Chapter 11

After working for two weeks at the Reible Farm and returning to my boarding house, Amanda was surprised at how much tougher I had become.

Back in Japan, I had been living a rather indoor otaku life, so it was only natural that I would become tougher after working under the sun and moving my body so much. Also, when I healed my muscle pain with self-healing, it seemed to put me in a state of what is called "super recovery," and I could feel my muscles growing.

I'm a simple person, and when I get to this point, I start to want to swing a sword or something.

The week after working at the farm, when I went to the guild early in the morning, there was, as usual, a large crowd in front of the bulletin board. While thinking about what kind of job I should take next, I wanted to thank Muell for telling me about the job at the Reible Farm, so I looked for her. There, just like two weeks ago, I saw Muell and Gilik standing against the wall.

"Good morning, Muell."

"Huh, oh, you're... from that time...?"

"Yes, I'm Kent, the one you told about the Reible Farm job. Thanks to you, I got a good job."

"Wow, you've become much tougher in just two weeks."

"Yes, I hadn't done physical work before, so it was pretty tough, but it was fun."

"Huh, tougher, you say, but you're still scrawny, you know."

"Gilik, don't be so mean."

Yeah, yeah, don't be mean, you dog.

But even though Muell stood up for me, I still need to train a bit more since I'm still pretty weak.

"By the way, have you two learned how to fight anywhere?"

"Huh, at the guild, didn't you know there are classes?"

"No, I've never heard that the guild offers combat training."

"Today is the beginning of the week, so there should be a beginner's class. Why don't you ask at the reception?"

"Is that so? Thank you, I'll check it out."

Thinking that the classes offered by the guild might be free, I asked the receptionist with a light heart.

"Excuse me, I heard that I can take combat training here."

"Yes, you can, but what is your rank?"

"I'm a newly registered F-rank."

"Oh, in that case, the beginner's class starting soon would be good for you. Can you take it?"

"Um, how much does it cost?"

"You don't need to pay. It's a training program to improve the skills of guild members, so it's free."

"Is that so? Then I'll take it."

"Then please fill out this form."

I filled out the form with my name, age, rank, and magic attribute, as well as my guild card registration number, and completed the registration for the class. I was told that the first part would be a lecture, and I was directed to a conference room on the second floor.

"Mr. Kent, if you want combat training, we can..."

"No, no, no, if I train with Reinhardt, my body won't hold up. That's why I'm taking the guild's class."

Training with a vicious skeleton who doesn't know how to hold back is too scary. I don't think I can heal a body that has exploded into pieces, no matter how much I try.

When I peeked into the room with a sign that read "Conference Room" on the door, I saw about forty chairs arranged facing a blackboard on the wall. The atmosphere was more like a classroom than a conference room, and there were already about four boys sitting there, all around my age, looking a bit nervous.

Three of the four seemed to know each other and were sitting together, whispering to each other. The other one was a handsome guy with a well-groomed face, sitting alone, looking a bit lost. If this were Japan, it would be the popular guy, the extras, and the loner.

While thinking about this, I sat down in the front near the entrance, and suddenly someone spoke to me from behind.

"Hey, are you F-rank too?"

"Huh? Oh... yeah, but you too?"

"Yeah, I'm F-rank. I'm Manon, what about you?"

"Oh, I'm Kent."

"Nice to meet you, Kent."

"Oh, nice to meet you..."

Manon had wavy blue hair that covered his ears, and he exuded a handsome aura that was so dazzling, it was almost blinding. His hand, which I shook, was long and slender, more like a pianist's than an adventurer's. My hands, which had been roughened by work at the Reible Farm, felt a bit embarrassing.

While exchanging greetings with Manon, I heard heavy footsteps in the hallway, and a burly man entered the room. Just one look at him made me think he was dangerous, and I could only hope he wasn't a bad person.

"One, two, three, four, five... Oh, you're all here. Let's start the class. I'm the instructor, Donovan. Nice to meet you."

I think he was trying to smile, but his lips only twitched slightly, and his presence was so intimidating that I almost wet my pants.

"First, I have something important to tell you, so don't forget it."

With Donovan's stern gaze, the five of us straightened our backs and corrected our posture.

"Don't think you've become stronger just because you have a weapon. A weapon only becomes powerful when you can use it effectively. For example, imagine you have a sword that can cut down a large tree with a single swing, but it's so heavy that only a big man can barely lift it. If you got such a sword, would you say you've become stronger?"

In response to Donovan's question, we all shook our heads.

"Understand this well. Get a weapon that you can use effectively. Once you have it, train to use it. Only then will you become stronger. Got it?"

The five of us nodded like puppets. Donovan was really intimidating.

But it was a good lesson. A weapon alone doesn't make you strong. In that sense, I need to train more in magic. An attack with light magic takes about thirty seconds to activate and can only hit a stationary target, which is useless in a real fight.

After that, Donovan taught us about various weapons, from knives and daggers to swords, longswords, greatswords, spears, naginatas, bows, battleaxes, and halberds. He also gave us a brief lecture on how to fight with each weapon. Then, he taught us about different types of shields and armor. Although his face was very scary, his explanations were very detailed and easy to understand, and he had a convincing presence because it was clear he had experience using these weapons. I wish the bad teachers in Japan could learn from him.

After the lecture on weapons and armor, we had a lecture on monsters. Near Volzard, there is a demonic forest created by the Treant outbreak, as well as a regular forest where only weak monsters like orcs live. The lecture covered the types, characteristics, dangers, weaknesses, and which parts of the monsters could be sold as materials. The lecture was convincing because it was based on actual experience in slaying monsters. However, there are also monsters that can instantly kill you lurking at your feet.

After the morning lecture, we had a lunch break. Overwhelmed by Donovan's presence, the five of us developed a strange sense of camaraderie and decided to have lunch together. Ridnel, Maal, and Talik were childhood friends from Volzard. In this world, children start school at the age of ten and register with the guild at the age of fifteen to start working. Manon was also fifteen and had just started working this year, and all of them aspired to be adventurers.

To us, adventurers are people who fight monsters with swords and magic, but to the people here, adventurers are those who enter forests and dungeons to collect materials, which is more like the image of fishermen in our world. It's a job with risks, but it requires little capital and offers the chance to make a fortune, so it's a dream job. However, since they were all from Volzard, they understood the harsh reality, which is why they were taking the guild's classes.

"You guys are all so practical..."

"Of course, no matter how profitable being an adventurer is, you're dead if you die."

Among the three, the tallest, Ridnel, seemed to be the leader. He planned to form a party with the agile Maal and the calm, slightly overweight Talik.

"Maal, who can move quickly, will be the front line, I'll be the middle guard, and the calm Talik will be the rear guard for support. But we're still not ready..."

After finishing school, some children immediately aim to become adventurers, while others save money before aiming to become adventurers. Ridnel and his friends were in the latter category, working and saving money while aiming to become adventurers. They hadn't even acquired the weapons they would use or learned how to fight, so they hadn't taken the first step as adventurers.

The afternoon practical training was held at the training ground behind the guild. It was said that anyone registered with the guild could use it freely, and some familiar faces would spar to improve their skills. Some adventurers were currently sparring with wooden swords, and their movements were so fast that I could barely follow them with my eyes. I couldn't even follow the movements of the sword tips. Of course, I had a skeleton that I couldn't even follow with my eyes nearby.

"Alright, you're all here. We'll start the practical training now. First, choose a weapon that suits you. Here are some blunted weapons. They weigh the same as the real ones, so try to find one that suits you."

There were several types of knives, swords of different lengths and shapes, spears, naginatas, short and long bows, and shields of different sizes. Talik showed interest in the spear, but everyone else gathered around the swords. Since the sword area was crowded, I thought I'd look at the knives, but for some reason, I was drawn to the shields and picked up the smallest one.

"Wow, it's pretty heavy..."

"Hmm, you chose a shield? Why is that?"

Surprised, I turned around to see Donovan looking at me. I really just chose it on a whim, but if I said that, I'd probably be crushed, so I had to give a plausible answer.

"Well... I don't have any offensive means yet, so I thought I'd check the weight of the shield and then choose a one-handed weapon..."

"I see... So you're starting with defense, huh? Not bad. You must have survived the demonic forest for a reason."

When Donovan said that, everyone's eyes focused on me. Oh no, I'm blushing from all the attention.

"Why did you say that?"

"Information is important for adventurers. Lack of information can easily lead to death. I don't intend to cut corners, even in a class for beginners."

Wow, he's cool, but he's too serious and scary.

"I survived the forest by luck, and I really didn't know what was going on. I just ran away. If I were asked to do it again, I'm confident I would die. That's why I'm taking this class to gain knowledge and skills so I don't end up in that situation again."

"I see. Still, you did survive. But that shield is too heavy for you. The most important thing in battle is being able to move as you wish. A shield can help with defense, but if it hinders your movement, it's just a burden."

"You're right, I thought the same thing."

"Then what will you do?"

"Huh...?"

"If the shield is too heavy, what will you do?"

Oh no, this is scary, I can't give a bad answer.

"Well... if I had to fight right now, I'd run away."

"Hmm, you won't fight with a light weapon?"

"It depends on the opponent, but since I don't plan to leave the city for now, I think I have a better chance of surviving by running away and seeking help than by fighting."

"Hahaha, good, Kent, you understand how to survive. Most people want to fight as soon as they get a weapon, but if you show a weapon, the opponent will get more serious. You have a better chance of escaping before the opponent gets serious. That's the right answer."

Phew, I managed to get the right answer, but it was a bit stressful.

"To repeat, use a weapon you can handle. When training, use something a bit heavier than what you can handle."

After that, Donovan looked at our builds and movements and recommended the first weapon we should use.

He recommended a knife for the small Maal, a sword for Ridnel, and a spear and bow for the calm Talik. He also recommended a dagger and short bow for Manon. For me, he recommended a knife.

"Kent, you understand how to survive, but you don't seem built for fighting. If you fight, you should aim for a style that takes advantage of a moment's opening to deliver a fatal blow."

Hmm... Is this a compliment? It just seems like a dirty fighting style.

After recommending weapons for everyone, we somehow ended up practicing strikes with wooden swords. Wait, what were the recommended weapons again?

"I recommended weapons that are suitable for actual use, but if you can't read your opponent's movements, you can't fight. First, learn the basic movements of a sword and build a foundation for dealing with them."

I see, the basics are sword movements... and the wooden swords are pretty heavy too.

"Alright, start with one hundred strikes to the front!"

"Yes! One, two, three, four..."

This is tough, isn't it?

"Hey, Kent! Swing properly! Bigger, sharper!"

"Yes, sir!"

It should have taken about three minutes, but it felt much longer, and I was drenched in sweat.

"Alright, next, one hundred strikes from the upper right and one hundred from the lower left. Start!"

"Yes, sir!"

I swung the wooden sword in a diagonal slash from the right and then, stepping with my feet, raised it in a reverse diagonal from the left. My arms were already trembling, and now with the added twist, it was getting even tougher. By the time we finished, everyone was exhausted and drenched in sweat.

"Alright, good job. Next, one hundred strikes from the upper left and one hundred from the lower right..."

"Ugh..."

"What, do you have a complaint? Start!"

"Yes, sir!"

After that, we had to do one hundred horizontal strikes from the left and right, and by the time we finished, everyone had collapsed on the training ground. The warm gazes of the senior adventurers in the training ground were painful.

"Hmph, if you're this exhausted, entering the demonic forest or a dungeon is just a dream. Understand this: when you can do this basic training calmly, take the water day class next. Clear the tasks given there, and then take the wind day class. Until you complete a week of classes, you're not allowed to enter a dungeon alone, got it?"

"Yes, sir..."

"Alright, that's it for today's class. Dismissed!"

"Yes... thank you..."

I can't get up, even if you tell me to. I guess I'll just heal myself.

"Ugh... phew... ah, ah, phew... okay, let's go."

As I stretched and got up, the others started to get up too. Wait, Donovan is watching us, isn't he? I need to act more painful...

"Kent, what's that strange movement?"

"Oh, this is a stretching exercise. After intense physical activity, stretching the muscles like this makes the next day less painful."

"Hmm, where did you learn that?"

"Yes, I learned it when I was an assistant to a healer, doing odd jobs."

Oh, everyone is imitating my movements. It's a bit embarrassing, but I'll do the stretching for everyone's sake. But it's just a vague memory from TV.

"Hey, how does it feel?"

"Yes, it feels like the stiffness is going away."

"Yeah, it's a bit painful at first, but it gets easier as you stretch."

It seems to be well-received by Ridnel and Manon. Even Donovan is doing it!

"Hmm, I see, this is good. Hmm, Kent, I'll lend you this wooden sword specially. Practice until you can do the basic training by next water day."

"Ugh... in a week?"

"What, do you have a complaint?"

"N-no, sir..."

"Then I'll register you for the water day class next week. Make sure you come."

"Yes, sir..."

"Hahaha..."

After patting my shoulder, Donovan collected everyone's wooden swords and left.

"Hey, are you guys coming to the class next week? Right? Right?"

"N-no... we're a bit..."

"U-um, I have something to do next week..."

"Ugh, come on, Ridnel, Manon, let's all try hard together, okay?"

"N-no... good luck