Fran arrived at Swordsmanship Class. She'd gone to arithmetic class last week, where the teacher had just droned on about problems until she was nearly asleep. Nothing had happened.
Today was the day she and Bela had agreed to duel. They'd actually arranged it during the last Swordsmanship Class, but that had been Fran's first time using the Breathing Technique in a real fight. Afterward, her legs had gone so weak that it had taken everything she had just to make it back.
She thought that if she kept attending class on time, her current level would be enough to earn her an excellent grade. Still, she was competitive by nature, so she'd gone out of her way to buy a Combat Technique and train it to the mastery level, all in preparation for today.
Training the Combat Technique to mastery had even added 0.1 to her constitution. Her constitution was now 1.5.
Of course, her biggest regret was that she hadn't managed to raise her Breathing Technique to the proficient level. She felt that if she did, even three Belas wouldn't stand a chance against her.
So far, her Breathing Technique was still at 204 proficiency, with a long way to go before it leveled up.
The sound of banging came from nearby. John was gathering the apprentices.
Once they were assembled, John called out:
"In a moment, two of you will spar in front of me. After that, everyone can practice freely."
After the apprentices' last sparring session, there was no way they'd be content with just practicing the basics. So John had decided to organize things this way.
Fran and Bela weren't scheduled for the first match. That honor went to Mason and Mars.
Mason gripped his wooden sword and held his breath, determined to wipe away the shame of his previous defeat.
Mars, meanwhile, was distracted. He kept glancing toward Fran and wasn't paying any attention to the sparring match at all.
Because of that, he didn't react when the match began. Mason charged at him, nearly taking him out before Mars managed to block the attack at the very last moment.
Then Mars relied on his physical advantage to drive Mason back again and again. Mason couldn't withstand the force behind Mars's sword swings.
That sneaky rat. Nearly getting caught off guard reminded Mars of what had happened last time, and his anger flared. He attacked even more fiercely.
He'd usually looked down on using Combat Techniques, but this time he decided to try one and vent his frustration. When he'd fought Fran, he hadn't had a good opportunity to use one.
He pulled back, giving Mason a moment to catch his breath, then began gathering his strength in his arm and shoulder.
This was his family's Earth-Splitting Slash. It would surely hurt that filthy rat badly.
But things didn't go as he expected. Mason didn't dodge. Instead, he charged straight at him, a similar aura erupting from his body. Before Mars's sword could come down, Mason's wooden sword struck him.
"Mars..." This time, there was no anger in John's voice, only a hint of disappointment.
John then launched into a long string of criticism, leaving Mars unable to raise his head. When he turned to Mason, though, his tone shifted to one of surprise and delight.
"Excellent, Mason. You mastered this Combat Technique in such a short time. That's very impressive..."
John had high hopes for Mason. His progress gave John hope that he might place among the top three in the class. John had only three recommendation slots.
In his view, Fran and Bela were certain to earn recommendations. The last slot was still up for grabs. But defeating Mars didn't prove much. Several other children from noble territories were still ahead of Mason, and their foundations were far stronger.
After several more matches, it was finally time for Fran and Bela to fight.
Just as Fran was about to step into the ring, Bela stopped her.
"Fran... could you wait until I've activated my Breathing Technique before attacking?"
Bela could activate her Breathing Technique during a fight, too, but she needed a little time to get it going. Fran could easily knock her out before she managed it.
And Bela wasn't sure she could catch Fran during the brief moment it took her to activate the technique. The last time she'd seen Fran use it, she'd thought Fran was incredibly fast.
Without the Breathing Technique, Bela didn't think she had a chance of winning.
"Sure." Fran understood what Bela was getting at, but she didn't mind. She'd already prepared for this. If they weren't both going to use everything they had, then all her preparation would have been for nothing.
When John called for them to begin, neither of them attacked right away. They stood where they were and activated their Breathing Techniques.
Fran's Breathing Technique was at the mastery level, and this time she activated it almost instantly. Unlike in their last match, she didn't need any time to prepare.
Bela, meanwhile, gradually deepened her breathing. It wasn't until two seconds later that Fran felt the aura around her change.
That's a little slow. Slower than I was last time, Fran thought.
John was somewhat surprised that both of them could use their Breathing Techniques in combat. In all his years teaching so many classes, this was the first time he'd seen two apprentices use the technique against each other.
Of course, that didn't mean people who knew the Breathing Technique were rare. John knew that many territorial nobles held tournaments, where it was common for fighters to use it in combat.
But the City of Apprentices was different. To get in, you needed a talent for mental power. Without that, it didn't matter how well you knew the Breathing Technique.
Naturally, this requirement for talent in two areas meant that members of the Sword Chant School often outperformed others.
Once Fran saw that Bela was ready, she immediately launched a lightning-fast slash.
John noticed something was off again. What was going on?
He'd noticed that Fran's preparation time for the Breathing Technique had shortened considerably. He'd assumed she'd been practicing relentlessly these past few days, so the shorter preparation time made sense.
But Fran's speed right from the start was also much greater than when she'd used the Breathing Technique last time. He could see at a glance that her constitution was far stronger than before.
But how? Had Fran only started using the Body Tempering Method to improve her constitution after she mastered the Breathing Technique? What kind of training method was that?
The Breathing Technique only increased one's constitution gradually through long-term practice.
John couldn't make sense of Fran. How had she been clueless in their earlier classes, only to become like this after just two?
Back in the fight, Bela blocked Fran's first attack with her sword, and the hand holding it didn't budge at all.
Fran could feel the difference in their strength. Even before activating the Breathing Technique, her constitution had been far inferior. Once they used it, that gap grew even wider.
On top of that, the Breathing Technique enhanced agility more for Fran, while Bela's focused mostly on strength. That made the difference between their strength even greater.
Fran kept up her rapid assault, striking again and again. Bela's constitution was far superior to Fran's, but she was nowhere near as agile.
Even after activating the Breathing Technique, which improved her reflexes and agility, she could still only barely keep up with Fran.
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