Chapter 137 - Sparring

Devon gazed down at the fake sword she would have to use. In the script, it was said that the dragon insignia attached to it was an important detail since her role would give away her identity.

'It's fake,' she thought, picking up the sword and raised it up. 'I used to have one in the past, and I was truly fond of it.'

A shallow breath slipped past her lips, recalling the little things that she had grown fond of in the past. Even though a sword was just an item, it was her companion. She had survived multiple assassinations because of it.

"In this world, they use this as a... prop," she murmured, letting out another sigh as it seemed this world barely recognized the importance of wielding a sword. "It looks nice and real, though."

Devon swung the sword to check its weight. It was lighter. Since it was fake, she tried practicing her grip and to check if she still remembered holding one. As Devon swung the sword as if she was dancing, a satisfied smile resurfaced on her face.

There was this feeling of fulfillment bubbling in her heart. It reminded her of the person who first taught her how to wield a sword so she could defend herself.

"Miss Lin..." Devon snapped back to reality upon hearing someone call her. She turned her head back to see a staff staring at her, wide-eyed."

"We will start soon. The director said to be on standby."

"Alright." She nodded and smiled subtly. 

When the staff left, Devon gazed at the sword in her hand. "I should tell Lu to play sword fight with me."

******

"Miss Lin!" Director Fang called, waving at her to come to him, which she did. When Devon was within his range, he started talking to the other stunt people, briefing them about the changes.

"A wooden sword?" asked Devon, tilted her head. "That doesn't make sense. If my character is brutal, using actual weapons will be consistent in her character."

"Hehe. Miss Lin, your safety is my priority." Director Fang chuckled awkwardly, quite fond of Devon's straightforwardness. "Anyway, Miss Lin, you will have a thirty-minute time with them, so they can teach you about the movements."

"Alright." 

"Okay, good!" Director Fang clapped and Devon along with the stuntmen and women for her went to practice. As the stuntmen informed Devon about the movements, Director Fang barely took his eyes off of her. 

He was a controversial director but was recognized for his work. For some reason, meeting Devon and their brief interaction sparked the fire which he had lost in recent years. Honestly, Devon didn't need to take part in this much, but he wanted to see if they would need a stuntwoman for her. 

'If not, I might tell her to do the stunts herself.' His eyes lit up as the thrill of working for a capable person brought his old passion to him. The passion for taking risks to make the scenes more... appealing and compelling.

*****

"Did you understand, Miss Lin?" asked the stuntman, who would spar with her with the scene.

"Alright. I only need to dodge, correct?" 

"Yes, and then attack here." He instructed, showing where to attack and how things should turn out. Devon just nodded her head until the stuntman proposed to practice.

"I will attack now, okay?" The stuntman took a deep breath as he formed a stance to attack with the wooden sword in his hand. 

"Yaaa!" came out a yell as he sprinted towards her, but Devon let out a disappointed sigh. She staggered back, swaying from side to side to avoid his attack. 

"How pathetic," she mumbled, swinging her wooden sword up, which landed on the man's wrist. Her swift action surprised the stuntman as he accidentally tossed the sword away. 

He turned his head as his eyes searched for the wooden sword. However, just as his eyes caught the wooden sword, he froze, sensing a devil standing to his side. 

"If this is a real sword, your head had already rolled to my feet." Devon tapped the wooden sword against his shoulder lightly. "You're boring."

Those words she had uttered were part of the script. However, the stuntman felt that those words literally came from her. He moved his head to face her, sweats trickling down his spine. 

"That is good, Miss Lin."

"Don't go easy on me." Devon frowned, taking a step back to create distance. "Director Fang said you were professionals. I think real sparring will have a better outcome."

"But we can't --"

"Let's test it first. I know you're not using your strength because you're afraid to hurt me. However, it is simply sparring with a wooden sword." Devon cut him off with a shrug. "We can test the strength you should use so as not to hurt me, alright?"

The stuntman bit his tongue, gazing at the director's seat. However, Director Fang was feigning ignorant as he was acting busy.

"Alright, then. I think Director Fang will be pleased if you can do this scene without a stunt double."

"Thank you." 

With that being said, the stuntman went to pick up his wooden sword. As he did, his eyes fell on his wrist, which Devon slapped lightly. She didn't use too much force, as it didn't hurt him. However, it felt heavy and left a mark on his wrist.

"Is she a trained martial artist?" he wondered, before returning to practice with her again.

"Miss Lin, I will attack you again, is that alright?"

"Come at me whenever you are ready." Devon nodded, resting the wooden sword on her shoulder. 

Shortly after, the stuntman charged at her. This time, he added a bit of force to make it look real. However, as he stepped his foot inside her vicinity, his hand trembled, as she didn't move a muscle. 

Time seemed to stop for him and before I knew it, the wooden sword in his hand flew over once again. He didn't know what happened, it just... happened.

"I said, you don't need to take me lightly," Devon commented with disappointment, walking towards the wooden sword and jogged her way back to give it back to him.

"Let's start again." She proposed, making the stuntman looked at her in shock, but said nothing. 

Again, the two of them started once again. The stuntman attacking her, increasing his force every round, but his wooden sword would always fly away. The longer they practice, the more people gather around at a safe distance.

"Is this part of the script?" 

"Why does the stuntman look so exhausted?"

"What is going on here? They'd been practicing for twenty minutes."

Whispers and murmurs started to fill the air as all eyes were on them. Director Fang, who was secretly recording their practice trembled in excitement. From the monitor, it was easy to see how Devon always made the wooden sword flying. The stuntman was gripping it in the wrong way. 

"I knew she will be perfect for this role," He giggled evilly, rubbing his palms together as it seemed Devon didn't require a stunt double. This would be best for them to make the movie more realistic.

Meanwhile, Dion gasped in disbelief as he watched the poor stuntman play fetch. Even from this distance, he would tell that the exhaustion of the stuntman wasn't fake! He recorded on round and immediately attached it to a message.

[To: My generous big brother

Ge!!!!!!!!!!!! Holy cow!]

That was all Dion could tell his big brother as he was too flabbergasted. His angel-like sister-in-law torturing a poor stuntman! Did she think this was training and not just practice for a scene!? How could she take it seriously?!

*DING!*

[From: My generous big brother

Buy her a drink. She might get tired. ]

Dion's face distorted as he read Lewis' reply three times! Three times! Didn't he watch the clip? Between Devon and the stuntman, the latter was clearly the one who was exhausted!

[To: My generous big brother

Ge, did you watch the clip? It's a one-sided fight! ]

[From: My generous big brother

She'll be fine. ]

"Is he reading my messages? Does his phone changes my message?" he gasped as it seemed Lewis was receiving a different message! "How bias can he be?" 

Devon and the stuntman continued to 'practice' until the latter tapped out. He had already given his all but to no avail. Devon was a she-devil. They simply need to practice, it felt more like torturous training!

In the end, an actual professional in sword fighting had taken the role of her opponent to this sparring scene. The result? Director Fang did a french kiss.

******

"Sis, are you okay?" asked Dion, casting her a brief look, who sat in the front passenger seat.

"Yes. Why wouldn't I?"

Dion swallowed a mouthful of saliva. The sparring scene he had watched live felt so real, and for a second, there was this killing intent he felt. It was brief, but he felt a shiver down his spine while watching it. The source? It was the person sitting in the same car as him.

"I wonder is already home," Devon murmured as they entered the gates of their place. Her eyes instantly brighten up, seeing that Lewis also just arrived home and exiting the car.

Seeing his brother, Dion let out a deep exhale. 'My big brother is so hopeless," thinking about Lewis' replies when Dion sent him another clip of the real sparring.

Lewis had noticed the car pulling over, turning on his heel to face them. A smile appeared on his lips as Devon excitedly hitched outside.

"Lu~!" she rushed to him and didn't hesitate to land in his embrace. 

"How was your day?" he asked the same time Dion hitched outside the driver's seat.

"Tired. We were practicing all day, so I was a bit tired." Her answer made Dion's entire face distort.

'Tired?! She definitely --' Dion's thoughts were cut off when Lewis cast him a cold glare. 'Big brother.... I am innocent.'