Reincarnated as an Energy with a System

Chapter 2031: Combat Lessons

By the time the history and tactics session ended, Ning understood why the academy taught the two subjects together.

The next class was Cyber Operations.

A different interface replaced the battlefield map, this one filled with communication structures and encoded transmission patterns used by Mekharan forces.

Lorna remained their instructor for the lesson, though several portions of the material were clearly being supplied through academy systems.

"Mekharan communication differs from standard human military traffic because they do not always separate machine communication from personal communication in the way we do," she explained. "A Mekharan sending data through what appears to be a vehicle control network may actually be speaking directly to another individual."

Ning studied the transmission examples as they appeared.

The academy was currently teaching the students how to identify and intercept Mekharan signals without immediately alerting the sender that the channel had been compromised.

The actual techniques were not particularly advanced from Ning’s perspective, but they were sophisticated enough for students at this stage.

Lorna walked them through several examples.

"You are not expected to break high-grade military encryption yet. What you are expected to recognize is when communication exists, what type of traffic you are looking at, and whether a pattern suggests ordinary machine activity or intentional communication."

By the time the second subject ended, the students had spent enough time sitting that most seemed relieved when they were told to head outside.

The daily physical training session took place in one of the academy yards.

Today was one-on-one combat.

Lorna gathered the students around before assigning partners.

"You already know why we train this," she said. "Mecha warfare is not fought entirely with cannons and missiles. Weapons fail, ammunition runs out, systems get damaged, and sometimes two pilots end up close enough that the only remaining option is physical combat."

She looked across the group.

"If you cannot control your own body properly, you will not control a Mecha properly either. The principles of balance, momentum, reaction timing, and close-range fighting remain the same even when the body you are moving weighs hundreds of tons."

Ning agreed with that much.

The scale changed, but the fundamentals did not.

When the pairings were assigned, Ning found himself opposite one of the men from the cafeteria the previous night.

Ning also noticed Liam standing nearby, speaking quietly into the man’s ear before stepping away. He could hear the exact words from that distance without trying, but he acted as if he hadn’t.

Even without hearing them, he could’ve guessed.

Lorna gave the signal for the pairs to begin.

Ning’s opponent immediately stepped forward with more aggression than the exercise required, closing the distance quickly and reaching for him. Ning simply moved aside.

The man’s momentum carried him past, and Ning placed one hand against his shoulder while hooking a foot behind his leg, redirecting the movement just enough to send him onto the ground.

The fall was clean but sudden.

Several nearby students turned toward them, surprised by how quickly someone had already lost.

Ning looked down at the man and extended a hand.

"You alright?"

The man stared at him before grabbing the hand and allowing Ning to pull him back up. There was confusion in his expression now. Clearly, that was not how he had expected the first exchange to go.

"Again," he said.

Ning nodded. "Whenever you’re ready."

This time, the man approached more carefully, keeping his weight centered while watching Ning’s hands, but the moment he committed to moving forward, Ning shifted his foot and caught the man’s leg at exactly the right angle.

He went down again.

A few students nearby stopped their own practice entirely.

The man got back to his feet without accepting help this time. His face had started turning red. Ning could tell embarrassment was beginning to matter more to him than the actual training. He attacked before giving any warning.

The first punch came toward Ning’s head, but Ning raised one arm and redirected it across his body rather than blocking the force directly. The man immediately followed with a kick, only for Ning to lift his shin and stop it before the strike could reach him.

The man tried to use the position to throw another punch with his free arm.

Ning ducked beneath it.

Before his opponent could recover, Ning placed both hands against his chest and pushed. He did not use enough force to injure him, only exactly enough to send him stumbling several steps backward.

The training yard had grown considerably quieter.

Students who had been focused on their own matches were now watching Ning instead.

Nothing he had done looked particularly dramatic, though that only made him stand out even more.

The man came forward again, now angry enough that whatever technique he had originally intended to use began falling apart.

He punched.

Ning moved.

He kicked.

Ning shifted just outside the strike.

He tried grabbing Ning around the waist, only for Ning to turn with him and leave the man stumbling past without ever getting a proper hold.

Again and again, the attacks failed to touch him.

Lorna had stopped watching the other pairs, but her attention remained fixed on Ning for several exchanges before she finally raised her voice.

"Enough. The two of you stop."

The man stopped reluctantly.

Ning relaxed and looked toward her.

Lorna studied him for a moment before turning toward another part of the training yard.

"Naysha."

Naysha looked over.

"Switch partners."

The man Ning had been fighting tried to argue that he should continue, but Lorna ignored him and looked toward Naysha.

"Looks like there’s someone as good as you in close combat here. Try and see how you do against him. I expect you not to lose this."

Naysha approached without looking particularly pleased about the reassignment.

Ning smiled when she stopped across from him.

"Hello."

Naysha looked him up and down before giving a subtle nod.

"No greetings, huh?" Ning asked.

"I’m here to train," she said seriously. "Are you?"

Ning smiled. "Very well. Let’s start."