Beatrice diligently learned swordsmanship.
Even though she might have given up, she never let go of her sword until the very end.
“The impact only comes at the moment of contact. If you’re too heavy from the start, you won’t be able to swing quickly.”
Beatrice was an excellent student—she was passionate and quick to understand.
“By doing this, we can minimize the consumption of mana and also increase speed, right?”
“Ah…”
It had been three days since the sword training began.
Beatrice had awakened to the method of increasing the ‘mass’ of her body.
“It feels a bit heavier now.”
She was very satisfied with the progress.
On the fourth day…
Cecilia finally judged that it was time to move on to the next stage.
As Beatrice woke up from fainting and immediately tried to avoid the wooden sword, Cecilia remained seated.
“I’m not hitting you today.”
“Um… really?”
Beatrice, whose whole body was wrapped in bandages from being hit so much, asked uncertainly.
“Yeah. Today, we’ll discuss sword techniques.”
“…Discuss sword techniques?”
“Since I’ve grasped your level of swordsmanship, Betty, I want to point out some issues.”
“Um… are you really not going to hit me? You’re not going to suddenly hit my head and say, ‘Would you believe a demon who says they won’t hit you?'”
“…”
Cecilia looked at Beatrice with eyes that had grown cold.
‘Do I look like a sadist…?’
Of course, she did prefer that side over masochism.
“Betty seems to use defensive swordsmanship. Is there a reason for that?”
“Because blessings of light are more supportive, I guess…”
The aim was to defend as much as possible while stretching out the fight to provide as many buffs as possible.
Cecilia sighed.
Beatrice was cute and lovable, but that was the problem.
“Let’s take the example of a saint in the Holy Kingdom.”
“Yes, understood!”
“What would be the most suitable weapon for a saint?”
“Huh?”
Does a saint even wield weapons…?
Beatrice hesitantly replied.
“A shield…?”
“No!”
Cecilia’s temper flared slightly.
“It’s an enormous mace.”
“A mace?”
“While healing, keep swinging the mace until the opponent dies.”
“…”
“The mindset of trying to survive as long as possible and help is good, but it has clear limitations.”
‘There’s nothing better than a physical saint.’
To give up on that role was incomprehensible to Cecilia.
“You’ve increased your build significantly, but you’re just using it to block my attacks.”
“But… however…”
Beatrice felt naturally aggrieved.
Indeed, Beatrice’s focus in swordsmanship leaned toward defense, but she wasn’t purely defensive. She attacked when opportunities arose.
However, Cecilia gave her no breathing room. Thinking about attacking in such a situation was unrealistic.
“You think I’m not giving you a chance to attack, right?”
Beatrice gulped.
Cecilia tilted her head.
“That’s strange. Then, isn’t what I’m teaching exactly what you want? The opponent can’t even attack, after all.”
“…!”
Beatrice’s eyes widened.
That was something she hadn’t considered.
“Blessings work the same way. Why do you think the blessing of light can only be used as a buff?”
“That’s because… light has no mass, right?”
The general perception of which blessings were better or worse was based on “overwhelming mass.”
Not entirely wrong, but judging blessings solely by mass left too many exceptions.
After all, neither S-grade light nor darkness had mass according to Cecilia’s definition.
‘Blessings are manifestations of images. Without the perception of strength in that image, it cannot become strong.’
If you ask modern people whether the ‘blessing of light’ is good, most will answer affirmatively.
Nothing moves faster than the speed of light.
This widely known proposition, combined with the portrayal of light’s power in various creative works, often depicts it as strong.
But to people in the medieval era, it was different. While the blessing of light was seen as good, it wasn’t perceived as powerful.
Beatrice herself only used the blessing of light to repeatedly cast buffs.
Almost like a beginner gamer who starts with a helmet and sword equipped.
“Right. Light has no mass. So, what’s the best buff you can achieve with it?”
‘The issue is that it can’t be explained scientifically.’
Regardless of how scientifically knowledgeable Cecilia was—or wasn’t—it was taboo to bring in modern knowledge.
‘Otherwise, someone might suspect I’m not an NPC.’
A major problem!
If modern knowledge was introduced prematurely, surely people would appear saying, “This person isn’t a user, is he?”
Extremely inconvenient.
There was something Cecilia simply couldn’t do.
But she wanted Beatrice to grow stronger.
She was an exceptional candidate for a graduate student (?).
So Cecilia decided to teach her subtly.
“The best buff…”
“k*ll them all.”
Beatrice stared blankly at Cecilia.
“Me…?”
“Use your swordsmanship to k*ll them all.”
‘First, let’s change cute Betty’s mindset.’
Throughout their lives, users of blessings ponder how to utilize their own blessings.
Beatrice had only utilized the blessing of light for buffs. Naturally, buffs were all that came to mind.
Starting with changing that loser mentality.
If she thought for herself, she’d get full marks. If she lost her way a little, Cecilia could offer hints one by one.
‘Someday, she might even pull off something like a neutron explosion!’
Hehe.
Cecilia stood up, imagining a bright future.
“From now on, I’ll teach you…”
Beatrice swallowed hard.
“Swordsmanship to k*ll people.”
“…!”
“One Flash.”
It meant cutting down an enemy in a single strike.
A sword technique that suited Beatrice, the bearer of the blessing of light, perfectly.
‘Actually, it’s mine, but I don’t use it much anyway.’
Although it was a technique devised by Cecilia, Wind’s Blessing was also quite suitable for “One Flash.”
The reason she didn’t use it much was simple.
Too powerful.
Due to the image of “cutting through everything,” it was hard to control the force appropriately.
However, using “One Flash” purely with swordsmanship without relying on blessings allowed for better control.
“I’ll leave the method of combining blessings for later. I expect great things from Betty’s utilization.”
Cecilia smiled broadly. Already, 50 ideas were popping into her mind.
Betty crackling like Pikachu.
“Lightning One Flash!” Betty slicing at the speed of light.
Betty tidying her sword after exhaling following the technique.
Explosion of coolness!
Cecilia somehow found herself wearing monocle glasses and placing her hands on her hips.
“…S, Sister Cecilia?”
“Professor Cecilia.”
“Huh?”
No matter how many times she was called, it was the same.
Beatrice cautiously asked.
“…Professor Cecilia?”
“Yes.”
‘That monocle really doesn’t suit you.’
While thinking something that would shock Cecilia if she heard it, Beatrice seriously asked,
“You said it’s swordsmanship to k*ll people… aren’t we knights who cut down demons?”
“Demons are easier to deal with compared to humans.”
The methods to k*ll demons are no different from killing humans.
Cutting off the head, piercing the heart, preventing breathing, tearing apart the body.
The key lies in the image. Which is easier?
Without a doubt, humans are easier. And if you can handle humans, you can handle demons too.
“And sometimes, you’ll need to k*ll people.”
“…”
Cecilia didn’t elaborate further. Neither did Beatrice try to inquire more.
She simply nodded firmly.
“The method of using One Flash is simple.”
Cecilia lowered her stance. The wooden sword rested at her left hip, appearing halfway drawn.
“The image you imagine is cutting through whatever is in front of you, no matter what it is.”
Beatrice gazed entranced at Cecilia.
“You’ll pivot on your right foot.”
Bang!
A crack appeared on the wooden floor. An immense magical power seemed to gather around Cecilia’s right foot.
“You need to use your entire body’s center of gravity. Step forward with your left foot, place mass into your pelvis, and rotate it.”
The key point.
“Finally, at the moment the sword gains acceleration, concentrate all your magic power into it. Then verbalize the image to actualize it.”
Swish!
Cecilia swung her sword in the air as she spoke.
“One Flash”
Beatrice couldn’t see the process.
Only a faint trail remained.
In the blink of an eye, as Cecilia’s sword returned to her waist—
the result of One Flash became visible.
Crash!
“Eh, eh…”
Beatrice looked up at the ceiling in confusion.
Diagonal cracks ran across the ceiling.
And then—
Boom!
It split in half and collapsed.
Precisely the space where Beatrice and Cecilia stood remained unscathed.
Cecilia looked at the trembling Beatrice and said,
“Can you do it?”
“Professor, it’s moving too fast…”
Tears streamed down Beatrice’s face.
“So, you taught her One Flash?”
Kairon had a headache.
Looking down at Cecilia, who was thoroughly deflated from being scolded, he sighed.
“You could have taught her something else.”
“But it suits Betty the best.”
The warehouse dramatically destroyed.
Also, about five magnificent trees outside the warehouse were neatly sliced in half.
Actually, that wasn’t a big problem.
Especially since it was said that children practicing swordsmanship caused it; it was something that deserved praise instead.
The cleanly cut cross-section pleased Kairon immensely.
However, the technique itself was the issue.
“One Flash is a secret technique worthy of being passed down through generations within the family. Where do you find someone who casually teaches such a thing?”
Secret techniques must remain secret to hold meaning.
An unknowing demon would suffer greatly from it.
Therefore, Beatrice was sternly warned. Under no circumstances should she reveal this technique to anyone.
“But, but…”
Cecilia wore a pouty expression. She came expecting praise but only received scolding from Kairon.
Kairon couldn’t bear to say anything more here and sighed deeply.
“The movements of the demons are unusual.”
Cecilia perked her head slightly.
‘Is it starting already?’
The beginning of war.
But a war destined to end as soon as it begins.
“This matter has probably reached the Queen’s ears as well. Even though you’re a Sword Heroine, it’s no small feat to cleave a training ground with just a wooden sword and no blessings.”
“…”
“I implore you, do not draw attention to yourself.”
Worry, concern. Such emotions could be sensed in Kairon’s gaze towards Cecilia.
Simultaneously, his heart burned with frustration. To have such a capable daughter, yet have to hide her accomplishments rather than celebrate them.
But he had to block Edward the Deputy Captain’s schemes and the Queen’s pressure to send her on even more dangerous missions.
“…When my vacation ends, I’ll go on a mission with Betty.”
“I’ll assign you something safe.”
“Give me something at the front lines.”
Kairon’s eyes turned fierce.
“Cecilia, do you not understand the meaning of my words?”
“But…”
Cecilia said defiantly.
‘To k*ll the Demon King, I need to get close. And I can’t suddenly leave my post.’
“I’m cute and pretty, so it’s fine.”
“…”
“If the Deputy Captain or Her Majesty insists, I think it’s unavoidable.”
An appropriate excuse.
But to Kairon, it sounded different.
A talented person hidden away will eventually come to light.
‘Then, shall it be this way, Cecilia?’
By making such a statement at this moment, Cecilia was declaring that she wouldn’t evade.
Showing resolve to withstand any trials.
Thus, there was only one thing Kairon could do.
Trust her.
Though his heart burned with frustration, there was no parent who could surpass their child.
“…Alright.”
‘Yes! I’ll quickly deal with the Demon King and play lots with Betty!’
Cecilia grinned, imagining a future filled with antics.
Unaware that she had just kicked away the opportunity to do exactly that with her own actions.
