Chapter 34: Sparring With Stella (Sane)

Elias and Stella stood at the center of the training ground while Natasha sat quietly in one of the chairs nearby, her notebook resting against her lap. Benjamin, whom they had found while walking toward the training grounds, stood beside her with a trace of confusion in his eyes as he watched the two people preparing to spar.

Elias bent down and picked up two swords from the weapon rack before walking toward Stella. He held one sword out toward her, but just before she could take it, a worried glint appeared in his eyes, and his hand stopped.

Stella noticed his hesitation and furrowed her brows.

"What is wrong?" she asked.

Then an amused smile appeared on her face as she tilted her head slightly.

"Scared?"

Elias stared at her for a moment before nodding honestly.

"I am," he said, causing Stella’s brows to rise slightly.

"What if you go berserk like usual?" He asked.

Stella’s expression became somber as she lowered her gaze toward the sword in his hand.

"I do not know of that," she said.

Elias sighed and extended the sword toward her again.

"Take it."

"But..." Stella mumbled as she looked at the weapon.

Elias smiled and said, "I have stopped you once, so I can do that again."

Stella remained silent for several seconds, seemingly considering his words, before finally reaching out and taking the sword.

Elias immediately stepped backward.

His fingers tightened around his own weapon as he stared at Stella with bated breath, carefully watching every movement she made. Natasha also shifted her attention toward Stella, while Benjamin remained beside her, his confusion becoming more apparent.

For several seconds, nothing happened.

Then Stella’s eyes suddenly sharpened.

A wide grin split across her face.

"Hahahaha!" she laughed like a madman before suddenly charging at Elias.

’Shit!’

Elias cursed inwardly and immediately raised his sword.

Stella’s blade came crashing toward him, and Elias twisted his body while bringing his sword upward.

CLANG!

The two swords collided with a sharp metallic sound, and the impact sent a vibration through Elias’s arms as his feet scraped backward across the ground.

However, Stella suddenly stopped.

She lowered her sword, and then she burst into laughter.

"Haha! How was my acting?" she asked with a playful grin.

Elias stared at her with a deadpan expression.

’Seriously?’

He didn’t answer.

Instead, he suddenly dashed forward.

Stella’s grin widened as she raised her sword.

CLANG!

Their weapons collided again, but this time Elias immediately followed with another strike.

His wrist twisted.

The blade changed direction halfway through the motion, moving from Stella’s waist toward her shoulder before she could fully recover from the previous impact.

Stella’s eyes narrowed as she brought her sword upward.

CLANG!

The two blades met, and sparks scattered from the point of impact.

Elias stepped into the exchange and rotated his wrist, causing his sword to slide along Stella’s blade before suddenly changing its angle.

The movement felt completely natural.

It was as though the sword had become an extension of his own arm.

His fingers adjusted their pressure around the handle without conscious thought, and every tiny movement of his wrist translated directly into the blade.

[Weapon Mastery: Sword — Adept V → Sword — Advanced I]

Elias’s eyes widened slightly.

’Advanced!’

Excitement surged through him.

The improvement wasn’t merely a matter of understanding a few additional techniques. His control had become dramatically more precise, and Masterful Hands allowed him to manipulate the sword with a level of accuracy that exceeded his current swordsmanship.

His swordsmanship had reached Advanced I, but his hands seemed capable of doing even more.

Elias stepped forward and thrust.

Stella shifted sideways, allowing the blade to pass beside her ribs, and then swung downward.

Elias caught the attack.

CLANG!

The impact forced his elbow downward, but instead of resisting the force directly, he relaxed his wrist and allowed Stella’s blade to slide across his own.

Then he rotated his sword and struck toward her shoulder.

Stella leaned backward.

The blade passed just above her clothing.

She immediately kicked against the ground and moved backward, creating several meters of distance between them.

Elias smiled.

’This is incredible.’

His sword felt lighter than before, yet every movement carried greater precision.

Masterful Hands allowed him to make adjustments that should have required years of practice. He could change his grip during an attack, alter the angle of his blade at the final instant, and redirect the momentum of an opponent’s strike without wasting unnecessary movement.

Stella seemed to realize it as well.

Her eyes became more focused as she watched Elias.

"This is no fun," she muttered.

"Let’s get a bit serious!"

Her voice had barely faded when she moved.

The change was immediate.

Stella’s body shot forward, and the pressure behind her movement caused dust to rise from the training ground.

Elias’s expression became serious.

He raised his sword.

CLANG!

Stella’s blade slammed into his.

The impact traveled through his arms and forced him backward, his boots digging shallow trenches into the ground.

Before Elias could recover, Stella followed with another strike.

CLANG!

He blocked it.

Then another.

CLANG!

He redirected the blade.

Another attack came from the opposite side.

Elias ducked beneath it, but Stella immediately changed her stance and swung toward his ribs.

He twisted his torso and barely avoided the edge.

The blade passed across his clothing and sliced several loose threads from the fabric.

’Dammit! How does she have such good control over her strength?’ Elias wondered.

Stella was a Monarch who could only produce strength equal to a Lord, which was still far stronger than Elias, who was just a Warrior.

Yet she could fight him like this without hurting him too much.

The Stella standing before him was nothing like the berserk woman he had fought before.

That version of Stella had possessed overwhelming strength and frightening instincts, but her movements had been wild and unpredictable, like a mad hound attacking anything within reach.

This Stella was different.

She understood how to use her body, her sword, distance, momentum, timing, and positioning, and she knew exactly how much strength to put behind every attack.

Her swordsmanship was controlled, almost elegant, yet every movement carried a deadly intent.

If the berserk Stella was a mad hound tearing into anything before it, this Stella was a lioness playing with its prey.

Elias blocked another slash.

CLANG!

The force drove him backward.

He shifted his grip and redirected the blade, but Stella immediately rotated her wrist and struck again.

Elias raised his sword.

CLANG!

The impact shook his shoulders.

He stepped backward, but Stella followed without giving him time to recover.

Her sword came from above.

Elias blocked.

The force drove one knee slightly downward, and the ground beneath his boot cracked under the pressure.

Before he could regain his stance, Stella swept her sword horizontally.

Elias twisted his body, but the edge still struck his shoulder and sent him stumbling sideways.

He caught himself before falling, his boots scraping across the dirt.

Stella didn’t pursue immediately.

She simply stood several meters away, sword lowered slightly, watching him with a faint smile.

"You are not that bad. But I would not call you good either."

Elias breathed steadily as he stared back at her.

’This is not enough.’

His fingers tightened around the sword.

He could continue defending, but he knew that his current physical strength and speed were holding him back.

He needed more.

Elias narrowed his eyes and made his decision.

’Add ten Stat Points to Strength and Speed!’