Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix-Chapter 1132: The next time

"... Can I talk with you for a moment?" Sealyn approached Rain when the meeting ended.

"Sure, do you want to ask something?" Rain asked.

Sealyn looked more relaxed than before, but she still should be a bit annoyed at her defeat. She was the type of person who wouldn't let that kind of drag her down forever, but she was also stubborn and prideful. Now and then, those thoughts would resurface and bother her again.

"Mom said that you are completely healed, but she didn't explain the damage that you suffered," Sealyn said. "How were the wounds?"

"It was fine, it wasn't a mortal damage, but it was quite troublesome," Rain said while wondering if he should make the light of the wounds or exaggerate about them. "I guess the worst pain that I felt was when the meteor dragons tried to turn me into a barbecue of sushi. The wounds of that fight were on the top five."

"You don't have to try to make me feel better. I am over it," Sealyn said. "I won't lose next time, though."

"That is the spirit," Rain smiled.

"It was the first time I used that technique against someone that wasn't a dragon, but while I killed a bunch of them with that, it seems that it is imperfect," Sealyn said. "How do you think that I could improve it to deal with someone as underhanded as you?"

"Underhanded? Don't you mean smart and tactical?" Rain asked. "I guess you are pretty similar to Gramps… you worry too much about honor… considering your position, that kind of thing can make you earn the respect of a lot of people, but that is essentially trying to fight while handicapped."

It looked like Sealyn had a few things to say about that, but she didn't tell them in the end. There was no point in trying to convince others of her own mindset. She had to embody it and make them understand with actions and results that her path wasn't wrong. Rain agreed with her on that point.

"Anyway… you don't have to try to understand my way of thinking of acting when it comes to fighting," Rain explained. "Worrying about others is useless, and how their techniques work as well can be useful, but it is better to focus on improving the basics.

Your technique isn't anything hard to understand, so you should just keep improving your basic speed and strength until no trick or tactical genius like me can deal with it. Well, to be honest, I only won out of instinct, so you will have to consider that the next time, too. Someone much more experienced might find a better way to counter your technique."

Sealyn took in Rain's analysis, silently processing the information. His insights shed light on aspects of her technique that she might not have fully considered. As she contemplated the drawbacks he pointed out, she began to recognize the need for a more well-rounded approach to her fighting style.

"While your technique is truly impressive, it does have its drawbacks. Moving at such incredible speeds means that even colliding with small particles of dust in the air can cause damage over time. The wear and tear on your body, especially during long battles, could become a real issue." Rain said. "Additionally, the high-speed nature of your technique adds a vulnerability.

A single mistake, even a slight misjudgment, could leave you wide open. Any fumble could result in deadly counters from your opponents at those speeds. It's a risky technique that demands flawless execution."

The realization of the potential risks and vulnerabilities in her technique made her more determined to refine and improve it. She understood that the path to mastery required addressing these challenges, ensuring a balance between speed and efficiency.

With a thoughtful expression, Sealyn mentally noted the areas she needed to focus on in her training to overcome the limitations and enhance the overall effectiveness of her unique combat technique.

"I see… thank you for your insight," Sealyn said. "I will definitely win the next time."

Rain smiled, and then he waved his hand as Sealyn left the area… he wasn't sure if he wanted to participate in the next tournaments. It was mentally exhausting… Moreover, he had to focus on the next mission and on the preparations, so his time of training would be rather limited.

From that day onward, Sealyn would come to Rain's home and ask to spar with him for a bit now and then. While they didn't try to fight for real, otherwise the garden would be destroyed, she still asked him to be as underhanded as possible.

"Kids nowadays can't understand how useful and cool is to be underhan… I mean, how cool is it to use your head in clever ways," Rain thought.

Sealyn wanted to get used to that kind of fighting style. The current generation is rather straightforward when they fight. That was weird, considering that they needed to do everything necessary to survive. It didn't make sense for them to be that dumb when it came to unusual tactics.

Danny and Annie also would show up now and then and ask Rain to show them the fighting styles that he supposedly learned from the relics. During the fight with Sealyn, Rain used some taekwondo moves, and they were interested in that alongside Capoeira. Rain wasn't a master at either, but he taught them as much as he could.

Although all windows of time that he had were filled thanks to all that, Rain was satisfied in interacting with his kids like that. He enjoyed those moments as much as possible until the final week of their travel toward that sandstorm planet. In those two weeks, there wasn't much of a surface that they could see… at least, they confirmed that nothing left it.

Before long, they had another meeting to plan the mission, but there wasn't much that they could plan to with so little information…