Chapter 5

The title of Scarecrow Slayer had turned out to be quite significant.

Things that used to take thousands of attacks to break now shattered after only a few hundred hits.

Of course, whether this was truly thanks to the power of the Scarecrow Slayer title or simply due to the strength I built up from endlessly pummeling scarecrows, I couldn’t say for sure. But hey, who cares as long as it worked, right?

Yeah, I mean, if it’s a title with an actual name, it’s got to be giving me some kind of bonus, right?

The real problem was that it didn’t specify what kind of bonus I was getting.

“Master, I’m done.”

Titles: Proud Son, Village’s Most Skilled Handyman, Skilled Swordsman, Scarecrow Slayer, Scarecrow Crusher

Now that I had gone from Slayer to Crusher, I really hoped this would be the end of the scarecrow business.

Seriously, I didn’t want to see another lame title like this again… Damn it.

“Oh, you’ve definitely gotten faster. Looks like your basics have improved. Hmm, let’s see.”

Squeeze—Press—

“Hey, Master, why are you going around touching my body like that? If I were a woman, you’d be getting sued right now.”

“You’re not a woman, so it’s fine.”

“Whoa, that’s a pretty dangerous statement…”

“Sounds like you’re eager to break more scarecrows, huh?”

The butcher who looked annoyed and clearly irritated gave me a sharp look, and I cleared my throat awkwardly, afraid he might actually snap.

“A-Ah, no, I mean… Can’t I even make a little joke?”

“Hmm. Well, your muscles have definitely developed. At this point, I suppose it’s time to move on.”

At least this time, I got a clear confirmation that we could finally move forward.

If he told me to go back and slash more scarecrows, I was fully prepared to lodge a serious complaint.

But really, how can he tell if my muscles have developed just by touching me?

“Don’t we need something like an InBody test for this?”

“Why would we need that? My hands are more accurate.”

Is it because he works with meat all the time? Ugh, that’s creepy. Does that mean he was feeling me up like I’m a slab of meat?

“Now that you’ve mastered slashing, it’s time to learn thrusting and blocking.”

Thrusting and blocking?

He hyped it up like I was about to learn some incredible swordsmanship skills, and now it’s just thrusting and blocking?

What’s even the point of that Skilled Swordsman title?

This is what it means to be skilled? Learning to stab and block? Damn it!

“There isn’t much difference between thrusting and slashing, but it’s particularly useful when an opponent is in close range. As for blocking, it’s the core of swordsmanship. If you can eventually use aura, that would be great, but even without it, knowing how to block properly can be a reliable way to protect yourself. Unless the opponent is overwhelmingly stronger, it should be enough to keep you safe.”

I focused intently while listening to the boss speak at length for the first time in a while.

Right, what does it matter if it’s just thrusting and blocking?

The important thing is learning diligently to meet the Academy’s entrance exam requirements.

“For thrusting, we’ll practice on moving targets rather than scarecrows. Along with that, we’ll also continue working on slashing. You’ll slash moving targets and thrust at incoming ones.”

Oh, it looks like I’ll finally graduate from scarecrows.

I was genuinely worried he’d make me practice thrusting on scarecrows again.

“It won’t be as easy as you think. Slashing something stationary is simple, but moving targets won’t behave the way you want them to.”

“Yes, Master. So, what are we working with?”

“Wild boars.”

Wait, wild boars?

“…Huh?”

Isn’t the difficulty level spiking a bit too much out of nowhere?

I mean, sure, I said I wanted to practice on moving targets, but this is crazy. Wild boars are creatures that could literally kill me with one hit!

Didn’t I learn in my past life to run at the first sight of a wild boar?

“Of course, before facing actual wild boars, you’ll learn how to block first.”

Phew, thank goodness.

At least he was giving me a survival skill, even if it felt like he was just throwing it at me.

“Blocking with a sword isn’t as hard as you might think. I’ll attack in various poses, so try to block me.”

“What?! You’re attacking me all of a sudden?!”

Seriously, what was wrong with this guy…?

He kept raising and lowering the difficulty level however he pleased.

“Of course, I’ll go easy. No matter how weak you are, I’ll make sure you don’t get hurt, so don’t be scared and give it a try.”

“Hoho, honestly, are you sure you’re not using mind-reading, Master?”

“I don’t know anything about that. Now, I’ll even give you some time to prepare since it’s your first time.”

So, he was giving me time because it was my first time.

Which meant in the future, he’d probably attack out of nowhere without warning.

This was going to be a headache for a while.

For now, since he told me to do it, I slowly got into position.

He called it a blocking stance, but he hadn’t taught me anything specific. Personally, I believed the best defense was a good offense.

The stance I was most familiar with was also the one I used when practicing slashing scarecrows, positioning myself to cut down an opponent.

“Oh, you’re choosing that stance?”

“Yes, I think taking a stance I’m most familiar with will help me defend or attack more effectively.”

“Khahaha! You’re quick-witted, I’ll give you that! Anyway, here I come!”

Dududududu—!

The sound was like some lunatic or wild boar charging straight toward me.

“Kraaaah…!”

Slaaash!

The weapon he was holding could barely be called a sword; it was a thin, flimsy wooden blade.

Yet the strike he unleashed with it was nothing short of extraordinary.

The sheer force, combined with the momentum of his charge that whipped up the air around him, resulted in a devastating attack.

“…It wasn’t as bad as I thought, Master.”

Though the blade of my sword cracked slightly, I had blocked the attack perfectly.

Well, I suppose I was the only one thinking it was perfect.

Still, even though it was a predictable attack, managing to block it on my first try wasn’t bad at all.

After all, his wooden blade hadn’t even come close to touching me and was deflected completely.

***

Duncan who now worked as a simple butcher couldn’t hide his astonishment.

What just happened?

Theo, the boy standing before him had always been someone he’d kept an eye on.

Moreover, his determination was so ridiculously over the top that even Duncan, who had vowed never to take on a disciple, was forced to make an exception for him.

But that wasn’t the important part right now.

Duncan hadn’t yet taught Theo any proper defensive techniques, yet the latter had managed to block his wooden sword.

Of course, Duncan hadn’t been entirely serious in his attack, but it was still far beyond the level of something a novice who hadn’t learned anything should have been able to block.

If this had been a real fight, I would have won.

Duncan had more than one sword at his disposal, while the only weapon Theo had was the one that had just cracked from blocking the attack.

In a real battle, Duncan would surely have won, but this was not a battlefield; it was a place of learning.

“…Impressive.”

Still, Duncan wasn’t the type to give out praise or speak positively often.

Even now, all he offered was a single word of impressive.

“Haha, well… I think I did okay, don’t you think, Master?”

Not realizing how extraordinary his performance had been, Theo just scratched his head with an embarrassed expression and waited for Duncan to say something about his performance.

“Hmph, you brat. If this had been a real battle, you’d be dead on the spot.”

“Oh, like you’d even let me near a real battle.”

It was a reasonable retort.

There was still so much Duncan needed to teach him.

As he watched Theo, Duncan couldn’t help but think that, based on his raw potential alone, this boy might one day surpass him.

His heart was pounding faster than it had in years.

How long has it been since my heart raced like this?

Theo, who had been extraordinary from the very start, was clearly destined for a much bigger stage.

“You said you’re planning to enter the academy, didn’t you, brat?”

“Yes, I’m planning to apply next year when the commoner swordsmanship exam opens.”

“Have you ever thought about learning magic?”

“Magic? My magic sensitivity is low, and I can’t really feel much magical power either.”

It was true that Theo’s magic sensitivity was on the lower side.

However, that was only because there wasn’t much magical power stored in his large internal magical power pool yet.

Once his magical power was filled, he would naturally begin to sense it, and it was certain that his talent in that area would emerge as well.

For that reason, Duncan couldn’t help but feel regretful.

“Even so, give it a try. The commoner exam rewards versatility; the more skills you can show, the better.”

Of course, Duncan thought that even with just swordsmanship, Theo would become a monster after a year of training, but leaving his potential in magic untapped still felt like a waste.

“I don’t have the money to attend a mana academy.”

“I know that, you brat. I’ve got someone I know who’s skilled with magic. I’ll bring them here.”

“Huh? You know someone in magic too?”

“Yeah, you little punk. Didn’t I tell you I used to be a big deal back in the day?”

“Oh, I thought you were just bluffing.”

“This little brat, seriously.”

Duncan recalled a female mage he had worked with back when he was still an active swordsman.

She’d be about Theo’s age by now, I suppose.

She was a prodigy among prodigies. Someone who was famous for mastering magic from a very young age.

“Achoo! Huh, what’s this? Is someone talking about me?”

The prodigy in question was Estelle Ingrid with her blue hair, bright blue eyes, and a star shimmering like a starlight on her forehead.