Returning to the Mysterious Era

"I concede." In the center of the training field, Instructor Kosia cupped his fists and walked off the field. The crowd had been on their edge of their seats and, upon seeing this, made way for him.

"That Instructor Li Wei was really something! He managed to push Kosia back in just a few moves," someone whispered.

A young man, who was in the middle of his workout, turned around and said, "You weren’t here yesterday, were you? This is the second time Kosia's lost. Last night, he was beaten in just three moves."

"That's pretty impressive. I remember that Kosia is the head instructor at Edelweiss Middle School's Combat Club and is quite skilled, but it looks like Gray Seal Martial Arts Hall's Instructor Li Wei is on a whole different level," someone remarked to their companion, their expression eager.

"How about we sign up for his class?"

"Let's go, let's go."

A few people beelined for the front desk.

"Let's go too or else we're going to miss out," Phil said hurriedly. This Instructor Li Wei was definitely the real deal. If he could get some more lessons, he might avoid landing in the bottom of the Combat Club's next sparring ranking.

"Instructor Kosia seems to be looking at you." Milo patted Phil, who was half excited and half anxious, on the shoulder.

"..." Phil awkwardly peeked over to his right and indeed found Instructor Kosia looking back at him, a complicated expression on his face. It seemed he had heard what Phil said and was a little jealous.

At Edelweiss Middle School's Combat Club, the three main instructors each had a group of students they taught, and Phil's instructor was Kosia. Because Phil always ranked at the bottom, he had left a pretty big impression on Kosia.

Having heard Phil's words, Kosia felt somewhat angry and embarrassed that a longtime student of his wanted another instructor. It felt like someone had just stolen the crops that he had carefully been growing right from under him.

But who could blame them when the other side was indeed more skilled? He had lost to the other instructor twice, and the gap in skill was obvious.

If Phil wanted extra lessons, then so be it.

Kosia looked away and was about to leave when Phil softly called out, "Instructor."

Kosia paused slightly before hurrying off, pretending he couldn't hear. He mentally noted down this incident with Phil.

Phil... making me lose face on purpose. I'll put him in the "death group" at the next sparring session. I bet he'll be wailing in the first round.

"I don't think Instructor Kosia remembers me." Phil sighed in relief.

"Relax." Milo patted Phil's shoulder, then pointed ahead. "We should hurry and sign up; there seems to be quite a few people already."

Phil slapped his forehead. "Right, right." He jogged over.

The elderly man with the gray bat-wing hair at the front desk rolled up the newspaper and set it aside. He took out a notebook to start recording.

"Name? Age? Instructor you want to book? What time and for how many hours? And lastly, the deposit. It's not much; just fifty Hongli Federation dollars."

The elderly man didn't seem to take a single breath, quickly jotting down the information in the notebook as he talked. He repeatedly stuffed the fifty dollars into the wooden desk drawer and called people up one by one.

Finally, it was Phil's turn. He immediately gave his information and a green bill to the old man. Fortunately, Phil managed to snag the last appointment slot with Instructor Li Wei for tomorrow at six in the evening.

"Alright, Milo, we'll come back tomorrow," Phil said to his friend as he stepped out of the line.

Right at this moment, the front door of Gray Seal Martial Arts Hall was pushed open. A tall girl with neat, ear-length hair, wearing long clothes, and carrying a backpack, strolled in. Although her features were not delicate, they were deep and appealing, evoking an air of heroism around her. ṙÃΝÒᛒĘS̈

A little taken aback, Phil exclaimed, "Senior Sister Tifa!"

"Phil?" Tifa was also a bit surprised. She adjusted her backpack and walked over. Phil caught a faint scent. It didn't smell like perfume but of laundry detergent. "Are you here to train at the Gray Seal Martial Arts Hall too?"

"Yeah, I heard the new instructor here, Li Wei, is really good, so my friend and I came to check it out," Phil said.

Next to him, Milo, the aforementioned friend who apparently had no name, sighed. Phil wasn't usually the type to freeze at the sight of a woman, but for some reason, he always got inexplicably shy around Tifa and acted like some lovestruck teenager.

Phil and Tifa made some small talk before the topic quickly shifted to Instructor Li Wei.

"You're in Instructor Li Wei's class tomorrow? What a coincidence. I've signed up for all of his classes for the next month." Tifa glanced at her watch. "Sorry, it's almost time for my class. We can talk more tomorrow afternoon."

With that, Tifa turned and left. Tifa had a very well-toned figure since she had been at the Combat Club all the way back in middle school. Her back was also similarly impressive.

Phil watched from afar until her figure disappeared.

"Hey, it looks like your soul left your body." Milo nudged his friend. "Come on, let's go home."

"Wait, let's hang out here a bit longer. We can take a look around the facilities here. The atmosphere feels better than the Combat Club."

"Don't give me that crap. You just want to see more of Senior Sister Tifa." Milo knew his friend all too well. "Fine, let's go in."

The two of them walked through the corridor to a public area. On the right side near the white wall, a row of eight black sandbags hung from poles. Students with their hands wrapped in white bandages were working out nearby, occasionally throwing punches left and right. The sound of punches kept echoing in the area. It may have been a public area, but it was essentially a place for professionals. Everyone training in this area were seasoned enthusiasts.

Phil looked to the left, where a space had been sectioned off. Dim sunlight streamed in through the windows, casting light on a tall young man demonstrating specific combat moves to Tifa. The process was slow, with a lot of explanations in between.

"Power doesn't come from your hand, but from here." Cassius patted his waist. "You need to learn how to quickly generate power from your waist. By engaging all of your muscles there, you'll be able to make each punch powerful."

He stepped a couple steps back, moving to his right. "Give it a try."

"Okay." Tifa, dressed in a white training attire, immediately took her stance, spreading her legs until they were were shoulder-width apart. She raised her arms at her sides and showed no signs of wavering. Twisting slightly, she slowly pushed her fist forward.

Cassius nodded and opened his mouth to speak when his heart suddenly skipped a beat, and a familiar bitter taste began spreading in his mouth.

"A legendary antique?!"

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