I Have No Intention Of Training The Male Leads - Chapter 5 Part 2

05. The One-armed Knight and the Handsome (?) Magician (2)

Translated by: ???

“If we just leave her as she is in the world, I feel like we might regret it for no reason, you know?”

“Me? I’m a really good person.”

“……I couldn’t agree more. I look forward to your kind cooperation.”

“Excuse me? What about my opinion?”

Margaret laughed heartily as if she hadn’t heard Eve’s words at all. When Alberic chimed in with a chuckle, Eve’s face crumpled into a grimace.

‘Oh, why is this? I suddenly feel really irritated.’

It was certain that Margaret would become a guest in the annex. Tilda returned to Madam Adelaide at Alberic’s command, and Eve simply packed her belongings and moved to the annex bedroom. Since she couldn’t leave the mansion for a while anyway, Eve only brought simple clothes and Octavia’s inventions.

The annex, which was small compared to the main mansion in a C-shape, was located behind the main mansion and had a cozy and comfortable atmosphere.

As Alberic explained that the annex was a space for caring for the elderly who passed down their title to their children and that it was important to make sure the elderly could move around easily, the annex was mostly free of tripping hazards and had very large windows, making it well-lit.

Alberic said that although the space had been occupied by the lords of previous generations, the current Count considered it to be just a space for elderly people in the back room and did not attach much importance to it, so he said there would be no big problem if the two stayed in the annex for a while. After reminding the maidservants he had personally prepared about the importance of taking care of the two, he returned to the main mansion.

“Then let’s get dressed and I’ll meet you in the back garden of the annex.”

“Right now?”

“While I’m still thinking about it. You see, as I get older, I tend to forget things.”

“Oh, but I don’t have any pants. Is it okay to just wear underwear?”

“Hahaha! You really are a piece of work, Lady!”

Margaret, whose stomach was bursting with laughter, folded her waist a few more times and patted Eve’s back. Of course, it hurt a lot, but Margaret just told her that a maid would take care of it and to come back dressed in the clothes she had prepared. She then disappeared into the room assigned to her with the maid who was waiting by her side.

It was no more than an hour before dinner time when Eve, having changed, arrived in the back garden. Her very light beige cotton eyelet shirt and short brown pants that came up to her calf were designed like men’s clothing but fit her body very comfortably, as if they had just shrunk it in size. Compared to a skirt, of course.

Eve, reminded of her previous combat clothes, vowed to rip off more money from Alberic and have comfortable activewear custom-made.

Margaret, who came close without any sign of her presence, spoke belatedly. She was wearing men’s training clothes that were not much different from what she had given Eve. Despite being middle-aged, she had a thick body and a tall height, which suited her. Her ash-white hair, tied tightly behind her head and without any curls, was probably a short haircut that would only reach slightly past her shoulders even if she let it down.

“You’re here early.”

“Uh, yes. Um, teacher…?”

“Stop with the unctuous title. Just call me Margaret.”

“Ohh, but it doesn’t feel right.”

Eve, who was grumbling, was suddenly interrupted by a long, stick-like object flying towards her. She quickly caught it in front of her face and realized it was a practice sword with a dull blade.

“Shall we check if there are any remaining habits in your body today?”

“Excuse me?”

“You know how to use a sword, don’t you? Let’s try sparring.”

With that, Margaret swung her one remaining arm in a circle to loosen the muscles in her shoulders and turned her head from side to side a couple of times to relax the muscles in her neck. Eve, holding the sword, faltered for a moment with a stunned expression, then lowered her body and tensed her muscles, fixing her gaze on Margaret.

When Eve was still Ju-yeong, her skills were mediocre for an Awakened. Most of her skills were passive resistance to external elements, and her only decent skills were her aura blade, which emitted sword energy, and her physical enhancements.

Since becoming Eve, she hadn’t had a skill window pop up, but recalling her past, she was able to enter a state similar to using her skills.

Eve felt her senses sharpen and her body change into something specialized for battle. Sharp instincts quickly emerged in Eve, and she attacked with ferocity, rushing forward to tear at her opponent’s neck at the slightest opening.

“You’ve hunted before. Mainly large prey.”

“…….”

Ignoring her opponent’s words, Eve slowly shifted her body while aiming her sword at Margaret. Then, once she was sure she was in her line of sight, she took advantage of Margaret’s brief blink and rushed towards her in a breath.

Swish¹This is an onomatopoeia. I used italic for all the onomatopoeias.!

The sword grazed the ground, making a fearsome sound as it swung in a full circle and sliced horizontally across Margaret’s right waist. At that moment, Eve believed the blunt edge of the sword had connected with Margaret’s waist.

Thud!

Eve barely managed to keep her sword upright and block Margaret’s flying kick with her sword. The sound of their collision was so heavy it was hard to believe it was just human flesh colliding with iron.

Eve pushed her sword outward with all her might and changed her trajectory, swinging down to strike diagonally at Margaret’s left side. Margaret easily evaded the attack by slightly tilting her body.

Eve’s attack missed, and her sword quickly retracted before stabbing fiercely again. The sword’s target shifted from Margaret’s neck, lost its target, and then slashed her shoulder, then to her waist, and back to her neck. In the blink of an eye, several strikes were launched.

In an instant, Margaret disappeared from Eve’s sight. Eve didn’t panic, instead spinning her body backwards and swinging her sword wildly in the direction of her spin.

Thud! Margaret’s leg and her sword made contact again. If she hadn’t swung, Margaret would have gotten a good kick in her back.

Eve tightened her grip on the sword handle with both hands and lowered the tip of the sword down. With a scraping sound as the tip of the sword touched the ground, Eve lowered her body and waited for Margaret to show an opening.

“It looks like you favor a large and heavy sword. You also have a bad habit of dragging it on the ground too often. In addition, your connected movements seem awkward in some places. You didn’t properly learn swordsmanship, or is it a sword style for real combat?”

Eve didn’t answer. Margaret wasn’t expecting an answer either. Eve’s thrusts were as fierce as a spear and her cuts were accurately aimed at vital spots. Her sword was incredibly sharp. Margaret clicked her tongue and muttered to herself.

“Your form is quite good, but the smell of blood is too strong. It is entirely used to kill.”

As soon as her words ended, Eve’s new movement was quick and agile. Once again, she swung her sword horizontally. This time, the sword strike continued from the bottom left to the top right.

Instead of blocking it, Margaret dodged it by quickly moving her body backwards. Eve, who was using centrifugal force to spin her body around while slashing horizontally, tried to kick her away using her spinning momentum, but Margaret’s movement was slightly faster.

Eve, who ended up kicking into the air, clicked her tongue. Her horizontal slash was a flop.

“How far have you progressed in your martial arts²?? (Chesool) is a term used in Korean martial arts that refers to a unique physical training method and martial art. It is a traditional Korean method of physical and mental training that has been passed down through history along with Korea’s history. It involves using one’s body without weapons to perform physical training techniques.?”

“…I can use joint lock techniques³In martial arts, ??? (gwanjeolgi) refers to joint locks or joint manipulation techniques. These techniques involve using leverage and pressure to manipulate an opponent’s joint, such as the elbow, wrist, or knee, in a way that causes pain or immobilizes them. Joint locks are often used in grappling arts like Judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Aikido, as well as in some striking arts like hapkido and karate. to some extent.”

“Hmm.”

This time Margaret quickly attacked and punched straight into Eve’s face, leaving a traceable trajectory. But Eve stiffened in response to the sound of the air being torn apart before moving her body backwards.

Margaret’s knee quickly followed and aimed towards Eve’s stomach. There was not enough distance between them for her to swing the sword. Eve eventually threw her sword and crossed her arms to receive the heavy kick, and then quickly rolled over to the side. If she had been hit straight on, she wouldn’t have been able to stand up.

Eve quickly got up after rolling on the ground. She was hit by Margaret’s fists, knees, and feet about ten times, and had to either block or dodge them with her senses alone as they became faster and increasingly difficult to follow.

Her senses kept up with her movements, but Eve’s body, which was not yet fully developed, couldn’t keep up and ended up allowing Margaret to attack.

A proper kick to the side sent Eve crashing to her right side with a thud. Margaret, who was watching Eve struggle without making a sound, took a deep breath and said.

“You seem to have mastered your martial arts a long time ago. Your swordsmanship seems to have been practiced solely for the purpose of slashing and stabbing to kill your opponent. You’ve got a good feel for it, but your body hasn’t caught up with you yet. That’s something you’ll get better at if you keep training… Anyway, I think you’ve got the idea. Let’s call it a day.”

“Heok, it’s… not… that simple… heok… as you… say…”

“Tsk tsk… Young people these days have no stamina.”

“Huu, heok… That’s because… Mar… garet… heok… is not… human… heuugh…”

“Hoho… You’re talking nonsense. Go inside, wash up, and rest. You probably won’t be able to lift a finger tomorrow, so rest well and let’s start again the day after.”

After Margaret, who didn’t even break a sweat despite her intense movements, disappeared from the back garden, Eve collapsed onto the grass, gasping for breath. Her lungs felt like they were going to collapse. But more than ever, she felt alive.

‘Holy shit! If she’s not a human weapon, I don’t know what is! The last strike didn’t even look or feel real! Is she even a human being? Now I understand why that lunatic late Emperor forced her into marrying him to take over her bloodline! If it were me, I’d take a shot at being the second generation of such a monster! At the very least, I’ll definitely get a super rare rank!’

Eve lay sprawled out on the ground for a while, gasping for breath, before finally managing to sit up, groaning in pain. Her soft palms were torn and covered in blood from gripping the hard sword handle and enduring the powerful blows, and her whole body was covered in dirt and sweat. She wanted to soak herself in hot water as soon as possible.

?

After a long, hot bath, Margaret changed into clean clothes. She dismissed all the maids and rummaged through her packed bag for a communication crystal. She placed a small piece of magic stone in a carved slot in the crystal ball and pressed the call button. And after a short while, the face of a person appeared. Margaret straightened her back and quietly called out to the other person.

• 1
  This is an onomatopoeia. I used italic for all the onomatopoeias.
• 2
  ?? (Chesool) is a term used in Korean martial arts that refers to a unique physical training method and martial art. It is a traditional Korean method of physical and mental training that has been passed down through history along with Korea’s history. It involves using one’s body without weapons to perform physical training techniques.
• 3
  In martial arts, ??? (gwanjeolgi) refers to joint locks or joint manipulation techniques. These techniques involve using leverage and pressure to manipulate an opponent’s joint, such as the elbow, wrist, or knee, in a way that causes pain or immobilizes them. Joint locks are often used in grappling arts like Judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and Aikido, as well as in some striking arts like hapkido and karate.