The next morning, I woke up even earlier than the day before.
Looking outside, the morning sun was just beginning to crest the horizon.
It was early enough that I could have easily gone back to sleep, but my body was already wide awake.
Feeling no drowsiness whatsoever, I stepped quietly out of my room so as not to disturb the other guests.
"First, I'll do the laundry, then get to training."
As usual, I washed the clothes and underwear I had worn yesterday.
After heading back up to my room to hang them out to dry, I grabbed my wooden sword and returned to the backyard.
"Why did I gain experience points for [Swordsmanship] yesterday, anyway?"
Even after a full day of thinking it over, I still hadn't figured it out.
However, I had come up with one plausible theory.
"Proper form... Maybe experience points increase if I handle it properly like a real swordsman instead of swinging it around haphazardly?"
Perhaps approaching it with the proper mindset of a swordsman—dedicating real earnestness to each movement—was linked to earning experience points.
With that thought in mind, I threw myself into sword training with far more focus than yesterday.
Every single swing was deliberate and clean.
Conscious of how I moved my entire body, I continued the routine.
"...Man, this is exhausting."
Handling the sword required far more concentration than the day before.
The training took a heavy toll on my mental focus.
◇
You have trained in [Swordsmanship].
Gained 1 experience point.
4/100 EXP until skill acquisition.
◇
On a sudden impulse, I opened the status screen.
I hadn't even been at it for thirty minutes.
Yet there it was—I had gained an experience point.
"Did I get the EXP because of how focused I was? But I trained for longer yesterday, and I feel like I spent more time using it while exploring the forest..."
I still couldn't grasp the underlying logic behind how the experience points increased.
Even so, knowing I had taken another step forward filled me with joy.
As I kept practicing, Amanda-san came out to the backyard carrying a basket of laundry.
"At it again today, are you?"
"Good morning, Amanda-san. I'll give you a hand today too."
"Hehe, I really appreciate it. Thanks to your help, Erik, I get to take things a little easier."
And so, I helped Amanda-san with the laundry.
Thankfully, none of the ladies' undergarments ended up mixed into my pile by mistake today.
I had been slightly on edge the entire time, so I breathed a quiet sigh of relief that everything went smoothly.
"How to use a sword, huh? I see. So because your ability was completely unknown after the ceremony, you never had the chance to attend an academy or anything."
"That's right. Besides, my family wasn't well-off, so I hadn't planned on going to school in the first place. But looking back, I really wish I'd at least had someone teach me the basics of swordplay."
After finishing the laundry, I went to the dining room with Amanda-san.
While we sat together, the conversation turned to learning swordsmanship.
"If it's just the basics you're after, I'm pretty sure the guild can help you out."
"Huh? Really?"
"Yeah. The guild regularly holds combat training sessions. There are kids who become adventurers right after their ceremony just like you, Erik, so it's meant to boost their survival rate, even if only by a little."
When I asked for more details, it turned out the training wasn't available all the time.
It was held at the start and end of each month; having arrived in the royal capital midway through the month, I hadn't heard anything about it.
"They don't hold it every single month, either, which is probably why Reina didn't bring it up until the last minute. If I remember right, the next session should be coming up soon. I'm sure she'll mention it if you drop by the Adventurer's Guild."
Apparently, these combat training sessions were hosted on an irregular basis by the royal capital's Guildmaster.
Because of that, if the Guildmaster was busy, the training wouldn't happen at all.
Hearing that, I ate my breakfast eagerly, impatient to get to the Adventurer's Guild and ask about it.
"Combat training? Ah, Amanda-san must have told you. I was actually planning to bring it up today, Erik-kun."
"So it's true! Am I allowed to take part in it too?"
"Of course you can. In fact, it's a course designed specifically for beginner adventurers like you, Erik-kun."
Though called "combat training," it covered far more than just how to wield a weapon.
The Guildmaster also gave lessons on practical skills like setting up camp and dismantling monsters.
"By the way, why does the Guildmaster teach all that himself?"
"Back when he was an active adventurer, he grew by learning all sorts of things from his seniors. But nowadays, so many adventurers have their hands full just looking after themselves, and he lamented that veteran skills weren't being passed down to beginners anymore. So, he decided to step up and do it himself."
On top of that, he wanted to see more capable adventurers flourish out of his own guild branch.
Reina-san explained that those sentiments were what drove him to start the combat training in the first place.
I asked for more specific details about how it worked.
It took place over three days at the beginning and end of the month.
To participate, all you had to do was register at the counter and pay a fee of one silver coin.
Sessions ran from the ringing of the second morning bell until noon.
In addition to the Guildmaster, several volunteer adventurers joined in to serve as instructors.
"...From what you've said, getting direct advice from the Guildmaster and seasoned adventurers for just one silver coin sounds like an amazing opportunity."
"You'd think so, Erik-kun, but in reality, it's not very popular."
"Huh? Why not?!"
Apparently, a lot of rookies took the stance that if they were going to spend good money, they'd rather buy a decent meal than pay for lessons.
And since some adventurers actually managed to get by fine without it, the guild had stopped pushing it aggressively.
Furthermore, while the adventurers who did attend certainly learned useful things, it didn't magically turn them into elites overnight.
As a result, attendance had gradually dwindled, and the sessions were held less and less often.