A few months passed, and Remi got really pissed… in six weeks, he would go to the knights' academy and he considered it a humiliation not to hit me a single time. His older brothers would come home soon and they would make that much fun of him.

My dexterity reached eighteen. It was starting to get really hard to increase it, so I was thinking of other ways to improve my training with long-range attacks. However, based on what I read, only other similar classes would be able to help me with that.

I was starting to win against Ulric and Remi with quite a lot of ease thanks to the difference in Dexterity and using of my head too. However, that didn’t improve my mood since I still didn’t have a new idea on how to improve my business. I had ideas, but I couldn’t test them. I couldn't see the point in winning against kids either.

‘My actions are limited here… so perhaps I should settle for a weaker version of the relic and then eventually save up for another one. I can make things more efficient by hunting monsters too and I also would be able to make money, the issue is how I can leave this place.’

Saving was insane… all in all, in terms of money from Earth, five Ignis coins were the same as fifty thousand dollars. Even if I invent something that might change the world by copying something from Earth, it would take a while and some investments, that I didn’t have yet.

I could always rely on underhanded tactics like selling copies of the books in Rayner’s library, but since I was always guarded, I couldn’t do that without looking suspicious. I also didn’t want to be a hypocrite since I said that I wouldn’t need his help. Who would known that making money honestly in a fantasy world would be so difficult for a kid of my age?

While those issues were troubling me, a few days passed and then my brothers eventually returned from the Knights Academy. They will have a month's break every five months, and this time, Rayner brought them back home. The whole family went to receive them in the garden, but I remained in my room since I wasn’t informed of it again, drawing some things and considering my plans further.

‘I am quite good now… is it because of my Dexterity? These blueprints are pretty detailed. Any blacksmith can follow these instructions just fine.’

My current project was a rapid-fire crossbow. Based on what I read in the books. They existed in this world, but they could only load ten bolts inside of them. I want a cartridge with at least fifty bolts. It would be expensive, but it would be a powerful weapon in the right hands and when in a bind. Parameters affected weapons like that too, so they could cause massive damage, even more than magic in a short duration of time.

The ones that existed relied on strings to fire the bolts, but that made the process a bit slow since the users had to pull a lever to keep firing the bolts. My goal was to use a mix of a magic tool that fires bursts of wind to fire the bolts faster and with more power.

The crossbow is equipped with a magical device, often embedded within the stock or near the firing mechanism, that generates controlled bursts of wind. These bursts are unleashed when the trigger is pulled, adding force to the bolt.

This wind burst acts like a magical "explosive charge" behind the bolt, propelling it much faster than normal mechanical tension alone. The trigger not only releases the string but also activates the magical wind burst. This allows the timing of the mechanical and magical forces to be perfectly synchronized, maximizing efficiency.

It could also be designed to adjust the wind output depending on how hard or softly the trigger is pulled, giving the user more control over shot power… the downside was the part that I still didn’t have the knowledge on how those magical tools worked, so I had to outsource that aspect. The only thing I could do for now was to store away this idea alongside others.

‘Maybe I should buy some alchemy books and herbs to make potions.’

Potions were an excellent source of income since they were used regularly, so they are sold pretty often and anyone can use them. Even those without the alchemist class can produce them. However, their quality can’t be compared for obvious reasons.

I looked at the corner and my bag of coins… perhaps I should turn my room into a small workshop and work on other things by myself and slowly learn more about how I can make money. Just creating simple stuff had too many limitations.

When the next morning arrived, I headed to the garden in order to train… I was still deep in thought about my next steps. I just needed one good idea to make everything else a lot easier. Still, my thoughts vanished when I found all my brothers there… including, Jacques, and Gerald and they had their own wooden swords.

“Ah, right… I forgot about this.’

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Those two had entered puberty, so they were growing faster than before. They looked a bit more buffed than I remembered, so I could tell that things would be quite painful.

As usual, we started with some simple warm-up exercises, but soon Remi and I were told to spar. He looked extra determined to hit me today, but he only cut the air. Whenever I moved my sword, he would flinch and jump away.

“Hahaha, what the heck is that, Remi? Running away from someone four years younger than you? And you want to be like Father?”

Gerald didn’t hold back his laughter and that made Remi red with anger and embarrassment. Jacques, at least was just frowning and when their eyes met, they didn’t hide his disappointment.

Thanks to that, Remi made some mistakes and got hit a few times in his hands… but at this point in time, he could take a few hits. His health should have been at least around the four-hundred mark, after all.

“Hahaha, if it were a real sword, you probably wouldn’t have your hands anymore.”

“Your turn, Ulric. One hundred laps, Remi.”

It seemed that Gerald didn’t care that he was making noise in front of his old instructor. Jacques was still respecting him, at least. He was still glaring at me, though. As long as he doesn't use support magic, it would be fine...

Ulric stepped forward and Remi began to run around the garden. I could see that Ulric looked even more serious than before… he suddenly looked away from me to behind me and above. I didn’t have to turn around to know that he was looking at Rayner’s office.

‘Well, it is not every day that he watches us.’

Ulric stepped forward and then launched a quick succession of slash attacks, from above and from the sides… he had gotten used to that since we trained together more than I trained with Remi since he was an earnest kid.

He moved his arms well, but when I tried to parry the attacks, he would turn his wrist to stop his charge and then he would step back. A parry most likely would grant him a chance to counter, so he was wary of that.

“Hahaha, what the hell! Even Ulric is doing better than you, Remi.”

Remi opened his mouth to complain, but that would be even more embarrassing, so he just stayed quiet. I wondered what I should do, with my Dexterity, I should be able to surprise him when he attacked. That would end the match, but then I would have to train with the others and they clearly wanted to treat me like a sandbag.

I knew better than letting them do that… In the Knights Academy, they receive the chance to get a new class every year. They just had to pass a test in a dungeon close to it, and in the second year, they got a tier two class. Just like dungeons, classes also had ranks… the class that one gets on the tenth floor of a dungeon was a tier two class.

Knowing my brothers, Jacques probably picked Cleric, Knight, and Guard. Gerald only had the chance to pick two, his first should have been Barbarian or Spearman and Knight. They would increase his defense and even healing skills, so it would be hard to deal with them.

“That is enough, get running, Ulric.”

It looked like my plan failed… Rowan was a muscle-head, but he wasn’t stupid. Jacques and Gerald didn’t know what their instructor would do. Facing someone six years younger would be a waste of time, but they still had to follow orders.

“Go, Gerald. You can only use thrust attacks.”

“All right.”

Gerald was all smiles, it felt like he finally had the excuse to hit me… as if giving him such limitations would mean anything, he clearly got the spearman class. Even with a sword, he still could use that kind of attack with ease.

‘They unlock Dexterity in the Spearman class, so Rowan wants to make me taste my own poison.’

We faced each other and then Gerald assumed his stance, holding his wooden sword with a single hand and with his other on his back. Rapier was somewhat similar to Spears, so perhaps he had been training with that for a while.

All of a sudden, Gerald thrust his sword forward… it had been so fast that I barely had the time to react. Even while using both hands, my arms shook thanks to the impact. His strength had definitely increased… perhaps he didn’t choose the knight class that increases defense power and had chosen something else. Like Barbarian.

Gerald soon launched a barrage of thrusts… and even with a single hand, he was able to push me backward with each hit. Without any other choice, I turned the sword to the side and held the point with my left hand while the right held the handle.

“Hahaha, is that how you wield a real sword?”

“This isn’t a real sword.”

Gerald furrowed his eyebrows and then he realized that I had a point… still, he didn’t like when logic was used against him since he began to attack more furiously than before. He should have gotten the Spearman class a bit more than a year ago, so his Dexterity should be higher too… still, it was no excuse. I kept blocking again and again until my wrists were hit. I endured the pain while groaning, but eventually, my sword broke.

On the same attack, the sword hit my nose and knocked me down. I fainted for a moment and then I found myself staring at the blue sky and the smell of iron strong around me. When I got up, I saw my nose red with blood and Gerald looking nervous since he felt like he had gone too far. That hurt a bit, but I wouldn’t complain in front of a kid. That would be more than a little bit embarrassing.

I got up and then sighed… making more blood fall from my nose. I had to clean this mess. My nose was broken too, and that will probably make me look pretty weird as I grow up.

“Training isn’t over yet.”

I ignored Rowan as if I wouldn't let that wound get worse. Still, he approached and then grabbed me by the shoulder. That hurt too… when he turned me around, he saw the look in my eyes and then glared at me.

“You… what do you think you are looking at?”

“Do you really wanna know?”

Rowan went silent for a while, but eventually let me go. He wanted to teach me a lesson, but he realized that he shouldn’t go too far. He also forgot for a moment that his boss was watching. Even if he hated me, he couldn’t kill me just like that. Not only would he lose his job, but his reputation would go downhill for killing a child. I already knew that this world... or perhaps the human land was messed up. Still, they were a lot more pathetic than I had assumed... narrow-minded people like that would never achieve anything.

“Training is over for today.”