The Academy’s Hard-Headed Swordmaster

“Young Master Kyle—!”

“Young Master Kyle, where are you?!”

I heard the maids and servants calling for me. I stealthily slipped away from the voices and dashed in the opposite direction.

After running for a while, I finally arrived at my destination.

Well, it was always the same place I ran to anyway.

“My, my, Young Master. Have you run away again?”

“Ehahaha! Yep! Are you going to tell on me again?”

“No, how could I… However, the Count has ordered me to put you through even more rigorous training if you run away here. Are you sure about this?”

“Of course, it’s better than studying.”

Sir Leon grinned at my words. A grin that seemed to promise he’d make me regret saying that.

But that was exactly what I was aiming for. These past few days, I’d realized I’d reached my limit training alone.

“Then let’s begin, Young Master. First… running.”

“Ugh.”

“You’re not going to tell me you don’t want to now, are you?”

I hate cardio.

However, he was someone who could send me straight back to the study room with a single word. I had no justification to disobey him.

‘What choice do I have? I have to do as I’m told.’

Sighing deeply, I started running around the training ground.

It had already been five years since I was reincarnated into this world.

I was adapting to this world.

* * *

During those five years, I realized that this world was the same world as the game I’d last played before I died.

How did I know?

“The history of our Dairus Empire stretches back an impressive 5,000 years….”

I figured it out from the name of the country.

Not only that, but many of the game’s settings, which had given me headaches, were also applied to this world, further solidifying my conviction.

This world was a game. And a crappy, messed-up game at that. That fact was quite annoying.

To vent my frustration, I complained to my tutor.

“I think I’ve heard this before.”

“Yes, I told you before. And you get it wrong on every test. That’s why I’m telling you again. Because you don’t remember.”

“Oh….”

To be honest, I’m a bit weak in academics.

I excel in arts and physical education, but I don’t see the need to memorize things, whether it’s humanities or sciences.

Since I don’t see the need, naturally, my interest and achievement levels drop, and I fall into a vicious cycle where my grades drop, further diminishing my interest.

This habit hasn’t changed even after dying and coming back to life.

Even now, I prefer playing outside to this kind of studying.

“Ah, I want to play.”

“You can play after you finish your studies.”

“…I’m curious, why do we even have to do this kind of studying?”

I am a noble. The eldest son of the Count’s family, which holds considerable power.

In other words, just like the nobles of medieval Europe, there’s no need for me to work.

Studying? I can just make a commoner do it. Calculating money? A commoner can do that too.

I am a noble, and a noble is a god.

However, the tutor shook his head and countered my question.

“Because you are a noble, you must do it.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“There’s something called noblesse oblige, Young Master.”

Unfortunately, this world wasn’t so easy. It was a world where nobles were given more responsibilities.

Maybe it’s because it’s a game world, the creator must have had their head in the clouds.

‘There’s no helping it….’

I forced my sluggish brain to work and started cramming the Empire’s history into my short-term memory.

After passing the history teacher’s quiz, I immediately left the mansion and headed to the training ground.

Knights and soldiers belonging to the family were diligently running, moving, and training on the training ground.

As I approached, Sir Leon, sensing my presence, quickly turned his head.

“Ah, Young Master.”

“Sir Leon.”

“Are your lessons over?”

“Yes. I’m allowed to play now.”

“Play, you say.”

Sir Leon chuckled at my words.

In truth, hearing Kyle’s words, Leon realized that the young master wasn’t quite right in the head.

‘After all that, he calls it play…’

Usually, children of this age don’t welcome the painful training.

That’s true even for those of noble or knightly lineage.

In the case of children of nobles or knights, they endure it because duty and responsibility are ingrained in them from a younger age, but even they don’t think of training as ‘play.’

“Then shall we work even harder today?”

“Yes. Oh, right. Sir Leon, I— I want to learn swordsmanship.”

“Swordsmanship, you say?”

At my words, Sir Leon paused in thought. After a moment, he seemed to decide it wouldn’t hurt, nodding and saying,

“Then I shall teach you swordsmanship after today’s physical training.”

“Oh.”

“Are you that happy?”

“Of course. It’s cool, wielding a sword.”

I never learned martial arts in my previous life.

People backed down just by looking at my size.

There was no need to learn fighting techniques if I didn’t need to fight. I wasn’t the type to pick fights with others either.

However, things were different now that I was possessed in another world—especially a game world.

I don’t remember the ending of this world very well, but I do remember it was basically an action game.

‘Someday, I’ll have to fight. Even if it’s not against people, I might have to fight monsters…’

It wouldn’t hurt to learn swordsmanship in preparation for that.

Besides, wielding a sword and defeating villains or monsters is every man’s romantic fantasy, isn’t it?

I followed Sir Leon’s instructions and ran around the training ground, doing strength training until my arms and legs trembled.

It had been a while since I did strength training, so it took a long time to get the posture perfectly right—but since my weight was so light, it wasn’t difficult to reach the target repetitions.

Sir Leon seemed to notice this as well, frowning slightly.

“Hmm… Your strength is high compared to your weight, so for now, we should focus on increasing your flexibility and endurance.”

“I think that’s a good idea.”

Doing strength training from a young age is good, but if you overdo it too early, there’s a risk that your bones and muscles won’t develop properly.

The proper time to start strength training is during puberty, when male hormones are surging—in other words, when you can benefit from natural steroids.

“Then, as promised, I will teach you swordsmanship.”

“Yes!”

“Here, take this.”

Sir Leon handed me a wooden training sword.

There didn’t seem to be any wooden swords made for children; this one was the kind that soldiers would use.

I received the wooden sword and lifted it with trembling hands.

Just lifting it put a tremendous strain on my forearms.

Seeing me struggling with the wooden sword, Leon took it away and picked up a suitable wooden stick from nearby.

“I apologize, Young Master. For the time being, we will train with this, and I will find a wooden sword that suits you.”

“…Okay, please.”

It was embarrassing to learn swordsmanship with a stick like this, but there was no other way.

I couldn’t learn anything if I couldn’t even lift the wooden sword.

It was the same when I first started weightlifting.

If you start with a weight you can’t control, there’s a risk of injury.

You have to gradually increase the weight from something manageable.

“Now, Young Master. The essence of swordsmanship consists of these three moves: vertical slash, horizontal slash, and thrust.”

Saying so, Sir Leon swung the sword from top to bottom, right to left, and straight forward.

Techniques described in martial arts novels as the Three Talismans Sword Technique, Heaven, Earth, and Man.

…Honestly, it’s not very impressive.

“Hey, don’t you have any cooler techniques to teach me?”

“Cooler techniques? Ahaha. It’s still too early for you to learn those, Young Master. And more importantly—such techniques will be taught to you directly by the Count.”

“…Dad?”

I had forgotten.

My family, House Meyer, was a knightly family that had produced a Sword Saint in the past.

Naturally, the direct descendants of the family learn the Secret Swordsmanship passed down through generations.

Even Sir Leon, a knight directly under the Count, hadn’t learned the Secret Swordsmanship. Only direct descendants could teach it.

“Yes. So, until the Count returns from his expedition… let’s build your foundation.”

“Okay, I understand.”

“I’ll show you again. The downward slash like this, the horizontal slash like this, and the thrust like this….”

Sir Leon continued to instruct me in swordsmanship until he had to leave to train the soldiers.

I couldn’t ask him to watch over me forever, so I ruminated on the swordsmanship he had taught me and swung the stick.

Let’s start with 100 repetitions of each, nice and easy.

* * *

“Hey you! Straighten your back!”

“Yes, sir!”

“You won’t even be able to cut a goblin’s neck like that! Keep your arms closer to your sides!”

“Understood, sir!”

While shouting and training the soldiers, Leon paused to wipe his sweat and glanced back.

It was inevitable that the Young Master would catch his eye, after having just taught him swordsmanship.

‘Is he doing well…?’

Leon subtly turned his head to check on Kyle and realized he was swinging the sword exactly as he had been taught.

After watching him swing a few more times, he turned his attention back to training the soldiers.

30 minutes later, after putting the soldiers through their paces, Leon looked at Kyle again.

‘Still going? He’s remarkable.’

Kyle was still swinging the sword.

An hour later. After the training was completely over—Leon, seeing Kyle still swinging the sword, tilted his head in puzzlement.

‘…What in the world.’

Wondering if Kyle was just pretending to swing the sword when he was watching, Leon observed him carefully.

That wasn’t the case at all.

His arms were trembling from swinging the stick so many times, and his abdomen and legs were also shaking, as if he was struggling to stand still and maintain his balance.

His cheeks were twitching, and his eyes had lost focus.

He looked like he could collapse at any moment.

Despite his condition, Kyle continued to swing the sword.

In the same posture that Leon had initially taught him, he replicated it perfectly, like a machine.

‘How is that even…?’

Even he, who had trained as a knight for half his life, couldn’t do that. There were always slight variations every time he swung a sword.

Leon knew only one person capable of such a feat.

“The Sword Saint…”

The first head of the Meyer family, Bell Meyer.

He, who ascended to the position of Sword Saint and was bestowed the title of Count, could have done this.

In other words, Kyle was a genius with such immense talent that he could be called the second coming of Bell Meyer…

Thud!

“Young Master!”

Seeing Kyle collapse, Leon quickly rushed over and supported him.

Fortunately, he didn’t seem to have hit anything on his way down.

Holding Kyle, whose entire body was drenched in sweat, Leon frantically called for a maid.

A moment later, a maid came running at his call, her face filled with alarm, and quickly ran off to fetch a physician.