CH 2.20

High Elf and Sword Princess

Translated by Mlzkzr

Edited by Mlzkzr

And so, the sword training that has finally began was, as expected, quite plain from the outside.

After all, the basics are all about swinging.

But next to me, Kaeha, who is my teacher, does exactly the same thing, so it’s pretty interesting just to watch her.

I compare my movements with hers and make corrections little by little.

The girl next to me doesn’t say anything, she simply swings her sword.

Perhaps Kaeha has never taught swordsmanship to others, so she probably doesn’t even know what to say, especially to the inexperienced ones.

That’s why, she was swinging her sword, generally speaking, and making me imitate her.

Recalling the training she received in her childhood, she racked her brains about this and that, and the conclusion she came to was to make me imitate her.

This is probably definitely the wrong way to teach an inexperienced person.

Without talking about it in more detail and teaching it from the ground up, it is difficult to understand the significance of this training.

But this method, yes, it was a suitable training for me.

This method of sublimation by repeating the movements to improve accuracy and imprinting them on the body is the same as the way I kept shooting a bow in the deep forest.

Also, from my experience in blacksmithing, I am accustomed to spotting and correcting differences between my and my teacher’s movements.

I think while swinging the sword, correct it while swinging, and gradually learn to think and correct it while swinging.

Over time, I also realized that just moving in the same way as my mentor, Kaeha, did not allow me to swing the sword in the same way.

She, as a human woman, and I, as a high elf man, have different lengths of limbs, different pelvic shapes, and differently warped elbows and knees, so if that’s the case, our musculature would naturally be a little different.

It is only natural that wielding the sword in the same manner as her would not produce the same results.

Kaeha, in particular, had a weight attached to her chest.

Sooner or later, I will have to think and decide how to move my body in my own way, and aim for the same result as her sword, or even better.

The Yosogi-ryu sword is basically wielded with two hands, as they used to wield the swords like this in the past.

However, some of the forms are wielded with one hand, which is quite difficult to do.

In terms of muscular strength, even though I am a high elf, I would be superior to her with my blacksmithing training, but Kaeha can effortlessly swing it with one hand and stop it.

With one hand, the trajectory of the sword I swung would lightly shake, and even when I stop it, it would sway slightly.

Thinking that perhaps there is some trick to it, I watch Kaeha swing the sword and ponder about it, then I swing it and think about it myself, repeating the process all the while.

Time flew by as I spent it like that, and half a year after I started training, Cleias arrived in the Royal Capital.

……Cleias, first visited me before the dojo of the Rhodoran Great Swordsmanship, then saw the devastation of the destroyed Yosogi-ryu dojo, and listened to the story of Kaeha and her mother.

I guess this was his way of expressing his intention that in this case, Cleias would stand on our side as my acquaintance, not on the side of Rhodoran Great Swordsmanship.

Cleias treated Kaeha and her mother with an attitude of respect for the Yosogi-ryu from beginning to end.

To be honest, to me he is just a strong adventurer, but in the eyes of Kaeha and her mother, Cleias seemed to be an honorable warrior.

They seemed to be going through a lot of complicated things before they actually met, but by the time they finished talking, their attitudes had softened completely.

Kaeha, in particular, wanted to hear from Cleias, who was clearly a better sword user than she was, so when she held him back, he ended up canceling his lodging and staying overnight in the guest room of the house.

In short, they are treating him the same way as me.

Perhaps Kaeha is not truly confident in her own swordsmanship, which she has honed only through her form and practice swings.

Because the stories she wanted to hear from Cleias were mainly about actual combat and training to prepare for it.

Cleias also seemed to sense this during the course of the conversation, and carefully taught Kaeha his own method of training, not of the Rhodoran great swordsmanship dojo.

It is true that Cleias is a swordsman of the Rhodoran great swordsmanship, but at the same time, he was an adventurer for a long time and was not blessed with a training partner, so it seems that he had to train by himself a lot.

However, because of this, he had a lot of experience in actual combat against monsters and bandits, so he naturally became skilled at reflecting on his own skills and training to make up for what he lacked.

The result of that was a skilled swordsman who served as the sole vanguard of a team of seven-star adventurers of the highest rank.

“So if you feel that your current swordsmanship is lacking and you would like to make it more practical……. the fastest way to do it is to experience actual combat. Of course, that’s just my experience, so it doesn’t apply to everyone, though.”

While saying that to Kaeha, Cleias glanced at me as if to peek.

I know what that gaze means.

To me, that conclusion isn’t very amusing, but just like the saying goes, “the sooner the better”, so that may be unavoidable.

Because if Kaeha’s swordsmanship is not perfected, my sword, which I will learn from her, will not be perfected either.

As for me, I have no complaints about Kaeha’s beautiful sword right now, but if she herself is not satisfied with it, I would not be able to tell her that with confidence.

“I suggest you try being an adventurer for three years…… or even two years or a year. After all, you have the strongest person I know right next to you.”

It is obvious why Cleias called me the strongest, and not the most dependable.

Because the people he can rely on the most are Airena and Martena, in other words, his companions from the White Lake.

Even if he retired as an adventurer, that would not change.

Kaeha looks at me as if surprised by Cleias’ assessment, and I avert my eyes, somewhat embarrassed.

I had told her when we first met that I was good at borrowing the power of spirits and archery, but she didn’t seem to think that a swordsman as good as Cleias would label me as the strongest person he knew.

Of course, Cleias hadn’t gone on any adventures with me either, so he didn’t have an assessment-based accurate grasp of my abilities.

But even so, seeing that angry water spirit up close was such an impressive and big event for Cleias.

However, Cleias’ words are probably an overestimation of me.

If Cleias were to attack me at this distance, I would be cut in half without being able to do anything.

It would be a completely different story if I kept my distance, but at least the word “strongest” is a far cry from what I really am.

But even putting that aside, there was one problem that Kaeha had to deal with in order to work as an adventurer.

If Kaeha became an adventurer, especially when she began to take on the task of exterminating monsters and defeating bandits, her mother would be left alone in the house.

Even though she has recovered from her lung disease, it would probably be impossible for Kaeha to leave her frail mother alone at home for an extended period of time.

The next day, before Cleias left for the Rhodoran Great Swordsmanship’s dojo, Kaeha asked him to cross swords with her once.

Cleias agreed, and the two faced each other with swords in hand…… and Kaeha was defeated without being able to do anything.

Yes, because Cleias, facing her, just raised his sword, and Kaeha didn’t know how to cut in.

Having only repeated the form and practice swinging, Kaeha must have lacked the technique to strike and forcefully break down an opponent who has no opening, as well as the mental attitude to do so.

As much as she has trained enough to know that there is no gap in her opponent, she doesn’t know what to do, and she can’t move at all.

Unable to really do anything but get lost, Kaeha is made aware of her own shortcomings and chooses to surrender with a look of despair.

Cleias looked at Kaeha, then at me, and walked away from the Yosogi-ryu dojo.

The scars he left behind are deep.

However, if she can’t repair it, she can’t continue to live as a swordswoman.

Perhaps Cleias have thought so and made Kaeha face her own shortcomings.

I’ll take care of the rest, I thought.

What a guy, indeed.

But ah, let me thank Cleias for that.

Kaeha’s weakness was that only a swordsman who was more skilled than her could teach her.

Because there was probably no one else but Cleias who could tell Kaeha that without causing a fatal wound to her heart.

However, Cleias still underestimated Kaeha a bit.

Even if she is the sword master I’ve chosen.