Chapter 19: The Swordsmanship Guild
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 19: The Swordsmanship Guild
“Why not!?”
Piole shouted. I was dumbfounded. Was it because Andrei had spoiled her rotten? Piole acted as if she were the center of the universe. Honestly, for someone her age, it was a pathetic sight.
“Do you really think sparring with you is more valuable than a training session with Sir Andrei? So valuable that I should agree to leave this place as the price?”
“Ugh. Then you set a condition, too!”
This was the very thing I’d been waiting for. If you can’t get a pheasant, a chicken will do. The more ways to gain experience points, the better.
“Then let’s say the match is decided only when one of us gives up.”
“Aha~ You think you can endure? Hah, you think it’s as easy as it sounds? I won’t go easy on you like my father did. I’ll keep going until the word ‘surrender’ comes out of your mouth. It’ll be too late for regrets then!”
Piole seemed utterly convinced of her victory. I felt the same way.
There was no way I, who had wasted my talent and time on a scoundrel’s life, could beat a skilled fighter who had trained at the swordsmanship guild since childhood.
Nevertheless, I readjusted my grip on my sword. This wasn’t a duel I intended to win. I subtly glanced down to check the message that had appeared in the bottom right of my vision.
[Calculating experience points. The opponent’s level is high. You will acquire bonus experience points.]
The message, which had appeared the moment I pointed my sword at Piole, confirmed that she was indeed the strongest fighter in the guild, second only to Andrei.
This was a chance to gain experience. Even if I won, there was no way Piole would surrender gracefully, which meant I might be able to farm experience points from this continuously.
“Hmph! Let’s see how long that confidence lasts!”
Piole, misinterpreting my smile, suddenly thrust her sword. The blade, which had been pointed up from her waist, shot out like lightning. In that instant, time began to slow.
‘This is… Sir Andrei’s…?’
Piole’s attack, now moving in slow motion, felt familiar. One memory led to another. As Piole’s sword still struggled through the slowed time, my body moved before my mind could think.
First, I took a step forward diagonally, then gathered all my strength and swung my sword in a diagonal slash.
Clang.
Piole’s sword was knocked away before it could reach my neck. Through the sparks that flew in all directions, I could see her eyes widening.
If I had managed a counterattack, it would have been a perfect replication of the technique Andrei had shown me yesterday. Of course, this alone was surprising enough.
As the world gradually returned to its normal speed, Piole’s expression crumpled like a piece of wadded-up paper.
“You… you bastard! Who the hell do you think you’re copying!?”
The real reason I’d been able to block her attack was that she had been holding back. I realized this as I watched her sword, now moving much faster.
I belatedly brought my sword up to block its path, but Piole’s blade had already struck my left forearm.
“Ugh…”
Thanks to the chainmail, I wasn’t cut, but the unresolved force of the blow penetrated through it, sending a wave of intense pain. It would definitely leave a nasty bruise.
There was no time to dwell on the pain. Piole had already retrieved her sword and was launching another attack.
Once again, her strike was faster than my body could react. This time, a few links of my chainmail snapped and fell away.
The shock I felt was even greater. I almost dropped my sword without realizing it. It was frustrating, so frustrating. If I hadn't seen the attack coming, I could have accepted it, but how could I fail to block it when I knew exactly where she was aiming? I felt like I was trapped in the prison of my own body.
“What’s wrong? Why don’t you try being arrogant again?”
Unlike me, Piole was only slightly out of breath, showing no signs of having used her full strength.
I suppressed the pain and raised my sword. I twisted my body diagonally to narrow her range of attack and created distance to buy my sluggish body time to react.
Piole’s brow twitched.
“You think that’s going to stop me!?”
Her sword rained down on my body relentlessly. My chainmail was quickly reduced to tatters. The body hidden beneath it couldn’t be much different. Her sword was still faster than my reactions.
“Just give up already! Don’t blame me if you end up a cripple!”
Just as she said, my whole body was creaking. Even the throbbing pain that had been rattling my skull had vanished. That was even more frightening. If this duel continued, a part of my body might really get broken.
And yet, I held up my sword.
“This is nothing.”
I admit it. I’m an idiot. A scoundrel. So what? Is there some law that says idiots and scoundrels have to give up? I even knew the painful consequences of surrendering.
I love my life as a scoundrel, and I will protect it no matter what. To do that, I need power. The power to stop anyone from taking what’s mine. The power to take everything I desire.
It would be one thing if I couldn’t see a way forward, but my experience points were rising in real-time. Give up? I may be an idiot and a scoundrel, but I wasn’t a fool.
Piole’s face twisted in a scowl.
“You, really—”
“I don’t understand why you’re so worked up. Are you that furious that your respected father was put in a difficult situation because of me?”
My father, Maxim Tobalts, had already apologized and provided compensation. For nobles who valued their honor, an apology was similar to a state’s official statement, with an expression of regret being the most one could expect. Considering that, my father had done more than enough.
“Or is there another reason?”
Piole gritted her teeth.
“Shut up—!”
The storm of blows that followed was ferocious. She also began aiming for my vital points instead of my arms or thighs. And yet, I felt like I could handle it.
‘She’s slowed down.’
Her assault was still fast and sharp. Her actual speed hadn’t changed. But my eyes, which saw the beginning and end of every attack, were telling me she had definitely slowed down. I soon understood why. As her emotions seeped into her sword, her movements had become larger.
‘Clean movements create speed.’
In that moment, the world slowed down even more. It was as if everything had come to a standstill. This was beyond simply having good eyes.
I observed myself, comparing my movements to Piole’s. The difference was clear. My entire body was covered in useless, even detrimental, flourishes.
I consciously began to shed them, one by one—a task only possible in a frozen world. The moment I cast off those unnecessary movements…
Clang—
Sparks flew once more.
The sword aimed at my neck was deflected into the air. It was the first time this had happened, excluding the first exchange where Piole had gone easy on me. For a brief moment, my body stopped screaming and cheered. I grinned at Piole, who looked completely dumbfounded, as if she couldn’t believe it.
“So, this is how you do it?”
Piole’s gaze fell to her own lowered sword. Her pupils trembled slightly. Her expression was one of disbelief. Then again, even I, who had done it, found it hard to believe. How must she feel?
Soon, her face turned shades of red and purple.
“Fuck—! Now of all times! Now! I won’t allow it!!”
After a moment of silence, an even greater storm erupted. Her assault was faster, her movements larger than before, but her speed had increased enough to overcome that. Was this Piole’s full power?
The thought that I might actually die flashed through my mind. I didn’t dare try to block, focusing only on avoiding the vital spots.
Piole’s sword hammered my entire body. The chainmail had long since been reduced to rags. Attacks slipped through the gaps, tearing through the cloth armor underneath and finally drawing blood.
This had clearly gone beyond a duel. Yet, no one thought to stop it. Jin, who had been watching from the stone wall, could no longer stand it and raised her voice.
“This isn’t a duel or anything of the sort! This is just bullying!”
The trainees, who had gathered around the training ground just like yesterday, avoided Jin’s gaze and simply watched nervously. One of them spoke up.
“Only Sir Andrei can stop Lady Piole.”
He meant that only her father, Sir Andrei, could handle Piole’s reckless personality and her position as the master’s daughter. That answer was unlikely to please Jin.
“Cowards.”
As she spoke, a dagger with a blade the length of her forearm was already in her hand. The trainees, their shock evident, backed away from her. Just as Jin slipped through the gap to step between Allen and Piole and stop the duel…
An outstretched scabbard blocked her path.
“Who—!”
Jin, glaring up at the owner of the scabbard, flinched. Andrei, a vassal knight of Quaran and the master of the swordsmanship guild, was suddenly standing beside her, his eyes never leaving the duel between Allen and Piole.
“Were you really serious?”
Andrei recalled Allen looking him straight in the eye the other day, saying he wanted to become stronger. Honestly, he hadn’t believed him. Wasn’t this the kid who ran around causing all sorts of trouble?
He had wondered what other scheme he was plotting. That was why he had put the sale of the fishing rights on hold. But now, seeing the eyes that still searched for an opportunity while being brutally beaten, the eyes that belonged to a man still gripping his sword tightly, told Andrei that Allen had truly changed.
“I’ll have to make a proper report. But, before that—”
Andrei launched himself forward. Despite being in full gear, he was as fast as the wind. Thanks to that, he was able to intervene just as Piole’s sword broke through Allen’s defense and was about to pierce his neck.
Clang—
With a light swing of his scabbard, Andrei sent Piole’s sword flying. Piole, who barely managed to recover her weapon, shouted.
“Dad! We’re in the middle of a duel!”
Andrei, sheathing his scabbard back at his waist, looked down at his daughter. His gaze was so cold it was hard to believe it was directed at his own child. It was a coldness Piole had never faced before.
Piole flinched and took a step back.
“Dad…?”
“Piole. Haven’t I told you time and again? No matter the situation, you must keep a cool head. Open your eyes and look properly.”
Andrei gestured toward Allen with his chin. Only then did Piole calm down and look at Allen properly. He was frozen in his sword-wielding stance.
If Andrei hadn’t blocked the blow, his neck would have been pierced, yet he stood as still as a statue.
“…!”
The moment she met his empty, unfocused eyes, Piole instinctively took another step back. Andrei clicked his tongue.
“He’s already lost consciousness.”
“Since when…?”
“You were his opponent, Piole. You should know.”
His words were a reprimand. Piole had been aiming for his vitals without even realizing her opponent had passed out.
“I’m sorry. I was just…”
“Hmph.”
Andrei did not accept Piole’s apology. This wasn’t a simple matter he could just forgive. If that last attack had landed, he would have had to face a duel with Maxim Tobalts so dangerous it would make their previous one look like child’s play.
After all, Allen was the sole heir of the Tobalts family. That hot-headed knight would never have let it slide.
Piole realized just how angry her father was. Biting her lip, she glared at the unconscious Allen before turning her back.
“I really hate you—”
The sword she dropped clattered to the ground. Jin, who had quietly approached Andrei’s side, watched her walk away and asked.
“Were the two of them always on such bad terms?”
Andrei let out a faint smile.
“On the contrary. Piole was the one who followed him around. It was understandable, I suppose. He was handsome and had an exceptional talent she lacked, so she couldn’t help but look up to him. He wasn’t a scoundrel back then, either.”
In those days, Piole was stuck to Allen like glue. Anyone would have thought they were blood-related siblings.
“Then why…?”
“It’s just as the shock of betrayal is greater when it comes from someone you trust. Because she liked him, she came to hate him even more.”
A love-hate relationship. That was the most fitting term to describe Piole’s feelings for Allen.
“Surely, she doesn’t still have lingering feelings for him, does she?”
“Who knows? How can a parent ever fully understand their child’s heart? I can only hope that this incident helps her mature a little.”
In the end, the person Andrei was truly worried about was Piole. Seeing that, Jin’s expression turned melancholic as she was reminded of someone else.
“Piole…?”
It was around then that I woke up.
“She has left.”
“What about the match?”
Jin shrugged.
“Then I have won.”
I declared my victory with confidence. Piole was the one who gave up first, so it was rightfully my win. Andrei bowed his head.
“My apologies. I didn’t know Piole would be so reckless. This is clearly my fault.”
I shook my head.
“It takes two hands to clap. If there is blame to be had, I, who accepted the duel, share it.”
“Hmm. Thank you for saying so. Starting tomorrow, I will arrange for someone else to take Piole’s place.”
“Is he stronger than Piole?”
“He will be a better teacher than Piole.”
I shook my head again. I needed not only a good teacher but also a strong opponent. Was it because the duel was longer? The experience I gained from sparring with Piole was greater than what I got from Andrei.
“The match has not yet been decided.”
I was saying I would continue the duel tomorrow. Andrei’s eyes widened before curving into a smile.
“You really have changed.”
“More importantly, how did your business go?”
“It will take more time. Rights like these can become seeds of future conflict.”
Rights such as taxation and fishing, along with succession rights, often served as justifications for territorial wars.
Of course, that probably wasn’t his concern. I was just the son of a knight with a small manor, and one with a notorious reputation as a scoundrel at that. He was likely just being extra cautious, the type to tap even a stone bridge before crossing. In any case, I also needed time to raise the money.
“Take your time, even if it takes a while.”
“Then I suppose I’ll have to teach you swordsmanship for free until then, won’t I? I can’t have that. No, certainly not.”
“Speaking of which, may I request a sparring session?”
“In your condition?”
Andrei’s eyes widened. As an experienced knight, he seemed to have guessed the state of my body just by looking at me. In truth, there wasn’t a single part of me that didn’t ache. However…
“You’ll go easy on me, won’t you, Sir Andrei?”
I couldn’t just let an opponent who would give me more experience points than Piole walk away. There was no guarantee when we would meet again.
“Haha. I don’t dislike a desperate man. Get ready.”
That day, I achieved a level up. Even if it was a low level, it was a triumphant feat to accomplish in a single day.