(Michael's POV)
After changing my clothes,in my room.
And heading back to the backyard.
Me, and Jeanne, are now preparing ourselves for our today's lesson on swordsmanship.
While i was changing, the backyard had been cleared of anything that is not important,and that would be detrimental during our training.
With Dad standing in the center of the yard.
Having somehow managed to set down his wine glass somewhere during the transition.
He clasped his hands together and looked at me and Jeanne with the expression of someone about to deliver a lecture.
"Alright," he said. "Before we start, you need to understand something fundamental."
He held up two finger.
"There are two types of swordfight that exist."
Jeanne stood straight listening to dad words. Even though Jeanne probably had gotten that information from her dad,when she had a headstart.
"One is entertainment swordfight, that is what you see in films,stage combat, and glamorous performances. You know the flashy,slow yet dramatic fight,designed to look impressive." He paused. "Though nearly all are completely useless in real combat."
He held up a second finger.
"The Second one is actual swordfight some examples are like HEMA, Armored Combat (Bohurt). With them in most cases being actually practical, efficient, and are designed to end a fight as quickly as possible with minimal risk to yourself." He looked between us. "That's what we're teaching you."
"Most modern swordsmen," Dad continued, "fall somewhere in between. They learn forms, they practice technique, they look good in tournaments." He shrugged. "Some of them are genuinely dangerous. Most aren't."
" But those are most."
He glanced at Grandpa, who nodded in silent, knowing what Dad is quietly saying.
he then turned to Jeanne dad,Gerald, who crossed his arms and unanimously agree as well. And then at Nonno who dad didn't asked but probably know Nonno agreed to what he's word was going to be.
"Now," Dad said, "I'm going to demonstrate you on how we do things."
He looked back at Nonno.
"Antonio, would you help me ?"
Nonno Antonio,who had been standing quiet with his arms crossed, with eyes everything with the sharp, assessing eyes of a man who had been judging Edward de Montfort for approximately a decade slowly smiled.
As Nonno rolled his neck.
CRACK
A Crack sound can be heard,then he cracked his shoulder
CRACKCRACK
And finally his back.
CRACK
"Finally," he said with deep satisfaction. "I've been waiting for this day."
Dad's expression flickered from calm to alert,as if his fight or flight instinct was activated. Sensing that there's a double meaning in the word nonno had said.
"We're doing a demonstration. For the children." Dad clarified back to Nonno.
"Of course," Nonno said pleasantly, picking up a training sword. "For the children, for the kids afterall."
"It's a demonstration of technique to showcase to children."
"Yes... demonstration of technique." Nonno tested the weight of the sword. "Being demonstrated upon you as we agreed."
"No i think your mistaken here–"
"You know," Nonno said conversationally, moving into position while remembering on the past. "I still remember the day you came to my house. Having the audacity to asking me to allow yourself to marry my daughter." He tilted the sword. " You also made her wait four years for you to propose to her. To the point she was worried that your breaking up with her."
"We were...It was a complicated thing, you know not to mention-"
"Four years." Nonno's eyes were sharp. "My daughter waited four years."
Dad opened his mouth.
"That was in the past ! We already have a child!" he said, gesturing at me. "We're happily MARRIED ! The problem is already resolved you know !"
"Is it?" Nonno asked.
"We literally have a son! He's your grandson He's standing right there! He's watching this conversation! Not to mention we also have a daughter!"
"Yes." Nonno glanced at me briefly. "Which is why Michael specifically should learn from his father's mistakes....every one of them."
"What mistakes?! Everything worked out!"
Dad stared at him in disbelief, with his voice at a high pitch, as if he was an opera singer.
"You're still that mad !?, that i asked Giulia out and marrying her" dad asked flatly.
"I'm merely demonstrating swordsmanship," Nonno said pleasantly. "For the children."
Grandpa Edgar made a sound from the side.
It might have been a cough, though it could also be a laugh, or maybe a sign of calling Nonno bullshit.
Jeanne Dad,aka Gerald had turned slightly away, shoulders suspiciously shaking. With him seemingly not wanting to deal with the family drama that he's not interested to join.
Meanwhile I looked at Jeanne.
As she was also looking at me.
With both of us probably thinking the same thing.
Dad is about to Get Absolutely WRECKED by Nonno.
"This is a DEMONSTRATION!–" Dad started.
"En garde," said Nonno.
Yeah.
Dad was about to get wrecked.
And I'm somewhat actually both interested and not interested in that.
I watched as Nonno settle into his stance, readying himself,as the stance he took was very clean, somewhat flexible,and very specific.
The posture of someone who probably had been doing this for a very long time and had nothing left to prove to showcase that.
Except apparently to the man who bravely (stupidly) dated his daughter.
Dad raised his training sword, expression somewhat readying, with him absolutely knowing what Nonno was thinking.
"Kids," Grandpa Edgar said quietly, appearing beside me and Jeanne with his arms crossed, watching the scene with calm satisfaction, "pay attention."
"To their technique ?" Jeanne asked.
"To that," Edgar said. "And to what happens when you have something to say,but you have been storing it for a long time. "
Jeanne nodded seriously, filing this information away.
I filed it away too, for completely different reasons.
-----------
Meanwhile - Inside
-----------
Grandma Vivienne sat with Lavinia at the kitchen table, with textbooks and notes containing research about magics, alchemy,and structure of spells around the table.
As she was explaining to Lavinia about them.
Through the window, the sound of training of swords clashing could be heard, followed also immediately by the sound of someone Screaming in horror.
" AAAAAAHHHHH."
"...Is that dad?" Lavinia asked.
Vivienne glanced out the window, able to sense what's happening outside.
"Yes."
With her knowing that Nonno must be bullying her son,but oh well he can handle it. Vivienne thought.
"Um..Will dad be okay?"
"He will be." She turned back to the textbooks. "Now. Where were we?"
Outside, Edward voice can be heard again :
"THIS IS A DEMONSTRATION!!!"
"Indeed," came Nonno's calm reply.
THUD
Lavinia looked out the window again.
Vivienne gently redirected her attention back to the page.
"Lavinia."
"Right. Sorry."
THUD
"Focus."
-----------------
Meanwhile - Living Room
-----------------
Giulia, Charlotte, and Isabella sat together in the living room, with tea cups in hand, having what had been a perfectly pleasant conversation about nothing in particular.
Until some sounds started to be heard from the backyard.
CLANK
CLANKCLANK
"I told you this was a DEMONSTRATION !!!"
CLANK
"It is a demonstration."
"OF WHAT !?"
"Of consequences."
THUD
"AAAHHHHHH!!!"
Charlotte slowly lowered her tea cup, horrified while looking at the directio from where the noise was coming from.
"Is that... Edward screaming?"
Isabella smiled serenely. "Yes."
"And that's your husband out there he's fighing ?"
"Yes."
"Is Edward alright !?"
"He will survive." Isabella took a calm sip of tea. "Antonio has been actually waiting for this opportunity for some time."
Charlotte stared at her. "Wait how long ?"
Isabella considered. "Since the day he agreed on allowing Edward to marry Giulia, I believe."
"Wait.....That was years ago." Charlotte said calculating the numbers.
"My husband is patient." Another sip.
"When he chooses to be, albeit someone who's very petty at that."
CLANK CLANK CLANK
"GIULIA HELP !! YOUR FATHER IS TRYING TO KILL ME– AAHHH!!"
Giulia meanwhile remained calm.
With her continuing to enjoy her drink.
With her then making a genuine smile that she seem to have absolutely no effort to contain.
Charlotte stared at her.
"You're not going to help your husband?"
"Papa won't actually hurt him," Giulia said, "...Probably."
"Probably?!"
"Edward is fine. He's very capable." She smiled trusting her husband capabilities and her dad's ability to not accidentally kill him. And she would be right in this case.
"He's just also very much reaping on the consequences of marrying me. Which he did accept it."
Thud
"You already HAVE A grandson and also a grandaugh–"
CLANK
Charlotte looked between Giulia and Isabella, with both women were entirely unbothered.
As Giulia was still quietly smiling, while
Isabella had the expression of someone watching to a long but familiar story.
Charlotte soon picked up her tea cup.
With her seeing that everyone is acting normal she decided to follow with the flow.
And basically do as what newcomer or foreigners visiting Rome do.
When in Rome,do what the romans do she supposed
And she proceeded to drink her tea, while trying to ignore what's happening outside.
-----------
Back in the Backyard
-----------
CLANK
CLANK CLANK
Edward de Montfort was fighting for his life.
Not metaphorically here, I meant literally.
As Antonio Valentini was moving like a madman thirsting for vengeance.
Striking or moving with an intention to give someone a taste of the blade.
As Edward parried high preventing Antonio attacks from giving him a blow.
CLANK
Antonio meanwhile redirected the parry with a twist of his wrist, and using Edward's own force against him,cause Edward stumbled back two steps.
Meanwhile Michael and Jeanne was watching in amazement of the duel, with Edgar and a worried looking Gerald watching Edward trying to fight Antonio.
Okay.
Okay it's really been awhile since i fought using a sword.
Edward secretly thought.
Edward reset, moving away to get a better position.
Antonio meanwhile tracked him without moving his feet, just rotating slightly at the hip, sword held deceptively low.
That low guard.
What is he doing with that low guard.
Edward stared at,as he feinted.
But sadly Antonio didn't take the feint.
He didn't even blink.
and instead he casually stepped forward, then he swung his sword high in a controlled arc that forced Edward's sword arm up and outward.
CLANK
And suddenly Edward's entire right side was open and Antonio training sword was resting against his ribs.
"Point," Antonio said pleasantly, stopping himself from hitting Edward.
As Edward stepped back, breathing harder than he wanted to admit.
Holy...God...ok i didn't expect that.
He raised his sword again.
This time more focus and more serious, as he can feel adrenaline going through his body and increasing his senses and increasing his muscles abilities.
As Edward stared at Antonio, waiting to get a perfect chance to strike.
Now.
Edward dashed, with him moving fast
And closing the distance before Nonno could reset, launching a rapid three-strike combination that had ended fights before.
CLANKCLANK
Antonio blocked the first two with efficient, minimal movements.
with a sidestepped on the third entirely.
With minimal effort as if he'd known exactly what Edward was going to do.
As Edward's sword was only cutting through empty air.
And Antonio's training sword tapped him firmly on the back of the shoulder.
"Point."
"How did you..." Edward looks shocked seeing Nonno blocked that.
"You were telegraphing the third strike in that combination," Antonio said calmly. "Your left shoulder drops slightly before you usually commit."
Edward straightened, processing that.
As he realized that -
"I've had watched you fight a few times when you started dating my daughter," Antonio replied knowing that Edward had realized that Nonno know one of his combat style. "I've had time to observe."
"That's..." Edward stared.
"Efficient," Antonio said. "Now, pay attention."
He settled back into a deceptively looking low guard.
The low guard...is that a trap
Edward studied it for a half second.
It really invite to use an overhead attack
Not to mention he's really making it looks like a genuine opening
But it's clearly not an opening for a keen person, since it's absolutely is a trap
Edward decided not to take the opening that was a trap.
So he moved differently this time
He probed with a slow, deliberate thrust.
Nonno deflected it quickly.
But the move was a bait.
There
Edward felt it.
The slight preference in the deflection direction.
He's reflecting towards the right
And from memories he always pushing left-to-right.
He has a clear preferred deflection side.
Edward thrust again, watching Antonio deflect right again. Confirming his theory.
He feinted left,and immediately Antonio began to deflect right.
Edward then strikes to use this chance.
CLANK
Not a hit.
Antonio had adjusted mid-motion, catching the blade, but-
Edward immediately countered back, pulling his sword back and launching a low thrust.
Antonio widened his eyes,and immediately dodge it.
But Edward didn't stopped as he continues the charge.
That was the first time he'd moved quickly without using any spells.
For just a moment, something changed in Antonio Valentini's expression.
Not quite a smile.
But something i guess.
"Better," he said.
Edward stood up straighter despite the exhaustion.
On the sideline, Grandpa Edgar stood with arms crossed, watching.
Michael and Jeanne stood beside him, both completely riveted.
"Grandpa," Michael said quietly.
"Mm."
"Nonno telegraphs his weight shift to the back foot before he deflects did he ?"
Edgar glanced down at him.
Then back at the fight.
...The boy was right.
"Yes," he said.
"Dad noticed the deflection preference but not the weight shift."
"Yes."
Michael was quiet for a moment.
"Is Nonno and Dad holding back?"
Another pause.
"Yes," Edgar said.
Michael nodded slowly.
Edgar looked at his grandson.
Seemingly satisfied with his grandson.
"This is going to be an interesting cohort."
Edgar almost smiled.
--------------
A Few Minutes Later...
--------------
(Michael's POV)
You know this stopped being a demonstration approximately three minutes ago.
If it ever was one.
CLANK CLANK CLANK
Nonno was relentless.
Not fast in the flashy, explosive way.
But relentless in the way water was relentless when there's an empty space ,so it will try to fill it,even if there's an obstacle.
They continuously clash back and forth.
And considering his pettiness is fueling that doesn't help.
CLANK
CLANK
CLANK
Each one coming from a slightly different angle, a slightly different height, a slightly different tempo.
Never the same rhythm twice.
Never letting Dad find a pattern to predict.
Dad was holding.
Barely.
Moving at speeds that would have been impossible for a normal person who had never had any templar training,parrying and deflecting with the practiced efficiency of someone who'd been in real fights before.
But you could see it in his footwork he was being driven back.
Step by step.
Bit by bit.
He's on defense.
Completely on defense.
He hasn't launched a real offensive in thirty seconds.
Then... Nonno stopped.
He then raised his sword to a guard position.
And waited.
Dad circled, breathing controlled, studying the stance.
Good use your head, Dad.
Then Dad moved,a rapid combination, using five strikes in quick succession aimed at creating an opening on Nonno left from what I'm understanding.
Nonno parried the first.
CLANK
Deflected the second
CLANK
And for the third,and fourth he dodged them.
As for the final attack dad was trying to do,Nonno stepped forward instead of back,he went inside Dad's guard, causing Dad's eyes to widened.
He abandoned the final strike entirely, twisted his body, and tried to create distance. Since being suspicious of a trap.
But Nonno free hand caught Dad's sword arm at the wrist, causing Dad's sword was to point towards the sky, making it completely useless.
And Nonno training sword was resting under his chin.
..
There was Silence, seeing that.
Everyone stared.
...
Ok that was actually terrifying.
"In a real fight," Nonno said calmly, "that's your throat."
Dad, sword arm still controlled, blade still pointed uselessly upward, said nothing for a moment.
"...Yes," he agreed. "It is."
Nonno released him and stepped back.
Dad lowered his sword, rolling his wrist.
That looked like it had some grip to it.
Dad then reset his position faster than expected,and launched a genuine offensive.
And a real combination at that.
CLANK CLANK CLANK CLANK
SHING SHING SHING SHING
Multiple strikes in rapid sequence, each one Moving into the next without pause, using his observation and the previous fights,to increase his focusness and making him pushing his speed to the upper limit of what his body could sustain.
But Nonno somehow met each one.
CLANK CLANK
CLANK
SHING
He parried with a redirect that sent Dad's blade going wide.
Dad was already compensating for that, pulling the blade back, switching to a thrust,but Nonno immediately sidestepped.
Causing the thrust to hitting air.
Both men had momentum now, moving around each other in tight circles.
CLANK CLANK
SHING SHING
Swords locking briefly, both pushing against the pressure, faces close, with both of their faces looking at eachother with pure focus.
Then Nonno did something completely unexpected.
...
He did a backflip.
Not a combat technique.
Not a useful maneuver or even possible one I thought , due to his age.
And when i meant a backflip I meant a full backflip, from a standing position.
This man is in his sixties.
Everyone in the yard went completely silent.
Jeanne's jaw dropped.
Gerald blinked.
Grandpa Edgar's expression didn't change much but his eyebrow moved.
So he was also clearly shocked but his poker face stayed on.
Dad stood there, sword extended toward where Nonno had been, staring at the empty space, his brain processing on what just happened, since he didn't expect for it.
Which Nonno landed cleanly.
And using the delay of dad's reaction, immediately came back in with a horizontal slash.
With his sword level with neck height.
SLASH
Dad instinct kicked in and he ducked.
The blade passed over dad's head approximately three centimeters to spare.
Then,before he'd even fully processed ducking,his left leg was already moving, sweeping outward at ankle height.
Nonno foot immediately dodged it.
Both men separated, reset, breathing harder now.
The swords clashed again immediately.
CLANK
SHING
Sliding together as both men pressed forward, metal scraping metal as the blades ground against each other, both fighters pushing and moving around.
They're swords slid apart once again from the combined pressure, both blades dragging against each other.
Nonno then let his sword slide deliberately, using the momentum.
Spin around.
A full 360 ° rotation, using the sliding motion as the start of a pivot, coming around with the blade swinging back-
Dad saw it.
And bent his back.
Matrix style.
With his back arching, head dropping below the blade's arc, knees bending, the sword passing over him with what looked like less than two centimeters of clearance this time.
As the blade's passage moved his hair, where it sharpness was able to cut some of the hair.
...
...
HOLY !!!
That was his HEAD.
That nearly took his HEAD.
Nonno nearly killed Dad.
Jeanne suddenly grabbed my arm.
Seemingly instinctively from seeing what we saw. And I gotta say I don't blame her.
I grabbed hers back without thinking.
But that was...
That was really close.
Dad meanwhile straightened himself, spinning to face Nonno again.
Both of them breathing hard now.
Really hard.
Swords raised.
Eyes locked.
...
Nonno lowered his sword first.
"Better than last time," he said.
Dad stared at him. "You nearly took my HEAD."
"Nearly." Nonno was almost smiling. "But not quite."
"THE BLADE TOUCHED MY HAIR-"
"You dodged it."
"BARELY !!"
"You dodged it," Nonno repeated, with the tone of a man who considered this the only relevant fact. "That's what matters."
Dad opened his mouth.
Closed it.
Since he doesn't know what to say.
He then looked at us.
We were all staring.
Edgar was staring.
Gerald was staring.
Jeanne with her hands in my arm,soon release after awhile.
Also I had apparently been gripping Jeanne's arm hard enough to leave marks, which seeing that I released her hand from mine. Considering it could be painful for Jeanne,but somehow she didn't feel it.
"Is this," Dad said slowly, "still about the four years?"
Nonno paused for a second trying to find his answer.
"Partially," he admitted.
"What's the other part ?"
"You need to work on your response to unorthodox or unexpected attacks." Antonio turned and walked calmly toward the water station set up on the side. "You hesitate for a half second before committing to the dodge."
Dad stared at his back.
...
He nearly decapitated him.
And then gave him a training note.
Nonno is somewhat terrifying, thankfully I'm not Dad.
I looked at Grandpa beside me.
He was looking at the scene with an expression of deep satisfaction.
"Grandpa," I said quietly.
"Mm."
"Did Nonno did the backflip on purpose to create the setup for the horizontal slash, didn't he."
"Yes."
"And he knew Dad would be able to dodge that huh."
"Yes."
Grandpa looked at me.
For a long moment.
I thought about that.
Dad nearly lost his head because his instinct and his brain wasn't able to process nearly in time.
And Nonno had engineered the entire backflip sequence to create exactly that right conditions to exploit it.
And then immediately told him what to fix.
While having just tried to take his head off.
Which is you knowm...kind of incredible.
Also showcase Nonno,self control.
"Is Nonno a good teacher?" I asked.
Edgar was quiet for a moment.
"One of the best I've encountered," he said.
Meanwhile Jeanne was still staring at Antonio's back as he drank water.
"He did a backflip," she whispered to me.
"I saw." I replied, since i still can't believe her.
"He's like sixty."
"I know."
"Can we learn to do that?"
"...Maybe ask Your dad."
She turned to her dad.
Gerald looked back at her with the expression of a man who doesn't know what to say.
After awhile the duel was over.
As Nonno lowered his training sword.
"And that," he said, perfectly composed, barely even breathing hard, "is what actual sword combat looks like."
He gestured between himself and Dad.
He then looked at me and Jeanne specifically. "Real combat is unpredictable,where you must adapt,and where you must be merciless. Since at any moment you could be struck,and die."
He paused. "And your opponent will not stop because you ask nicely."
Dad stood a few feet away, training sword hanging at his side, looking at Antonio with the flattest expression I'd ever seen on a human face.
Like a man trying very hard to process the last ten minutes.
While also being professionally obligated to agree with everything being said.
And also being personally aware that he had just nearly been decapitated by his father-in-law.
Who had then given him a training note.
While they were supposed to be demonstrating technique to children.
"...Yes," Dad said finally. "What he said."
He walked to the side and picked up his wine glass.
The one he'd prepared it in advance.
Before the demonstration started.
He then took a long, measured sip.
The sip of a man who nearly met God.
I heard him mutter something under his breath.
Just barely audible.
"...This is what I get."
He took another sip.
"Dating Giulia. Marrying her. Building a life together."
Another sip.
"Father-in-law still trying to remove my head after all those years."
He stared awhile.
"But thankfully he's Italian, since If he was American he'd probably have chased me with a fifty caliber at a ranch."
"So honestly."
"This is fine....completely fine..."
He drank the rest of the wine.
Nonno meanwhile set down his water cup.
Then.
"Ah."
He stopped.
As His hand went to his lower back.
"...My back," he said.
He stand still for a moment, as one of his hand pressed to his lower back.
... it seem the backflip, apparently, the bill or consequences for it had finally arrived.
Meanwhile Grandpa soon walked towards Nonno.
"Antonio," Grandpa said very carefully.
"Mm," said Nonno, still holding his back.
"The backflip."
"What about it ?."
"Was that worth it ?"
Antonio considered this while thinking what to say.
"Yes," he answered.
Though everyone doesn't believe in Nonno word, considering the man was shaking like hell.
Meanwhile Nonno then replied to Me and Jeanne.
"Also Combat has costs," he said seriously. "That's an important lesson for the kids."
As Nonno then made another sound clearly showing him in pain.
Seeing that i then turned my head at Jeanne.
As she looked back at me.
Then both of us looked at Nonno.
Where Nonno was still standing with his hand on his lower back.
The man who a minute ago, had just performed a backflip in his sixties.
And nearly taken off his son-in-law's head.
Delivered a training critique.
And was now dealing with the consequences to his spine.
With complete composure.
This man, I thought, is remarkable.
"Nonno," I said.
He looked at me.
"Are you alright?"
He studied me for a moment.
"I will be," he said. "Old age is simply the body's way of charging interest on youth."
...
That's actually profound.
Also it sounds like something Grandma Vivienne would say.
Probably why they get along.
"Should I get Mom?" I asked.
"No." Firmly. "Absolutely not."
"Why's that."
"She'd probably laugh," I almost agreed.
Something shifted almost imperceptibly in his expression.
Almost.
After awhile Nonno was able to straightened his back, somehow, and looked at me and Jeanne.
"Enough with the observation," he said. "It's you two turn now to fight eachother, after you have seen on how we fight, now we want to see on how you two fight."
Right.
That was the point of all this.
I'd actually almost forgotten amid the fact Nonno had tried to murder dad via head-decapitation.
Though the fact he didn't strike or injure dad,showed that he somewhat cares about him but is pretty petty.
Jeanne meanwhile soon grabbed her training sword.
I then picked up mine.
As both of us stared at eachother, with Jeanne grinning, i was also grinning as well.
As we prepared to fight eachother.
_______________________________________
Sorry if the writing for the sword fight is a bit redundant or stiff,not to mention being not right, since it's really hard to write sword fight if they don't involve any magic turns out.
Also I don't have much to say for this chapter.
So....see ya in the next chapter 👋
- AgentByteGOC