Episode 3
Episode 3
Talent varies greatly from person to person.
For example, some people can do ten things after seeing them just once, while others have to work their asses off just to manage one thing.
My talent for swordsmanship is also in the top tier.
Just, unfortunately, in a bad way rather than a good one.
Delit Ajusshi said, 'I doubt you could even handle a knife in the kitchen,' so that pretty much says it all.
Wait, but that's just cooking.
That's different from the swordsmanship for combat that I'm learning now.
Anyway, after about six months of building my basic physical strength and swinging a sword, the result is this.
My talent with the sword showed Delit Ajusshi that even the bottom has a bottom, that cold water has a top and a bottom, and it gave him a whole new perspective on the sword.
"So what do we do now?"
As usual, after finishing my basic physical training, drenched in sweat, I looked at Delit Ajusshi.
He looked deeply troubled by my talent, which defied all imagination.
"Ajusshi? Is my swordsmanship that amazing? You look shocked every time you see it."
His eyes, which had been blankly staring at the sky, slowly lowered and turned toward me.
"This just can't be real."
"What can't be real?"
"You wielding a sword is impossible before I die. No? Even a Swordmaster teaching you personally would give up on this. Seriously."
"Do you have to disparage someone's talent that much?"
"Let's be realistic. You said you want to protect Ivy. But do you think that swordsmanship will work?"
"Hmm, I guess not."
To be honest, I can feel it to some extent too.
The sound the boys make when they swing their swords and hit the scarecrow is different from the sound I make when I hit it.
From the start, for some reason, my sword's point of impact is always off when I swing.
'Is my sense of distance just that bad?'
I looked at the hand that had been holding the sword just moments ago.
Despite all the housework and training, it was still a hand without a single callus, opening and closing repeatedly.
Long live TS power, I guess.
"Then what should I do? Are you telling me to give up?"
After thinking for a long while, I asked him that, and Delit Ajusshi went back into the house.
Dust puffed out from inside, and a clattering sound could be heard.
"Here, let's use this."
A little while later, what Ajusshi brought out was a huge Shield.
When stood upright on the ground, it was almost as tall as me, and if I held it on my arm, I had to tilt it to even move it, it was that big.
Its weight matched its size; it wasn't something I could move easily.
I stared at the Shield Ajusshi was holding and grumbled.
"You want me to use this? Why don't you just say you don't want to teach me? Isn't it a bit ugly to torment a girl like this just because you don't want to teach her..."
At my grumbling voice, Ajusshi flicked my forehead.
*Thwack!* A sound rang out, followed by pain.
I covered my forehead with both hands and glared at Ajusshi.
"Ow! Child abuse..."
"Enough nonsense. I think this is the best way."
"Your best idea is for me to hold a Shield and get hit..."
"To be precise, block with the Shield, and the moment an opening appears, hit them with your fist or foot."
"While others fight with weapons, you want me to do martial arts?"
Delit Ajusshi nodded and began to explain.
"First of all, you're terrible at fighting while holding something. You've tried a sword, a spear, a blunt weapon. You know it yourself by now."
"Hmm..."
At Ajusshi's words, the past training sessions flashed through my mind.
Let's list the weapons I've used so far in order.
First, the sword: No matter how I swing it, the point of impact is wrong. Furthermore, my sense of distance is so off that sometimes I swing the sword but end up so close that I hit with my hand instead. Rejected. The spear has a similar problem. I'm supposed to maintain distance and thrust and swing with the spear tip, but I get too close. So I can't hit with the tip and end up hitting with the shaft, but the blows from a shaft swung by a girl like me don't hurt at all. Finally, the blunt weapon: This is purely a strength issue. The lightest blunt weapon is a stone mace, and that's something only adult men with good strength use. I couldn't even lift it to swing it. Failed. 'Thinking about it like this, there really is no answer.' I even tried the small Shield he suggested at the very beginning, but I lacked the grip strength and wrist strength to hold a dagger and thrust. If I just tried to thrust, my wrist would bend and I'd be the one in pain. I was finally convinced and nodded.
"You're definitely right. Even I think my talent is amazing in many ways."
"Right. So we have to utilize your talent."
"My talent?"
I looked at him as if to ask what he meant, and suddenly Ajusshi threw a peanut he was holding.
*Whoosh!* The peanut cut sharply through the air, flying toward my forehead.
I watched it, confirmed its trajectory, twisted my body slightly, and dodged it.
"If you play with food, you'll be punished by God later."
"How did you dodge that just now?"
"How...? I saw it coming and dodged it, obviously."
"That's your talent."
I tilted my head slightly, still seeming not to understand, and only then did Delit Ajusshi explain.
"The peanut I just threw. I throw that when I'm training kids. I throw it at them to make them focus when their posture is wrong or they're fooling around."
"Is that so? What does that have to do with my talent?"
"Not a single student has ever dodged that until now."
Ajusshi made a throwing motion with the peanut, flicking his wrist.
"It looks like I'm throwing it lightly, but I put some reinforced strength into it, so normally you can't dodge it. Back when I was a mercenary, even the dull ones got hit."
"You're telling me they couldn't dodge this little thing? You're lying."
Honestly, from my perspective, it's slow enough that I could catch it. A fair assessment would be that it looks like a ball thrown in a parabolic arc for a small child. That's why I can watch it leisurely and react.
"It's true. You dodged it with your absurd visual acuity and reaction speed."
"Hmm, let's say that's true. Then shouldn't I be dodging, not blocking? Blocking requires strength too, and I'm lacking in strength."
Techniques using a Shield surprisingly require a lot of strength. You can't deflect every attack, so you need to be able to withstand the opponent's attack even after blocking it. With my current strength, if I try to block an attack, I'll just go flying with the Shield and tumble on the ground.
"We're looking at this futuristically. It's impossible to dodge every attack anyway. If that were possible, everyone would just dodge."
"So you're saying I should practice blocking with the Shield and then hitting?"
"Precisely, deflecting and counterattacking. Deflect it cleanly and land just one hit. That's how you slowly break down your opponent."
I was convinced, for now. Honestly, I'd been considering switching to Magic or becoming a priest over the last six months. My inability to use weapons was just that extreme. This is on the level of receiving a 'weapon use ban' as a reincarnation bonus. 'My skill should just be slow to improve, but this is excessive.' It would be one thing if I were just making no progress, but I couldn't even walk. I held out my hand to Ajusshi, and he handed the Shield he was holding over to me. The heavy Shield, large enough to cover my entire body, was placed in my hands. I gripped the Shield tightly with both hands and looked at Ajusshi.
"So how do we train from today? Are you going to tie me up and hit me or something?"
"What era's training method is that? That's the kind of training only my master would have received."
"Really? I thought we'd start by building calluses."
I said that, reminded of some traditional martial art, but Delit Ajusshi shook his head in disgust.
"From today, we'll focus solely on deflecting and hitting. And we need to train you to handle the Shield like it's part of your body. This is our last hope."
"I guess so. If this doesn't work, I'm going to go learn Magic."
Ajusshi chuckled. It seems he really thinks I have no talent.
"You can ask a mage about that later. For now, block my attack."
"You're going to hit me yourself? Are you trying to get revenge for me not listening sometimes until now... right?!"
He let out a deep sigh, went back inside, and came out holding a stick. The stick reflected the light and shimmered, but it looked strangely soft and wobbly.
"What's that? It looks a bit weird."
"A Slime-made Stick. It's a tool I use when sparring with kids. It doesn't hurt much even if you get hit."
"It really doesn't hurt, right?"
Hearing the uncertainty in my voice, Ajusshi swung the stick. The stick disappeared in an instant. I thought Ajusshi was standing still, but when I came to my senses, he was right in front of me. The movement I usually could see was invisible, and at some point, the stick was touching the top of my head.
"Huh?"
I made a stupid sound and stared blankly at Ajusshi.
"How is it? Doesn't hurt, right? And it's the first time your eyes couldn't follow, isn't it?"
I stared at the stick on my head for a moment, then nodded like a broken machine.
Seeing that, Ajusshi burst out laughing.
"The kid who's always so confident and relaxed can get this scared? You look utterly shocked."
"It was so sudden... I guess. It is startling."
The problem was that I expected him to move like he usually does. Seeing a speed far beyond what I anticipated made me panic greatly. My heart was pounding, and a smile spread across my lips.
"Great. Let's start quickly. My heart's already starting to race!"
"Yeah? Then... start by running."
"Huh? Run?"
Ajusshi smiled and nodded.
"You need to use that Shield like it's part of your body, but there's no way you can do that with your current strength. You need to build up even more stamina than you did for the sword."
"Aah... Seriously...! Aaaah!"
"Yeah, yeah! Start running! After you finish running, let's build up your strength first!"
If I were really a man, I'd have enough strength, and I could even date Ivy. Why did I have to be born as a woman in the Middle Ages and suffer like this? This is discrimination!