And so, while the soccer and basketball matches played out, our training continued.
The Humanoid Fighters were left to the simulators. For now, it was all about swordsmanship.
"Hypacone!"
I scored a point against the rest of the Chronos Imperial Guard.
We had Chronos, the Taikyoku Nation, the Ogre God Nation, and even the Latarnia Royal Palace Guard. On top of that, even the group from Rosaria was there. Swordsmanship braggarts were entering one after another, all eager to take me down.
This was supposed to be Katori-sensei’s joint training session, yet somehow I was being forced to handle everyone at once. Since it was a hassle, the format became everyone versus me.
"Y-Your Majesty. Please, give us some guidance."
"Uhh, people talk about being surrounded on all sides, but as a matter of practical reality, only two people can actually slash at you at the same time—one from the front and one from the back. With spears, maybe up to four. The variations of attacks are also limited. It’s obvious the one behind is the main threat. Therefore, you manipulate your opponents while constantly shifting your position. When you do that, they get in each other's way and their attacks jam up, creating an opening. Cut them both down together. Then, for the ones further back... you just repeat the process. Honestly, once you can take down a light machine gun with a sword, this stuff is a breeze."
"I feel like your explanation is glitching out in several places?" one of the Rosaria Imperial Guard members complained.
Meanwhile, the group that actually knew me just had looks on their faces that said, "Typical."
"If I didn't think like that, I never would have survived the Zork War! How many times do you think I almost died?!"
"It's the part about the machine gun and the sword that we're stuck on!"
"All our executives can do it! Our girl Rikochi practically specializes in that sort of thing!"
Though in Rikochi’s case, she didn't really need to go that far; she could just sweep the area with a shield and a Gatling gun.
"You're too much of a monster!"
"Enough talk, one more round! Come on, get up! Don't bring shame to your country!"
"Guh! Let's go! We shall show him the pride of Rosaria!"
Despite their talk of pride, it was still a crowd of people ganging up on a single man. And I really hate pain!
The soldiers swarmed me, treating me like a raid boss. As expected, two of them tried to slash at me simultaneously, so I slammed into the one behind me with my back. Thud!
"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
The impact blew him back all the way to the dojo wall, knocking him out cold. Since the attack from the soldier in front was already on its way, I stepped forward to close the distance and bashed him with my pommel. If I used a thrust, I’d actually injure him, after all.
"Alright, remember to manipulate the distance!"
"Your Majesty! I can't read your attacks at all!"
"Uhh, if I were to explain it in terms of a rhythm game... when you get to Katori-sensei's level, if a marker appears, you're definitely getting hit. So, the important thing is how to prevent those markers from appearing in the first place."
Saying that, I blurred in front of another soldier and delivered a one-inch punch directly into his chest protector. He collapsed forward instantly.
"Also, this is important: the level of refinement of a technique isn't actually that vital. A martial artist can defeat an opponent because they unleash their technique fully believing they can kill them. So, everyone, please come at me with everything you've got."
"The level is too high, I have no idea what you're even saying."
"I mean it's like this."
As another person slashed at me, I spun around and jabbed my index finger toward their throat. Another knockout.
"In the first place, martial arts are full of movements that assume you can somehow move faster than your opponent, right? That's to make the brain hallucinate that you’re faster from the very start. Belief is power. Conviction and concentration—that’s the trick."
"That's a lie!"
"It’s not a lie!"
I landed a throat chop simultaneously with a leg sweep. The moment they lost their balance, I sent them flying like a home run.
Crack!
"See? You can move faster than your opponent."
"That's definitely a lie!"
"To build that conviction, you practice with perfect form until you urinate blood. You understand, right? It's all for the sake of having the confidence that you can kill. Martial artists spend decades building that belief... to the point where they can make that belief a reality."
"You're a martial artist yourself, aren't you?!"
"Hardly! Swordsmanship depends entirely on the performance of the weapon! As long as you don't get in the weapon's way, you can fight better than average!"
"I've just heard a truly horrific theory..."
"Did you know? The truth of the world is always cruel."
"Katori-sensei! Is this really okay?!"
I finally passed the baton to Katori-sensei, who had been watching the training from the sidelines.
"Don't listen to this guy's theories," he said bluntly. "These are his theories alone. Only a Jester can pull them off."
"But if you can land attacks unilaterally without taking any hits, you win! It's simple!"
Yes, that was the ultimate truth of the world.
"If people could actually do that, they wouldn't be struggling! You dummy!"
"Ah! You called me a dummy! Calling a self-aware dummy a dummy is an act of war!"
Katori-sensei’s face turned dead serious. Then he said it again.
"Dummy."
"Waaaaahhh! Fine then! Everyone come at me at once!"
I put them through a lot of training after that. Eventually, I passed the baton to Eddy, who would continue the formal instruction.
I took a shower to wash off the sweat. Man, manual labor really was great. I changed into my athletic clothes and got ready to head out.
"Well then, I'm going for a light run!"
"No way... He's a monster..."
I'm not a monster.
And so, adieu.
Melissa joined me for the run.
"Hey, Captain. Is that really okay?"
"I mean, Melissa, you understand since you also use an Ancient Style. Those styles are full of techniques that can't be explained by logic."
"That's true, but..."
"But you can use them in real combat, right?"
"That's true, but..."
"It just means thinking about it is a waste of time."
"That's true, but! You're talking about the Secret Teachings already!"
"Since it's a sport, in the end, it's just a matter of increasing the number of output trials rather than focusing on poor theories."
"You're absolutely right, but... that's just too blunt."
"Since you can practice without putting your life on the line, it’s a reachable distance."
"I think the reason people can't reach it is exactly because they practice without putting their lives on the line!"
"Hahahaha!"
"Oh boy, those poor people. The world has finally seen where the goalpost is..."
"Katori-sensei will handle that. It's not like I'm a martial artist anyway."
We continued the training cycle after that. Eddy's sessions were extremely popular. Mine, however, were extremely unpopular. It was quite sad.
But hey, I knew there were beings out there far stronger than me alone. Like the Final Form Zork Mother, for instance. I was the kind of frog who actually knew how big the ocean was.
As I repeated those training sessions, the day of the tournament finally arrived.
Hahaha!