I was a bit worried about what they were planning to do after this, but at least mother and father decided to listen to me for now. To prove my point further, I decided to break the wooden sword of the guard the moment I learned my new skill, if that wasn’t possible, I would Discharge to mimic a skill anyways. Still, it looked like that wouldn’t be necessary…


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    The Treasure Mind of Steel’s proficiency reached level Thirty-five.


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    List of Compatible Actions:


    Meditation


    Earth Affinity


    Water Affinity


    Fire Affinity


    Wind Affinity


    Heavy Strike


    Shield Slam


    Pain Resistance


    Rage


    Lightning Slash


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    Lightning Slash - Lv 01 - (00/100) (Requirements: Dexterity - 25, Endurance - 25, Vitality - 25)


    You can infuse your arms with lightning magic in order to enhance its speed exponentially. It consumes a lot of mana, and it can damage if you aren’t focused enough. Higher levels increase physical and magical damage caused. Cost: 100 mana.


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    I didn’t hesitate in picking Lightning Slash, but I was surprised that Rage and Pain Resistance appeared there as well. Pain Resistance was probably there because of the pain I felt the first time I broke the wooden sword of the guard, but what about Rage? Aside from Arislan, nothing annoyed me in this world.


    I was curious about what would happen if I used the skill without the necessary requirements, but I didn’t want to hurt myself while Mom wasn’t around and there were no healers nearby either to satisfy my curiosity.


    After using the points, I felt much better, like I was full of energy… and when I used the skill, I didn’t feel the pain in my arms either. I only felt a bit of a pain in my hands because I hit the ground with the sword and then broke it as well… I had to visualize the skill movements before using it, or it wouldn’t follow my commands properly. In any case, I had some spare wooden swords, so it was fine.


    ‘Let’s test the skill against the guard tomorrow…’


    I was in a good mood when training started and the guard noticed that since he furrowed his eyebrows. After all this time, he thought that the strike that broke his hand was a fluke, so his guard wasn’t particularly high. Still, he froze when he saw my movements blurring for a moment and then felt a snap, followed by a zap on his hand.


    When he realized what had happened, he was holding a broken wooden sword, and he felt that he had been shocked. However, my wooden sword stopped just after it broke his hand. The guard looked at me and at his sword again, but I didn’t do anything aside from keeping a blank expression.


    “You have another spare, right? Bring it to me.”


    “This is my spare. The other broke yesterday.”


    I pointed to a corner in the small garden of the house and then he saw the remains of the sword that I broke. Then he realized that I was telling the truth. After clicking his tongue, he decided to head somewhere else to find another wooden sword.


    ‘I can’t get carried away with this. It only works because he doesn’t want to kill me. I might be able to surprise an unsuspecting opponent, but this is more like a finishing move that is essentially useless against opponents that are much stronger and faster.’The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    In the blink of an eye, I used a chunk of my free points to bolster my parameters. The gap between us was still painfully clear. His speed, reflexes, and strength weren’t just the result of raw numbers, they were honed through years of training and combat experience. What I’d gained was an edge, not mastery.


    I couldn’t rely on points alone. They were a quick fix, but they wouldn’t close the gap entirely. I needed to find other ways to increase my parameters, ways that didn’t rely solely on increasing proficiencies. Training, experimentation, maybe even testing the limits of this skill in creative ways. There had to be another path forward.


    In any case, when the guard returned, I sparred with him seriously, but the next day, I broke his wooden sword with Lightning Slash. He glared at me with a serious expression… he could tell that I was using him to tell my parents that I didn’t need something like school.


    However, on the third day, he came prepared… when I tried to break his sword with Lightning Slash, my wooden sword broke instead when our weapons collided. He still flinched a bit when he was shocked during the impact, but only that… at the same time. My hand began to hurt.


    “... That wooden sword isn’t fair.”


    “Why wouldn’t it be?”


    “It has a metal rod inside.”


    It was the only explanation… still, the guard just shrugged and then smiled. I wanted one of those as well. The wooden sword was still a bit too big, but it was too light after all my training. Perhaps that was the answer that I needed… train my strength instead of just my swordsmanship skills.


    “I know what you are doing, and I’m not planning to become part of your schemes.”


    It was a bit too soon for him to assume that… if I couldn’t break his guard, I should just pass by it and break his arm with an ordinary wooden sword. Still, I needed to become faster. Since my sword swings could do that, perhaps I could do the same with my steps. The name Lightning Step also sounded pretty badass.


    The guard was carrying another wooden sword, an ordinary one this time. With a smirk, he pulled it from his back and tossed it at me. I caught it, feeling the weight in my hands, and for a moment, entertained the thought of breaking his arm instead of his sword. He was pushing his luck.


    I couldn’t help but notice that his attitude had shifted lately. He’d become a lot more condescending, especially since Arislan had mentioned before that he already had five wives and couldn’t marry again. I tightened my grip on the sword. Maybe the next time I tried Lightning Slash, I’d aim for something a little closer to home, like his ego.


    ‘Even if it hurts my legs a bit, this will be a good experiment.’


    The guard assumed a relaxed stance once he realized that I couldn’t break his wooden sword even with my technique that he couldn’t fully understand… still, he soon regretted that. I didn’t have to visualize the technique that much… after all the visualization training that I did before, this was a cinch.


    I raised my sword and leaned my forward, but then I disappeared in the next moment. At the same time, the guard felt danger, but soon pain took over as he felt his elbow hurting like a bitch. When he looked to the side, he saw trembling a bit with my wooden sword touching his arm… while I controlled the attack not to smash his bones, the momentum still carried a lot of power.


    “You little shit!”


    My legs were paralyzed thanks to the technique, since my leg muscles weren’t used to that speed, I was unable to move for a moment and then he hit my head with a backhand strike. The world spun for a moment and then got dark… when I realized what had happened, I was staring at the blue sky, but soon the guard appeared above me with an expression full of anger.


    “... I should have smashed your arm.”


    That made something snap in his head and then he raised his leg to smash me, but soon he stopped when he heard a powerful shout.


    “Enough!”


    It was Arislan’s voice… I couldn’t help but sigh. I was about to use my remaining mana to electrocute the balls of this guy. Still, that shout made him recover his reason and then stepped away while keeping a calm expression.


    “Aizen! Are you alright?”


    Mom showed up and then saw me get up while some blood was falling from my nose. That hurt a bit, but it was laughable.


    “It just feels like a mosquito bite.”


    “But you are bleeding!”


    “I barely feel it.”


    The guard didn’t like the fact that I was able to get up so readily. While the attack made me lose half of my health, my high endurance made me deal with the pain quite well.


    “What is the meaning of this?”


    Arislan approached and then glared at the guard. If it was possible, the last person that I wanted to get angry with was him, but I had no control over his actions. Sooner or later, he would come to understand that I don’t need his worry or sympathy.


    “My apologies, Captain. The blood and pain rushed to my head and then I acted without thinking.”


    “I saw everything. He held back on his attack not to hurt you too much, even though you had a steel rod inside your wooden sword. You had the upper hand, and you still acted like this.”


    “I have no excuses.”


    “It is fine. He was probably thinking that if this were a real sword, I could have chopped his arm and acted on reflex. This is no big deal. We can continue with the training.”


    The three of them stared at me, their expressions a mix of confusion and shock. My nose was clearly broken, blood still trickling down, but I stood there as if nothing was wrong. Given my age, they probably expected me to be wailing in pain, or at least on the verge of tears.


    Instead, I just wiped at the blood with the back of my hand and straightened up. Compared to everything I’d endured in the White Room, this was barely a scratch. Pain like this didn’t faze me anymore. It was just another minor inconvenience, a passing annoyance at best.


    Their confusion deepened when I cracked a faint smile, more out of habit than anything else. If they thought this would slow me down, they were sorely mistaken.


    “No… training is over. You are dismissed for the day.”


    “Yes, sir.”