episode_0290

While it was said that I had to make Ethan win in the sword duel with Harold, the truth was that there was very little I could do for him in my position.

After all, it was Ethan, not me, who was facing off against Harold with swords, and since it was a pure duel rather than a battle with supportive magic, I had no means of intervening in the swords they were wielding.

The only thing I could do was suggest to Ethan, “How about sparring with the master while staying at the mansion?” But ultimately, there was no need for me to do anything.

Ethan, who was more diligent than necessary, had already started sparring with Harold diligently from the first day he returned to the mansion, even without me telling him to.

-Clang! Clang! Clang.

“Haah! Ha! Haah!!”

It was a competition between Ethan and Harold that I had seen countless times both at Blackwood Mansion and at the academy.

Even though my knowledge of swordsmanship was not deep, it was a competition of very fast sword strikes.

One was a sword expert who had successfully completed his transformation a month ago, and the other was a sword master from the beginning, so it was natural.

‘No matter how many times I see it, the speed is truly unbelievable.’

Ethan’s twin swords were impressive, but what was even more unbelievable was the speed at which Harold’s sword swung. The way he deflected all of Ethan’s swords with just one handle of his own sword was truly mind-boggling.

Of course, it’s not like swinging the sword with both hands doubles the speed. However, even considering that, it was undeniable that Ethan’s sword had a considerably fast speed.

Harold, who deflected the two swords without changing his expression, was just insane. I can’t understand how this crazy character is only a ‘2nd arc’ boss.

‘I was going to tell him if I found a weakness, but it seems impossible now.’

In the first place, there was no gap that I could find. Even if there was one, it would be so small that it would be split into about 20 pieces in a second. Above all, if there was a gap that I could find, Ethan, who was closest to the swords, would definitely have found it.

And since he was at the level of a sword master, he was likely getting stronger even as they sparred, so even giving a hint in advance would have little impact on the duel.

As many times as Ethan sparred with Harold, Harold also sparred with Ethan. They knew each other’s ways of fighting well, whether they liked it or not.

In the end, all I could do was hope that Ethan would handle the duel well on his own. At the moment, that was the most plausible excuse for me to get involved with Ethan.

‘Making Harold weak seems impossible… Maybe encouraging Ethan’s enthusiasm is the only way I can use?’

…It might sound a bit strange coming from me, but there is the power of love or awakening through it.

In fact, it was a common theme in the original game of “Luminor Academy.” Since the original was a harem academy game, it was natural.

And I had seen similar things when MacHeart saved me last time, or during the Abyssal Kraken battle. In other words, awakening through love was not impossible even if you weren’t the protagonist.

Since it was confirmed that Ethan loved me, just injecting a little enthusiasm into him was enough to make me think that I could somehow achieve a result.

‘In the first place, Harold also has a tendency to be a bit weak against Ethan.’

In fact, the part where the expert and the master were exchanging blows for so long if they had fought with their full power was a historical error. It meant that Harold was deliberately sparring with Ethan with a skill level just enough to create a gap for Ethan’s growth.

If Ethan could momentarily close that slight gap, he could defeat Harold. Anyway, winning a round like that would still be a victory.

With such thoughts in mind, one of Ethan’s swords was knocked away by Harold’s sword, and thus this match also ended with Harold’s complete victory.

– Kkaaah!

“Haaa, haa, haa….”

“Let’s stop here for today. Good job, Ethan.”

“…Thank you, Father.”

Unlike Harold, who only shed a few drops of sweat, Ethan knelt down on the ground and collapsed.

“You’ve gained a lot of stamina. I can feel a stronger force from your sword than before, so it seems like you didn’t just spend the vacation alone with your lover.”

“…There were some things.”

“However, it seems like your sword has dulled slightly compared to before, so today, practice all the 4th stage swordsmanship of Blackwood once and finish the training.”

“…Yes, Father.”

As he answered, Ethan stood up from his kneeling position on the ground. It was a rather pitiful sight to see how diligent he was.

‘At this rate, I’ll just be grasping the basics of human swordsmanship for three days, and summer vacation will be over.’

Well, to be honest, it wasn’t like I had to finish the training within the summer vacation.

After all, when we return to the academy, we will continue our cohabitation life whether we like it or not, and there will be many more natural situations than training at Blackwood Manor.

In reality, Ethan and I had experienced quite a few situations like that as we clashed and slept together every day. Even if it wasn’t a day when we won against Harold, we still engaged in various naughty activities under various excuses.

‘…Still, since it’s the first experience.’

Kissing, touching the chest, or fellatio… Those acts were things I could do as a “justifiable reward” even if they weren’t. However, when it came to sex… As a woman, I wanted Ethan to conquer me properly in the first experience I would have after becoming a woman.

It was somewhat disappointing to just be overwhelmed by desire. …Well, since I had to get rid of my virginity as soon as possible, if he did come at me like that, I would accept it without much resistance.

Still, the first experience was something that women generally hoped to be special, right?

…No, well. It’s not like I care about that as a woman, I just want to create a situation where I won’t regret it.

It was a good thing for Ethan too. After defeating his father with his full power for the first time, it would be a satisfying experience for him to confidently conquer me as a reward.

If Ethan could hear my thoughts right now, he would probably tease me with something like, “Why do you have so many annoying thoughts?” But still, this was the last bit of pride I had.

‘As expected, the only way to stimulate Ethan is through that.’

There was no more certain way to evoke the desire to achieve something than to stimulate the lower desires. In fact, it had been the most used method in the process of raising Ethan so far.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

Five o’clock in the afternoon. The grand bathhouse of Blackwood Manor.

-Splash.

“Huuuu….”

About ten people could easily fit into the large tub, but one young man lay his tired body in the oversized tub.

Ethan Richard Blackwood. The illegitimate son of the Blackwood noble family.

One month after completing his full transformation into a Sword Expert, the boy leaned back in a bathtub filled with hot water, quietly lost in contemplation.

“Indeed, I still have a long way to go to surpass my father.”

Despite achieving complete mastery as a Sword Expert, his father’s swordsmanship still felt like a formidable barrier. The weight of his father’s sword felt even more insurmountable than before, causing a slight dent in his confidence.

Even though he could physically feel his own growth, facing an opponent who he still couldn’t catch up to left him with a sense of inadequacy.

“Still, I thought I could at least win a round if I clashed like a madman.”

Of course, there had been several occasions in their sparring sessions where he had managed to win a round. Sometimes, he even won two or three rounds in a single day of training, engaging in countless bouts with his father, who sometimes allowed him to win. However, all the rounds he had won so far were under certain penalties imposed by his father. Engaging in sparring with only basic attacks, not using sword techniques, or refraining from using magic were some of the penalties.

Without such restrictions, facing his father head-on with swords left him with no chance of winning. No matter how he swung his sword to find an opening, he couldn’t get close to Sword Master Harold’s sword.

“I couldn’t see any openings. It felt like I was being led to create openings for myself.”

From the beginning, Ethan’s father, Harold Richard Blackwood, was a hero of the Empire’s war. He had faced and defeated countless swordsmen at Ethan’s level, as well as those stronger than him.

Surviving such wars meant that he was a formidable individual, a fact that Ethan keenly realized.

“He even said that at my age, he had cut through the magical barriers of the Hwangdo Castle.”

With each exchange of swords, Ethan felt himself falling behind in skill, strength, and talent. Despite thinking he could at least grasp the tip of the iceberg, he came to the realization that there was still an unbridgeable gap.

Realizing the need for a primal motivation to somehow defeat his father, Ethan pressed on.