Chapter 64

“Damn, I didn’t expect I’d have to take this out again.”

Godwin grumbled as he rummaged through the storage room.

Dust had piled up so much that it whirled around every time he moved.

“Cough.”

Live a little cleaner, will you?

I coughed and stepped back.

And then, a short while later.

“Found it.”

Godwin emerged from the storage room, closing the door behind him.

In his hand, he held a sword.

A menacingly large and heavy blade.

It was the typical sword used for beheadings by executioners.

Despite being cleaned of blood, the smell of death was still strong—enough that I might have shivered if I believed in ghosts.

“We might as well start now.”

Godwin spoke with a hint of irritation.

But of course, he wouldn’t teach carelessly.

He’s a man who keeps his promises.

“Start whenever. I prefer it to be quick.”

“Fine. Let’s start with the stance. Watch carefully.”

Wooosh!

With a fierce motion, Godwin’s sword swooped downward.

I could feel the immense power.

Yet the motion was simple.

To the untrained eye, it looked no different from a normal swing.

But that couldn’t be further from the truth.

“Show it to me again.”

Hush!

Wooosh!

Godwin repeated the same motion twice more.

Then he asked,

“How about it? Did you remember something?”

“I seem to grasp the motion.”

“Well, the motion itself is simple. But it’s not as easy as it looks.”

Meaning, there’s a hidden point that’s not obvious at first glance.

Godwin nodded at me.

“You have a sword, try swinging it.”

“Will do.”

I drew the sword I brought.

It was Max’s sword, originally.

As befitting a rich brat, he had a pretty good sword, so I kept using it.

“Hmm.”

I recalled the motion I had seen earlier and took my stance.

And then.

Swish!

I swung the sword.

But.

I could immediately tell something was lacking.

This wasn’t it.

There needed to be something more to the cutting motion.

“Twice more.”

Swish!

Swipe!

Following Godwin’s instruction, I swung twice more.

Of course, it felt no different from the first swing.

Because it wasn’t something I could correct on my own.

“Do you see what’s wrong?”

“The core seems to be missing, though the motion is similar.”

“You’ve got some sense. Maybe it’s because you’re an academy student.”

Godwin lifted his sword again.

“Pay attention, I’ll explain.”

This time, he swung the sword slowly.

When the sword was perfectly horizontal, he stopped.

“Right here.”

“Here?”

“Yes, it’s here that you add a very quick, additional force.”

Whooom!

Godwin’s sword sliced through the air with renewed strength.

“Understand?”

“This technique isn’t a single cut, it’s a splitting strike. It’s too fast to notice at a glance.”

“A splitting strike…?”

I was surprised, hearing this for the first time.

So you apply force twice to split the motion into two beats?

What is this?

Isn’t this way harder than learning skills in a game?’

In the game, you can learn skills easily with just a few clicks.

Hence, I had never heard of splitting strikes or anything like it.

I was only praised as a quick learner,

But here, it was completely different.

I had to learn the skill with my body, my movements, my senses.

That’s why I couldn’t properly follow the first motion.

It’s tough right from the start, very tough.

But the sense of accomplishment when mastered will be immense.

“Right, from that position, apply force and split it into two quick strikes. Watch.”

Whooosh!

Whooom!

Godwin demonstrated twice more.

After hearing the explanation, I started to see something I hadn’t noticed before.

During the cut, the strength intensified and the sword fell sharply.

That must be the power of the splitting strike.

“Give it a try.”

Before Godwin could finish speaking, I moved first.

Swiing!

Swish!

Swiish!

I attempted the splitting strike, but the sound of my blade cutting air still wasn’t satisfactory.

The timing was off, and I wasn’t used to adding a sudden force in the middle.

I kept recalling Godwin’s movements and timing as I continued to cut.

After how many attempts of swinging at the empty air…

Whooosh!

Finally, a cut with proper strength emerged.

At that moment.

[You have learned ‘Executioner’s Strike’.]

-A strike with the resolve of an executioner to kill a condemned prisoner in one blow.

-Proficiency 0.1%

‘Finally.’

A notification window popped up to inform me that I had learned the skill.

Because I had executed the motion precisely for the first time.

Now, the Executioner’s Strike had become one of my skills.

But.

‘This isn’t nearly enough.’

Proficiency 0.1%

It’s simply not usable in real combat.

To be decent, the proficiency has to be at least in the double digits.

The proficiency of the Focus shot I practice daily without fail is just about 10% now.

Of course, even when it was less than 1%, the concentrated shot was so advanced that it was as powerful as a mid-level skill.

But the Executioner’s Strike is not on that level.

It’s just the beginning, and constant training is a must.

“Huh, I thought it would take days, but you know how to handle a sword better than I thought.”

It was much quicker in the game, though.Let’s move on to the next step then.

I know what this is.

Because it’s the same training we did in the game.

Still, I followed the rhythm.

“What’s the next step?”

“Splitting a fixed object.”

———————————————

“Are you sure it’s here?”

“According to the map, it seems to be the right place.”

“Ah, which crazy person asked for logs to be delivered here?”

“Definitely a crazy one. But a crazy one with a lot of money, what are you going to do about it?”

“Come on, let’s finish the job quickly and drink to our heart’s content.”

A group of burly men carefully placed the logs on the ground.

They repeated the process not just once but several times.

Before long, 100 logs were laid out on the ground.

Only then did the men catch their breath and dust off their hands.

“Good job, everyone. Let’s go down.”

————————————————-

As soon as Hiresia arrived at the hideout on Mount Harkin, she looked incredulously at the logs piled up on one side.

“What’s this?”

“Logs.”

“I know they’re logs, but why are they here?”

“For practice. Swordsmanship.”

Hiresia squinted and alternated her gaze between me and the logs.

Then she said,

“Does the swordsmanship hall now ask for such things?”

“Ah, I graduated from there. It’s for new swordsmanship training.”

“You’ve been attending diligently and indeed graduated huh.”

“What do you see me as, senior? I’m a remarkable talent who ranked second in the archery evaluation.”

Second in the class.

When she heard the news, Hiresia tried not to show it openly, but her pleasure was unmistakable.

I was also glad, of course, to have upheld the honor of the woman who had taught me archery with such dedication.

Of course, no one else knows yet that she’s my teacher.

Normally, achieving such impressive results would only be possible a year later.

It was possible due to the relatively lower level of the second year and the power of Focus Shot.

Normally, this would be the end of learning from Hiresia, who is almost impossible to learn any new technique beyond mastering the basics.

That’s why it was my course to leave without regret and look for another archery teacher.

But now.

The situation was different.

Very different.

First, our relationship had become close enough to teach me an advanced skill like Focus.

Plus, her slight sprout of fondness for me after the incident at the lake.

Therefore.

My choice completely changed.

Especially since she naturally began to teach me a new technique without even asking.

And that technique was rapid shooting.

The core skill I always admired.

‘This is the power of fate.’

It’s true in reality, but especially in this game.

There’s a reason hardcore gamers emphasize relationships as the core.

“Hmph, don’t be arrogant. Not that you lack talent, but, hm hm…”

I couldn’t help but laugh at Hiresia’s attitude.

Regardless of the relationship, her recognition of me was certain.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t say such things, being an elf.

“But, seriously.”

“Yes?”

“Suddenly training with such things? Seems a bit excessive, doesn’t it?”

“Shall I show you?”

“Hmm, go ahead.”

“Watch as much as you like.”

I approached where the logs were.

I drew my sword.

I realized it was the first time I was drawing a sword in front of Hiresia.

“Ho, your posture is quite good.”

Hiresia muttered.

She doesn’t use swords, but it seems she could tell with her discernment.

“Phew.”

I took a deep breath.

A method to enhance concentration.

And then.

I executed the executioner’s blow.

Whoosh!

Thud!

The thick log was split in half in an instant.

Tremendous power.

Impossible with Imperial Style No. 8.

“Huh, not bad?”

Hiresia seemed surprised at the unexpected level.

Her shoulders shrugged slightly.

“That’s a splitting cut? There’s such a strong cutting method.”

Hiresia grasped it immediately.

Her discernment was indeed on a different level from mine.

“It’s a technique filled with a man’s determination. I’m still quite unskilled, though.”

“That’s the end?”

“Yes, that’s it.”

“A strong blow, but it seems quite insufficient on its own?”

“Ah, that.”

I sheathed my sword and continued.

“It’s not part of swordsmanship per se, it was created solely with the intention of beheading with a single blow.”

“Intention of beheading with a single blow? There are some unique techniques out there.”

“The world is wide and there are many people.”

I decided not to explain further for the sake of mental health.

It’s not a cheerful topic, talking about executioners and such.

“But the training isn’t over, is it?”

“Of course not. I’m going to finish with archery and then wrap up.”

“Because you’re wary of me?”

“It’s not that, it’s just basic courtesy. How could I practice other techniques in front of a special teacher?”

The word ‘special’ I carelessly uttered seemed to have touched Hiresia’s emotions.

I could feel her pointed ears twitch.

Her face also turned slightly red.

“Well, you speak well.”

“It’s just the obvious thing to say.”

I also felt warmer.

It was usually comfortable, but when the atmosphere turned subtle, it was not easy to interact with Hiresia.

Because I knew her feelings.

The darn notification window had shown the precise emotion of ‘fondness.’

It’s still a small fondness, but that’s not easy either.

‘She’s a good woman in many ways…’

The countless memories of failure I experienced while playing the game.

Because of those memories, it was burdensome to seriously advance the relationship.

And another thing.

Her personality changes completely after the mid-point, which was also a concern.

At least I wanted to prevent that.

The Hiresia I feel affection for and like is with her current personality.

I wanted to preserve that.

“Senior.”

“Uh…? Uh, yes.. What?”

“Let me know if anything happens.”

“What do you mean?”

“I might be able to help. That’s why.”

“I will.”

Hiresia answered, lowering her eyes slightly.

Her embarrassment was clearly visible.

Honestly, it was an awkward topic for me to bring up as well, but it seemed like something that needed to be said.

Anyway, after saying it, I felt somewhat relieved.

“Well, I’ll practice rapid shooting now.”

And with that, I went back to my usual archery training.