The Skills from My Dreams

Driven by an inexplicable sense of danger, he practiced swordsmanship without pause. But his talent was no better than an ordinary person's, so his progress was painfully slow.

During that time, he saw countless people like himself begin using Kazan Syndrome, or the power of ghosts and spirits, to strengthen themselves out of hatred or other reasons.

He did not do those things, because he knew clearly that such power always came at a price. Either one went mad, or one spent every day in the company of ghosts and spirits. He firmly believed that only strength earned by oneself was truly one's own. So, unlike those who advanced by leaps and bounds, he did not choose a shortcut and continued training in swordsmanship.

However, because his family could not afford to support him in practicing swordsmanship full-time, he began taking on jobs guarding merchant caravans.

In the end, during one such escort mission, he was outnumbered and killed.

At the moment of death, Li Ke once again felt the world spinning around him. He suddenly opened his eyes and saw the ceiling of his own room, along with a pair of concerned eyes.

At the same time, he felt a warm current enter his body, making him feel as though his entire body were soaking in a hot spring. An unprecedented sense of ease spread through him.

But immediately afterward, pain surged through his entire body.

Training. Swordsmanship training. Memories of cultivating qi. Countless days and nights of life. And finally, the terror of death.

The sensation left him utterly dazed. He could not remember whether he was Li Ke, who had crossed into Ionia, or the destitute swordsman who had lived on the Arad Continent.

But as he struggled in agony, a hand gently stroked his forehead. A force like a fresh breeze entered his soul, soothing the waves constantly rising within it.

"How are you, child?"

An aged voice followed. Under the caress of that breeze, Li Ke's pain slowly faded, and he was finally able to open his eyes and look at the familiar figure before him.

After taking several deep breaths, he finally regained clarity. The memories and habits of the Arad swordsman began fading rapidly, but when his fingers twitched, he still instinctively used the power that swordsman had mastered.

The power of qi.

Li Ke's pupils suddenly contracted. He immediately stopped using qi as if by instinct, sat up from the bed, and lowered his head to thank the elder before him.

"I'm fine now, Elder Souma. Thank you for looking after me."

The aged man looked at Li Ke, whose forehead was still covered in sweat. Li Ke had collapsed in the dojo corridor earlier. Although there was nothing physically wrong with him, he had been unable to wake up, which had worried the elder greatly.

Now that Li Ke had finally awakened, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"The doctor said you collapsed because you had overworked yourself and damaged your body... Is there anywhere else you feel unwell?"

Taking a bowl of medicine from Yone, who stood waiting at the side, Elder Souma handed it to Li Ke. As Li Ke accepted the bowl, he also saw Yasuo, who should have been helping the elder with these tasks, leaning against the doorway and teasing a butterfly perched on his shoulder.

"Thank you, Elder. I don't feel unwell anywhere else."

He drank all the medicine in the bowl. Its faintly bitter, cooling taste told him it was an herb meant to calm shock and soothe the soul. After drinking it, his grogginess eased considerably, and as the magical energy within the medicine took effect, that muddled feeling gradually vanished.

"That is good. For a while, do not concern yourself with dojo matters, and do not train in swordsmanship anymore. Rest and recuperate properly."

The elder sighed. Li Ke was a hardworking child, and a clever one as well. He learned things quickly. But his naturally frail body and complete lack of magical aptitude meant he was destined to never become a qualified swordsman.

The other children, even if they could not learn the Wind Technique, could still use magic to commune with nature, strengthen their bodies, or cast minor spells. But this child could not. He could only rely on his own physical strength to wield a sword.

Yet he had no magic and not even the slightest talent for it, as though he were not Ionia-born at all.

"Yes, Elder."

Li Ke nodded obediently. The elder gave a few more instructions before leaving with Yone. He still had matters to handle in the village and could not remain at Li Ke's side the entire time.

Instead, Yasuo, who was supposed to be the guard, remained beside Li Ke. He was still leaning against the doorway, staring idly at the scenery in the courtyard.

Just as Li Ke thought he was about to leave, Yasuo suddenly spoke.

"You don't need to work so hard."

Leaning against the door, Yasuo carefully considered his words before continuing.

"With your aptitude, no matter how hard you work, you will never become a swordsman. There is no need to keep trying. Continuing like this will only be futile."

Although he had chosen his words carefully, Yasuo's words were still deeply hurtful.

Judging from his usual arrogant personality and his merciless mockery of failures, there was no doubt that Yasuo would seem to be ridiculing a failure.

But Li Ke knew that was not the case. Yasuo merely wanted to persuade him not to take the wrong path.

"But Elder Souma has always held expectations for me, and I also truly like swordsmanship."

Li Ke picked up his sword from beside the bed and drew it.

But this time, when he drew the sword, Li Ke felt a trace of unfamiliarity. It seemed as though the sword he had used for two or three years had somehow changed, and...

It was much lighter?

A sword would not become lighter on its own.

In other words, he had become stronger.

Thinking of that warm current from before, as well as the qi he had used instinctively, Li Ke formed a few guesses.

Everything he had "dreamed" before might have been real.

Before crossing over, Li Ke had read countless novels. Naturally, he had also read novels involving simulators and the like, so it was not difficult for him to guess where his sudden strength and inexplicably acquired qi had come from.

"But if you became a craftsman, or an orator, or even a merchant, I think you would live a much better life. The expectations of your elders may be important, but with your aptitude, you simply cannot achieve this. Working harder will only bring you more exhaustion and scars."

Looking at this fellow disciple who had trained with a sword until he ruined his body, Yasuo felt immense regret. Li Ke was one of the rare fellow disciples who could treat him with an even temper.

He had not cared much in the past, but after seeing Li Ke collapse, he realized that he actually cared quite a lot about this person who never flattered him or criticized him behind his back.

So he truly did not want to see Li Ke die because he had taken a path that did not belong to him.

"Ah, I'll think about it."

Li Ke merely smiled, wanting to send him away as quickly as possible.

"Hah."

Yasuo neither agreed nor disagreed. He pushed himself off the door and walked toward the courtyard. Yet in his heart, he had already decided that Li Ke was a deluded fool who did not know his own limits and stubbornly insisted on his own way.

"Think it through yourself. Those who overestimate themselves never meet a good end."

Leaving behind that final piece of advice, Yasuo vanished from Li Ke's small courtyard.

Li Ke watched him leave without feeling much displeasure. Yasuo had always been like this—exceptionally arrogant and conceited. But having enjoyed smooth sailing since childhood, he truly possessed the qualifications to be so.

Besides, there was nothing wrong with what he had said.

If this had happened in the past, Li Ke might really have doubted his limited aptitude and given up swordsmanship. But now...

A flash of sword light passed through the room, followed by a clear ring that vanished along with Li Ke's motion of sheathing his sword.

When the sword fully entered its scabbard and the dragonlike hum of the blade completely faded, the candle flame five meters away from Li Ke trembled. Then, in a faint breeze, the wick snapped and fell soundlessly into the melted wax, splashing up a beautiful, flickering bloom of flame.

"Just as I thought..."

The skills from his "dream" could be used.