Chapter 64: Wrong Answer.

Then Frank took the morning star from Alexander and inspected it from the spiked round top to the handle. Finally, he swung it left and right, up and down.

Alexander waited impatiently beside him, tapping his foot against the ground. Maybe it was the hunger, but he was slowly getting angry.

When Frank was done with the inspection, he nodded and said, “I was right. This is wrong. It is the wrong weapon for you.”

Alexander’s voice carried a sharp edge as he said, “If you knew that it was wrong all along, why didn’t you tell me? You know what, just tell me the right weapon now.”

“Because the goal of picking a weapon isn’t to impose my preference on you. It is to guide you to find the perfect fit on your own,” Frank said, unconcerned about the edge in his voice.

Alexander wanted to frown, but his face was blank as he said, “How are you not imposing your preference on me now?”

“I picked a weapon I found suitable, but you’re telling me it is wrong. You already have the correct weapon in mind and won’t let me go until I pick it. Clearly, this is about you.”

The more he spoke, the higher his voice became. So even though his face was emotionless, it was clear he wasn’t as calm as he looked.

“That’s not true,” Frank said, shaking his head. “I don’t have a single correct weapon. I have three correct weapons.”

“The three are to allow for room for error on my part. If you settle for one of the three, I will be satisfied.”

Alexander was just about to argue when Frank said, “I know that explanation doesn’t satisfy you. So I will ask you to trust me on this.”

“Don’t trust me as a person, but trust me as a trainer and a warrior. Trust that I know what I am doing,” he said sincerely, looking straight at Alexander.

Alexander was still angry, and he felt he had the right to make a fuss, so he wanted to make a lot of fuss about it. But he decided not to argue anymore because Frank had a point.

Grinding his teeth, he said, “You’re the trainer, so I’m going to trust that you know what you’re doing.”

“Good,” Frank said, beaming. “So I will expect you tomorrow morning.”

Alexander snorted and turned away. As he left, he muttered, “I can’t believe you had me restart the first round when you already knew the correct answer.”

“I also can’t believe I wasted all of that time with you there watching me make the wrong decision without telling me. I have a feeling that you enjoyed seeing me miserable.”

Then he turned back and pointed at Lancelot as he said, “You know what, I take it back.”

“I thought he was the crazy one. But you’re both crazy. You’re both too intense about weapons,” he said, switching his finger from Frank to Lancelot and back to Frank.

Hearing this, Frank rolled his eyes and said, This is why I wanted you to eat before I revealed that you were wrong. This isn’t the right news for an Apostle with an empty stomach.”

“Fuck you, man,” Alexander shouted at him.

“I won’t be so hungry if you hadn’t made me waste my time. So fuck you and your fake concern,” he said, giving him the middle finger.

Frank didn’t know what the middle finger meant, but he understood the intention, and it made him laugh. As he laughed, he waved at Alexander and said, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Alexander didn’t want to justify that patronizing gesture with a response. Instead, he glared at Frank one last time before turning to leave once more.

Behind him, Frank was still laughing. But when he saw Lancelot shaking his head at him in disapproval, his smile withered away.

“What are you looking at?” he asked with a frown.

Lancelot said in disdain, “I’m looking at your poor training methods.”

“My training methods are fine,” Frank said with pride.

Lancelot’s voice was full of mockery as he said, “That’s the problem. Your training methods are just fine. They are not great or spectacular. It is barely average.”

Frank’s frown returned with a vengeance. In fact, it quickly transformed into a scowl as he said, “I have work to do.”

Even before he finished making his excuse, he was already turning away. It was as if Lancelot was something he wanted to get away from as soon as possible.

But before he could go, Lancelot called out, saying, “Did he tell you he was preparing to win the competition in one month?”

“What does that matter?” Frank stayed to ask, still scowling.

“If you’re a good trainer, you will prioritize his long-term growth over short-term benefits,” Lancelot replied, his voice sincere.

In response, Frank sneered and said, “That’s another advantage of using simple weapons. There is no difference between training for long-term expertise and short-term use.”

So I don’t need to sacrifice one for the other. As long as he learns what I have to teach him, his long-term growth will also be assured.”

Lancelot also sneered back and said, “That’s not the advantage you make it out to be. The fact that there is no difference only means the upper limit of your weapons is very low.”

“How I pity that poor man. He will be so blind sided one month from now,” he said, shaking his head in disapproval.

By this point Frank had had enough of his archrival. He didn’t want to see Lancelot’s face or exchange one more word with him, so he left directly without giving an excuse.

“How rude!” Lancelot said, chuckling.

As he watched Frank turn away, his gaze lingered on the other man for more than usual. He also stared at Frank with something other than disdain.

On the other side, Alexander was dealing with the consequences of his hard work. As usual, the worm was there to make fun of him.