Ed and his skeletons made their way back to the boss gate corridor. Once there, the skeletons orderly threw each item in the appropriate pile and then returned to Ed for new instructions.
The skeletons numbered less than forty. Ed wasn't disappointed however for one sole reason. That was fewer skeletons to teach things to!
He was rather eager to train up his own skills. He had already spent a rather substantial amount of time assembling and training skeletons.
'I will impart knowledge into every one of you. The mages will train' Ed transmitted towards the gathered group. The mages were basically already scholars, there was no point in teaching them a second time. He also wanted to quickly get the teaching out of the way and set up a somewhat self-sufficient society.
Upon receiving the message, the liches quickly excused themselves. They went over to the pile of crystals that best represented their element to meditate. The other skeletons only stayed in their place as Ed had not given them any instruction.
'Alright then, you all form a group' Ed transmitted to the ones he was referring to and they huddled together. Ed neared them and activated his instruction skill.
For the next two hours, he did nothing but painstakingly teach the large mass of skeletons. He went from one group to another without any breaks. He would spread academia today once and for all!
'And that's how you use it in a sentence' Ed transmitted to conclude his lesson. The skeletons who were initially confused slowly lifted their heads as if experiencing an epiphany.
[Instruction has leveled up]
'Class dismissed. Practice your swordsmanship' Ed waved them away and said.
The skeletons that were sitting stood up to leave and get a weapon while the ones standing had already gone to get a sword.
'Wait… I feel like something similar happened before…' Ed had a weird sense of deja vu but quickly dismissed it. Wouldn't it be weird for his concluding words to just so happen to be near-identical to his previous lecture?
Reassured that he didn't need to expand his vocabulary, Ed equipped the burnt runite gloves he had picked up. They fit rather loosely but as he would be gripping things it didn't matter too much to him as long as his sword proficiency showed any hint of improvement.
'The previous battle was a close one…' And Ed obviously didn't like that. It didn't reflect well on how he might fare against stronger opponents later. Luckily as the battle had been somewhat of a slugfest, Ed was able to clearly observe and realize one of his glaring flaws. Close combat!
With a great weapon like the dragon blade Vient, it wouldn't do to leave that flaw unresolved.
'Scavenger, come over with two weapons' Ed transmitted to Scavenger, who true to his name, was scavenging the weapon pile for a good weapon. Once it heard Ed's transmission though it promptly grabbed two and briskly made its way over.
'You will be my sparring partner' Ed told it as it handed him a simple iron broadsword.
Scavenger backed up slightly once it heard this though almost as if to demonstrate its unwillingness. It was a natural reaction to have when your boss had super strength. No matter how bad their sword skills, they would still beat you! Scavenger was not a masochist!
'Guard up' Ed wasn't letting it off the hook, however. He wasn't afraid of making Scavenger lose an arm or two either. He could always reattach them.
Scavenger was left without a choice and had to comply. Its end might be much worse if it continued to refuse Ed's insistence.
Ed got into a stance or what he presumed would work best from observing the adventurers and his skeletons. He led with his right foot and had his waist facing the opponent. The sword was essentially held at shoulder level. Overall, his weight seemed well distributed, and his stance firm.
Scavenger's own stance wasn't too different. The main contrast would be how his stance seemed more flexible. The weapon he had ultimately grabbed also had a smaller reach than Ed's own so it was natural that it seemed that way.
While there was a science to swordsmanship, it was also a matter of what weapon one held and personal preference. It was normal for things to differ.
'Let's begin!' Ed transmitted and quickly began the sparring session. He led by bringing his sword forward and performing a downwards slash. The strike seemed rather basic but the plain iron sword cut through the stale dungeon air with vengeance.
Seeing this, Scavenger didn't even think to block it as it evaded to perform a counterattacking swing. Ed would have likely suffered a loss from this if it weren't for his overwhelmingly superior attributes.
'This might be too easy…' Ed was even able to think freely in the midst of it.
Ed evaded the horizontal attack by ducking and pressed forward with vigor. With that same momentum, he performed another deadly swing towards Scavenger. As he did, Ed couldn't help but praise the gloves!
'I can already tell there is improvement' The swing he was currently performing seemed almost undeterred. The air around made way for Ed's blade as to not be sliced apart. That was a definite sign of good form!
At the thought of that Ed couldn't help but question his understanding of the word mild. It couldn't be he was a sword genius, right?
The downward swing was too fast for the simple Scavenger to evade. Blocking it also seemed like a far off dream. It could only grit its teeth as Ed's sword cut through its shoulder!
Ed had precisely targetted the connection between the arm and shoulder to make it easy to reassemble Scavenger. Nonetheless, he had to admit that the disparity in skill made the spar a bit pointless. These thoughts only entered after the sword cut off Scavenger's arm and it fell to the ground with a thud, however.
[Swordsmanship has leveled up]
But…! It worked! Even with such a blatant advantage, Ed was able to increase the skill's level to zero!
'...it's a bit embarrassing when put that way' It was as if a student celebrated over finally entering the double digits on their class exams. They were still failing!
Still, Scavenger had done its role very well. Ed couldn't help but praise it.
'You did me a large favor, I'll let you pick a nice weapon later' And an arm…
Scavenger who was brooding over its lost arm by looking down at it couldn't help but perk up when hearing Ed's transmission. It liked to search for good loot but it actually had no idea what was good loot. It basically picked whatever it felt most comfortable with.
Ed however possessed assessment. Although this wasn't explicitly known by the skeletons, it was painfully obvious that Ed knew what the items did when picking them. He always picked the best after all.
Scavenger was then dismissed by Ed. It picked up its arm and left with a skip in its step. Ed wasn't sure if it was due to the reward or if it was great to be rid of him. He didn't pay it any mind as he needed to assess his gain.
Ed got into a stance once more. He held the broadsword firmly and swung out horizontally with a single hand. The swing seemed rather fierce from afar but as Ed performed it he realized there was definitely room for improvement. His swing even seemed a bit wobbly.
'Is the difference that I can tell it's wobbly?' Ed asked himself. Before, he would at most think something felt wrong. Things were different now though as he could clearly see that his grasp was not sufficient.
'Am I officially a swordsman now?' Ed was secretly elated but forced the thoughts aside. He wanted to continue training his swordsmanship but seeing that it could level up, he put it aside.
He wanted to test if the system space was open to fix Scavenger's arm as well as give all the skeletons a mana core.
***
Aden Flamewood. He was the count. But it hadn't always been the case. He was once a normal title-less teenager too. He could understand Felix's frustrations.
When growing up, Aden wanted to be an alchemist. His father didn't stop him since the estate had long since taken up alchemy. It was natural to have a basic understanding of it.
One day he talked to his father about taking things further from basic. To have him train under some of the estates big wigs! His father stubbornly refused and forced him to learn sword fighting.
As he only cared for alchemy he had felt rather rebellious. He convinced some of his friends and escaped from home.
It didn't take him long to realize his mistake, however. He was the young master of the Flamewood estate. That was it. He didn't know how to do a single thing for himself. Through that identity, he could get a large assortment of things in the estate but that would imply getting caught by his father.
He didn't want to resort to such a measure. Aden decided to become an adventurer of his own volition.
He met people and went on adventures with them. Through those adventures, he earned materials and performed alchemy. He felt very satisfied with himself. His potions proved useful for his party. He even renounced his father inwardly.
It wasn't until months later that he would realize his father had been rather happy with his decisions. Did he not go and learn to defend himself in the end anyway? His father had been keeping track of him all along. Even going as far as planning which quests he could take on! He had been dancing on his father's palms!
He had tried the same tactic with Felix but it seemed he could not compare to his own father. Felix still acted rebellious and entitled. He realized it was a mistake to only orchestrate victories. Felix had grown arrogant and conceited.
But where was he supposed to use this new knowledge if his son didn't return!
Aden Flamewood was anxious. He was currently waiting for Bayard's return counting every minute and second that passed.
"Did… Did I really make a mistake…?" Aden muttered under his breath while pacing inside of Khal's office.