The Sweet Aftertaste of a Failed Duel

I stared blankly at the training grounds, utterly puzzled. The last time I was in a place like this was with Levius...

"...Why is Elfride here with me now?"

"Huh? What did you say, Abel?"

"Nothing, sorry."

Elfride had already changed into comfortable training clothes. What a shame. She looked so beautiful.

Watching her loosen her body, I asked in a puzzled tone.

"...What weapon shall we use?"

"Training steel sword."

"...Understood."

She really wanted a proper spar. I glanced at Celine. She was eyeing Elfride with a displeased look.

"Celine, it's fine. Don't worry and just watch."

"...Yes."

Elfride would hold back appropriately too. Honestly, even if I had grown stronger, I didn't think I could beat her one-on-one after seven years of experience as a hero.

If it were monsters, sure, but... I had never properly learned swordsmanship. Dealing with people was probably even harder.

...So that's why I always struggle against knight-class monsters? Because I don't know sword techniques properly?

"Hmph."

"Abel, take this."

Elfride handed me the training steel sword. Made of iron to build combat sense, but blunted so it wouldn't hurt during sparring.

"Like this?"

"Why, is the usual form uncomfortable for you?"

"It's a bit unfamiliar."

"It's fine. After all, I don't use a rapier either."

But still...

"By the way, Elfride, suddenly wanting to spar now feels weird."

"Are you just noticing now?"

"Well, somehow..."

Elfride stood on the opposite side and said.

"I just want to see the growth of a hero like you."

"...Really?"

Why was she smiling so meaningfully the whole time...?

Elfride gripped the sword and assumed a stance, still smiling faintly.

Smiling makes her even more beautiful... Yeah, beautiful... but somehow scary. I guess the atmosphere was off.

"...Please be gentle."

"A hero who defeated an Agares-class monster is acting spoiled."

"That's because the Saint did all of it..."

Elfride took her stance. I didn't know much about sword techniques, but just from her posture I could tell it was solid.

"Ready, Abel? Here we go."

"...Yes."

As expected, Elfride was exceptional at the basics. I didn't think we'd be able to fight like with Levius. I lightly bent my waist and lowered my sword diagonally.

"...An interesting stance."

Elfride gave a short evaluation of my pose and stomped the ground. She came first?

Elfride was incredibly fast. Fast enough to treat Levius as a joke. Was this the state without blessings?

Clang!

Elfride's sword struck mine, and I countered by raising it diagonally to block.

If I hadn't fought many high-risk monsters recently and grown stronger, I probably wouldn't have reacted in time. Elfride was that agile.

Whish!

"Eh!?"

"Excellent reaction speed. If it were Levius, I'd have my chin hit."

...How did she pull that off? We were clearly locked in a sword clash, yet Elfride suddenly escaped the struggle and swung toward my chin.

Had I messed up somehow?

But I quickly realized the thought was wrong. During my attacks and Elfride's counterattacks, the same situation repeated several times, and each time Elfride voluntarily broke the locked stance to seize an opening.

"...What was that?"

"Abel, you are a hero, but not a swordsman."

"Huh?"

"It means you don't know much about sword techniques. Am I wrong?"

...Right.

Would I even grab such a thing? In my hometown, swinging a sword like that would get me arrested for carrying a dangerous weapon.

"...Correct."

"If one can defeat powerful monsters without learning sword techniques... then proper training would shine even brighter."

"Huh?"

"May I make a suggestion?"

Clang!

I barely defended against Elfride's sharp incoming slash while asking.

"A suggestion?"

"I will teach you sword techniques."

"?"

Really?

"Yes, for example..."

Clang! Elfride pushed my sword away and stepped back slightly. She then lowered her waist and sword.

《Essence》

For a moment, her blade gleamed. A ray of light shot out like a spear, and before I could even react, it was swinging right in front of my eyes.

"Start from the basics. Including these techniques."

"...Huh."

The steel sword sparkled in the sunlight. Under the clear rays, the golden hair of the woman swinging her blade shone brilliantly like the sun.

In the blink of an eye, the woman who approached and swung her sword... was smiling.

I didn't react at all just now... Wait, why is she smiling so menacingly!?

"It will hurt a little, Abel."

"Eek."

Smack!!!

#

"...S-sorry, Abel. Are you okay?"

"...It hurts."

"Just hold on a little longer, Sir Hero."

Celine and I sat roughly on the training grounds floor together. She wasn't doing anything intimate; she was using her divine power to heal the bruise Elfride had left on my shoulder.

"I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to hit that hard..."

Elfride must have failed to hold back her strength. Honestly, when the steel swords clashed, I thought my shoulder bone would shatter.

It really hurt like hell....

"By the way, will you really teach me sword techniques?"

"Ah, y-yes. Abel, if it pleases you, I can teach you anything."

"Um."

"Ah, wait a moment. A maid has come."

While Elfride stepped out to meet the maid, I asked Celine.

"Celine, what do you think?"

"...If the Hero properly learns sword techniques, it should definitely help with growth. It's something everyone wants, so I have no objection."

"Really?"

"If I could teach you, I would, but I can't handle it as well as Elfride does."

Now that I thought about it, Celine had said she knew how to use a sword to some extent.

"Celine, did you see the technique Elfride used just now?"

"Yes."

"That was an amazing technique, right? I don't know much about swordsmanship, but I felt that."

"Yes. I knew Elfride was skilled, but I didn't expect it to be that high."

Celine added with a smile.

"So even without ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the blessings, she was able to fight at that level."

"...Not enough?"

"It wasn't a problem with Saint Cynthia. It meant you were lacking compared to Saint Estelle. Well, Saint Estelle's blessings are a bit... different, aren't they?"

"I know what you mean."

After receiving Celine's blessings, I had clearly understood that.

...The blessings from Estelle were truly cheat keys.

But Elfride had defeated Barbatos-class monsters without any blessings. If we assume her blessings were on the same level as Celine and Saint Cynthia's... I had barely managed to catch a Leviathan-class one.

I understood why I couldn't even touch the opponent in the spar just now.

"What if Elfride received Estelle's blessings?"

"...Well, I don't think Saint Estelle would bless Elfride, but if she did..."

"What would happen then?"

Celine cautiously offered an opinion.

"She probably wouldn't lose to Agares-class knight monsters either."

"...I see."

So that's the level. As expected, I was still far behind.

After all, it was unrealistic to catch up to Elfride, who had spent seven years as a hero, in just a few months. My recent strong performances were only possible because of Estelle's cheat-key blessings.

"Then there's even more reason to learn sword techniques."

"It would be good to learn. But, Hero."

"Yes?"

"To learn sword techniques from Elfride, you would have to stay at this mansion or travel with her. How do you plan ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to handle that?"

...Hmm?

To learn from Elfride as suggested, we would need to be together, so we would have to stay in the same place.

"I'll ask Elfride when she comes back."

"Actually, we have Alicia here."

"Ah."

Right.

Even if we stayed at the mansion, we couldn't keep Alicia and Estelle in an inn forever. And even if we traveled together, we couldn't take Alicia with Elfride.

"Should I give up on sword techniques..."

"What if Celine and the Saint alternate taking care of Alicia?"

"...That would be too much of a burden on the two of you."

"Saint Estelle would understand if you told her it's for learning sword techniques. Even if Saint Estelle trains you well, the one who can't teach you sword techniques is the Saint."

Um... that's true. Right now, I wasn't really using sword techniques; I was just swinging the sword. Of course, I had gained some applications through experience, but it definitely wasn't proper swordsmanship yet.

The reason I gained an advantage in speed when facing monsters was partly that. If I clashed head-on with skill, I would likely lose.

"...First, I'll talk to Elfride separately and decide."

"Yes. Ah, of course."

"Huh?"

"You don't smoke, do you?"

"...I don't think there's a chance."

A child from a great ducal ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠family like Elfride with a commoner like me. Well, Elfride wasn't as authoritarian as Levius, but still, in this era, status was incredibly important.

"Why do you think that? I'm the one who should be worried."

"What are you worried about? Elfride is a child of the Bathory Ducal family, a great ducal house, and I'm a villager from a small rural village called Daisy. Unless we're friends, there's no way. We both know the line."

"...That makes me even more uneasy."

"Really? That's odd."

I asked Celine.

"Have I been lacking in affection lately?"

"...There's a little of that, but that's not the reason."

"Then I haven't been trusting you enough."

I gently held Celine's hand. Seeing that, Celine narrowed her eyes and said.

"...Hero, do you have something else in mind?"

"What? I just held your hand."

"...Yes, you do know the line... Eek!?"

Clop! When I kissed her, Celine's face flushed bright red. Laughing at her adorable reaction, I said.

"I don't have the romantic delusions that would make me ignore the barrier of great status. There won't be anything like that."

"...Would you have thought that even if I were a noble?"

"...You might be different, Celine. Estelle too."

"What do you mean."

Hehe.

"Abel, sorry for keeping you waiting."

At that moment, Elfride returned. Where had she been with the maid?

"Have you finished your duties?"

"A guest came for a moment. I told the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠maid to handle it."

"...Huh?"

Elfride, you should have gone yourself.

"By the way, Abel, that hand..."

"Yes?... Ah."

I quickly pulled away the hand holding Celine's because I was sorry. I had been doing affection in another person's mansion training grounds. Celine didn't say anything, understanding.

Instead, someone else spoke.

"...Looks like we'll have to do it one more time."

"...Huh?"

"Pick up the sword again, Abel. Rematch."

Why!?

#

Back in the room, I flopped onto the bed. My whole body ached.

Ever since I got injured once, there were no bruises where Elfride held back, but the places where I was hit still stung.

"Ah..."

"You've suffered, Sir Hero."

Celine entered the room and came over to the bed. She sat down beside me gently and ruffled my hair slightly. As her white fingers slid between the strands, I felt strangely good.

"Are there any sore spots?"

"Not really... just a bit sore."

"It should heal with a little rest."

So I wanted to sleep deeply....

"Celine, go rest in your room too."

"My room is here, though?"

"...Huh?"

What the hell?

When I looked at her in surprise, Celine smiled faintly and said.

"I secretly told the maid to move it. See, my luggage is over there too."

...She really did.

"No, but is it okay? Even if it is, a man and woman in one room at another person's mansion..."

"We're lovers; who can say anything?"

"...Um."

"And if I say a little more, what then? I already..."

Celine lowered her head slightly. Then, in a soft, sweet voice, she whispered right next to my ear.

"...You are Abel's property♥"

......I really wanted to rest today.

"Rest~♥ Who said what?"

Even while saying that, Celine was smiling hypnotically. An irresistible, seductive smile that I couldn't refuse.

...Ah, seriously.

"...I'll go wash up."

"Yes~♥"

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