Chapter 3
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: The Extra is Suspiciously Strong
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How does one turn the Lady into a one-and-only?
To achieve that, I first had an important task ahead of me.
'I need to get stronger.'
Dawn of the morning.
I sat on the rooftop of the training grounds during the time when the clearest air filled the world.
The Lady was the world's greatest genius.
Ironically, it was that very genius holding her back.
Every swordsmanship instructor assigned to her gave up teaching after sensing the limits of their own talents.
Or those who could match her evenly fell away before long.
True to her world-class talent, the Lady grew at a terrifying pace.
Most ordinary people lost their will after being devoured by her talent at that point.
Like surrounding stars fading before an overwhelmingly bright light.
The Lady's brilliance was simply too radiant.
But this wasn't limited to the ordinary folk who passed through her life.
At an early age, she realized she had no equals among her peers, let alone her generation.
Thus, her swordsmanship naturally lost its drive and motivation to improve.
In a situation where she could beat anyone anyway.
Why bother with grueling effort?
Her dazzling talent was poison.
Gradually, the number of times she picked up her sword decreased.
Not only that, but during spars, since her opponents were too weak, she even picked up the bad habit of going easy on them.
As a result, she even forgot how to pour her full effort into a fight, and her growth stalled.
Of course, the Lady was a genius.
Even if her growth had stopped, it was only by her standards.
Compared to others, she was still steadily honing her sword.
'Insights that others need tens of thousands of swings to grasp, she'd get in just one.'
Yet even that amounted to stagnation by her own measure.
But there was a point when the Lady started seriously wielding her sword again.
Leharion Perzan.
After first tasting defeat at his hands, her eyes rolled back in shock.
Having felt the bitterness of loss for the first time in her life, she swung her sword every single day.
Her swordsmanship rode an upward curve once more.
I remember that day vividly.
As her Exclusive Knight, Ision couldn't do it, but the protagonist could.
And that very thing would drag the Lady to ruin.
Thinking of Leharion's face made my teeth grind.
Still, I forcibly calmed myself and lifted my head.
'In the end, what the Lady needs is...'
A mentor to guide her sword toward even greater brilliance.
Though that would only be temporary, until her skills got back on track.
Then the most crucial part was...
'The role of a rival.'
The Lady flipped out upon seeing Leharion because it was her first defeat.
Of course, at this point in time, she'd experience defeat again.
Her current age was just eight.
Beating an adult whose sword talent had fully bloomed would be tough.
But even at this stage, she had no losses against kids her generation.
Once she grew more, few in the older generations would be able to beat her.
'So I need to make her taste defeat before she gets too used to winning.'
A precarious rival dynamic afterward, one that would keep making her want to challenge again and again.
To create that, Ision had no choice but to desperately grow stronger.
That's why he had come here today.
His gaze reached the sky.
Above the sky sunk in deep navy blue.
At the eastern horizon, pitch-black darkness gradually lightened, forming a boundary of cold hues.
Stars faded one by one as if catching their breath, while a few unyielding ones twinkled like a last stand of pride in between.
The strengths of this world were divided into three categories.
One was physical strength.
To stand by the Lady's side, I'd trained relentlessly without regard for means or methods.
No matter what else, my durability back then was top-tier, I could confidently say.
It wasn't for nothing that I was treated like the Lady's sandbag as her Exclusive Knight.
Bodies that could withstand the sword of the world's second strongest weren't common.
So now, armed with knowledge alone, I could forge a body at its peak.
The second was aura.
A power born from the condensation of body, mind, and will, flowing outward.
Unlike magic, which borrows external laws, it was closer to an inner flame originating from one's very existence.
Some called aura training the process of turning oneself into a sword.
Ision agreed with that view.
Aura was the path to becoming a weapon oneself.
Who could become a famed sword depended on how thoroughly one tempered their aura.
Aura was strengthened across a total of ten circles.
'Right now, I'm barely at the level of resonating with aura.'
As the Lady's Exclusive Knight, Ision wasn't without talent either.
1st Circle Resonance was the most basic stage.
Most talented peers lingered around this level.
And from memory, at this point, the Lady was at 3rd Circle Manifestation.
By age fifteen, she'd reach 6th Circle Individualization.
'What they commonly call the master's domain starts at 6th Circle Individualization.'
A hollow laugh escaped me.
Even thinking about it again, it was insane talent.
From Individualization onward, aura transformed into a unique power.
Since the user's traits were distinctly imprinted onto it, even imitation became impossible.
It wasn't called mastery for nothing.
So the goal for aura training was to break through to 6th Circle Individualization before age fifteen.
Ision quietly gazed up at the stars.
In the past, 7th had been my limit.
So the step just before that.
"Guess I'll have to train like hell."
All for the Lady's sake.
Leharion possessed talent one step above hers.
To surpass him, there was no choice but to train desperately from childhood.
'One year until I meet the Lady.'
Exclusive Knights were assigned starting at age ten.
So rumors of becoming the Lady's Exclusive Knight should be starting to circulate now.
I couldn't slack on training even for a day.
The first two required desperate effort.
But the very last one.
Even Ision had no method for this.
The stars in the sky.
The power of stigmata bestowed by the gods dwelling there.
Stigmata granted all sorts of unexpected boons to the world.
That's why even against those with stigmata, you couldn't let your guard down no matter the skill gap.
The reason you never underestimate those with stigmata in this world was exactly that.
Even those with outstanding talent, if not loved by the gods, had weak stigmata power.
The strength of a stigma depended solely on how much power the god granted.
For this, there was nothing to do but leave it to divine favor.
That's why Ision had come out at dawn like this.
This world was fantasy before it was a romance novel.
Countless incidents and accidents would arise to block the protagonist's path ahead.
Among them were foes far too strong to handle.
To overcome them, the power of stigmata was essential.
'Of course, one of them was the Lady.'
The enemies obstructing the protagonist's path were dangerous to the Lady as well.
'Before becoming her rival, I'm her Exclusive Knight.'
I had reason to protect her.
So gazing up at the dawn sky, I fervently prayed.
It was said the Saintess of the Orthodox Heaven prayed at dawn every day before becoming a saintess.
I had to try everything possible.
Stigmata were bestowed two years from now, at age ten.
Right now, Ision hadn't received his yet.
'I do have the Reverse Heaven stigma, though.'
Reverse Heaven had dimmed since the first day, lingering like a scar.
Probably because it was the Lady's stigma, its limit was just one regression.
I planned to pray every dawn until then.
[Vicarious Sacrifice].
Vicarious Sacrifice
It was a stigma that could only sacrifice oneself in place of another, but thanks to it, I'd protected the Lady.
So this time too, I hoped.
For a power that could protect the Lady to descend.
Ision wished for just one thing.
The Exclusive Knight training grounds had no days off, not even one.
Endless repetition of training, training, training every day without weekends.
To become the Exclusive Knight of one's future lord, not a single day could be wasted.
And today, there was a boy swinging his sword desperately here as well.
Airen Morblu.
A boy of outstanding talent who would later be called the Azure Sea Knight.
Every time Airen's sword advanced without hesitation, his opponents were sent tumbling miserably.
It had reached the point where some kids threw down their swords and fled rather than face him.
Yet Airen's eyes held no satisfaction whatsoever.
Panting, he tracked someone with his gaze.
On the opposite side.
A boy sparring just like him.
Dark gray hair and black eyes.
Not a particularly striking face, but for some reason, his eyes gave off a frivolous vibe.
But when he gripped a sword, it was different.
His eyes were more reverent and focused than ever.
Ision Calrad.
His classmate who, a month ago, had crushed Airen with overwhelming difference—and his childhood friend.
One problem.
The one facing him wasn't a kid like Airen, but the Training Commander.
Training Commander Macdram's wooden sword flew in, whipping up gusts of wind.
Wooden or not, no kid in the training grounds could block that sword.
Even Airen had been repelled after just two or three exchanges.
But Ision was different.
He deflected the Training Commander's sword by a hair's breadth, dispersing its power.
At the same time, he used his small frame to boldly close in with a bold advance.
A chilling move.
Macdram was swinging his sword like a man possessed, booming with hearty laughter.
Macdram was a knight renowned in the world in his own right.
A man who wielded an intimidating sword to match his barbaric-looking face.
Standing before him, most would freeze in fear, unable even to advance.
Yet Ision calmly parried Macdram's sword and unleashed his own swordsmanship.
"......What the."
Airen muttered in disbelief at the sight.
Just a month ago, Ision had been beneath him.
How could he grow enough in one month to spar with Macdram?
No matter that Macdram was going easy, it didn't make sense.
KABOOOM!
In that instant, Ision flew back, crashing into the training ground wall.
His legs had given out after pushing to his limit against Macdram, leaving him open.
His grown skill was astonishing, but still not enough to reach the Training Commander.
"You little punk, Ision. Were you hiding your genius all this time? Updating your insights every day or something?"
"......I just found a reason to put in the effort."
Ision replied flatly to Macdram's question.
"You've hit your limit. Rest up."
As Macdram said, Ision was in no state to continue training.
So he exchanged greetings with Macdram and quietly left.
Airen watched him go, then turned his body.
The secret to Ision's explosive growth in such a short time.
Without uncovering it, nothing would stick in his hands.
"Hey, Airen, where you going? Skipping training on your own means getting killed by the Commander."
A classmate grabbed Airen, but he ignored it.
"Got something to check."
"Oh? Now I'm curious what it is."
Just as he was about to follow Ision.
Airen flinched at the voice from above.
There stood Training Commander Macdram, arms crossed.
Airen's face drained of color.
"Airen, you're next. Come on."
Damn.
Airen swallowed a curse inwardly and gripped his wooden sword tight.
He realized he'd die today trying to uncover Ision's training secret.
But Airen's stalking wouldn't end there.
'Starting tomorrow, no matter what!'
He'd monitor Ision's every move.
"Gahk!"
Provided he survived until tomorrow, that is.