I Received Training, But... (1)
I Received Training, But... (1)
As soon as Miguel left the training ground, Flora asked me as I lay on the ground.
"Can you get up?"
"No way. It's impossible."
My arms felt as if they were about to fall off, and my legs were trembling uncontrollably.
"Then please get on my back."
Flora hoisted me onto her back, looking slightly pleased.
What was she so happy about?
"Has it really been two years since I last carried you on my back? Since you don't act your age, Young Lord, Madam is quite worried—or perhaps I should say she feels a little regretful."
"Though thanks to that, things are easier for us, too."
She added the last part in a quiet whisper, but right then, barely any of what she said registered.
In fact, my eyes were already half-closed, and I could no longer make out what she was saying.
She seemed to keep talking after that, but I had already fallen fast asleep.
My body recovered quickly. Before even a day had passed, my pain-riddled body was completely fine.
And my recovered body was different from the one I'd had yesterday. It had grown firmer and stronger.
I spent the full day resting and spending time with my mother.
A half-bath, massages, and even refreshments. It was my mother's way of helping me recover after my body had been pushed to the point of fainting, but I had already fully recovered.
The morning after such a relaxing day, Knight Miguel came to my room in person.
"From now on, I will be in charge of your training, Young Lord."
At his words, I tilted my head.
"Wasn't it just a test?"
"You can think of it as both training and a test. After all, it's an ability that can't be fully assessed in a single day."
The Duke had come in person, and now a regular knight was training a child who had just turned six...
If the testing was going to continue, could I assume they had some expectations of me?
"Also, you may speak informally to me. Since you've already obtained your inherited ability, it's perfectly fine for you to drop the formal speech."
At Miguel's words, the corners of my mouth curled up. Since he'd told me to speak informally, I decided to do so at once.
"Isn't this a bit too soon?"
"Pardon?"
"Squire training practically starts at fourteen. Even pages who do chores aren't accepted until they're at least seven, are they? I've only just turned six."
At my words, Miguel looked troubled.
"It's not as if I'm starting as a page, and even my older brother Simon began his knight training at eight."
Moreover, our second young lord—the little brat who'd inherited his ability from his mother's side—wasn't even receiving ability training yet.
Well, apart from his lightning ability, he was just a typical brat, so it was too soon to put him through this kind of training.
"I also think it's a bit early, but... it is the Duke's order."
Since it was the Duke's order, there was nothing more to say.
What did the Duke want?
It was just a physical-enhancement-type ability that couldn't even use mana. Was there really some secret here that I didn't know about?
In any case, since it was the Duke's order, I'd probably find out if I just did as I was told.
"I'll have to follow the instructions, then. Are we going to the back training ground again today?"
"Yep!"
The knight quickly replied, looking relieved.
He was quite an innocent knight. Then again, there was no way those cynical, battle-hardened knights would take charge of educating an illegitimate son like me.
I looked the knight up and down.
He doesn't seem like an outcast... Is he the pushover type?
Well, whatever. As long as his skills are good, it doesn't matter.
I changed my clothes at once and followed him.
When my mother learned that I would continue training, she glared at the knight with a frosty expression, but she could only sigh when she heard that it was the Duke's order.
Flora hurried to the kitchen to prepare a lunch box, while my mother gave me a tight hug as I left the room.
Knight Miguel and I headed to the training ground together, and when we arrived a short while later, we ran into someone unexpected.
Well, he was unexpected, but he was certainly someone I could easily run into here.
"Why did you come here?"
Seeing me arrive with Miguel, the Duke's eldest son furrowed his brow.
He was receiving swordsmanship training with another knight in the training ground.
A faint blue light ran along the blade of his sword, which he held pointed downward as he looked at me.
It was sword aura made of mana.
For a mere ten-year-old to give mana tangible form... Even seeing it with my own eyes, I could hardly believe it.
'As expected of the proud successor to the Gracia Dukedom.'
The knight standing in front of Brother Simon also looked highly displeased.
"What is the meaning of this? This is the training ground of the Duke's estate. It's not a place where just anyone can barge in!"
The knight, who looked to be in his mid-thirties, scolded Miguel.
Sigh, this is getting troublesome.
I could have answered him myself, but there was no reason to.
I looked at Miguel, too.
Miguel replied with an awkward expression.
"It is the Duke's order to train Young Lord Alex. The Commander gave the instruction during this morning's assembly."
"That can't be..."
At the knight's groan of disbelief, Simon shouted angrily.
"Nonsense! I will verify this myself."
Abandoning his training, he headed briskly toward the mansion.
He wasn't running because he wanted to maintain some semblance of refinement, but that brisk walk somehow looked worse than running.
I wish I had a camera. It was such a shame I couldn't capture the scene.
Simon and the knight, who had left saying they would verify the order, didn't return to the training ground that day, and from day one, Miguel had me crawling and sweating under his training.
Unlike the training on the first day, Miguel made me run continuously.
And it wasn't the sort of running suited to my age, either. Just like on the first day, he made me run until I nearly fainted.
One day, two days, three days.
I fainted from running almost every day and was carried back to the mansion on Flora's back.
After that first day, the training ground became my own private training ground.
Simon never came back, and the Duke didn't stop by, either. The other family members, knights, and mansion servants were nowhere to be seen.
Time passed, and a week later.
"Huff, huff. Is knight training always like this? How does everyone endure it?"
On the first day I managed not to faint, I asked Miguel.
Miguel looked troubled once again.
"Of course not. If everyone trained this way, no one would survive. Even I would have run away."
"What?"
At his absurd words, I tried to force myself up, only to groan in pain.
"Then why am I being subjected to such a barbaric method?"
"But you are growing rapidly thanks to it, aren't you?"
When he said that, I had no choice but to fall silent.
He wasn't wrong.
Even amid the daily fainting spells, I could feel myself steadily growing.
At some point during my runs, I became a bit faster, breathing became a bit easier, and I grew a bit sturdier.
It felt distinctly different from simply getting physically stronger in the usual way.
A feeling of rising in stages, like a 'Level Up'?
I didn't feel it every single day, and as time went on, the intervals between these sensations grew longer, but I could clearly perceive a distinct difference.
'Since I've felt it four times from the first day until now, I guess I could call myself level 4?'
I was so exhausted that all sorts of random thoughts popped into my head, but in any case, just as Knight Miguel had said, my ability was definitely growing.
"I heard that child is receiving separate training at the family's training ground."
"Yes. Both the Duke and Young Lord Simon are using a different training ground."
"Furthermore, I heard the Duke even visited that training ground in person."
"It was only for the first day."
"The number of days doesn't matter."
"I am sorry."
"Why? Why is he paying attention to that child? Being smart is useless, and his inherited ability was nothing special, either..."
"Shall I look into the reason separately?"
At the subordinate's question, she shook her head.
"No, there's no need. In any case, the Duke's protection ended on the Awakening Day."
I was planning to watch a little longer, but the Duke was showing interest in that child. I absolutely couldn't leave him be.
"More importantly, I heard the family training ground is in a secluded spot?"
"Yes. It's surrounded by forest, so no one except the forest keepers and members of the Duke's estate can access it."
"Then even if an accident occurs there, it would be difficult for anyone else to find out."
"I believe that would be the case, unless the Duke suddenly pays a visit."
"Do not worry about the Duke."
As the conversation paused for a moment, the temperature in the room seemed to drop slightly.
"Find someone. Someone skilled in assassination. At least someone who can easily kill a young knight."
"Understood."
The man bowed his head and left the room, and the beautiful room fell silent once more.
"Phew."
Exhaling a long breath, I wiped away the sweat pouring down my face. I could feel vitality returning to my body.
I had run for nearly an hour at my absolute limit, but I no longer fainted.
It was still incredibly exhausting, but after resting like this for a bit, I was able to recover somewhat.
Only a month had passed, but I could feel how much I had grown.
I could smell the thick scent of the forest surrounding the training ground. Since the training ground was modest in size, it felt as though I were deep in the woods.
"You worked hard."
Flora, who had been waiting, handed me a cup of water. After I drank the cool water, Knight Miguel, standing nearby, spoke up.
"Let's continue with swordsmanship training."
At his words, Flora took the cup and headed to the edge of the training ground, and I drew the wooden sword strapped to my waist.
Though it was a toy-like wooden sword sized for a six-year-old, it was as sturdy as the wooden swords used by adults.
Miguel had a gentle-looking face that didn't suit a knight, but when it came to training, he ran me ragged, reminding me of a drill sergeant from my past life.
If this were my past life—no, if I were just an ordinary six-year-old—he would have been reported for child abuse.
Until recently, Flora had also been shocked by my training and stomped her feet anxiously, saying she had to inform my mother.
But now, she was sitting under the shade of a tree, leisurely watching.
I caught my breath and swung the sword in my hand.
Two hours of downward strikes without any technique.
It was an absurd number of repetitions that even an adult would find difficult, but after training for a month, I was fully capable of enduring it.
"Hup! Hup! Hup!"
As I let out short kiai shouts and struck downward, I felt as if the wind were rising around the sword.
The wind wasn't actually rising, but the sharp momentum flowing through the wooden sword felt like a breeze.
The training, which had consisted solely of running during the first week, was gradually replaced by sword training as time went on.
Now, I spent much longer swinging the sword.
It wasn't yet training that could be called swordsmanship, but it was clear that I'd be able to learn properly as time passed.
"Hmm, your growth is faster than expected. Even though you're pushing yourself considerably, you aren't suffering any ill effects. Is this indeed the power of a noble...?"
Miguel muttered as he watched me swing the wooden sword. Surprise colored his words.
"Huff, huff, that's a relief."
Since I had no one to compare myself to, I couldn't know exactly how good my ability was. Still, seeing a regular knight like him surprised made it clear that it wasn't bad.