Chapter 22: Rapid Progress
Chapter 22: Rapid Progress
"Ding, ding, dang!"
As Rayn fought with all his might against Kylie, who was deliberately holding back, he could only last for about half a minute before succumbing to defeat.
Despite his loss, Rayn's face showed no hint of disappointment, and instead, there was a subtle hint of joy.
The delightful system prompts sounded:
[Your Basic Swordsmanship skill has improved. Experience gained: +29]
[You have engaged in combat. Militia Experience gained: +17]
Lady Sadia, the head maid, observed Rayn's lack of disappointment with appreciation. She thought to herself, "This might be the reason why Miss Kylie values Rayn. He never loses heart, even in the face of defeat!"
"So many talented young men in Master County are far superior to Rayn, but none of them possess his temperament. After losing to Miss Kylie, they would either be ashamed or stubbornly refuse to accept it."
"But Rayn is different. Even after defeat, he remains joyful. This shows his genuine passion for swordsmanship!"
Kylie looked at Rayn, who was still eager to continue, and her eyes shone with even greater admiration. Her crisp voice rang out, "Rayn, your speed and strength are on par with mine, and you should have been able to last longer. But do you know why you lost so quickly?"
"Is it because my swordsmanship is still too weak?" Rayn scratched his head.
"Not entirely," the girl said as she took long strides, demonstrating her point. "When attacking, keep your gaze straight ahead, using your peripheral vision to lock onto your target. Never reveal your intentions."
Rayn had initially maintained a relaxed attitude, but when the noble girl spoke these words, his expression turned serious. Kylie was teaching him a crucial combat technique.
If it weren't for her sudden insight, Rayn might have taken a long time to realize this.
"To catch them off guard, is that what you mean?"
"Well summarized!" The girl praised him. "Exactly."
"If you reveal your attack intentions too early, experienced enemies will quickly dodge or block your attack path. Some might even lure you into attacking their intentionally exposed weak points and then swiftly counter, defeating you."
Rayn pondered for a moment and understood the girl's meaning.
"Miss Kylie, let's go again!"
The girl nodded, indicating that Rayn could attack.
This time, as Rayn attacked, he kept his gaze fixed on the girl, his body moving like a willow in the wind. He took a quick step forward and thrust his sword.
The girl gently blocked the attack and sidestepped to the right, avoiding Rayn's strike.
This time, Rayn's eyes remained focused on the girl without fixating on any particular part of her body. This made Kylie's predictions slightly slower than before, and their combat lasted longer than the previous round.
Suddenly, Rayn seized an opportunity and took a quick step forward, swinging his sword in a powerful slash. The girl dodged once again.
With Kylie deliberately allowing him to attack, Rayn and the girl exchanged blows, and the sound of "ding, ding, dang" filled the arena.
After a minute, Rayn's energy was depleted, and he lay on the ground, drenched in sweat.
Although exhausted, the exhilarating feeling of combat left Rayn exhilarated, even with a hint of wanting more.
[Your Basic Swordsmanship skill has improved. Experience gained: +37]
[You have engaged in combat. Militia Experience gained: +21]
Kylie noticed Rayn's special interest in swordsmanship and thought, "This is good, but also not so good." She realized that after each swordsmanship spar, Rayn's unparalleled passion was reignited.
"But the breath technique is fundamental. You should focus more on mastering the seven movements of the Mammoth Breath Technique. The sooner you grasp it, the better it will be for your physical development." Kylie advised.
"Yes, Miss Kylie!" Rain responded, but in his heart, he sighed, thinking, Miss, you don't understand. I can only improve quickly through more sparring!
Rain had never felt time pass by so quickly. He was now beginning to understand the feelings of those wealthy gym-goers from his past life, who would spend lavishly to invite private instructors for personal training.
Take his current situation, for example, where he hadn't spent a penny, and the youngest daughter of the Earl was acting as his sparring partner.
Today's practice had ended, but Rain was already looking forward to the next session.
For four consecutive days, Rain's strength had soared!
[Mammoth Breath Technique lv2 (12/300)]
W
Currently, Rain could only maintain the position for five minutes, far from the required half-hour duration.
Nevertheless, it had slightly increased his strength, bringing it up to 7 points, surpassing the average level of an ordinary adult.
Although Rain's physical attributes hadn't changed much, his combat awareness had significantly improved.
It could be said that Swordmaster Humbert taught Rain how to wield a sword, but Kylie taught him how to truly fight!
Name: Rayn Kalan
Profession: Blacksmith Apprentice lv3 (265/500) / Militia lv3 (7/500)
Constitution: 6
Strength: 7
Agility: 7
Spirit: 8
Remaining Attribute Points: 1
Remaining Skill Points: 1
[Basic Swordsmanship lv4 (578/1000)]
Basic Swordsmanship still hadn't leveled up due to the excessive experience required. However, despite this, Rain could sense his skills gradually improving.
His Militia profession had reached lv3, granting him another attribute point and skill point.
This time, Rain didn't rush to allocate his points.
The subsequent movements of the Mammoth Breath Technique became increasingly challenging. Although the second movement was difficult, it was undoubtedly easier than the third. He planned to wait until he reached lv3 in the breath technique before allocating points to boost it to lv4.
It was Saturday again, and Rain could visit home!
As Rain happily followed the beautiful maid towards the castle's outer courtyard, a tall, nobly dressed youth approached them.
"Young Master Dennis," the maid greeted, her body trembling slightly as she bowed with a hint of fear.
Although Rain didn't recognize the youth, he politely bowed in return.
The youth, named Dennis, glanced at the two of them without expression and continued walking.
However, after taking a few steps, he suddenly stopped and looked back at the distant Rain, as if remembering something.
"This seems to be the commoner that Miss Kylie favors?"
As Rain left the Habsburg Manor, he strolled along the town's main street, enjoying the evening breeze.
The sky had already darkened, and a team of three night watchmen, clad in tight leather armor and carrying torches, were refueling the street lamps.
Rain had learned about the night watchmen in this world. Their primary responsibilities included maintaining the town's security, firefighting, and dealing with unknown creatures or other emergencies during the night.
In contrast, the day shift was handled by town guards, ensuring relative safety.
Whether night watchmen or town guards, both were part of the imperial forces under the jurisdiction of the town sheriff, distinct from the town militia.
This distinction was evident in their superior leather armor, the horn bows on their backs, and the bastard swords at their waists.
(End of Chapter)
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