The two Thormods were definitely cooperative - albeit suspicious. They had moved the conversation indoors and talked for a good hour about Hosik, his leaders, and life in the city in general.

Or a stinking hole, as Resneme called it. With the help of their knowledge, Cale drew a somewhat outdated map of Phaseen and noted down the names of the leaders at that time. It was very similar to what Cale's mother had told him, although the explanations given by the two siblings were much more detailed.

Especially the roles and their abilities.

Cale already knew that each of them could fight - after all, he had fought two of them. But the sisters didn't know the details, although the mere experience from the time there was enough for Cale to get a rough idea of their characters.

Resneme knew quite a lot about Hosik, although it mainly concerned his private preferences in bed. Apparently, Hosik was after the gift of shape-shifting, which is why he hoped to have many children with Resneme - but none of them inherited the gift. Neither could she tell how he fought or why he want's to erase humanity.

In general, the information was helpful, but not earth-shattering. However, after this conversation, Cale realized how little he actually knew about the Thormods. Although they would conquer the world in the future, at least 40 years ago they seemed to be living on the breadline. Hardly any children survived the first five years of their lives, which said a lot about their hygiene and health.

<Although... desperation was a good motivator.>

After the conversation, Cale asked the two Thormods to move north and, in the same breath, instructed Velence to send two dragons as guards to keep an eye on the Thormods. The same thing he had done with his mother after visiting the Holy Island.

The next morning, after Cale had spent the whole night talking to the Eldest about it, he walked through the dark streets of the city, lost in thought. Dressed in his usual soldier's uniform, complete with shoulder bag and sword, he made his way to the swordmaster's training sessions.

There were regular gatherings outside the walls, and so far Cale hadn't had the time to take advantage of the offer. After the Duke of Freigoud had sent him a letter with the exact details of the location and time, Cale considered that more or less as an official invitation. Over the next few weeks, he planned to show up every morning before his lectures to get into the rhythm of the duke's training sessions and adjust accordingly.

After a 30-minute walk, Cale reached a large building surrounded by a small forest. He spotted several high-ranking soldiers who, like him, had set out on foot, although many of them were traveling on horseback. The closer Cale got to the place, the better he understood why it was located outside the city walls.

It was huge.

Although he already knew the place from his early life, Cale had never known what it was used for, as there were rarely any people there during the day. This was only logical, considering that they also had to work. They therefore usually met in the early hours of the morning, before many of them had to attend to their daily tasks. However, what made Cale so sure he was right was the feeling of mana in the air. Many of those present displayed the power of their mana before they even began to fight. It almost seemed as if the display of their RM was a competition in itself.

Just as he arrived at the large open area, which had clearly been damaged by the duels, he sensed Loys of Freigoud quickly approaching. A quick glance behind him was enough to see the duke, followed by several other men and women, arriving at the house, dismounting, and tying their horses to the wooden fence.

"So you made it here after all, Zod Adenia", Sir Freigoud called out to him, waving, so that the attention of all the soldiers already present was directed at Cale. Cale, on the other hand, skillfully ignored them, smiled, and bowed to the king's closest advisor.

His goal was to appear respectful but confident. If Ben's character was close to his fathers, then Cale had a rough idea of how he could win Loys of Freigoud over to his side.

"I wish you a blessed and pleasant morning, Duke of Freigoud."

"Morning, morning", Loys of Freigoud replied amusedly. "I guess today will be an interesting day for all of us. We don't get new additions very often, you know."

"Understandable, sir", Cale replied simply and straightened up.

Sir Freigoud led the small group to a clear spot on the flat surface, while in the distance the first two began to duel. Cale watched the pair curiously to gauge how seriously the soldiers were taking the fight, which surprised him greatly. They seemed to be fighting with all their might and immediately exploiting their opponent's mistakes.

"What do you think of our training area?"

"It reminds me a little of the real north", Cale blurted out his first, quite serious thought.

"The real north?", asked one of the men who had accompanied Sir Freigoud. Judging by his appearance, he must have been a nobleman himself, and judging by his uniform, he was assigned to the first company.

"The real north of Frignez. The area where dozens of battles were fought in the past and which literally split the landscape", explained Sir Freigoud, and Cale nodded in agreement. "Have you ever been there, Sir Adenia?"

"Once, a long time ago."

"Is it worse up there or here?", he asked curiously, putting his cloak and some equipment aside, which the others did as well.

Only Cale hesitated for a moment, as he did not know if he was allowed to simply join Sir Freigoud's group. Normally, he would not hesitate if he were not trying to show his best side.

"Frignez cannot be compared to here. The real north has been split into several islands, and everywhere you look, you can find traces of battles in the eternal ice. The scale is far too large to be compared to your training ground."

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

"And I always thought healers were a peace-loving people", a woman commented as she tied her shoulder-length hair back.

"Currently, yes, they refrain from conflict and avoid contact with outsiders, although I wouldn't describe them as unfriendly. They certainly have fighting power, but it cannot be compared to Sylve or Altona."

"I thought you weren't from Frignez?", Sir Freigoud asked, gesturing to Cale to take off his clothes, which Cale politely accepted.

"I come from the northwest of Altona, and yes, I have no living relatives among the chieftains. However, that doesn't mean I've never visited their country, although that was about 10 years ago."

"You seem to have been a free spirit. Have you ever visited Winstest?"

"Winstest and Tsuke, yes. Interesting people live there, although I wouldn't advise anyone to travel there alone. They are... a little... unusual."

Sir Freigoud laughed at this statement, while the others gave him an irritated look. They seemed to guess that Cale was referring to the religious people of Winstest, but the uninhabited continent was more fascinating to them at that moment.

"You've been to Tsuke?"

"Yes."

"What's it like there? Aren't there supposed to be millions of creatures living there?"

"That describes it very well. As far as the eye can see, there are only creatures, each more aggressive than the last. Every step under the burning sun, watched by dozens of hungry eyes. Not a nice place to travel to."

"Why were you there?", the strange woman asked politely, while Cale neatly placed his bag on the ground and covered it with his black cloak, as if he wanted to hide what was inside. It was just schoolbooks and some water, but that was no one else's business. He had used his zero magic to make his notebook disappear, just to be on the safe side, so that it wouldn't end up in the wrong hands.

"To test my knowledge and skills", Cale replied casually, straightening up and running his fingers through his short hair out of habit. "I've spent a lot of time fighting creatures."

"Then you're a specialist in that field", a third stranger said. He seemed to be the friendliest of the three, as his response was casual, as if he were talking to an old friend.

"You could say that. I've seen creatures so rare that you can't find them in any book at present."

"That makes it all the more interesting? What kind of creatures were they?"

"Fast creatures with razor-sharp legs... creatures so fast that you could hardly see them with the naked eye...", Cale began to describe. "Creatures with armor harder than any metal or sword... and even ones that could change their size in the blink of an eye - so much so that they towered over even a dragon. To this day, I have no idea what kind of monster that could have been."

"Dragons? Have you ever encountered dragons?", Sir Freigoud asked, his demeanor immediately becoming serious. When Cale turned to him, he hesitated for a moment, as he wanted his stories to make him seem like a fearless traveler and not a madman who liked to tell tall tales.

"Yes", Cale replied in a serious voice, well aware of how suspicious the other soldiers were looking at him.

"And you survived?"

"I wasn't attacked, to be honest", Cale explained without taking his eyes off Loys. "Just like us humans, dragons have different personalities, and the dragon I met back then was simply curious about my appearance."

"You're getting more intriguing by the minute", Loys of Freigoud muttered, though Cale couldn't tell if he believed him or not. "It doesn't happen every day that you get to see a dragon. I'd be interested to know what kind of life you've led that you've already encountered a real dragon at the tender age of 25."

"It's a long story", Cale replied simply. "A life before my daughter was born."

"Children change you", Sir Freigoud agreed, stepping forward a few paces. He seemed to be referring to his own development after the birth of his son, even though he didn't say so out loud.

Together with the six other soldiers, Cale followed Sir Freigoud, and after some discussion, the nobles dispersed, leaving only Cale and Sir Freigoud behind. While the first of them began to warm up and exchange light blows, Sir Freigoud began to inform Cale of what Cale had already pieced together over the last few days.

"We usually meet here from 4 to 7 in the morning. You can come and go as you please because, of course, each of us has to do our work. It's not mandatory to show up here every day because the whole thing is just meant to keep you in practice. Since there aren't too many swordmasters in Sylve, we try to at least keep from getting rusty with this training. So you are free to come as you please. You don't have to wait for me, but can organize your hours as you wish. Once the others have seen your skills, they will approach you on their own."

"Thank you very much for this offer, Duke of Freigoud."

"It's nothing. I understand that it's difficult for you to find your footing in a completely new environment."

"You are too kind", Cale replied with a smile he couldn't suppress. The man had no idea that Cale had no interest in the actual training, but only in him - and possibly Julius Venlan.

"Well, will you do me the honor of being your first opponent on this training ground?"

"I already thought that the little demonstration in your office wasn't enough for you. With pleasure, Sir Freigoud. But be careful, I won't hold back."

"That's quite a statement!" Loys of Freigoud exclaimed, almost shouting, nodded, and moved away from the center, which Cale did the same.

The two men stood about 20 meters apart and drew their weapons. Sir Freigoud carried a broad, heavy sword that he held with both hands, crouching slightly. Cale, on the other hand, stretched into his usual starting position, as he had done against William and Ben, as well as Jarle and Cedrik, and held one hand firmly behind his back while letting mana flow through his body.

Cale definitely wanted to avoid having to use his Igrikum, but that didn't mean he would generally refrain from using mana. He skillfully let mana flow into the blade, which did not seem to escape Loys von Freigoud's notice. Cale couldn't help but smile, as it was the first time in a long time that he would engage in open sword combat against a swordmaster without Karekama. In fact, his last opponent had been Miguel Heriog - but compared to Duke Loys and Master Paseru, Miguel was an inexperienced beginner. Cale hadn't had a real sword fight in several decades, which is why he was a little nervous about how well he would actually do.

"Are you ready?", Cale finally asked.

"Yes."

"Then I'll let you go first today."

The Duke of Freigoud did not need to be asked twice.

He slowly began to move to the side, which Cale mirrored. The two men took several steps parallel to each other in a circle, tracking each other's movements. With his blade pointing downwards, Sir Freigoud suddenly lunged at Cale, rapidly closing the distance between them. Not wanting Sir Freigoud to build up enough speed and power, Cale ran straight at him.

With a quick, sharp turn, Sir Freigoud struck from below in Cale's direction, who elegantly blocked the attack with one hand. A loud clang could be heard as Cale's and Loy's swords collided and they exerted pressure on each other. Cale suddenly realized that his opponent was not holding back at all and used his free hand for support. With his right hand, he held the blunt side of his weapon and applied pressure, causing Sir Freigoud to retreat.

In the same second, Cale released his right hand and launched a strike from above, which Sir Freigoud skillfully blocked with a horizontal sword stance slightly above his head. Cale's sword slid across his blade to the side, and he reflexively took a step forward while Sir Freigoud continued to retreat. With a firm grip on his weapon, Cale immediately attacked again, this time from below, but Sir Freigoud skillfully blocked his attack once more, even though he had to use his mana to withstand Cale's concentrated strength and speed.

However, Loys von Freigoud was unable to completely withstand the blow that had already been struck, and once again he had to retreat, allowing Cale's arm to swing through and stretch far back.

Sir Freigoud elegantly distanced himself slightly without taking his eyes off Cale. His gaze was deadly serious and seemed completely focused on the fight, as if he already knew that Cale was not an opponent to be underestimated. Cale playfully spun his sword in a circle and let it wander from his left hand to his right before rotating his right hand and grinning defiantly at the duke.

"I guess I'll have to use my primary hand against you."

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