Chapter 181

Chapter 181:  The Training Begins

Not long after, every knight of Daphne gathered at the training grounds.

Even…

“Ahem!”

Even Viscount Cobalt and the former commander Mulgybson were present.

Of course, the reason for their presence was clear.

“Hardin restored Wave Swordsmanship?”

“Yes, I witnessed it with my own eyes. It may not be exactly the same as the Wave Swordsmanship founded by Lord Varlach Daphne, but compared to the swordsmanship we've used before, it was several levels higher. And I saw it clearly—when he unleashed the sword, there was a crashing sound like waves breaking, and an actual wave formed with it.”

These two had been the very ones trying to restore Wave Swordsmanship, following the will of the family’s former patriarch, Lord Valter Daphne.

Though they had dedicated their entire lives to it, they had never truly succeeded in reviving it. Now that Hardin had completed it, it was only natural they’d take a keen interest.

Especially in Cobalt’s case…

‘So Hardin didn’t accept the monster subjugation mission without reason.’

Knowing that the level of swordsmanship Hardin would teach—and the results that came from it—could drastically alter the fate of the family, he had no choice but to pay attention.

As all attention converged on one point—

Hardin tapped his shoulder with a wooden sword and spoke.

“From now on, I’ll begin the transmission of Wave Swordsmanship. I’ll break down each movement and explain it, so make sure you get it deep in your heads and repeat it until it becomes second nature.”

“Yes, understood!”

The knights all nodded, their eyes shining with seriousness.

“First, the basic forms of Wave Swordsmanship are largely divided into two. Seven forms of Manjo for offense, and five forms of Ganjo for defense. Every technique stems from these foundations, so drill them endlessly until they’re burned into your body…”

Hardin thrust the wooden sword forward, then infused it with a Weapon Enchant that caused the blade to ripple like waves.

“To this, we add the unique Weapon Enchant of Wave Swordsmanship… ‘Gyre.’ Once you’ve mastered that, you’ve got the basics down.”

Mana formed minute ripples, flowing with varying intensities like a real tide—endlessly, and ever-shifting—stealing the opponent’s timing with its unpredictable surge.

This was the core of Wave Swordsmanship.

Techniques like Rip Current, Rising Dragon, and other decisive arts were all applications that branched out from this base.

So the goal of this training was clear.

“You’ve got five months! Within five months, everyone here must master Manjo, Ganjo, and Gyre perfectly.”

“Understood!”

As everyone nodded, Hardin took a deep breath and continued.

“Then let’s begin. First, Manjo First Style—Stingray.”

---

A short time passed.

Hardin lowered the sword he had been holding out and spoke.

“That concludes… the explanation.”

But on the faces of the knights, a faint look of confusion appeared.

Viscount Cobalt, too, asked cautiously, a slightly perplexed expression on his face.

“Um, Hardin.”

“Yes, Father. Go ahead.”

“Well… is that all there is to Wave Swordsmanship?”

“Yes, it is. Why do you ask?”

“It’s just… for something considered a secret technique, it feels rather simple. It seems like the core swordsmanship remains unchanged, and only the timing of mana control has been slightly modified…”

The knights all nodded, as if they agreed.

‘There were some details, sure, but it didn’t feel all that difficult.’

‘Can something like that really recreate the sword Grand Duke Hardin used?’

At that, Hardin shrugged his shoulders and grinned.

“If it’s simple, that’s a good thing. That just means there’s a higher chance of learning it properly.”

Of course, what he actually thought was very different.

‘Simple, my ass.’

He was starting to feel frustrated at the knights’ reactions.

Altering the timing of mana release and absorption during a sword swing—

If you look at just that part, even a third-rate mana user in the mercenary corps over there could do it.

The problem was…

‘Executing it nonstop in the heat of battle and applying it—now that’s an entirely different matter.’

In a knight’s fight, swords would clash several times per second, sometimes even dozens.

Adjusting the mana emission timing for every single one of those swings in real-time, with microscopic precision—there’s no way that’s easy.

However…

‘There’s no point in explaining that now.’

If I told them they needed to perform every sword form I showed more than ten thousand times a day… they’d mentally break down before training even started.

I’ll be kind in the beginning.

The real fangs come out once the prey is fully in my mouth.

‘Good, good.’

Hardin smiled softly and said,

“Everyone, please push yourselves to your limits by practicing this entire swordsmanship set from morning till night. If you do, I’m sure… you’ll be able to master it properly. It’s okay to perform the movements slowly at first, just make sure to replicate exactly what I demonstrated.”

“…Ahem, understood.”

“Then, begin.”

With those words, the knights took their positions and started practicing the forms.

Slowly assuming their stances, they released and absorbed mana in sync with the timing Hardin had demonstrated.

Bwoooong!

The swords cut through the air.

How many times had they swung now?

“Hey, hey, didn’t that one just work?”

“Not bad at all!”

Color returned to the knights’ faces.

Contrary to expectations, Wave Swordsmanship had begun to manifest easily from their fingertips.

“Could it be… this is easier to learn than I thought?”

“Krrrrhh, let’s build some momentum. If we keep refining it like this, we’ll be able to increase speed in no time, right?”

“Let’s gooooo!”

Everyone, fired up, swung their swords with glee.

To be honest, compared to ordinary knights, Daphne’s knights were considerably more refined in both the precision of their movements and their use of mana.

‘This is why it’s important to prepare the vessel beforehand.’

That, too, was only possible because Hardin had spent the past few years ruthlessly drilling them in physical training and mana control.

A satisfied smile appeared on Hardin’s face.

Of course, that didn’t mean… they wouldn’t have to grind themselves to death if they were to truly master Wave Swordsmanship within the set time.

‘Compared to the training we’ve endured up until now, this isn’t so bad, is it?’

‘This is a breeze. If we keep at it for a few weeks, we’ll have it down perfectly, right?’

As the knights excitedly swung their swords—

Hardin quietly approached Mulgybson, who was practicing in a corner, and spoke.

“Sir Mulgybson. Do you understand all the movements?”

“Ah, yes. I do. However… reaching the level where each of these movements can be instantly executed in live combat will require bone-deep effort. Experiencing it firsthand, I can truly feel how far above us your martial prowess stands, Grand Duke.”

Indeed… he hadn’t earned his rank through idle lounging.

While the others were gleefully slashing their swords around, only Mulgybson seemed to fully grasp the difficulty of this swordsmanship.

‘Right. I need at least one reliable person.’

Hardin nodded, then smiled lightly.

“On that note, Sir Mulgybson, may I ask you for a favor?”

“A favor…? What is it?”

“There are still a few things I need to prepare for this training. I’ll have to step away for a few days, but I can’t afford for these guys to get complacent while I’m gone.”

“Ah…”

Mulgybson paused his sword and looked around at the knights.

And then—

“Wahaha! Brother Beryl, that was amazing!”

“Mikkelsen, you’re getting the hang of it too! Nice, nice!”

The members of the Maw Unit were laughing and praising each other as they swung their swords.

Mulgybson furrowed his brow, clenched his fist tightly, and said,

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure the training continues even more brutally than when you’re here, Grand Duke.”

There was something in his eyes… a sense of blazing fire.

Hardin could feel it from that expression.

Mulgybson was ready to show them a hell even worse than what Hardin had prepared.

“Then I’ll leave it to you. It’s something I need to take care of urgently.”

“You can count on me.”

Hardin gave a small bow and exited the training grounds.

And then—

“All of you, liiiiiiiiine up!”

A bellowing roar erupted from behind—it was Mulgybson.

---

In a castle located a good ten-day ride on horseback from the Daphne Viscounty—

“Come take a look! Top-grade obsidian, going cheap!”

“Elders, take a look before you go!”

Free City Delphina.

Located between several count territories in the region and lying right in the middle of the largest road leading to Pavillonia, this city’s geographical traits made it the central hub for goods distribution.

It was a commercial city that functioned like the empire’s arteries, facilitating the largest volume of trade in the surrounding area.

And through the center of Delphina’s road, a carriage rolled forward.

On the driver’s seat sat—

“Whew, we’ve finally arrived, Third Young Master.”

Engelmann, the administrator of Daphne.

And beside him—

“Y-yeah, right…”

—was Malion, his face pale and gaunt.

Since returning from Pavillonia, he hadn’t had a moment’s rest and had rushed straight here, resulting in heavy accumulated fatigue.

Even so, the reason Malion had pushed through such a forced march was…

---

 Malion, these items… buy them all. They need to be ready in no later than three months.

 All of these?

 I don’t have enough time to do it myself. Can’t you handle it?

 …If I succeed, I’ll be granted the title of Count, right?

 Well, yes.

---

It was because of the favor Hardin had asked of him.

Normally, he would’ve grimaced and questioned everything one by one, but this time was different.

‘If I fail, all the effort our family has put in until now will go to waste.’

As much as Hardin—or perhaps even more—Malion himself wanted to earn the countship.

Malion took a note from his coat and scanned its contents.

“Let’s start by going through the blacksmiths.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to eat something first? There seem to be plenty of restaurants.”

“Blacksmiths first.”

“But the only thing we’ve had on the way here is hardtack and jerky. At least filling our stomachs—”

“Blacksmiths. Fiiirst.”

Malion leaned in close, his tone laced with emphasis.

A murderous glint in his eye, as if ignoring his words might result in a knife to the gut.

Engelmann swallowed hard and replied,

“Ah, understood. We’ll start with the blacksmiths.”

“Good. Heh, hehehe…”

These days, the Third Young Master… he seems a bit off.

Engelmann tilted his head slightly.

---

Inside a mercenary office.

While the interior bustled with mercenaries, a staff member at the front desk let out deep sighs as he stared at a flyer on the counter.

A young male clerk sitting nearby asked,

“Chief, why all the sighing again?”

“It’s just… this mission isn’t getting any takers. The Church is breathing down our necks to get it handled, but no one wants to accept it. Haaah, what am I supposed to do?”

The man, referred to as Chief, scratched his head furiously before pushing the flyer forward.

“Oh, that? Well, no wonder.”

In his hand was a monster extermination request form.

Among the types of requests mercenaries received, this was the most common. But… the issue lay in the details.

“In times like these, when there’s no shortage of work for mercenaries, who in their right mind would want to take on a Gaust?”

Gaust.

A high-tier monster among the undead, above the level of zombies.

Faster by far than zombies, and due to the nature of undead-type monsters, they didn’t die easily either.

And more than anything, the real problem was…

“Do you know how many mercs have died fighting those damn things?”

They didn’t fear death.

Monsters like orcs, goblins, and even beast-type creatures—despite being monsters—still had an instinctive sense of fear.

Because they understood they only had one life.

But these things called Gausts were different.

They attacked relentlessly, using any means necessary, as if their own lives meant nothing.

Because of this behavior, they were many times more dangerous than their strength alone would suggest, and yet the pay wasn’t high enough to reflect the risk. Naturally, this made them one of the most avoided missions among mercenaries.

Still, turning down the request entirely was not an option…

“Damn church bastards, what did I ever do to deserve this?!”

The problem was that the requester was none other than the Church of Faeron.

Just as the chief of the mercenary office was rubbing his face in frustration—

Fwip!

“…Huh?”

A hand suddenly shot out from in front of him and snatched the flyer off the desk.

The staff all widened their eyes as they looked ahead, only to see a blond man holding the flyer and grinning slyly.

“I’ll take this mission.”

“…Excuse me?”

The man’s identity was—

“I’ll do it, so just bump up the reward a little.”

Hardin Daphne, the Grand Duke of the Daphne Viscounty.