Chapter 161 - More Than Enough Strength to Face Demonic Beasts

The Heavy Sword Technique was founded on weight and strength. "Overpower them with strength."

"Break through with strength."

"Close the distance and strike hard."

"Put your weight behind it."

"Don't give your opponent a chance to even think of dodging." These were things Ragna often said. Whether facing a spear or a shield, most of his answers to all sorts of situations went something like that. The Righteous Sword Technique was a little different. "Refine your form and maneuver your opponent where you want them." Luagarne taught the essentials first, then filled in the finer details. It was an extremely efficient approach. He had heard countless times that Frogs could make the finest swordsmanship teachers. 'Quite a contrast.' There was a difference between her and the platoon members who taught him. That wasn't to say their approach was bad. If anything, it suited Encrid better. Learning through physical punishment might hurt, but it was easier. 'Rough, but straightforward.' He realized just how accustomed he had become to learning the hard, brutal way. In any case, Luagarne was a Frog who knew how to teach properly. And Encrid knew how to learn. He listened as closely as he could. If anything had changed from before, it was this.

'I can keep up.' There had been a time when listening and struggling with all his might had gotten him nowhere. Now that time was simply the past. Ultimately, the Isolation Technique was the art of controlling his body at will—a technique that called for commanding every strand of muscle. Add the sense for the blade and Concentrate on a Single Point to that, while the heart of the beast gave him boldness and composure. The realization struck him anew.

'Those four are the core of my talent.' Something of his own, won through effort. Nourishment provided by the people at his side. He had chewed it, savored it, torn into it, enjoyed it, and explored it to the fullest. That was what had made this today possible. It was because of all those repeated todays that he could more or less follow the Frog's lessons now. That did not mean he had become a genius. He was simply better than before. Luagarne already knew how little talent he had, so she neither grew exasperated nor found any further cause for surprise. Calm and steadfast, she simply taught him. Along the way, she shared plenty of sword lore and stories. Luagarne knew a great deal. "They say Swift Sword is the best for a beginner to learn, and Righteous Sword is the best for facing a beginner." Focusing on speed made for easy learning. And against weaker opponents, Righteous Sword would win ninety-eight times out of a hundred. Then what was best against someone stronger? "Heavy Sword and Flowing Sword have an advantage. Swift Sword works well if your opponent is a careless fool, and Righteous Sword if they're timid and suspicious. But for the greatest advantage, I'd choose illusion swordsmanship." A sword that deceived and beguiled the opponent's eyes. Luagarne was effectively saying that all five forms had their advantages, but there was no single right answer. How could everything in the world have one fixed answer? Her words came from her temperament, her philosophy, and her own experiences. They amounted to saying that the person mattered more than the swordsmanship. To put it simply: "When you meet someone stronger than you, it's the one quick on the uptake and quick on their feet who has the advantage." GURGLE, GURGLE! Luagarne laughed as she spoke. Encrid was gradually growing used to a Frog's laughter. Knowing that they expressed emotions through the sounds of their puffing cheeks was one thing; spending so long beside one and experiencing it firsthand was another. She went on. "Some say the Heavy Sword Technique was originally devised to fight monsters and demonic beasts. Sounds about right, doesn't it?"

"Righteous Sword pairs well with Flowing Sword, and Heavy Sword with Swift Sword. Only illusion swordsmanship goes its own way."

"As you practice with a sword, you'll naturally pick up other styles, but the best approach is to learn them all in a well-rounded fashion. Whatever you excel at will develop further on its own. Though that doesn't seem to apply to you, so you'll have to train all the harder." She freely offered advice from her own perspective. "When you cut that wolf demonic beast just now, you should have struck horizontally, not vertically. Then you wouldn't have that mark on your left arm. I meant for you to shift your weight onto your right foot and deflect it with the Flowing Sword Technique. To show you in more detail, like this." She repeatedly followed battles with advice and demonstrations. "Here, like this. Try it again, while blocking this." The drills continued. Luagarne took up a sword herself and swung it, recreating the same situation over and over. Yet they never slowed their progress. She fitted lessons into mealtimes, dawn, sentry duty, and the moments before bed. Encrid concentrated every moment, digging deep into what she taught him. "Your reaction is slow. You saw it coming. You should have dodged. Or you could have blocked it with your sword first." SCRAAAPE. That was when he faced three hyena demonic beasts. In packs, they were among the most dangerous creatures, but three posed no problem, so he had stepped forward. The fight ended with nothing worse than a scrape along his side, but Luagarne pointed out his shortcomings. Encrid accepted her criticism. As he did, a thought occurred to him—or rather, her words set it in motion. When the same problem was pointed out countless times, he was bound to face it squarely. 'Dodging sense.' Jaxon had taught him, but he had yet to make it his own.

'Did he call it coordination?' The more he learned, the more there was to do, to master, and to train. This was one of those things he had yet to internalize. Dodging sense. Training his ability to track moving objects had made enemy movements several times easier to read than before. For instance, he could tell in advance the path a Ghoul's arm would take as it swung through the air, and where it would strike. "Righteous Sword shines when you predict your opponent's movements." He could predict them because he could see them. He swung his sword. Just as he intended, he swept the blade up from his lower right in a long arc. It caught the Ghoul's forearm and split it open. Continuing the swing, he raised his sword above his head, turned his wrists, then drew it forward into a vertical downward cut. The Ghoul's head split lengthwise at a slight angle. His sword cleaved through its head and collarbone, then stopped exactly there. Encrid deliberately applied force to stop it. Cutting all the way down to the heart would be impolite in front of a Frog. THUD. He kicked the Ghoul off his blade. The fight had ended in two strokes. "Not bad." That was Luagarne's assessment. From then on, Encrid immersed himself in dodging sense and the fundamentals of the Righteous Sword Technique. As for dodging sense...

'I can't get a feel for it at all.' He understood how it worked and had learned the training methods. But learning something did not mean it would become second nature. Hadn't experience already taught him that? Was it like when he first learned the heart of the beast? Or perhaps when he first learned Concentrate on a Single Point? How had he learned those? He had grasped one through experiencing death. For the other, he had needed a dullard's method rather than a genius's. Did he need similar circumstances this time? As his yearning boiled up, he might have wished for a wall to overcome. He might have wanted the ferryman to do something for him. But Encrid gave none of that a thought. As always, he simply did his best with the circumstances he was given. That was Encrid. The monsters and demonic beasts that kept appearing were all excellent examiners, so he secretly welcomed them whenever he drew his sword. "Again?" Pin spoke in irritation as they crossed a hill thick with thorn bushes. A pack of demonic beasts had just appeared before them. "It's not like this land is under the influence of a Demonic Realm, huh? Fuck, how can monsters keep showing up this often?" Anger. Plain, undeniable anger. Naturally, monsters and demonic beasts could not understand speech. So she must have had a good reason for venting her anger at them like that. What could make someone unleash such fury at monsters they couldn't even talk to? In short, she wasn't angry at the monsters. At first, Encrid wondered what had gotten into her, but he soon understood. These were things he had ignored while absorbed in training. He had been pleased at the frequent appearances of monsters and demonic beasts, since they were good targets for sword practice. "I thought she was about to blow." Krais muttered beside him. GURGLE. The Frog puffed out her cheeks in agreement. "Khrr!" Esther sneezed. Pin was a ranger. What did rangers do? Pathfinders found paths. Mapmakers made maps. Rangers led their companions along safe routes. Why were the Glacier Rangers, who protected the glaciers, renowned throughout the continent? Why were they considered extraordinary? Because they lived in deep forests, amid bitter cold and roaming monsters that rivaled a Demonic Realm. They were the finest rangers, able to detect danger and ensure their companions' safety. People even hired Glacier Rangers to venture deep into the glacial lands for medicinal herbs and precious metals. Pin was no Glacier Ranger. But she, too, took a certain pride in her work. Yet monsters and demonic beasts appeared everywhere they went. She could well feel that her competence was being called into question. "How many days has it been since we left?" Encrid glanced at the angry Pin as he asked. "Three days." Quick on the uptake, Krais answered. It took twenty days of steady walking to reach the Pioneer Village, or six to seven days by carriage along the highway. There were risky stretches here and there, but with a ranger along, their journey could have been reasonably quick and safe. Before they left, Pin had even poked Encrid in the side and said: ["In a carriage, you can just pass slow-moving Ghouls by, but you can't do that on foot. However! Honestly, shouldn't you count yourself lucky to have a ranger like me along?"] The image of Pin smiling as she spoke overlapped with the furious Pin before him now. No wonder she was angry. "It's not your fault." At his words, Pin let out a long sigh and replied, "Honestly, I don't even know what this is. I'm genuinely speechless." Pin had good reason to feel wronged, even now. Why had she chosen this thorn-covered hill? Monsters and demonic beasts generally avoided difficult routes. This place should have been no exception. Thorn-laden bushes barred their way as they moved. Without considerable skill in finding a path, this was no place to venture lightly. It was difficult to get through without clearing the way with a hatchet. Yet look at the demonic beasts before them. Thick hides or not, they had come all this way to attack, willing to be scratched by thorns? They were the spotted hyena demonic beasts common to this area. One was even limping, though there was no telling what had happened to it on the way. Another left drops of blood behind. "Something isn't right here." The Frog muttered. To Pin, it sounded like empty consolation. Encrid paid it no mind. Instead, he watched the demonic beasts' movements. Rather than lunging in a frenzy, they showed wariness first. As they grew more guarded and prepared to fight, so did he—by setting down his backpack and drawing his sword. "I'll handle this alone. Stay back." Encrid stepped forward. There were eight hyena demonic beasts in all. That was no small number, even if one was limping. It was a lot. Quite a lot. Normally, demonic beasts in numbers were dangerous, but no one worried. They had seen the monsters and demonic beasts he had killed over the past three days. It was an unremarkable fight. Again, Encrid took a scrape to the shoulder and nearly had his thigh bitten. But a flash of quick thinking let him escape danger easily: he kicked one hyena in the head with his shin guard. Two of the eight came at his companions. Esther's claws struck one, splitting its head into three pieces. Luagarne kicked the other in the torso, briefly granting it an altitude more suited to a bird. It was a remarkable feat. Kicking it into the sky rather than bursting its belly required delicate control of strength and skill. Encrid finished off the hyenas, and they continued on their way. "Oh, come on!" Pin's irritation only grew. This time it was a pack of striped hyenas. "They just keep coming. It's insane." Krais clicked his tongue. They had encountered that many. SHING. Encrid drew his sword again. Twenty days had passed since they left the city. They had stopped beside a stream to wash when thirteen or fourteen hyena demonic beasts sprang out in front of them. They were in no danger. He had held out even when surrounded by a pack of wolf-men. Hyena demonic beasts were nothing compared to wolf-men. CRACK. And he had the Frog's support. Her whip lashed the ground with a satisfying crack. "I'd better get some exercise too, before I grow rusty," Luagarne said. She was right. This much was merely a warm-up. Esther, too, slapped a forepaw against the ground with a tap. She seemed to be insisting that she was there as well. Of course, he hadn't forgotten her. She was a Lake Panther, a sly creature who could even understand human speech. They had more than enough strength to face demonic beasts.