splayed. Ankles awkward. Pride? Already shattered three reps ago.
Varik exhaled through his nose. Still calm. Still unreadable. The guy could probably deliver bad news at a wedding without blinking.
"Where was your weight?"
Lucen didn’t answer immediately.
He pushed up, grunted, and wiped the sweat off his chin with the back of one hand.
"Somewhere," he said. "Far away. Living a better life."
