Chapter 203 – One Step.
“Well, they say they teach you, but at least swordsmanship will only be a little review of what you’ve learned.”
The sound of cutting through the air came fiercely. It was because Krikaliev was holding his wooden sword and wielding it as if experimenting.
“Why?”
Usher showed the swordsmanship he had learned as he remembered it, and since it was after Krikaliev observed it, he was in doubt and asked, and he drool.
“I’m asking just in case. Is your teacher from Paciphenia?”
“Yeah, how did you know?”
“Kiya, somehow. The kid who came from a country that was cut off for a long time is using a familiar swordsmanship, so I did it just in case.”
Krikaliev trembled in disgust.
“How much do you know about the country of Paciphenia?”
“I-I don’t know because I only know the name.”
I only had a vague memory of hearing that it was a country full of knights great enough to fight against dragons. Was it to the extent that it was called the Knights Country for nothing?
“That’s it. I don’t know about anything else, but the swordsmanship there is useful. Even if you just practice it persistently, there will be no problem in staying healthy.”
But seeing him so disgusting made me wonder what I wasn’t curious about.
“What kind of place is Paciphenia?”
“The Grave of the Knights.”
“Yes?”
Usher wanted to ask again, wondering if he had heard it wrong, but he continued.
“Don’t even think about going to Pacifenia for a while. At least, I’m kind of tolerant of other countries, but it’ll be helpful for your life if you don’t get involved.”
As if Krikaliev didn’t want to talk any more, he turned to training. Usher was curious, but it was still important for him to save Belka, so he followed his words to gain a little more strength.
“Little boy. What do you think of the long sword?”
“Isn’t it just a long sword?”
“It’s just as it is. As a weapon. As a weapon.”
It’s a weapon Usher looked at the longsword-shaped wooden sword he was holding. Obviously, the sword, which is much longer than other swords, is suitable for stabbing or attacking opponents, but it reminded me of Donnar’s movement. He felt bad because he also remembered the logo he had been dealing with so far.
“Shield, I think it’s the same.”
The longsword was just a long sword, but he felt every time he tried to deal with it, as if he was dealing with a shield of that diameter.
“It’s quite sharp, but it’s a bit disappointing.”
As he said that, his wooden sword hit his palm like a club.
“No matter how good a long sword is for defense, it is a black sword. At least, a shield is also used as a blunt weapon, so are you going to use the sword only for blocking?”
He sure did after he listened to him. What he always practiced was how to block the enemy’s attack and attack the enemy at the same time. Although I’ve never been successful, I’ve been victimized many times, so I knew how annoying it was for the opponent.
“If you simply block it, you will die from the continuous attacks. In battle, attack and defense are unified. It is not something that can be separated arbitrarily.”
It was the same words Donard always asked for, so Usher could easily understand.
“And the longsword has quite a unique feature. Look at it.”
He supported the underside of the wooden sword with only one finger, making it equilibrium.
“Is your hand closer to the handle?”
“Yes, this is a wooden sword, but it has the characteristics of a long sword as much as possible.”
Even though Krikaliev rested only his fingers closer to the handle, the longer blade held his balance and did not tip over. And he again grips the wooden sword properly and continues his words.
“The center of gravity of a long sword is in the handle. The biggest feature of a two-handed sword like this is if you think of it as drawing a circle based on the center of both hands and move it in the opposite direction.”
As he moved his hand holding the handle in an alternating manner, he found that it was moving incredibly fast for a sword the same size as Usher’s.
“For a moment, it can move as fast as a tolerable one-handed sword.”
Watching the blade of the sword bend like a snake, it felt no different from when I held swords with him for a while. Just in case, Usher moved the wooden sword he was holding, just in case, and even though he didn’t use much force, he admired how the blade rotated rapidly and drew a sword strike.
“Roughly speaking, the theory is up to here, but if I had free time, I would have taught it properly.”
“Then from now on…”
“I guess I can guess.”
Krikaliev swung a wooden sword at him proudly, and Usher hurriedly raised the sword above his head to block his sword. He had always heard from Donnar that he needed to protect his head as much as possible.
“That’s right. The closer the enemy is, the higher the sword must be held. But.”
He frowned as he felt his sword about to crush Usher. He couldn’t do anything by force. He tried holding the sword with one hand, but the moment the hand holding the sword was about to be pushed away, he lost his strength.
“Didn’t I tell you? There’s no point in just blocking it. What did your teacher say when an opponent tries to push them by force?”
Krikaliev’s sword had already broken into the inside of his arm and was aiming at himself. His sword was still touching Usher’s.
“Attacks that ignore defense are third-rate among third-rates, but if you just defend, there’s no such thing as a punching bag.”
“Then what should I do in this case?”
“I have to wait for an opportunity to attack while keeping swords facing each other, or I have to let go of the attack with the sword face.”
He immediately grabbed Usher’s wooden sword and pulled it out.
“In any fight, the closer you get to the opponent, the fiercer it gets. Here, you have no choice but to fight with experience and intuition.”
At the same time, Usher couldn’t balance his feet and fell. Krikaliev tripped him on the ankle. His sword was also beside Usher’s neck.
“A knight is not like a swordsman. Swordsmanship is nothing but knowledge. Keep that in mind.”
You must live for the purpose of the article. That’s the only way I can keep it Usher swallowed at the cold feel of his throat. Even though it was just a simple wooden sword, it felt sharp enough to give goosebumps. This was an article
“Can I be a knight?”
“If you want to keep it.”
Usher stood up, thinking of Belka once more. However, they never actually practiced the sword again.
“You really don’t have to keep practicing?”
They were walking to the village to buy hunting equipment.
“Didn’t you say that swordsmanship is only knowledge?”
“I know that.”
The only thing he’s good at is handling a long sword. I wondered if there would be a problem if I neglected even that, but Krikaliev didn’t seem to have any intention of stopping.
“And do you think there will be any significant progress in three days?”
“…No.”
Three days, too short to build strength, and too long to go rescue the girl.
“For such a short period of time, it would be much more helpful to learn several grabbing techniques than to keep holding on to one bite.”
That was when I was following him without saying anything.
“Huh? Isn’t that the waitress lady?”
“Ah.”
As they entered the village, someone spoke to them. Usher blushed when he realized he was still in his uniform. He has no clothes to wear, so he can’t even change. He averted his gaze, fiddling with his bandaged arm for no reason. He seemed to remember Usher, probably a visitor to Nausicaa’s inn, but Usher didn’t remember him. And his gaze turned to Krikaliev. He looked at his appearance and asked cautiously, as if nervous.
“Are you a knight by any chance? Why are Nausikane’s employees?”
He bowed his head slightly and asked cautiously. Even though he would have been familiar with him if he stopped by Nausicaa’s inn.
“I’m just trying to grow it as a seed.”
Usher was taken aback by the voice that followed. Because what he heard from Krikaliev was a heavy, overbearing man’s voice that he had never heard before.
“Is there anything to see?”
He waved his hands in fright at his slightly menacing words, as if he were a different person.
“Oh, no! It’s just a familiar face.”
And then he passed them as if he had been passing by. But he wondered why he was still looking at Usher with pity.
“Mister, that was just…”
“I just copied the voice I remembered. More than that, it’s his voice. The performance is certain.”
Krikaliev, who returned to his original voice and walked as if nothing had happened, arrived at a blacksmith’s shop. It was a pure white building, just like the rest of Parz, but it looked closer to gray because of the gray stains everywhere, and the soot that bloomed over the windows and chimneys. The iron door looked clean as if it had been wiped down, but even so, it could not erase the worn traces left as handprints over the years.
“Is the owner there?”
Krikaliev’s voice changed again. Usher, unable to adapt to the same voice as before, looked at it subtly, when he opened the door. He was at the same time The bright light of the sky reflected in his eyes. There, a woman with her azure bobbed hair tied back was surprised, and she was looking at them with wide azure eyes, as light as her hair. Are you the owner of this forge? Although doubtful, Usher immediately concluded that he had no idea. Because, at first glance, she was wearing armor that was far from blacksmithing.
Is it because she is a woman wearing armor? Her armor was slightly different in shape from the one Usher knew. It was the same that no skin was exposed to protect her entire body, but there was a definite difference in the shape of the armor and the area of the fabric. It was because the area and thickness of the iron were smaller than those of the armor Usher knew, and the lines looked thinner. What bothered me even more was that the pure white fabric that was padded under the armor was much neater and more refined than what knights usually use.
There was an empty scabbard with ornate decorations at the waist dance.
“…If you’re the owner, you’re a bit busy right now.”
She immediately checked Krikaliev’s figure, erased her surprised expression, and said calmly. Where the blue woman glanced, an old man was polishing the blade of a thin longsword that appeared to be hers using a whetstone.
“Uhm, I see.”
Krikaliev pointed to a nearby chair.
“Sit down for now.”
Then, he recommends it to Usher, but she becomes awkward with his tone, which is far from usual, and when she sits there, a slightly frowning woman catches her eye. Even though she was hesitant because of her notice, Krikaliev went to look at the items that were scattered around the building like clutter, perhaps trying to pick out the necessary items. That was when Usher was sitting still.
“Is it okay for a minute?”
The blue woman came to his side and sat side by side in the chair next to her.
“Yes, yes?! What happened?”
“You don’t have to be too nervous. I just want to ask you something.”
Usher asked nervously, and she said somehow in a quieter voice. Usher wondered, as if trying to calm him down, but she certainly didn’t find it difficult to talk.
“Excuse me, but what is your relationship with that person?”
“Are you Mr. Krikaliev?”
The woman nodded her head, and Usher pondered what to answer her. Although she was a bit elusive.
“It’s Master.”
Because he decided to become Krikaliev’s apprentice. She heard Usher and nodded her head.
“Didn’t you ask for something strange to teach me a sword? Hit me.”
“Yes? Strange? Hit me?”
When Usher asked back in bewilderment, she finally relaxed her expression.
“If you don’t know, that’s fine. But just in case you don’t know, I’ll tell you. If something bad happens, ask the nearby church for protection.”
Then, when he heard that the old man had finished grooming her, he had no choice but to stare blankly at the woman taking the sword from him and leaving. What the hell was she trying to say?
“I can’t live because I’m unfair at the prize.”
The sound of Krikaliev’s muttering roamed the forge for some time.
