Fyar began to bounce lightly on the balls of his feet. Both hands were raised, protecting his jaw.
"One two, one two, one two," said Fyar, following the rhythm of his movements.
His left hand shot straight forward a jab and pulled back quickly, then was followed by a powerful right hand a cross. His feet moved in sync. When the left hand struck, the left foot stepped slightly. When the right hand struck, the right foot followed. His body was not stiff, but moved fluidly, bouncing slightly back then down, maintaining a constant rhythm.
Fyar moved back and forth, demonstrating how feet and hands worked as a single unit.
"Just take it slow at first," instructed Fyar without stopping his movements.
"I'll try, I'll try!" Hasya immediately positioned himself beside Fyar.
Without significant difficulty, Hasya mimicked the movement. His shoulders relaxed, the bounce of his feet light. His hands shot out straight and sharp.
"Like this?"
"Then this, then..." Hasya added a slight head movement.
"One two! One two!"
His movements were clean. The sound of whistling wind was heard every time he launched a punch.
"Whoo!" Hasya exclaimed happily.
Clap clap clap.
Fyar clapped his hands, then rubbed his face roughly. He sighed deeply. "Is there anything you cannot do..."
He shook his head slowly then looked at his other three teammates. "You guys try."
Rasie, Zaefal, and Illya slowly tried performing the shadow boxing.
Rasie put on a fierce face. She punched the air with explosive spirit.
"Ush ush ush!"
Sharp breath sounds escaped Rasie's mouth every time her hand extended straight. Her feet stepped with hard stomps on the ground.
"Hahah I can do it! Watch this one!"
Beside her, Zaefal moved stiffly. His body was too upright like a robot, and his footsteps dragged heavily.
"Zaefal," called Fyar while walking toward him.
Fyar tapped Zaefal's shoulder to lower it, then gently kicked his right foot to widen the stance. "Don't lock your knees. Let your body be flexible."
"Try it, just slow at first."
Zaefal nodded. He took a deep breath, relaxing his neck muscles. He tried again. Jab. Cross. This time his movement was much smoother. His shoulders followed the direction of the punch naturally.
Fyar turned to Illya. The girl did it smoothly, but her hands were too high, blocking her own view, and her power was still hesitant.
Fyar approached Illya. "Illya, your hands."
Fyar held Illya's wrists, lowering them slightly until parallel with her cheekbones. "There, like that. Don't block your eyes."
"Thanks Fyar," said Illya softly.
"Try it."
Illya resumed shadow boxing. This time her gaze focused forward, her hands moving more freely.
"Alright now, to the slightly complicated part."
Fyar returned to his position. "Your hands like this, feet like this."
Fyar rotated his waist to the right, then unleashed a curving left punch (a hook). He rotated his waist back, unleashing a right hook.
"And boom!"
"This is if everything is combined."
Fyar reset his position. His face turned serious. He hunched over slightly, hiding his face behind both his gloves (Peek-a-Boo style).
He began to move. Jab, jab, cross. He ducked to avoid an imaginary punch, then countered with a quick left hook and right uppercut.
The movement started at a medium tempo, then slowly got faster.
Sst! Sst! Sst!
His body wove left and right agilely, his feet shifting positions without losing balance. The punch combination looked deadly and tight.
Zaefal, Rasie, Illya, and Hasya went silent watching the demonstration. Their eyes widened.
"Damn cool man!! Damn cool shit!!" Hasya said excitedly. He hopped a little in place.
"Teach us, Purple Hair! Faster faster!" shouted Rasie. She immediately got into a ready stance, her eyes sparkling with enthusiasm.
"Looks very effective," muttered Zaefal. His eyes did not leave Fyar's feet, trying to analyze his weight transfer.
"C-can I do that..." muttered Illya while squeezing her fingers. "No, I have to be able to."
"Alright, try the first combo," said Fyar. He pointed at Hasya. "Hasya."
Hasya jumped into action. He performed a jab, one two, then a left hook and right hook. His body bounced lightly, his head moving to evade shadow attacks. Every punch had a sharp snap at the end.
"Perfect," muttered Fyar. He switched to Rasie. "Rasie!"
Rasie started slowly. Her face wrinkled in concentration. Slowly the tempo increased.
"Ish! Ish! Ish!" she shouted every time she landed a punch. The combination started to look fluid even though her power was a bit excessive.
"Gooood Rasie!!! You are improving fast!!" Fyar praised loudly.
"Hahaha I can do this all day!" said Rasie proudly while wiping her nose with her thumb.
Fyar looked at Zaefal. "Zaefal."
Zaefal did it with mechanical precision. Slow at first, ensuring every hip and shoulder rotation was perfect. Slowly he increased the speed. His movements were efficient, no energy wasted. Flawless.
"Goooood!!" praised Fyar.
He finally looked at Illya who was still standing hesitantly.
"Illya."
Fyar approached, his voice softening. "Try it slow first my love."
"It's okay to make mistakes."
Illya nodded. She took a breath. She started shadow boxing. Jab. One, two. One, two.
"Good. Now the second one," guided Fyar.
Illya started doing a left hook, right hook, then back to one two.
"Now the feet."
Illya started moving her feet. Step forward, jab. Step back, guard. Slide to the side, hook. Her movements became more fluid.
"Good good!!" said Fyar proudly.
He took a step forward, leaned in, and kissed Illya's cheek briefly.
Cup.
"You are great!! You are really great!!"
"Love you!"
Illya froze for a moment. Her cheeks flushed red under the neon plant light. She smiled gently, her eyes narrowing in happiness. "Love you too."
Fyar then stepped back and clapped his hands. "Add an uppercut, a punch from below upwards."
Under Fyar's instruction, they began combining all the moves. Jab, cross, hook, uppercut, footwork. The training area was filled with the sound of hissing breath and stomping feet.
At first their tempo was slow and messy, but gradually their body synchronization improved. Speed increased.
Except for Hasya. He had been moving at full speed from the start, creating faint shadows under the aurora light.
Hours passed. Sweat soaked their bodies, dripping onto the forest floor. Their breathing began to race, but no one stopped.
"Alright enough, let's take a break," said Fyar finally while raising a hand.
Rasie stopped immediately. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, trying to scoop up as much oxygen as possible. Sweat poured down her temples.
"Y-yea... good idea... good idea..." said Rasie gasping for air.
She straightened her body, staring at Hasya with a wide grin even though her breath was ragged. "Haha, I can beat you now Hasya!!"
Hasya, who did not look too tired, only smiled askew while wiping sweat from his neck.
"Ooh? I Can't wait baby"