Vol. 3 Chapter 97: Dagger Technique & Family Issue (Part 1) (Patreon)

“Here, princess.”

Elson handed me a plain dagger, which I gently received. Like I was someone scared of holding something sharp. I mean, I wouldn’t want to nick myself, knives were scary~. They were dangerous.

I stared at the dagger with wide and intrigued eyes. Finally, I’ve come this far. My precious daggers would finally get the upgrade they deserved!

“Careful not to hurt yourself with it, princess.”

“O-Okay.”

“By the way, are you not going to wear your jacket? Despite being indoors, it’s still cold here.”

We were back in our training hall. Elson didn’t want to practice outside, as I would have liked it. You know, in my own practice yard where snow was prevalent. The cold was just too much apparently to practice there the whole day. I recalled Rogan shivering all the time when we were out there last.

“It’s best to prevent frostbite,” he added.

I removed my coat when I entered the room in preparation for practice. Can’t be too restrained in this important learning session. “It’s fine, I don’t feel too cold.” That was the truth. It was cold, yes, but just a little. Like the cold in the morning.

It was different for the others. There was a fireplace, but it was small and not enough for everyone and the size. Well, looks like that’s a flaw in this building’s design now, is it?

Elson winced as he stared at me with concern. “I’ll put more wood in the fire, just in case.”

“... Okay.”

He grabbed more logs and threw them into the fire. Maybe if I felt so cold, I could just conjure a ball of fire close to me and warm myself up. Meaning, I should be safe if I were ever stranded in a cold and freezing place, but not like that would ever happen. Pfft.

“Let us begin. Coat the dagger with magic, as you would with a sword,” he instructed the moment he came back. “Remember, daggers are not the same size as a sword, so there will be differences in their applications.”

“Right.”

I poured a tiny amount of mana into the dagger, from which it gently shone with a faint crimson glow. It was a little struggle to adjust accordingly. Thankfully, once I was done, it didn’t break. But I have to let go of the excess mana into the air, just like with the sword.

“Good. Now prepare to shape the magical slashes. Instead of the entire blade, design it to be placed in different parts. Let’s start with one slash. Look.”

He demonstrated with a dagger of his own, and the blade glowed. He pointed at a part of the blade. “Notice the little contrast in color?”

Oh yeah, there was. It was faint, but there was a line that differed in shade from the rest.

“Yes.”

“That’s the slash. Normally I blend it completely, but I want you to see it so you can visualize it on your side.” He added another hint of slash. “These are compressed, which you unleash at your will. Can you imagine the logic?”

“Yes, I can.”

“Then give it a try and make one.”

“Okay.”

I shifted the existing mana on my dagger. I imagined it like forming a partition on the magic coating. Just a single partition. My mana moved like swirling water. I compressed it at the flat of my dagger. It required extreme focus, but things were going well.

“Don’t use much mana for now, priority is for you to prepare the slash.”

A white line appeared on the blade amidst the crimson coating. Immediately, I stopped all mana movements. However, I still needed to hold it in place.

“Very good. Are you restraining it alright?”

“It’s alright.” Because of my hard practice with Armament Magic, you could say my precision in controlling mana has developed significantly. But this was one slash, so who knows how I’ll do when there’s more?

“Aim your blade away.” He moved beside me. “And try unleashing it. Don’t aim the slash at us. It goes straight where the line is facing.”

That much was obvious…

I twisted the blade to the side. After making sure it was safe, I released the restraint. From a small line from my blade, it instantaneously enlarged at the appropriate length that I desired. The slash shot outward in tremendous speed, dissipating before it hit the wall — how fortunate, wouldn’t want to pay for that. Not like I have money to pay for it, anyway.

“That’s good, your highness.”

“It didn’t swirl.”

“You will need to configure its direction and turn.”

“A straight line is still a good way of attacking, right? Why not we just fill the entire blade with slashes and shoot it in all directions in a wide range?”

“That will need a lot of mana. If you bring numerous slashes, you could prevent enemies from evading them. But won’t be good in a drawn out fight if you consider the amount of mana a person has.”

“Of course.”

“I swirl it so it covers more space and makes it harder for enemies to evade if they make a mistake. Will also cause fatal damage from multiple slashes, and not just one that goes straight. That said, it could be different in your case.”

“I suppose, with the amount of mana I possess.”

“Indeed. You could add as many slashes as you want and fire it in all directions. Wide range with no gap. That would be terrifying in a battle.”

“But as you have said, it will cost plenty of mana. I will need to think about it.”

“Before thinking about it, I suggest practicing the technique first.”

I smiled. “Right.”

“Alright, let’s try adding another slash. See how you’ll fare.”

I poured mana into my dagger again, and after preparing one slash, I strived to add another one on the other side of the blade. It was a little more work, that I actually grew a little anxious that I would fail to restrain it. However, everything worked out well.

From here, I twisted the blade again for the lines to face the safe direction. I released the restraint, and two slashes of light fired outwards. The first one dissipated before it hit the wall. However, the second had a little miscalculation, and it crashed against the wall.

“Ssshhhh,” I winced.

I’m actually a hazard myself… Thankfully, from the looks of it, the damage was only an inch deep.

“Result is good,” Elson said. “You only need to find balance. But for now, we can proceed with our training. I’ll be teaching you knife throwing.”

Ah….

“It is a crucial part of utilizing my technique. It’s like how you learn to handle a sword.” He held out his dagger. “First, hold the dagger like this.”

“Wait, Sir Elson. We can skip this part to save time.”

“... We can’t skip this step. Knife throwing requires practice. And it will take weeks or even months to be proficient.”

I awkwardly smiled with a chuckle. “It’s fine, Sir Elson. There’s no need to worry about it. Just tell me how you do the thing.”

With confused squinted eyes, he faintly nodded. “Then we’ll need to go outside.”

Huh, he was less resistant this time. Maybe because he was reminded of the time we first sparred where I had to prove that I can do sword fights. When I was just learning it. Oh well, all’s well.

I may have to show a glimpse of my dagger skills, but if it means saving time, then it’s fine. I just have to pretend I fucked up here and there. It’s just novice Estelia here!

I slipped into my coat and followed Elson, who walked through the back door. At the back of the building was a small and open yard. A suitable spot to practice magic knife throwing. I have to admit, I am feeling excited!

Finally, going up with my dagger skills! It’s every girl’s dream to mix daggers with magic!

Hm? It’s not? That sucks.

Elson was deploying some wooden boards for targeting. I took a deep breath and gazed skyward. Winter was always a beautiful season. It was a sign of holidays, especially Christmas.

Christmas… a time for families to gather and celebrate. To gather around the table, eat together and have fun in each other’s company. A reunion. A good time. Give gifts. It was a curious thing to think about.

“Alright, we’re ready.”

Elson brought me out of my thoughts, walking back to me and holding out his dagger.

He began explaining. “You must keep a connection with your dagger even after you throw it away.” Elson turned towards a target. The blade of his dagger glowed, from which after, he threw it against a target. The dagger stabbed through the wood.

Elson continued. “Look.” He held out his hand in front of me. Gradually, a thin stream of mana became apparent. It was as thin as hair. “A connection to my dagger. Through this, the magic imbued on it won’t dissipate and I can control it. With my will, I trigger the magic.”

At that moment, the mana contained on the blade was unleashed. Slashes swirled around, dismantling the wooden target easily like cutting through paper.

“Can you visualize it, princess?”

“Oh, yes.” I grinned.

The link and thread thing, I have already done it. It involved a certain young cute chef which will not be mentioned here. Where there was a bomb on her person that I prepared. Which I could have triggered anytime I wanted if she went astray.

This part was easier than I thought. And making the link invisible was easy, too. It’s like giving it mostly to no attribute. Like plain and straight up air.

I stepped forward, facing towards the other target board. I filled my dagger with mana and added a single slash. After restraining it properly, I initiated a link with the dagger. Thinking it was secured, I readied the throw.

I pretended to be nervous and hesitant. After winding up my arm, I threw the dagger forward. It flew, piercing through the air, and struck the edge of the wooden board. Yes, the edge, not the center.

Oh nooo, how could that be? That’s embarrassing~. I’m such a noob.

Anyways! The link was still on. Good. I activated the magic. The slash shot out, cutting through one side. The link disconnected. Disconnecting was necessary to save mana, especially if we have no other use for the dagger. However, perhaps there’s a way to make use of this.

“Did I do good?” I asked as I turned towards Elson.

With wide eyes, he answered me. “You learned way too fast. Beyond normal.”

“It’s not that far from spellcasting, so it’s not so hard.”

“That’s not what I meant.” He glanced at my servants, as if he was looking for an answer lingering in his mind. “I have seen your brother, prince Estevan train. Even he needs weeks to be proficient in one thing. Months to years to master.” He returned his eyes to me. “But you, you know how to fight with a sword despite just learning it. Almost as if you are already a trained fighter.”

I smiled. “I am merely a fast learner, Sir Elson.”

“It’s not just being a fast learner. There’s no way you are a fighter, you never trained whatsoever before.”

“Then what?”

“Perhaps it’s a gift.”

“A gift?”

“There are just people gifted in certain things.”

“I see. Anyways, can we continue with the training? I still have not made more than two slashes.”

He sighed. “Of course, princess.”