How to Live as a Genius Knight in a Fantasy World

45.

Although Rohan had convinced Sophia with great effort, the truth was, it was his first time teaching someone.

Moreover, it wasn’t just any swordsmanship that could withstand numerous trials and errors, but a form of magic that could cause serious injuries with even a slight mistake.

Naturally, there was cause for concern.

Typically, the method used to pass on magic involved the teacher directly injecting their aura into the learner’s body, opening up a new path for the aura to flow.

The aura path initially created in this way was rough and narrow, but through consistent practice of magic, it naturally developed into a wider and stronger form.

The biggest issue with this method was the enormous mental energy it consumed from both sides, as well as the considerable danger involved in the process.

Controlling one’s own accumulated aura within the body was something that only knights could do with ease, and manipulating someone else’s aura within their body was even more challenging.

Even Viscount Ezel, who was relatively high in rank compared to ordinary knights, had shown signs of exhaustion after passing on magic to Rohan.

Despite this, the reason this method became mainstream was that, when starting to learn magic, one would not be able to feel the aura without possessing exceptional talent.

Of course, passing on new magic was difficult and challenging, and it was not the type of thing one could easily give up on, which is why Rohan never forgot to practice by catching wild animals and releasing his aura on the way back to Ezel.

The results of his practice were somewhat successful.

The aura flowing through Rohan’s hands roamed through the bodies of those men according to his will.

There were instances where he inadvertently caused injuries or even death by thrusting aura into places that should not be touched, but this was merely accidents due to not knowing the men’s anatomy.

There was never a case where he lost control of the aura.

Although his skill in magic had decreased, his ability to handle aura seemed to have improved compared to before.

Starting with a skill level close to 50% for an SR-ranked skill, it was not strange that his skills had improved.

But beasts were beasts, and they were undoubtedly different from humans.

Moreover, Sophia must have possessed some unfamiliar aura from her past magic training.

The risk was still present, which led Rohan to seek a new method.

If Sophia’s ability to control aura was not significantly lacking, then instead of directly injecting aura, Rohan would simply “guide” her.

Since this method did not differ significantly from the traditional magic, he concluded that there was no need to take on a huge risk.

After testing Sophia’s proficiency with the sword and organizing the new aura path in his mind.

Rohan believed it was the best method.

However, whether Sophia would accept this method was another issue.

Due to the nature of the aura path circulating throughout the body, for Rohan to “guide,” his hands would have to reach even the embarrassing places.

Sensing various emotions in Sophia’s eyes, which had notably cooled down from before, Rohan hurriedly attempted to explain.

“Oh, I don’t have any ulterior motives. It’s just that, I think this way might be safer…”

“…Please explain in detail.”

In response to her noticeably colder tone, Rohan began to elaborate on why he had come up with this method, from the background of his idea to why he wanted to share aura with her and touch her body.

She, who had listened to a long and detailed explanation, summarized Rohan’s story in one sentence.

“So, my achievement isn’t really bad, and this method is safer, right?”

In Sophia’s eyes, still lingering with suspicion, Rohan vigorously nodded his head.

In response to Rohan’s reaction, she, who had been pondering with a troubled expression, finally nodded her head with difficulty.

“…Since you say so, Rohan, I’ll believe you. What should I do?”

“Just stay standing there. It’s fine to lie down if you find it difficult…”

“Oh, no. I’ll just stand.”

“And please… could you take off your coat a bit?”

At Rohan’s request, Sophia, closing her eyes briefly, turned around and slowly took off her clothes.

The garment she had worn for training slipped off with a rustle, revealing Sophia in an undergarment made of a fabric similar to silk, her face flushed.

Just by looking at her flushed face, one could easily guess the embarrassment she felt, which prompted Rohan to maintain an indifferent expression even more diligently.

“Sophia, we’ll start now.”

Whether intentionally lowering his voice or not, there was a slight sense of relief in Sophia’s stiff body as she focused.

The Eizel family’s technique of manipulating energy was centered in the lower abdomen.

By circulating the mass of Auric clusters, which grew in size through hundreds or thousands of rotations, and storing them through the Auric orifice in the lower abdomen for use.

Therefore, the first place Rohan’s hand naturally reached had to be the lower abdomen.

As Rohan’s hand slowly reached Sophia’s belly, her body slightly flinched at the unfamiliar sensation.

“We’ll start from here. Move the Auric following my finger. It may sting a bit, but it shouldn’t be too hard to endure.”

With Rohan’s voice devoid of any impure emotions, Sophia’s focus shifted to Rohan’s finger, which ultimately turned into the Auric within her body.

Operating the technique while touching someone else’s body was somewhat awkward, but Rohan’s fingers moved at a considerate pace, making it easy to follow.

Starting from the lower abdomen, Rohan’s finger slowly traversed Sophia’s body, and her Auric closely followed, causing her entire body to tremble.

Following the Auric Road, Rohan’s finger naturally brushed over sensitive areas of Sophia several times.

Given how she blushed at first, causing a scene wouldn’t have been out of place.

However, forging a new Auric Road required an exceptional level of concentration, and soon Sophia, completely engrossed in the technique, put all her effort into moving the Auric without feeling the slightest embarrassment.

With each new Auric Road, a subtle warmth and tingling sensation surged along with the stinging.

Sharing many Auric Roads with the existing ones meant that the transmission of the new technique didn’t take a particularly long time.

“Ah…”

As Rohan’s finger, having traversed Sophia’s entire body, withdrew, a slight sigh escaped Sophia’s lips, expressing a faint sense of regret.

Meeting Rohan’s gaze, Sophia’s face once again turned crimson.

“I, I’ll go first today.”

Quickly dressing, Sophia left after leaving a brief notice, disappearing like the wind.

Unable to stop her as she left as if fleeing, Rohan scratched his head in embarrassment.

“Quite embarrassing, it seems.”

Given Sophia’s age, it was something one could easily understand.

As the sound of Sophia’s footsteps faded completely, Rohan, left alone in the basement, slumped back onto the floor.

The task of carving out a new path in Sophia’s body had been successfully completed.

It was a smooth and uneventful task, without any danger.

“It’s not easy.”

Nevertheless, Rohan, feeling a considerable amount of fatigue, let out a deep sigh.

He had to concentrate his nerves entirely, as one could never know when things might take a wrong turn.

Thanks to you, Rohan had to spend much more mental energy than expected, but now his mind was so preoccupied that he didn’t even care about such things.

Due to the many favors and help he received from the Viscount Ezel, he finally felt that he had repaid them to some extent.

Although he succeeded in creating a new Aura Road after many twists and turns, the two of them still had to face each other every day for a while.

Sophia had to watch whether Ezel’s perfect Aura Manipulation technique was being used properly, and she also had to teach them how to use Aura when displaying Ezel’s Aura Swordsmanship.

In the daily meetings that continued, the relationship between the two of them rapidly grew closer.

While Rohan spent busy times meeting with Sophia and practicing privately.

There was someone struggling with unexpected affairs.

It was none other than the Viscount’s wife and Sophia’s mother, the Viscountess.

With her husband away at the front lines, she, as the lady of the house, had no choice but to make crucial decisions about the estate.

The problem was that, given the circumstances, there was more than enough to worry about.

“Ruth, let’s postpone the wedding for now. We might not even get proper congratulations.”

“Yes, my lady.”

“Has there been any news from my father?”

“No. Lord Yeld hasn’t made up his mind yet. But he might respond within a day or two.”

“Hmm… What did they say in Tigrun?”

“They’re asking him to respond to the summons first…”

“…It can’t be helped. Oh, how’s the food supply transport going?”

“They say it’ll take about three more days.”

“That’s somewhat relieving. With the summons approaching, make sure the military preparations are thorough.”

Amid the overwhelming tasks pouring in, she sighed deeply as she noticed how pale she had become in just a few days.

Whether it was from staring at the parchment too much, her eyes felt increasingly tired.

As she closed her eyes for a moment, worries about her husband crept up on her, tormenting her.

“Sigh…”

As a nobleman’s daughter who had received a high education, she managed to handle her tasks somehow, but the pressure on both her body and mind was draining her strength day by day.

It had been close to twenty days since Arden fell, yet the state of the kingdom was still in chaos.

No, to say it was still in chaos would be an understatement.

Rumors of the disappearance of many royal family members, including the king, spread, and bands of bandits took advantage of the turmoil, rampaging like fish in water.

The southern nobles who had returned to their territories had split into the east and west, forming their own powers without making any moves.

Fortunately, there was no news of the northern nobles falling, but no one knew when the dark mages, who had surely gained power in Arden, would strike again.

The only comfort was that, without any specific request, the temples had started to act.

She had already heard news that one order of paladins and one order of priests from the Arnishian Order had entered the kingdom of Arden through the Yeld territory.

There might have been strong opposition from the nobles under normal circumstances, but now, it was a situation where they were welcomed with open arms, not enough arms.

While the Order showed swift movements, the attitude of the southern nobles, who had not yet felt the fire under their feet, was incredibly slow.

Using the excuse of mobilizing troops, they delayed, but with the king missing, it was incomprehensible why they were procrastinating like this.

In the Viscountess’s mind, she wanted to lead Ezel’s troops to Frederick’s command post immediately.

But now, the entire Arden region had long been completely under the control of dark mages.

With a mediocre force, it was difficult to even guarantee survival.

Unable to do anything alone, what she was pinning her greatest hope on was the summons in ten days.

As requested by Tigrun Viscount, a significant number of troops would gather, albeit not swiftly.

Though not a rapid movement, the gathered troops would undoubtedly be a great help in the fight against the dark mages.

‘Please, please hold on until then.’

She, once again, thought of her husband and whispered a fervent wish in her heart.

As the southern nobles slowly gathered.

Heavy clouds loomed over the dark sorcerer front centered around Frederick and Carlton.

Unlike the ominous rumors spreading in the south, the sorcerers remained crouched in Arden, showing no other signs of movement.

Despite continuous reconnaissance efforts, obtaining information beyond the fact that monsters lurked within the castle was impossible.

Occasionally, unruly monsters roamed around the castle, but estimating the enemy’s forces solely based on them was challenging.

While the sorcerers gathered their forces, the northern nobles were not idle either.

They fortified the walls of the Viscount and Baron castles higher and thicker, assembling and deploying all sorts of siege weapons with the help of carpenters and blacksmiths.

With almost all their forces pouring out from the entire northern territory, except for the minimum troops to guard their territories, they camped near the Viscount’s castle.

As they mobilized nearly all their strength from the north, an immense military force gathered, surpassing the 2nd punitive force.

It was a massive army rarely seen outside of inter-country wars, but facing such a formidable enemy did not guarantee victory.

Moreover, the issue was not just the enemy’s strength.

Despite the northern nobles rallying firmly in the face of imminent danger, there was one alien presence among them.

“So, we have to go save them immediately? Are we not nobles who have sworn allegiance to the kingdom?”

Once again, in the meeting room today, as she shouted, Frederick, the Viscount, felt a slight tension in his back.