Chapter – 20….
Pirancheva had risen to the rank of knight‐trainee and trained alongside trainees who were much older than she was.
Among the knight trainees, the youngest was eighteen, and the oldest was twenty-five.
Thus, unlike children her age, the young Pirancheva was treated like a beloved younger sibling, with the older trainees taking care of her in various ways.
“You’re doing well.”
“Thank you. I’ll work hard.”
She was said to be only ten, but her physique was not small compared to theirs. If not for her youthful face, she could have blended right in as someone their age—her physical build was that good.
Knights carried heavy weapons and armor as a basic requirement, so they needed training to build muscle strength.
When they wore their swords and full armor, the lighter sets weighed around fifty kilograms, and the heavier ones could reach eighty. Building muscle and strength was therefore an essential part of knight training.
But Pirancheva focused less on building bulk and more on balance and strengthening her core.
“Pirancheva, you really should build more muscle.”
“Yes, but I’m still a kid. I still have room to grow—what if lifting heavy things stunts my growth?”
Because she retained memories from a world more advanced than the Baruda Empire, she knew that carelessly overbuilding muscle at her age wouldn’t be good for her body.
So she only built the muscles she needed and spent the rest of her time focusing on flexibility and core training to balance her body.
“Just let her be. Pirancheva’s body is like a sculpture crafted by the gods. Look at those twitching fine muscles.”
Thanks to her bodyweight training and exercises where she supported her own weight, her smaller muscle groups were well developed.
“That’s right. The women in the castle keep fainting after catching a glimpse of her physique these days.”
Perhaps because they were adults, at times their jokes crossed into risqué territory, but Pirancheva took it in stride.
“Oh please, Philip-hyung, the rumor is you’ve never even held a woman’s hand.”
“Who said that!”
“Hahaha. Philip, he’s right. The bragging you did earlier was completely exposed as a lie.”
“I’m telling you, that’s not it! Arne only said that because he was embarrassed!”
Compared to the apprentice trainees, the atmosphere here was definitely much better.
Even if they failed to become apprentice knights, they could still serve as soldiers in the marquisate or even become mercenaries.
Perhaps because some stability was guaranteed, they competed fiercely to become apprentice knights yet still encouraged each other warmly.
This is why people with stable futures have room to relax, Pirancheva thought.
* * *
Chiiing!
Pirancheva was sparring with Knight Rodman in the private training yard.
Although she pressed him aggressively, Rodman effortlessly blocked her attacks with relaxed ease.
Neither of them used mana—only pure swordsmanship. But Rodman’s overwhelming experience and skill gave him a clear advantage.
“You’ve become much more concise. That’s good. You need to cut out unnecessary movement.”
Rodman taught Pirancheva as they fought. This wasn’t unique to him; other knights were the same.
Because she was sincere, hardworking, and polite, the knights all wanted to teach her as much as they could.
And she didn’t just absorb their teachings quickly—she understood them, applying them instantly in real combat. This naturally sparked curiosity and anticipation about how far she could grow.
Tang!
Their swords collided, and Pirancheva frowned ever so slightly.
Something in the transmission of force through her grip had changed—and as she expected, Rodman’s counterattack followed immediately.
Her reaction speed still couldn’t match that of the knights, especially at the moment the flow changed from defense to offense.
And that, she realized, was one of the reasons these people were called knights.
“Don’t assume that minimizing movements means losing power. Power comes not only from muscle strength but also from speed.”
Rodman explained while attacking.
“Being concise reduces unnecessary motion, thereby increasing speed. This applies not only to swordsmanship but also to martial movement.”
Struggling to block his attacks, Pirancheva still focused on not missing a single word.
“When your body moves, your center of gravity moves with it. And as your center shifts, your blade follows.”
“You mean the body and sword must move as one.”
“Exactly. That’s what we call Sword-Body Unification.”
Pirancheva already knew of the concept.
“If you understand this Sword-Body Unification and can express it physically, then your swordsmanship will already be worthy of being called that of a knight.”
“Then have all the knights achieved it?”
“Some have. Some haven’t.”
Their fierce exchange continued without pause. For Pirancheva, even blocking Rodman’s strikes was hard, but she grit her teeth.
Thanks to pushing herself to her limits in personal training, she could stay focused and keep up the duel despite the strain.
“Knights who haven’t achieved it must have learned something else exceptional to compensate.”
“Correct. But Pirancheva—before chasing after those specialties, focus on achieving Sword-Body Unification.”
“Is there a reason I must do that first?”
This was one of the differences that set her apart from other children.
She always asked why, even when she already understood the reasoning.
“When you build a structure, the foundation is the most important. Once the foundation is solid, any building you construct on top—no matter its shape—will stand strong without collapsing. Swordsmanship is the same. If you learn the basics thoroughly, any techniques you later acquire can be expressed in your own way.”
Pirancheva beamed at Rodman’s answer.
“Yes! Thank you, Sir Rodman!”
* * *
“I would like the knight trainees to join this year’s monster subjugation.”
Every winter, they had to conduct a monster hunt.
Knight-Captain Foren spoke his suggestion to Marquis Eston.
“Is that so?”
“As before, it’s best for them to face living creatures in combat so we can evaluate their characteristics and assign them appropriate roles.”
“Very well. But what about Pirancheva?”
“I plan to take him along despite his age.”
“Will it not be dangerous?”
“According to Rodman, he’s grown enough to pull his own weight. And a 3-Circle mage providing healing magic on site will be a huge help.”
“You intend to make his identity as a mage known.”
“He will turn eleven this year. One year from now, he will be twelve—the age to enter the Academy. I plan to help him spend this remaining year achieving results he can be satisfied with.”
Marquis Eston nodded—he didn’t think it was a bad idea.
“Foren.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Why are you so devoted to training Pirancheva?”
Foren hesitated briefly before answering.
“At the rate he’s growing, I believe he can reach the rank of Swordmaster. And considering his age… perhaps even the legendary rank of Grand Swordmaster.”
Marquis Eston looked at him. Seeing the certainty in Foren’s eyes, he murmured,
“A Grand Swordmaster…”
It sounded unbelievable—but judging by Pirancheva’s progress so far, it didn’t seem impossible.
“And the reason you think so?”
“As I’ve said before, young Pirancheva’s greatest talent is his effort. His innate sword talent may not reach Lady Elina’s level, but he has something she does not—effort as a talent.”
“Effort?”
“Of course, Lady Elina works several times harder than most, but from what I’ve seen, Pirancheva has never once stopped putting in effort.”
It was a talent denied to geniuses—yet given to Pirancheva.
“And since he is meant to be Lady Elina’s future partner, it doesn’t hurt to teach him more.”
“Hahaha!”
Marquis Eston burst into laughter at the mention of Elina’s future partner.
“Do not say such things in front of Elina or Pirancheva. It’s something decided between parents.”
“I will keep it to myself.”
“Good. With that fiery temper of hers, Elina might overturn the whole estate if she finds out. Once the two enter the Academy, they’ll naturally meet and grow interested in each other.”
The marquis believed that geniuses were naturally drawn to other geniuses. Since the two trained similarly and were exceptional, they would inevitably connect at the Academy.
“Include the trainees in the hunt and tell the senior knights to watch over them well.”
“I will.”
“Now then, how is Elina’s mana-cultivation method proceeding? Is there progress?”
Elina had previously delivered a training method using magic circles, and they had been practicing it with help from mages.
“It has exceeded my expectations. By gathering dispersed mana within the body to a specific point other than the mana hole, it allows far quicker mana manifestation.”
“And the drawbacks?”
“None so far. Except…”
“Except?”
“It costs a considerable amount of money to maintain the magic circle.”
“Because of the mana stones, I assume?”
“Yes. If you’re financially well-off, you can continue training, but otherwise it would be impossible to sustain.”
“As expected, everything in this world comes down to money.”
At the marquis’s amused remark, Foren couldn’t help but smile.
“Continue Crow’s training, and select a few knights to train first.”
“Select knights?”
“Senior knights. If they produce results, they can teach the others, reducing expenses.”
“That would indeed ease the financial burden.”
“Then do so. You know this already, but while selection may be selective, there must be no discrimination in the training itself.”
Foren bowed.
“And if the Crow unit benefited from Elina’s method, the mages must have benefited greatly from Pirancheva’s training method as well.”
“I believe so. Since Ollis hasn’t shown his face at all lately, the results must be impressive.”
“Mages are wonderful in every way except that once they find something to research, they vanish from reality entirely. That’s the problem.”
“I will tell Ollis to report his results.”
“No need. If I call him back and forth, he’ll get irritated. I’ll go see for myself.”
“I’ll make preparations.”
“No. I can go alone. Focus on the monster subjugation and make sure the knights return safely again this year.”
