Chapter 51: Raise the Sword (1)

The warm sunlight, the blowing breeze, and the slight smell of grass.

Good weather, weather that any cold man would enjoy with a warm smile.

However, the boy standing at the center couldn't smile.

He couldn't possibly do that.

'Did... did I really come into the dream?'

His eyes lingered around the house.

The poorly maintained house, fence, and the sparse weeds in between, unusually familiar.

The clothes that were draped over his body felt familiar. It was natural. He had seen the clothes hundreds of times.

'It's just that I've never worn it myself.'

The man in the dreams' clothes.

The man's home.

The very place where the man in his dreams wielded his sword.

Everything was telling him that this belonged to the man.

Of course, he couldn't understand it right away. A few hours ago, he swung his sword in his family's training grounds and had dinner with his family. Irene calmed down and looked around more closely. He went around the house too.

However, the more he looked, the stronger the idea that this place wasn't real. And he gradually came to understand why he was brought to the mysterious place.

It wasn't that.

Right.

He just managed to awaken sorcery.

The face of the boy who just realized that burst out into laughter.

"Hahah!"

It was fun. There was no reason for him to not be happy.

It wasn't because he turned into a sorcerer.

It was because now he was a step closer to finding his own sword, which will protect his family.

Of course, he didn't assume that everything was done.

Irene pulled out the sword, which was stuck in the yard.

Suk!

The sword was a little smaller than the one the man used, suitable for Irene's body.

He wielded it. Even though it was his first time holding it, it felt like he was familiar with it.

Excited, Irene continued to swing the sword and realized one more thing.

Why did he set foot in this place?

What type of ability was the sorcery he awakened?

'This place... training place.'

To give him the strength to protect his family.

However, it didn't give him immediate power.

But, there was no need to be sad.

Because sorcery is a mysterious power, and now it provided him with the best environment to sharpen his 'own sword'.

In words, it could be said sorcery pointed out the fastest way to reach his goal.

Of course, not all Irene's questions were answered.

If he doesn't achieve his goals here, will he never escape from this world?

What is the level of 'his goal'? What criteria could be applied for unrealistic aspirations?

And finally, who was the man in his dream?

What kind of relationship did the man have with Irene, to the point that he exerted such an influence even when the awakening happened?

"..."

Irene shook his head.

With a stiff expression, he swung the sword.

Wheeik!

Wheeik!

More, harder and harder.

As a result, the thoughts in Irene's brain disappeared one by one, and his intense feelings for the sword took their place.

'A thousand times, no, two thousand times, no, more than that!'

He wielded the sword with all his body and mind.

It wasn't an empty act that he did before Lulu pointed out his lack of 'effort'. He continued to act with 'effort'. And gradually increased it.

Two, three, five, ten thousand times.

No, up to the limit of his physical and mental strength!

"Hmph!"

Irene exclaimed. With flames in his eyes and heart.

A will like the burning flame. It's transmitted throughout the body.

Crackle!

The burning fire in his heart will never go down.

The first day in the other world.

Irene Pareira managed to wield the sword with effort 3022 times.

If it was the real world, the season would have changed.

However, the weather here didn't change. It was warm when standing still and cool when the wind blew. Irene's favorite weather continued.

"I will enjoy the food."

It wasn't just the weather that reflected his taste.

Food would appear on the table the moment he would sit.

His clothes and shoes change the moment he enters and leaves the house.

All convenient.

The perfect training space made for Irene.

The eldest son of the Pareira family was spending each day in the wonderful environment.

Woong!

Wooong!

Swing, swipe, and swing again.

He wasn't just simply swinging the sword. He took Lulu's teachings to heart and performed every action with 'effort'. It was so tiring when compared to merely overusing the body.

Even Irene couldn't decide what would be the core of his sword and what the real answer for his sword was. He was still trying his best to capture what he was feeling.

'It's fine. No need to worry.'

Lulu said once. It's inspiring when one starts to worry about themselves. That alone is worth a lot, don't doubt and go ahead.

He nodded and grabbed the sword. And swung it till late night and then all of the next day.

94th day after entering the world.

Irene Pareira swung the sword 5471 times with true effort.

More days passed. The landscape seemed to change.

It wasn't because of the passage of time. This was because Irene was tired of seeing the same scene every day and changed it to autumn. The weather was good except for summer and winter.

More importantly, there was something else.

A part of him that really wanted to change.

To be more precise, the part where he wanted to develop more. The sword.

The problem was that he was still at the same level.

Woong!

Irene still did his best. He poured out the maximum effort he could each day for the sake of finding his own sword.

However, the number of times he swung the sword with actual effort didn't go past seven thousand.

As yesterday was less satisfactory than the day before and today was less satisfactory than yesterday, anxiety began to kill his heart.

"... it's okay."

Phew, taking a deep breath, Irene calmed himself.

He could achieve it. He already knew that effort and achievements aren't directly proportional.

Didn't he experience it in Krono Swordsmanship School?

Hit, hit, and hit again. One day the wall will fall. If the short-term sluggishness can't be handled, then seeing results would be hard.

Thud!

Thinking that he lowered the sword to the floor. And went home earlier than usual.

For a better tomorrow, proper rest was necessary.

Irene, who comforted himself, closed his eyes.

The 221st day in the other world.

Irene Pareira wielded the sword with effort 6695 times.

More time passed. The season turned to spring. And it made no sense.

It didn't matter.

Irene's face was becoming anxious.

Whoo!

He seems to have wielded his sword with the best effort.

In reality, however, that wasn't the case. His heart was giving out.

Whoop!

His heart was beginning to worry.

And his body was shaking too.

He forced himself to continue but soon gave up. If he continues to train in a broken mental state, there will be nothing left. Yes, training after that is meaningless.

'It's better to take a quick break than to go through such meaningless suffering.'

With that thought, Irene put down the sword and entered the house.

And then went to bed. He didn't notice, but the bed was much softer and bigger than usual.

Melting into that, he took a deep breath.

"Haaa...."

He closed his eyes. He couldn't sleep right away. He couldn't sleep. It wasn't like the past where he poured out all his strength and then went to bed like a corpse. Now he had a lot of energy left. Irene knew that too. He was just pretending not to know. He forced himself to sleep and was soon able to sleep the way he wanted.

353th day in the other world.

Irene had swung the sword 5695 times with effort.

One year and 52 days after entering the other world.

He swung the sword 3695 times with effort.

One year and 134 days after entering into the other world.

Irene swung his sword 1400 times.

1 year and 259 days after entering.

Irene didn't wield the sword.

The next day too.

And the day after that.

The next day, and next and next, he didn't wield the sword.

He just laid on the bed with a blank face.

More days and then months passed.

Irene didn't even leave the house.

A long time passed since Irene entered the other world.

In the meantime, he thought back to the old days. It wasn't about his first days in the place. He was thinking of a time long before that when he was in his prime time as the Lazy Prince.

Irene didn't feel disappointed.

He didn't even have the energy to feel that.

'Actually, it was natural for this to happen.'

Irene thought so with his eyes closed.

When he looked back on his life, he had been lazy for more than half of it.

There were no shining moments.

As long as he stayed in Krono, even the lazy prince moved his body faithfully.

'But that wasn't my true will.'

Right. At that time, it was the man's will and emotions, not his own. The master of his effort wasn't Irene but the man.

Had it not been for the dreams, Irene would have been kicked out of the school without even going through the first test.

Now was the same.

This place is a training ground to create his own sword.

With all the unnecessary elements completely blocked off, and thanks to that, he no longer dreamed of the man.

In other words, he was able to continue his training by himself without the help of the man.

And what were the results?

Miserable loss.

Without help from the man, in less than a year, Irene was shaken down.

It didn't end there. Crisis could come for anyone, just like the saying the ground hardens after rain, the greater the crisis, the stronger the heart.

'But I can't.'

It was tough, he was suffering, and his hurting heart took him to his bed like in the past.

... Irene, who thought till then, forced himself to sleep. To forget the empty feelings.

In fact, he thought wrongly.

He tried. He overcame hardships that normal people couldn't and showed a strong figure that no one doubted again.

Right. He was the one who didn't believe in himself.

He underplayed his will when he had endured for a year.

He devalued his efforts, which he had repeated a thousand times.

The 'doubt' that Lulu told Irene to be the most careful and wary about caused a rift in Irene's heart.

Unfortunate.

If he hadn't passed through dark times in the past, if he had lived in a world full of praise and encouragement instead of ridicule, maybe things would have been different.

Maybe he would have trusted and loved himself more. These doubts wouldn't have come. He would have been able to move forward firmly without breaking down.

However, it has already happened.

Falling into a dark, dreamless sleep, Irene began to sink.

No one would rescue him. No one would support him. Because this was a world created by sorcery that only he could enter.

But the next day.

Something odd happened.

"... n."

"..."

"... ne, Irene."

"Hm... Uh?"

Irene rubbed his eyes with a startled expression.

A world of sorcery which no one can enter.

But he was hearing a voice calling him.

He raised his body and looked in the direction of the voice. Surprised again.

It was because of the unfamiliar appearance which welcomed him.

"Come on, get up. You should start training in the morning."

"..."

"What are you doing? Aren't you going to wake up?"

Ilya Lindsay, the beautiful girl with silver hair.

As if she was asking something obvious, Irene kicked off the blanket and got up.