Chapter 17

Chapter 17
## Chapter 17

“Those who fail to grasp the true nature of martial mastery believe that internal energy must be partitioned and assigned to every individual motion.”

Eisen addressed Lucian while running a hand along the grain of his training weapon.

“They concentrate it solely in the arms for a heavy overhead strike, shift it to center their weight during a parry, and divert it to the legs when retreating. They are constantly dragging their mana across their frame in a clumsy, loud, and wasteful display.”

“…Is that not the standard approach?”

“It most certainly is not.”

Lucian recoiled slightly at the blunt correction. A surge of embarrassment washed over him, as Eisen had just perfectly described the exact method he had relied upon throughout his entire previous life.

“In that case, how is it meant to be channeled?”

“Observe.”

*Whoosh.*

As Eisen cut his wooden sword through the air, a soft, sapphire radiance began to bleed from his skin. Lucian felt a chill of awe as he watched the mana take on a physical, luminous density.

*Good heavens. To manifest the totality of his internal reserve like this without a moment’s preparation.*

Typically, mana only became visible for a heartbeat in a concentrated area when an elite warrior pushed their limits. Yet here was Eisen, giving form to the energy surrounding his entire body simply to serve as a visual aid.

“Watch every movement.”

*Fwoosh.*

With every shift of Eisen’s frame, the glowing mana swirled and reshaped itself. Lucian could see with perfect clarity how the energy surged during a stance and how it sat during the split-second transitions. It was an unobstructed view of perfection.

While Lucian stood captivated by a display that felt more like a divine vision than a lesson, the exhibition concluded.

“Do you follow?”

“P-please, I beg of you, show me once more.”

“As often as you require.”

Eisen offered a warm smile at the boy’s eagerness and moved through the forms again. Lucian’s gaze was frantic, tracking every ripple of the light. Each of these casual movements was a masterclass that no amount of gold could ever purchase.

“Well? Do you perceive the difference now?”

“…The energy encompassing your body remains at a fixed density at all times.”

“Precisely.”

Eisen looked on with a proud expression, clearly impressed by how quickly his pupil had caught on.

“If you move your entire reserve from point A to point B with every change in posture, you create a massive disconnect. Your momentum will shatter after every strike. In a real fight, that microscopic delay is a window wide enough for an opponent to claim your life.”

Lucian was left speechless. He had always believed the height of skill was learning how to bridge those inevitable gaps, yet he was now learning that the very presence of the gap was the flaw. It felt as though he had spent decades mining a mountain of granite, convinced it was a vein of pure gold.

It was no wonder the world’s greatest knights could reset their positions with such terrifying speed.

“When channeling your power, you must sustain a baseline of full-body reinforcement while keeping a secondary pool ready to be directed. You do not rob Peter to pay Paul; you use your hidden reserves to fuel the next motion. And furthermore…”

Eisen stopped and allowed the visible mana to recede. Then, departing from his casual tone, he settled into a focused combat stance.

“Once your mastery over these currents is absolute, you become capable of this.”

*CRACK!*

“…!”

The air seemed to shatter like glass as he whipped the sword. Lucian jumped at the sheer violence of the sound, but the sequence that followed was even more staggering.

*Crack, pop, boom!*

*What on earth…!*

The blade was singing. Normally, those sonic booms only occurred if a fighter swung with maximum effort, requiring a hard stop and start for every hit. Yet Eisen was detonating the air while his sword moved in a single, unbroken ribbon of motion. Lucian couldn’t wrap his mind around the physics of it, even as the evidence played out before him.

After completing ten consecutive strikes that looked more like a choreographed dance than a drill, Eisen relaxed his posture.

“This is the path the Third Young Master will be treading from this point forward.”

*Gulp.*

Lucian felt his throat go dry. Eisen hadn’t even touched upon the specifics of the Lion Heart Sword yet. He had merely shown the raw potential of perfect energy regulation. To think that basic manipulation—not even a formal secret technique—could generate such devastation.

The sheer value of having a world-class mentor finally hit home. As he stood there, lost in thought, a new curiosity arose.

“…Then what would happen if the Lion Heart Sword was used with that level of fluid control?”

Eisen let out a deep, booming laugh at the inquiry.

“It would unleash a catastrophic amount of force, naturally. I would be honored to show you, but I cannot perform it on these grounds.”

“Why is that?”

“This arena is shared by the other knights of the house, is it not? If I were to level the building, His Grace the Grand Duke would certainly have my head.”

That casual remark said it all. It meant that a proper application of the technique was enough to turn the entire facility into rubble.

“Now, since you have seen the destination, let us begin the journey. We shall start by practicing the transition between a vertical cleave and a horizontal sweep.”

—

For the three days that followed, Lucian did nothing but repeat vertical and horizontal swings. The challenge wasn’t the physical motion, but the mental strain of keeping his mana at a perfectly steady state.

*Fwoosh.*

*I expected this to be simple, but my past is working against me.*

It seemed that while his body was young, his soul still carried the baggage of countless hours of repetition. Every time he swung, the “stop-and-hit” rhythm of his years as a mercenary tried to take over. It was an ingrained reflex, making the process of unlearning his old habits agonizingly slow.

“You have made excellent strides. You possess a rare talent for adaptation.”

“I am grateful for your kind words.”

Despite the praise from the Sword Saint, Lucian didn’t feel like celebrating. Having spent more than a decade with a blade in hand, he had expected to master this in hours. Instead, he had spent seventy-two hours just trying to erase a fundamental flaw.

*…I have to dedicate myself entirely to this for a while. If these old instincts keep surfacing, it will lead to nothing but trouble.*

It was one thing to be a clumsy novice, but Lucian’s old mercenary style was a fully developed—if inferior—system. If he accidentally displayed high-level skills he was never taught, he would draw a spotlight he wasn’t ready for. To keep suspicion at bay, he had to completely rewire his muscle memory.

*Still, perhaps it is a blessing that I simply look like a gifted rookie. It would be a nightmare if I looked like a seasoned veteran hiding in plain sight.*

There was a massive gulf between a prodigy picking up a new trick and a master exhibiting deep-seated expertise. A common soldier might not notice, but a Sword Saint would spot the discrepancy instantly. In a strange way, his stubborn old habits were his best camouflage.

“Let us proceed to the next phase. This time, we will engage in a spar to—”

Eisen cut himself off and pivoted his gaze toward the entrance of the training hall. His expression soured before a soul even crossed the threshold.

“What brings the Fourth Young Master to this place?”

“As expected of a Master. You sensed my presence before the door even opened.”

A high, boyish voice echoed from the hallway. There was no attempt at stealth; the speaker approached with confident, rhythmic steps. A moment later, a personal attendant accompanied a handsome youth around Lucian’s age into the room.

“Joshua offers his respects to the Master. And it has been quite some time, Brother.”

There was only one individual named Joshua who would address Lucian in such a manner: Joshua Valdek, the fourth son of the Grand Duke.

Though born to different mothers, the two were separated by only six months, making them peers in age. While Lucian was still adjusting to the sudden intrusion, Eisen spoke up firmly.

“Yes, greetings. However, the Third Young Master is currently in the middle of a lesson, so I must ask you to leave. If you require words with me, I shall seek you out later.”

“My visit isn’t for you, Master, but for my brother. As the younger sibling who began his martial journey first, I felt a duty to assist him in his drills. Would you grant me that favor?”

“Assist him?”

“Is there not a phase of controlled sparring required for mana regulation? The objective is to keep the energy steady during combat. If you would allow it, I would like to act as his opponent.”

The sheer audacity was stunning. Joshua hadn’t progressed nearly far enough to be mentoring anyone, yet here he was, forcing his way into a private session. As Eisen let out a dry, incredulous laugh, Joshua dipped his head in a polite bow.

“I beg your forgiveness if I have overstepped. However, my own schedule is quite demanding, and this is my only window to speak with my brother. I only wish to aid his growth and, in doing so, bridge the gap that has grown between us.”

In plain terms, “training” was a thin veil. His real intent was to manufacture “fraternal closeness.” It was a ridiculous proposition. Using a rigorous training block to socialize? And doing so through a duel?

The boy’s motives were painfully obvious. However, Eisen found himself in a delicate position.

*This is… a political maneuver.*

Though Eisen was a man of the blade, he wasn’t a fool. He had never been a conspirator, but he had survived enough plots in his younger days to recognize one. Joshua’s scheme was clumsy, but it was effective.

*He doesn’t actually expect me to say yes. He wants to keep making the offer and being turned away.*

At first, it would just look like Joshua was being persistent. It was certainly rude to disrupt a lesson, and there were valid grounds to deny him. But if the requests continued and were consistently shut down?

Public opinion would eventually shift away from Eisen and settle on the two brothers.

*He wants to paint the Third Young Master as a coward who hides behind his teacher.*

They weren’t being asked to fight to the death; it was a controlled exercise under the eye of a Sword Saint. There was zero threat of real harm, yet Lucian would refuse even that? Lucian’s perceived lack of spine would become the talk of the manor, overshadowing Joshua’s breach of etiquette.

Furthermore, Joshua’s excuse sounded noble on the surface. The older brothers had already had several nasty run-ins with Lucian, but Joshua had no such history. He was the “neutral” brother simply looking to bond with a sibling of similar skill.

*This is a thorn in my side.*

If this were just about disrespecting Eisen’s time, he would have kicked the boy out. But this was a trap designed to ruin Lucian’s reputation. If Eisen refused, Lucian was the one who would pay the price.

Just as Eisen turned to Lucian to gauge his reaction—

“Master, I realize this is a breach of protocol, but please grant my brother’s request.”

“Excuse me?”

“I am in the middle of a lesson, it’s true, but my brother has come all this way out of a desire for connection. It would be poor form for an older brother to deny such a heartfelt whim.”

“…!”

Eisen’s eyes went wide, and Joshua’s polite mask nearly slipped as his face twitched. With a single sentence, Lucian had framed Joshua’s calculated move as a “childish whim” while positioning himself as the indulgent, superior elder.

*The Third Young Master has a tongue as sharp as any blade.*

With that level of wit, Eisen realized Lucian must have a plan of his own. The Sword Saint nodded and took a step back.

“If that is the Third Young Master’s decision, I will permit it. However, this session will happen exactly once. Personal sentiment cannot be allowed to habitually interfere with the pursuit of the sword.”

“Naturally. Isn’t that right, Brother?”

“That… that is correct.”

Joshua’s brow furrowed as he maintained a strained smile. To think this boy was talking down to him like a protective guardian, when until recently he had been a social pariah!

*Let’s see if that arrogance holds up once we start.*

Grinding his teeth, Joshua accepted a bundle from his servant. Eisen’s expression darkened as the cloth was pulled away to reveal a sharpened steel blade.

“Why have you brought a live weapon?”

“This is a rare occasion; a wooden toy lacks the necessary stakes. Since we are doing this, why not feel the weight of real steel? Since neither of us has seen a real battlefield yet, it will serve as invaluable experience.”

“You go too far…!”

Eisen was on the verge of an outburst. It was one thing to play politics in the gym, but bringing live steel into a training spar was a step too far. Joshua was abandoning the very “safety” he had used to pitch the idea.

But before Eisen could unleash his fury—

“What a marvelous suggestion! Let’s begin immediately!”

“…!?”

Lucian’s enthusiastic response left both Eisen and Joshua standing in stunned silence.