The homeroom teacher, who is teaching Kurena, reprimanded Kurena for why she just spoke. Kurena looked straight at Doberg. There was no hesitation or regret in her eyes.
âKurena, right? Why do you want to use these skills?â
Staring at Kurena with his single eye, Doberg asked her why she wanted the skill.
âAllen has big dreams and I want to make them come true!â
âHmm?â
He gave a look that said, âWho is this Allen?â
âOh, itâs that dark-haired boy over there I was telling you about.â
Helmios said to Doberg while pointing at me.
Doberg looked at me for a moment, then returned his gaze to Kurena.
âHelmios, Sylvia, Iâm going to deal with this girl, Kurena. Please take over others.â
âOkay.â
Helmios waved his hand in understanding.
âKurena, come over here so I can teach you some skills.â
(Oh, heâs a good man. He is going to teach her.)
âYes!â
Kurena answered with a smile. She stood up from the crowd where the students were sitting and followed Doberg. Doberg had an instructor bring a sword for a mock battle.
Student question time was still going on. Some students were asking questions, while others were watching Kurena and Doberg.
Doberg gave Kurena a sword and took one for himself.
âCome and hit me.â
âWhat?â
âUse your skills and hit me.â
âI understand!â
I was wondering how he was going to teach her how to use the skill, but it seemed to be the âtraining while fightingâ.
(I might be able to see Kurenaâs future potential, depending on how well she currently fares against Doberg, who has been on the battlefield for over 30 years.)
This is valuable information, I thought as I checked Kurenaâs status.
Kurenaâs [Attack] has reached four digits in the past two months. In the dungeons, Iâve basically been prioritizing speed, so Iâve kept the hunting of magical beasts to a minimum. The main reason for her leveling up is the experience gained from the bottom floor bosses of the C-class dungeons, of which there are now three.
Kurena dashed heads up towards Doberg, who was standing a short distance away. She then swung an unrestrained blow down on Doberg as if she were knocking her sword from above.
âHuh!â
However, Doberg easily caught the sword and blew it away from Kurenaâs body with a caressing motion.
âWhatâs wrong? Iâm going to keep you company until you can use your skills. Go ahead and use your skills.â
Apparently, this training will continue until she can use her skill.
(Thatâs right. I donât know how one uses their skill for the first time at all. Is this how everyone does it?)
Soon, the question and answer period was over, and we were scattered in this large arena and began to receive instruction on how to wield swords. There were also students who used spears and axes, but they were taught together too.
I was also planning to learn swordsmanship from a Master Swordsman, but I changed my plans. Cecile and I watched as Kurena trained to activate her skills. Dogora moved to a remote part of the arena to receive instruction on how to wield the axe.
Then two hours passed.
âWhatâs the matter? Youâve been doing the same thing for a while now. You canât use your skills like this.â
âYes!â
Doberg called out to Kurena, who was blown away and struggling to get up. He didnât offer any advice, but simply blew her away.
Two more hours passed, and Kurenaâs training, which began just after one oâclock, was going on for four hours straight without a break. Kurena attacked Dober with her sword and kept getting blown away.
âYou can stop if youâre tired, okay? Youâll learn slowly over the next year or so anyway.â
âIâm fine!â
(After all, does it take about a year to learn a skill?)
It seems that it takes about a year to learn sword and axe skills. And I havenât learned them in class yet. This means it might take two whole years from now.
âCecile.â
âWhat?â
âYou already know how to use your magic skills, right?â
âOf course. Some of the kids can already use magic.â
Kiel also said that he learned Recovery Magic in two months. I wonder if it takes two to three months to learn any type of magic.
(There is a <Swordsmanship> skill that anyone can learn, but they learn it slowly. I donât understand the adjustments that have been made. Is there a reason for this?)
I donât know if the cause is the difference in [Intelligence] due to [Talent], or something else.
Two more hours pass.
The lights made of magical tools illuminated the arena. The Hero and Master Swordsmen have already finished their part, and the instructors, Helmios, Sylvia, Dogora, Cecile, and I were looking at Kurenaâs training, which might end at any moment.
I told Kiel, who was not here, that he canât go to the C-class dungeon today because we were training, using G-rank Bird Chappy.
âWhatâs the matter? The sun is setting. Why donât you stop slacking?â
âYes!â
Doberg, who showed no signs of fatigue, announced to the already tired and dazed Kurena. He has not yet said a word about how she can use her skills.
Two more hours passed, eight hours of continuous training.
âHeh!â
Kurena got blown away again. No one knows how many times she has been blown away. Dizzy, she desperately tried to stand up. She couldnât stand up though, as her legs didnât have any strength left.
âIs that the extent of your dream with your friend?â
âNo!â
Doberg called out to Kurena, who was unable to stand up.
âNo? Look at you! You canât even stand!â
âNo! Allen has been working hard all along!â
With that, Kurena, her hair crumpled, stood up once more.
âThen come at me! Prove it with your sword!â
âYes!â
Kurena headed toward Doberg at a speed slower than walking.
âCome on, just think about activating your skill. Put everything youâve got into it.â
ââŚâ
The dazed Kurena no longer responded. She was blown away and she still slowly made her way to Doberg at a speed slower than walking. She then raised her sword with her head down.
Then she raised his sword above his head and swung it down.
Whoosh
The sword, which I had expected to be swung down very slowly, had more speed than ever before. It was a speed that I had never seen before, even in dungeons.
Kurenaâs sword stopped at his shoulder, but the impact was so great that it cracked the arena floor below Dobergâs feet.
In one swift motion, Kurenaâs sword sliced through the mock-up sword that Doberg was holding and bit into Dobergâs shoulder. Doberg was not wearing any armor, but the sword stopped at Dobergâs clothes.
âBrilliant. Thatâs a skill. Donât forget it.â
âYes, I wonâtâŚâ
Kurena collapsed in front of Doberg.
ââKurena!ââ
Cecile, Dogora and I, who were watching the situation, rushed to Kurenaâs side. I took Kurena in my arms. She seems to have fainted, but her face showed a look of relief.
âWhy didnât you just show her your skills and tell her what they are? It would have been faster.â
Helmios, who had been waiting for a long time, asked Doberg.
âHelmios. Not everyone learns everything as dexterously as you do. This girl didnât seem like she could think straight. But still, she got it in a day. Thatâs faster than I thoughtâŚâ
Doberg seemed to think it would take more than a day for Kurena to learn her skill. He looked at me, who was holding Kurena with a curious look on his face.
âMaster Swordsman Doberg!â
âNuh?â
An instructor noticed that blood was oozing from his shoulder where he had been hit by Kurenaâs sword and rushed over.
âHuh? Youâre hurt. Heal.â
Helmios used Recovery Magic to heal Dobergâs shoulder.
âItâs been a long time since I was cut by someone. Was the new Master Swordsman so good?â
âNo, she canât cut you with that level of stats and skill-huh!â
Helmiosâ eyes glowed faintly. He seemed to be appraising Kurena, wondering about Dobergâs bleeding. Then a surprised voice echoed through the arena.
âWhatâs up, Helmios?â
âNo, her status is going to be great. Huh? I must have imagined it. Sorry.â
âHuhâŚâ
(Whatâs wrong with Kurenaâs status?)
I also checked Kurenaâs status in my Grimoire. Her [Strength] was the same but she had less [Mana].
(Oh! She got skill experience!)
Skill Level
[Master Swordsman] 1
[Slash] 1
Skill Experience
[Slash] 2/10
I was pleased to see that Kurenaâs skill experience had finally increased, and thanked Doberg for his help.
At Kurenaâs feet laid a steel mock-up sword, its hilt molded like clay.