What Martial Art is That?

Ava took her last sword and placed it in front of Liam.

When Liam saw it, his smile beamed.

Every weeb should recognize this sword. Perhaps others would react differently and start jumping up and down.

"This is the strongest sword in my arsenal. A Rank 5 sword with the potential to reach Rank 6 if enhanced with a specific proper material. It has no name, but I called it Forsaken Blade. It was given to me by a wandering swordsman."

It was a katana. The scabbard looked ancient. It appears that the sword was just dug up from the ground.

For some reason, Liam could feel intense loneliness from the blade. He clenched his heart, somehow feeling the same emotions as the blade.

'Keir's lingering feeling? I almost forgot, he was also an orphan. You could say he and the sword were the same.'

Suddenly, as if it has a life of its own, the Forsaken Blade floated by itself and presented itself to Liam.

Liam was surprised, and so was Ava.

The boy held the floating sword and he felt a high synchronization rate with it.

It was a strange feeling, but it felt like the sword was another extension of his body. The same as his arms and joints, he could move them freely. As if it was a part of his body since he was born.

"A blade offering itself for its new master," Ava murmured.

"It is the first time I witness this myself. A sword with enough consciousnesses has the ability to pick its own master. I never knew the Forsaken Blade has a life of its own."

Liam drew the sword. A whooshing sound could be heard as he unsheathed the blade.

It was a curved, single-edged blade with a circular and long grip to accommodate two hands. The grip was black in color with a red marking. The blade itself was pretty ordinary. Some could say it even looked worn out.

"I like it. This blade suits me." Before Liam could begin swinging it. Ava's silhouette blurred. Without Liam noticing, she snatched the sword in the boy's grip.

Liam was amused.

"It's not like I'm planning to have it for myself." He laughed at Ava's reaction.

The Goddess held the sword near her. As though it was her child and Liam was planning to snatch it away from her.

Suddenly, Liam came up with a plan.

"Say, do you want to spar? If I win you give me your blade, if I lose, uhm, I'll kiss you? Sounds fair, no?" Liam provoked the Goddess.

Ava's forehead creased.

Without any warning, she unsheathed Grass Cutter and rushed towards Liam.

"Hey hey, don't use your Stigma! Come, come!" Liam laughed out loud.

He drew Blade of Avarice from its scabbard and braced for impact.

The cave was huge enough for the two of them to spar. It was not cramped nor narrow so it was fine to spar inside the cave.

The Goddess slashed her sword in a horizontal motion.

Liam was planning to parry the blow but decided not to in a split second.

He dodged the blade by slightly putting his foot two steps backward.

'Sh*t!'

He wanted to counterattack, but the Goddess' sheer speed made Liam continuously dodge her barrage of attacks.

'I want to parry her blades!'

Parrying her sword means he will have enough time to strike and break her tempo, however...

Her sword was too fast!

Liam's eyes were bloodshot. The boy couldn't afford to blink.

The first rule in fighting:

Never blink!

But Liam showed his proficiency in sword fighting.

He has an irregular footwork. Since the martial arts, he practiced back on Earth, didn't have a set of moves for footwork.

His steps were forceful but minimal. Carefully avoiding the sword.

The second rule in fighting:

Get out of the opponent's weapon way!

Ava was unperturbed. She kept unleashing sword strike after sword strike. But she wasn't accelerating, she was maintaining a speed enough for Liam to react.

She wanted to test the capabilities of the boy.

Minutes passed. Part of the cave's surface was wet. Liam was sweating a huge amount of sweat.

Suddenly, Liam's pitch-black eyes curved, and his focused gaze turned into a maniacal one.

The third rule in fighting:

Block or Parry!

But Ava's sword strikes were heavy, he wasn't hit yet nor had he tried parrying her blade before since the start of the match but he was sure regardless.

Those sword strikes pack a punch!

So instead...

Ava's figure flashed, her figure instantly appearing in front of Liam. She raised her sword in an upward motion.

It might look like she was giving Liam her weak point. Her body was defenseless. But that weak point disappeared immediately when it appeared.

She brought down her sword in a powerful manner.

If I can't block nor parry her strike then I should just...

The revised third rule in fighting:

Redirect the opponent's strike!

He raised Blade of Avarice and aimed at Grass Cutter. Just as it was about to come in contact with each other, Liam tilted his blade just when Ava's sword was about to hit the edge of Liam's cutlass.

Liam successfully redirected her strike!

Because of the huge force that backed up Grass Cutter, the blade kept slashing downward just beside Liam.

'Finally a chance!'

Ava was already one meter in front of him. He thrust his short sword into her heart.

Just when Liam was about to pierce her heart, his movements suddenly stop. His blade was unable to move a millimeter forward.

In his vision, vines abruptly appeared in his hands, binding him. Not just that, but there were vines all over his body.

'Forest Bind?' Liam remembered that Grass Cutter has a Stigma of its own capable of the ability 'Forest Bind'.

"Hey, I said no using of Stigmas," Liam murmured.

"A battle is constantly evolving, you should brace yourself from sudden unexpected circumstances." Ava shamelessly said with a disappointed tone.

"Bruh..." Liam couldn't help but smacked his forehead.

The vines slowly retracted from his body slowly until they disappeared on the ground.

"Another one!" Liam laughed. His breathing was haggard, but his energy was still at its peak.

"Come." Ava brandished her sword.

Liam's left foot pressed to the ground. He promptly propelled himself. His speed was decent. In fact, it was fast, but in Ava's 'eyes', he was slow.

Liam was now the one unleashing attack after attack.

Ava was distraught.

This boy in front of him was actually much more proficient in close-quarter combat. Their distance to each other was so close to each other that Liam could even kiss her lips if he pressed his head a little forward.

In this distance, Liam was stopping her attacks before she could even swing her sword. Because she was holding her sword using two hands, Liam's free hand was even approaching her body aiming to punch her weak points.

She was frustrated, her swords couldn't generate enough power to push Liam away.

Liam was wielding the sword with one hand. His other hand was stopping Ava's arm while punching some parts of her body.

'Her flesh is soft.' He thought while he was crazily slashing his swords with disregard to the damage he might deal to the Goddess.

Liam believed in gender equality! Who said he can't hurt a beautiful girl?

He pushed Ava into a secluded corner of the cave. Here in this part of the cave, the place was narrower.

Ava noticed his plans, but she couldn't overpower the child. Before she can even swing her sword, Liam's elbow, palm, blade, and the sword's hilt were stopping her and breaking her tempo.

The worst part was that her sword was too long. And now that she was pushed to the corner, if she wasn't careful, her sword will hit the corners of the cave before it can even touch Liam.

And finally...

Liam's short sword broke through Ava's fragile defenses, his sword almost penetrating her neck when those hateful vines bound him again.

"When I have the chance, don't be surprised if I break that blade into two," Liam growled.

Ava observed her bruised body. Black marks and cuts were apparent on her once flawless body.

A golden glow surrounded her body. Liam closed his eyes.

When he opened it again, he was surprised to see that Ava's bruised body returned back to normal.

"Tch, I also want that power." Liam clicked his tongue.

"What martial art is that? I never saw someone perform such feats in close combat." Ava inquired before she sheathed her sword.

The vines retracted from the ground, freeing Liam.

"It has many name. But let's see. In my place, it is called Arnis. But in other countries, they call it Kali." Liam touched his chin.

"Arnis? Is that a martial art practiced in your world?"

"That's right my beautiful unfair Goddess." Liam laughed while he sat down and rest. He was exhausted. But his eyes were still blazing with the intent to battle once more.