Chapter 94

After Ethan’s confident expression about today’s duel was shattered so miserably…

As I expected, instead of cleaning up the training ground and returning immediately, Ethan stayed behind alone and began swing training.

I also quietly observed Ethan practicing his swings instead of going up to my private room first.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Precise posture and unwavering trajectory, and each strike was fast but not light.

Vertical cuts, horizontal cuts, diagonal cuts, and even the stance of blocking a sword once and following up with a counterattack.

Looking at his form while swinging, it was a clean movement without any unnecessary elements even to a third-party observer.

Of course, it wasn’t at the level of a Sword Master, but seeing Ethan’s somewhat refined form, he seemed to be quite skilled among nobles of a similar age.

…That’s why the more I recalled the duel between Ethan and Harold just now, the more regrettable it became. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

Honestly, if I were Ethan’s father, I might have let him win once just for that cleverness. No matter how serious you are about swordsmanship, if you can’t properly motivate your child…

‘No, what am I thinking right now.’

Come to think of it, Ethan wasn’t supposed to score a hit on Harold.

I had momentarily forgotten what was at stake in their duel because the recent match was so regrettable.

If he had really succeeded and won, I even thoughtlessly considered that it might have been okay to let him touch once, so to speak.

No, honestly, that’s right. Even if it’s a mock duel, his opponent is a Sword Master…

…and Ethan is still a kid who hasn’t even entered the academy. Moreover, including the period when his physical growth was stopped by a curse, he wasn’t even in his 20s but was technically still in his late teens. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

It’s not that I don’t care at all if Ethan touches my chest, but if he really scored under those adverse conditions, I could sufficiently endure the embarrassment.

Even if the motivation was impure, he grew with the sole intention of touching my chest once, so honestly speaking, I had raised him about halfway.

If only the last moment with his gaze had been perfect, he really could have landed a hit, and it must have been bitterly disappointing for Ethan, too.

Moreover, since his fake out failed once, he won’t be able to use it again. So, it’s probably right to think that Ethan essentially has no chance to touch my chest again.

‘It’s a good thing for me, but…’

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Seeing Ethan work so hard, swinging his sword like that, it was an unavoidable reality that I felt somewhat sorry for him.

At least compared to what I’ve seen with my own eyes, he was putting in effort on a completely different level from the detestable Ethan in the game.

A level of will and desire completely different from that immature pig who dual-wielded, relying only on his bloodline magic and Lilith’s buffs…

‘Huh? Wait a minute…’

Come to think of it, why isn’t Ethan dual-wielding yet?

Clearly, the detestable Ethan in the game was such a crazy dual-sword fanatic that he never used any other weapon.

I’ve never seen the current Ethan fight with swords in both hands, even as a joke.

Even considering the stats of Ethan in the game, two swords would be much more efficient than a single sword.

‘Could it be… that he simply hasn’t thought of using them?’

I didn’t want to rank swordsmanship styles, but generally, there’s a fixed idea that orthodox swordsmanship uses a single sword.

To begin with, his father, Sword Master Harold, is almost the strongest with single-sword style.

It was natural that learning straightforwardly under such a father would naturally lead to him sticking with a single-sword style. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

On the contrary, Ethan, in the original game, hardly learned swordsmanship from Harold at all, and he probably settled on dual-wielding just by swinging however he felt comfortable.

If the Ethan before my eyes now is fundamentally the same person as the detestable Ethan character in the game, dual-wielding would probably be much more efficient for the current Ethan than a single sword.

There’s a slight difference in the strength of swinging with both hands, but he had good conditions for wielding two swords sufficiently.

In fact, the dual swords wielded by Ethan as a mid-boss in the game were by no means weak.

‘Should I tell him?’

Since he’s already accustomed to single-sword style, there’s no guarantee that practicing dual swords now would lead to an explosive change.

…But just staying silent without saying anything also felt… somewhat uncomfortable.

Not telling him for no reason seemed like I was acting cowardly, afraid of having my chest touched by Ethan.

So, having made up my mind in my own way, I quietly approached Ethan, who was practicing his swings.

I casually suggested to him to dual-wield.

“Young Master Ethan.”

“…Sorry, maid. Is it boring just watching me swing? If you’re tired, you can rest until dinner time.”

“I didn’t particularly have such thoughts… but may I dare to give you a piece of advice, young master?”

“…You, advice?”

“Would you try swinging the wooden sword you’re holding now with just one hand as a test?”

“…With just one hand?”

“Yes, young master.”

“…”

Ethan, while showing a somewhat questioning expression at my words, obediently grasped the wooden sword with just his right hand as instructed.

And then, in that state, he started swinging the sword in various directions, just like before.

“Is this good, maid?”

“Yes. Then, this time, would you try grasping the sword with the opposite hand and swinging it?”

“…The opposite hand too?”

“Yes, young master.”

“…”

Still with a half-doubting expression, this time Ethan swung the wooden sword grasped in his left hand in various directions.

His form looked a bit better with the right hand, but there wasn’t much difference when swinging with the left.

Actually, despite the awkward posture, the strength of his swings felt stronger when he used his left hand. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

He had a special physical ability with similar power in swinging swords with both hands but with slightly different characteristics for each.

As expected, Ethan was someone with a physique specialized for learning dual-wielding techniques.

“Young master, your power is similar whether you swing the sword with your right hand or your left hand.”

“…I do have that tendency. I’m actually ambidextrous.”

“There are mainly two reasons why many swordsmen only swing swords with one hand. Either their muscle strength in one hand is lacking, causing imbalance when swinging with both hands, or their power in one hand is too strong, making it meaningless to grasp a sword with the other hand.”

“…What are you suddenly talking about?”

“In contrast, Young Master Ethan… it seems there’s no reason you shouldn’t swing swords with both hands, at least.”

“…Huh?”

“Of course, I’m just a mere maid lacking in knowledge about swordsmanship. I wouldn’t mind if you treat my advice as nonsense from a servant who doesn’t know anything and ignore it.”

“…”

“I just remembered something I need to do, so I’ll go up first.”

“…Okay. Go ahead, maid.”

“Good luck with your training, young master.”

After adding one last disclaimer to conclude the conversation, I quietly withdrew from the scene.

If I’ve said this much, he should notice. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

It was quite a direct piece of advice, so he probably understood it sufficiently. If he still doesn’t understand and only swings with one sword after this, then there’s nothing that can be done.

I didn’t want to create a situation where he would forcibly use dual swords just to be considerate of me. So, for now, I made an excuse that I had something to do and left the place.

After hiding behind a corner of the mansion for a moment, I quietly listened to the sound of Ethan training.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Swish! Swish! Swish!@@novelbin@@

Although it sounded a bit off-beat, it was clearly the sound of two swords cutting through the air.

It seemed he was trying out dual-wielding, at least, as a test, following my advice.

Whether Ethan would really continue training properly according to the advice I gave…

That future was, albeit only slightly, a moment I looked forward to.

As time passed, on a morning two weeks later…

“Young Master Ethan, it’s morning.”

“Ah, yes… Good morning, maid…”

Ethan responded as usual to the usual morning greeting.

As if some fatigue had accumulated over the past few days, the dark circles under his eyes seemed to have deepened strangely.

I wonder if he hasn’t been sleeping well at night recently; it’s a bit worrying.

By the way, my advice about dual-sword techniques was ultimately not accepted.

It could be because he’s already too accustomed to fighting with one sword, or maybe he feels somehow guilty about using dual swords against Harold.

Anyway, my advice was essentially telling him to try a different sword technique to counter the swordsmanship he’s learning from his father. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

I didn’t particularly feel disappointed or regretful. Considering Ethan’s path so far, this was the natural choice.

It might have been advice that hurt his pride, as I told him to try a different sword technique instead of what he’s learned so far overnight.

To begin with, why would Ethan seriously listen to the words of a maid who doesn’t have much knowledge about swordsmanship?

I’m saying this clearly, but I wasn’t particularly upset that Ethan didn’t take my advice.

Really, I’m not upset at all. Seriously.

Thinking this, I placed the clothes Ethan would change into at the foot of the bed as usual and opened the curtains to let the morning sunlight into the room.

Just as I was about to wait by the door for a moment, intending to tidy up the bedroom once he changed clothes and left the room…

The voice of Ethan, who had just woken up, carefully calling me, reached my ears.

“Maid.”

“Yes, young master.”

“…You know that today is the day for sword practice between me and Father, right?”

“Of course, I know. It’s Saturday today, isn’t it?”

“…Make sure to come watch today too. I think I might be able to land at least one solid hit against Father today.”

Ah.

This guy is raising a flag again.