If it was an inheritance from her father, then there had to have been some period of time before it’d come into her possession. Lefille refuted this idea, however, swinging her arms as though the sword were in her hands.
“I’ve immersed myself in swordsmanship ever since I was but a child, always dreaming of the day that I’d be able to swing a sword like this.”
“I guess that means you’re pretty confident about using it,” Suimei asked, slightly ill-naturedly.
Lefille’s response was candid.
“Hehe. Unfortunately, it’s for that very reason that I’m not proficient in anything but the sword.”
“Not at all. I think you’re pretty amazing. I know a thing or two about swordsmanship, but when it comes to using a sword like that, I haven’t the least confidence.”
Lefille’s self-mocking words were met with a tone of respect.
Swords weren’t something you wielded simply with strength. When it came to slashing, then certainly arm strength was a key factor, but actual battle skills were another thing altogether. Effectively wielding a sword in battle didn’t just require a certain amount of strength, but also the bodily control to flourish it as desired.
Anyway, when Suimei spoke of his inability to use such a weapon, the primary reason was that its weight and size were beyond his body’s ability to support.
It was likely because of Lefille’s mastery of a sword like this that she had chosen it as her primary weapon.
That was also likely the reason that she uttered the words that came next.
“—It’s nothing special. With a little practice, anyone’d be able to chop a semi-giant in two with this.”
“…”
I misheard her just now. MISHEARD. Lefille had just said something insane with a casual tone.Seriously, there’s not a chance in hell you could learn how to chop a semi-giant – a being capable of destroying a city wall with its fists – in two with just “a little practice”! Her earlier words, that she had taken down the semi-giant only with the aid of her companions, were now clearly naught but hollow modesty.
That meant that this young girl hadn’t even come close to going all out in her ranking battle. Comparing her ability with the master swordsmen of his world put her on an entirely different plane of existence.
As Suimei shook his head, Lefille took the opportunity to ask a question of her own.
“Suimei-kun, can I ask what you’re best at?”
“I didn’t hear anything. I HEARD NOTHING! —Eh?”
“Suimei-kun? Are you alright?”
“Eh? Oh, ohhhh. I, well… pretty much this.”
Finally realizing that the topic of conversation had shifted, Suimei showed his answer, rather than spoke it.
To make it easy for her to understand, he concentrated mana in the palm of his hand.
That made the answer apparent. Lefille, who had asked without really thinking, showed an expression of understanding.
“Magic, right? Well, I guess since you’re a mage, that should have been pretty obvious.”
“Although it has to be said that when I first started, there was a period when I was pretty much clueless.”
“Clueless?”
Lefille’s question caused him to think for a bit before responding, a somewhat perplexed smile on his face.
“Yes. Lefille, when you first started to learn how to use a sword, what did they tell you?”
“—Hmm, well, it’d always be these long, drawn-out lectures that always started from the origin of it all, leading up to the reason why it was necessary that I wield a sword, etc. My ears practically bled I heard it so many times,” she answered, half-jokingly.
That even the origin of swords was a point of instruction showed just what history lay behind it all.