SWNOVELXO Chapter 67 - Neighbor (3)
Chapter 67. Neighbor (3)
Crack- Crunch-
A smile didn’t leave Yuri’s face as he loosened up his body.
‘Lucky me.’
He had only expressed slight dissatisfaction about the weekly sparring sessions over the past year, and his opponent had gone so far as to wager points.
And a hefty sum of 10,000 points per session at that.
‘Hmm, maybe I should’ve played hard to get? If they started with 10,000 points, I probably could have squeezed out even more.’
Yuri found himself annoyed for having immediately agreed, swept up in excitement, making such a rookie mistake.
But that self-criticism was short-lived.
Yuri grinned again.
‘This is my ticket out of being broke!’
After exhausting all his points at the last Special Sale, Yuri only had a meager 150 points left.
He had been feeling the sting of an empty pocket, but now, out of nowhere, a 10,000-point request had come in—how could he not be thrilled?
If Theresia hadn’t been watching, he might have broken into a celebratory dance.
Moreover, the first sparring session had begun right away.
‘Hahaha…’
Yuri stretched, satisfied, while eyeing the 10,000-point pouch lying neatly in the corner of the sparring ground.
Though he felt great, his bones and muscles had stiffened a bit from sleeping for five days straight.
Crack-
With a refreshing sound from his bones, Yuri turned his head forward.
There, Theresia was also loosening up.
‘This is the second time.’
Theresia, whom he had briefly encountered in the Forest of Beginnings.
At that time, he had avoided a fight with her due to a specific purpose in mind.
Thus, this would be their first proper clash.
‘I wonder how strong she really is?’
He knew roughly that her skills weren’t to be underestimated.
But exactly how strong the top cadet of the 49th class was, he would only find out by fighting her.
Yuri spoke in a cheerful voice.
“Alright, before we begin, let me explain the rules for ‘Fun Sparring Time with Yuri!’”
Theresia twirled her spear and took a ready stance in response to Yuri’s laughter-filled voice.
Watching her, Yuri continued his explanation.
Very, very kindly.
“First, the fee is 10,000 points per session, and the time is unlimited. And since this is a spar, I ask that we refrain from any lethal attacks that could endanger each other’s lives.”
“…Fine.”
“If the exchange of attacks and defenses exceeds 100, the session will end automatically! Also, if either of us gains a decisive advantage, the spar will be over! Any objections?”
“None.”
As Theresia shook her head, Yuri drew his sword.
The playful expression that had filled his face just moments before turned serious in an instant.
“Well then…”
Shiiing-
“Let’s get started.”
Yuri’s upper body leaned slightly forward as he briefly signaled the start.
And with that, Yuri’s body shot forward.
The first encounter with Theresia.
And up until today.
Yuri had always been on the receiving end of a surprise attack.
This time, he was the one to strike first.
Swish-!
“One.”
Yuri began to count with a slight smile.
And Theresia responded calmly.
Clang-
Yuri’s sword, flying at her, was met with the rotating shaft of her spear and deflected backward.
Using that force, Yuri spun halfway around and swung his sword again.
“Two.”
Clang-
The trajectory of Theresia’s spear, circling around her body as if to protect her, once again knocked away Yuri’s sword.
“Three!”
Spear and sword.
The two metal weapons clashed fiercely in the air, meeting and parting repeatedly.
With each clash, Yuri’s count increased until it reached fifteen, and then there was a brief lull.
Clang!
Screeech-
The spear and sword, swung with greater force than before, used the resulting recoil to push the two of them apart.
They stared at each other.
Without speaking, they both understood.
‘That’s enough of a warm-up.’
‘Now it’s time to get serious.’
The exploratory attacks were over, and the real fight was about to begin.
Vuuum-
As the two of them drew upon their mana, a faint vibration echoed through the cave.
The mana they gathered caused the air to tremble.
Hummm-
As the slight vibration continued, the tension between them grew even thicker.
‘Show me what you’ve got!’
‘Show me your skills!’
Without anyone saying a word, they charged at each other.
And without hesitation, they swung their weapons.
Whoosh-
Though the weapons were different, the sound of them slicing through the air was singular.
The exchange of attacks grew faster and more intense than before.
Although the sparring rules mentioned avoiding lethal attacks, they seemed to disregard this, attacking with little care for the rules.
‘Fast?’
‘As expected, quick.’
Though their weapons were different, both of them prioritized speed.
As a result, their exchanges were so fast that the average person would struggle to follow with their eyes.
Clang- Clang-
Theresia’s thrusts.
Yuri’s slashes.
Though countless attacks were exchanged, only fleeting shadows and sounds could be glimpsed.
The most surprising part was that neither of them was at full speed yet.
They hadn’t even revealed their true techniques.
As the exchange of attacks passed fifty, Yuri was impressed.
‘As expected!’
Of course, Yuri didn’t have much experience.
In fact, the only person he had sparred with seriously was Mucci.
So, it was fascinating and exhilarating to find someone of his age who could keep up with his speed.
In the midst of this enjoyable exchange, Yuri’s expression suddenly grew puzzled.
He felt something odd.
‘She’s fast, no doubt about it…’
But why does she seem slower?
Theresia’s speed was definitely not slow by any stretch of the imagination.
Wasn’t she moving at a similar pace to his?
But the strange thing was, she seemed slower than when they met in the Forest of Beginnings.
Clang-!
When the exchange reached seventy, Yuri realized something.
‘Ah… It’s not that Theresia’s gotten slower.’
Her speed was probably the same as when they met in the Forest of Beginnings, or maybe even slightly faster.
Even so, the reason she seemed slower was…
‘I’ve gotten faster since then!’
The reason was simple.
It had only been a few days since he met Theresia.
In fact, if you excluded the time he had been unconscious, it had only been about two days.
Yet in those two short days, Yuri had experienced a lot and gained much.
Thanks to pushing himself to the extreme with Magic Flow in pursuit of the Special Sale, he had discovered new possibilities.
His mana had also significantly increased thanks to the Low-Grade Mana Enhancement Elixir.
And above all…
‘The Hundred Steps Ceremony.’
He had surpassed his limits multiple times during that hellish ceremony.
The limits of fear.
Physical limits.
Mental limits.
As a result of stepping beyond the extreme and into a new realm, Yuri had evolved to a new level in that short time.
‘At the time, it felt like I was going to die from the pain…’
But now, facing his own growth, Yuri felt like he could endure that level of suffering many times over.
At the same time, he couldn’t help but be surprised by Theresia.
‘If we had fought properly in the Forest of Beginnings, it could have been dangerous.’
Though neither of them had revealed their full techniques yet, Theresia was showing a level of skill comparable to his current self.
This meant that back in the Forest of Beginnings, Theresia had definitely been stronger than him.
‘Good thing I ran away back then.’
As Yuri secretly felt pleased with himself, Theresia’s expression grew more serious.
‘Is this really the new recruit who joined just a few days ago?’
But soon, she had no choice but to nod inwardly.
‘Yes, it should be at this level.’
At the same time, Theresia gritted her teeth.
‘If the current me were to undergo the Hundred Steps Ceremony… would I even be able to walk fifteen steps?’
She could firmly answer ‘no’ to that question.
This made it clear.
The person in front of her was holding back.
Her eyes sharpened with resolve.
‘I want to draw out everything from this person with my own skills.’
The strength she had witnessed during the Dragon Plaque Ceremony.
And the miracle of the fifteen steps she had seen just days ago.
The person in front of her was strong.
Although he was only a member of the 50th class, his strength was not something she could underestimate just because she was his senior.
Moreover, Yuri Holland was undoubtedly someone worthy of being called a ‘true genius.’
The world was full of geniuses.
The place where all of them gathered was the Cradle.
Yuri Holland must have an exceptional talent that could be called the best among them.
In fact, he might even possess the greatest talent in the history of the Cradle.
The fact that he had walked those fifteen steps was proof of that.
That’s why she wanted to challenge him.
To see if the effort she had poured in over the past year could surpass that wall of talent.
[“You’re a stone, Tetscha. The hard shell that encases you will never be easily broken. So… go to the Cradle.”]
These were the words of the person she respected the most.
Words that had become the guiding principle in Theresia Winchester’s life.
[“In the Cradle, where countless geniuses gather, you’ll constantly compare yourself to them. You might even despair at the gap between your talent and theirs. No, you definitely will. But Theresia, my dear Tetscha….”]
The rough hands, calloused like stone, that she admired so much.
The hands she wanted to emulate, gently caressed her cheek.
[“You must confront them. Face their sharp, shining talents and chip away at yourself. Until the gem that is you, hidden deep within that hard shell, is revealed.”]
She had said it wouldn’t be easy to chip away at oneself by confronting shining talents.
That it would be a painful and exhausting process, filled with daily despair and constant temptation to give up.
Even so, Theresia had followed those words and entered the Cradle.
And those words had proven to be true.
Compared to the talents commonly seen in the Cradle, her own talent was indeed insignificant.
That’s why she constantly compared herself to others and was disappointed in herself every day.
That was something inevitable for a human being.
But there was one thing she never did.
Give up.
Even when comparing herself to others.
Even when blaming herself for her shortcomings.
Even when endlessly despairing.
She never gave up.
For the past year, she had gritted her teeth and confronted countless talents, chipping away at herself.
That’s how she had risen from the Yellow Dragon Plaque to become the top of the 49th class.
And that’s how she had claimed the Golden Dragon Plaque in the latest Dragon Plaque Ceremony.
Yet, she didn’t stop there. She continued to grind herself down, never resting.
She wanted to challenge herself against Yuri Holland, the sharpest and brightest talent.
Following the words of that person, May Winchester.
[“The you of tomorrow will surely be stronger than the you of today.”]
‘Tomorrow, I will be stronger than today.’
Following those words, which she had repeated thousands, tens of thousands of times.
Following the path she had struck with her hands, torn and calloused thousands, tens of thousands of times.
Theresia thrust her spear forward, and finally, her spear, like a comet with a long tail, charged toward Yuri.
The Winchester family’s secret Magic Body Technique.
Meteor Thrust.
Yuri’s face hardened as he watched the trajectory of the white spear coming towards him.
‘This… could be dangerous.’
It didn’t appear particularly fast or threatening.
But Yuri’s instincts sounded an alarm.
This was the most dangerous attack so far.
‘Then I’ll deflect it.’
Seeing the comet-like spear approaching, Yuri deployed his Magic Flow.
Vrrrrr-
Theresia’s Meteor Thrust, wrapped in Yuri’s Magic Flow, began to lose momentum.
Simultaneously, the trajectory that had been aimed at Yuri shifted, swept away by the deflection.
Yuri thought that was enough.
But then—
Swish-!
The trajectory of the Meteor Thrust, which had veered off as he deflected it, suddenly twisted back toward him.
‘……?!’
Theresia’s spear had turned back, riding the deflection’s force to strike again.
Yuri couldn’t help but be surprised by the situation he had never encountered before.
The only saving grace was that Theresia’s spear had lost much of its force as it rode against the flow.
Swish-
Yuri’s form blurred as he used Cloud Step, and Theresia’s Meteor Thrust pierced through his afterimage.
Then—
Bang-!
Yuri’s sword and Theresia’s spear collided with a loud crash and then separated.
With a brief pause, both of them retracted their weapons and spoke simultaneously.
“One hundred.”
“…One hundred.”
The agreed 100 exchanges had just ended.
Their first sparring session had ended with neither of them gaining a decisive advantage.
Yuri glanced at the small hole in the left shoulder of his clothing and muttered softly.
“…What a loss.”
All he had was this single set of clothes, and now, just like last time, another hole had been punched through it.
Though his words were full of complaints, Yuri’s eyes were filled with interest as he looked at Theresia.
‘This is good.’
It seemed this sparring session wouldn’t just be about earning 10,000 points.