LMOFSF 06

Episode 6

Wind and Cloud

“Wind?”

“Yes, Young Master, your sword is like the wind.”

“Pfft. Typical noble talk. Even your nonsense sounds fancy.”

“Haha! I’m not joking. No matter how much I try to follow or catch your sword, I just can’t. Isn’t that exactly like the wind?”

I remembered having a conversation like that with Yug once.

When was it?

Ah, I remember now.

It was shortly before the Screaming War began.

That was the day Yug, who had learned swordsmanship from me, managed to get his first-ever draw against me, even though I hadn’t been fighting seriously.

He had laughed and asked me to fight seriously next time, and we shared drinks late into the night.

What did he say after that?

Oh, right—

“So I will make my sword like a cloud! I may not be able to run right next to you or catch you, but at least I can follow the path you’ve gone.”

“Haha! You’re crazy, my friend.”

We drank until late that night. The alcohol had never tasted better.

Today, those old memories came flooding back.

“Huff!”

“Your guard is wide open.”

I broke through my opponent’s defense, hit both of his arms, and circled behind him before he could even react.

“Urgh!”

“Not so fast.”

He tried to counter with his wooden sword, putting aura into the strike, but I deflected it with just a flick of my wrist and struck the back of his knees.

Even the best swordsman will lose his stance after being hit there.

“Guh?!”

I pressed my wooden sword to his neck, forcing him to kneel.

Varus.

A suspicious man who was clearly hiding his true skill.

I was curious about his background, but most likely he’s from a branch family.

“Want to keep going?”

“…I lost.”

Varus clenched his teeth and lowered his sword.

“Young Master!”

Hector walked up, looking unusually fired up.

“Forgive me, but may I have a bout with you as well?”

“Haha, Hector! Are you the same man from earlier?”

Hector set his sword aside and knelt on the ground.

“I doubted you before. I will accept any punishment.”

A model knight—stubborn and loyal.

Alright, I’ll let this make up for him yelling at Emma earlier.

“Fine, let’s do it.”

“Thank you. I won’t use aura!”

He wants sword training.

“Alright.”

We took positions in the center of the training yard.

His stance was similar to mine, yet different.

I lowered my sword and asked Aris in my mind,

‘How long can I keep going?’

[At most three exchanges. Any more is too much for you right now.]

‘That’s enough!’

I drew mana into my body, reinforcing myself with Strong Body.

Yug’s sword style—though not exactly mine—was based on my own sword, so it was very taxing on the body. And since his breathing patterns were different, it put even more strain on me.

But still…

‘This is a sword passed down from Yug’s descendants. If anyone should face it, it should be me.’

“Haap!”

“That’s better!”

Thanks to Strong Body, my movements were light.

It used three or four times more energy than aura, but my sluggish body now moved like a trained mercenary’s.

‘Not perfect, but enough to feel a bit like the old days.’

I deflected his attack with a twist of the wrist and stepped forward powerfully.

Thud!

My sword slid up his arm like a snake and slashed through the air—swift and sharp like an assassin’s strike.

“Guh!”

Clang!

Somehow he blocked it, stepping back.

—That was the first exchange.

“Now I’ll go first!”

Yug’s sword was ever-changing—calm one moment, fierce the next, like storm clouds.

I attacked Hector with just enough speed for him to barely block. My strikes flowed—deflecting, parrying, thrusting, slashing.

The other knights began to look at me differently.

“Haap!”

With the final strike of my combo, I broke his stance.

Clang!

“Urgh!”

—Second exchange.

When the opponent showed an opening, the cloud-like sword turned into lightning.

“Last one!”

He tried to recover his stance, but I lunged at my top speed.

The wind roared, and my reinforced body screamed in pain.

‘Hold on a bit longer!’

Wind wrapped around my sword, guiding the strike.

“Haap!!”

Bang!

The wooden sword in his hands shattered and flew away.

“Ugh!”

The force made him collapse to his knees.

—Third exchange.

The cloud sword was made to follow the wind.

And the reason it could never be fully restored… was because the wind itself—my sword—was gone.

“One question, please!”

I knew what he would ask.

“That sword…!”

“I told you. The real sword of Tindalos.”

“But… the former head never taught you swordsmanship…”

“I didn’t learn from my father.”

A half-truth wouldn’t work. Better to make up something they could never confirm.

‘Sorry, Yug, I’ll borrow your name a bit.’

“Then who…?”

“The Sword Master.”

“…What?”

I planted my sword in the ground.

“While I was unconscious, the founder of Tindalos, the Sword Master himself, taught me.”

Hector’s face showed shock.

“Such a thing… but that sword style is indeed…!”

It sounded unbelievable, but they had no choice but to believe.

“Sorry I didn’t tell you right away. I didn’t want to sound like a lunatic.”

“No, it’s my fault for doubting you…”

He and the other knights knelt, voices choked with emotion. The twins looked at me with shining eyes.

Only Varus stood back, looking unimpressed.

But my body was starting to tremble from the strain. I needed to leave—

“Young Master.”

It was my sister and Emma, blocking my escape.

And then… my body gave out.

I woke up in bed.

“I told you not to push yourself… well, I’m sure you had your reasons.”

“…Sorry.”

My sister skipped her work and stayed to take care of me with Emma.

If I hadn’t used Strong Body to boost recovery, I might have been bedridden for days.

Emma left to change the towel, but my sister stayed.

She had already heard the story I told Hector, even the part about curing the mana curse, which I’d also blamed on Yug.

Her jade-green eyes looked at me.

“Young Master, no matter what happens, I am on your side. Do you understand?”

“…Yes.”

She stood up.

“Then that’s enough. Rely on me when you need to.”

“…I will.”

I didn’t know why she suddenly said that, but I felt an odd pressure.

Later, I returned to the training yard. The twins had been called away.

“Young Master!” Hector ran over.

“Sorry, I…”

“It’s fine. Just call me Young Master, Hector.”

“No! Since you inherited the sword of Tindalos, I must call you Lord.”

He wouldn’t change his mind.

“Anyway, I’ll train myself for now. You can call me if you need me.”

“Will I still be in charge of training?”

Ah, he means sword lessons. Good—he still has ambition.

“I’m still not in perfect shape. Train your stamina for now.”

“Yes, Lord!”

Finally, I could focus on rebuilding my body.

I drew mana through my whole body, ran at full power until my breath was gone, then caught my breath while slowly swinging my sword with perfect form.

When my breathing steadied, I repeated it until my mana ran out.

A brute-force method, but nothing was better for rapid training.

‘Even the old comrades used to complain about this every day.’

[You seem to be enjoying yourself.]

‘I don’t have to think about complicated things right now.’

Branch families, the erased history, cultists, Nightgons…

‘Arwen used to handle the planning. I just acted on instinct.’

I still missed them.

I thought of the old days, my comrades’ voices… and clenched my jaw.

If not for my current family, I might have charged at the Nightgons already.

First, I had to restore my house’s power. Then… maybe I’d travel like a drifting cloud, searching for my friends’ traces.

[Not a bad idea.]

‘Yeah… not bad at all.’

Meanwhile…

In a dark mansion office, lit only by a small candle—

“This is the worst! How is he still alive? He was supposed to die!”

The man crumpled a letter in his hand.

“I should never have trusted those lunatics. Summoning that ‘Avatar’ was supposed to fix everything!”

He took a deep breath.

“No… calm down. This only delays things. If I appeal to the Count, the balance will shift in our favor.”

He rang a bell.

A servant entered.

“When will the mercenaries arrive?”

“They should be here next week.”

“Next week… fine. Send them to me immediately. We must finish before the festival.”

“Where are you going, sir?”

“To Tindalos. I need to see his condition for myself.”

“But some knights are still there. If you corner a rat too much, it might bite back.”

“They’re just old knights barely stronger than low-ranked Experts. Even if they attack, they’re no match for me.”

He slipped the golden double-snake seal letter into his jacket.

“If not for that bold young lady, none of this would be necessary.”

“That’s true. The real power already lies with you and the other elders.”

“She’s talented, but her weak health made her unsuitable as heir.”

“Still, she might lose strength soon.”

“Yes… at the next meeting, I might bring good news.”

The servant left.

The man smiled darkly.

Outside the window, a single bat hung silently, watching him.V