Chapter 469: Book 7-20.2: A Gathering Storm

Getting appointed as the school kids’ self-defence instructor was both easy and hard. Hard because Yuriko was technically still a student herself and so, should not have the qualifications or mastery to teach. Easy because she was already a Knight. However, she didn’t have the ID card to prove it, and it wasn’t as if she could display her Anima or Facets as proof.

Judging a person’s Anima strength wasn’t easy for those on a lower level. There were fewer Knights in Faron’s Crossing than there were in the Frozen Camp, and all of them were well known in town. Yuriko being one, or at least on that level, was quite unbelievable. Of course, the truest test of Knighthood was the Animus density test. Such devices were freely available in the Church of Everlasting Order’s building.

Unfortunately, Yuriko’s Animus density was the same as a Novice’s, so that wouldn’t have worked anyway.

However, she got the post simply from the sheer coincidence that Armsmaster Byrne had visited the school’s admin office and was trying to consolidate his schedule.

“Yuriko Davar. A surprise to see you here,” the Armsmaster said with raised eyebrows.

“Armsmaster Byrne…”

“Just Trevor please. You’re no longer my student and we are colleagues now.”

“Oh, uhm.” Yuriko’s cheeks heated up a bit. “Thank you, Trevor.”

The administrator that she had been talking to blinked in surprise, shifted his gaze from her to Trevor, then surreptitiously scribbled a few words in the form, although he tried to hide it behind the raised desk. Yuriko’s thinned Anima perceived the action, however, though she couldn’t determine the words. From the movement of the pen, she thought it was something along the lines of Knight, or qualified, or something like that.

“I wanted to see if I could raise the kids' self-defence skills. My little brother said that you were too busy to lead them.”

Trevor’s eyes brightened. “You came for a job?”

“Er, I guess. Though I don’t see this as something permanent.”

“No, matter, no matter. Simon, arrange the paperwork for this please. I will assess Knight Davar’s skill.”

“Yes sir,” the man answered.

“Come on.”

Trevor gestured and led the way. They ended up in the same gymnasium that she and the others did the preliminary preparation for the training camp a couple of years ago. The rack with the wooden training weapons was neat though covered with a thin layer of dust.

“Will you change into training clothes?”

“No need,” Yuriko laughed. “I’ve, er, outgrown most of my stuff at home. These are forceweave outfits and clean easily.”

“Oh? Where did you get them?”

“From a store in the Capital?”

“Rumiga City?”

“Uhm, Realmheart.”

“Oh. Interesting.” Trevor strolled over to the weapon racks and asked, “Choice?”

“Swords,” Yuriko answered easily, patting the hilt of her arming sword.

Ah, yes, she shouldn’t keep this sheathed at her waist. Her kinesis quickly undid her belt, and slid the scabbard out. She floated it towards the wall and laid it flat there. Considering the Armsmaster’s prowess, she undid about half of her Resistance field, leaving her feeling as though she had a hundred Jin weight all over her instead of two hundred.

She easily caught the thrown side-blade. She quickly got a feel for the wooden sword’s balance, then took a neutral stance.

“Ready.”

Armsmaster Trevor raised an eyebrow as he took in her posture. Then, he lunged from his position, the side-blade striking out using Sweeping Gale’s 2nd stance, a frighteningly quick assault from an unguarded position.

Yuriko answered with Flowing Water’s 3rd stance, which allowed her to gently guide the opponent’s attack in a way that it interfered against a follow up attack, and which often caused an opening in their defences to appear. She kept their blades connected and she slid hers down towards his crossguard, in an attempt to strike his fingers.

Trevor twisted the blade and pushed hers away with a grunt, then his sliding sidestep brought him closer, as well as obliquely to the side. His side-blade twisted and struck towards her middle, and at the same time, his left had darted out to grab her wrist.

Both attacks she handedly avoided with a simple backstep, and when he moved to follow, she struck. The side-blade’s tip bypassed the man’s hasty guard, though it bought him enough time to twist his torso away. At this point, if Yuriko had not restrained herself, she could use her superior strength to either knock the man back or push him down. Her aura could also do the same thing, and would be far more insidious. Certainly, her perceptive aura revealed every little movement of his muscles, and every twitch told her how and where he intended to strike.

A slight movement of his toes told her he planned to bullrush her as soon as he stabilised his centre, and with a smirk, she disrupted it by stepping forward and blocked his foot. He could try to stomp on it, but the distraction would allow her a free strike elsewhere.

Trevor jumped back, and Yuriko pursued. They exchanged strike after strike, the man using Sweeping Gale while she stuck with Flowing Water. It was only when she abruptly switched to Jade Mountain and knocked his side-blade to the ground did the duel end.

“Excellent. Spears?”

At Yuriko’s nod, he returned his side-blade to the rack and picked out a couple of training spears. The heads were bundled cloth instead of sharp metal. He tossed the weapon at her while she tossed her training blade to the rack, which slid easily into the holder.

They sparred with the spears for a few minutes before Trevor managed to strike her leg, arm, and chest in quick succession. Yuriko clicked her tongue while they changed weapons to greatswords.

This time, she exhibited Sweeping Gale and Roaring Volcano, managing to overpower the beefy man with sheer ferocity.

Afterwards, they shifted to glaives. She eked out a win after a quarter hour, but she suspected that it was more because the man was tiring than anything else. They took a breather for half an hour then continued with dual hatchets.

Adapting her Four Phases with the axes was easier than with the polearms, but Trevor’s skill with them were magnitudes greater than his skill with the other weapons. He included throws in his repertoire and the first time he did, it almost got her. She ducked and rolled inelegantly, and only her incredible flexibility allowed her to get up from that fumble without getting whacked on the behind. They shifted to sword and shield afterwards, leaving no clear winner to the bout.

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As long as Yuriko held a sword, her prowess was increased. Even different styles of swords that she’d never used before she was able to wield to perfection. It was a strange feeling, honestly. It was as if the sword had been made for her hand, and she had been born for it. The answer was simple, she supposed. Damien.

He was a swordmaster, or perhaps a sword demon would be a better word. He trained with such weapons his entire life, and if she guessed correctly, his primary Ennoia was the sword. Well, either that or the sword had been melded into his Ennoias. She wasn’t too clear on it.

As such, anything vague sword shaped, including the ones that had backward curves or were all twisty and stuff, felt natural in her hand. She could easily adjust to the weapon’s features, and whether it was balanced to the pommel, allowing quick and deft maneuvers, or balanced towards the blade, which allowed devastating blows. For that matter, even the heaviest warblades only took a little adjustment on her part to wield like a rapier, or the other way. It was an intoxicating feeling.

On the other hand, with other melee weapons, such as polearms, axes, daggers, or knives, she was a bit clumsier with. Her wrists and fingers were nimble enough that it didn’t matter much, but she could clearly feel the difference, especially since she was under Resistance.

Finally, after nearly three hours of sparring, Trevor lowered the quarterstaff they were using and said, “That’s more than enough. Wonderful.”

“Oh, thank you,” Yuriko answered as she wiped the sweat off her forehead. Previously, she’d been using her kinesis to keep it off her eyes, but since they were done anyway…

“You’re qualified as an Armsmaster, congratulations.”

“Eh?” Yuriko froze as she returned the stave into the storage barrel. “How do you figure?”

“Heh,” Trevor chuckled. “You’ve reached Form Mastery in quite a few swords, as well as Intent Competence in other weapons.” He frowned. “Your spear and glaive-work is adapted from the Four Phases of the Sword?”

“Yes.” She tilted her head. “What do you mean Form Mastery and Intent Competence?”

“You don’t know?” Trevor seemed more shocked at that than her prowess. “Hrm, ah, yes, you were enrolled in Sharom, not Agaza. I must remember your severely curtailed education. I recommend several books for you to read to shore up your general knowledge weakness. Anyway, there are three different pillars to the Martial Sciences. Form. Intent. Resonance.”

“Resonance? Is that when elemental energy…”

“Yes, yes. Hold on, let me get to it in order.” Trevor coughed. “Most begin with Form. These are Katas and Stances that novices use to familiarise themselves and train with weapons. The Four Phases’ stances are the Form. Intent is when you impose your Will into your weapon play. I’ve seen you use this level of swordsmanship in Shillogu Woods. You can express your intentions freely with your weapon, you cut where you intend to cut, you block where you intend to, and so on. Resonance is when the ambient Chaos around you alters and changes to aid you. Each pillar is divided into three levels: Basic, Competency, and Mastery.”

“What defines the level?” Yuriko asked.

“Basic is that you can perform in controlled conditions. Competency is when you can perform in combat. Mastery is when you can perform no matter the circumstances.”

“How did you determine mine?”

Trevor shrugged, “We fought, didn’t we? In truth, I’d say your Intent pillar is already at Mastery, but only for the sword. So, you’re more than good enough to teach a bunch of brats how to defend themselves. You can begin tomorrow if you want. Thank you for this, Yuriko. We’re dreadfully shorthanded.”

“You're welcome.”

“Ah, I almost forgot,” Trevor called out just as she was about to leave the gymnasium. “I need to include you in the defence plan. What role are you most confident in?”

“Oh. Striker.”

“Melee, I suppose?”

“I can do ranged or melee.” Yuriko smiled, then added, “In truth, my Animus techniques allow me to be a Warder and Destroyer, too.”

“I see. Which would you prefer, holding the line on the walls or deep within the enemy formation, taking down high-priority targets?”

“The second.”

“Oh? Hmmm, I guess that’s no surprise considering your father. Very well, I’ll have you in the Rapid Response Group. You’re quite versatile, after all. Stationed here in Faron’s Crossing?”

“I can’t be stationed in the Watchtower unless I enlist in the militia, right?”

“No, that’s not true. You’re a Knight and…” He paused. “Well, there’s no restriction, but most Knights are part of the militia anyway, or the legion.”

“Or other services,” Yuriko agreed.

“Well, it's your choice.”

“I’ll stay here unless I’m needed there,” Yuriko smiled.

“As you wish. Good day, Yuriko.”

“Good day, Trevor.”

The awkwardness of calling him by his name instead of his title still made her tummy twist, but it would be impolite to insist on formality.

As she left the school buildings, she watched the students move through their day. Most were quite exuberant and the sounds of laughter filled the halls. There were only a dozen or two in every year level, though now there were more than that. She saw many strange faces, no doubt from the other nearby villages and farmsteads.

She saw Rami waving at her from across the yard, and she smiled and waved back. Ah, it was almost noon and she was supposed to meet her friends for lunch at the Olde Sweet Shoppe. She hurried her pace, thinking to change out of her sweaty clothes before going there.

She made it to her home, managed to bathe and change her clothes in record time, and was at the Sweet Shoppe just a couple of minutes past noon. Inside, she saw Krystal, Heron, Mikel, Zeyn, Danika, and Millie around a long table.

“Yuri! About time!” Krystal waved. “Come on! You’ve got a lot of things to spill! Hie hie!”

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