Butler Apel’s Training was nothing short of hell.
If you were to ask what it takes to torment me as efficiently as possible in a short period of time, the answer would be this Training—a culmination of such agonized consideration.
Wasn’t I supposed to start Training to learn the sword in the first place?
The Duke said I had to fully understand what he was saying and be able to put it into writing. That’s why I was being Trained, he said.
But then, why do I have to do all these things?
“Healthy.”
“Keun-geung-heun!”
“In the body—”
“Seun-cheu-eu-neun!”
“Healthy.”
“Keun-geung-heun!”
“A sound mind resides.”
“Jeung-seun-eu… uaaaah.”
I collapsed onto the floor with a thud.
“Ahem, please get up.”
No way. I can’t do this.
Forget the money, whatever. I quit.
What good is earning hundreds of Gold if I’m going to die before spending a single coin?
“Please, spare me.”
“Hahaha, I’m only conducting Training, not torture.”
Really?
What was the name of that stance I just did—Mabo Stance, was it?
He tells me to hold my arms out in front and stand awkwardly for an hour at a time.
If not that, then he says I’m breathing wrong and makes me practice proper breathing.
Excuse me, if I couldn’t breathe properly, wouldn’t I be dead already?
The most brainless part is the running.
He makes me run endlessly until I’m foaming at the mouth and emptying everything inside me.
Start? End? Time or distance? None of that matters.
The only thing that counts is when Butler Apel, who’s in charge of Training, is satisfied.
And on top of that, what?
He says only with the right posture can you run properly, otherwise, you’re just wasting stamina?
So if my knees or thighs are out of alignment, he says my posture is all wrong.
‘Everything you’ve run until now is reset.’
He says stuff like that.
What the heck! Isn’t it good enough to just run and build stamina?
Forget reset, it’s obvious he just doesn’t like me!
Apel says that’s just how Training Captains are.
He’s so dedicated to Training, he even wears a rusty red helmet.
Who would call that man the Chamberlain?
I’d believe it if you said he was the Training Captain.
“This has to be wrong. I’m not exercising for my health, I’m exercising to correct my body and properly understand the sword. Shouldn’t I be learning swordsmanship, or at least something about controlling my body?”
“If your body isn’t trained, swinging a sword will only get you killed by your own blade.”
Haa.
Whatever happens, happens. I don’t even have the strength to lift a finger.
Strike! Strike!
I sprawled out completely on the ground.
“I really have no strength left. Ugh.”
“Hmm…”
I glanced at Butler Apel, gauging his reaction.
He seemed to be thinking.
Maybe I should probe a little, just to get out of Training?
“Chamberlain. Am I just going to keep doing stamina Training like this?”
“No. As I said, this stamina Training is basic exercise so you can swing a sword and move your body.”
“Could you maybe show me once?”
“Excuse me?”
“It’s just, doing nothing but stamina Training is so hard, and I’m starting to lose sight of why I’m even doing this. So, I was hoping I could see what kind of Training I’ll be doing in the future, what I’ll be able to do. If I could see that clearly, it would help.”
“Hmm. You have a point.”
Oh, the Chamberlain is thinking it over.
Could it be that I get to slack off a little during this Training?
“Very well. Then let’s try it once.”
“Really? Yes?”
“I think it wouldn’t be bad for you to experience it yourself. That way, you’ll understand just how dangerous it is to practice swordsmanship with an unprepared body.”
Wait, that’s not what I meant.
I just wanted to watch Butler Apel’s demonstration and clap a little, then end the lesson.
But in the end, I’m the one moving my body.
And… didn’t he just say it’s dangerous if my body isn’t prepared?
Is he risking my safety too?
Before I knew it, Apel had brought over two wooden swords from a corner of the training ground and handed one to me.
“Here you are.”
Well, he says to take it, so I do…
The feel of the wooden sword in my hand was heavy and smoother than I expected.
It seemed like it would be hard to keep swinging it with one hand.
I tried holding the sword with both hands in a middle guard and gave it a swing.
With a whoosh, the sword moved through the air, but honestly…
It felt less like swinging a sword and more like swinging a club.
My whole arm, from fingertips to shoulder, just felt awkward.
“Have you ever learned the sword before?”
“Huh? No, of course not. Before I entered the Academy, I helped out with the merchant group, and even at the Academy I avoided PE classes.”
“For someone like that, your movements are quite clean—well, how should I put this… I can see what the Duke meant about your balance being off.”
Hahaha, you can see that too?
I tried to laugh it off, but Butler Apel’s expression was ambiguous.
He seemed to be thinking, or maybe even suspicious.
Then, suddenly, the Chamberlain gripped his sword diagonally with both hands and straightened his posture.
“The Helpion Ducal Family doesn’t have any secret techniques. In fact, we don’t even have a knight order. So, I plan to teach you the Royal Sword Form, the most basic and widely practiced swordsmanship in the Delphi Kingdom.”
With that, the Chamberlain’s sword drew a neat line.
From top to bottom. From right to left.
Then from bottom to top. From left to bottom.
Then a diagonal block.
And then, from a slanted curve, he thrust like a bird snatching prey.
The whole sequence flowed organically, like drawing each stroke of a character one by one.
“There are many variations, but these movements are the fundamental basics. Would you like to try?”
What? He expects me to do that after seeing it once?
Can I even do it?
I gripped the wooden sword tightly, following Butler Apel’s instructions.
And immediately got scolded.
“When holding a sword, you don’t grip it like a club. Hold the hilt with your pinky, ring, and middle finger as if cradling an egg, and lightly place your thumb and index finger. Your left hand should wrap around the end.”
“Yes, understood.”
Ugh, to think I’d get scolded from the very basics of gripping a sword.
Anyway, I pulled myself together, and slowly raised the sword with both hands.
Was this about how the Chamberlain’s stance looked?
I held the sword at an angle. Then slowly raised the wooden sword upward.
Then brought it down with straight, powerful force, like a waterfall crashing down.
Whoosh—
A strong sound cut the air from side to side.
Now, next is from the right…
Wait, why is the world tilting?
Agh!
With a thud, I crashed to the floor.
Swinging a sword is really hard.
To think I can’t even mimic a single stance the Chamberlain showed me.
Still, the Duke at least caught me when I stumbled like this…
But the Chamberlain’s expression was a bit odd.
His mouth hung open as he stared blankly at me.
“Chamberlain?”
“Hahaha, truly, the Duke is remarkable.”
Huh? Why are you suddenly complimenting the Duke when we were talking about me?
“I never noticed it at all, but he saw and said it. He said your body’s balance is strangely twisted.”
“Isn’t it a bit much to make such a fuss just because I stumbled?”
“That’s not it.”
Butler Apel shook his head firmly.
“Have you ever learned footwork?”
The only martial art I’d learned was from a book titled that I found in the Akashic Record.
I wouldn’t say I learned footwork specifically, just the walking techniques described in that book.
It included ways to swing your arms, breathe, stand, sit—various health practices, but not exactly what I’d call ‘footwork.’
“I might have learned something similar, but I can’t say I’ve learned footwork exactly.”
“The way you shift your weight and your stance while swinging the sword, and how you move your hands… It’s hard to describe. There’s a depth and refinement to it that’s quite unique.”
The Chamberlain’s face was serious as he spoke.
“Furthermore, the way you move your feet is truly mysterious. It’s as if you’re moving forward, yet cleverly dispersing your center of gravity to either side. That must happen in your daily life too. That’s why you often stumble and fall. And it’s not just your feet.”
His analysis continued.
“The way you use your arms, move your wrists, and even the subtle movements of your muscles all show traces of martial arts that have been honed over a long time.”
I just sat there, my mouth hanging open, not really understanding what he was saying.
“So does that mean I’m a master?”
“Not at all. Just because a three-year-old is holding a dagger doesn’t mean you can’t overpower him. That’s exactly your situation.”
Still, I’m a grown man. Isn’t that a bit much?
“Would you try walking as you read in that book, just once?”
As described in the book?
I stood up and composed myself.
What did that book say about footwork?
Let me think carefully.
The beginning was…
[It begins by finding the position of the heavens. To move forward in the direction one desires is the sky, to retreat is the earth, and a human is the root and the tree that connects the sky and earth.]
Even now, repeating those incomprehensible words, I carefully took a step forward.
From the placement of the heel to the position of the toes, and the distance between each foot—I calmly calculated each as I walked.
And then.
Just as when I practiced in the Akashic Record, I couldn’t even take six steps before stumbling.
“Ugh!”
How many times has this happened today alone?
But at least, knowing I would fall, I managed to brace myself with my hands this time, then looked back at the Chamberlain.
Would he look surprised this time?
“How was that?”
“Astounding. You simply followed the footwork, yet why is there neither beginning nor end? No, it’s more like the very first step blooms into existence. The first step is the present, the steps you’ve taken are the past, and the steps ahead are the future. Are you drawing all of that?”
The Chamberlain was acting strange. His half-open eyes looked dazed.
He kept mumbling to himself as if he had forgotten I was even there.
It was like there was a notepad in his mind, and he was carefully jotting down each sentence along an invisible line.
“That’s right. Even a straight line has a beginning and an end, and so does a curve—only the path changes each time. But the moment you combine them, the very distinction between straight and curved lines becomes meaningless! Why did I obsess over names and forms, trying to create a martial art?”
Um, Chamberlain?
There’s a person here.
Why are you muttering nonsense like a stream of consciousness?
Is this one of those pointless philosophical debates I used to have with my classmates?
At that moment.
A voice came from behind me, where no one had been.
“Did this old man eat a poisonous mushroom off the street or something? Why is he suddenly having an epiphany and going crazy?”
The Head Maid suddenly appeared.
She grabbed me by the scruff of my neck and shot up into the sky.
“Uwaaah?!”
“Oh my, Chamberlain, I’m sorry. I should’ve told you in advance, but it was just too urgent.”
“W-what could be more urgent than someone flying through the sky?”
“Life?”
The Head Maid smiled serenely as always.
At the same time, a surge of energy burst from the Chamberlain’s body like an explosion in the eye of a storm.
“Right? Life.”
“Thank you.”