In Another World with JUST MONIKA 43 A Disgusting Sword

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We followed the viscount out to his garden.

All of us raised our eyebrows in surprise. Occupying fully half of it, right up to the tall stone outer walls, was a hugely out of place building. What with its white paper screen walls and dark timber construction, floor raised off the ground like on stilts, and one wall open to the elements. The floor was wide expanse of polished long wooden slats. It looked exactly like a Japanese kendo dojo.

And of course, to enter it like most Asian dwellings, you had to leave your shoes behind and wear provided indoor slippers. The viscount simply walked in barefooted, Yae had little problem because of her wooden sandals and her white socks. Linze complied, following shortly on stockinged feet. Elze and I took a little longer to shuck off our boots.

The viscount went into the back room and emerged wearing a simple training kimono. "Do you like it?" he asked. "This building was planned by Mister Jubei, and was built by my father. This Eashan aesthetic… ah, it's not just for show. So much was learned here."

Yae nodded. "It reminds me of the dojo back home. It makes me feel quite nostalgic, that it does."

"Good. Then you know what to do." The viscount took one practice blade then pointed to the rack of swords near a wall. "Choose the wooden sword that suits you best."

I raised my hand. "I have a question, if you don't mind."

The viscount gave me again a narrow glare. "Go ahead."

"Is your name Sordrick derived from 'sword'?"

He gave me a dull look that implied /'Are you an idiot?'/ "Yes. That is in the name. Sword-rick. It means sword-rich. My family had ever been wealthy in martial accomplishments, and earned everything through service in battle to the crown."

He looked past me to the girls and gave them a look that asked /'Why are you hanging out with this fool?'/

Elze's shrug was a very profound /'Eh'/.

Yae went over to the sword racks and swung several swords to test which length of grip and blade felt right, and eventually nodded. She went over to meet him at the center of the room.

The viscount nonchalantly asked over his shoulder "Are any of you familiar with Healing magic?"

Even Yae couldn't keep from making a small amused sniff. I raised my hand, and so did Linze. "We know some spells, yes…" I replied.

"Then there's no need to hold back. Come at me with all you have!" he said to Yae.

Both Yae and the viscount bowed at each other, and held their swords out in a guard position. They stood there for several moments, just weighing each other's presence. And then Yae dashed forth, thrusting with her sword towards his face. The viscount parried the strike, but slapping it aside gave Yae's sword the extra energy needed for a follow-up swing to cut down at his hips.

The viscount parried that too, and other attacks the followed. He stepped back and gave way in order to avoid some of her attacks than waste energy blocking with his sword.

Yae backed away to catch her breath. The viscount merely stared back, not taking the chance to strike in return.

Yae stepped to the left and began to circle around, and he stepped to the right, refusing to be flanked. Their steps drew them into an inward spiral, the distance between them shrinking and shrinking until their swords touched again and began another furious exchange of blows.

Clack. Clack. Clack.

The sounds of wood striking wood rang through the dojo. It stopped only once Yae disengaged again, breathing more heavily this time. At no point did the viscount counter-attack, and he merely observed her dispassionately until finally he nodded, apparently reaching a decision.

"I see," the viscount remarked. "What a disgusting sword."

"… p-pardon?"

"We use the same sword style. And I say I can't fault you for any of that. You have learned all that your father could teach you. Your moves are perfect. You use strikes, feints, and retreats with precision. You have no wasted movements. Your stamina could be better, but that is just a matter of your youth. As a student of the sword you are indeed exemplary."

Yae nodded briefly to acknowledge the praise. "But in the end I am just a student? I accept that, I do. What am I missing, Viscount-dono?"

"No, it's not that. I can feel it in your strikes. What surety you had – is gone. Your strikes are firm, and yet also full of hesitation. Your movements are swift, and yet full of doubt! What confidence you used to have in your sword… it is shaken."

Yae stood silent for many moments. Then she firmed her grip on her sword and put one foot forward. "I… am ashamed. That is true."

The viscount grinned fiercely. "You've just seen the power of magicians, didn't you? For so long you thought that if you had speed and skill, that would be all you needed, didn't you? That if you could just strike first, respond faster, over those who neglected their innate fighting ability…"

Then he raised his sword slightly and stepped to the left. "But that was arrogant! You were just a frog in the pond, so sure of your own power. And then you met a magician that also understood the value of speed. Because of course anyone who sought to be of value to their nation would not be an idiot… they would also realize this weakness. Who is the fool to think her enemies would only be such fools?"

"…" Yae bit her lip and did not respond.

/"Oh. I certainly didn't expect that. Yae always looked so calm and so sure of herself. A true stoic samurai warrior, I thought."/

I winced. I didn't realize it either. None of us certainly thought Yae at any point was inferior. Elze, Linze, and I… we could accomplish so much because we benefited from the esoteric magical buffs that Monika could provide. It didn't seem quite fair to compare us to normal magicians.

"I have been there too," the viscount admitted. "Generations of this family had to contend with magicians having power and influence for far less effort. What is the solution? When all you have is a sword…"

"Wait hang on, I thought you said everyone gets magic?" I whispered to Linze.

She whispered back "Not everyone gets strong magic. Most people live without ever using magic after all."

"… And the length of your arm to swing it," The viscount merely seemed to flick his entire body and then suddenly he was by Yae's side. By instinct, she slashed at him. Their swords clacked against each other again. "How do you reach them? How do you bridge the gap?"

He kicked out, and Yae turned her body to evade the blow. Without letting go of her sword block, she swung in return with her elbow aimed for her opponent's solar plexus. He grinned and broke off contact, a single step back flinging him several stride-lengths away.

Real samurai, like real knights, didn't just fight with clashing their blades against each other. There was by necessity a lot of body blows in there too.

"You can block a sword. How do you block fire? How do you block curses? Poison? False rumors? Fighting is not all there is to victory… your father had to earn respect in this kingdom the hard way!"

"I can block a sword," Yae admitted. She closed her eyes, and remembered… and later she told me about a vision of slashing ice cutters, cast effortlessly and swiftly, a zone of absolute death. A burning hellscape on the other side, that would have destroyed a hundred armed men. "I cannot block a thousand swords."

"You are proficient with the sword, but proficiency is not enough. It's not enough to simply have the resolve to kill." The viscount scoffed, "What is that? Any child could do that.

"No, the true mark of skill is how you act when you have none of the advantages. Not the skill gap between master and student, not the strength gap between adult and child, but an absolute difference in power. How does one become sword-rich in a kingdom built on magical power?!"

Yae bowed slightly, but wisely kept her sword up to guard. "Please tell me the solution!" she begged.

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Chapter end