Chapter 4 : Spirit Enhancement, Swordsmanship Instructor
Chapter 4: Spirit Enhancement, Swordsmanship Instructor
Early the next morning, the soft morning sunlight filtered through the stone windows of the castle, falling onto Leo’s wooden bed.
“…Duoluokasasi Qienuo.” Leo slowly closed the knight’s handbook in his hands.
He had gotten up at dawn and begun reciting.
With a Spirit attribute of 1.2, Leo had used the spare time over the past two days to completely and fluently memorize the entire knight’s handbook.
“If my Spirit keeps increasing, will I eventually be able to remember everything at a glance?”
Leo looked at his panel. At this moment, his Mount Control skill still lacked 40 experience points to reach Level 4.
However, according to Laforin’s arrangement, today he was to go to the training hall to begin learning Swordsmanship.
Leo was full of motivation.
The sound of footsteps echoed from afar, and Leo immediately sprang up from the bed. “Time to eat.”
He had heard from the previous two batches of Knight’s Squires that the instructor responsible for teaching sword techniques, Instructor Clarsen, was extremely strict and hated students being late the most.
So he absolutely couldn’t walk into trouble.
Last night, he had specifically arranged a time with the maid delivering meals. It was now time.
Leo took out half a piece of coarse bread wrapped in cloth—leftover from the night before.
As a Knight’s Squire, meals were delivered to their rooms by servants.
The food prepared by the castle wasn’t lavish, but it was enough to fill one’s stomach.
Coarse bread, beans stewed with meat sauce, along with a plate of vegetable soup.
It felt somewhat like eating cheap Western-style food from his previous life.
The reason Leo had left half a piece of bread the previous night was so he wouldn’t eat too much before bed.
After meals, he still needed to study knowledge related to knights.
Keeping it for breakfast today would also provide more energy for sword training.
“Young Master Leo, this is your meal.”
Today, the maid Natalie’s voice was especially warm.
Leo opened the door.
He saw Natalie, dressed in a standard maid uniform, bow slightly before walking in with a smile and placing the tray neatly on the table.
Leo’s brows subtly furrowed—he felt that this maid’s attitude was completely different from the past few days.
Though she was still the same person, her demeanor and expressions seemed like those of someone else entirely.
Previously, Natalie had treated him like an emotionless machine—one could even sense a hint of perfunctory indifference.
But today, Leo felt her politeness was so excessive that it made him somewhat wary.
And when Leo looked at the meal on the table, he was even more shocked.
A roasted tender lamb leg, a plate of vegetables stewed with dairy, a piece of white bread spread with butter and jam, and even two honey pastries garnished with red fruit.
“This…?”
Leo looked at the exquisitely plated, high-end Western-style breakfast before him.
Since arriving here, he had never seen anything so lavish—let alone for breakfast.
He quietly tucked the half piece of coarse bread in his hand into his sleeve.
This was like the sun rising in the west.
Leo quickly analyzed the situation in his mind—when something unusual happens, there must be a reason behind it.
Soon enough, Natalie confirmed his guess. “These were specially ordered by Lord Burton. Please enjoy, Young Master Leo.”
After speaking, Natalie gave a deep bow, intentionally or not, revealing her alluring curves through her neckline to Leo for a fleeting glance.
‘As expected—it’s Burton.’
This old steward had always treated him coldly. It was even obvious that his attitude toward Arthur and the others differed significantly from how he treated Leo.
But after Leo received praise from Knight Laforin yesterday, the old man had quickly changed his stance.
Even the maid Natalie’s attitude toward him had undergone a complete reversal.
In that case, he might as well eat.
Only by eating well could he have the strength to practice swordsmanship.
Leo grabbed the lamb leg and tore into it with large bites. The exterior was crisp while the inside remained tender—the roasting was perfectly done.
The stewed vegetables were rich with creamy fragrance and sweetness, and the white bread was soft and delicate—completely different from the coarse bread before.
Leo could tell that this was definitely not made by the same cook as before.
It seemed that here, the treatment he received was directly tied to the talent he displayed and Laforin’s attitude toward him.
After eating his fill, Leo quickly made his way to the training hall.
From afar, he could already hear the shouts of young boys and girls practicing inside.
They were likely the squires from earlier batches.
In terms from his previous life, they would be considered seniors—though such a concept didn’t exist in this world.
Peering through the doorway, Leo saw dozens of youths lined up in neat formation.
At the front stood a bald elderly man with his hands behind his back, his face stern—this must be the Swordsmanship instructor, Clarsen.
“I arrived fifteen minutes early, and I’m still late.”
Leo made up his mind—next time, he would arrive an hour in advance.
As he slowly pushed open the half-closed door, he realized that everyone was looking at him strangely.
The squires who had been practicing all stopped.
And the bald instructor at the front showed clear displeasure.
“My apologies, Instructor.” Leo smiled politely. Although he hadn’t been late, he had still interrupted their morning training.
As the saying goes, one doesn’t strike a smiling face.
“Who are you?” Clearly, the bald instructor did not seem to know about Leo.
“He seems to be called Leo, from the new batch of squires,” a tall female squire spoke up.
“I haven’t received any notice to teach a new student.” The bald instructor looked sternly at Leo. “You may leave.”
At this moment, the gazes of the other squires toward Leo became somewhat amused.
“Reckless little fellow, go back. It’s not yet time for you to practice swordsmanship.”
Just then, the appearance of a swift and graceful figure drew everyone’s attention.
At the doorway stood a tall woman with a longsword at her waist. Her slender waist paired with a beautiful face that carried a hint of heroic sharpness.
“Miss Eve, what brings you here?” The bald instructor looked at her, his expression instantly turning gentle.
The squires also fell silent.
The boys’ suppressed yet admiring gazes, and the girls’ envious yet jealous looks, all converged upon Miss Eve.
She was Laforin’s daughter, and currently the most promising quasi-knight in Blackstone City—Eve Sova.
Under Eve’s brilliance, Leo standing beside her was completely ignored.
Until Eve walked up to Leo and looked down at the boy who only reached her shoulder.
She squeezed his upper arm, a hint of disdain in her eyes. “So you’re my student, Leo Laide? So skinny?”
“What?!” Everyone present, including the bald instructor, was shocked.
Eve was a genius in Swordsmanship.
Just one year ago, she had defeated this very instructor, Clarsen, who was at the knight level, while she herself was only at the quasi-knight level.
“Miss Eve, are you certain you will be the one teaching him?” Clarsen asked again.
“Yes. Burton told me personally yesterday.” Eve looked at Leo beside her and spoke without restraint. “I don’t know why my father asked me to teach, but let me be clear—I’ll teach. As for whether you can learn my swordsmanship, that depends entirely on your own ability. Let’s go.”
After speaking, Eve led Leo toward another training room at the side.
Several male squires nearby gritted their teeth, muttering curses. “Damn it.”
What they cared about was not that Leo could learn swordsmanship from Eve—
but that he could be alone in the same room with the beautiful Eve.
With the two of them practicing together, physical contact would be inevitable—this was what they envied most.
Some of them had even come with intentions of forming marriage alliances.
Meanwhile, the female squires looked at these hopeless boys and cursed inwardly as well.
Girls of this age naturally disliked women who attracted the attention of boys.
And as Eve’s student, Leo was dragged into this as well.
Thus, Leo inexplicably became the target of hostility from all the squires.
Combined with his slender build,
only Clarsen, standing at the front, remained silent for a long while, as if deep in thought. “Alright, focus! Class begins!”