Chapter 4: The beginnings of friendship and enmity
After the mandatory lessons have ended, Kensei went to the training hall for his swordplay lessons. Upon arriving, Kensei went towards the advanced swordplay class, to which made several heads turn. Some sneered at him, while some looked at him with disdain. No one said anything as the instructors are around.
The instructor for this class was a well-built man in his early 40s. He has a sharp gaze and aura, making people around him feel like he was a sword rather than a human. When his gaze landed on Kensei, he actually smiled. Unlike his students, he can see that Kensei has already surpassed most of his peers here, judging by the way Kensei moved. As an instructor, there is little that he could teach Kensei, as he guessed they were on par. Without waiting any further, he decided to start the lesson.
“Alright brats, welcome to the advanced swordplay lesson. Here we will learn more advanced techniques used by swordsmen and there will be more mock duels. These mock duels are to train your reflexes further and let you hone your skills. For today, you will all be having mock duels, so pick a partner and start. The duel ends if one submits, or have been injured. So you may now begin!” the instructor spoke loudly.
As everyone started to find a partner to duel with, Kensei saw a girl who seemed lost and went to ask her. Before he could reach the girl however, he was blocked off by a 16 year old young man. One can tell from his bearing that he was a young noble, especially with the way he held his head high. Some snickered at his action, while others only sighed. The instructor watch with some interest, as you wants to see how Kensei would deal with this situation.
“Hey brat, you sure you are in the right class? You look like you have never even held your sword before. How about let me teach you?” the young noble asked in an arrogant tone.
“No thanks.” Kensei replied coldly, as he knew this young noble probably want to teach him a lesson. As he turned around, the young noble suddenly slashed his sword forward at Kensei. Even though this attack was sudden, Kensei was already well-trained, and instinctively drew out his katana to block the move.
When both blades meet, the young noble was surprised. He never would have thought that a brat younger than him by 2 years would have such instincts. The young noble quickly regained his composure and launched a flurry of slashes at Kensei, hoping to overwhelm him with both speed and strength. Kensei only smirked seeing this, as he quickly parried every single slash without missing a single one. This time, not only the young noble was shocked by this, even the surrounding students and staff have all been stunned by this scene. One has to know that the young noble was quite accomplished for his age in swordplay, and that few of his age could match him.
“Wolf Fangs!” the young noble shouted out his move, as he has now been angered by being unable to teach this brat a lesson. His came down quickly like a pair of wolf fangs, aimed at Kensei’s shoulders. In that single instant, Kensei had suddenly disappeared in front of the young noble, only to suddenly appear behind him. The instructor’s eyes became wide, as this was a rarely used skill in swordplay. The young noble realized he missed and suddenly fainted. Some of the students and all the instructors saw that very move, and were stunned, as that was a move that no novice can pull off.
Kensei sheathed his katana and checked that the youth did not receive any another injury other than some bruises from the blunt edge. Satisfied, he went to the instructor, as he believed that he has broken some rules.
“Ken, from today on you have no need to participate this class. I will look for a better instructor for you.” the instructor told Kensei with a grin. Hearing this, Kensei was at a loss and wondered if this was a good thing or a bad thing. He left the grounds as there was no longer any need for him to be taking part of the lessons anymore. Returning to his room, he decided to try and read finish all the books that are still lying about.
Meanwhile, the instructor knocked a gray door. The door opened and and lady who looked to be in her 30s came out dressed in a casual attire. She was a raven-haired beauty, with her hair reaching her shoulders, and her eyes were sky blue in color.
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“What is it, Castor?” she asked.
“I found a genius for you to teach, Marianne” Castor the instructor told her in a happy tone.
“Really!? How young is he or she?” Marianne inquired.
“You wouldn’t believe it, but he is only 14 and he just managed to defeat a relatively talented young noble 2 years his senior!” Castor exclaimed. Marianne was surprised at this piece of news and her eyes glimmered.
“Interesting. Castor, what’s his background?” Marianne asked after thinking for a bit.
“As far as I know, he is an orphan with no known connections to anybody or any where.” Castor replied without hesitation. This put Marianne into thinking a bit more, before she looked up with a resolute face.
“I will train this kid. He will inherit my schools anti-magic swordplay!” Marianne said in a serious manner, her eyes glimmering with determination. Castor nodded and went off.
Kensei attended the remaining lessons for the day and turned in. The next day he woke up and saw a letter in the rooms letter box. After opening and reading the content, he was pleasantly surprised that he will be having private lessons with an esteemed instructor, and he will report to her after lunch. Part of him felt excited, while another part felt cautious, as he have no idea if the instructor have served in the Grand Alliance before. He headed to class as per usual and ate lunch after the lessons. Afterward, he headed to the second floor of the training hall. As he walked to the second floor, the young noble saw him.
“Just you wait brat! I, Tiberius Decimus, will take care of you in the future!” the young noble said loudly enough for Kensei to hear. Kensei simply ignored him and went up to the second floor and entered one of the training rooms. The young noble was livid with hatred and went off to train with the class.
After entering, Kensei saw that his instructor was a raven-haired beauty. He could tell that he was definitely not her match at all, especially since she was releasing such a sharp aura. He bowed respectfully to her, a reflex taught in his early childhood. Marianne was a bit startled by this gesture and smiled warmly, knowing that Kensei has actually shown her such deep respect.
“Hello, Ken. From today onward, I will be your master. My name is Marianne Arc, the current and only Grandmaster of the Reaver Sword School.” Marianne said in a warm tone.
“Reaver Sword School? What does it teach, Master?” Kensei asked with a confused expression.
“This school teaches a rare type of swordplay known as anti-magic swordplay. Currently I am the only member remaining, as the school has fell out of favor with the changing of time.” Marianne replied with a tinge of sadness in her voice.
“Why? What happened for such a powerful school and swordplay to decline?” Kensei asked, shocked from hearing her answer.
“There are a few reasons. Firstly, only those truly talented with the sword can have a hope of learning this type of swordplay. Secondly, back in the past, rogue mages were common and the Inquisition of the Eternal Light had yet to be formed. After their formation, anti-magic swordplay and it’s companions began to decline, as the Inquisition proved their efficiency and ease of dealing with rogue mages. And the last reason was that rogue mages are sparse these days. The Inquisitions apparently has eyes and ears everywhere to find and root out these troublemakers. As such, our anti-magic styles have almost become non-existent.” Marianne explained meticulously, wanting to ensure that Kensei would understand what he learn may end with him.
Kensei only had to think for a short while and looked at Marianne. To him, this was akin to finding a kindred spirit. This had deepened his respect for her even more, as a woman her age has to bear this sort of sadness and pressure for all this time. Kensei suddenly kneel and kowtowed to her three times, showing that he has accepted her as his master. Marianne was stunned at this sudden gesture and realized it meaning. She also had friends from the Azure Dynasty Empire and the Empire of Yamato, which gave a extensive knowledge on their culture. Seeing this, she vowed that she would teach Kensei everything she knew.
“Master, I will do my best to learn everything from you. I will remind the world that our Reaver Sword School have yet to go extinct!” Kensei exclaimed with fervor. This startled Marianne and she could only helplessly sigh. She felt like he had adopted a son rather than a disciple, and a rather hot-blooded one at that. From then on, all his advanced swordplay lessons have been replaced with this private lesson. When Kensei told her he lost his family to those who were jealous, greedy and feared them, she felt sadness for Kensei. This further steeled her resolve to teach and train him, to care for him until it is time for him to spread his wings.
Other than Marianne, there were Souji and Sheryl in his class. Everyday, the three of them could be seen talking with each other and trying to understand the lessons, with Sheryl giving explanations for things that the other two could not understand. This attracted a High Elf to their group, who noticed that they were always discussing the lessons right after they end. She introduced herself as Freya Fantasia and that she is interested in discussing the lesson contents with them. During their combat lessons, both a Dwarf, Bihorn Krossfang, and a Cat-Woman, Regina Ferin from the Beast Race also joined their clique, interested in their fighting techniques, as both were born fighters. This group of people will be friends for life, for they will go through all sorts of challenges in the future, but, that is for later.