Through pains and sores, four months went by since Bell's training began.
"Haaa—"
Exhaling sharply, Bell lowered his wooden sword slowly and broke the stance.
"…Good. You've managed to hold that stance for thirty minutes…Impressive."
"Thank you, master."
Kaelis observed Bell's closely.
Four months ago, he couldn't last a full two minutes without looking like a newborn deer.
Now he was holding the stance for thirty minutes straight.
He speculated it would have been thirty-five without the previous squats done before.
"Your stamina has grown quite a lot, boy. Your shoulders and arms are gaining quite a bit of muscle…" Kaelis praised him.
Bell showed a grin.
"Since you can hold a proper sword stance for thirty minutes now, I guess it's time you started learning how to swing a sword."
"Wait—does this mean—?" Bell's eyes lit up, practically glowing.
"Yep." Kaelis shrugged. "Take a rest. We'll begin shortly."
"Don't get too excited," Kaelis added. "This part's harder. And more painful."
Bell didn't even flinch. He just held the wooden sword tighter like he'd been waiting months for this.
Moments later…
"Time's up! Come here!"
Bell grabbed the wooden sword and ran over.
"Lesson one out of… I don't know, a few thousand: how to hold the thing without looking like you're strangling it."
Bell wrapped his hands around the grip a little too tightly—enough that Kaelis noticed immediately.
"See? That." Kaelis reached over and tapped Bell's forearm. "Relax your wrist. I said relax, not 'drop it.'"
Bell loosened up, awkward but trying.
"Good. Your top hand goes here—thumb along the side, don't curl it. Bottom hand anchors the hilt. They should feel like they're working together, not wrestling each other." (I don't know what I got myself into)
Bell adjusted, his eyes narrowing with concentration.
Kaelis nodded. "Better. The sword should feel like an extension of your arm. Not a brick tied to a stick. Let it move with you."
Bell inhaled, exhaled, and tried settling into it.
He looked stiff but everyone must start from somewhere.
Kaelis smiled a little. "There you go. That's the first lesson. Grip. Nothing fancy. You master this before we touch swings."
Bell looked up. "Why start with this?"
"Because if your grip's bad," Kaelis said, "everything else turns bad with it. Feet, balance, swings, blocking… starts here."
Bell nodded seriously like Kaelis had just revealed some great secret of the universe.
"Alright," Kaelis said, stepping back. "Hold that grip for a minute. If your fingers cramp up, that's your body telling you the sword hates you."
Bell shook his hands, reset them, and settled in again.
Kaelis watched him with a faint smirk.
For the next hour or so, made him rehold the sword numerous times until he began gripping it correctly.
Kaelis stepped back a little.
"Alright, grip's good. Now we're going to focus on your feet."
Bell tilted his head. "Didn't we already do footwork?"
Kaelis pointed to the patch in front of them. "Yeah.so Knees slightly bent, weight on the balls of your feet. Stay balanced, ready to move."
Bell shuffled awkwardly. "Like this?"
"Better, but a bit lower. Imagine you might have to dodge something," Kaelis said.
Bell adjusted and held the stance.
"Good. Now, swing the sword slowly with controlled force. Pretend you're cutting through something soft, not a tree or me."
Bell raised the wooden sword and swung.
Kaelis shook his head. "Too fast. Slow it down. Control first, strength comes later."
Bell tried again, slower. The sword wobbled, but Kaelis nodded.
"Better. Not perfect, but that's why we practice."
"Do I swing like a hero yet?" Bell asked, grinning.
Kaelis chuckled. "Not yet. Everyone starts sloppy. Focus on control."
Bell's grin stayed. "Okay!"
"Now add some footwork. Step forward when you swing, step back to reset. Like a simple rhythm. Sword and feet move together."
Bell mimicked him slowly: step forward, swing, step back. Step forward, swing, step back.
"Not bad. Timing's off, but your grip's solid. Keep at it. Next week we'll start chaining swings in different directions."
Bell's eyes lit up. "Direction changes! Cool!"
Kaelis nodded. "Just remember, stance, grip, steps. Everything else comes later."
Bell tightened his hands on the sword. "Got it, Master Kaelis!"
Kaelis watched him for a few more minutes, swinging, stepping, wobbling, and correcting himself. Small and messy, but he was learning.
For the next month, Kaelis kept Bell on the basics.
Every day, it was the same core: stance, grip, slow swings, and footwork.
Bell's arms ached, his legs shook, and some days he stumbled more than he'd like to admit.
But little by little, things started to click.
The grip became natural, the sword feeling less like a heavy stick and more like an extension of his own arm.
His steps that used to be awkward, started falling into rhythm with the swings.
Kaelis didn't make it easy for him though as this was supposed to be training.
He added small variations: step forward, step back, side step while swinging, and slight angle adjustments.
Bell would mess up more than he succeeded at first, but Kaelis always reminded him: "Control first, everything else comes later. You'll get it if you don't rush."
Sometimes Bell would get frustrated, wiping sweat from his brow, muttering under his breath.
Kaelis didn't scold him though, he just let him work through it, occasionally correcting a foot position or reminding him to relax his wrists.
Another three months passed swiftly and the changes were obvious.
Bell could hold the sword properly for long stretches, swing in slow, controlled arcs without wobbling, and move around in the stance fluidly.
Not perfectly, but the awkward stiffness from before was gone.
He was more aware of his body, his weight, and the rhythm of the swings.
Kaelis observed him quietly one evening as the sun dipped low.
Bell was practicing alone, repeating the drills over and over.
The young boy's movements weren't flashy or what you would call heroic yet, but they were precise enough to show real progress.
"Not bad," Kaelis finally said, stepping forward.
Bell jumped, almost swinging the sword at him, but Kaelis held up a hand.
"Relax. That's progress. You're ready to start combining swings with footwork next week. Nothing fancy, just chaining them together."
Bell's eyes lit up. "Chain swings? Like, real sword moves?"
"No. It's more of being able to follow up on an attack or chainring rhythm mid swinging—you know, cool stuff. You'll learn speed later."
Bell grinned, fatigue forgotten for the moment. "I can't wait!"
Kaelis shook his head with a small smile. "You'll wait. And you'll practice. That's how it works."
And so, each day, Bell drilled. Stance, grip, swings, footwork. Sweat, aches, minor bruises, and occasional clumsy mistakes.
Yet by the end of the month, the wooden sword didn't feel weird in his hands anymore. It moved with him naturally.
Kaelis, watching from the side, finally allowed himself a quiet nod. "Alright… at the end of this year, real drills begin. He should be ready by then."
Bell didn't know it yet, but that month of repetition—grueling and repetitive as it was—was the foundation of every move he'd make in the Dungeon from now on.
And Kaelis, seeing the small but steady improvements, felt that same flicker of anticipation he always got before pushing a student to the next level.
Two months later…
Before they even realized it, the rest of the year slipped by.
Bell finished a clean downward swing. His foot slid forward at the same time, exactly how Kaelis had drilled into him.
Kaelis raised a hand. "Alright, stop."
Bell froze mid-breath. Oh no what did I do wrong now?
Kaelis walked up to him with a serious expression on his face, making Bell nervous. "Hand me the sword."
Bell stiffened as he handed over the wooden sword. "Um… was something off?"
"No." Kaelis said it casually. "That was actually good. Your movements have become fluid."
"O-oh really? T-then what happened?"
"You have gotten the basics down and your movements aren't sloppy anymore."
Kaelis waited a moment, then summoned two identical short swords into his hands before declaring,
"I, Kaelis Valeblade, a Divine-class swordsman, officially grant you, Bell Cranel, the title of Apprentice-class swordsman!"
Without giving Bell a chance to react, Kaelis shoved the dual swords into his arms.
"And to celebrate the occasion, these blades are now yours."
Silence hung in the air afterward, Bell standing there completely dazed.
Chapter 44 end.
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Had to do tons more research about swordsmanship