Chapter 24: Victoria(3)
Chapter 24: Victoria(3)
For a week, Kerry underwent special training with Lina. Her instruction was so valuable he could feel himself improving.
‘I’m starting to realize just how recklessly I’ve been swinging my sword all this time.’
He’d been lucky that most of his enemies were stupid goblins or kobolds; if he had faced a swordsman with even a little skill, they would have exploited his openings and killed him in an instant.
“Defense and evasion are more important than offense.”
The sound of Kerry and Lina’s wooden swords clashing echoed across the training ground.
He was a completely different person compared to before. While Lina remained as effortlessly composed as ever, Kerry had started to look like a proper swordsman.
He was no longer just swinging his sword haphazardly.
Though it had only been a week, the effects of focusing on the fundamentals were clear.
Kerry leaned on his wooden sword, panting as he tried to catch his breath. Facing her like this, he truly understood just how strong Lina was.
Throughout their entire sparring session, Lina’s breathing hadn’t hitched even once. Meanwhile, he felt like he was dying.
As she sparred, Lina was inwardly a little impressed.
‘Sir Kerry is a faster learner than I thought.’
It wasn't that he was a genius. But he was definitely learning quickly. Lina attributed it to his experience as an adventurer.
Kerry had begun to fully recognize the need for swordsmanship and was striving to learn. You could even say he had a certain tenacity.
‘His two years of experience as an adventurer must finally be sinking in.’
Kerry’s suffering hadn’t been for nothing. Those experiences were steadily becoming a part of him, bone and flesh.
But internally, Kerry shook his head.
‘Still, I like magic better!’
There was no reason to struggle this much when he was learning magic from the White Witch.
Of course, if he had learned it the conventional way, he’d still be studying those thick books until his head split open.
‘Why suffer when there’s an easier path?’
It was unfair enough that he’d been dragged to this world; he had no desire to suffer any more than necessary. He wanted to take it as easy as possible and reap the rewards. That was Kerry, the average joe.
“You still have a long way to go, Sir Kerry! At this rate, you won’t even be able to beat a regular guard, let alone the Guard Captain!”
That was a lie. As he was now, Kerry could easily defeat a regular guard. She was just saying it to spur him on.
‘That damn Guard Captain!’
Though he grumbled to himself, Kerry felt that learning swordsmanship was necessary.
Even if he focused on magic, the danger of close-quarters combat was always lurking in a fight.
Might as well train hard since it’s come to this. During the day, Kerry trained in swordsmanship with Lina, and at night, he used mana breathing to accumulate mana in his heart.
Interestingly, once he started his physical training, it became progressively easier to accumulate mana through breathing exercises.
‘Come to think of it, I heard that swordsmen above a certain level use mana to strengthen their bodies…’
The superhuman strength that Lina and Natasha possessed was all thanks to mana. He didn't know the principle behind it, but now that he could handle mana, perhaps it was possible for him too.
Wait, can I walk the path of a swordsman while learning magic? Curious, he asked Lina.
“People who practice both magic and swordsmanship are called magic swordsmen. They certainly exist, but from what I know, it’s not a very efficient profession. It’s difficult to master even one path, be it magic or swordsmanship. To pursue both requires exceptional talent and effort.”
Having to work hard meant having to suffer. Kerry erased the path of the magic swordsman from his mind. I want to take the easy way out!
‘Magic is definitely the comfortable option. I have the White Witch on that side, and I have the shortcut of using the orb.’
The Magic Storage Orb he had acquired by chance felt more precious than ever.
‘I should visit the White Witch soon and learn more about the orb.’
The break was over. Lina’s instruction continued. The sun was scorching, the weather sweltering. It was exhausting just to stand there.
“Lady Lina, your beautiful skin will burn. Why don’t we rest for a bit and continue when the sun isn’t as strong?”
“It’s fine. Thanks to my body being strengthened by mana, I don’t get sunburned easily.”
So mana was the secret to Lina’s flawless skin! His half-baked excuses were completely lost on her. When it came to teaching, Lina was one tough woman.
“Go, husband! You’ve gotten so much better!”
“You’re doing great, son-in-law!”
Natasha and the old fox cheered him on. While he appreciated their support, it somehow got on his nerves.
It was because Natasha and the old fox looked for all the world like they were on a picnic.
“Where are your eyes wandering?”
In the brief moment he glared at Natasha and the old fox, Lina charged. She was really ruthless.
Of course, the fact that he could block her meant she was holding back considerably.
“Do you want to rest?”
“Yes. It’s too hot today. Shall we take a short break?”
“The enemy doesn’t care if it’s a hot day or a cold day.”
Then why did you ask?! He blocked Lina’s wooden sword as she pressed her attack again.
Lina’s offense was always so varied that if he didn’t focus completely, he was bound to get hit.
“If you can last just one minute against me, we’ll finish for the day.”
“Really? You promise?”
With those words, Kerry charged. Lina had told him to focus on defense and evasion, but that only applied when their skills were comparable.
If Lina decided to take him down seriously, there was no way he could last.
Based on what he had learned so far, he took the most aggressive stance possible and pushed her back.
‘Survive for one minute! I have to survive! Let’s get some rest today!’
The path of grueling training was not part of Kerry’s plan for a happy life in another world.
But as expected, surviving for one minute was impossible.
There were others casting subtle glances at the training ground: the guards. They were there on the Guard Captain’s orders to observe Kerry.
“He’s not bad, that guy.”
“His skills have improved a lot. When I first saw him, I thought he was nothing to worry about.”
The guards reported on Kerry’s progress. Hearing their story, the Guard Captain grew irritated.
“No matter what, you think I’m going to lose to a guy who’s only been training for a week? The nerve of these bastards, running their mouths.”
‘If you’re so confident, why’d you order us to scout him?’
The reporting guards cursed internally but couldn’t say it out loud.
‘There’s no way I’ll lose to a pretty boy like that.’
Even among the barbaric men of this world, the Guard Captain’s appearance was exceptionally ferocious. His intimidating face and scars worked well for his job as a guard.
Most people wouldn’t dare mess with the Guard Captain.
“Captain, if you don’t believe us, why don’t you see for yourself? His skills are on a whole different level now, I’m telling you.”
“What did you say, you bastard? You want me to stoop to spying on him?”
“Isn’t it the same whether we watch or you watch, Captain?”
“Shut up.”
At that single phrase, the guard clamped his mouth shut. When a man with a face like that got angry, it was truly terrifying.
The Guard Captain’s stress had been piling up lately.
He had lucked into the cushy position of Guard Captain, but now he was being held responsible for the actions of two moronic subordinates.
Lady Victoria had made it clear.
[If you win the bet, I won’t hold you responsible for failing to manage your men. But if you lose… you know my personality, don’t you?]
If he lost, she would surely raise all kinds of hell. Victoria wasn’t nearly as gentle as she looked.
He knew that just from seeing her cut off his subordinates’ hands for skimming a little money.
‘Doesn’t this mean I’m in danger, too?’
She probably wouldn’t cut off his hands over a problem with his men, but the Guard Captain had more than a few skeletons in his own closet.
The problem was getting more serious by the day, as Victoria was promoting the match between the outsider and the Guard Captain like some kind of festival.
“Did you hear? The Guard Captain is sparring with that outsider. They’re even holding a tournament for the commoners at the same time.”
“Ah, I heard about that. They’re even allowing street stalls for the event, right? If we play our cards right, we might be able to make a quick buck.”
“It’s been a while since we had some fun entertainment. It’ll be hilarious if the Guard Captain gets his ass kicked.”
In this world, which lacked entertainment, violence was a very amusing pastime.
Of course, it was just a spar with wooden swords, but it was more than enough to watch when you were bored.
And it was even better when the target was the Guard Captain, who was always so arrogant and disrespectful to the residents.
“Damn it. Things have gotten royally screwed up.”
The Guard Captain took his frustration out on his subordinates, cursing at them. It felt like it was all their fault.
At that moment, Kerry finished his training with Lina. Sweat poured from his body like rain.
After washing his sweat-drenched body, he went out with Lina’s party for dinner.
“Beer. I want a cold beer.”
“Yes. Then let’s go get some beer.”
When they weren’t training, Lina was as gentle as usual. If only she could be like this during training, too.
He was hurrying his steps toward a pub said to have good beer when a filthy beggar grabbed his trouser leg.
“What is it?”
“Spare a coin for a poor beggar.”
He was begging. A common sight anywhere in this world, which didn’t even have a concept of welfare.
Any other time, he would have yelled at him to get a job if his body was able-bodied and ignored him, but things were different now.
He had an audience. The regressor, who was like an angel incarnate, was watching him. Lucky beggar.
“Buy yourself some bread with this.”
“Thank you. Thank you kindly.”
Lina smiled at him, pleased. Natasha, however, didn’t seem to like it.
“Husband, you’re too nice for your own good. If you keep helping people like that, they might just stay beggars forever.”
Personally, my values were closer to Natasha’s. Lina seemed to think differently, but she didn’t appear to want to argue the point.
Unseen by the others, Kerry opened his hand.
‘What’s this?’
In his palm was a small note. The beggar had secretly pressed it into his hand when he’d given him the money.
[I miss you, adventurer. I’ll be waiting at the inn with the red roof on Inn Street. Please stop by when you have time. - Ellie]
Ellie? Could it be that Brown-haired Ellie? But why would that beggar have a note from her?
When he turned to look back, the beggar was nowhere to be seen.
‘Ellie, a secret rendezvous? That doesn’t seem like her.’
Besides, there was no reason for Ellie to be here in the first place.
Could it be a trap? If it was, it might be one set by that skeleton and the pig. No, that was strange, too.
Those two hadn’t just been seriously injured; they had fled after being split in half. How could guys like that possibly know that he had met Ellie without his party’s knowledge?
Honestly, it felt incredibly suspicious, but his curiosity was piqued. But more than anything… thinking of Ellie’s legendary skills in bed was starting to get him hard.
Early that evening, Kerry went to the inn where Ellie was supposedly waiting.
If this was a trap, they wouldn’t have chosen a place on the crowded Inn Street.
The soundproofing there was so bad you could hear lewd moans at all hours of the day.
If they wanted to harm him, they would have picked a more secluded location.
When he arrived at the inn, the owner was sitting and reading a newspaper.
“Innkeeper. Has someone named Ellie checked in?”
The innkeeper looked up from his paper and stared at Kerry’s face. Then he nodded.
“You mean the brown-haired young lady? Well now, a handsome young couple meeting up. It’s a good time to be young. The lady is in the second room down the left hall on the third floor. She said you’d be coming.”
“Thank you.”
Brown-haired. He couldn’t be sure just from the hair color, but he had a feeling it was Ellie.
He knocked on the door the innkeeper had mentioned. Strange. No response. Is she out?
Knock. Knock. Knock.
When he knocked again, he heard the floorboards creak inside as someone walked over.
The door opened a crack. An eye he couldn’t tell was Ellie’s or not was staring at him through the gap.
“…Ellie? Is that you?”
Kerry was tense, ready for a blade to come flying out at any moment. He was poised to throw himself aside.
In a situation like this, he was immensely grateful for the swordsmanship Lina had taught him.
“That’s the man.”
The voice wasn’t Ellie’s. Startled, he was placing his hand on the hilt of his sword when the door swung wide open.
Standing in the doorway was a stunning, mature woman with a slender figure. She had a smoking pipe in her mouth.
The woman exhaled a puff of smoke and spoke.
“Come on in, darling.”
Who’s she calling darling?
“Why would I go in there? Who knows what’s inside. Besides, I came to see Ellie. Who are you?”
“Hmm. I heard you were big, and that your thing was big, too, but you’re quite the coward.”
‘Where did she hear about the size of my thing?’
“You want me to introduce myself?”
“Let’s at least hear who you are.”
Just as a taut tension filled the hallway, a bright and cute voice came from inside the room.
“Adventurer! I really missed you!”
It was Ellie. She was waving her hand in a way that was so cute it could melt the tense atmosphere in an instant.
The woman before him also laughed as if she found it amusing.
“Hehehe. What are you so scared for, a big man like you? Still, it seems you’re not a complete pushover. I’m Ellie’s madam. Nice to meet you, darling.”
Just what have these women come to find me for?