Chapter 271- Hair color

Hair color

Ming stood by the stable fence while watching the actions of the old man. As if accustomed to a familiar routine, the balding man approached and petted the horse from the side. Coaxing the large animal, he ran his rough hands across the mane and then down a front shoulder. In no time at all, the right hoof of the horse ended up lodged between his thighs. Raising his head, his whitening eyebrows scrunched while turning to his helper.

"Little Jeb, hand me the pick. The frog on this horse needs cleaning."

The ten-year-old boy searched inside his wooden bucket and fished out the tool with the wooden handle. The old man ran it down the length of the hoof from the back to the front. Brushing it afterward, he shook the iron horseshoe before releasing the leg. With a satisfied sigh, he then patted the horse.

"There is not much to do since I first checked them. They'll require a little trimming because they don't work quite often. Remember to have one of the blacksmiths who is familiar with horses make me a file."

The man said while wiping his brow. Ming nodded and then replied.

"No problem, I'll have it done before you come to work tomorrow. We never expected to gain the services of an experienced farrier. It's great you informed Marie of your previous occupation. We never would have discovered the problems you pointed out."

"Hehe, most adventurers travel on foot, so they don't know much about caring for horses. If you plan on traveling with horses, however, I'll show you a little of the basics. Horses require much more attention than simple grooming."

"I can see that now. Most of our blacksmiths can shoe a horse and handle the little filing and trimming. I didn't know there was actually a trade which dealt with caring for horses."

"You won't find a farrier in the little villages. Too little coins to be made. There is stiff competition in the cities and around the military barracks. I earned a lame leg when a horse kicked me back when I trained as an apprentice. Because of it, my hustling days for coins have always become hard. I fell so far as to even becoming a slave."

The old man said while grooming the horse. Patting the animal he laughed,

"To earn some coins for my family over the winter, I sold myself to a slave trader. Luckily for me, I overheard the man talking with someone from the Trading Post. hearing the offer, I asked if my family could accompany me and well, here we are."

Ming shook his head on hearing the tale. The village held quite a few families where the breadwinner was the slave but his family was not. If not for the offer Chu had made, the family would have to beg or find some way to survive when the coins ran dry. And this only included families where the slave sold himself freely and not the ones who ended up in debt.

"Old man, you really don't know how fortunate you are. You, your wife, and son here have scored big. Oh, what about the filly in the last stable? What should I do with her?"

"I'll prepare a stall closer to the door for her. Winter takes its toll on the horses, especially if the stable becomes wet. She has a thrush infection. With a little care in a dry and clean stable, she should be fine. Don't worry, I and my little Jeb will have these horses ready for the fields in no time."

***

Chu raised himself by his elbows from his flattened position on the ground. The taste of iron in his mouth caused him to insert a gloved finger at the edge of his lips. Removing the leather finger, the recognized color confirmed the bleeding from his busted lip. With a growl, he rose into a defensive stance to face the Hakkim standing before him.

Previously, he held the concept that the best method of fighting lay in long-range attacks. Not only would you be safe, but you had time to flee with a head start should your attacks fail. His Sersen powers also seemed suitable for this method. Practicing close-combat with Ishara informed him such ideas belonged to the realm of dreams. Unless he possessed a suitable, long-range weapon capable of destructive damage, facing his enemy head-on would eventually occur. The range of a crossbow differed vastly from sniper rifles of modern warfare.

"She baited you in too close. Even by activating your speed, you couldn't escape her kick. Your last attack was sloppy."

"I told you not to teach her our fighting moves. It's just like Lucy said. Ishara possesses years of combat experience. By showing her our secret moves, it becomes easier for her to apply it to her own skills. You created a monster Chu. Now she is dangerous and also deadly. Don't you like them that way?"

Miki grumbled while supporting Lucy's words. Both of them sat outside the training area watching him receive a beating in this unarmed fight.

Chu exhaled a slow breath as he zoned out the sarcastic words. Today, these three females appeared edgy and easily provoked. Ishara looked stunning before him while clad in her leather armor. Her grey, long hair shifted slightly behind her from the pony-tailed style. The full figure and carved face, however, hid behind those expressionless golden vertical slits.

Close combat fighting required heaps of courage. Courage to overcome fear, the courage to fight, the courage to defend, and courage to flee. Hesistation in the face of an overwhelming enemy meant death.

With every inch closer, Ishara retreated or circled. The distance she maintained allowed for a countermeasure against his slightly superior speed. Knowing the uselessness in launching sparring kicks against this aggressive warrior, Chu decided on a different approach. The movement of the Hakkim paused as his ocular vision activated. A split-second later, his right foot coiled and launched his body forward.

Under the slow-motion clip, the corner of his eye noticed the right knee of the lady rise up. From a previous attempt, Chu knew that shapely leg would arrive to meet his stomach. Greeting it, compared to a crash dummy slamming into a concrete wall. From continuous sparring, Ishara anticipated all his moves, forcing him to develop.

When his left foot touched the ground before the knee, Chu spun his body instead of propelling forward to launch his prepared fist. The action had him brushing and spinning on his right foot along the outer thigh of the raised knee. On a complete circle, his left foot thudded behind the female to halt his momentum. Chu stood inches away on Ishara's side as his fist barreled out.

To give Ishara credit, the Hakkim already began pulling her body to the other side in expectation of the impact. Her right arm raised upwards by instinct to deflect the punch to her head. This time. however, her anticipation proved wrong as Chu thumped his closed fingers into her side ribs. Chu retreated with a hop, so as to allow his eyes and body to handle the effects of exiting his abilities. Ishara rubbed her side while also distancing herself.

"Great move, I nearly couldn't follow it. You should have pulled your punch though, Ishara is still a girl in the eyes of her tribe."

"Yep, just because she is a girl, doesn't mean you should take advantage. Next thing you know, you might want to cop a feel on her chest. I can't believe they are not too big and not too small but just right."

Chu nearly raised his hands in protest to the heavens. Since this morning, he had to face these critics. What pleased him, however, was his successful hit. His confidence continued to build in knowing he could now formulate strategies while in the midst of battle. Should he encounter intelligent foes who switched tactics, he could keep up with them. Frost City served as a concentration of skilled fighters and experienced Sersens.

His preparation accounted for the event he had no choice but to fight. Skirmishing against fellow Sersens only served as a stepping stone for what he might later encounter. Deep in his mind, the rampaging Kurat remained fresh. His eyes fell on Ishara as she sat down next to the girls while drinking a cup of water. A part of the reason why he endorsed her as a trainer stemmed from a nagging worry.

Somehow he felt a rescue journey to the north while weak would not bode well. Until he and the others could stand equally or even best the resident Hakkim, he refused to step beyond the mountains. The footsteps drawing nearer caused him to raise his head.

"Hey, are you guys still training? Chu, tomorrow you need to come down with me to the stables. The farrier showed me a few things to help in caring for the horses. We will have to have an idea when we decide to ride out. Ah, what the..."

Ming broke off his report while pulling Chu closer. He then whispered into the boy's ear.

"Are you crazy? Have you been fighting Ishara?"

Chu nodded in the affirmative. Ming dropped his chin and shook his head in pity.

"Didn't you see her hair color? Do you want to be beaten to a pulp?"

"What about her hair color?"

Chu asked while sneaking a glance at the Hakkim. Ming drew closer.

"When her hair changes, it means it's that time of the month. You know, when women get all frosty and mean. Like the moon."

"How the heck do you know this?"

"I overheard Miki complaining about it last night to Sherry when they stood on guard duty. They bickered rather loud before I ambled up to relieve them for the night."

Chu stroked his chin as he recalled his morning. Who knew that was the case and also how the Hakkim actually displayed a visual change when such a phenomenon occurred. Looking at the white hair of Ishara his eyes fell on the blue eyes gazing back at him from her nearby companion. The slow blink and slight twitch at one end of the pink lips indicated Lucy heard their conversation.

"Hey, Ming. Why don't you stay and share some pointers with the girls? I just want to make a run to the barn and change the inside rubber soles of my boot..."

Late that night, Ming peeped out at him during their meditation process from a bruised eye. His swollen lips made it hard to communicate.

"Damn you Chu..."

***

Two nights later, Chu opened his eyes from meditating and breathed out a breath of stale air. Smiling, he unfurled a scroll laying beside him and slid the oil lamp closer. This preparation had been done for tonight's attempt. Concentrating his thoughts, he stood within his starfield. Thinking about his future path, he created a lightening rune according to the information learned from Dyna.

Exiting his starfield, he focused on the words on the scroll while extending his imagination. Similar to when he unlocked his Sersen abilities, he allowed his mind to flow freely and accept the impossible. Holding out the open palm of his left hand, Chu witnessed another fantasy.

An orb, no bigger than a golf ball swirled above his palm. White light issued forth, basking the room in a healthy glow. For around ten seconds, his heart pattered while watching the light dance above his palm before it flickered once and then extinguish. The room plunged into darkness with the exception of the flame from the lamp.

"You did it, Chu! Now, its only Ming who has yet to cast the orb of light."

"Hey, don't put me down like that. There is still Clod, Rose, and the others who have yet to cast this light spell."

Ming grumbled in reply to the redhead.

Chu nodded in satisfaction.

"Now comes the hard part. Deciding on a suitable spell to learn..."