S1192. February.
It was still wintertime, but it was slowly growing warmer with each passing month. The autumn leaves have long since been swept away by the winds, only to be replaced by layers of snow. Toward the Eisengard Mountain Range, snow-capped mountains could be seen. Within the foot of that mountain stood a little hot spring village that was enjoying its full splendor right now, just as it does every winter.
Outskirts of Trista. Osborne Villa.
Several figures could be seen around the back who didn't seem to be bothered by the cold one bit. As for two of these figures, one appeared to be a violet-haired golden-eyed boy who was now around four feet tall. No longer was he that little child he was three years ago. Granted, he's still a child and will be for quite some time, but he seemed leagues different than what the boy used to look like. His body was beginning to look like an heir to that of a martial arts family, courtesy of his Father, one of the leading Generals of Erebonia.
The boy still had a ways to go, but he was well on his way to find his own path here in Zemuria.
Presently, the violet-haired boy could be seen assuming a stance of sorts. The rapier granted to him by his late mother was in his left hand, despite being mainly right-handed.
Across from him was an aged man who had come to accept the boy as his teacher. He sported gray hair that was neatly combed back. He was wearing a blueish-black tuxedo with a golden trim around its edges. A white dress shirt could be seen underneath it, making the man quite formal. But the man was used to wearing this sort of attire.
Surprisingly, the man also held a rapier in his left hand, assuming the same stance as the boy. It was spot on. The two's stances were exactly alike. In fact, even the Rapiers were of the same length, both being pointed at each other. Both blades were in touching distance, ready to strike at a moment's notice. It was then the aged man spoke out to the boy.
Of course, that boy was me. Naoto Osborne. Firstborn son of Giliath Osborne!
"Let us begin the sequence again, Young Master.", The aged man said, showing a determined gaze in front of me. He looked very much like a butler. That was because this man is a butler! He has been in service of Liberl's Royal Family for years. It truly is a shame who he serves right now. One of the more ungrateful characters in Trails who goes by the name Duke Dunan, and someone I unfortunately had the pleasure of meeting back at Grancel Castle during Grandmother's banquet. He is as lavish as he is in the games. I don't know how this man puts up with Duke Dunan every day. No matter how hard he tries, the Duke fails to see the attempts. Granted, he does finally see the light during Sky itself, but it's still a long time till then.
But right now, the butler was in front of me, and not near Duke Dunan~
"Must you always address me as 'Young Master', Phillip? If anything, address me as Your Excellency. We're not exactly in Liberl right now you know. That title always gives me weird vibes.", I said, smirking at him. After all, you'd see this title get thrown around in those eastern martial art stories in my previous life. It's not like it's foreign here either. Zemuria has both martial arts and prominent families. It's just weird being addressed as a Young Master, you know? I'm definitely not used to this, haha!
"It is only proper to address you as such, Young Master. I am but a mere person of servitude. You are much more a Young Master in my eyes than you are a Duke. Even if you come of age, I will still address you the same like I always do.", Phillip said, smiling back at me. That's right, this man is Phillip who was once hailed as one of the strongest swordsmen of Liberl's Royal Army. He had earned the moniker of both the Sword Fox, and Demon Commander. He is very similar to Father's rank in the Imperial Army. Or at least was, as he is now just a butler to Duke Dunan. Honestly, I wouldn't mind having such a butler myself, if I am to have someone serving under me. I doubt he'll leave that easily though.
Still, our eyes exchanged glances, and kept silent. It was as if our two swords were now talking. We kept our blades pointed at each other. There were those around us too, also remaining silent. Some appeared anticipated, wondering what was about to happen next.
"Ready your blade, Young Master.", Phillip said, and steadied his stance. I kept my rapier steady, as did he, and also remained firm.
"Please treat me kindly, Teacher.", I said, not backing down.
"Good. Lead with the Center Strike. En garde!", Phillip yelled, calling out the first moment.
Neither of us hesitated. We both acted swiftly, and in the same manner. I dashed toward Phillip, and Phillip dashed toward me. In just one moment, a loud strike of two blades clashing against each other resounded in our backyard. My running was quite different from Phillip's, however. He actually left behind an afterimage once the first strike happened. It was already hard enough keeping up with him. He's quite fast!
Trringg!
Again, two rapiers struck out forward. One would expect the other to brush past it, or have one of the two blades get pushed back. Neither of that happened. We both struck out at the same angles, causing a couple gusts of wind to reach the onlookers who were currently watching us. One blade didn't power over the other. Phillip smiled seeing our two blades evenly positioned, reaching the exact same stance we just started at.
"Good. Good. It looks like you are grasping how Rapiers work already, Young Master. They are different from other weapons. The blade is a lot thinner. You must focus on your delivery and the blade's impact. Just like this. Haaah!", Phillip exclaimed. In the next moment, I saw his figure blur out, even faster than before. "Flying Swallow!"
Tink!
With a lightning-fast speed, he slashed out diagonally. He executed the attack with keen precision, which reflected his years of swordsmanship. His power was forceful enough causing me to get thrown back. I had to block it so it wouldn't hit me directly. I let out a low groan, seeing my body pushed back.
"Ugh...", I said, feeling some strength leave my left arm. While he did not knock Glistening Moonlight out of my hand, he packed quite a punch with that one strike. Still, he smiled at me.
"It looks like your precision has been improving too, Young Master. You did not let your blade leave your hand this time. Rapiers might be weaker than other blades, but as you can see, we can still falter our enemies. You just need to know where to strike.", Phillip said. To my surprise, I saw I was kneeling down on one knee. I didn't think he'd push me that far. Since neither of us hit our bodies directly, my health didn't decrease. I'll go over my stat gains later, but I have improved quite a bit~
Even though I say that, Phillip is still much, much stronger than me. He's the Sword Fox for a reason. Tricky. Agile. Deceitful. And powerful when he needs to be. Those afterimages speak for themselves. When will I be able to create them, I wonder?
Sadly, I couldn't let that thought wander before Phillip called out again.
"Assume the second stance. Upper right. Defend.", Phillip called out. I saw him swoop in fast, giving me just enough time to react. And I bet he did that deliberately. It gave me enough time to stand back up and as he instructed. I brought the hilt of the blade to my right shoulder, preparing to block another attack. Clink!
Soon after, another clash between blades struck our ears. The tip of Phillip's blade struck right into the center of mine. Sheesh. Talk about precision!
To my surprise a second time, Phillip was no longer in front of me. He now stood behind me quite a ways away. Just goes to show he hasn't lost his strength at all, despite growing so old. In fact, I bet his senses are even sharper now than the time he spent in the Royal Army.
"However, Young Master. I will point something out. If this was against a normal blade, you would lose in these positions a hundred-percent of the time. By the time you try to strike another weak point, your enemy will have lobbed your head off already. Remember. Move swiftly. And strike hard. Spontaneous force, if you will.", Phillip said, only to disappear once again.