Free Web NovelChapter 170: Chapter 169 - Convincing
Point-of-View: Alexis Tucker
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"Hey, wanna train for a bit, like spar or something? I feel kinda restless now," I said to Zoraiz with a sigh.
"Yeah, sounds good, I was actually thinking the same thing," He nodded in response.
"Wanna join us?" I asked Adelmira.
"Huh? Oh, uh, no thanks, maybe another time," She replied with a shake of her head, looking a bit awkward.
She’s still pretty shy when X isn’t around...well, she is just a kid, so I guess that makes sense.
"So, what are the rules?" I asked Zoraiz, as we headed into the woods.
"Hm? Let’s see...how about we just go all out? Because if you get frustrated, you’ll disregard the rules and go all out anyway," He pointed out wryly.
"...fair enough, that works for me," I responded sheepishly, as I averted my gaze.
"As for where...let’s spar in the clearing that Aurora created when she cut down all those trees. We’ve trained a lot with plenty of trees and obstacles around, we should probably also get used to fighting in the open with no cover or obstacles," He suggested, after mulling it over a bit.
"Yeah, sure, sounds good to me," I nodded affirmatively.
We then headed for that spot, and as we reached the clearing, we both took our places and got into position, warming up and getting ready to start.
"Mind if I make the opening move?" I requested as I finished stretching.
"Sure, go for it."
I then activated Reflex Shock at x5 and shot towards him...it’s a purely speed and perception boosting technique, and necessary to keep up with him if he uses the Physical Skill’s boosting techniques.
My current maximum is at x15, but I’ll start at x5 to ease myself into this. I then coated my fist with lightning as I closed in on him and swung a punch at his side, but he struck my forearm at just below my wrist with the back of his hand to deflect my punch and avoid it.
He then swung a kick up at my left shoulder, before abruptly halting his foot as I activated the Electro Skill technique Electric Coat, which coats my body in a layer of lightning.
I can only maintain it at a low output level, meaning that it doesn’t inflict anything more that a light shock to anyone who touches it, but that’s still enough to stun them and slow down their movements.
He then quickly put his foot down and sprang back as I used the Burst technique, the same technique I’d inadvertently used back when I killed my parents...but this one was at a much, much lower output than I’d used back then, of course.
He managed to jump back and evade it in time, before snapping his foot forward onto the ground as he landed, kicking up several bits of dirt and glass towards me.
As I zipped out of the way to avoid getting splattered with earth, he was suddenly right in front of me, reaching out to grab me into a headlock and restrain me.
Oh, crap, this must have been what he was going for, force me to take my eyes off him by shifting my focus to the dirt, and I fell for it!
I began to try and halt in order to spring back, but thanks to my momentum, I only ended up losing my balance, falling forward with an alarmed yelp.
And since his momentum was shifted forward towards me, he couldn’t get out of the way, and I ended up falling onto him, the two of us collapsing in a heap as I landed on top of him...and my lips pressing onto his as I inadvertently slid forward a bit.
I froze up slightly as I met his gaze, holding my breath without even realizing it. Crap, what is this...I-I can’t move, and my heart is pounding.
Almost unconsciously, I slowly began to sink my lips more firmly onto his, when suddenly, I sat up with an alarmed start as a nearby bush rustled, getting off him as he shot up like a bolt as well.
A squirrel then sprang out of the bush, a berry in its mouth, before sprinting away to a nearby tree and climbing it.
"O-oh, it was just a squirrel," Laughed Zoraiz nervously, as he met my gaze, before both of us averted out gazes almost immediately.
I-I need to chill out, it was just an accident, after all! Y-yeah, just an accident...I should just brush it off, no problem!
I’m sure he doesn’t think it’s a big deal, he’s probably only acting awkward because I’m being all awkward, and he’s not sure what to say...he’s hooked up with women before, so something like this, and an accident at that, should be nothing to him.
So, if I just act like it was no big deal, he should be able to calm down too. Yeah, that makes sense. Okay...just take a breath and relax, easy...
"So, uh, that was kinda awkward, huh? But on the bright side, I finally prevented you from evading me, so that’s a plus, even if it was an accident!" I joked, as I stood up with a nonchalant expression on my face, wincing as my voice cracked slightly towards the end.
Crap, did he notice? And does this expression look forced? I can’t tell!
"Well, if you say so, but while I did fail to evade, it wasn’t technically an attack, so I can still say that I’ve evaded every attack you’ve thrown at me," He responded with a chuckle.
Huh...is it just me, or is the atmosphere still kinda awkward? His voice seemed just a tiny bit strained too...or is it just my imagination, like an I overthinking things?
"So...should we continue? U-uh, with the training, I mean!"
Idiot! That second part was totally unnecessary!
"Actually, I think I’ll, uh...head back to my RV. It’s kinda humid today, you know?" He replied...huh, I just realized, we haven’t faced each other at all since I stood up.
My back’s turned to him...and from the way his voice sounds, I think his back is turned to me too. Wait, is he more flustered than I realized? Huh...not sure why, but that makes me feel kinda smug.
"Yeah, sure...I was thinking the same thing," I said in response. freewebnσvel.cѳm
"Cool...I’ll head back now, then," He remarked, sounding a bit awkward as I heard his footsteps receding. frёewebηovel.cѳm
I let out a heavy sigh as I then turned around and trudged my way back to the campsite. Holy shit, wait a sec...does that count as my first k-kiss?
Ughh, what am I, twelve? Why’s just thinking of the word ’kiss’ making me flustered? Stupid, stupid, stupid!
"Hey, um, are you okay?" Came a voice as I reached the campsite, startling me, "Oh, sorry, didn’t mean to scare you."
"Huh? Oh, it’s just you, Adelmira...no worries, I’m fine, just lost in thought is all," I replied with a wave of my hand.
"Oh, okay. Zoraiz got back a minute ago, his face was really red, I wondered if something happened," She responded, looking curious.
Really red, huh? Heh, so he really was flustered too!
"N-no, nothing happened! Er, I mean...he said that, uh...that the heat was kinda getting to him, maybe heatstroke or something. Yeah, that must have been why his face was red!" I exclaimed, before internally groaning...yeah, wow, that was real convincing, you idiot.
"Your face is even redder...do you have heatstroke too?" She inquired in an innocent tone, but had a slight, sly smile on her face.
Crap, she’s onto me.
"M-mhm, maybe," I responded, deciding to play dumb instead, "And I’m sure my face isn’t redder...I have a lighter skin complexion, so any redness would be more visible on me than on someone with a darker complexion, you know? W-we were probably both equally red, but it just shows more clearly on me!"
Oh, my God, I need to fucking calm down, I’m not helping my case at all here. Well, I guess it doesn’t matter, she’s definitely not convinced in the slightest.
"Oh, okay. Yeah, that makes sense. So, what kind of training were you doing?" She asked me, as I flopped down onto the grass with a sigh.
"Huh? Uh, just normal stuff, sparring, you know?" I shrugged in response.
"It’s barely even been five minutes since you guys headed out there though."
"Yup, it’s the heat, like I said!"
"Yeah, I bet."
Goddammit, go back to being shy! She’s being way too smug right now, I just wanna bury my head in the dirt! Gotta change the subject...
"So, uh, how are you fitting in here?" I asked her.
"Hm? Fine, I guess, everyone seems nice," She answered in response.
"Oh, glad to hear that. And, uh...you got a crush on anyone?" I blurted out as my mind blanked, unable to think of anything to say, and inadvertently ending up blurting out the first thing that came to mind.
Yeah, way to change the subject, only to bring it right back full circle, dumbass.
"Hm...well, the Werewolf guy is pretty hot, I think. And I thought that Petra’s brother was attractive too...but considering their, uh, relationship, he’s not really an option," She sighed wistfully.
Oh, it actually kinda worked out.
"Yeah, that’s for sure. What about the other guys?" I inquired curiously.
"Let’s see...that Mike guy is a bit too old for my taste, though he isn’t bad looking at all. Inoka isn’t really my type, but I think his attitude is pretty cool...Zoraiz isn’t bad either, I like his baggy hoodie look that he always goes for," She remarked thoughtfully, seeming to really be getting into it, "It’s certainly great that all of them are in good shape, it’s my dream to own a private island and have a harem of hot, mostly naked guys serve me hand and foot-...w-wait, no, forget I said that!"
Oh...uh, wow. I thought she was a shy, innocent little girl, but maybe that’s not quite the case. A harem of hot naked guys, huh? Wow.
"Well, you’re pretty cute, I bet you’ll be quite a catch once you’re a bit older. I mean, you’re cute now too, don’t get me wrong...but if any of the guys here did anything with you, they’d be labeled as creeps and criminals," I responded with a teasing smirk.
"Wh-wha-...hey, I told you to forget I said that," She pouted in embarrassment as her face turned red, before she turned her gaze towards me slyly, "So, what about you? Got a crush on anyone here?"
"Nope, not a one!"
...once again, real convincing, dumbass. I need to work on my poker face.
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