Chapter 32: Foundations of a Fortress

Academy classes weren’t too hard to keep up with just yet.

That was probably because only a week and a few days had passed.

Even if the noble kids had learned a lot beforehand, the gap was still significant, so these educational institutions literally start from the basics.

That said, there was one teacher who didn’t follow that pattern—namely, the Sword Saint.

The system seemed to be modeled after a university, but for some reason, the Sword Saint’s class was held twice a week—

“Ugh…!”

At least so far, the class consisted of sparring sessions followed by a few pieces of advice from the Sword Saint.

Wasn’t that way too easy for him?

Of course, it wouldn’t stay like that forever, but for now, that’s how it looked.

“When facing two swords, you must watch the movements of both carefully. If your opponent is untrained, they likely won’t use both properly. But someone like the daughter of the Border Count can move each sword with completely different trajectories.”

Like that’s easy!

Honestly, just in terms of movement, the Nuker I fought last time was way better.

At least he was big and his actions were straightforward.

Sure, he tried to fake me out with a tail swipe, but Sasha spotted it and ended up saving me anyway.

“It’s only been a week, so it can’t be helped. Cheer up.”

Once again, the Blackwood lady patted my shoulder and said that.

Was that really a sincere attempt at comforting me?

Wasn’t she secretly feeling superior?

That kind of negative thought started creeping up on me, and I was beginning to feel a bit irritated.

Sure, it’s natural that I’m losing now.

But when people keep telling you it’s only natural to lose, you start wanting to win no matter what.

Lady Arnburrow eventually accepted my request.

Chloe was studying the church at the inner temple in the afternoon, and it seemed Sasha and

Narya had their own unique training methods.

So in the end, the only ones who gathered before the lady that afternoon were me and Siwoo.

“So, you want to defeat Blackwood, huh?”

We were sitting across from each other in a spacious, Japanese-style tatami room—

Well, to be honest, it was clearly designed with a Japanese aesthetic.

The lady sat with her knees folded under her in what you might call a “seiza” position from Japanese manga.

It was less delicate and more dignified.

“Yeah. That’s the first goal.”

I nodded and said that.

There might be a second or third goal later, but for now, that’s what I said.

“This may be a bit harsh, but it’ll be hard for you to beat her in the short term. The Blackwood girl, when she spars with you—”

“She’s never actually fought seriously even once.”

“I figured as much.”

Seeing the lady cautiously speak as if apologizing, I let out a deep sigh.

Then I leaned back slightly, supporting myself with my hands on the floor.

Siwoo was also sitting formally in seiza, out of courtesy, but I just sat cross-legged.

You could say it was a small act of rebellion.

I felt like it would be better to just stay natural than awkwardly mimic the posture.

“But still, it’s fine. I wasn’t trying to win from the beginning anyway.”

I said that and leaned forward slightly again.

“Didn’t I tell you? It’s a goal. Who in the world thinks they can reach a goal set ahead of them in a single day?”

At my words, the lady stared at me for a while and then smiled faintly.

“As expected. A true Hero.”

Wait, where did that come from all of a sudden?

“Very well. In that case, I’ll do my best to help you, just as you want. But first, there’s something I’d like to mention.”

“Oh, go ahead. I’ll try my best to listen too.”

“If your armor has a skirt attached, could you at least sit with your legs a bit more closed? Even Siwoo next to you can’t bear to look your way right now.”

I glanced toward Siwoo.

Just as Lady Arnburrow said, he was staring straight ahead, as if fixed in place.

…Seriously?

“Once again, all I can do is share my knowledge. Applying it and winning against your opponent—that’s entirely up to you.”

“Got it.”

At my answer, the lady nodded and gripped her sword tightly.

“First of all, you have a tendency to be a bit sloppy with your initial stance. It’s not necessarily bad to relax your body and prepare calmly. Especially if your opponent is a monster, their next move might be hard to predict.”

“That’s true.”

Even if you researched a monster beforehand, facing it for the first time often catches people off guard.

Their eye level is different, and their body sizes vary wildly.

“I’ve never fought a monster myself, but if their instincts or intelligence are similar to beasts, then taking a stance where you can dodge at any time is probably a good choice. However, when fighting humans, your evasion movements shouldn’t be that big.”

“Oooh.”

As I sat hugging my knees and nodded eagerly, for some reason, the lady’s face turned slightly red.

Ahem.

She cleared her throat and continued.

“Especially remember that Blackwood wields a sword in each hand. Attacks can come from any direction. You tend to focus too much on her right side during combat—but someone who holds weapons in both hands plans to use both. Don’t forget that.”

So basically, her dominant use of the right hand could actually be a feint.

“A monster with claws wouldn’t just use one claw, right? I doubt it. It’s the same with people. Unless one hand is empty or holding a shield, you have to assume both hands are meant for attacking.”

“When dodging, move minimally. And when blocking, pay attention to the full motion, right?”

“Exactly. When avoiding a monster’s attack, it might be better to move big—it could save your life. Monsters tend to crush and tear rather than deliver precise strikes. But…”

The lady nodded.

“Now then, get up and pick up your sword. I can’t replicate Blackwood’s attacks, but I’ll help you apply what I taught you as best as I can.”

Her expression as she said that was serious and focused.

Her strikes were clearly different from Lady Blackwood’s.

More disciplined, and slightly more rigid.

That’s not to say they were slow or sluggish, though.

“When attacking, you must never swing with all your strength. Forget about the idea of ‘winning in one blow’ when fighting people. Humans are far more cunning than monsters or beasts. If your moves are too big, all you’re doing is giving them a perfect opening to counterattack.”

True to her words, the lady didn’t recklessly strike down.

She stood firm, lifted the sword slightly, brought it down in a short motion, and quickly returned to her original stance.

Each individual attack wasn’t strong enough to cut off an arm. But once she returned to her stance, she looked like a solid fortress—

A fortress that would strike back the moment you attacked it.

“Human bodies are much weaker than monsters’. No matter how much muscle one builds, a blade can still cut through. Even shallow cuts can be fatal if delivered correctly.”

I nodded and imitated her stance exactly.

Holding the sword upright without tilting it to either side, I aimed to keep it as vertical as possible so it could be angled in either direction evenly.

“Excellent.”

The lady gave a faint smile.

And without warning, she struck at me.

A longsword coming down vertically toward my head.

I almost tried to raise my sword horizontally to block it, but then I recalled her advice and instead chose to step back—

Not too far, just about a step.

The sword that was about to fall on my head stopped short in midair and returned to her stance.

Aha.

Because she hadn’t used too much force, the strike didn’t overshoot.

So returning to the position was also easy.

“Even though we’re holding wooden swords, act like you’re holding real blades. If it were a real sword, just brushing against bare skin or fabric would be enough to be lethal. Don’t be conscious of the fact it’s a wooden sword. Don’t think of ‘hitting’— Think of it as ‘placing’ the sword on the enemy’s neck. That’s how Blackwood fights when she’s against you.”

That’s true.

When Blackwood thrusts with her swords, it doesn’t hurt because she’s jabbing hard—

She’s just tapping, but even that is enough for the blade to dig in.

“For someone like you right now, actual combat might actually be harmful.”

I nodded at that.

Because I thought of the wooden sword as a ‘blunt weapon.’

If I were holding a real blade instead, I probably wouldn’t have used as much force when swinging.

Because that would have been enough.

As I exhaled and gripped the sword more firmly again, the lady gave me a faint smile.

The hesitation she had when she first began teaching me—was no longer there.

Good for me, honestly.

“Haa, haa, haa…”

It’s been a while since I’ve felt this proud while drenched in sweat.

‘Consciously moving just slightly’ took more stamina than expected.

It didn’t have the soreness that came from swinging with all my strength, but it required much more focus and control.

“Still, for your first training session, you did really well. Have you ever trained at a dojo or anything?”

“No, I just picked things up here and there while working as an adventurer, learned from watching others, and figured things out while fighting monsters… that sort of thing. Obviously, I can’t compare to people who’ve trained properly.”

I let out a long breath and sat up again.

“But you… you’re amazing. After swinging like that, you’re still standing like it’s nothing.”

I guess my stamina has improved too.

Before coming to the academy, I did train a fair bit on my own, but I never really felt any major growth.

Lately, though—maybe because of sparring with Lady Blackwood or just from moving consistently—I could feel my body becoming lighter.

Like I was starting to really grow.

Honestly, I didn’t feel the same pressure I had when I first entered the academy.

Even so—

“You really worked hard. And you seem to have talent, too.”

At my words, the lady’s eyes wavered slightly.

“N-No, I’m just… average.”

“What? I’m just saying you did well—what’s wrong with that?”

“Compared to my brothers…”

“Oh, come on. That just means your brothers are monsters. From the perspective of a regular person like me, you’re already impressive.”

Huh.

Maybe I complimented her too much?

Did it come across as sarcasm?

But I was being honest.

“Oh, right.”

Before the atmosphere got too awkward, I turned to Siwoo.

“Kind of ended up with just me training, huh? Aren’t you going to take a turn?”

“Huh? Oh, I…”

Siwoo glanced toward the lady.

“Looks like Lady Arnburrow is a bit tired, so I think I’ll just observe for today.”

“Ah, I see…”

That made me feel a little bad.

I turned back to her and said,

“So, now that I’ve learned from you, how should I repay you? If there’s anything I can do, I’d like to help.”

“Ah, no, it’s fine. You don’t need to repay me. Teaching helps the teacher too, you know. I was happy to spar with a Hero candidate for once. In class, I always end up paired with the same people.”

“Ah, right.”

Arnburrow’s usual sparring partner was Siwoo.

And up until now, Siwoo had never beaten her.

…Maybe that’s why he didn’t bother trying to spar today?

“Anyway, thanks for today. Can we train again tomorrow?”

“…Sure. Same time tomorrow, then.”

Just as we were finishing up our agreement—

Grrrgle

My stomach growled.

“…Ah, is it already dinnertime?”

I stood up and stretched with a big yawn.

“Alright, how about we all go grab dinner together?”

“Eh?”

The lady blinked in surprise as if she hadn’t expected that, and I shrugged.

She had said earlier that she didn’t need anything, but still—I felt a little guilty.

I wanted to at least treat her to a meal.

“Ah, um…”

She glanced at Siwoo, and I turned to him as well.

“Would it be okay if the three of us ate together?”

“Of course.”

Siwoo smiled and stood up.

“Shall we head to the cafeteria then?”

“I, um…”

“Oh come on, don’t be like that.”

I gently took the lady’s wrist, and she fell silent.

And so, with her in tow, we headed to the cafeteria.

The dish she chose was, as usual, some kind of stew.

Well, it wasn’t the same one she had at lunch, at least.