A Knight's Awakening
I faced Vera with my wooden practice sword raised, assuming a proper stance. "Please go easy on me."
Her posture looked no different from yesterday. "Likewise."
Whoosh! Swish!
Vera's wooden sword came at me with blinding speed.
Clack!!
The moment our weapons met for the first time, I knew. She was so fast it felt like I was facing an entirely different person.
"Huh..."
She probably understood it better than anyone. That her swordsmanship had changed overnight.
"Is that it?"
"N-no!"
Vera only paused for a brief moment of admiration before she closed in again, swinging her wooden sword.
Clack! Clack! Clack! Swish!
Yesterday she had been pushed back after only five exchanges. Today was different. Five. Ten. Twenty. Thirty. Sweat began to bead on both of us as our wooden swords clashed again and again.
Because we both used the same noble sword style and were at similar levels, we could fight on equal footing. It wouldn't be strange at all to call us worthy rivals.
"Haaaa!!"
Clack!!
But that equality was only an illusion at the start. As time passed, I gradually felt myself being pushed back. Her Level 2 noble sword style was improving with every swing.
She had originally been stuck at Level 1. If she could break through that wall...
"You're getting stronger," I muttered.
The noble sword style was fundamentally built around rapid strikes. So once a gap in skill appeared, the difference widened dramatically.
Thwack!
My offensive timing vanished. I was forced entirely onto the defensive. Her body grew faster, her wooden sword sharper. More... more... more...
Crack!
Her strike sent me staggering, my balance broken.
"An opening!"
Whoosh!!!
No choice.
Deflection
Twang...!
"Ah!"
The wooden sword that went flying belonged to Vera. Of course, the one I was holding was now snapped halfway through.
"Looks like we can't continue like this."
"Haa... haa... yeah."
I noticed Syucali stepping out of the tent at just the right moment. It seemed like a good time to wrap up the spar.
"..."
Vera looked like she was fighting back tears.
"Thank you. Thanks to you, I feel like I've realized something important."
Vera was well aware of her own growth. The only thing that had changed for her lately was meeting me.
"You're a knight who will rise to even greater heights. This level of progress isn't something to be satisfied with."
Vera nodded and lowered her head. A single droplet—whether sweat or tears, I couldn't tell—slid down her face.
"To change so much in a single night is truly remarkable," Eos said as she approached, her expression one of genuine confusion after watching the spar. She handed me a cloth to wipe my sweat, and I nodded in agreement.
"I feel the same way."
"Not about her, Master. About you."
"Me?"
Eos was looking at me, not Vera.
"Neither other people, nor I, nor even the nobles knew. Only you, Master, understood from the beginning that Vera would change like this."
From yesterday's spar onward, Eos had been the only one listening carefully to every word I said.
"You were the only one who recognized her talent."
Remembering the things I'd said to Vera, Eos was now marveling at the visible results today.
"It must be a coincidence."
"That cannot be. Master always accomplishes the impossible as if it were the most natural thing in the world. From what I have observed, her growth is largely thanks to your power."
Eos's blue eyes looked as if they could read the world itself. They pierced straight through me. Just like when she gazed into the space of a dungeon, she stared directly at the power I possessed and gave the answer she had reached.
"I'm sorry. I spoke out of turn."
"No. You're right."
Rather than being displeased, I felt grateful that she had spoken so honestly. It meant she trusted me that much. And I liked having Eos by my side—someone who could see through every situation with such clarity.
"You're a fine slave."
Eos lowered her head in embarrassment. I wanted to hurry and remove the mana seal embedded in her. Once it was gone, she would be able to help me far more. Her abilities were far too great for the limited power she currently possessed.
"Kang Seo-ja..."
"What is it?"
Once the spar and conversation had ended, Syucali approached.
"I'm hungry..."
"...Sit down."
Unlike the other two, all Syucali cared about was filling her stomach.
After dawn broke and breakfast was finished, we set off once again toward Kron Village.
"I hope some monsters show up."
Vera had clearly felt her skills improve. That was why she was craving real combat. Even now, she kept drawing her sword while walking and swinging it through the empty air. Her passion for swordsmanship was obvious.
"You're going to cut the person in front of you if you keep that up."
"Hehehe, how about it? Want to spar with me?"
"No."
"Why, why~"
It seemed Vera's relationship with Syucali had changed just as much as her swordsmanship since yesterday.
"You're so excited it's actually kind of cute."
"Come on, I want to experience Syucali's dagger techniques too!"
"Besides that, wasting your strength while traveling is just stupid."
"Acting all cool and collected~"
Syucali fled from Vera and stuck close to my side.
"Don't worry. Once we reach the village, I'll send her back right away."
It looked like Syucali had firmly decided to ship Vera back to her noble territory as soon as possible.
"Wouldn't it be fine if she stayed with us while we're in the village?"
"Y-you're not sending her back immediately?!"
"I want to see your growth too, Syucali."
"Me? That has nothing to do with sending Vera away!"
"It might not, but watching her swordsmanship could give you some insights."
"With Master here, why would I need to watch her?!"
Syucali was clearly in a hurry to get rid of Vera. Of course, sending her back immediately had been the original plan, but Vera's surprise confession seemed to have thrown a wrench in things.
"I want to treat her well until she leaves."
"Master, you're way too naive!"
"Maybe I am."
I didn't want to be cold to someone who had shown me goodwill. Especially toward people like Isabella and Helga who had expressed such open interest in me—I felt like I should give them something in return.
"It's fine because you'll stop me if I cross the line."
"You sound just like Isabella..."
Syucali let out a deep sigh, as if she finally understood how Paula must feel.
"Monsters! Prepare for battle!"
At Vera's bright and powerful shout, both Syucali and I immediately turned serious.
Skree...
"There are a lot of them."
"Those are ratmen. I heard they steal crops from the villagers."
Bipedal monsters with rat heads. Seeing them meant we were getting close to Kron Village and its vast wheat fields.
"With the frogs gone, the ratmen must have grown bold enough to come this far."
"It appears so, Master."
Eos nodded and gripped her magic stone tightly.
Bang bang bang!
Eos's Water Shot flew straight into the pack of ratmen.
"Kwee... kweeeee...!"
"Kweeeek!"
The ratmen were thrown into chaos by the opening magical barrage. Vera and Syucali charged in.
Slice!
Swish! Stab!
The ratmen were agile, but they were still torn apart by the women's overwhelming strength, spraying blood everywhere.
"Haaaa!"
Vera in particular was smiling, as if her faith in her swordsmanship had been restored. A knight who had fallen in love with her own improved ability.
"Vera! Don't get too caught up! If you let your guard down like that—"
Thud!
"Ugh!!"
The one who let her guard down was Syucali. She was knocked back by a ratman's attack.
"Syucali losing in speed? That's new."
"Krrk... krrkrr..."
A ratman with red claws sniffed the air, its eyes locked on my backpack.
"You little shit!"
Syucali moved with sharp precision.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
It grazed her side. She ducked. She jumped lightly. The red ratman dodged every one of Syucali's blades.
"Ugh! Why won't it hit?!"
With dozens or even hundreds of adventurers passing through a farming village every day, the fact that a monster like this had survived meant it was that much stronger. It was as nimble as you'd expect from a warehouse-raiding pest.
Even so, Syucali had higher stats. For it to dodge her attacks so cleanly... The red ratman was showing exactly why it had never been caught before.
"Let's work together."
"Yes, Master."
I charged in alongside Eos's magic. The red ratman sniffed at the incoming spells.
Bang bang bang!
Eos's Water Shots only struck the ground and trees.
Whoosh! Swish! Swish!
My noble sword style, which excelled in speed, couldn't land a hit either.
"Here!"
Syucali's strike from behind also missed. It looked like the fight was about to end without a decisive blow.
Slaaash!
"An opening."
Vera's sword, which had been watching until the very end, tore through the ground. It connected. The red ratman's back arched violently.
"Whoa!"
But the ratman did a mid-air flip, creating distance between us, and fled.
"Damn it! Get back here!"
Syucali chased after it.
"What kind of monster even is that?"
In the end, the only thing we gained from the fight was a severed tail. The creature's evasion ability was enough to leave an entire party feeling utterly defeated. Vera looked visibly shaken.
"Ugh..."
Syucali, who had gone after the ratman, returned with a deeply crumpled expression.
"Couldn't catch it, huh?"
"How can a monster that annoying even exist?!"
Among all of us, Syucali looked the most furious. She had always taken pride in her speed, so this seemed to have dealt her a serious mental blow.
"It doesn't seem aggressive enough to threaten the party."
"Instead, it'll keep raiding people's storehouses and causing damage."
A monster didn't need to hold a blade to your throat to be dangerous. Stealing the resources necessary for survival was also a threat to life. After all, starving to death was still death. It was perfectly reasonable to consider it a dangerous monster.
"Next time I see it, I'll definitely catch it."
Syucali's determination to wash away this humiliation was clear.
"I'll help you~"
"No thanks! If I see that monster again, I'll handle it myself!"
She was grinding her teeth, her pride clearly wounded.
"Let's keep moving."
We stepped over the ratman corpses and continued toward the village. For some reason, I had a feeling we'd run into that red ratman again. During the fight, it had been staring at my backpack. Just like a goblin trying to throw a torch at a merchant caravan.
Most monsters weren't very smart, but none of them simply gave up on something they had set their eyes on.
"Syucali."
"Yes?"
"Next time that thing shows up, it'll be aiming for my backpack."
"What?"
"It was only looking at my backpack the entire fight."
"W-what?! It was fighting me while thinking about that?!"
"That's right."
"That... that damn monster!!"
Syucali's rage shot through the roof.
"I'll definitely catch it."
"It would be good to set up some traps."
"I'll prepare them! That's my specialty! I'll make them extra high-performance!"
She already seemed completely fixated on nothing but catching that red ratman.
"The village is in sight."
Along with her renewed resolve, Kron Village slowly came into view.