When the wine and the meat cut by Edi were finished, Gotlake Lucky suggested walking to the river instead of sitting in the stuffy inn. Everyone agreed with this proposal. But before leaving the tavern, I went up to the room rented by Vidar and left my things there, taking only my spear. As we left, I asked Vidar:

"Were you really unhappy when I handed you the rod of life back then?"

To which he replied:

"To be honest, at that moment, I felt immense relief and even joy... Which still makes me angry at myself."

I guess I will never understand people like him and Lan Lin. There is something so strange in them that it is completely beyond me. I didn't press him for more details, and we descended in slightly awkward silence. As we stepped outside, we saw the innkeeper sitting by the well. Noticing us, he immediately jumped to his feet. I approached him and handed over two silver coins:

"I broke a table; this should cover its replacement."

Although I tried to maintain the role of a traveling nobleman among the locals, such an act as paying for damage wasn't in their rules. However, my conscience was more important to me, and such a small expense was not a big deal anyway. On the other hand, I noticed that Edi appreciated this gesture, even though she tried not to show it. The innkeeper bowed deeply, glanced at Vidar, and, seeing no reaction from him, quickly took the money. Then he scurried back into the inn, constantly nodding and shuffling his feet.

The sun had already set, but despite this, we quickly reached the riverbank, which was only a hundred steps from the last village house. The Rapid River lived up to its name. It was swift, though not very broad, no more than forty steps wide where we stood. Judging by the smooth flow of the water, it also seemed quite deep; at least, I didn't notice any swirls or other signs of shallowness. According to Gotlake, a little further down, the current calms somewhat, and the river spreads almost two hundred meters wide, with less steep banks, unlike almost vertical here. That's where the locals water their goats and sheep. Stopping at the edge of a not-very-high riverbank cliff, Gotlake sat on the ground and dangled his legs down. There was about a meter and a half from his boots to the water flowing below.

"I've been scouting around here, and I think this is the best spot for a bridge," he said, gesturing towards the river. "Both banks are at the same height. The rocky terrain solves the problem of securing a solid foundation, and the river's width here isn't so great; we can manage without supporting columns in the middle."

"You're the engineer-builder," Vidar shrugged, "you know best."

"Ah, if only I had proper construction concrete and metal girders," Lucky said with a smile, waving his hand. "Working with wood is harder; each log has its own strength, so getting everything right's much more difficult. And preliminary calculations will only show a very approximate result."

"You said you'd manage the project," Wong grumbled in response to these words.

"I'll manage," Gotlake nodded confidently. "Might need to make some adjustments on the go, but I'll get it done."

"You could use some knowledge of Runes," I said as an image of the Strengthening Rune appeared in my palm. "If you applied such a sign to each log, its strength would increase by twenty to thirty percent. And, what's good is that after applying the Rune, its maintenance and energy infusion would be taken over by the world itself."

"Then make us a few drawings on paper, and we'll stick them on," Lucky perked up.

"Alas," I spread my hands, "it doesn't work like that. I need to see the object to which I'm applying the Rune, as that will determine how the Rune is depicted. It's more about intuitive understanding than exact science. But..." I turned to Hjerta. "If you find such a Rune, knowing its meaning, you could try to Understand it, after which you could apply it yourself. As far as I know, with three Stars of Talent, such self-study is quite possible. I also have three Stars in Runes, and I managed to learn."

However, I didn't mention that I have the "Understanding of Runes" ability, which I got back in the Stela of Divine Inspiration. It greatly simplifies such tasks for me, but I wasn't lying. Knowing the approximate design and meaning of a Rune, Hjerta might be able to Understand it if she finds a Living Rune, and then, consequently, apply it in practice.

"Such Strengthening Runes were often used in the foundations of columns and other structures in ancient times, before the Fall. I found this Rune in the ruins of an old city."

"Just found it?" Lucky asked skeptically.

"I noticed that everything around was destroyed, but some columns along the road were surprisingly well-preserved. I dug up the foundation of one such column and found a Living image there. So yes, you could say I just found it."

"So, a drawing like this would increase the strength of the item it's applied to by about a quarter or even a third?" Gotlake mused, and seeing my nod, he sharply turned to Hjerta, silently drilling her with his gaze.

"I myself got interested in these Runes," the girl shrugged. "Thought my three Stars of Talent would be 'hanging' unused, but now..." She waved her hand, leaving her sentence unfinished.

After this brief dialogue, Gotlake and Hjerta simultaneously turned to Edi and stared at her, then Lucky said:

"There's a small Temple of Ishid not far from here, a couple of days' journey. Maybe we should visit it, and you, as a candidate for the acolytes, could ask for Hjerta to study some Runes?"

"That won't work," Edi answered firmly. "As far as I understand, Runes are considered a divine language, and only the 'worthy,' those who have been initiated into the priesthood, are permitted to read them. Ordinary people are 'unworthy' of such honor."

"So, it won't work out?" Gotlake asked, disappointed.

"So, it won't work out." Edi nodded, shrugging casually, as if to show that there was nothing she could do about it.

"I heard," I joined their conversation, "that on the lower floors of the Inverted Towers in Pentapolis, you can find many Runes on the walls."

"Where we are, and where the last floors of those Towers are," Gotlake sighed a bit disappointedly, then turned to me and suggested, "Maybe you could stay here? There are plenty of Wootz dungeons in the Rur region, enough for a month. And you could help us with the construction using your Runes?"

"I would consider your offer if it weren't for one 'but'," I said, repeating Edi's shrugging gesture, "I have a questers' task hanging over me, and to complete it, I need to find something, and searching for something while sitting in one place is not the best idea."

"That's a pity..." Lucky drawled slowly. "We could use the extra strength for the logs that will form the base of the bridge."

I even felt curious about what Achievements and of what quality they would get after bringing their plan to life. In the Last Cycle, "I" paid little attention to the social aspect, focusing entirely on combat leveling. Judging by the speed at which Arien is growing, this group will also receive a significant reward from Ain for their efforts.

"Since you won one of the big tournaments," Hjerta interrupted my thoughts, "you must be good with weapons. Would you mind having a couple of practice fights with me?" The girl placed her hand on the hilt of her sword. "We can do it right here and now."

"Why not?" A slight smile played on my face. "Let's have a match."

We moved away from the steep bank by a couple of dozen steps, standing about five meters apart from each other. The girl drew her blade, a straight, nearly meter-long heavy bastard sword with a three-finger-width blade, weighing no less than a kilogram and a half. The stance in which Hjerta froze in preparation for the duel made me shake my head. She stood in a Conan pose from old movie posters. Left leg slightly forward, body half-turned. The sword, held in a two-handed grip, so that its blade, like a spire, rises above her right shoulder. This pose also often appears in pictures of various ninjas.

"Such a stance is good against monsters, to decisively chop someone down in one go," I explained, clicking my tongue. "It's also fine if you're confident in your strength superiority and that you'll have the initiative in the duel." My spear described a smooth circle, the air humming from the swift movement. "The problem is that your stance is hardly suitable for defense. You're only covering the upper right part of your half-sphere. With some effort, by dropping the blade sharply, you can cover your right thigh or, with a twist of your body, protect your left shoulder."

I began to move counter-clockwise, forcing the girl to turn, as I didn't hide my intention to approach from her poorly defended left side.

"But you didn't consider that I'm a spearman, meaning my weapon is much longer, so the initiative will definitely be mine at the beginning. An opponent like me won't play a close-quarters slashing game with you; he will do this."

My spear made a swift move toward the girl's chin, forcing her to block with her sword instinctively. That's exactly what I needed, as she had put herself in a position where she couldn't quickly switch her blade to a lower defense. The Striking Whisper then changed trajectory mid-way, like a diving hawk, hitting flat against her left thigh.

"In a real battle, I would have struck the inside of the thigh, cutting your femoral artery. That would essentially end our fight, as I'd just wait for you to weaken from blood loss. Or I could make a thrusting lunge to shatter your kneecap, which would also quickly end the fight."

Pulling away, I returned the spear to its travel position and continued my explanation:

"Your sword is quite long, but by taking such a stance, you initially deprived yourself of this advantage. And from this position, you can only make one attack, a downward slash from the right, which made the beginning of the duel much easier for me."

Silently nodding, the girl, clearly upset by the brevity of the first duel, adopted a classic European stance this time, gripping her sword so that the blade pointed directly at me.

"Much better," I nodded in approval. "You're covering your body more effectively and showing that you've considered the difference in the length of our weapons and are ready to play on counterattacks. But..."

I executed a series of light yet rapid thrusts. The first was at her right shoulder, and the next two were at the left and right thigh. All these movements were feints, though I could convert them into actual attacks at any moment, forcing Hjerta to react. She managed to deflect the first two thrusts with her sword, but was too late for the third. To further demonstrate, I didn't complete the last strike but made a fourth one, again targeting the right thigh as in the first training duel. This time, the girl didn't even try to block my thrust with her blade but, twisting her body, attempted to move her leg out of the strike zone. Naturally, she couldn't succeed, as she needed to turn her torso and take a wide step back, while I only had to extend my arm slightly forward.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"But..."

She noticed that my strike hit exactly the same spot as the first thrust, and she blushed from her helplessness.

"Again!"

"Sure," I smiled. "This time, I'll do exactly the same. Identical. Try to parry."

And... predictably, she failed again. Alas, that's the truth of combat: longer weapons, if not excessively long, have too many advantages when the fighters are equal in speed. If she had a shield or were clad in heavy armor, it would have been more challenging for me, as Striking Whisper can't cut through armor, and the strikes on the girl's shoulders would have been ineffective, blocked by plate shoulder guards. But Hjerta had neither heavy armor nor a shield, and she clearly lacked experience in duels against people, so my outplaying her again was inevitable.

"Again!" the girl said stubbornly and a bit angrily.

"And it will be the same attack again, but slower this time."

Indeed, I repeated the same sequence: a thrust towards the right shoulder, then switching the attack to the left. As I moved more smoothly and slowly this time, she managed to react more confidently. When I shifted the attack to the lower hemisphere, Hjerta's sword dived for defense. But I simply pulled Striking Whisper slightly back, letting her block pass by, and as the heavy blade was carried by its own inertia, I straightened my arm, my spear grazing her left thigh.

"Again!"

It was no trouble for me. And then again and again. The result was the same. Such an attack could not be deflected from the stance she had chosen. Her only chance was to catch my first thrust with a hard block and then try to close the distance quickly. In all other scenarios, it was a one-sided game.

"Basic ergonomics of movement," I explained, guiding Striking Whisper even slower along its wave-like trajectory. "Already on the second block, covering your left shoulder, you needed to, firstly, stop the inertia of the first block and, secondly, cover the new attack zone. I just needed to turn my wrist and a bit of elbow. There, I was already faster than you, though you kept up. But! As soon as I smoothly changed the attack to the lower zone," Striking Whisper described a half-circle and landed on the girl's left thigh, "your sword needed to completely change direction and manage to drop the blade down. How many movements did you need to make for that? A lot. And how many did I need? Just turn the wrist again. And even if you kept up this time, it was at the edge of your speed, and when I pulled back the spear, requiring only one elbow movement from me, you definitely weren't able to block the fourth thrust. The inertia of your own weapon played against you. To keep up, you needed to be at least a third faster than me."

"So, does a swordsman stand no chance against a spear?" Vidar asked after the ninth demonstration.

"Of course, there are chances. For instance, heavy armor or a shield in the swordsman's hand can negate the advantages of the spear."

"But neither I nor Hjerta have armor or shields..." Vidar said somewhat resignedly. "And in dungeons, you often need to hit monsters hard and with both hands, which is difficult to do with a shield."

Placing the spear on the ground, I asked Hjerta for her sword and, taking it in my hands, began the demonstration.

"Combat is primarily about the ergonomics of movement. If you use more actions or your movements are larger in amplitude than your opponent's, all else being equal, you're doomed to lose. Therefore," I addressed Hjerta, "take my spear. Realizing that the enemy's weapon is longer than yours, you must understand that the first strike will be his, which means your first task... What is it?"

"Stop that first attack," the girl said.

"Correct."

The blade of the sword rested flat against the forearm of my left hand, while the hilt was raised much higher, pausing above my right shoulder, making the blade seem to look down with a slight tilt towards the likely enemy.

"Strike," I commanded.

The girl obediently attacked my right shoulder. I stopped the thrust by simply lifting the hilt about ten centimeters up.

"Now a double attack, first the right shoulder, then the left."

And again, the sword in my hands managed to be everywhere. The blade, lying on the extended forearm of my left hand, didn't move at all. I simply shifted the hilt about twenty centimeters first to the right, then to the left, slightly playing with my torso.

"Notice, I'm essentially doing nothing. I don't need to swing the sword in different directions. The downward-pointing sword reliably covers all zones."

In response, the girl tried to reach my knees, but I simply lowered my hand, allowing the blade to fall lower to the ground, and the sword blocked the spear's path, easily parrying the thrust.

"Notice how everything has changed places. This time, you have to make more movements. And the sword in my hands hardly moves, only the hilt shifts in the needed direction, and that's all."

We switched weapons again, and on the fourth attempt, the girl managed to parry my attacking series. Around the tenth repetition, she started to do it quite confidently.

"Although this is, of course, just a crutch, not a solution," I said, removing the emerging smile from Hjerta's face.

"But I did it!" she exclaimed in surprise.

"What did you do?" I smirked.

"Block all your attacks!"

"Yes, you blocked them, but how are you going to attack from that position?"

"Ah..." Indeed, such a stance was poorly suited for an attack.

After pondering for a moment, the girl first parried my attacks and then tried to thrust her sword forward suddenly, for which she immediately received a blow from the spear's shaft on her exposed forearms.

"But how?!" she cried out in despair.

"If one could learn the art of combat in a single lesson, we would be surrounded by sword masters," I explained, spreading my hands. "Keep practicing, seek teachers, absorb knowledge – that's the best advice I can give you. Remember, the one who uses fewer movements is more likely to win. All those tricks from Eastern movies with jumps, pirouettes, and high swings only work when you can surprise your opponent with them. Or, as in my case, a gymnast's experience allows for unexpected moves, including elements of acrobatics. But without proper training, I wouldn't recommend using such techniques and tricks."

"Good thing I chose magic as my specialty!" Gotlake forced a laugh. "I simply won't let a warrior get within weapon attack range."

"Really?" My lips curled into a smirk. "Will you demonstrate?"

"Easily!" Lucky agreed.

Following my inviting gesture, he positioned himself opposite me, ten meters away. As soon as I stepped forward, a stream of flame burst from his palms like a flamethrower. I quickly sidestepped, but the flame followed me. True, Lucky was still on Steel, and the fire from his hands only reached about seven steps. Yet the stream was powerful enough to dissuade me from stepping into it. Nonetheless, circling the mage in a spiral, I slowly closed the distance, saying:

"I won't argue, it's relatively effective. But how long can you sustain it? Thirty seconds, maybe a minute? And then what?"

In response, Lucky interrupted his spell, but as soon as I took a step forward, he launched it again. This time, the fire lasted only three seconds before dying down. Another step from me, and the fiery stream reappeared. If I had enchanted armor and knew the "Spirit Armor" spell, I could easily walk through this fire. It would singe me a bit, maybe even burn me, but not critically. Unfortunately, I didn't have such armor, and I hadn't yet found a teacher to instruct me in "Spirit Armor," so I resorted to a more radical method. When Lucky released fire from his hands again, I extended my spear, previously infused with Light to protect its shaft from the flames, directly into the fire, and released a "Discharge." A small, fist-sized clump of Lightning Magic easily penetrated the flames. Since his own spell had obscured me from his sight, he didn't see it coming. And when the "Discharge" struck the mage in the knee, it wasn't strong – I didn't intend to cripple the earthling – but it was painful enough to break his concentration, and the flame from his hands extinguished. The tip of the Striking Whisper spear, like a silver fish, drew a line and stopped a centimeter from the mage's neck.

"The staff in your hands," I nodded, "is not just a magic amplifier and not just for show and dignity. The staff is a weapon. And as I understand, in the world of Ain, a mage who can't properly wield his weapon quickly becomes a dead mage. So if you thought to focus on spell learning and forget about the staff, that mistake might cost you someday."

"I understand." Moving the speartip away from his neck with his staff, Lucky nodded and rubbed his knee. Then he looked up at me, his eyes full of condemnation. "That actually hurt!"

"Well, when you were about to burn me with flame, you didn't seem to care about my safety," I responded with a grin.

"I didn't want to burn anyone," Gotlake shook his head. "Just keeping you at a distance."

"A light shock for a lesson isn't too high a price," Wong laughed in response to these words.

"Easy for you to say!" the fire mage hissed at him. "Your knee doesn't hurt!"

"So, the ergonomics of movement is important?" Vidar asked, having drawn his sword from its sheath and trying to replicate the defense I had taught Hjerta.

"Ergonomics and distance control are the two fundamentals. And I'll say right away that distance is much more complicated; you have to feel it intuitively. Because your head in battle should be occupied with the overall strategy of the fight, and you should perform different nuances and particulars automatically: all these blocks, dodges, and attacks. The head, or rather the brain, at that time, should be occupied with something more important, namely the overall assessment of the situation and planning several steps ahead. Though, I repeat, this comes with experience and no other way. Just hearing even the most detailed lecture and immediately learning everything... won't work."

"Actually, we have everything calculated," Edi chimed in. "Commander and Hjerta protect us from monster attacks while Wong, Gotlake, and I act from behind their backs, under cover of their weapons."

"For clearing simple dungeons with their corridors and small open spaces, such an approach might justify itself," I shook my head in response. "But a competent opponent would immediately understand your tactic and try to cut off the mages from the warriors' protection. And besides, you don't always go in a group of five, do you? Although a well-coordinated group is always good, I won't argue. But you shouldn't forget that each of you should be able to stand up for yourself, regardless of the circumstances. Life is unpredictable, and you have to be ready for anything.

"We've only been here for two months," Lucky frowned, "you can't learn everything in such a short time."

"That doesn't mean you shouldn't try," I countered, finding full support from Wong and Hjerta.

Then I had a sparring match with Vidar, giving him the opportunity to attack and explaining what he was doing wrong.

"As I said, distance is very important, so the first thing that both warriors and mages need to work on is movement in battle. And movement starts with the feet," I commented on my maneuvers. "A properly placed foot allows you to take the next step forward or just as easily pull back. We're not on a piste, like in Olympic fencing, and the footwork adopted in sports is not suitable. But you shouldn't walk as if you're on a stroll either. Never stand in battle with straight legs. Your legs should be like springs, on which you can change direction at any moment, lunge forward, sway to the side, or quickly jump back. Don't be afraid to retreat, pull away. The length of your weapon is the zone you must completely control and disrupt your opponent's control of the same, imposing a favorable distance on them. And if that doesn't work, you need to find moves that will return the initiative to you in battle. I understand it's not easy, but this skill will come with experience, so don't get discouraged if something doesn't work out right away. Moreover, don't forget that even warriors have Magic, and there are spells that can significantly extend your reach..."

Was I ashamed that I was almost verbatim quoting Ronin's lecture, heard by "me" in the Last Cycle? Of course not, because "I" had practically understood how true these words were.

After the duel with Vidar, I invited Hjerta to join so they attack simultaneously. It immediately became clear that these two often fought shoulder to shoulder. They intuitively felt what their partner was going to do, constantly shifting and not interfering with each other. If it weren't for the advantage in weapon length, I would have had a hard time at some point. But since I had a spear in my hands, I repeatedly forced them into a single line, and then, with swift strikes to their legs, I disrupted their coordinated movement, thereby breaking their synergy, after which I quickly "finished them off." Of course, I commented and explained all my actions.

After half an hour, I was dancing against the whole group. And here, I had to sweat a bit. I won the first two duels without much trouble, forcing them to huddle with my constant movement, and then, when they began to hinder each other's actions, I finished them off with ease. But the third duel went differently. Following Edi's abrupt advice, the earthlings spread out in a wide fan and tried to encircle me. They didn't succeed at first. And when I allowed them to, they realized too late that because I was in the center and they were around, Lucky and Wong couldn't use magic for fear of hitting those who were behind me at the moment. Thanks to this, I easily "took out" the mages, marking the striking blows, and then "finished off" Vidar and Hjerta, after which I chased Edi along the shore for a long time, almost three minutes. I chased her not because I couldn't reach her, but to make her realize that she couldn't always "hide" behind the group.

Nevertheless, on the fifth attempt, having taken into account all their mistakes, they got me. The earthlings, after a short consultation, chose a formation like a concave lens, keeping me as if in its "focus," and this brought them success. And I must admit, without using the Dance against such a tactic, I had no chance of success, despite being Wootz and them being Steel. After all, a well-coordinated group is a huge advantage in battle, and it's much easier to defeat even a very experienced opponent together.

"I would like to practice some more," Hjerta said after reviewing the duel in which they managed to defeat me.

"I'm a mediocre teacher, but if the 'student' herself wishes to train, I will not refuse. Only first, if you don't mind, let's rest a bit and drink something warming. And I'm not talking about wine, but about the local tea."

This suggestion was also to the liking of the other earthlings. Lucky went down to the river, filled a whole kettle, and then quickly boiled the water with magic without even lighting a fire for it. After the hot drink was poured into travel mugs and we sat on the edge of a low riverbank cliff, I turned to Vidar:

"You mentioned that you learned about many dungeons located nearby. Would you share what Wootz dungeons are in the nearest area?"