Ava was
not
a fighter.
Sure, she could
dodge a crowbar to the head
and
stab someone in the leg if necessary
, but she wasn't some
battle-hardened warrior
like the Shifters running security for the bunker.
Which was probably why, the next morning, Lucas
shoved a wooden knife into her hands
and said, "Zhou's going to train you."
Ava blinked.
Then blinked again.
She turned to William Zhou, who stood
calmly at Lucas's side
, his usual unreadable expression in place.
Ava scowled. "Yeah, that's going to be a
hard
no."
Lucas smirked. "It wasn't a request."
Ava pointed at Zhou. "Your butler
assassin
is going to snap me in half."
Zhou
raised a brow
but said nothing.
Lucas leaned against the counter,
too amused for Ava's liking
. "Think of it as an investment. You can't
keep
being useful if you die the second a real fight starts."
Ava folded her arms. "That's what I have
you
for, Bai."
Lucas grinned. "Sure. Until I decide you're not worth saving."
Ava
clicked her tongue
but didn't argue.
Because, deep down?
She knew he had a point.
She had
gotten lucky
too many times. If she wanted to
keep up in this world
, she needed to be more than just
the brains of the operation.
She sighed dramatically. "Fine. But if he
kills
me, I'm haunting you forever."
Lucas chuckled. "Noted."
Zhou stepped forward, finally speaking for the first time. "Come. We'll start now."
Ava groaned. "Oh, great. No time to mentally prepare. Love that for me."
Zhou ignored her.
Lucas just smirked.
And just like that, Ava Zhang's
life expectancy
officially improved—or, more likely,
took a serious nosedive.
Ava had
exactly five minutes
to regret her choices before William Zhou
tried to kill her.
Not
actually
, of course. Probably.
But as she hit the
cold concrete floor
for the
third time in a row
, she was seriously reconsidering her life decisions.
Zhou stood over her, completely
calm, unaffected, and vaguely unimpressed.
"Sloppy," he said. "Again."
Ava groaned, rolling onto her side. "You say
sloppy
, I say
creative defense technique
."
Lucas, watching from the sidelines,
snorted.
"That wasn't defense. That was
gravity winning.
"
Ava
flipped him off.
Zhou,
as patient as ever
, offered her
a hand
. Ava hesitated, knowing it was probably
another trick
, but took it anyway.
The second she was
upright
, Zhou struck.
Ava barely had time to react—his
hand shot forward
, aiming for her
center of gravity
—but this time, she
was ready.
She twisted, moving
with
the momentum instead of against it, catching
his wrist
just as her
system kicked in.
[ANALYZING MOVEMENT PATTERNS...]
[COUNTER AVAILABLE – EXECUTE?]
Ava didn't
think.
She just
moved.
She
sidestepped, shifted her weight
, and suddenly, Zhou's
attack missed by an inch.
He stopped, his
eyebrows raising just slightly.
Lucas's smirk widened. "Huh. Would you look at that?"
Ava
exhaled sharply
, her pulse
thrumming.
She hadn't just
dodged on instinct.
She had
seen the opening before it happened.
Her system was
adapting. Learning.
Zhou studied her for a moment, then nodded. "Better."
Ava smirked. "Damn right it was."
Lucas chuckled, arms crossed. "Let's see if you can do it twice."
Ava had
exactly five minutes
to regret her choices before William Zhou
tried to kill her.
Not
actually
, of course. Probably.
But as she hit the
cold concrete floor
for the
third time in a row
, she was seriously reconsidering her life decisions.
Zhou stood over her, completely
calm, unaffected, and vaguely unimpressed.
"Sloppy," he said. "Again."
Ava groaned, rolling onto her side. "You say
sloppy
, I say
creative defense technique
."
Lucas, watching from the sidelines,
snorted.
"That wasn't defense. That was
gravity winning.
"
Ava
flipped him off.
Zhou,
as patient as ever
, offered her
a hand
. Ava hesitated, knowing it was probably
another trick
, but took it anyway.
The second she was
upright
, Zhou struck.
Ava barely had time to react—his
hand shot forward
, aiming for her
center of gravity
—but this time, she
was ready.
She twisted, moving
with
the momentum instead of against it, catching
his wrist
just as her
system kicked in.
[ANALYZING MOVEMENT PATTERNS...]
[COUNTER AVAILABLE – EXECUTE?]
Ava didn't
think.
She just
moved.
She
sidestepped, shifted her weight
, and suddenly, Zhou's
attack missed by an inch.
He stopped, his
eyebrows raising just slightly.
Lucas's smirk widened. "Huh. Would you look at that?"
Ava
exhaled sharply
, her pulse
thrumming.
She hadn't just
dodged on instinct.
She had
seen the opening before it happened.
Her system was
adapting. Learning.
Zhou studied her for a moment, then nodded. "Better."
Ava smirked. "Damn right it was."
Lucas chuckled, arms crossed. "Let's see if you can do it twice."
Ava cracked her knuckles, shaking out her arms.
She wasn't going down so
easily this time.
Ava was
starting to get it.
Sort of.
Zhou was
fast, efficient, and completely merciless
, but he wasn't just
beating her into the ground for fun.
Every time he moved, her
system tracked his motions
, analyzing the
angles, timing, and openings
in real-time.
She wasn't
stronger than him
—not even close.
But she was
learning.
And that?
That was enough to
piss him off.
Zhou
struck again
, aiming for
her ribs
, but Ava
saw it coming a fraction of a second before he moved.
Her system
flashed.
[COUNTER AVAILABLE]
Ava
twisted her body just enough
to avoid a
direct hit
, then used
her momentum
to pivot—
And slammed her elbow into
Zhou's side.
It wasn't
a hard hit
, but it was
a hit.
Lucas, still watching from his
comfortable spot
, let out a low whistle. "Well, well. The newbie's learning."
Ava,
breathless but triumphant
, took a half-step back, arms still
raised.
Zhou, to his credit, didn't look mad.
He looked...
thoughtful.
"Your reflexes are improving," he said.
Ava smirked. "Yeah, well, getting thrown on the floor twenty times in a row will do that to you."
Lucas chuckled. "You call it
training
. I call it
character building
."
Ava shot him a glare. "I call it
abuse.
"
Zhou,
ignoring both of them
, adjusted his stance. "Again."
Ava sighed, shaking out her arms.
This was
going to hurt.
But if she wanted to
survive in this world
, she had to keep up.
So she nodded.
"Alright, old man. Let's go."
Zhou raised a brow. "Old?"
Ava grinned. "What, too slow to prove me wrong?"
Zhou
attacked instantly.
And this time?
Ava was
ready.
Ava
hit the ground hard
. Again.
She groaned, rolling onto her back, staring at the
cracked ceiling
of the training room. "You know, Zhou, I'm really starting to think you enjoy this."
Zhou stood over her,
calm and unbothered
, as if he hadn't just
thrown her across the floor for the fourth time.
"If you don't want to get hit, learn faster."
Ava sighed.
Great advice.
Lucas,
watching from the sidelines with a smirk
, sipped what was probably
an overpriced cup of coffee.
"I'd listen to him, Zhang. He's giving you
free
lessons."
Ava shot him a glare. "How about you come down here and spar with him instead?"
Lucas
chuckled
, leaning back against the wall. "Oh, no. I like my ribs
unbroken
, thanks."
Ava
muttered curses under her breath
, forcing herself to her feet.
Zhou studied her, expression unreadable. "Again."
Ava
adjusted her stance
, fingers twitching.
Her system had been
tracking his movements all morning
, running
calculations in the background.
She was
improving
, but Zhou was still
too fast, too precise.
But.
He had
patterns.
And now?
She
saw one.
The moment he stepped forward—
left foot first, same as always
—Ava moved before her system even
flashed a counter.
Instead of trying to
block or dodge
, she did something
stupid.
She lunged
forward.
Not away.
At him.
The movement
caught Zhou off guard
—only for a second, but that was all she needed.
She twisted her body, using his
own weight against him
, and
swept his leg out from under him.
For the first time,
William Zhou hit the ground.
Lucas let out a low whistle. "Well. That's new."
Ava took a half-step back,
chest rising and falling fast
.
Zhou, still lying on the floor, let out a slow breath. Then, to Ava's
absolute shock
, he smirked.
"Good," he said, pushing himself upright. "Again."
Ava groaned. "Oh, come
on
."
Lucas just laughed.
Zhou didn't wait.
Ava barely had time to
dodge
before he
attacked again.