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Half A Hero 47
Ghwyr’s heart pounded violently on his chest. As they assumed their fighting stances. He took a deep breath and tried his best to calm himself as they met each other’s gaze. He clenched his jaw and took a step back, holding his sword with both hands while pointing it at his opponent.“Nifty.” Heffer One-eye commented as he touched his blade with his.The instructor had a laxed and open stance, his one arm behind his back while his swordarm outstretched and pointing at Ghwyr. He tapped Ghwyr’s blade lightly with his, taunting him to do the first move but the halfling didn’t bite his bait.“Hmmm…” The instructor’s face contorted while he waited for Ghwyr to do the first move.Ghwyr stared at him intently as he pushed back the instructor’s blade with a nudge. The instructor didn’t react, he seemed to be expecting the move coming from him. He slid his front foot forward and readied himself to lunged at the one-eyed instructor. However, before he could strike, Heffer was already on him.Wi
Half A Hero 48
Ghwyr fell on his knees with just one gentle push. His knees haven’t recovered it strength yet. He had been trying to hit the instructor for a few minutes now, but all he did was hit nothing but air. He tried using the zigzag attack again, but as it turned out, Heffer had already predicted it and simply pushed him by the shoulder.“You’re still in no shape to fight, and yet you want to continue?” The one-eyed instructor asked.Ghwyr used his wooden sword to get up to his feet. His arms burned as he pushed himself back up, yet his eyes were fixed on Heffer.“N-not… yet… done.” He said as he heaved his breathe.“Oh, so you’re still going at it, huh?” The one-eyed swordsman was unimpressed. “Fine, let’s dance.” He gestured Ghwyr to attack at once.Showing no fear, Ghwyr screamed and rushed towards the arrogant instructor. However, his legs had failed him again. As he was about to lunge at Heffer, his knees gave out, stopping his momentum immediately.He kneeled on the floor, cursing unde
Half A Hero 49
“Left… right… left…rig—left?” Ghwyr could barely catch-up Heffer’s attacks. He kept on counting the one-eyed swordsman’s movement and strikes, but every time he thought he had caught up to it, the swordsman changes his tempo.“Right!” Heffer smirked as he sneaked into Ghwyr’s right flank and went for a piercing stab.Ghwyr was able to parry it at the last second. The impact of the attack flung him to the wall, winding him.“A parry at that angle?” Heffer looked at the chipped part of his wooden blade. “Quite impressive all things considered. Did you know how many times you’ve died already?” He pointed his weapon at Ghwyr once again.“Y-you… h-h-haven’t… killed me… yet.” Ghwyr replied as he turned to Heffer.The one-eyed swordsman scowled at his answer. “Hmmm… maybe you’re right. So, how about I end it now?” Heffer dashed towards him before disappearing from his line of sight.Ghwyr tumbled forward as he tried to avoid the assault. He wasn’t sure where the attack would come from, but h
Half A Hero 50
Ghwyr waited for the blade to descend into his head and end his misery. But the dreaded moment didn’t come. He opened his eyes and saw the blade just above his head.“Well done, Ghwyr.” Heffer shook his head as he spat a spittle with blood from his mouth. “You got me good, right here.” He smiled, showing his two missing teeth.“W-what… just h-happened?” Ghwyr looked around and saw the surprised faces of the entire class.Everyone was wide-eyed and mostly slack-jawed after hearing Heffer’s announcements.“Yes, you heard that right!” He turned to the rest of the class. “This adventurer has just saved you sorry asses. To those interested, we shall convene here tomorrow at 8 in the morning!” He announced.The rest of the class clamored after hearing the news, while Ghwyr sat there against the wall. His body was hurting and unmoving. His muscles were screaming in pain, burning with every little movement that he attempted. He stared at the entire class and listened. Maybe if recovered some
Half A Hero 51
Ghwyr was already up before the first strode of sunshine crept on his window. Actually, he was sleepless that entire night. He tossed and turned the entire night just to get a little bit of sleep, but he was too excited to get some rest. His thoughts were all about today, one of his big days. He could now finally learn a proper sword fighting technique.He wondered what the first lesson would would look like and what kind of teachings would the stern Heffer One-eye teach them. Would Heffer be as strict and unforgiving like how they met him, or would he be the wise and uncannily patient teacher? There was only one way to find out.He jumped out of his bed, washed himself and geared himself. After wearing his armor, he went down to the bar and ordered a good set of heavy breakfast. He asked for the morning breakfast set, which was very unlikely of him. But then again, sword training could be very tiring, so he needed to bank up.Mama Berta was grinning at him as she delivered the food t
Half A Hero 52
Sweat trickled down his forehead as Ghwyr tried pulling out his blade from the edge of the room. He tried it a couple of times before and he slumped back to the ground, unfulfilled and frustrated. He sat on the floor heaving while staring at the ornated pummel of his hilt.Veins were popping out of his arms as he continued to do it once more. He felt a cold air running down his nape as his vision slowly faltered. He had to shake his head a couple times just to get out of it. His ears were ringing terribly but he pushed through it, regardless of how fruitless it was becoming.He wanted to give up and call it quits, but he couldn’t. Out of fear and respect for the veteran swordsman, he was willing to push it until he gets it. Besides, it wasn’t only him that was suffering the same fate. The attending class who arrived a few minutes after Heffer started, were also slumped on the floor and tired.“Is this what you are, adventurers?” Heffer blasted them an insulting question. “Were you tau
Half A Hero 53
Ghwyr had to calm himself after hearing such horrifying noise. He wasn’t sure it was, but it sounded like something inside him tore asunder. His heartbeat raced faster than ever before, and he felt a burning feeling spreading all over him. He glanced at Heffer who was looking at them intently, crossing his arms and looking bored at what they were doing. “Your body has an empty second source which mages call, the Inborn Reserve. Once that is activated it becomes known as the Second Source.” Heffer explained as the class carried on with the exercise. “Naturally, the Inborn Reserve is locked. For it to be unlocked one must undergo extreme physical stress to get it and even then, not everyone could unlock it.” He glanced at them, smirking at their exhausted looks. “Some die like flies.” Heffer said nonchalantly. “Fatigue is most likely the reason for their deaths.” He added. Most of the adventurers paused after hearing this. Their eyes widened as if they just realized they signed their
Half A Hero 54
Their numbers had dwindled from around twenty-ish to exactly nine. Most of the adventurers gave up in the middle of the first lesson, while others had to be placed into the infirmary because of the unrelenting side-effects of the awakening. The day after they had awakened their Second Reserve, Heffer immediately taught them the first moves of the grueling Imperial Sword Art, Sunspire, which was considered the fundamental movement of the Imperial Fighting Style. It involved a lot of leaping and lunging, not to mention a lot of acrobatic movements and quick spells that include a large mana usage. “Left swing! Leaping sidestep to the right!” Heffer shouted at them as the class moved in chorus to his command. “Riposte and stab!” He clapped his hands and gestured that they do it again. Gwhyr had done these series of movements for almost a week now. He had the entire first set of the Sunspire memorized, and yet the one-eyed swordsman was still relentless in letting them do it over and ov