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[Book 1] [19. The journey starts]

  After our sparring session, I leaned back against the mountainside, not notig the ships until the unmistakable sound of sails snapping in the wind reached my ears. The sight took me aback—the Duke had sent over thirty ships, their sails billowing proudly in the breeze as they approached the harbor.

  The Duke’s fleet split, some heading to the harbor and others anch in the river’s ter, with only a few ships dog. Our friend, the harbormaster, greeted the delegation while dockworkers scrambled to load supplies onto the ships. What really caught my attention, though, was the way they used whips to prod along with their strange creatures—a bizarre blend of pig and horse. Fellow whip users!

  Amid the bustling activity, Don stepped up to a soldier guarding the delegation and loudly announced our business. His shout caught the attention of an older captain, roached us with a warm smile that put me a little at ease. “I heard about you two! You’re the knight, right? And you must be the young healer Teorioned. Go on in; we’ve got a room ready for you.”

  Startled, Don dropped his sword with a ctter, then quickly saluted. “Yes, sir!” Only the lessons from the pace kept my expression from face palming and die from embarrassment by association.

  With a flick of his wrist, the captaiured to a nearby soldier. “You! Escort them to the he kit.”

  The soldier responded with an elven salute and motioned for us to follow. As I took in the size of the massive ship, I felt the wooden boards creak underfoot as we made our way into the hold. Our room was small, with two bunk beds. Don scowled at the sparse furnishings, but I didn’t care.

  Pyers never had to sleep in the game, I reminded myself, so at least I wouldn’t have to worry about him invading my bed at night. But ending up with these perverts as a girl? Rotten luck. I’d have preferred a magistrate from the capital—a true gentleman.

  Ign Don’s grumbling, I started enting my gear. The Tiara’s success had been a nice boost, though its fire resistance wasn’t all that useful for me. My skill in ‘runecrafting’ had improved with practice, but my entments averaged a modest seventy pert.

  Maybe I had a touch of talent. Hopefully. After all that work, I’d mao gain two intelligen everything… except for the robe.

  [Robe]Enting: +6 INT[Whip]Enting: +2 INTOur cozy little room was filled with the persistent smell of old wood, which didn’t sit well with my he ctter of Don’s armor hitting the floor broke the silence, and I could see the boredom in his eyes—perfey pn.

  “Let’s do some real training, Don,” I said, giving him a quick pin the side. He groaned and dropped onto the edge of the bed, examining his armor. That’s for my butt, amateur.

  “You won’t need armor for this. In fact, it’s better without it.” I grabbed his hand and dragged him up to the deck. He started to protest but quickly quieted, trailing after me with his eyes firmly fixed on my backside. Typical. We reached the upper deck, where the captain’s voice echoed as he barked curses at the sailors. Dodging the flurry of activity, I led Don to a secluded er by a bench, away from all the bustle.

  “So, Don, you’re a knight,” I began. “Your shield is your best friend—it keeps you alive. Its purpose isn’t just to block strikes; it also distract your oppo, block his view, and redirect his bde.”

  His expression was bnk, though his eyes were less ied in my words than in my posture whenever I leaned forward to demonstrate. His grinning face betrayed exactly where his focus was. This brat!

  I spped him lightly and tinued, “Your sword is your offensive on. Its purpose is to cut down your enemy quickly and effectively. Never use it for defehat’s what the shield is fot it?”

  Don gave a zy nod. I fought the urge to sp him again, to knock that smug look off his face. What a disgrace! I remembered training imperial soldiers on my quests, where my words held resped authority. Now I was stuck with this shameless brat.

  “On your feet! Into your stance!” I ordered. He rose slowly, shield in one hand, sword iher, but his arms hung lifelessly, like a mage out of his element rather than a knight ready for battle.

  “This is what you call a stance?” I barked. “Present the shield in front! Bend your knees!” He lifted his shield, barely.

  I kicked his calf, f him to bend with a yelp, his eyes pleading for mercy. “Princess, I don’t need all this training. My Queen will teach me everything.” He started rambling about some queen, as if hoping she’d magically turn him into a proper knight.

  Dream on. Not a queen, but a princess will beat you into a proper knight!

  His sword cttered to the deck as he stumbled from my sed sp. “Get up! Ba your stance! When defending, you face your oppo with your left foot forward, keeping your shield close to them. That way, you block easier and dodge ining strikes. Right foot back, shoulder-width apart, and keep your back straight.”

  Getting him into a proper staook more than a few kicks and some corrective smacks. The ships had finally sailed, and the wind whistled all around us as we drilled. I checked his form, still painfully amateurish, and with a sigh, I grabbed his equipment to show him the stance myself.

  In theory, anyway. Lifting Don’s shield proved near impossible with my ck of strength, and I nearly toppled over just trying. Don burst into ughter, gasping for air as he doubled over aually rolled on the ground, cag.

  Fine. I shoved his useless equipment back at him and slipped on my own new shield—a sleek silver bracelet that hugged my forearm perfectly. As I eled mana into it, I felt a drain on my reserves, and I sighed. It stung, but at least I could wield a shield.

  When my mana reached the bracelet, a translut, purple-lumi barrier burst into life, f a solid, rounded shield over three feet wide.

  “Alright, watch my stance,” I said, demonstrating. “See how my back is straight? Pay attention to my legs. I’ll perform an attack.” I shifted my rear leg forward, rotated my hips, then pivoted on my front foot and struck downward with an imaginary sword.

  The most basic atta the book.

  “Now, your turn.” Don swung his sword in a wild arc, crashing it into the ground before stumbling forward. His attempt was clumsy, but he looked determirying his best to mimic my stance—poorly. But hey, he was trying.

  “Alright, Don, now I’ll hold my shield up. Try to get through my defense.” I settled into a defeance, presenting my shield to him, but he just snickered like a kid. Well, he was one.

  “ I, uh, pee your butt if I ma?”

  Training with the most shameless pervert. “You stupid brat! Ugh! Fine, if you actually ma, I’ll let you touch me once.”

  He didn’t wait another sed. He lu me with a ssh, but I blocked it with ease—the magic shield absorbed the blow effortlessly, like an alchemical exploit. It even surprised me how easy it was; his attack’s energy vahe moment it hit. Sweet!

  [Block successful. Mitigated amount of damage: 3, other damage halved. Suffered amount: 1]As my hit points dropped dangerously low, I had to stop the fight and heal myself. Hurray—at least that stupid spell worked on the first try. While Don tinued sparring with imaginary enemies, I took out my whip, determio practice.

  I swung the whip, trying to replicate the moves I remembered from videos of a legendary mage-killer in my past life. That guy ro, and the whip’s double-damage property was lethal against mages and priests. The sight of him tearing through the bae, leaving chaos in his wake, was intoxig. Maybe someday I’ll have crowds cheering for me like he did… Wait. I gnced down at myself, remembering—I was a girl now. Looking back up, I caught Don ogling from behind. Never mind.

  A fident stride approached, and I turo find the captain grinning at me. “Hero, ever actually handled a whip before? You wield a sword and shield like a seasoned soldier, but otle whip seems to have you stumped.”

  I frowned and g Don’s sloppy stance. “I’ve used swords a long time, yes, so I’d say I’m an expert with those. But a whip? Not really.” The captain nodded, reag down to pull out his own whip from his belt. What the…?

  “Alright, young priestess, let me show you how it’s done.” After a few nervous ghe lesson began.

  I moved my arm in a wide ard sshed downward; the whip responded but clumsily, more of a wiggle than a trolled strike. The Captain stepped in, grabbing my hand to guide me. His grip was rough, not gentle in the slightest, to Don’s amusement—but at least it urely professional, unlike certain other “masters.” While I tried to teach Don, the Captain was teag me to fa imaginary enemy with a whip.

  “The Floaters!” a shout interrupted our training session, cutting through the air like a whip.

  “Care to lend a hand, young hero? Floaters are annoying little bastards,” the Captain called out as he strode toward the ship’s ter. A strange burbling sound echoed across the deck, followed by the wet sp of something hauling itself aboard.

  The creature emerged—a stupid, dark green-blue mass glistening with seawater. Its skin shimmered like oil slicks on whisky, slimy and uneven. It had a pointed, almost bird-ish face with bulging, fishlike eyes that darted about erratically. Its jagged teeth jutted out at odd angles, giving its wide, lipless mouth and permaly twisted snarl. Fleshy, fin-like limbs flopped against the wooden boards, leaving a sticky trail behind it. Gross.

  The Captain didn’t flinch. With two precise cracks of his whip, the creature let out a gurgling screech before splitting in half, its innards spilling onto the de a slimy, steaming mess.

  What the…?

  [Floater Lv.5]Type: 1-on | HP: 40/40I rushed to the Captain’s side, my heart pounding. “What the heck was that thing?”

  “A Floater. Every time we set sail, they swarm us—angry little pests. They atta waves the whole trip.” With a swift kick, he sent the creature’s remains spshing bato the river.

  stant waves of low-HP monsters? Is this heaven? As the Floater crawled onto the deck, I stepped up to practice my whip teique. I swung with all my strength, but the whip’s tip sailed wide, striking the ship’s destead. Alright, this is nonsense. Focus, John. I tried again, but missed once more, achieving nothing except a lesson in frustration.

  “Too slow! Predict their path, then aim!” The Captain’s ughter rang out as he settled onto the bench beside us, watg my attempts.

  Determined, I tried again, adjusting my timing. This time, as the whip cracked against the Floater, a sharp, supersonig echoed across the deck, and the creature’s insides practically imploded from the strike.

  [Armor pierced. Target lost 10HP (5x2 normal)]No. Fri. Way. A grin spread ay face as I turo Don. “Don! On guard, we are in heaven!”

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