Chapter 748 - Enkrid-style Traditional Swordsmanship
A superhuman's senses allow him to perceive realms ordinary people can't see.
And now, Enkrid could truly be called a superhuman.
"Frog's Talent Appraisal."
Though the principle wasn't exactly the same, just by looking, Enkrid could do something similar.
The structure of the muscles, usual posture, the look in the eyes—everything became a basis for judgment.
Of course, unlike Frogs, he couldn't determine whether someone had the potential to become a knight or not.
"I can see it."
From his experiences, honed senses, and intuition, the flaws that Clemen had were starkly visible.
"Because she trained evenly, her characteristics are vague."
Against those weaker than herself, she would display overwhelming skill, but against stronger opponents, it would be difficult for her to win. By knowing the outcome, one could infer the process. By looking at Clemen's level of training, Enkrid could read the way she fought. Of course, to quote Krais, this was something only clever people were capable of, and not everyone possessed the same analytical skills, but still.
At any rate, he now knew what mattered.
He would maintain her strong fundamentals, but what she needed to add on top of that were skills.
You only had to look at her lower body training to know how solid her basics were.
"In physical training, strengthening the lower body is the most important thing."
Clemen's lower body looked as unshakable as could be.
He really liked that.
It was clear evidence of diligent training.
"Shall we have a match?"
At Enkrid's words, Clemen's eyes sparkled.
It was a great honor for a squire to be taught by a knight.
And the man standing before her was none other than someone called a hero, the slayer of demons, Unyielding Knight, the Commander of the Madmen Knights, the one who had led his followers to knighthood, and even carried nicknames like Heartbreaker and Enigmatic Knight.
Those last two nicknames had naturally come to mind, but that just showed how extraordinary he was.
"It's an honor."
Clemen replied like a true soldier, taking out her weapon.
Shiiing.
It was a slender, long rapier. Longer than a typical longsword and thinner, too. Even at a glance, it was no ordinary piece.
"Who made this?"
Enkrid asked out of pure curiosity. Craftsmen of this caliber were rare.
"A Dwarf craftsman who works for the Standing Army."
"Is there someone like that?"
"Yes. He came here fleeing from his debts, then ended up imprisoned. Now he oversees the Standing Army Forge, having agreed to work for about ten years."
It sounded like a story he'd heard somewhere before.
It wasn't all that important, so his memory was vague.
Still, after thinking it over a few more times, he thought he knew who it was.
'That Dwarf who was with Aetri the first time I met him.'
From what Clemen was saying, it seemed like Krais had stepped in and sorted out the situation and their connection.
The craftsmanship showed it.
It looked like the Dwarf Friend had pulled himself together since then—the sword was in good condition.
"Commanders each receive an extra weapon in addition to standard-issue gear. You wouldn't know, since knights usually source their weapons on their own."
As Clemen was explaining, she suddenly flinched and jumped back two steps.
The way she pushed off the ground to retreat was impressive.
Enkrid liked how Clemen kept her sword steady as she withdrew, and how she tensed his toes, ready for whatever came next.
"Intimidation."
Enkrid murmured softly.
This was still a guided sparring session, after all.
After that, Clemen lunged, thrust, slashed, and swung her sword with all her might, even wrapping and flicking it with precision. Enkrid picked up a training sword to duel her.
'She's solid.'
Her nickname was Fallen Clemen, but what she did in battle made it clear she'd do anything not to fall.
'She minimizes mistakes and leads the fight in ways that favor her, maximizing her chances of victory.'
But what about Clemen's expression as she fought that way? She didn't look like she was enjoying it. Does she act like this even when training alone?
That thought crossed his mind.
Her resolve was firm, and her body was strong, yet her swordsmanship looked like she was thrashing around in water. Her body stayed afloat, but she was using so much effort that she couldn't move forward properly. Maybe it was better to say her strokes were more like slow, labored swims when she could actually go much faster.
'She's showing less than she's actually capable of.'
He reached this conclusion, considering not just the technical factors but also her mental state.
'There are simply too many people around her who fight better than Clemens.'
These are people you can't admire lightly.
The closest is Ropord, then a bit further away is Fel, and beyond them, everyone else in the Madmen Knights—including himself.
That pushed Clemen to improve, but it also broke off a part of her spirit.
The nickname Fallen Clemen, the fact that people called her that and her desperate effort not to actually fall—those definitely had an effect.
To put it another way—
'She's never been pushed to the extreme.'
She must have avoided that kind of fight.
She's only ever had battles where she either lost overwhelmingly or won just as decisively.
But why did Empire Knight Balmung's words come to mind now?
That term, Flower Knight.
If Clemens keeps going like this, will she end up becoming a knight who grew up like a well-tended flower?
Thud, ting.
In the midst of the light guided sparring, Enkrid's presence suddenly shifted.
Clemen's pupils shrank to dots in an instant.
Her survival instincts jolted all her senses awake.
'I'll die.'
If she stayed still, that was what would happen.
In that split second, fragments of her past and a handful of thoughts raced through Clemen's mind.
'Fallen Clemen.'
Ever since she was given that nickname, she had been desperately struggling not to fall again.
As time went on and her skills improved, Clemen's thoughts narrowed down to one thing.
'I don't fight battles I'll lose.'
Ropord's support helped her reach this point, and Luagarne's guidance had an influence as well.
Maybe the frog's tactical swordplay had even developed in the worst way because of this.
Clemen never even started a fight she couldn't win.
In other words, unless the perfect opportunity arose, she refused to truly commit to a strike with her sword.
Even now, that was the case. Clemen's sword only waited for the flawless opening.
But her opponent was a knight.
Of course, such an opening never appeared, so all she did were half-hearted attacks, just biding her time.
Was that what provoked her opponent?
Clemen experienced death.
She was beheaded.
The world spun.
Then everything went black.
'Her physical abilities are remarkable.'
Her muscles are flexible and resilient.
She hasn't just focused on building strength, but has trained her body consistently in various ways.
The basis for this is, of course, Audin's physical training methods.
The regimen Audin used to train his troops has now become the foundational training for the Border Guard Standing Army.
'On top of that, she's selectively adopted only what suits her own body.'
Her cognitive skills and agility are also impressive.
She knows how to observe properly and react accordingly. The same goes for her endurance. You can tell she's kept up with her physical training.
'Her mind is in good shape, too.'
Aside from not charging in recklessly, she never gets flustered and her judgment is solid. Enkrid even caught a glimpse of the "Will" hidden inside Clemen.
He hadn't actually seen it, but he could sense something in a psychological sense.
Still, whether that would ever awaken or not was impossible to say.
'That decision isn't mine to make'
You can open the way for someone, but it's up to them to walk it.
Just as you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.
Still, even if it was just a vague feeling, Enkrid sensed that Clemen would move forward.
He was usually pretty good at trusting his instincts.
'What she's lacking is creativity and the determination to win.'
It's not about fighting so you won't lose, but figuring out how to win—that's what Clemen needs right now.
When Clemen first retreated under pressure, Enkrid's thoughts reached this point.
His natural multidimensional thinking had evolved into almost superhuman intuition and instincts, combined with all his years of experience. In organizing what Clemen needed, Enkrid clarified his own understanding once again.
It's probably a process that has to be repeated again and again, as long as you don't give up until the very end.
'There's no end to training in swordsmanship.'
Knowing that made it all the more enjoyable.
After all, whatever you're doing now, this isn't the end.
This time, he just revisited what he'd already organized before, but in the process, he created a new sword technique. The Wave-breaker Sword is a way to train in True Sword Style, and Valaf-style Martial Arts fits perfectly with Middle Sword Style training.
Then, through optimizing his thought process, he developed a fast sword called Flash, and the Flowing Sword—based on Jaxen's intuitive skill—was further refined by experience into a sword technique called the Sword of Chance.
All that's left is the Deceptive Sword.
'A step beyond Valen-style Mercenary Swordplay.'
The Deceptive Sword exists solely to win.
The Phantom Sword is about doing whatever's necessary to survive and to triumph.
'By mixing in the Luagarne-style Tactical Sword.'
The Tactical Sword is about gaining the upper hand and seizing advantages in a fight.
Enkrid combined and reinvented it, taking the strengths of both styles.
"Is this Heaven?"
Clemen—who had fainted from the overwhelming pressure and a light shock—opened her eyes and spoke.
"Not yet."
"Oh."
Blinking a few times, Clemen quickly took in her surroundings.
She hadn't died; she was alive—and had passed out embarrassingly.
As he watched her spring to her feet, Enkrid thought, Instead of clumsy words about sparking creativity and a will to win, it's easier to speak through swordsmanship.
From Enkrid's lips came the name of the discipline—organized and clearly established.
"This swordsmanship is called Enkrid-style Traditional Swordsmanship."
Clemens caught her breath for a moment before asking,
"What?"
"Learn it."
The essence of this swordsmanship is pure deception. The training method is to devise creative techniques for trickery.
Its practice takes the form of any action that secures an advantage—desperate means for the weak to defeat the strong.
For that reason, even the name itself is meant to deceive the opponent.
The actual techniques rely mainly on deception, but ironically, the name projects an image of traditional swordsmanship.
"The principle is simple. You'll have to figure out the rest yourself. I'll show you a few basic moves."
Judging by Clemen's well-trained lower body and posture alone, anyone would assume she fought by the book.
Her fundamentals were that solid.
"This is a technique called Deceptive Breath."
Enkrid taught her several techniques taken from Valen-style Mercenary Swordplay.
Clemens listened attentively, then asked,
"Do people really fight like this?"
She wasn't naive.
She understood why Enkrid chose to speak through swordsmanship instead of words.
"Yes."
Enkrid had told her to survive by any means, to win by any means, and Clemen accepted it.
Afterward, Enkrid also oversaw the training of his personal unit, the so-called Royal Guard.
'Are they perhaps lacking a bit in basic physical fitness?'
Given his high standards, it was only natural for him to think so.
After all, he was here mainly to evaluate their skills.
"Let's run."
With just those words, the Royal Guard—including Martai—started running back and forth without rest.
Running that far on horseback would be exhausting enough; doing it on foot was no easy feat.
As a result of all this, the Martai Gatekeeper was startled, and, perhaps out of boredom, Weird Eyes even jogged alongside them as if trying to keep pace.
After all that running, the group learned techniques like Feigning Defeat, Pretending to Strike with the Sword while Actually Kicking, Double Draw, and Deceptive Breath.
Even so, Enkrid kept stressing the importance of fundamentals above all else.
"You need to know how to fight properly if you want to deceive your opponent effectively."
That's why basics matter so much.
No matter which path you take, you should always aim higher.
Better to do anything than to hesitate and stagnate, and for that, you must survive.
You have to live if you want to have a tomorrow.
Enkrid-style Traditional Swordsmanship soon became the official swordsmanship of the Royal Guard.
Clemen grasped the essence of the techniques, and Ropord helped fill in during the training.
"This is a discipline that only has meaning if your fundamentals are solid. Even if you wield the sharpest sword, it won't matter if the person swinging it is just a seven-year-old child."
Ropord, in turn, learned Enkrid-style Traditional Swordsmanship himself and taught what he discovered in the process.
Enkrid also shared this latest insight with Aetri.
"So, are all five sword styles ultimately paths to knighthood?"
Enkrid's main focus is on five sword techniques.
Aetri, after grasping the main idea, asked him that question.
Even while hammering steel all day, Aetri never missed a chance to talk when Enkrid was around—their questions and answers always led to new realizations.
"That's the goal."
Enkrid's answer was simple.
As he spoke, his eyes were fixed on the steel Aetri was hammering.
The metal was changing shape.
It was becoming a long rod.
Aetri kept folding and hammering it flat, over and over—then folding it again, then hammering it flat again.
He had been at it for three days straight.
Aetri's eyes were shining brighter than ever, but his skin was dry, and his body was growing thinner.
It was as if he was pouring every last bit of his life force into the hammer blows.
"Come back tomorrow."
Aetri said this.
For Enkrid, aside from overseeing Royal Guard training, this had become his entire everyday life.
***
It had now been fifteen days since Aetri first spoke to him.
Even Rem wasn't pressing him about leaving anymore.
Everyone in the Order of Knights knew Enkrid was having made an Engraved Weapon.
And all waiting must have an end—this was that end.
***
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