Ch.40A Moment of Leisure (2)

Pushed forward by the other students, Flan stood in front of me.

Though she hesitated shyly, her hand was definitely rummaging through her Magic Pouch, so she clearly had something to give me.

Her movements were so slow it felt a bit frustrating, but I decided to wait anyway.

“Professor… I prepared this as thanks for saving me before. If you don’t like it, you can throw it away.”

“Well… let’s see what it is first.”

I said that, but of course I had no intention of throwing it away.

Even if it was a gift of gratitude from a student I saved, it was still the first gift I’d received from a student as a professor. I might not be able to carry it around all the time, but I certainly wouldn’t throw it away.

As long as it wasn’t poisonous to me, that is.

“Here!”

Flan held out her tightly clenched fist, making me wonder if she actually wanted to give it to me or not.

“Could you open your hand, please?”

I understand she’s embarrassed, but if it’s a gift of gratitude, she should at least show it to me.

Her closed hand slowly began to open, revealing something sparkling inside.

“Is it a necklace?”

Flan nodded.

Clink—

As I took the necklace from her hand, the leather strap dangled down with two star-shaped ornaments that made a sound as they swayed.

I had naturally assumed the ornament would be crescent-shaped, so I wondered if the stars had some special meaning.

Flan seemed to want to resolve my curiosity as she explained.

“I thought the moon you have might be lonely, so I made star decorations instead… do you dislike it…?”

Seeing how she still couldn’t meet my eyes, she must be quite anxious.

While I’d decide later whether to wear this necklace regularly, I needed to give her an answer now.

“I like it. Thank you very much.”

Truthfully, the shape of the decoration—whether stars, crescent moons, or anything else—didn’t matter.

Just the fact that it was the first gift from my student was enough to make my heart swell.

I put the necklace around my neck in front of her and smiled. The anxiety on her face disappeared, replaced by happiness.

I’d only done something natural, yet her gratitude felt too generous.

“Well then, Flan. Shall we start class now?”

“Yes! That’s fine!”

Flan answered in a bright voice and returned to her seat.

Her footsteps seemed twice as light as usual, clearly revealing her mood.

“Since I’m in a good mood today, I’ll lecture more enthusiastically than usual.”

“What?! Shouldn’t we take it a bit easier?”

Ludmila asked in alarm, but I had no intention of backing down.

The only thing a professor can give students is lectures, so that’s how I had to repay them.

“You all have the materials I handed out yesterday, right? Today’s lecture will be based on those.”

The students all looked disappointed, but they were still focusing on the lecture, which made me chuckle.

With expressions like that, they probably wouldn’t be able to focus if Professor Ophelia came.

Perhaps I should change my approach a bit.

“Let’s go out for some practical training. Everyone grab your daggers and potions and follow me.”

Only then did the students’ faces brighten.

Practical training is also a form of lecture, yet they’re excited just by the prospect of going outside?

* * * * *

After all classes ended and the students had returned to their dormitories.

I went to the arena to have a practice match with Lael.

“Professor, are you serious?”

“Yes, I’m serious. I’m weak.”

“After crushing me so mercilessly, saying you’re weak isn’t convincing at all.”

“Back then, I only used magic. Anyway, let’s begin.”

Lael sighed deeply and gripped her wooden one-handed sword firmly.

“Are you really ready?”

“Yes, come at me.”

Lael adjusted her stance with the sword in front and charged forward, pushing off the ground.

‘She’s fast…!’

The standard warrior outfit typically includes heavy plate armor.

With that shackle gone, Lael’s speed exceeded my expectations.

In an instant, she reached me, and I realized she was swinging her sword. I tried to raise mine to block, but it was already too late.

Thwack.

The dull sound of wood hitting wood echoed through the arena as the practice sword flew from my hand and fell to the ground.

Without magic, I was truly powerless.

“First, your stance is too high. And your reactions are too slow. If you wait to respond after seeing your opponent’s complete movement, it’s too late. You need to anticipate and move beforehand, based on the subtle preliminary signs.”

I sighed deeply and picked up the wooden sword from the ground.

I’d been hearing what Lael was saying all along.

The problem is that knowing something and actually doing it are as different as heaven and earth.

“Professor, you’re strong enough just using magic, so why do you want to use weapons?”

Lael asked, finally expressing the curiosity she’d been holding back.

“Because I’m weak without magic.”

Of course, talking about a mage without magic makes no sense. But when I rescued Flan, I clearly felt my limitations.

If my mana had reached its limit first, if I hadn’t been properly prepared with potions, I would have died.

The answer to that problem is this:

Combat using a primary weapon.

“You might manage now, but you know it gets much more complicated when you add mana, right?”

“I’m aware of that.”

Even when using weapons, utilizing mana is essential.

However, the amount compared to using magic is…

‘Extremely minimal.’

It’s just about enhancing the body and weapon with mana.

The problem is that becoming proficient at that requires tremendous effort.

“I don’t think continuing the practice match makes sense anymore.”

“Yes, I agree.”

Sparring only works when both parties have some basic foundation.

As someone who could only hold and swing a sword, I wasn’t gaining anything from this match with her.

“You need to learn the basics of swordsmanship first. Your swinging and defensive stances are completely terrible.”

“Please teach me.”

I wanted to object to being called “terrible,” but at this moment, she was essentially my instructor, so I couldn’t say anything.

Lael smiled happily as she approached me and demonstrated first.

“Bend your knees slightly like this to lower your center of gravity.”

“Like this?”

“No! Keep your upper body straight, don’t hunch over!”

Lael roughly adjusted my body with her hands to help me achieve the correct posture.

The unfamiliar position felt quite uncomfortable. But it was definitely a stance that made it easier to respond to an opponent’s actions.

“This is the basic stance for swordsmanship. Try swinging once.”

I nodded and swung the wooden sword diagonally from top to bottom.

Perhaps because my center of gravity was lower, my body didn’t waver despite putting considerable force into the swing.

“It’s different, right? Next, I’ll teach you the basic defensive stance. For defense, you basically need to counter the direction of your opponent’s attack…”

Lael teaching me swordsmanship felt quite different from her usual self.

She had transformed from a tomboy duchess to a proper warrior.

She was the same person I had adventured with back then, the one I had looked up to with admiration.

“Are you listening?!”

“Ah, sorry. I was thinking about something else.”

“Thinking about something else during sacred sword training? I can’t just let that slide.”

Lael, clearly annoyed, narrowed her eyes and stood behind me, grabbing both my arms.

She was so close it almost looked like she was embracing me from behind.

I glanced around to see if anyone was watching and said quietly:

“Even so, this is…”

“Consider this punishment for your wandering thoughts.”

Every time she applied force to move, my arms followed.

Tilting the sword to protect the head, raising it to defend the side.

As we continued these movements, her chest brushed against my back with an assertive presence, and honestly, I didn’t know how to react.

She might purely be trying to show me defensive stances.

“How is it? Not that difficult, right?”

“If I do it like this…”

Based on how she had moved my body, I took a stance protecting my head with the back of the sword.

“Eek?!”

The problem was that her hands were still holding my arms.

Although Lael quickly let go, she couldn’t help losing her balance and ended up grabbing my waist tightly.

“Lael, are you alright?”

“Ugh… Yes. I’m fine.”

Lael hastily removed her hands from my body and hung her head low.

Though her hair obscured her face, I could clearly see that it had turned red.

“P-Professor. Shall we stop here for today?”

“If that’s what you want, then we should.”

“Then I’ll go first. Thank you for your hard work today.”

Lael picked up the wooden sword she had placed on the ground and strode away from me.

I stared blankly at her retreating figure, then shrugged and left the arena.