236: Time to Prove (4)

“Come with me.”

Bratt Lloyd suddenly appeared in front of Airn who was talking with Kirill and Lulu.

There was quite a bit of excitement on his face.

Airn followed him without a question. Kirill too, who felt the weirdness, let them go without asking anything.

And as they walked, five members of Holy Kingdom appeared in front of them along with Quincy Myers.

Everyone had their swords held out and had smiles on their faces. But before Airn could ask, the subjugation commander opened his mouth and said.

“There is no need to think too hard about learning the swordsmanship of the Holy Kingdom.”

“…”

“You also don’t have to bother saying words that might probably be burdensome. These four to five elders will show their swordsmanship to their juniors… just think of it that way. You and the person next to you will probably already have your own style as you are Masters, so don’t force yourselves to follow this to the tee. If you have something you can use, take it, otherwise don’t. That is all.”

Airn, realizing his opponent’s intention now, looked at Bratt with a blank expression. Something far greater than he expected had been waiting for him here.

‘Have the paladins of Holy Kingdoms ever taught their swordsmanship to others?’

It couldn’t be concluded that there was never such an occurrence. But if it existed, it was extremely rare. And now, Airn had the chance to learn it.

His heart was pounding.

Putting aside his obsessions with his ideals for a while and focusing on people around. That was the reason he refused to join them.

However, that didn’t mean that he wouldn’t practice at all. There was no reason to give up on being a swordsman just because he wanted to be a good son and friend.

‘In order to become a good disciple, I need to constantly focus on the sword.’

Airn’s face was filled with ecstasy.

Regardless, his passion for learning a new swordsmanship had definitely been ignited today.

“Thank you!”

“Thank you!”

Quincy Myers nodded his head at it.

Woong, he pulled out the white Aura Sword and said,

“The paladins of the Holy Kingdom have the highest number of Aura Swords compared to other nations. Did you know that?”

“Yes.”

It was Bratt that replied to Quincy Myers’ question.

To be precise, the difference was that, rather than the total amount of Aura swords, even their holy power could be used as aura.

So, if the swordsmanship was at such a level, then the knights of Avilius had their own advantages.

But,

“Such strengths are fully demonstrated even as an expert, but when they reach the level of Master or higher, their real power comes into picture. From now on, the swordsmanship that I and the knights of the purification squad will show you is entirely based on the premise that they can be used as Aura Swords.”

“Uh?”

Bratt seemed surprised.

A swordsmanship for which the minimum requirement was to be a Sword Master? And now they were being taught that particular swordsmanship?

There was no time to be shocked.

Woong, Quincy Myers’s Aura Sword was stronger than before. It was a scene similar to what Ignet showed in the dungeon.

Airn gulped as he saw it, and Quincy mumbled in a calm voice.

“If you can’t follow it right now, keep it safe in your head.”

The swordsmanship of the Holy Kingdom.

It was understandable that one had to be a Master to learn it.

It was because each of their teachings couldn’t be followed unless a swordsman could wield the Aura Sword.

The Aura Sword covered the blade and then condensed around it and was finally shot out.

That was incredibly difficult to do, and adding speed to it, adding explosions, changing the trajectory of it; all of this was difficult even for Airn.

Rather than simply scattering the aura, to scatter an energy dense enough to be compared to an Aura Sword was a different story.

‘The amount of aura it takes is insane! The total amount is one thing, but if there is even a slight waste in the process of handling it, we will get exhausted after using it just a few times.’

In the case of the defensive technique of rotating the sword and spreading around an aura veil, that was even more impossible for them to do currently.

To fill a wide area with a high density of aura? It was a task that was incredibly tough.

However, depending on what kind of variation was given, it could completely change the flow of battle, so it couldn’t be just dismissed as wasteful swordsmanship.

Airn suddenly fell in love with the Holy Kingdom’s swordsmanship and began to wield the sword.1

Of course, they didn’t have a huge amount of aura like the old men, so they took frequent breaks in between their practice sessions.

“Huah huah…”

However, Airn was still better off than Bratt Lloyd.

It hadn’t even been a full month since Bratt became a Sword Master.

He was born in a wealthy family and had consumed various things like elixirs, but even so, he still couldn’t match an average Sword Master.

Forget swordsmanship, even the act of just concentrating the aura at the tip of the sword for a little time, seemed as though it would kill him each time he did it.

And he couldn’t succeed. Airn had thought that Bratt would be more open to learning new things from now on, but that didn’t seem to be the case. And there was concern in Airn’s eyes.

And Bratt told him.

“Don’t give me those eyes.”

“Huh?”

“I am the third youngest man to become a Sword Master on the continent. It is a pace which is a year faster than you.”

“…”

“It’s not that I can’t understand why you are concerned. I am learning the swordsmanship of the holy kingdom… Huah… huah…”

“….”

There was no need to worry.

When he thought about it, it made sense. After all, the man in front of him was Bratt Lloyd, someone who was mentally stronger than Airn.

Airn chuckled and sat down and Bratt joined him.

Once the paladins finished teaching them, they went back to their rooms.

In a spacious place with only the two of them.

“We are so lucky.”

“For?”

“Aren’t we? This is an opportunity which is very hard to come by…”

It was true. Come to think of it, they were able to do quite a lot so far.

To enter the Krono Swordsmanship school that many kids dreamt of.

They learned the spirits technique of the Durkali tribe which didn’t even welcome humans.

They learned the Sword of Heart directly from Ignet, the greatest genius on the continent, and as if all of that weren’t enough, they were now studying the advanced aura operation and control mechanics of the Holy Kingdom.

They couldn’t describe how lucky they were.

However, Bratt had a different thought.

As he listened to Airn, he shook his head and said.

“I think it’s a little different.”

“Uh?”

“It isn’t right to consider all of our experiences as mere luck. You, me, Ilya and Judith… we were all given these opportunities because we are people who deserve it.”

“…”

“Do you think that the reason people taught you different things until now was because they were kind or nice? It’s not like that at all Airn. You need to be more confident in yourself.”

Bratt thought that.

Airn was hardworking, it was in his bones to work hard.

And he had a good personality which often put the hearts of others at ease.

And all of that made them willing to teach Airn what they knew.

And it was the same for Bratt too.

When he first saw Quincy Myers’ technique, it felt absurd.

Why show a technique that is difficult to learn, let alone imitate it, to a person who just became a Master?

Was he making fun of Bratt?

However, it wasn’t that.

The old man believed in both of them.

Not the current Bratt, but rather, he believed that in the future, these kids would understand his techniques.

Furthermore, it was also due to the fact that he had a personality that wouldn’t use his powers in vain situations.

“So, you have to be a bit more daring. We can do it. Don’t think of it as luck, let’s just think that we did well and got more chances.”

“…”

“Of course, that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the seniors who helped me. But that’s not bad either. You can just give as much as you receive.”

“That is right. Even tomorrow, thanks to the paladins…”

“It isn’t bad, but…”

Looking at Airn for a moment, Bratt looked up and said.

“I think the senior knights will be happier giving their knowledge to the ones who deserve it.”

“…”

“For me, well… no, I think it is both our duties to do that.”

At that, Airn thought of Bratt during the trainee days. He was similar to now. Although he had been a bit more arrogant then, he never used his power or title to bully others. He had always been more concerned about his duties like now.

If anything has changed.

Unlike the past when he was obsessed with people of class and birth and openly spoke about his prejudices…

‘Now he is normal.’

… maybe because he was dating Judith.

“You are right.”

“I know. I always say the right thing.”

Airn replied to that with a smile, and Bratt nodded his head.

After that, they didn’t talk for a while. But it wasn’t weird.

Their friendship wasn’t so weak for the atmosphere to become awkward with a little silence.

“Phew, I’ve rested for a long time, so let’s try again.”

“Ahhh me too…”

The two got up, and one after the other, they practiced the swordsmanship again.

It wasn’t easy.

Even Airn failed often, not to mention Bratt. Within five minutes of getting up, he fell down on his butt again.

But neither of them was disappointed.

The two swordsmen didn’t leave the hall for a long time.

It was time for Airn and Bratt to train.

Lance Peterson was alone in a secluded bar in the estate. He was drinking alcohol.

To stop his inferiority…

To stop it from growing…

He kept repeating what Keira Finn had told him.

Darkness filled his face. His heart slumped.

Something hidden in the corner looked at him. So well hidden that even the paladins of Holy Knight could barely notice.

Something deeper, darker and more tenacious than the clown devil.

It was the moment that it approached Lance Peterson little by little.

Step!

Thud!

“…?”

“Can I join you?”

Lance looked at the stranger with a blunt expression.

A large body with dark green skin. A tattoo which covered half of its face.

An Orc

Probably a fortune teller, seeing how he could speak human language. So, he shook and said,

“I am not interested in divination and stuff.”

“I am no fortune teller. It would be more appropriate to call me an orc counsellor.”

“…?”

When Lance Peterson’s eyes showed a bit of annoyance and curiosity, the darkness which had narrowed the distance, stopped and watched them closely.2