The Laughing Swordsman

The rays of the early dawn shone on Apollo's eyes.

"Mm..."

Apollo rubbed his eyes to see Willow above him, brushing his hair.

Apollo giggled.

"Mm... mommy?"

Willow smiled. She was sitting on a chair next to Apollo.

"Good morning Apollo."

Apollo shook his head, then sat up. He was in his room, lying on his bed

"What are we doing today?"

Willow tilted her head to the side.

"Whatever you want to."

Apollo gasped.

"Wow! Really?"

Willow laughed.

"Yes, is there anything you have in mind?"

Apollo rubbed his hand against his chin.

"Hmm... practicing the sword!"

Willow nodded.

"Alright."

Willow handed Apollo his bokken, which he took with a big smile. He went ahead, playfully skipping out the room.

Willow followed behind, she was in no rush.

...

As Willow exited the stone house, Apollo called for her.

"Over here!"

Willow turned to see Apollo waving his arm and jumping.

"Coming!"

Apollo ran to the back of the house and Willow jogged after him.

Willow turned the corner to see Apollo standing in the field, waving his bokken around.

Willow pulled out one of her knives. The sword she kept on her was essentially broken, so she tossed it away.

"Ok Apollo, we'll start by taking it easy. Try to think about more than just blocking, but how I choose to attack."

Apollo nodded excitedly.

"Ok!"

Willow dashed towards Apollo, then started slashing with her knife. Although she only used one knife, she used it skillfully.

Unlike the first time, she did not have the intention to assassinate. Rather, she was wielding her knife as though it was just a really short sword.

Strangely enough, Apollo was under more pressure than when she used a single knife to assassinate him.

Still, Apollo blocked all of her strikes without much difficulty. He was doing as Willow had instructed him, memorizing the methods Willow used to attack.

At times Willow would feint, then suddenly shift the angle she was attacking. Apollo did not have any trouble blocking it. He imprinted Willow's attacks in his mind, rather than just defending.

Willow backed off.

"You have done well."

Apollo smiled dreamily.

"Hehe... really?"

Willow nodded.

"Yes, really. Anyways, as a swordsman, your power is greatly enhanced with a sword. This means if you lose it, you may not be able to face your adversaries. Some people will try to take advantage of that, attempting to disarm you."

Willow bent her knees, ready to pounce.

"Pay close attention!"

Willow attacked faster than before, targeting the joints in Apollo's arm. Her main focus was Apollo's wrist.

At first, Apollo was a bit clunky with his defense. A few slashes were a centimeter from nicking his wrist.

However, as time went on, he prevented any strikes from getting close.

The snow on the ground was blown away by their swings. The snow formed patterns in the air like their blades were paintbrushes and the snow was ink.

Willow backed off again.

"Alright, now-"

"So you were here, Apollo?"

Apollo's father leisurely walked onto the field they were practicing on. He had long blonde hair and a few wrinkles on his face. He was wearing a set of metal armor without a helmet and a metal sword sheathed on his back.

He turned to Willow and raised his eyebrow.

"Apollo, who is this?"

Apollo smiled.

"Oh, this is my-"

"Teacher."

Willow hurriedly interjected.

This was Willow's first time seeing Apollo's father but could tell the relationship he with Apollo. They looked quite similar, after all.

If Apollo really called her mother in front of his own father, she may not have a way of explaining herself.

"I am currently teaching him swordsmanship. Right Apollo?"

Apollo tilted his head.

"Oh, yeah."

Willow internally sighed with relief. She smiled and turned to Apollo's father.

"My name is Willow. May I know yours?"

Apollo's father bowed.

"Hello Willow, my name is Henry. I am Apollo's father."

Henry rubbed his hand against his chin.

"So you are teaching him swordplay? Not to mention, he is willing to learn?"

Willow nodded.

"Yeah, just teaching him some simple principles."

Henry's eyes boggled.

"Are you serious? That's a miracle!"

Willow felt Henry was exaggerating. From what she could tell, Apollo had always been practicing swordplay. However, she did not say anything, thinking that Henry was just being nice.

Henry turned to Apollo.

"Well then son, why don't I teach some things to you as well?"

Apollo scratched the back of his head.

"Um, ok?"

Henry laughed and drew his sword.

"I never thought I would hear those words coming from your mouth!"

Apollo tilted his head to the side.

"Who are you anyway?"

Willow's face twitched as a thought ran through her head.

'...Does Apollo have amnesia?'

Henry chuckled.

"Funny joke son. Now, I am using an iron sword, meaning that if my strike hits, it will injure you. But fret not, as my skillful control won't let that happen."

Henry held his sword in front of him with both hands.

"Alright Apollo, get ready to block!"

Apollo's sword was by his side, pointing towards the ground. It was as if he had no intention to block.

Henry's brows furrowed.

"Apollo! Take this seriously!"

Apollo nodded leisurely.

"Oh, ok!"

Henry was still two meters away when Apollo broke out into a dash.

His bokken came crashing down on Henry.

As for Henry, he hadn't even started his strike. Hastily, his sword tilted to block the attack.

However, the impact he expected did not come.

Apollo's hand twisted, turning into a reverse grip. Following that, his bokken slipped past the metal sword and hit his father's wrist.

Henry frowned, one of his hands let go of the sword uncontrollably, however, his other hand was holding on strong.

Henry jumped back.

"Ha! It seems your teacher has taught you quite a bit!"

Apollo giggled.

"Of course!"

Henry's hand recovered quickly and reclaimed its grip on the sword. It was covered in iron armor, after all.

Henry scoffed.

"It appears I have to take you seriously!"

Henry broke out in a charge towards Apollo.

As for Apollo, he did the same and sent his bokken crashing down once again.

Henry smirked and half-heartedly blocked it, expecting another feint.

However, to his surprise, the bokken bashed heavily against his sword.