The Sword Bears Will (9)

Standing at the center of the mock training ground were me and the opposing new recruit.

Facing each other in the training arena, we quietly bowed our heads in greeting.

“Pleased to meet you!”

“…Pleased to meet you too.”

There was no special aura emanating from my opponent. Just the feeling of an ordinary new recruit.

Conversely, the recruit likely didn’t sense anything extraordinary about me either. After all, how nervous could one get facing a mere maid?

That was precisely the point I needed to exploit in this first spar.

With my opponent underestimating me, now was the easiest time to secure a victory-and a decisive one at that.

Doing so would maximize the experience points gained from the training facility.

And if the experience fell short, it would provide the perfect excuse to demand another match-

claiming my opponent hadn’t taken the spar seriously and requesting a rematch with someone else.

『Remaining EXP: 83』

Lillith’s remaining experience points stood at 83.

For reference, monsters at Level 6 typically yielded around 80 EXP, while Level 7 monsters gave about 120.

Even as a new recruit, someone who made it into the Blackwood Territory Guard must have at least basic combat skills,

so it was safe to assume my opponent was at least Level 6 or 7.

With luck, this might be over in one match. If so, I could wrap up this training session quickly.

If the experience gain fell short… well, I’d cross that bridge when I came to it.

“…Both sides, ready your stances!”

“……”

“……”

Following the signal from Emilia, who was serving as the temporary referee with a deadpan expression, we took our stances.

“Begin!”

At her command, I immediately leaned forward, sword in hand.

My weapon was a single dagger, and in this situation, I couldn’t use any overt magic.

Still, things weren’t hopeless. Finding this dagger in the preparation room had significantly boosted my chances of victory.

In 『Luminor Academy』, Lillith typically grew as a support mage, strengthening the entire team-

but that didn’t mean she was locked into that role with no flexibility.

Her skill tree wasn’t limited to just “offensive magic” and “support magic.”

There was, of course, a skill tree for close combat as well.

Among the three main weapon types Lillith could equip, the “dagger” skill tree naturally existed.

Learning Mana Blast required 5 skill points. I currently had 4.

Leveling up once would grant 3 more points, leaving me with 2 even after unlocking Mana Blast.

Meaning, I could afford to spend 2 points now on a necessary skill for the next level.

With that in mind, right before entering the training ground, I invested in a basic dagger skill.

『Attack Power +15 when equipped with a dagger』

A low-tier skill that boosted attack power by more than Lillith’s base at Level 5.

In the early game, this let her one-shot weak mobs-

though later on, she’d need better gear, and +15 attack would become negligible.

But right now, this early-game skill was exactly what I needed.

Base attack power: 12. With the skill bonus: +15.

Total dagger-equipped attack power: 27.

For comparison, the Level 10 Hookfang had around 30 attack power.

In terms of attack power alone, I was nearly on par with a Level 10 enemy.

And in 『Luminor Academy』, “attack power” encompassed all combat-related stats-

health, strength, agility-everything.

-Clang!

“…Huh?!”

The recruit staggered back a step, visibly startled after our blades clashed mid-air.

His expression betrayed confusion-how could this petite maid possess such strength?

Whether he’d planned to casually disarm me or test my skill before committing, his complacency became his downfall.

-Thud!

“…Guh?!”

The moment I parried his strike, I slammed into him with a shoulder charge, sending him tumbling backward.

I’d subtly reinforced the impact with a shockwave, making it impossible for him to regain balance.

As I pinned him down with one knee on his chest and pressed my dagger to his throat,

the cornered recruit immediately dropped his sword and surrendered.

“…I-I yield!”

His declaration of defeat drew murmurs from the other recruits watching.

They weren’t blind-they could tell he’d held back at first.

But deflecting a soldier’s longsword with a dagger and overpowering a grown man weren’t feats any ordinary maid could pull off.

Still, this wasn’t the time to bask in victory over a guard recruit.

Rising immediately after the match, I clasped my hands and bowed politely.

“…Good match.”

“G-good match…”

Outwardly, it was just a courteous gesture-but my real goal was checking Lillith’s status window for the remaining EXP.

Let’s see, how much more until the next level…?

『Remaining EXP: 43』

…Last I checked, it was 83.

Hoping for 120 was too greedy, but only gaining 40 still felt underwhelming.

Mock training in a facility probably gave reduced EXP compared to real combat.

And that left me with only one option.

“Good work, maid. You can stop now-“

“Is there anyone else who’ll take this seriously?!”

“M-maid?!”

“Is this really the caliber of soldiers who’ll protect Blackwood Territory?! Isn’t there anyone who’ll give me a proper match?!”

With that slightly forced provocation, I strong-armed my way into two more matches-

and only then did I finally escape the grueling grind of Level 5.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

『Lillith has reached Level 6!』

『Lillith can now use Mana Blast!』

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

A dirt road near the Blackwood Territory Guard, meant for carriages.

The carriage carrying the young noble Ethan and Deputy Head Butler Dietmeier rolled quietly along the path, returning to the Blackwood mansion.

With them was Ethan’s personal maid, Lillith, who had dozed off against the carriage wall, exhausted.

“……”

Though she’d shown no signs of fatigue while assisting Ethan into the carriage, she’d clearly been pushing herself.

The smooth ride of Blackwood’s high-end carriage made resistance futile-she succumbed to sleep within minutes.

Ethan could only smile faintly at the sight.

“…Miss Lillith seems quite tired.”

“Yeah.”

“If you’d prefer not to wake her, I can do it.”

“No, let her rest. She must be especially worn out today.”

“Understood.”

A maid falling asleep in front of her noble master was technically disrespectful, but Ethan had no intention of reprimanding her.

Dietmeier, attuned to his feelings, complied without protest.

“What happened at the Blackwood Territory Guard?”

“…Quite a bit.”

The female soldier who’d tried to claim credit from Lillith, the ensuing hierarchy clash,

Lillith’s sudden insistence on joining the mock battles, his repeated attempts to dissuade her,

her eventual proof of skill in the sparring matches, and finally, extracting a sincere apology from Emilia-

after all that, exhaustion was only natural.

‘…Perhaps she’s far more prideful than I realized.’

To demand a mock battle just because a soldier doubted her role in slaying the Hookfang-

he’d always known she was strong-willed, but this level of pride was new.

And the swordsmanship she’d displayed today was nothing to scoff at.

The first opponent might have lost due to carelessness, but the next two matches were no flukes.

His personal maid, Lillith, had secured victories in both, proving her skill.

Though the fights were close, that didn’t diminish her strength.

Especially considering she’d faced longswords with just a dagger-her actual skill likely far surpassed theirs.

…Though he had noticed something odd-a strange, explosive shockwave whenever their blades clashed.

‘…Must’ve been my imagination.’

The idea that Lillith had used magic to gain an edge in a sword fight was absurd.

>

Magic was a divine blessing reserved for blue-blooded nobles.

Besides, whether she could use magic or not wasn’t the point anymore.

After witnessing her ability and determination today, Ethan had already begun envisioning a future for her.

‘When I enroll at the academy in two years… I should take the maid with me.’

Not as his personal maid, but as a fellow student, equal in status.

Letting her talent stagnate as a mere maid would be a waste.

Giving her the chance to learn was the least he could do.

…Of course, this also stemmed from his own selfish desire not to part with her after enrollment.

‘Starting tomorrow, I’ll ask Father to increase my training. And I should begin preparing for the academy entrance exams…’

While Lillith was busy plotting her escape, Ethan was already mapping out her future-

a future she wouldn’t learn about until much later.