"Why isn't he dodging?" Daniel asked, clearly confused as he watched Cassian absorb each of the boar's attacks with his sword. Cassian blocked and deflected where he could, but parrying was tough, and he barely made any effort to counterattack.
"I don't know," Dallas replied, just as puzzled. She had seen Cassian spar plenty of times, and dodging was usually one of his strengths. Her voice grew sharper as she called out, "Cassian! Why aren't you dodging? Move and counter!"
But Cassian didn't seem to hear her. The boar charged again, lowering its head and coming at him in a straight line, making it an easy attack to sidestep. All he needed was a slight shift to avoid it completely. Instead, he held his ground, using the broad side of his sword to deflect the boar's attack to the side. Though he did it perfectly, his face tightened in pain—it wasn't easy to redirect such a powerful strike.
Cassandra, however, didn't seem confused. She watched him with a small smile and explained, "He's focusing on improving his blocks and deflections. Dodging would be easier against an opponent , but blocking and deflecting is the real challenge. These boars hit hard enough to crush human bones, so he's testing his ability to handle that strength."
Hearing this, Daniel and Dallas glanced back at Cassian's fight, noticing his steady improvement. But Dallas was still frustrated. "Then why hasn't he attacked even once?"
This time, Cassandra shrugged, looking equally at a loss. "I'm not sure," she admitted, her tone uncertain. "Maybe he's trying to wear the boar down, or maybe he just hasn't found the right opening."
"The monster does look tired," Daniel noted, watching as the boar moved a bit slower than before.
"So does Cassian…" Dallas added, noticing his heavy breathing and the slight tremble in his hands whenever he relaxed his stance.
A hint of worry crossed her face. They could step in before the boar could kill him, but that wouldn't prevent Cassian from getting hurt. She was almost certain he'd already cracked a few bones by now.
Cassandra, however, didn't seem as worried as the others. She watched the fight with a discerning eye and then smiled. "What a snake," she muttered.
Dallas and Daniel glanced at her in confusion, prompting her to explain. She pointed toward the fight and said, "Look at the boar's fac-head—or whatever you'd call it."
They followed her gaze. The boar was once again preparing for a charge, one of the few straightforward attacks it could manage as a quadruped. Cassian had cleverly limited its options, keeping it from using its teeth by staying out of range. As they looked closer, they noticed several shallow slashes on the boar's head, each one leaking a bit of blood. They were like papercuts, barely anything to a creature with skin tough as metal, but there were a lot of them.
"How did those get there? They look fresh, but Cassian hasn't landed a single attack… or even tried to," Daniel asked, more confused than ever.
Dallas smirked, understanding dawning on her face. "You haven't fought many warriors who wield sharp weapons, have you?"
Daniel nodded, a bit sheepish. "I'll admit, as a hand-to-hand fighter, I tend to avoid sword fights. Anyone with a blade has a big advantage over me unless I'm wearing serious armor, so… no, not really."
"It's actually pretty simple," Dallas explained. "He's making those shallow cuts with a technique called a glide cut. It's similar to deflecting attacks in hand-to-hand combat, where you guide your opponent's movements away using their own momentum. Cassian's doing that, but with a blade, so he's also leaving small slashes as he redirects the boar."
"Impressive for someone his age," Daniel remarked, a bit surprised at Cassian's crafty technique, finally understanding why Cassandra called him a "snake."
"True," Cassandra nodded, watching as Cassian added more of those shallow marks to the boar's face. "But it wouldn't work as well on someone with good armor. This boar has some of the toughest hide among one-star monsters, and even if Cassian managed a deeper cut, its bones are even harder."
The real question now was how he was going to defeat it—and Cassian didn't have an answer. The gliding cuts were something he'd come up with on the spot while deflecting the boar's attacks. Sure, he could switch to other moves instead of just blocking and deflecting, but then he wouldn't really be pushing himself to learn how to fight effectively.
One idea did cross his mind: he could finish the boar in a single blow by sacrificing one of his limbs, letting it land a hit to get close enough for a fatal strike. Painful, but effective. But with more battles ahead, it would be reckless to take that kind of injury now. Besides, if he got too battered in this first fight, Dallas and Cassandra might not let him face the next one alone.
Taking a deep breath, Cassian decided it was time to end this. He pushed the boar aside, distancing himself once more. As he predicted, the creature charged at him again. He raised his sword to protect himself, only making the boar angrier after it had been slamming its head against the blade for the past few minutes—he had lost count, but it had to be close to fifty impacts by now.
The boar didn't care; it would continue to batter its head against Cassian's sword to avenge its fallen comrades. But to its surprise, the sword suddenly shifted out of the way, causing the boar to squeal in excitement. In that moment, it realized the person it was targeting had also shifted away from its sight. Confused, it began to look around, slowing its momentum. But before it could change direction, it caught sight of the killer of its friend, smirking as he stabbed his sword down, ready to do the same thing to it.
The boar's red eyes filled with frustration and rage as it saw the sword's pointed tip descending toward it. It tried to slow down, wanting to avoid being impaled at such a height, but Cassian had timed his strike perfectly. The tip plunged into the side of its spine, breaking a bone and piercing deep into its body. Despite this, the boar continued its charge, driving the blade further in and slicing its body in half as Cassian maintained a tight grip on the sword. The effort left his hands trembling; cutting through the boar's tough bones was no easy task, even with the momentum on his side.