Beating Up a Kid

The next morning, Grandfather left early for work without showing any intention of seeing me. Sigh, he really was a busy man. Someone with such a strong thirst for power was unexpectedly serious about his work as well.

Although he was perverted in certain ways, I had to admit that he was extremely serious when it came to fighting for power and profit. He did everything he could to get close to the king and the crown prince most likely to inherit the throne, becoming an invaluable partner—or rather, supporter—at their sides. That could be called a form of hard work, too. It reminded me of university, where plenty of good students wanted to curry favor with their professors and constantly hung around their offices. You could call people like that bootlickers, but bootlicking was a skill in itself.

People who knew how to flatter others at crucial moments were more successful and more likely to get ahead than someone like me, who only knew how to be flattered and not how to flatter others. I supposed that was one insight I had gained from watching events as an outsider.

After I finished breakfast alone, the butler informed me that the magic teacher Grandfather had found for me was not currently in Ars. She had been notified, but she was expected to return in one or two months. I would have to wait for her return before visiting her to become her disciple.

Then I told the butler that I intended to study at the Water God Style dojo. He said he would immediately arrange a carriage and guards to escort me there. Since the Water God Style dojo was located in the noble district, security there was quite good. There were rarely any commoners walking along the roadside, and only the occasional squads of knights patrolling the streets. Nobles generally traveled by carriage when they went out. I felt that bringing several hundred knight guards along in such a safe place was making a mountain out of a molehill.

So I declined the butler's proposal to bring a large escort, instead choosing to go out in a smaller carriage with only four or five guards. Perhaps because the butler knew that shadow guards would be protecting me during my outing, he did not object to my proposal. He readily agreed to my suggestion.

Thus, I left the estate in a much smaller carriage. The journey was perfectly safe, and in less than twenty minutes, we arrived at the Water God Style dojo. As expected of the main family's dojo, it was probably even larger than Grandfather's villa and garden combined.

Its style closely resembled ancient Chinese architecture. Beyond the double doors stood rows of wooden buildings, each entirely built from wood and designed in a Chinese style, somewhat like the gardens of Suzhou. Corridors connected every building. After seeing so much European-style architecture, these buildings felt oddly familiar. I had heard that the neighboring countries of Shirone, Kikar, and Sanakia all had similar buildings. If I ever had the chance, I definitely wanted to pay them a visit.

Registration at the front desk was simple. They only asked for my exact age and family affiliation. The Water God Style dojo generally accepted three types of students. The first were commoners, though only those with exceptional talent could enter.

The second were knights. Basically, knights throughout the Aras Kingdom studied Water God Style techniques, since the Water God Style was particularly formidable when it came to protecting people. The third were nobles like me. After all, not every noble child could inherit the family estate, and having one more skill might provide some security in adult life.

I remembered that Rudeus's cousin, Luke, had become Princess Ariel's Escort Knight. He seemed to have been the second son of his family, so he had needed to make his own way in life.

Once registration was complete, I was quickly led into a Water God Style class. The class was filled with children about my age. This was probably the noble class, since their clothing made it obvious. The fine craftsmanship and exquisite details of their gorgeous outfits told me without a doubt that they were a bunch of noble children. Of course, I was the same. My clothes were no plainer than theirs. I understood perfectly why we dressed this way: there simply were no plain clothes in my wardrobe. Ever since I was born, none of my clothing had been simple in design. Perhaps nobles dressed like this deliberately to show the difference between themselves and ordinary commoners.

After some brief greetings, the noble children immediately became much friendlier once they learned that I was from the Prodia family. Though they looked like children of only four to six years old, their noble socializing was no less sophisticated than that of adult nobles. Including me, there were eight boys in the class. There were no girls at all, probably because noble girls did not learn swordsmanship. Even if they studied something, they would only learn healing magic. Few of them even learned offensive magic, since men were still generally the ones fighting on the front lines in this era.

Although magic and sword techniques allowed women to fight men, that was mostly seen among commoners. Noblewomen rarely learned such things. So much for my plan to meet cute older girls through studying. Ah, whatever. They were all little brats anyway. What was there to get acquainted with?

Soon, the teacher entered the room. His name was Uriel Hunter. He looked like a knight, though he was not wearing knightly attire.

Today's lesson began. Since we were all new students, the teacher first gave a long motivational speech, then quickly had us put on protective gear and spar to assess our aptitude—or rather, our degree of mastery over the Water God Style. Sparring within the Water God Style was rather strange. Since it was a defensive school, its practitioners generally did not make the first move. They had to wait for the opponent to attack before using a technique to counterattack. If both sides were Water God Style practitioners and both just defended, there would be no way to fight. Would the two of them just stand there staring at each other?

Therefore, sparring between two Water God Style practitioners was turn-based. First, Party A attacked and Party B defended. Once the defense was over, Party B attacked and Party A defended. It was an incredibly stupid arrangement, but it was the only way around the problem. The eight of us were split into four pairs for defensive counterattack matches. Naturally, since we were all children, I did not use much strength. I easily defeated my opponent with the beginner Water God Style technique, Reverse Scale Lure. Reverse Scale Lure was one of the more difficult beginner techniques to learn. It involved taking a special stance to lure the opponent into attacking what appeared to be a weak point, then counterattacking along with their momentum.

This method of baiting differed from person to person. I generally liked to hold my sword close to the right half of my body, enticing my opponent to use a mid-level attack from the left against my left hand. Of course, if my opponent could use an extremely fast attack skill like the Light Blade, I definitely would not be able to defend against it. But dealing with these children did not need to be so difficult. After easily baiting my opponent into attacking, I used my wooden sword to knock aside the trajectory of his swing, causing it to pass horizontally over my head, then followed through by slashing downward at his head.

Of course, the Water God Style was unlike the Sword God Style. Water God Style practitioners wore extremely heavy protective gear. So even wooden swords would not hurt the other person. Knocking them down was enough. Attacking was simple, too. A single feint made the child sparring with me lose his balance. Once his stance broke, I could easily end the fight.

The eight of us fought one-on-one in our pairs for three rounds in total. Facing children no older than eight, I easily took the final victory. I had not deliberately held back much; I simply had not used any techniques beyond beginner Water God Style. These children just were not good enough for me to need them.

After the sparring ended, Teacher Uriel stared at me thoughtfully for a while and asked whether I knew magic. I had no idea how he had figured out that I could use magic. Then came physical training. Wearing heavy defensive armor, we ran laps around the over-two-hundred-square-meter dojo. Before we had even completed ten laps, all the students behind me had collapsed. I felt as though I had only just finished warming up. What weaklings.

I completed the final twenty laps alone. Those classmates looked at me as though I were a monster. All I could say was that a pampered life really harmed people. Without being beaten up by society, people like them would not even be able to outrun their teammates when it came time to flee. Wouldn't they just be serving themselves up on a battlefield? Oh, right. They were noble children. They did not need to go to war or become adventurers. They probably learned Water God Style swordsmanship just because it looked cool.

All of a sudden, I felt completely out of place among them. My goals were entirely different from theirs. Teacher Uriel had probably noticed that as well, because he came over to ask me during the break.

"Dolin, have you studied swordsmanship before?"

"Yes, Teacher. I began learning Water God Style swordsmanship and magic when I was two and a half."

"You started when you were two and a half? That's truly crazy. How far have you progressed now?"

"Teacher, I have reached intermediate level in the Water God Style, and advanced level in magic."

Teacher Uriel fell silent. After a while, he said to me, "Staying in this class probably will not improve you much further. I can recommend you to a teacher better suited to you, but she does not seem to like teaching noble children. Let me ask whether she is willing first, then I will give you an answer. Once today's practice is over, go home and rest. You will have an answer tomorrow. Even if she is unwilling to teach you, you can join the intermediate knight class then. However, your classmates there will be a group of older children in their teens and twenties."

"Understood, Teacher. I can accept attending the intermediate class, and I also hope to study Water God Style swordsmanship under the teacher you recommend, who is better suited to me. I will arrive here on time tomorrow and await your reply."

And so, I finished today's lessons and returned to Grandfather's villa. Grandfather seemed especially busy today and did not return home to have dinner with me. After eating alone, I began today's magic training. I did not want to neglect my beloved magic training just because I was studying swordsmanship. After all, the experiments I had never dared to imagine before would still have to be carried out through magic.

At the same time, in the innermost training hall of the Water God Style main family's dojo, an elderly woman who appeared to be around sixty sat quietly on a meditation cushion. Below her knelt Uriel Hunter, the teacher who had taught the noble beginner class that day. To the right, kneeling on another cushion, was a young girl with long blue hair, a gentle appearance, and exceptionally soft eyes.

"Honorable Water God, among the students who joined the noble beginner class today, I found a child with exceptional talent. I believe we could focus on cultivating him."

"The noble beginner class? Those little brats who enrolled today? Noble children are all spoiled and incapable of enduring hardship. Uriel, don't tell me you accepted a bribe to recommend one of these noble children?"

"Absolutely not, Water God. Among the children who enrolled today was a four-year-old who could already use intermediate Water God Style sword techniques. His magic was even more impressive—he could already use advanced offensive magic. He said he had been studying the Water God Style and magic since he was two, and he had persisted until now. During the new students' group matches today, he also easily took first place, defeating several children over eight years old. During the physical training afterward, he ran more than thirty laps around the dojo at a slow pace while wearing armor. I witnessed all of this with my own eyes."

"Oh? Then he is not bad. Starting at two and reaching intermediate level by four—his talent truly is exceptional. But I have already accepted Isolte as my disciple. You should ask the other Water Emperors or Water Kings whether any of them are interested in taking him as a disciple. Oh, right. What is his name?"

"Yes, Water God. I will ask the other Water Emperors and Water Kings. This student's name is Dolin Prodia Greyrat. He is Darius Prodia Greyrat's grandson."

"A child of the Prodia family? How interesting. Isolte, go test him tomorrow."

"Yes, Teacher." Though it was only four short words, the voice was as smooth as velvet, so soft that one unconsciously held one's breath when it brushed against the heart. It came from the blue-haired girl kneeling on the cushion to the right.

(For those who have not read the original work, here is a brief explanation of this world's ranking system. Whether for swordsmanship schools or magic, there are seven ranks: beginner, intermediate, advanced, saint, king, emperor, and god. The god rank is an honorific title given to the strongest person in a particular school. For example, the strongest person of the Sword God Style is called the Sword God, while the strongest person of the Water God Style is called the Water God. Mages have the word "rank" added after their title. For instance, a mage capable of using Saint-rank earth magic is called a Saint-rank Earth Mage. The same applies to the other ranks. If anything is unclear, you can refer to the introduction in Chapter 5 of Volume 1 of the original work, "Swordsmanship and Magic.")