Chapter 138: Swordsmanship Demonstration
When Ren returned to the hall, there were fewer people inside. Most seemed to have gone out into the garden in front of it. Dry clacking sounds rang through the air.
A servant stood before the garden door, holding it open.
“Please proceed to the garden.”
Ren stepped through into the courtyard and found a wall of backs. Knights from the Margrave’s house, nobles from each family, guards, and servants formed a semicircle. Beyond them came the repeated clack of wood striking wood.
“My, as expected of someone with the Swordsmanship skill. Such strength at that age.”
“The young lord of the Margrave’s house seems to be doing nothing but defending.”
“No, look how composed he is.”
Ren could hear the Vanille Count and Vim talking. Patrick was apparently crossing swords with someone, and Ren assumed it was Yuan.
He went behind the crowd, squeezed somewhat forcefully through the garden shrubs, and watched from a distance. As expected, Patrick and Yuan faced each other with wooden swords.
Yuan gripped his sword in both hands, his shoulders tense and his eyes fixed on Patrick. Patrick had his back to Ren, so his expression was hidden, but his back was straight and his stance looked completely natural.
“Yah!”
Yuan stepped forwards with force and brought his wooden sword straight down.
Clack!
Patrick shifted his body only slightly and deflected it. The swords merely tapped together. Yuan recovered and struck a second time, then a third.
A horizontal sweep.
A diagonal cut.
A thrust.
Patrick calmly blocked, redirected, and adjusted his position. He repeated the same pattern again and again.
“Good step-in.”
Patrick spoke gently as he parried.
“Lower your hips a little more and you’ll be able to swing with greater force.”
“…I’m not done!”
Yuan gritted his teeth and stepped in again, but his sword couldn’t reach Patrick. Each time his strike was turned aside, his posture deteriorated a little more.
Ren held his breath.
(He’s strong…)
He had expected two holders of the Swordsmanship skill to exchange fierce blows. What he was seeing looked less like a contest and more like a training session.
Patrick never attacked. He simply received every one of Yuan’s strikes. The adults around them watched quietly.
Father stood with his arms folded, nodding proudly. Grandfather Cain watched in silence. Margrave Brûlée’s expression didn’t change. The Caramel Viscount narrowed his eyes with interest. Mother and Grandmother were also nearby.
Ren had returned to speak to Grandmother, but he didn’t think he could approach her now.
Before long, Yuan’s breathing grew ragged. His shoulders rose and fell, and the wooden sword trembled slightly in his hands. Even so, he pressed forwards through sheer determination.
“Hah!”
Yuan lunged. Patrick merely touched their wooden swords together and diverted his strike. Carried by his momentum, Yuan stumbled.
At that instant, Patrick gently rested the tip of his wooden sword against Yuan’s chest.
“That’s enough.”
Patrick lowered his sword. Yuan clutched his own wooden sword in frustration while breathing heavily.
“O-one more time!”
Patrick smiled a little awkwardly. “This is a demonstration today, not a training session.”
His face hadn’t broken a sweat.
“They’ll be angry with us if we dirty our formal clothes any further. But your step-in was good, and you had speed.”
He handed the wooden sword to a nearby attendant. Gentle applause rose around them.
“Splendid.”
“Young Master Yuan also did very well.”
“The son of the Margrave’s house is impressive, as expected.”
Amid the praise, Yuan kept his head down and bit his lip in frustration.
Watching him, Ren quietly exhaled.
(Even with the same Swordsmanship skill… there’s this much difference.)
At home, he’d always been told that Swordsmanship was the greatest skill, that anyone who possessed it was assured a successful future. Yet what he’d seen was different.
Even between two people with the same Swordsmanship skill, there seemed to be an unmistakable gap in ability.
Without realising it, Ren clenched his palm.