Deeper Than Thin [Strength D->C Spec Training/SOLO]

It had been a day since his last encounter with the Duel Ring fiasco and frankly, Yushin's head was still whirling from the events. Recounting his experiences, he remembered the woman at the counter, the third floor, the test to get in, and finally....Ayero. She was quite the cold one, but many aspects about her vibe gave Yushin an encompassing warmth. Well...back to the point. a revelation dawned upon him that day. The white haired boy recounted the trial before entering the third floor ring. The memory of the encounter was still fresh inside his mind, as if he could still remember the feel of his grip that day.

The trial had been a simple but tough one; break a block of what appeared to be a solidly dense black stone. The stone was cubed in shape, and excluding the richness of its blackness, nothing else was strikingly unique about it. To the Uncrowned Prince's unpleasant surprise, the ordeal was quite the challenging one. He struck at the block numerous times yet he could not slice through.

The revelation was simple; precision was the key. Yushin his entire life, had perfected the basics of his swordplay and technique wise, he was solid in all aspects. What he truly lacked however, was resolve with each strike. Once he adjusted his precision, the block of stone cut off like cheese.

Now, he would need to remind himself of that feeling. With the permission of the Duel Ring, Yushin returned the next day to spar with three of the combatants. Every combatant wore a basic armor and guard made of that very same black stone. It would be up to Yushin to slice through the armor in the allotted time given to him. With the ring of a bell, the three opponents all rushed Yushin.

Relying on his agility, the outnumbered warrior deftly ducked the first attack. In the wake of his escape, he was met with steel pointed at his chest. Without a moment more to think, Yushin parried the blade with his geom and then guarded himself from the third slash with his hwando. "Were they always this slow, or did I just get quicker? He pondered the thought briefly as the four of them stood and analyzed each other.

Again, one of the opponents rushed Yushin with a stabbing motion and once again Yushin deflected it. This time however, he responded swiftly to deliver a diagonal slash of his own. Clang the stone was barely dented. Frustrated by the outcome, Yushin backed away quickly to assess the damage. [color=blue]Why can't I do it again?"[/blue] The day before he was able to slice through, but he realized that the day prior, he attempted to slice through numerous times.

"So it's still a hit or miss for me. He sighed to himself. They stopped the training for the day by suggestion of the overseer.

"You're tensing up too much." He told the younger man. "Come back tomorrow. Rest up and try again yeah?" With a disappointed nod, Yushin agreed to this and packed up his belongings.

The Next Day...

"Hraaaaaah!" The three opponents were exceedingly vigorous this day. To Yushin's surprise, they weren't as sluggish as the day before. He parried and parried and parried but he found no room to counter for his own. "They're over-rushing me!" He realized that the opponent were much more in synch this time. Usually Yushin was a calm minded warrior, capable of assessing any situation, but the current rush from his opponents clattered his mind with stress. "I need to-ughhh! I need to focus!" He gritted his teeth in frustration, trying his hardest to find any such opening that he could find.

"You're tensing up too much." The words echoed through the Sangju prince's mind as he parried another attack. Tensing? The thought struck through him like a sword as once again, he parried another attack. With every effort possible, Yushin jumped away from his offenders to create space. After doing so, he inhaled a deep breath and waiting for the opponents to rush him again.

Focus...

As expected, the three armored swordsmen rushed him again, but this time, he was prepared. The clutter, the clatter, the gunk, everything had to be thrown away in a battle. It was foolish of him to rely on his analytical mind only when he was spaced away from enemies. He'd have to learn how to retain his precision when he was under immense stress. For the first time, Yushin rushed the opponents himself in turn, causing the three sparring partners to be caught off guard. With a circular horizontal slash, he sliced through every black stone armor like paper and stood still afterwards, allowing the armor to fall to the floor.

The overseer appeared to be satisfied with the results, nodding at the training student. "Well I'd say that this is a phenomenal pass!" With a grin, Yushin cheered before sheathing his sword. "I'd say it was so myself." The two laughed, one congratulating the other, the three sparring partners unfortunately...were left unconscious.

WC: 848/500