There’s a saying about medicine being bitter, but even so, Ray knew from his past life that using violent means to guide children onto the right path wasn’t a good choice.
If Ray had been planning to gather orphans and form an underground organization to expand his power, ruling through violence wouldn’t have been such a bad option.
However, Ray’s purpose was to prevent children destined for great evil from going astray and to help those with the destiny of a hero flourish their talents to fulfill their missions.
Only then would there be hope in this world, which was destined for ruin.
Of course, Ray did occasionally beat the kids like swatting mice when they went too far.
But Johanna only acted up whenever she met Ray, despite behaving normally otherwise. She had endured it until now, wondering why Ray was so strict with her, but Ray began to feel his patience wearing thin.
“Hey, come here.”
“No way. If you want me to come, you come here. Who do you think you are ordering me around? You’re annoying.”
“…hehehehehe.”
A chilling laugh escaped Ray’s lips.
As Ray approached, tilting his neck at a 45° angle, Johanna flinched momentarily before frowning and muttering under her breath.
“You little brat, always trying to act like an adult…”
BANG!!
“Ack?!”
Johanna let out a strange sound as her vision blurred from the sudden impact. Ray, having delivered a blow to the top of her head, raised his fist again.
“I fed you!”
BANG!!
“I clothed you!”
BANG!!
“I taught you…!!”
BANG!! BANG!!
“How dare you turn on me like this?!”
BANG! BANG! BANG!
“Aaah!! Aaah!! Aaah!!”
After enduring several blows, Johanna finally regained her senses and screamed.
“Don’t touch my body without permission!”
“After all I’ve done for you!! I worked hard to raise you properly, even worrying about your growth plates, and now you disrespect me?!”
“Did I say anything wrong?! You’re still just a kid!”
Johanna twisted her body to evade Ray’s punches, but Ray chased her movements like a ghost and continued to land blows on her crown.
Though Johanna resisted by employing all the martial arts she had learned, Ray easily grabbed her hair and shook her while screaming.
“What’s your problem with me?! Speak!! Speak!!”
“Aaah!! Let go!!”
“If you have complaints, speak them out loud!!”
Eventually, Karen intervened, flailing her arms to separate Johanna and Ray.
Luna stood nearby with puffed cheeks, watching Ray’s tantrum.
Hamus shook his head as he observed the chaos.
“I’ve never seen a noble family so lacking in fundamentals.”
The heir plays around with someone of lowly birth, knights teach swordsmanship at the orphanage, and there’s no trace of discipline or dignity among those who claim to have learned from knights.
Just as Hamus clicked his tongue, muttering that one can’t hide one’s true station, a clearing of the throat came from behind.
“Hem!”
Turning around, they saw Piquor, a knight of the Philips Count’s household.
Swallowing his saliva, Piquor called out to Ray, who was pulling Johanna’s hair.
“Enough!”
At Piquor’s voice, Ray immediately released his grip and stood at attention.
Johanna also straightened up, though grumbling, and looked at Piquor.
Piquor hesitated to lecture them, realizing it would be meaningless, and instead turned to Viktor and Hamus.
Viktor and Hamus slightly bowed to show respect as Piquor spoke.
“I overheard something about a sparring match?”
“If you don’t wish to proceed, we’ll consider it null and void.”
Regardless of his intentions, Hamus responded quite humbly since both he and Viktor had been careful to avoid trouble after Ray’s recent antics.
After pondering for a moment, Piquor approached Johanna.
“You might learn something new by exchanging swords with peers who practice different styles. Would you like to spar?”
“I understand.”
Seeing Johanna nodding obediently, Ray grabbed the back of her neck.
Why does she only cause trouble with me? Why not lose control indiscriminately?
Ignoring Ray, who was foaming at the mouth, Piquor pointed toward a nearby open space.
“Follow me. There’s a suitable place.”
*
“Are you not inviting more people?”
On their way to the open space, Hamus asked Ray.
Glancing at him briefly, Ray shook his head.
“Piquor Sir’s supervision is enough. Is there any need to invite more people?”
“Coward.”
To Hamus’s provocation, Ray shrugged.
Since neither Viktor nor Hamus were enemies, Ray didn’t intend to embarrass them so thoroughly they couldn’t hold their heads high.
“Don’t underestimate dealing with kids.”
“Is the nonsense you’ve been spouting since earlier meant to provoke us?”
“Karen and Johanna may seem easy targets…”
They’re of low birth, young, and pretty girls.
It’s impossible not to look down on them until you actually face them.
“Still, these are kids whom the knights have consistently trained in swordsmanship. If they lacked talent, the knights would have given up long ago. Don’t get too relaxed and end up shocked. Stay alert.”
“Hmph.”
Hamus clicked his tongue and fell silent.
Continuing the argument here would appear to insult the knights of the Philips family.
Words needed to be chosen carefully.
Meanwhile, Viktor was openly staring at Karen.
Although Ray thought it was a bit excessive, he decided to leave it alone.
Whether it was Viktor or anyone else, more boys had started following Karen recently, and as long as they didn’t cross the line, it wasn’t something Ray needed to address first.
Upon arriving at the open space, Karen’s opponent was decided to be Viktor, according to his fervent wishes.
Ray advised Karen and Johanna.
“For the first thirty seconds or so, focus on defensive swordplay.”
Viktor and Hamus were still underestimating Karen and Johanna.
Starting off aggressively could overwhelm them, preventing them from demonstrating their full potential.
‘They need experience, but you two should give them a proper challenge.’
If Karen and Johanna maintained a defensive stance for thirty seconds, the others would realize their skills weren’t to be underestimated.
Karen smiled brightly and nodded.
“Understood!”
Johanna, however, ignored Ray completely and stared ahead.
Piquor glanced at Ray, then repeated his advice.
“For the first thirty seconds, remain defensive.”
“Understood.”
Seeing Johanna comply so readily, Ray grabbed her neck again.
Finally, in the center of the open space, Viktor and Karen faced each other, drawing their swords.
Viktor nodded.
“Please take care. I’ll be gentle, so don’t be too scared.”
“Thank you; I will do my best.”
After confirming the safety devices on the sword blades, Piquor stepped back.
“Begin.”
The sparring match started, but the clang of steel did not ring out immediately.
Viktor stood still, gazing at Karen.
With her long hair tied back to avoid hindering her movements, Karen’s white nape caught Viktor’s eye.
Realizing his distraction, Viktor quickly refocused and gripped his sword firmly.
Karen remained standing in place.
Assuming she was frightened, Viktor swung his sword at half speed.
Only then did Karen move.
Clang!
“Oh…!”
She blocked it better than expected.
Relieved somewhat, Viktor gradually increased the speed of his swings.
Clang! Clang!!
She blocks well. Really well.
More than expected…
‘Is she blocking too well?’
Even if Viktor hadn’t swung with full force, Karen was perfectly deflecting all of his attacks.
Viktor’s expression grew serious.
‘She’s received proper training.’
He began to understand why Ray had been so confident.
Viktor started putting real effort into his sword strikes.
Clang!
Pushing Viktor’s attack to the side, Karen attempted a surprise thrust under his armpit.
However, Viktor calmly twisted his waist to avoid it.
Grind!
Karen’s thrust grazed Viktor’s shoulder armor slightly.
Karen hastily retracted her sword, but Viktor was quicker, swinging at her waist.
Clang!!!
Blocking the heavy strike with her blade, Karen rolled across the ground.
Viktor pressed his advantage, relentlessly pursuing Karen and slashing downward.
Clang!!
Karen had to roll again.
The Osiris family’s sword style is straightforward, aggressive, and powerful.
In contrast, the Philips family emphasizes maintaining defense and striking at opponents’ vulnerabilities.
Considering the matchup, the Philips style might have a slight edge.
But there was a clear difference in skill between Viktor and Karen.
Clang!
“Ugh…!”
Karen groaned in distress.
Viktor’s relentless, direct attacks felt like hitting rocks every time she blocked.
Her hands ached so much she tried to deflect his sword, but she lacked the necessary technique.
Ultimately, Karen was pushed back without landing a single hit.
Had Viktor not given her breathing room, she might have already dropped her sword.
Even so, it was an impressive achievement.
Karen was only thirteen and significantly lighter and weaker than Viktor.
Despite that, she successfully parried Viktor’s frontal attacks, showing remarkable skill for her age.
The sparring lasted about five more minutes.
As it went on, Karen’s sword wavered more and more until she finally lost her grip.
Clang!
“Ah!”
Dropping her sword, Karen sat down on the ground.
Rather than mocking her, Viktor looked genuinely impressed and swallowed his admiration.
“That was a good sparring session.”
After sheathing his sword, Viktor extended his hand to Karen.
Taking his hand and standing up, Karen’s lips curved slightly.
“Thank you. I learned a lot. You’re truly strong.”
“You were excellent too. Your name is Karen, right?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm, how old are you?”
“Thirteen.”
“Thirteen… What? Thirteen?!”
Viktor’s jaw dropped; he had assumed Karen was around sixteen.
What, am I attracted to a kid four years younger than me?
No, more importantly, how did a thirteen-year-old withstand my sword for five minutes?
Children progress day by day.
If Karen trains for another year, she’ll be able to duel with Viktor on equal terms.
Realizing Karen’s potential, Viktor sighed.
“It wasn’t an exaggeration.”
The Philips knights couldn’t deny that teaching swordsmanship at the orphanage wasn’t about honor or shame.
At that moment, Hamus pulled on Viktor’s shoulder and whispered harshly.
“Hey, idiot, what are you doing? You seemed uneasy from the start. Did you go easy on her because she’s a girl?”
“No, I didn’t…”
While Karen was given some breathing room initially,
except for the first few swings, Viktor didn’t significantly hold back.
However, it appeared differently to Hamus, who clenched his teeth in anger.
“Was the point to break that brat’s arrogance, but you got distracted by a girl and ruined it?”
“Uh, sorry.”
Viktor apologized readily.
Though they were both squires, Hamus was older by a year and more skilled.
Lowering his eyes slightly, Viktor stepped back as Hamus shoved his shoulder and moved to the center of the open space.
“Let’s begin.”
Hamus wasted no time.
Confirming the safety devices on the sword blades once more, Piquor stepped back.
“Begin.”
Bang!
Hamus charged forward immediately.
The sword aimed at Johanna’s chest sank into the ground, and as Hamus planted his right foot, his sword slashed upward diagonally.
Considering Johanna’s equipped breastplate, Hamus hadn’t held back at all in this strike.
Hamus was certain that this blow would crush Johanna’s breastplate, causing her to roll on the ground.
“…”
Johanna calmly watched Hamus’s incoming attack, then slightly rotated her sword counterclockwise.
Clang!
The sword that touched Johanna’s blade shot upward uncontrollably, narrowly missing her head.
“?!”
Using the momentum, Hamus spun around once and retreated.
Attempting to stop his body forcibly would have created a bigger opening.
Hamus’s judgment was wise, but that fact wasn’t important now.
Staring blankly at Johanna, Hamus wondered,
‘Was it luck?’
No.
It wasn’t luck.
Without moving a single step since the start of the sparring, Johanna stood calmly, looking at Hamus.
Feeling a chill run down his spine, Hamus tightened his grip on his sword.
Seeing this, Ray chuckled.
“Hey, Hamus.”
“?”
“Stay sharp.”
Your opponent is ‘unique,’ not rare.
