7 Chapter 06: A little training.

"Um...I'm not sure if that's a good idea." Reynolds responded cautiously.

Adam stood up from the dry log he was sitting on. He approached my father and put his arm around his shoulder. "Come on, Reynolds, a little training won't hurt." Adam said with an innocent smile. He playedfully jabbed my father's sides with his finger. "After all, you've already trained them, correct? I'm just interested in seeing what they're capable of."

Our father sighed, scratching the back of his hair. After a little more hesitation and a tug-of-war from Adam and Reynolds, "Simply take it easy. We have not yet begun combat training." He finally spoke up.

I approached them, specifically Reynolds, and yanked on his shirt. When his gaze returned to me, I attempted to reason with him. "I don't think this is a good idea, Father."

"Why?"

I noticed Arthur approaching from the corner of my eye; he had apparently heard that we would be participating in a training session. It was extremely inconvenient, so I looked for an excuse. "Because w-"

However, before I knew it, I was interrupted in mid-sentence by a hard pat on the back. When I turned around, Adam was looking down at me with a smile.

"Come on, a little practice shouldn't be too difficult for a couple of geniuses, right?" He inquired rhetorically, emphasizing the word 'Geniuses.'

"I Don-"

However, I was again interrupted in the middle of a sentence. Adam grabbed my forearms. He dragged me away with his rough palm on my small arms.

"Do you think that's a good idea?" Alice asked hesitantly, her brown eyes concernedly looking at me.

My father nodded, having faith in his former comrade.

"Don't worry, Reynolds; they're in good hands!" Adam joked as he said goodbye. No one seemed to be coming to my aid in this forced combat.

"Do I really have to?" I couldn't help but wonder as Arthur reached for us, his two hands occupied with two wooden swords.

"Yes." Adam replied, then turned his head and smiled smugly at me. "Or are you scared, little genius?"

Arthur, who was walking beside me, had a slight change in expression. Did such a simple remark bother him? I had to keep in mind that my brother in this life might have a very short fuse. What was he like in his previous life that he couldn't take a little teasing?

Assuming he was a functioning adult in society, he would be barred from most jobs if he couldn't control his temper toward his superior, so he should be in a high position, perhaps a businessman or politician of some sort... no, as I listened to Adam provoke us even more childishly, I broadened my perception horizons.

I assumed Arthur came from a modern society like mine, but it wasn't impossible that he came from a fantasy world. Given his sophisticated manners and the regard that seemed to be engrained in his nature, it would seem more reasonable that he couldn't bear insults if he were from the nobility.

I got caught up in my thoughts and didn't notice Adam standing in front of us with a wooden stick in place of his spear.

Arthur was holding the two wooden swords we'd received for our birthdays, and he jolted me out of my reverie. "You don't have to if you don't want to." He said, slightly concerned.

He appeared to have misinterpreted my brief disconnection for fear. I couldn't blame him, because my generally stoic expression makes it nearly impossible for him to read me correctly.

I let my gaze wander before responding. The crackling fire from the campfire illuminated our battleground. Everyone's expressions changed as they looked in our direction. My father took everything seriously, his blue eyes hawk-like, watching everything.

My mother was clutching the sleeve of Reynolds gray shirt, her worried gaze shifting between Adam and us. Her other hand was clenched into a fist, indicating that she was nervous.

The other people's expressions ranged from concern to interest. Jasmine's gaze, in particular, pierced me like two lasers, her red eyes fixed on my small figure with suppressed curiosity.

'Is this so-called social pressure?'

"Are you ready?" Asked Adam with a confident smile on his somewhat mocking face.

I just nodded. It wasn't the ideal choice, but it was too late. Besides, I doubt this redhead would abandon me simply because I refused. He appears to be hell-bent on teaching us a lesson. He wanted to show us that even if we were 'geniuses,' we still had a lot to learn.

When Arthur noticed how I was feeling, his expression changed from concerned to slightly proud, like a father watching his son take his first steps.

Arthur nodded and extended his small hand, handing over my wooden sword. "Let's teach him a lesson." He declared confidently.

I gripped the sword's handle, feeling the roughness of the porous wood in my palms. I'm not very good at sword fighting, mainly because it was unnecessary for me to be proficient in an unused weapon when there are more comfortable alternatives. My primary area of expertise in weaponry is short-bladed weapons and firearms, however I am not as knowledgeable about swords and medieval weapons.

I turned the sword a little, becoming acquainted with the grip and this body, which was smaller than the last one. The wind blew, creating a slight whistling sound as a result of its speed, which sounded to us like a warning before the battle.

Arthur's small knees were bent and his feet were slightly apart, offering him a good center of gravity. His back leaned forward, and his sword was held in one hand, giving him an aggressive and expert appearance. The assumption that Arthur came from a medieval world (or at least one where swords were the primary weapon and meritocracy still existed) was reinforced by the familiarity with which he held his weapon.

I, for one, grabbed the sword with both hands and held it in front of me in a basic fencing fighting stance.

I saw Adam take a battle stance behind the wooden blade of my sword, which was aligned at a right angle. He swung his wooden pole with one hand. "Ready!" The battle began with Adam's shout.

Arthur sprang forward; the turf where he had been had vanished, leaving only a patch of dark brown earth as a reminder of his pushing power.

I reinforced my legs with mana and jumped as well, quickly catching up to my brother, feeling the familiar, electrifying power traveling through my body. I ran on Adam's left side, while Arthur ran on the opposite side, the two of us mirroring each other.

Arthur sped towards Adam, bringing his sword down in a head-on attack, a slight hiss escaping where his wooden blade sliced through the air on its course.

When I observed Adam had shifted his weapon to block Arthur's strike, I stomped hard on the ground and jumped right to his side, throwing a lunge. My sword vibrated slightly in my palms as I filled it with mana.

When Arthur's wooden sword and Adam's stick were about to collide, Arthur dragged his right foot forward and swung his sword and pivoted his position, using the momentum generated by the sudden change of motion. It was like a mirage that threw the enemy off guard. A fantastic display of skill.

Arthur clicked his tongue, possibly dissatisfied with the execution of his move, but our attacks were getting dangerously close to Adam's body.

Adam's eyes widened as he calculated his next move, but his experience took over quickly. Adam swung his weapon with a fluid motion and with the sound of wood clashing, deflected Arthur's sword. Due to his superior strength, he pushed Arthur away slightly. But, without losing momentum, he made a sweeping sweep of his feet in my direction, hoping to throw me off balance and cause me to miss the attack.

When his feet dragged on the ground, causing dirt and grass to fly through the air, I jumped, retracting my sword and bringing it close to my contracted body. I spun in the air, gaining rotational momentum from my jump, resulting in an attack that landed from above with twice the force of the previous one. This would have been impossible in my previous world, but now that I had mana, I could take the techniques I had learned to the next level.

Adam raised his weapon, surprised, and slid my weapon across the surface of his improvised spear with a scraping sound, using the very energy channeled into the movement. He was attempting to throw me away by using my own strength against me.

When he tried to throw me with the combined force of my attacks, I didn't resist, as most would have, (it would only add more force to his thrust), but instead let his spear guide me and brought my right knee to my chest. Instead of throwing me, his deflection caused me to spin in place, but I was in the wrong position for a sword attack, so I used my extensive martial arts knowledge and threw a spinning kick, taking advantage of the tripled momentum and my mana. I felt something hard hit my foot and heard what sounded like a small muffled explosion.

Unfortunately for me, his open hand caught that attack. He threw me away, but I managed to catch myself before falling. Adam's hand closed and opened several times, as if impressed by my attack.

Arthur approached me and looked at me with open surprise. But when Adam moved his spear more seriously than before, as if expecting us to attack him, he shook his head and lunged forward.

I was following him from behind. Arthur launched an expert and fluid attack. When Adam took advantage of some of his misses (which appeared to be due to discomfort), I would cover him while he continued to attack; the sound of wood colliding with wood continued to ring, each time faster than before. From a distance, Arthur appeared to have four hands, two attacking and two defending.

I stepped out of my human shield and jumped over him when I thought it was appropriate. Holding the sword above my head and with the moon behind me, I fell, casting a shadow over Adam and preparing a powerful attack.

Adam, on the other hand, appeared to have anticipated my move because he moved quickly, leaving a blur barely visible to me. I knew he wasn't giving it his all, but the fact that when he got serious, he'd be nothing more than a faint blur in my vision was concerning.

My slash grazed the air where Adam had been before. I heard something crashing and turned to see Arthur's small figure flying towards the grass after being attacked by Adam.

He took a step towards me after finishing with one of his prey. His mocking smile had vanished, and his eyes were filled with surprise and something else. Adam swung his spear horizontally, intending to end the fight.

My mana reserves were rapidly depleting, so instead of blocking his spear sweep with my upgraded sword, I leaned back. As Adam's spear passed inches from my face, a gust of air ruffled my brown hair.

However, halfway through, the same wooden spear abruptly changed direction. It came to a halt in front of me, intending to strike me in the face. I could even see the air swirling around it, as if it were fleeing its attack.

Huh... I thought he wouldn't hurt us. Perhaps he was just relying on my abilities.

But my positioning was incorrect this time. In this new world, weapon control is heavily dependent on the user, and Adam appeared to be even better with the spear than I had anticipated. So, instead of raising my sword to block, I raised my arm, knowing that if I used my sword, I wouldn't make it in time. At the same time, I sent my sword flying with my free hand, like a knife thrown directly at Adam's unprotected chest.

While I felt a little pain in my forearm, which I had used to block his attack. The moon illuminated the scene, as did some stars and nebulae visible with just a little strain of the eyes. When I heard footsteps approaching, I thought I'd gotten a little too excited, but this fight was difficult even for me.

It was difficult to adjust my movements to a smaller body and with the addition of mana. I haven't faced a challenge of this magnitude in a long time. I felt a little satisfied.

Alice's face appeared in my vision, blocking out the beautiful night scenery. "Kiyo! Are you okay?"

"Yes..."

Her slender, soft hands wandered from my head to my abdomen, checking me. "Does anything hurt?" Alice asked. I felt a flow of energy enter my body, and I noticed that her pale hands were emanating a green light. When she noticed my gaze, she smiled charmingly. "Just in case."

After healing me, she dashed over to Arthur was sitting.

He sighed, mud splattered all over his body. Perhaps he was upset about losing the fight.

Helen approached Adam, who was staring at me in a daze while holding my wooden sword. He had apparently caught it.

In reprimand, She smacked him on the back of the head. "You were too rough." Helen chastised.

Adam awoke from his trance. "ah... yes," he stammered, dazed. Adam approached me, concerned and somewhat apologetic. "Sorry, little buddy, you really caught me off guard there. I used a little more force than was necessary."

"It's okay."

Adam smiled, his energy returning. He turned to face my father, who was staring at us with his mouth open. "Reynolds! What kind of training did you give them? They moved as a unit!"

My father's gaze shifted between Arthur and me. "I didn't teach them anything..."

A woman's figure appeared in my peripheral vision. Jasmine looked at me with crimson eyes, as if reassessing me. "You have good instincts." She admitted it. Knowing she was a woman of few words, I realized it was her way of cheering me up.

"Thanks, I guess..."

"Kiyo, where did you learn to fight like that?" Reynolds asked.

I resisted the urge to say 'who knows?' because it would raise more questions and be counterproductive, so I gave a vague response. "I read books."

"You too, little Art!" my father questioned my brother. "How did you do that feint earlier?"

Attention was drawn to someone else, and rightly so, because, while I lasted a little longer in the fight, Arthur demonstrated more skill with the sword. On the other hand, I demonstrated stronger reflexes and battle instincts.

I could hear the background bustle of Alice and Reynolds' friends as they learned Arthur's technique as I walked to the tent to sleep. It might be a good idea to learn sword fighting.

I demonstrated some of my abilities today, but it's difficult to measure up in a world where the power scales are so absurd. In this brief exchange, I discovered that my current power level is insufficient for any threat other than a non-magical adult or small animal. I needed to improve quickly because I didn't want an intruder to jeopardize my freedom.

I went to bed thinking of ways to speed up the process of refining my mana core, unaware that this journey would be more hectic than I had anticipated.