There were many exercises a huntsman could easily use to hone their skills when it came down to it. Soccer could easily help train athleticism for example. It was one of the reasons there were some sports practice areas around the academy of Syne. As these activities could be very helpful in addition to providing students a form of entertainment that would be less likely to result in collateral damage or injury, though these things still had a habit of happening quite often. Some skills however required somewhat, unusual training, or at least that is what a short child-like looking huntsman in training had used to justify his current activity to those who would have asked. The idea of the training wasn’t really as ridiculous as one would think, after all Puer’s ability to fight depended less on his physical strength, which was less than impressive due to his size, and more on two other factors.
The first was his agility, as he had to rely heavily on the idea of simply avoiding attacks or even avoiding being in range of being hit by an opponent, using the range and reach his yo-yos gave him to allow for him to wear down an opponent if he really needed to fight someone. The other factor that went into his fighting was a bit more specific. His hand eye coordination, while he could easily use the yo-yos he thought with in combat as well as playing with them, there were other ways to practice this aspect of his fighting style, after all doing the same thing all the time was boring. Instead he decided on a sport that he could still somewhat compete in while also using his strengths somewhat competently.
As such he found himself in a recreation room within the dormitory of the academy, specifically standing in front of a Ping-Pong table. Unfortunately, the height of the table made it a bit inconvenient for him without risking a ball going over his head, or something similar. The childlike boy had found a solution to this problem however, having gotten a small stepstool from the corner of the room that had been used as a doorstop. He’d decided to move it, so he could use it to stand on as he played allowing him to mostly even the height difference between himself and an opponent. The only real issue had been finding an opponent that he could play with, as such he’d managed to, with some effort, move the table against a wall to still be able to play. It wasn’t nearly as fun, and the short boy was quickly losing patience with the activity as a result. After all, hitting a ball against a wall could only entertain someone so long, and it wasn’t like there was any win condition Puer could satisfy.
He’d rather have an opponent and spent a short bit prior trying to get SOMEONE to play with him, but unfortunately there had been nobody in the recreational room when he’d come in, and nobody else seemed to have come in since. The sound of the door opening diverted the eternal boy’s attention at the precise wrong moment, causing him to fail to catch the ball and instead of the paddle, the ping pong ball found a very different target, namely Puer’s forehead just as his head began turning towards the noise. “Agh!”
The boy dropped the paddle as his hand went to rub his forehead where the ball had hit, wincing at the stinging feeling from the hit, it wasn’t particularly hard, but it still hurt a lot, and Puer wasn’t exactly the type of person with a high tolerance for pain in general. One of the many reasons he wasn’t a combat major. The sound of the ball clicking against the uncarpeted portion of the floor resounding until being stopped short by something. The pain subsided a little bit and Puer looked up to see some guy there with long blond hair tied back in a ponytail, he looked a bit geeky, and wore a floral pattern shirt that was left partially open to reveal no undershirt. He wore glasses and didn’t look like the type of guy you’d expect to see at a huntsmen academy at all. “Oh geez, are you alright?” The guy asked.
“Of course I am, stupid!” He snapped still in pain, his mind went through the list of possible signs of anything serious for a minute before deciding he was fine, the pain residing to a dull sting after a minute or so. The other guy seemed somewhat amused at what looked to him like a kid trying to act tougher than he was. “Are you someone’s kid brother or something? I thought civilians weren’t allowed in the dorms unsupervised.” He asked, seeming somewhat concerned by what appeared to be an unsupervised minor. The huntsmen academy wasn’t always the safest place to be, and as such Puer could understand the concern, even if he didn’t like it. “Nah I’m a student.” He answered not giving it much thought. The childlike boy was used to being misjudged as such, given his physical condition and stature, as well as his childish, boyish face. The doubtful look he received as a result didn’t get a response, with Puer acting as though he hadn’t even noticed it. He was used to people underestimating him. “Hey, you, play with me!” He insisted, the guy looked over at the far corner, where a rather sophisticated looking computer was sitting, it had several parts in front of it, obviously still being constructed based on it’s appearance, before looking back to the small boy not giving him any option. The young man sighed, apparently realizing he probably wouldn’t be allowed to work on his pet project in peace now. Puer hadn’t seen, but the man quickly sent a message via his scroll, primarily to Gwyn Ryu, the head of Syne’s security. An unaccompanied minor was a bit of a concern after all….
“Fine, I’ll play one game.” The guy said as he did something with his scroll, Puer noticed the act, but decided not to say anything, since it probably wouldn’t be overly important anyways. He’d made sure all the relevant school staff knew about his condition ahead of time to avoid confusion, because otherwise that could get annoying, and people oft didn’t believe he was as he said he was, because they were too stupid to get it. Regardless they moved the table away from the wall, or the blond guy, whose name was apparently Warren did. Puer wasn’t really too much help in that regard, and he knew it too well.
Puer moved the stepstool so he could be somewhat level with the other guy Though even with the stool he was shorter than the other guy. Who was near 5’11. The stool only really added an extra foot or so to Puer, but he still thought it would be helpful. The actual game began after the two of them had everything ready, with Warren serving the ball gently enough that Puer could tell he wasn’t being taken too seriously. He gave the ball a harder hit than expected as a result, frustrated at being underestimated and causing Warren to have to move quickly to return the ball, only for Puer to have a problem that he hadn’t foreseen. The ball had bounced from the table to the corner area, just out of reach of the short boy’s paddle.
The whole thing made him annoyed, and he served the ball again afterwards planning to be the one to score this time. There was a little bit of back and forth before the same thing happened, this time from the other side. Had Puer been able to move without stepping off the stool, it wouldn’t prove a problem, but as it stood he wouldn’t be able to reach the ball easily without the added height, and even still he was unable to reach it horizontally now, rather than vertically. A third time seemed to be on the horizon as they tried once more, and once again the ball eventually moved to the side of the table, this time however Puer tried to lean in to catch the ball with his paddle, only to lose his balance. And Puer winced as he fell before a light flashed in his peripheral vision. Suddenly his fall was broken, and the childish boy blinked seeing what looked to be a couch had appeared, he sat up, looking at Warren who had a look of concentration on his face before it suddenly relaxed. The object disappearing a moment later, allowing Puer to fall on his rear, though this fall had been a small distance, that wouldn’t leave him injured or harmed, though it was less than comfortable. Puer couldn’t exactly complain about the save.
“I think that’s enough for today.” Warren said, walking over to the computer. Puer looked after him before shrugging it off, he’d have to find something else to do instead.
The first was his agility, as he had to rely heavily on the idea of simply avoiding attacks or even avoiding being in range of being hit by an opponent, using the range and reach his yo-yos gave him to allow for him to wear down an opponent if he really needed to fight someone. The other factor that went into his fighting was a bit more specific. His hand eye coordination, while he could easily use the yo-yos he thought with in combat as well as playing with them, there were other ways to practice this aspect of his fighting style, after all doing the same thing all the time was boring. Instead he decided on a sport that he could still somewhat compete in while also using his strengths somewhat competently.
As such he found himself in a recreation room within the dormitory of the academy, specifically standing in front of a Ping-Pong table. Unfortunately, the height of the table made it a bit inconvenient for him without risking a ball going over his head, or something similar. The childlike boy had found a solution to this problem however, having gotten a small stepstool from the corner of the room that had been used as a doorstop. He’d decided to move it, so he could use it to stand on as he played allowing him to mostly even the height difference between himself and an opponent. The only real issue had been finding an opponent that he could play with, as such he’d managed to, with some effort, move the table against a wall to still be able to play. It wasn’t nearly as fun, and the short boy was quickly losing patience with the activity as a result. After all, hitting a ball against a wall could only entertain someone so long, and it wasn’t like there was any win condition Puer could satisfy.
He’d rather have an opponent and spent a short bit prior trying to get SOMEONE to play with him, but unfortunately there had been nobody in the recreational room when he’d come in, and nobody else seemed to have come in since. The sound of the door opening diverted the eternal boy’s attention at the precise wrong moment, causing him to fail to catch the ball and instead of the paddle, the ping pong ball found a very different target, namely Puer’s forehead just as his head began turning towards the noise. “Agh!”
The boy dropped the paddle as his hand went to rub his forehead where the ball had hit, wincing at the stinging feeling from the hit, it wasn’t particularly hard, but it still hurt a lot, and Puer wasn’t exactly the type of person with a high tolerance for pain in general. One of the many reasons he wasn’t a combat major. The sound of the ball clicking against the uncarpeted portion of the floor resounding until being stopped short by something. The pain subsided a little bit and Puer looked up to see some guy there with long blond hair tied back in a ponytail, he looked a bit geeky, and wore a floral pattern shirt that was left partially open to reveal no undershirt. He wore glasses and didn’t look like the type of guy you’d expect to see at a huntsmen academy at all. “Oh geez, are you alright?” The guy asked.
“Of course I am, stupid!” He snapped still in pain, his mind went through the list of possible signs of anything serious for a minute before deciding he was fine, the pain residing to a dull sting after a minute or so. The other guy seemed somewhat amused at what looked to him like a kid trying to act tougher than he was. “Are you someone’s kid brother or something? I thought civilians weren’t allowed in the dorms unsupervised.” He asked, seeming somewhat concerned by what appeared to be an unsupervised minor. The huntsmen academy wasn’t always the safest place to be, and as such Puer could understand the concern, even if he didn’t like it. “Nah I’m a student.” He answered not giving it much thought. The childlike boy was used to being misjudged as such, given his physical condition and stature, as well as his childish, boyish face. The doubtful look he received as a result didn’t get a response, with Puer acting as though he hadn’t even noticed it. He was used to people underestimating him. “Hey, you, play with me!” He insisted, the guy looked over at the far corner, where a rather sophisticated looking computer was sitting, it had several parts in front of it, obviously still being constructed based on it’s appearance, before looking back to the small boy not giving him any option. The young man sighed, apparently realizing he probably wouldn’t be allowed to work on his pet project in peace now. Puer hadn’t seen, but the man quickly sent a message via his scroll, primarily to Gwyn Ryu, the head of Syne’s security. An unaccompanied minor was a bit of a concern after all….
“Fine, I’ll play one game.” The guy said as he did something with his scroll, Puer noticed the act, but decided not to say anything, since it probably wouldn’t be overly important anyways. He’d made sure all the relevant school staff knew about his condition ahead of time to avoid confusion, because otherwise that could get annoying, and people oft didn’t believe he was as he said he was, because they were too stupid to get it. Regardless they moved the table away from the wall, or the blond guy, whose name was apparently Warren did. Puer wasn’t really too much help in that regard, and he knew it too well.
Puer moved the stepstool so he could be somewhat level with the other guy Though even with the stool he was shorter than the other guy. Who was near 5’11. The stool only really added an extra foot or so to Puer, but he still thought it would be helpful. The actual game began after the two of them had everything ready, with Warren serving the ball gently enough that Puer could tell he wasn’t being taken too seriously. He gave the ball a harder hit than expected as a result, frustrated at being underestimated and causing Warren to have to move quickly to return the ball, only for Puer to have a problem that he hadn’t foreseen. The ball had bounced from the table to the corner area, just out of reach of the short boy’s paddle.
The whole thing made him annoyed, and he served the ball again afterwards planning to be the one to score this time. There was a little bit of back and forth before the same thing happened, this time from the other side. Had Puer been able to move without stepping off the stool, it wouldn’t prove a problem, but as it stood he wouldn’t be able to reach the ball easily without the added height, and even still he was unable to reach it horizontally now, rather than vertically. A third time seemed to be on the horizon as they tried once more, and once again the ball eventually moved to the side of the table, this time however Puer tried to lean in to catch the ball with his paddle, only to lose his balance. And Puer winced as he fell before a light flashed in his peripheral vision. Suddenly his fall was broken, and the childish boy blinked seeing what looked to be a couch had appeared, he sat up, looking at Warren who had a look of concentration on his face before it suddenly relaxed. The object disappearing a moment later, allowing Puer to fall on his rear, though this fall had been a small distance, that wouldn’t leave him injured or harmed, though it was less than comfortable. Puer couldn’t exactly complain about the save.
“I think that’s enough for today.” Warren said, walking over to the computer. Puer looked after him before shrugging it off, he’d have to find something else to do instead.
