. . .
Zay'in drove them back to the Estate and as though she knew the meal at Tamira's had refilled Vincel's HP, she ushered him straight into the training hall and began teaching him the basics of dagger-wielding;
The Swing and Thrust.
"A dagger is a short weapon which means you will need to get very close to your opponent but being short also means it's light and easy to handle.
The dagger must become like an extension of your fist.
You need to go into dagger-wielding with the mindset that it just makes your punches shaper- At least at your current beginner level."
Zay'in brought out her halberd from her Satchel and stamped its end menacingly into the ground.
"Come at me. Remember, 'Swing and Thrust'.
Begin!"
Vincel took on a stance, tensed the muscles of his legs, and then dashed forward.
"Hold nothing back!" Zay'in yelled to him.
Vincel held nothing back. He would be a fool to do so.
Although he had not asked Zay'in her rank, he could tell she was very high up. He had no hope of hurting her so he might as well go all out from the start.
*Whoosh*
Moving so fast that the wind pushed back against him, Vinvel dashed towards Zay'in.
He was still three feet away from her when he suddenly saw her Halberd swinging towards him.
'Fast!'
There was no warning. Vincel had not even seen Zay'in swing her weapon. The sharp tip was just suddenly inches away from his neck.
With wide eyes, Vincel skidded to a stop and moved his neck backward to avoid the Halberd tip. Once it was swinging away from him, he sidestepped and made to close the distance between himself and Zay'in.
'This is my chance. Before she pulls her weapon back for another swing!'
Vincel had just had this thought and was only a foot away from Zay'in when the tip of the halberd was stabbing toward his chest.
'Impossible! I just dodged her swing. How did she already pull the Halberd back for another attack?
How can anyone move that fast?!'
Even as he was filled with disbelief, Vincel let himself fall back to avoid the Halberd tip. The shaft of the weapon was right above him and then he got an idea.
Vincel reached up with his left hand and grabbed the weapon's shaft and pushed it upward before swinging his dagger at Zay'in midsection. Only a few inches underneath her enticing breasts.
"Got you!"
Vincel had a wide smile on his face as his dagger neared contact and then his eyes widened. His feet were leaving the ground- He felt weightless.
It took a second for Vincel's mind to overcome his shock, and realize he had not gained the ability to levitate but was rather being lifted by his hand still holding Zay'in's halberd.
When Vincel looked into Zay'in's pretty face, he didn't spot any sign of stress even as she lifted him with a one-hand hold on her halberd.
"Good instincts but only grab an opponent's weapon when you're sure you can overwhelm the one holding it," Zay'in told him with a smile.
Vincel let go of the halberd and the moment his feet hit the ground, he carried on with what he had been about to do before but instead of swinging his dagger at Zay'in, he thrust it instead.
*Pah*
With a casual slap, Zay'in smacked his dagger-wielding hand out of the way.
"Good use of 'Thrust' but your stance was a bit shaky," Zay'in told him.
"That's because I didn't wait to regain my balance after landing. If I did, you would have moved away before I could strike." Vincel said while rubbing his wrist.
Zay'in's casual slap had hurt quite a bit.
'She's strong.'
Zay'in directed him to step back.
"You need to learn to regain your balance quickly. An opponent won't wait for you and a shaky stance won't be a permissible excuse if you're dead. Again!"
Although Zay'in said she was only going to teach Vincel the basics, she was also always throwing in bits of important information at him and Vincel was doing his best to speak them all up.
As a fighter, he was an amateur.
Back on Earth, he hadn't even learned self-defense. Good fighting instincts or not, Vincel was rusty and he had a long way to go before his ability with a weapon was serviceable.
*Clang*
*Clang*
"You're too rigid. Loosen yourself! Again!"
*Clang*
*Clang*
"Your swing is sloppy! Again!"
*Clang*
*Clang*
"What a pathetic 'Thrust'. Are you even trying?"
"I Am!"
'You're just being a difficult teacher!'
They had been at it for more than three hours.
The sun had set and it was already evening.
Vincel was dripping with sweat and he was aching all over from all the times Zay'in had smacked him with the blunt shaft of her weapon. Also, he had been swinging and thrusting a dagger for hours so his joints were aching.
Vincel was almost surprised he had not passed out yet.
'If I did pass out, I'm sure Zay'in would smack me awake'
For all the hours of training they had had together, Zay'in never once suggested that they take a break.
Vincel saw a side of her he had never seen since he first met her that afternoon.
She was relentless.
Screaming 'Again' over and over to keep the training going.
Of course, despite how much of a pain training with Zay'in was, Vincel did notice an improvement in his use of the dagger.
He felt he had mastered 'Swing' and 'Thrust'.
Simple as those two moves sounded, Zay'in had opened his eyes to just how complex they could be in practice.
To swing his dagger 'appropriately' required a conscious awareness of every part of his body. He needed to be fluid or else, he would never hit the target or never recover his stance if his opponent were to avoid getting hit by him the first time.
Speaking of stance- A weak one will always result in a weak Thrust and according to Zay'in, when in an active gate swarming with agitated beasts or monsters, every Thrust must be potent.
"You must strike and instantly go for the kill."
Eventually, when nightfall was starting to descend over the Estate, Zay'in finally announced a break.
"I think that's good enough for today. We'll continue some other time."
As she spoke, Zay'in stowed her halberd into her Satchel while Vincel was trying his best to remain standing on his very shaky legs even as he stowed his dagger away into his Satchel.
"Come on, I'll lead you back to your room. A bath should have been prepared for you"
They left the training hall, and walked slowly (out of consideration for Vincel's fatigue) back to the area of the Estate his room was.
Zay'in didn't look tired. In fact, she looked as if she had not exerted herself at all.
"Zay'in, what's your rank?"
"Hmm? You mean, you can't take a guess?" Zay'in asked.
"B-rank?"
Zay'in chuckled.
"I didn't mean you should just say a random rank. I meant you should actually try to sense my rank.
Everyone gives off the pressure of their rank no matter how low and if you pay attention, you can detect it. You won't sense it precisely but you can rely on your deductive reasoning to make out what part you can't sense."
Vincel smirked.
"You said all of that when you could just tell me your rank"
Zay'in rolled her eyes.
"I said all that BECAUSE I don't want to tell you my rank. You will have to sense it yourself."
At the door to his room, Zay'in turned to Vincel.
"After your bath, a maid will deliver your meal," she said.
"So- I can assume you won't be the maid?"
Zay'in chuckled.
"I'm not a maid, Vincel"
"Of- of course, you're not," Vincel said and cleared his throat.
'Well, that answers a question I've had ever since I met you'
Zayin smiled.
"The outfit was just a gimmick. However, I did personally take care of you when you were injured.
You were too important to the Sorceress to just be put in the care of the average maid."
"Oh, about Agatha... I need to speak to her"
Zay'in shook her head.
"Not today, she's busy. Have your bath, eat, and rest. Tomorrow will be a busy day"
After that, Zay'in turned and walked away without another word and without looking back once.