Ch.8585. At the Training Ground (6)

I didn’t show it outwardly, but I was amazed.

Even if it wasn’t me, anyone who saw this would think the same.

Men who wield spears and swords are either soldiers loyal to their country or mercenaries who make their living by the sword.

How could any servant of a noble house, especially one born a commoner who never properly learned anything, display such skill?

I thought he must be a born genius.

And that wasn’t all.

He was strong.

He was persistent, and even had composure.

As if born for martial arts.

CLANG!!

Look at him.

Even with a weapon bearing down right in front of him, far from closing his eyes in fear.

He’s reading my sword with wide-open eyes, not missing a thing.

I thought as we exchanged several bouts.

On the first day, my final strike was aimed at his neck.

On the third day, he focused on deflecting my attacks with only the necessary movements. What was surprising was that as he did so, my sword increasingly sliced through empty air as if bewitched. He clearly understood the sword.

By the fifth day, he even managed to exploit this and decisively penetrate my defenses. I could have blocked it if I wanted to, but his sword had a uniquely vicious quality that chilled one to the core. For a moment, his sword even overlapped with Lady Siabel’s in my mind.

It was extraordinary.

The time we spent crossing swords each day wasn’t very long. Just about an hour. And we spent no small amount of that time resting.

He was improving his skills at a remarkable pace.

No, perhaps “improving skills” isn’t the right expression.

From what I could feel, rather than his swordsmanship advancing day by day…

“Well…”

It felt like he was recovering a forgotten sense.

Knights speak through crossing swords, learning about each other.

Yet the more I crossed swords with him, the deeper my questions became rather than learning more.

I’m dying of curiosity about his true identity.

And I felt equally regretful.

‘If Ray had been a woman.’

…He could have reached even greater heights, not just awakening mana.

As the sparring ended, Ray elegantly twirled his sword.

He spun his blade gracefully and sheathed it with smooth, unhindered movements.

“Thank you for your time.”

“Thank you as well. Your sparring with Lady Siabel is tomorrow, right? I’ll be cheering for you.”

He asked to spar with me because he wanted to live up to Lady Siabel’s expectations.

With how well he’s mastered Lady Siabel’s sword dance that I’ve been following, he won’t just meet expectations. He’ll utterly surprise Lady Siabel.

* * *

Ten days had passed.

I was double-checking my equipment at the training ground. I wore all the protective gear that wouldn’t hinder my movement, and checked the training sword at my waist once more.

Sione watched me with sparkling eyes.

She had postponed her daily archery practice to follow me, insisting on watching today’s sparring match between Siabel and me.

“Ray, Ray. What do you think?”

“About what?”

“Since you’ve been practicing with Lord Diolia every day. Do you think you can beat Sister Siabel?”

“Of course…”

When I dragged out my answer without immediately responding, Sione poked me repeatedly, urging me to answer quickly.

“I can’t win. How could I possibly compete with an expert knight?”

“…You made it sound like you could win, then gave such a disappointing answer.”

The expectation in Sione’s eyes quickly faded.

I chuckled at her reaction.

“Just cheer for me from the sidelines. I’ll try my best to win.”

Sione nodded.

As we were passing time with casual conversation:

“My sister has arrived.”

Siabel Sianella, whom I had rarely seen lately, appeared at the training ground.

Instead of the formal attire she wore when we last met, she was dressed in loose clothing suitable for sword practice.

The various protective gear worn over her clothes suggested that the upcoming sparring would be quite intense.

“Ray, I’ll be cheering for you from behind.”

Sione exchanged brief greetings with Siabel and stepped back.

And in the place where Sione had been standing, Siabel now stood with her training sword.

“It’s been almost a week. How are you? I trust you’ve recovered from your journey.”

“Thanks to your consideration, I was able to rest for a few days and prepare comfortably for our sparring.”

“Oh? Prepare, you say?”

“I loosened up by exchanging swords with Lord Diolia for a few days with his help.”

Siabel’s expressionless face softened.

“That’s good.”

She nodded with satisfaction as she looked at the sword at my waist and the various protective gear—chest guard, joint protectors, and other guards designed to protect against strong impacts.

“I heard from Mother. About the achievements you made at the royal palace.”

She held up two fingers in front of her red lips.

“You protected the princess and our Sione, and beheaded two Demonkin with your sword?”

I saw through the psychology behind Siabel’s tone.

It seemed she had higher expectations of me than I thought.

Well, even if they were incomplete beings, sword skills that could behead two Demonkin would naturally raise such expectations.

Besides, she had once been badly beaten by a Demonkin herself…

She seemed quite interested in me.

“With so many eyes watching, it will be difficult to confirm your full abilities—”

“…”

“This is the moment I’ve been looking forward to. I hope it doesn’t end half-heartedly. Can I trust you on that?”

“I’ll do my best to live up to your expectations.”

Siabel nodded with a slight smile.

Afterward, we took our positions at a distance from each other in preparation for the sparring.

As I calmed myself and gently placed my hand on the sword handle, spectators gradually gathered around Siabel and me.

Of course they wouldn’t miss such an entertaining spectacle.

The promising knight of Sianella, Siabel, crossing swords with me, who possessed suspiciously good skills.

If I were among those spectators, I would have bet my money on the outcome, eagerly anticipating the result.

“Ray. Are you ready?”

“Yes, I’m all set.”

“Then let’s begin.”

Ting!

She flicked her nose.

And simultaneously:

-Lady Siabel tends to initiate with quick thrusts about seven times out of ten to take control of the match from the start.

It was just as Diolia had said.

Siabel demonstrated a spirited, magnificent thrust.

The difference was that unlike Diolia, who would thrust his sword straight at my neck, Siabel was someone who knew how to be considerate.

Her heavy attack rushed toward my chest protector.

‘She’s really not holding back from the beginning.’

The problem was that the power behind her sword was no joke.

Even with protective gear, if I allowed a blow with that much force, I would obviously be left gasping for breath.

“Ha!”

I drew my sword and immediately responded to her attack.

CLANG!

Ooh…

The sound of clashing swords and the gasps of admiration from the surroundings filled the training ground.

I thrust upward over Siabel.

With our swords locked, I rode the blade and instantly closed the distance between us.

“Huh.”

Siabel’s eyes widened.

Not just her eyes.

The corners of her mouth rose as if they would reach her ears.

“…Interesting. Did Diolia teach you this too?”

Before I could answer her question:

My hand had already moved to the hilt of Siabel’s sword.

Whoosh!

I pushed her sword aside with force while lowering my stance.

Holding the sword in reverse grip, I intended to strike her abdomen with the pommel.

But seeing her foot coming up right in front of me, I dodged.

“A kick against a frail man? That’s too harsh.”

“That’s rich coming from someone who was about to hit my solar plexus.”

Siabel let out a chuckle.

CLANG!

This time, we raised our swords, closed the distance, and entered a test of strength.

Since we weren’t circulating mana, it was a pure contest of physical strength.

In this world, where women’s strength far exceeds men’s, prolonging this situation would be a foolish choice.

I took a step back, creating distance between Siabel and myself.

For a while, the tips of our swords entangled and gauged each other, looking for openings.

Like cunning snakes, we tested each other with our swords for quite some time.

Siabel’s eyes gleamed.

“Ha!”

With a short, powerful shout, I felt the vibration of steel in my hand.

My instincts warned me that this attack needed to be met head-on with full attention.

The audience silently observed Siabel’s attack—her quick and powerful thrust, and her two legs firmly planted to change trajectory and continue her attack at any moment.

Most admired Siabel’s flawless attack.

Some sighed.

“Ray…!”

Sione was among them.

No one thought I could block Siabel’s attack coming toward my collarbone.

But I gripped my sword tighter to repay the faith of those who sighed for me.

‘…This is troublesome.’

At this rate, her sword would pierce straight into my solar plexus.

I fixed my eyes, which had been calmly watching the tip of Siabel’s sword, and widened them.

I twisted my body. Then I swung my sword.

The training sword, catching the sunlight, flashed with a clean gleam.

CLANG!

A heavy collision of forces.

SCRAPE!!

I felt Siabel’s sword scraping forcefully against the protective gear on my chest.

Siabel’s red lips parted slightly—a blank expression, not expecting me to block this. Then the corners of her mouth curved upward into a smile.

Wanting to land a blow on Siabel with that annoying smile, I maintained my momentum and wielded my sword.

Like the sword dance of Siabel that Diolia had demonstrated.

Siabel’s sword was solely for the death of enemies—specifically for tearing apart ferocious monsters and demons.

The fragments of Sianella swordsmanship I had seen from Diolia were remarkably similar to my own.

I too, like them, had handled my sword more viciously than any of my companions to finish off those damned monsters that arrows couldn’t take down.

Using my past memories as a foundation, the sword dance of Siabel that I had followed was quite impressive.

“That—”

I succeeded in advancing by twisting and deflecting Siabel’s entangling sword.

Once again, we faced each other, beginning a test of strength.

I was out of breath. Using inappropriate techniques with this inadequate body was taking a serious toll.

If there was one consolation:

“You really—”

While I was struggling to death:

The genuine, joyful smile on Siabel’s face.

“You always exceed my expectations.”

[Siabel Sianella feels a deeper interest in you.]

[Your mana efficiency has improved considerably due to Siabel Sianella’s attention.]

It was the growth of my abilities.