Volume 4, Chapter 24 – The Apprentice Swordsman, Fiene-chan

“Fiene-sama, if it’s Swordsmanship, then leave it to me!”

“Chris-san, please keep working hard so you can beat Tessai-san soon. Now then, off you go on your run.”

After sending off the grumbling Chris-san, Lu-chan and I headed to the courtyard where everyone had been training that morning.

“Ho ho ho. Have the two of you ever held a sword before?”

“No. Not at all. Maybe just a knife for self-defense.”

“Me neither. I mainly use a bow; the only blade I use is a skinning knife for dismantling.”

As we chatted, I picked out a practice wooden sword. There seemed to be a few different weights, but I wasn’t sure how to choose.

Seeing me struggle, Tessai-san offered a helping hand.

“If you’re unsure, choose one that doesn’t feel heavy, and one you can swing without being dragged around by the sword itself. How about this one?”

“Thank you very much.”

I took the wooden sword and gave it a swing.

Yeah, I felt like I could swing this around if I held it with both hands.

“Hmm. A slightly lighter one might be better. Here.”

“Eh? Really? Thank you.”

I took another wooden sword. This one certainly felt like something I could swing even with one hand.

Once Lu-chan had also been helped in picking a suitable wooden sword, the trial lesson began.

“Now, first, grip it and try the Seigan stance.”

“Like this?”

I tried to take the stance, vaguely imagining how Chris-san usually looked.

“Hmm. The stance looks the part, but your grip is wrong. The right hand goes near the guard, and the left hand goes near the end of the hilt—”

“Like this?”

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I readjusted my grip.

“Ah, it doesn’t need to be quite that close to the end. When holding a real blade, make sure the pinky of your left hand doesn’t grip the hilt-wrap end. Otherwise, the impact of a cut might make you drop the sword or cause an injury.”

“I see. Like this?”

“Hmm, a little more…”

And so, I spent about thirty minutes just on the grip alone.

Meanwhile, Lu-chan had already started her practice swings.

Gnuuu…

“U-um, yes. I suppose that’ll do. Shall we try some practice swings now?”

“Yes!”

Yay! I finally got permission to swing the sword.

“Assume the Seigan stance, swing upward, and then bring it straight down. Do this on the count of one, two.”

“Yes.”

“One!”

I swung the wooden sword up.

“Two!”

And then, I swung it down with all my might.

Whack!

“Ah.”

I had too much momentum and slammed the sword right into the ground.

“I-I’m sorry!”

“H-hmm. Beginners do that from time to time. Are you hurt?”

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“No. I’m okay.”

Yeah, my hands didn’t hurt, and the wooden sword seemed fine.

“Let’s try it slowly. Stop the sword at about this height. Now, take your stance.”

“Yes.”

“One!”

I slowly swung the wooden sword up.

“Two!”

I slowly swung the wooden sword down. I swung it down, but…

“Huh? Was this right? At this height?”

“Y-yes. The height is correct, but if you don’t grip the wooden sword properly, it’s not a proper swing. Your sword path was all wobbly.”

“…”

It felt like Lu-chan was staring at me too.

H-how embarrassing.

Wait… do I actually have zero talent for the sword?

“W-well, let’s pull ourselves together and try again.”

“Yes…”

“Come now, Lu-chan, your swings too.”

“Okay!”

Following Tessai-san’s cues, I repeated my awkward, unsatisfying swings.

“Alright, let’s try some striking. Just doing swings is boring, isn’t it?”

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With that, Tessai-san brought over something like a doll made of wood and straw.

“Here, try striking this target just as you did with your swings. Lu-chan first.”

“Yes!”

Lu-chan swung her wooden sword up and struck the head.

Smack!

A crisp sound echoed, and the target shook.

“Hmm. Not bad at all. Try ten more strikes just like that.”

“Yes!”

Lu-chan continued striking, the sword making a series of crisp bash-bash sounds.

“Hmm. That’s enough. Lu-chan’s striking was very good. If you keep practicing like this, you might be able to use a sword as well as a bow.”

“Really?! Yay!”

Mumu. It seems Lu-chan has been judged as talented.

“Now, next is Fiene-chan. Slowly now, alright? Slowly is fine.”

“Y-yes…”

Saying it like that just makes me nervous!

Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale.

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves and wound up the sword.

“Meen!” ¹ A shout in swordsmanship

I swung down with a shout!

“Ah!”

But cruelly, the wooden sword slipped right out of my hand and flew away.

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“I’m back!”

And with impeccable timing, Chris-san returned from her run, being the first one back.

“””Ah.”””

“Eh?”

The wooden sword, having left my hand, traced a perfect parabola through the air.

Then, as if it had been pulled in by some unseen force,  it struck Chris-san square on the crown of her head.

“Gyan!?”

Whether it was the angle or the force, Chris-san clutched her head and collapsed into a crouch.

“Wa wa wa! C-Chris-san!”

I rushed over in a panic and cast Healing Magic on her.

Afterward, once she stood up, Chris-san was scolded by Tessai-san for being “slack.”

No matter how you look at it, I was the one at fault.

——Chris-san, I’m sorry.

I apologized in my heart as I watched Chris-san be unfairly scolded.

Author Note

Fiene-chan had absolutely zero talent for the sword.

By the way, even if Fiene-chan trains, Skills like Swordsmanship or Blade Technique won’t appear due to her Class.

However, it’s not entirely a waste; she’ll be able to perform the movements she’s trained in, and if she changes to an appropriate Class after proper training, those skills will properly manifest.