Chapter 105: Change
When his consciousness returned once more, the first thing Subaru Natsuki saw was the blue sky and white clouds.
Lying on the ground, he sat up and looked ahead at Wilhelm.
Taking a deep breath, Subaru picked up the wooden sword next to him and stood up.
In Wilhelm's eyes, the aura around Subaru had changed.
This sensation gave Wilhelm pause. Before knocking Subaru down earlier, there had been no aura to speak of.
But now, a faint killing intent could be felt emanating from him.
As someone once known as the "Sword Demon," Wilhelm was deeply familiar with such an aura.
Even if faint, he could clearly identify the murderous intent in Subaru.
This sudden transformation made Wilhelm frown.
He adjusted his stance, adopting a slightly more serious posture to face Subaru.
After a brief standoff, it was Subaru who made the first move.
As he charged forward swinging his wooden sword, Wilhelm's pupils involuntarily contracted. When the wooden swords clashed with a loud sound, Wilhelm's feelings of confusion and shock intensified.
With both swords locked, Wilhelm noticed that not only his sword but also Subaru's was making a faint wailing sound.
It was abnormal.
After merely being knocked down and getting up again, Subaru's strength, speed, and aura had all drastically changed.
If the previous Subaru had posed no threat whatsoever, then the Subaru standing before him now posed at least a small degree of danger.
Of course, with a bit more seriousness, Wilhelm could still easily overwhelm him.
His doubts remained unanswered, but one thing became clear to Wilhelm:
Subaru was definitely not a normal person. There were many secrets surrounding him. However, Wilhelm wasn't interested in those secrets. This was training time. All they needed to do was continue.
After the wooden swords disengaged, Subaru launched another flurry of attacks like a raging storm. Wilhelm handled all of them steadily—but his feet began to move.
Using the same level of response he'd used earlier, Wilhelm now found things slightly more difficult. Subaru's strength and speed had increased across the board, and his attacks now carried intent to kill.
Previously, his strikes had been filled with determination.
Now, while that determination remained, each attack carried a deadly edge.
It was like someone killing for the first time, unable to completely control their aura.
Wilhelm evaluated Subaru's current strength and judged that it had reached the standard of a proper knight.
He had even surpassed the strength of an ordinary knight!
Wilhelm became a bit more serious.
What Subaru needed now was not basic practice, but a true battle. Thus, the dynamics of the fight shifted.
Wilhelm launched a counterattack, exerting a powerful sense of pressure. Subaru's wooden sword was knocked aside, leaving his chest exposed. Eyes widening, he watched Wilhelm's sword heading straight for his neck.
In that moment, Subaru's pupils narrowed.
Petelgeuse's face flashed in his mind, and the anguished cries of the villagers echoed in his ears.
He had failed. Even though he had used Return by Death, he still couldn't change the fact that he had failed.
Gritting his teeth, Subaru raised his left hand and, to Wilhelm's shock, grabbed the wooden sword aimed at his neck.
With the sword in hand, Subaru countered and swung at Wilhelm's neck. Wilhelm, momentarily stunned, narrowed his eyes and, for the first time, released his own aura in Subaru's presence.
Sensing Wilhelm's pressure, Subaru's movements didn't falter at all.
Just as his attack was about to land, he felt a massive force come from his left hand, throwing his entire body to the side.
Sensing something wrong, Subaru immediately let go of his wooden sword.
At that very instant, Wilhelm's sword disappeared from view, and when it reappeared, it was already at Subaru's neck.
Subaru froze and stared at Wilhelm for a moment, then let out a sigh.
"…I still lost."
Wilhelm withdrew his sword and stepped back, looking at the visibly dejected Subaru. Once again, he noticed something off.
Before this, even when Subaru lost, he never appeared so downcast. He had even enjoyed it. But now, Subaru was different. For the first time, Wilhelm felt a strong desire to win coming from him.
"You've made great progress. If you continue growing at this rate, I may not be your match in the future."
Subaru glanced at Wilhelm's serious expression, then looked down at the wooden sword in his hand and gripped it tighter.
"Mr. Wilhelm, there's no need to comfort me."
"No, this isn't comfort. This is the first time I've felt a true desire to win from you.
Do you remember our first meeting? Back then, you only carried the resolve to become stronger and to protect others. But now, you've also gained the will to win.
If you keep that up, your growth will be swift. In that sense, this is actually your victory."
Hearing Wilhelm's sincere words, Subaru couldn't feel any joy.
He didn't have the luxury of time to grow stronger—he had only three days. Three days weren't enough to solve everything.
Shaking his head, Subaru stopped thinking about it. He had already decided during his stat allocation that he needed outside help. Becoming stronger wasn't the top priority anymore. Finding reinforcements was.
However, since Crusch and her party were all currently busy, he couldn't go bother them just yet. For now, he could only continue training.
"Let's continue, Mr. Wilhelm! I want to win! I want to become stronger!"
"Why do you want to win so badly? Why do you want to grow stronger?"
"Because I'm weak! So weak I can't protect anything. That's why I must become strong! I must win! Otherwise, I won't be able to do anything!"
"I see. In that case, let's go—today, we'll train even harder."
"Please teach me well, Mr. Wilhelm!"
"Lord Subaru, for the next part of training, I will be attacking you. Let's begin now."
For the rest of the afternoon, Subaru repeatedly failed and failed again.
It wasn't until the evening sun touched the horizon that their training finally came to an end.
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