The Villain's Retirement-Chapter 35: Physical Reinforcement Magic

After Ard had heard his surname, Ard could now see some resemblance and the arm that had fallen on the ground. That man, probably more than a decade older than Gary also had blue eyes and curly blonde hair, but it was longer—just like that of a lady.

’Hm. He just introduced himself again. Should I introduce myself as well?’

Ard debated briefly, but in the end, he merely nodded and stepped into the carriage, brushing past him.

"—!"

Faller opened his mouth to speak, but Gary shook his head. For some reason, he even looked pleased by the young man’s reaction.

This was a stark contrast to Gary’s usual demeanor. Most of the time, he looked bored with life itself, as if he were being dragged from place to place and forced into things he had no interest in. Even when insults were thrown his way, he often didn’t react at all, pretending not to hear them.

But now, a seemingly astonished smile slid across his face as he turned and followed Ard into the carriage.

"I told Sir Faller we could skip the introductions," the young knight said casually.

Ard paused mid-step and glanced back at him.

"But seriously—you need some manners lessons. They’re boring as hell, but still." Gary smiled, "This is a lesson from a senior of yours in this noble thing, you better listen."

For a moment, Ard’s face darkened inwardly before he finally settled inside. ’Why is he being so friendly?’

Inside the carriage, it wasn’t as wide as the one they rode to Salience. It was only enough for six people, but it was clearly the luxurious type. Zayn and Ard sat together. Gary took a seat across from Ard, with Faller beside him. And to make the atmosphere awkward, Gary was staring at Ard since they had departed.

And to make the atmosphere thoroughly awkward, Gary hadn’t stopped staring at Ard since they’d departed. Until now, he is still fascinated. Ard looked to be around the same age as him or older. He wasn’t as buff as him, but he had plenty of muscle in him and was even taller. No one could argue he had him beaten up in the visuals category as well. However, to Gary’s eyes, there was more to this type of guy than his appearance. He was the strongest person he had seen around his age! Moreover, he was a swordmage!

To all the knights in the world, that title was the next advancement. It is a realm beyond ordinary steel and muscle, where one gets to awaken an elemental attribute and fused it with their swordsmanship itself.

That is the level they all dreamed of reaching and what separates the genius to the ordinary. Gary himself had been unable to awaken anything like that yet.

Despite this, Gary believed he had been a really skilled knight despite his young age. To aim to become a swordmage at eighteen years old was just delusional! However, the guy sitting across him right now was exactly that kind of monster!

In Gary’s mind, his memories of Ard in the battlefield were still very fresh.

"So..." Gary said, "You’re right-handed, yeah? And do you usually use a short sword?"

’...’

"I noticed you reinforce your limbs directly," he immediately continued, "which is very old-school. But the way you do it—it’s refined and silent. You’re like one of my previous teachers. You’ve got a lot of mana, but there’s no visible flow. Honestly, that was the cleanest physical reinforcement I’ve ever seen."

’Ah, he must be talking about when he saw me fight.’ Ard thought, remembering Gary was one of the nearest individuals who had saw him actually swing his sword and send out energy blades.

Zayn popped his head as he spoke. "I don’t understand."

Gary grinned.

"Let me explain."

Then he started.

"The trend for most reinforcement users nowadays is they prefer burst output. Burst output is when a magic user gathers a significant amount of mana within their body first and subsequently attack with greater mana in their limbs. The old school is when they use a stable amount of mana to reinforce their bodies."

It was the first Ard had first heard of it.

He didn’t even know there was a trend like that.

"But Lord Salience here, his fighting style is that he stabilize his mana while attacking and moving but also uses burst output to attack and move. It is hard to notice but to us physical reinforcement magic users, that is a huge difference. It can usually separate masters from those who is not."

Zayn looked at Ard.

"Is that hard?" He asked out of curiosity.

That was also my question. Ever since he had learned how to walk, he had been able to do that.

Gary then answered.

"It is. It usually messes up footwork and if we are unlucky, the magic we are using will leak out and slip out of our control. If that happens, we just wasted our mana for no reason."

Faller remained quiet but his silence seems to agree with Gary.

Ard of course understood the phenomenon Gary was talking about. Just that it had never happened to him. If it ever did, he did it intentionally.

Ard’s eyes then went down at Gary’s sword: a rapier. A rapier is a straight 2-edged sword with a narrow pointed blade and extremely sharp. This made him think about what one thing he said.

’Did he think I preferred short swords because of that fight?’

Short swords, in this world, were about arm-length. It is neither heavy or light in particular. It is always balanced and the standard so it is usually used by rookie sword users.

Ard almost smirked.

’I only grabbed it because it was nearby. And the owner was dead.’

Answering him now, Ard then spoke, "Yes, I’m right-handed. But I don’t really have a preference for short swords."

"Oh?" Gary who was explaining something to the kid stopped talking and perked up, his attention returning to him. "Then what do you use?"

"Ordinary swords," Ard replied. "I don’t like heavy ones like Knight Faller’s. They don’t suit me. Nor do I use light ones like you use."

"I get it, I get it." Gary hummed for a second and nodded quietly.

"As for physical reinforcement," Ard continued, "it’s always been like that for me."

Silence fell. Gary stared at me with his blue eyes. Even Faller stiffened.

"...Always?" Faller finally spoke as if he just heard something something. After all, if that answer was true, it alone told him everything.

The old knight looked over Ard’s body with a mix of concern and respect.

Generally, the difference between the average and the above-average in physical reinforcement magic users were the amount of mana they could draw from their body. That always depended on the mana stored inside one’s body. The higher the amount, the more one could reinforce their physicals when they pour mana into their muscles.

However, what separated the strong from the monsters was control—guiding mana through flesh and bone without leakage, distortion, or panic. For this very reason, knights have very strong minds.

Yet, all warriors leaked mana. Even veterans. That is natural. Fear caused surges. Desperation caused flares. Final gambles caused explosions—loud, violent, crude. So, when one uses physical reinforcement magic without so much of a leak, reinforcement meant something else entirely. When one mana flows so naturally during battle it seems to be a part of the body. Where there seems to be no waste and no turbulence.

It meant that the user had attained a considerable amount of power, and concentration.

So much so that one’s focus is in the zone and is not even thinking of messing up. This includes many things, but above it all was acceptance—of strain, pain, risk.

Or worse—

Absolute disregard for one’s own life.

Faller swallowed. There is a saying that insanity is one of the greatest attributes of a knight.

At forty-one, Faller understood the battlefield too well. There had been moments he, too, had thrown away concern for his life to survive especially in his prime. In exchange, he attained a state where he had more control over his mana than his usual limitations. Because he understood that mindset, he feared it and respected it.

The young man across from him spoke of it as if it was instinct.

’Always been like that? Since when? Where did he grow up? What kind of monsters was he surrounded by for that to be the case?’

Faller’s gaze sharpened. He already knows he was no ordinary traveler but to think he had been thinking of it that way. To Faller and most warriors, these types of individuals were battlefield monsters wearing human faces.

Meanwhile, Gary clenched his fingers, smiling.

’I knew it. This guy’s a genius. He is the same age as me but he’s already on another planet. He might even be stronger than Father.’

The carriage finally slowed.

Lantern light spilled across polished stone as the banquet hall came into view within the ducal estate. Music drifted through the air in a warm, elegant, and deceptive manner.

For some reason, as they entered, Ard couldn’t understand why the two knights beside him were looking at him as if he were mentally insane.