“*Haa… Haa…*”
My arms trembled uncontrollably.
As I lifted my head slightly, I saw my longsword bouncing off the ground.
Straining to lift my head further, I discovered Trie standing tall.
Trie seemed like a mountain today.
“Your skills seem the same. You didn’t practice properly, did you?”
“It’s weird that you’ve become so much stronger in just a few months…”
I thought that since returning early, I hadn’t trained properly.
It seemed I had reached a higher level without realizing it.
I could feel it—a wall I absolutely couldn’t overcome.
But what stung my pride was that Trie hadn’t shown any new techniques or movements at all.
She couldn’t have only focused on the basics; she must’ve learned something new, and the desire to showcase it welled up inside me.
“This time, let’s use everything, including the internal circuits!”
“Are you serious? This room won’t survive…”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ve put a lot of effort into the barrier’s strength.”
I immediately switched my sword to my left hand and drew my Vafe with my right.
Holding both longswords, I took my stance.
The twin swordsmanship that once felt awkward now felt pretty familiar.
Sure, disadvantages still existed, but I knew how to leverage its strengths better now.
“Haa… If the room collapses, it’s not my problem.”
Trie sighed and began stretching slowly.
That sight made me feel a bit tense already.
This time, I was thinking of using ‘Selection and Concentration.’
It would be my first time using it in a duel since enhancing my abilities.
Forget my encounter with Schlus Hainkel from another world…
“Are you ready? Don’t think of me like before.”
“Likewise.”
With the internal circuits whirring, the training room soon filled with *loud sounds*.
The palpable heat radiated from our bodies, forming *steam*, and a quiet tension hung in the air.
Trie slightly closed her eyes, sending me a signal.
In response, I quickly closed and opened my eyes.
‘Selection and Concentration. Spend 1 second each on strength, agility, intensity, and vitality.’
*Kwazang!*
In that instant, Trie and my new model broke the sound barrier, charging towards each other.
The swift blades collided with a *deafening roar* but neither of us showed even a single scratch, worthy of our fine swords.
‘I got you.’
Trie was definitely fast.
She had become significantly faster than before.
But she couldn’t exceed my speed, which was tripled by ‘Selection and Concentration.’
As Trie’s rapid movements appeared to me like a slow-motion video, I quickly swung my right hand, aiming the Vafe at her shoulder.
Trie attempted to deflect the blade in my left hand, trying to respond somehow, but she had no way to counter with speed or the number of blades.
It was already over.
That instinct hit me like a lightning bolt.
“What?!”
Trie’s wrist twisted, slightly altering the blade’s trajectory.
Instead of deflecting my sword, she chose to absorb all the force vertically.
As Trie intentionally disrupted her balance, her body flipped backward, taking my strength with her.
In that split second, my blue light blade soared through the air.
*Fwaak!*
“Ugh!”
Trie’s rapidly spinning foot landed a hard kick on my chin.
With my strength stat soaring above 300, I escaped the fate of a shattered jaw, but I couldn’t prevent the burst blood vessels in my nose and my brain from going haywire.
Clenching my teeth against the excruciating pain dancing in my head, I barely managed to glance forward, only to see Trie flying far off, rolling to land safely.
Her sword bounced away, landing far off.
“Ugh…”
I felt warm liquid flowing from my nose.
Blood quickly clogged my nostrils, choking my breathing.
With the lingering headache and dizziness from my still-recovering head, Trie appeared to be doubled over on the floor.
‘What the hell… Did I actually take a hit while overpowering her in both strength and speed?’
I struggled to digest what had just happened.
Until our blades clashed, I had been dominating, utilizing the advantages of my dual-wielding to corner Trie.
But everything flip-flopped when Trie suddenly abandoned traditional swordsmanship.
Instead of deflecting my blade, she stood upright, her sword vertically facing mine, as if we were in a cartoonish struggle.
Thanks to that, my overwhelming strength pushed Trie back, only for her to cleverly convert that force into rotational energy.
In the end, my own strength had struck my chin.
“Cough! Ugh…”
Wiping my nose with my wrist, I begrudgingly tried to regain my stance, but all my initial confidence had vanished.
Even after using ‘Selection and Concentration’ for four seconds, I hadn’t managed to incapacitate Trie.
What if I had no abilities at all? How pathetically would I lose?
Fear and powerlessness began to seep through my body.
I was undeniably terrified of the Trie before me.
“It’s my loss.”
“Huh?”
At that moment, Trie got up, raised both hands, and declared.
For a moment, I tensed up, suspecting a trick.
But when Trie massaged her shoulder and plopped down, I finally relaxed.
“I lost my sword… and my left shoulder might not be usable anymore… Master, I’ve concentrated solely on training the internal circuits, haven’t I?”
“…”
Now that I looked closely, Trie’s shoulder was noticeably sagging.
It seemed my left arm had pressed down all her weight while resting on her shoulder.
Plus, losing her sword pretty much confirmed it was my victory.
It was clear my body was in worse condition, though.
I walked over to Trie and clumsily cast a healing magic.
Since it wasn’t a serious injury, my mediocre skills were enough to heal her fully.
“That wasn’t human movement; what was that? How did you pull that off?”
“And how did you receive that…?”
“Hehe, I went through some special training. I realized traditional swordsmanship wasn’t everything. I noticed there was too much wasted power during exchanges. I learned how to exploit that completely. In that situation, my master’s power was so strong that I could dodge the light sword and counterattack at the same time.”
“Hah, that’s absurd.”
A chuckle escaped me.
My strength was somehow too overwhelming, leading to a powerful counterattack.
I was excited to see how I would fare against the War Machine, the Majin, given this state.
Nonetheless, I could honestly be happy about Trie’s growth.
Even with just traditional swordsmanship, she could easily overpower other elite knights, and now with a mysterious technique added, I thought she might even rival the Empire’s best sword.
While I could barely use such power for five seconds a day, Trie could project it all day long.
It would be more than sufficient for her to guard me.
“Trie, I’m heading to the desert. Can you accompany me as my guard?”
“How long will you be gone?”
“I anticipate… about 2 weeks. Even at worst, it shouldn’t exceed a month.”
Of course, that was all wishful thinking.
The time could vary wildly based on how much progress was made in that situation.
In the worst case, I could be trapped for over half a year.
“Hmm, what’s the purpose?”
“I’m going to unify the Elf Race.”
“Wh-why would you do that?”
Trie stuttered, surprised.
It made sense.
While the Elf Race was scattered and lacked power currently, they had wreaked havoc, burning, pillaging, and more before the Empire showed up.
Even though the Empire unified the human race and created a powerful standing army to eliminate such actions, the Elves remained strong back then.
But when the Empire and the Kingdom united under the guise of reclaiming the Sanctuary and invaded the desert to seize the largest oasis city, everything changed drastically.
The Empire didn’t initially plan on restoring any sanctuary. Once they captured the oasis, they fortified it, provoking the Elves to deploy troops recklessly.
Despite their significant losses, the Elves had to begrudgingly sign a ceasefire agreement after failing to reclaim the city, and that land became incorporated as the Empire’s colony named the Development Area.
A place where 80% of desert agriculture occurs, linking all the desert roads, and acting as the gateway to the West.
When that crucial land fell under Empire control, the Elves had to pay exorbitant tolls and taxes.
Moreover, they were economically subjugated as their food was held hostage.
Duke Damien leveraged this to sow division and ensure that the Elf tribes could never unite again.
I intended to break that long tradition.
“If the desert gets swept away by the Asylum and the Majin forces, the eastern front will open. I want the Elves to handle that themselves as much as possible.”
“I see that. However, if the Elves unite, won’t they just come after us first? Are you hoping to pacify them by giving up the colony?”
“That’s not it.”
I couldn’t just give away an important colony that turned the Elves into economic slaves.
I needed to keep the Development Area secure at all costs.
Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to maintain control.
“Therefore, my second goal is to redirect the Elves’ anger toward the Asylum and the Majin.”
“How can you do that?”
“I’ll start brainstorming now.”
“…”
Trie’s expression dulled.
Even though I hadn’t established any concrete plans yet, there was little choice.
Whatever the plan was or the chances of success, failing to achieve my goal would mean destruction.
If I only succeeded in uniting the Elves but failed to accomplish my second objective, it would lead to disastrous results.
I absolutely had to succeed in both goals.
“You’re not leaving the planning to me, are you?”
“Of course not.”
“As long as that’s the case, I feel relieved… But is this something that can’t do without me?”
Trie turned her head, feigning disinterest, but I sensed her glance as she asked.
The tone hinted that she was leaning toward joining if I sought her urgently.
It was quite endearing, so I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Oh, it’s nothing. If it’s not just you I have to take along, I have Pelaine available…”
Trie’s body jolted, trembling.
Her expression shifted to one of despair as she looked at me.
“Pelaine is disqualified for several reasons. She has to lead the palace guard, and her skills are slightly below yours.”
“Hmm… I see.”
Trie’s expression began to regain its composure, and she started to snort.
She truly had no talent for acting; it was cute.
“And Pelaine might go into heat at any moment—”
“What did you just say?”
“……”
I had let that slip.
That last comment really didn’t need saying.
As I casually glanced at Trie, she was glaring at me with fierce eyes.
“What was that about?!”
“*Cough*, Should we head up now? The tea must have gone cold.”
“No. You need to finish what you were saying. What’s that about the Holy Knight Commander’s heat?!”
“……”
Just as I was about to go up, Emilia appeared at the entrance, arms crossed.
She looked down at me with a chilling gaze.
At that moment, a shiver ran down my spine, and I froze on the spot.
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