LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 4 - Discipline (2)
2. Discipline (2)
Yuri pressed in close.
Since Jared loved playing with distance so much, Yuri completely eliminated the gap, bringing it to zero, no, even less than that.
As they tangled together, for the first time since the sparring began, a wooden sword made contact with his body.
Thud!
Jared’s wooden sword struck Yuri’s thigh.
“That hurts like hell!”
Yuri laughed and swung his wooden sword back at him, and Jared narrowly dodged it.
Seizing the opportunity, Yuri used centrifugal force to deliver a spinning kick. Jared, struck by the kick, stumbled back and swung his sword, hitting Yuri’s ankle.
“Ugh!”
“Ouch!”
Yuri’s injury was more severe.
But he didn’t care, limping as he continued to press Jared.
The two wooden swords clashed, each seeking an opening. However, it was Yuri who ultimately suffered more blows.
“Damn, is it still not working…”
He couldn’t win, after all.
Even with the memories of his past life, Yuri was still a young boy, and Jared was a grown knight.
Still, Yuri kept moving forward.
He was struck by the wooden sword once more.
“Ugh!”
He counterattacked again.
This time, it was a glancing blow.
Despite the lingering pain, Yuri swung his sword back.
Clang!
His hand went numb from the impact.
Gripping his sword tightly, Yuri lunged forward.
He kept increasing his speed.
Jared thrust at his chest. Yuri barely dodged and countered.
Yuri’s wooden sword grazed Jared’s side.
For the first time, his attack landed.
“This is it!”
Yuri shouted.
Jared bit his lip.
Even though he clearly had the upper hand, it felt as though he was the one being pressured.
And he knew exactly why.
“What’s wrong? Feeling tense?”
Jared caught his breath as he looked at the grinning Third Prince.
Yuri continued to press forward.
Even as he was struck and stumbled, he kept advancing.
“Jared, is this all you’ve got?”
Their wooden swords clashed once more.
Close combat continued.
Even at this point, Yuri sought to close the gap even more, stepping closer by an inch.
Jared was overwhelmed with discomfort.
This was different.
The prince was different from him.
“Come on, try harder!”
Yuri pushed himself to his limits—no, even beyond that.
Although he sometimes failed and suffered, the prince didn’t fear it. He threw himself into the moment, regardless of the consequences.
Shame welled up within Jared.
“Are you going easy on me?”
“No, sir.”
Their wooden swords clashed.
This time, Jared didn’t hold back. He ruthlessly aimed for an opening. Yuri took a hit to the side and stumbled, but then swung his sword in response.
Jared dodged backward, then stepped forward and struck Yuri’s arm.
“Ugh!”
Yuri gritted his teeth and held onto his wooden sword.
Jared attacked his arm again.
He thought this would surely end the match, but Yuri dropped to the ground and struck Jared’s ankle.
As Jared bent his knee, Yuri rolled to the side and swung his wooden sword again.
Jared tried to defend and counter simultaneously, but Yuri’s consecutive attacks were faster.
Jared blocked with his arm and swung his sword back.
Even to himself, it was a clumsy move. If it had been a real battle, he would have lost his arm.
It was a mistake unbecoming of a knight.
His opponent was just a young boy, and yet nothing was going his way.
Jared grew irritated with Yuri’s attempts to drag him into a chaotic brawl.
“Hah…”
Yuri kept charging forward, showing no signs of exhaustion.
Should he just push him away with brute force?
With that thought, Jared moved.
As his mind was swept by confusion, his mana unconsciously began to flow through his mana channels.
The knights shouted.
“Jared!”
Realizing his mistake, Jared changed the trajectory of his sword, but the wooden blade, already in motion, grazed Yuri’s forehead.
The severed strands of Yuri’s hair scattered to the ground.
Blood trickled down Yuri’s forehead.
Jared’s eyes widened.
“Your Highness!”
The crimson liquid stained one of Yuri’s eyes.
“I apologize! I made a mistake, a mistake…”
Just as the bewildered Jared dropped his sword and was about to bow in apology…
Clang!
Yuri swung his wooden sword again, and Jared instinctively blocked it.
“Why stop now?”
Yuri wiped away the blood with his sleeve, grinning.
“Is this your first time sparring?”
“The wound…”
“Now it’s finally getting fun.”
Yuri burst into laughter and charged again.
“There’s no reason to stop now!”
His fierce momentum left Jared with no choice but to engage.
The blood-smeared prince and the flustered knight clashed repeatedly, their wooden swords meeting with intense force.
“More!”
Yuri shouted as he swung his wooden sword forcefully.
“Show me what you’ve got!”
As Yuri’s energy surged, an unknown feeling began to rise within Jared’s chest.
He had never felt this sensation, even when fighting knights far stronger than himself.
“Damn it!”
For the first time, Jared cursed under his breath as he countered Yuri’s attack.
The sound of wooden swords clashing resonated loudly across the training ground.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
Their intensity increased, becoming more and more ferocious.
Their wooden swords clashed fiercely once again.
Clang!
Yuri’s wooden sword shattered, and the fragments spun through the air before clattering to the ground.
Yuri and Jared’s eyes met.
Without needing to say anything, they both knew.
The spar was over.
“It’s over.”
When Jared remained speechless, Yuri grinned and extended his hand.
“I’ve learned a lot from you, Jared.”
“N-no, not at all.”
Jared, finally coming to his senses, reached out his hand.
“Well done.”
Jared held Yuri’s hand while staring at the youthful face of the Third Prince.
It was an intense determination he had never encountered before.
Had he ever shown such determination for something before?
“What are you doing?”
“Pardon?”
“Why are you just standing there holding my hand?”
Yuri furrowed his brow.
“Are you just gonna stand there while the prince is bleeding?”
“O-oh, I-I apologize!”
Jared finally came to his senses and rushed into action.
“Honestly…”
And then Yuri immediately collapsed onto the ground.
The knights applauded him, but Yuri, unfazed, took a moment to catch his breath.
“….”
A man was watching the scene.
“Oh, Commander. When did you arrive?”
“I just got here.”
Commander Saned of the Royal Guard silently observed Yuri, then picked something up from the ground.
It was a fragment of the broken wooden sword.
He looked back and forth between the fragment and Yuri, who was lying on the training ground.
***
After the spar with Jared, Yuri kept him close.
“I just finished my duty…”
“And?”
“I’m just saying.”
“Follow me.”
“But I still have training…”
“Looks like you’ve finally come to your senses. Who was it that made you this way? Don’t you think you should repay that favor?”
“…”
Jared sighed at Yuri’s words.
“Understood.”
“Good.”
After the spar, Jared began to focus on his training. Although it was still lacking in Yuri’s eyes, it was certainly different from before.
For now, this was enough.
The full-scale transformation could be done gradually from here on out.
“I was planning to bring in more people, but I’ve decided to trust you, Jared.”
“Are you planning to do something dangerous?”
“Whether it’s dangerous or not depends entirely on you.”
“If it’s dangerous for Your Highness, I must refuse.”
“There’s no option to refuse. Follow me.”
“I can’t.”
“Should I bring one more along?”
“Who…”
“That guy passing by over there.”
Yuri shouted toward a man walking in the distance.
“Hey!”
The man flinched in surprise when he saw Yuri, then tried to walk past as if he hadn’t noticed.
“Hernando!”
At Yuri’s persistent calls, he finally sighed deeply and approached them.
He was a slender man who didn’t seem suited for fighting.
“What is it, Your Highness?”
“You need to help me.”
“I’m busy…”
“I’ll clear your debt.”
The man’s eyes widened at Yuri’s words.
“Really?”
“Have you ever known me to lie?”
“You’ve lied quite a bit…”
“Not outside of gambling.”
“Not outside, no.”
“I’m trustworthy, wouldn’t you say?”
“Not exactly.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’ve never seen Your Highness when I wasn’t holding cards in my hand.”
Hernando was a mage who served as King Fiore’s advisor and had lost a great deal to Yuri at the gambling table.
“I’m not lying. I will clear your debt.”
“Well, if you insist…”
“Good enough?”
“Shouldn’t we put it in writing first?”
“Excuse me?”
“Ink is more reliable than words.”
“Trust me.”
Yuri snapped and pointed at himself.
“I am Yuri Briol.”
“Yes, well…”
Yuri was furious at the indifferent response.
Was the Prince’s name worth so little?
“Jared.”
“Yes.”
“Vouch for me. Testify to my statement that I, Yuri Briol, am speaking the truth.”
“Understood.”
“Is this enough?”
“Hmm…”
Hernando stroked his chin as he looked closely at Jared’s face.
“What are you looking at?”
“Your physiognomy.”
“…”
“It’s not an entirely untrustworthy face. You’re Sir Jared, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Very well. So, what exactly are you planning to do, Your Highness?”
“An expedition.”
“Sounds interesting. Where to?”
“A dungeon.”
“Pardon?”
“We’re going to a dungeon.”
With that, Yuri pulled his hood over his head.
“First, we need to escape the palace.”
***
Yuri walked through a dark tunnel with Jared and Hernando.
The torchlight flickered, casting light ahead of them.
“How did you know about this place?”
“I just happened to.”
The tunnel was a secret passage leading outside the palace. It had been created for the Royal Family’s escape in case of emergency. Before the war, only a few knew of its existence.
This was the second time Yuri was walking this path, the first being in his past life.
“Where does it lead?”
“To the Sword Mountain.”
“Sword Mountain?”
Sword Mountain was a hill rising outside the Royal Palace, and legend had it that the founder of Briol had practiced swordsmanship there.
Originally, the mountain was grand and vast, but it was said to have been carved down due to years of constant sword practice.
Of course, like most legends, it was probably an exaggerated story.
However, it was true that someone had practiced swordsmanship there.
In his past life, the Empire that destroyed Briol had discovered a dungeon on Sword Mountain.
“Why are we going there?”
“Just shut up and follow me before I take back clearing your debt.”
“Alright, alright. You’re quite demanding, Your Highness. It must be hard for Sir Jared to follow you, right?”
“Yes, well…”
Eventually, they reached the end of the tunnel.
A large iron gate, seemingly untouched for ages, stood firmly locked.
The lock was enormous and rusty, making it unlikely to open even if they had the key.
“Jared.”
“Yes.”
But what if a Royal Guard intervenes?
Yuri motioned with his chin, Jared scratched his head and raised his sword.
A blue aura surged from the blade.
This was the true power of the Mana Method.
A sword infused with mana could cut through solid iron like soft tofu.
Clang!
A sharp, metallic sound rang out.
But the lock remained unbroken.
Perhaps driven by his competitive spirit, Jared kept striking the lock.
Hernando scratched the back of his head.
“Seems like even the Royal Guard couldn’t break this lock.”
“It’s tough.”
“It would be nice to have a key.”
“We do.”
“Where?”
“With me.”
“What?”
Yuri pulled out an old key from his pocket.
“Here it is.”
Jared and Hernando looked at Yuri with disbelief.
“Why did you have me do that?”
Yuri shrugged at Jared’s question.
“Just curious.”
He was simply curious if the lock could be destroyed with a sword aura.
“Where did you get that key?”
“That’s none of your business.”
The key had been buried in a corner of the Roya Palace study, and even King Fiore hadn’t known its true purpose.
Before the fall of the Royal Family, Yuri had scoured the records and found the key, but by then, it was too late and came with a price.
It was a bitter memory.
As Yuri brought the key close, the lock opened.
Yuri kept both the key and the lock.
Hernando’s eyes widened.
“Was it an artifact?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
“You should’ve figured it out by now.”
“Well, considering it didn’t break no matter how much Sir Jared tried…”
Hernando looked very interested, but Yuri had no intention of handing it over.
“If you could just lend it to me for a moment…”
“There’s no chance.”
“I’ll just take a look and return it, I promise.”
“Enough.”
“Your Highness?”
Yuri began to move forward, ignoring Hernando.
Soon, they came upon a staircase, leading to a tunnel that opened to the outside.
Under the blue sky, Sword Mountain was visible.
Sharp leaves covering the mountain’s surface seemed to cut through the sunlight, creating a dizzying sight.
Yuri smiled.
“It is said that the founder of Briol attained enlightenment on Sword Mountain.”
“Isn’t that just a made-up story?”
Hernando said with his arms crossed, and Jared glanced at him.
“You shouldn’t say such things in front of His Highness…”
“What does it matter? Does Your Highness believe it? Here’s what I think. The mountain was originally called Sword Mountain because it had many sharp-leaved Tigris trees. But to enhance the sanctity of the Royal Family, they embellished the story with the founder’s tale. That’s what I think. Quite logical, isn’t it?”
Yuri was indifferent.
“I don’t know. How would I know?”
“You don’t seem very interested.”
“One thing is certain. The founder did practice swordsmanship here.”
“How do you know that?”
“I have my ways.”
“So, are you going to practice swordsmanship here?”
“No.”
Yuri pointed toward Sword Mountain and declared.
“We are here to explore the founder’s dungeon.”