Embracing Magic - E.M Chapter 121 (Part 1)

Karis and Jena scattered to the sides and disappeared off the road. Soon, the screams of beasts erupted from all around.

Meanwhile, Larry stepped out of the carriage and prepared for battle. He held a sword and strapped a shield to his left arm.

Thwack! Thump!

Less than five minutes passed before Karis and Jena returned. Jena was empty-handed, while Karis dragged two beasts with her.

The beasts were called Orcs.

Compared to goblins, these were significantly stronger in every aspect: power, speed, and fighting spirit. Goblins were no match.

“Fight them!”

“Yes.”

Of the two orcs Karis threw down, one was intact, while the other had a severed arm. The balance was set so that fighting one orc would be too easy for Larry, but two might pose a challenge.

“Illusion.”

The two orcs landed in front of Larry. Rodin, as if waiting for this moment, cast his spell.

Rodin’s illusion magic erased the presence of others nearby. To the orcs, only Larry was visible.

―Hiss!

―Grrr!

The orcs before Larry looked around incessantly. All they could see was one of their kin and a young, vulnerable human.

Finally, the orcs felt relief and ignited their fighting spirit.

They had lost their kin to a terrifyingly powerful human just moments before, leaving them terrified. But for some reason, that terrifying human had vanished. Now it seemed like a winnable fight.

One of the orcs attacked first, as if trying to avenge the earlier humiliation dealt by Karis, moving with fierce energy.

“Hah!”

Thunk!

Larry took his stance and blocked the orc’s attack. Holding his ground firmly was what he needed to do at the moment.

As Larry engaged in battle, Rodin moved the carriage slightly to the side. This allowed Bianca and Matthew to step out and watch the fight.

“He seems to have gotten used to swordsmanship.”

“Yes. Blocking and deflecting have become second nature. But he still struggles with pushing back and evading.”

“He’s young. He’ll improve.”

“He’s less than two years younger than you.”

Larry was about one year and eight months younger than Rodin, which sometimes made the age gap feel like two years and other times only one.

“Using me as a benchmark isn’t quite fair.”

“But geniuses often do that, don’t they? That’s why they get frustrated when they see others learn.”

“I’m aware I’m a bit strange.”

Rodin glanced at Larry’s battle before looking up at the sky. The high, blue sky was as beautiful as a painting.

“The weather’s getting a bit chilly.”

“Yes. I’d say it’s late autumn.”

Larry wrestled with the orcs for almost 20 minutes. He was scratched and torn in places, bearing many injuries.

Still, he finally claimed victory.

Larry panted beside the two orcs he had defeated. Despite being covered in blood, he smiled brightly.

“Well done. Better to use potions instead of magic today.”

“Thank you, brother.”

Rodin tossed him a potion. It was an ancient potion made long ago with arcane secrets.

“Undine, clean him up. Larry, get on. We’re leaving.”

“Yes.”

―Hiss, hiss.

Undine washed the blood off Larry’s body.

Only after confirming that he was clean did Larry get back on the carriage, to avoid dirtying it.

*

The journey proceeded smoothly. Although beasts appeared frequently, they merely served as training partners for Larry.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

Larry was sent sprawling by a kick from Karis. His breath was ragged, and he was covered in dust.

“Huff, huff.”

“Had enough?”

“Not… yet.”

“Then get up.”

Every evening, Larry received lessons disguised as sparring matches from Karis. These training sessions lasted about 30 minutes, during which Larry endured relentless beatings.

“Tsk! Come at me!”

Larry barely managed to stand and assume a defensive stance. Without hesitation, Karis lunged at him.

Karis swung her spear, and Larry adjusted the angle of his shield accordingly.

But just before the spear touched the shield, Karis altered its trajectory slightly. The shield swayed downward, exposing his torso.

Thud!

Karis’s elbow struck his exposed chest. Larry barely turned his head, absorbing the impact.

Karis only used a fraction of her strength. If she used her full power, Larry wouldn’t last a single strike, so she restrained herself as much as possible.

Even so, the gap between them was vast. Strength, speed, and technique—Larry was lacking in all areas.

“Argh!”

Even though he tried to deflect the attack, Larry’s vision blurred, and he struggled to maintain his balance.

“That’s enough for today.”

“I can go on.”

“It’s been 30 minutes.”

“Oh!”

At that, Larry collapsed onto the ground. His vision was still spinning, and everything seemed doubled.

“Good job.”

“Karis, what am I doing wrong?”

“Everything. But strength will improve naturally as you train and age. The same goes for speed and technique. The level of swordsmanship you’ve learned isn’t low, so one day you’ll reach mastery. But your reaction speed is an immediate issue that needs fixing.”

Karis was brutally honest when pointing out Larry’s flaws. She wasn’t the type to sugarcoat things, making her criticisms sharp and painful.

“Reaction speed? Is that different from regular speed?”

“The speed of your limbs can improve with age. But reaction speed is independent of age.”

Whoosh!

Karis suddenly extended her hand. Her fingers touched Larry’s head in the blink of an eye.

“You didn’t even react.”

“Th-that was too fast.”

“No. If it were Rodin, he would’ve moved his head slightly. Maybe he wouldn’t have dodged entirely, but he would have reacted. But you couldn’t move an inch before my hand touched your head.”

Whether Rodin would actually react was uncertain. A surprise attack from Karis or Jena was unimaginable. And it wasn’t worth testing Larry’s attacks against Rodin, as Rodin was bound to respond more adeptly.

“Is there no solution?”

Hyung_Otaku2

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