Skeleton King

A large lawn in front of Bad Soden Manor was surrounded by several guards of the Neumann family, and two people were practicing swords in this semi-enclosed circle.

A young man with flaxen hair stabbed his sword at his companion, who turned sideways to avoid his sword.The young man didn't wait for the sword move to make him old, and stabbed in obliquely again, while his companion blocked his sword move with the sword in his hand.The two of them came and went, and actually went through dozens of strokes like this.

With a sound of "Dang--", the swords of the two collided again.However, this time the young man was only in a stalemate with his companion for a while before he faintly felt a force coming from his sword, his hands went numb, and the long sword in his hand couldn't help but let go.

The flaxen-haired young man staggered a bit because he had used all his strength before, so he couldn't hold back his momentum.Panting heavily, he half-kneeled on the ground, and his companion's sword rested on his neck.

The surrounding guards applauded and cheered, "George!" "Oh, George!"

George put away his sword and laughed at the young man, "Don't make such a big salute to me, get up!"

George smiled and accepted the compliments from the people around him, "You are getting better and better!"

"George is not far from a level 3 swordsman."

"When you become an intermediate swordsman, don't forget your brothers."

George and they slapped each other's fists and laughed. Seeing that the flaxen-haired young man was half kneeling on the ground, he knew that his arms were probably numb and unable to exert himself.George stretched out his hand and asked the young man to stand up holding his palm, "Gerhard, you are very good. When I was your age, I didn't have your strength."

The surrounding guards also said: "Gerhard is only 19, the little genius from our Bad Soden, and now he is a level 2 swordsman!"

George whistled, and the surrounding guards laughed.

Gerhard blushed and said unconvinced: "One day, one day, I will definitely defeat you! I will be the best swordsman in Bad Soden!"

George laughed like crazy, "Hahahahahaha, what a fool."

Georges stopped joking with Gerhard and his companions, and walked up to a big tree on the edge of the meadow.This tree is very big, straight and straight, and the brown trunk can only be hugged by two grown men. If someone wants to hide and seek, hide on the other side of the big tree, and the people here will not be able to find it.

However, George crossed the big tree and saw a black-haired boy without any surprise. The boy was sitting casually on the tree with his legs bent. He was about eleven or twelve years old, and his figure was already as slender as a boy's. The outline of the face still has the childishness of a child. He is holding a book with a black cover in his hand and is reading it with great interest.The boy didn't notice George's arrival at all, or he had no interest in the world other than books.

George had to say hello himself, "Master Ace."

When the boy reading a book heard George's call, he raised his head and looked at George.Those emerald eyes stared quietly at George. They were like the best emeralds, so pure that there was no impurity. They also looked like the eyes of elves described by bards, representing infinite vitality and hope.But George didn't see the gentleness like a spring breeze in these eyes, but a slight condemnation, George interrupted his reading.

George no longer remembers how heartbroken he was at that time. He finally found a piece of jade in the rough, but...

George said helplessly: "Master Ace, you should practice sword at this time."

Ace lowered his head and continued to flip through his book, "The book is the world, and the world is the book. Don't you think reading is the most interesting thing in this world?"

George didn't think so, he said: "Master Ace, all I know is that you are the only heir to Viscount Neumann, and it is impossible for you to go to the imperial capital to become a scholar. You must join the Knights, and then return to Bad Soden to inherit Neumann. The title of Viscount Man."

Ace: "I will join the Knights, that is my responsibility and obligation. But after leaving the Knights, I can also go to the Imperial Capital to become a scholar, this is the right of every Pansy Empire people. "

George: "But, Master Ace, scholars live in the royal courtyard all their lives, and are not allowed to marry and have children." How can there be people in this world who don't like fragrant women and voluntarily give up the chance to continue their children?

George felt that Ace Neumann was extremely weird, but he had to persuade him. This was not only because George had been greatly favored by Viscount Neumann, but also because Ace Neumann was the most interesting person he had ever met. A person who may become a high-level swordsman.George couldn't bear the jewel to be dusty, watching Ace Neumann forcefully consume his talent.

"I don't care." Ace closed the book and asked, "George, why do everyone call me Young Master, but you call me Master Ace?"

George: "Because I am not a swordsman born in Bad Soden." He was not born in the fiefdom of the Neumann family, nor was he a courtier of the Neumann family. The name of Ace should naturally be distinguished from other people.

Ace: "Are you a mercenary?" Instead of being loyal to his lord, he came to the fiefdom of the Neumann family to join the army. Except for deserters, he could only be a mercenary wandering the mainland and licking blood at the tip of his knife.

"No." Unexpectedly, George did not agree with Ace's words. He said, "Master Ace, you should put away your curiosity and start training. Otherwise, I won't help you hide it when Viscount Neumann comes back. of."

For the past three years, Ace has spent almost all of his time at the manor in Bad Soden.When Viscount Neumann was around, he would personally urge Ace to practice the sword; when he was away, he asked George to accompany Ace to practice the sword.George is not only the most powerful second-level swordsman in the manor, he is not a subject of the Neumann family's fief, he only pledges allegiance to Viscount Neumann.

Ace could not threaten him at all, and therefore, George was the most impartial teacher Viscount Neumann could find.

Ace stood up, opened the leather jacket on his body, stuffed the book into the inside pocket of the leather jacket, took the long sword out of the scabbard, pointed it at George, and George did the same.He and Ace stood facing each other, and their feet kept moving. Whether it was attacking forward or dodging the opponent's attack, they could do it with ease.

Both of them held their breath, concentrating on it, trying to find each other's weaknesses while taking precautions.But in the past three years, they have fought hundreds of times, and the two know each other's moves and shortcomings thoroughly, so it is difficult to find a good opportunity for a while.

In the end, it was George who shot first. He took a step forward and rushed to Ace's head like an eagle spreading its wings. The long sword in his hand stabbed straight at Ace's chest.Ace held the sword in front of his chest, and the two swords collided. George's sword carried his own weight and was so powerful that Ace took a step back unbearably.

George was about to take advantage of this opportunity to attack. Ace flipped sideways and kicked the tree he was leaning against. His figure was as flexible as a bird, and he bullied George directly behind him, pointing his sword at his vest.

George seemed to have eyes behind him, and his hands twisted like twists, barely blocking Ace's offensive.

Ace didn't take the opportunity to increase the strength of his hands, but even hit a few vital points on George's back.Ace's attack was so fast and ruthless that George had to use all his energy to resist his sword move, without even a chance to turn around!

George's sword moves are fierce, while Ace looks thinner because of his immature body, but is more flexible.

Ace attacked blindly, and several sword lights flashed, like sword flowers in full bloom. On the sleeve of George's sword-holding hand, there were several small openings when flying flowers slashed across his sleeve.At first, George thought he was being careless, but as his sleeves turned into strips of cloth, there were bloodstains on his arms.He knew that, in just a few days, Ace had grown again.

Don't worry about it, he is no longer Ace's opponent.

George took a step back suddenly, his hands drooped, and he threw the sword to the ground, "I lost."

As soon as Ace was exercising, George conceded, which made Ace feel a little unhappy.What about the swordsman spirit that was promised, the swordsman spirit that will fight to the last moment, are they all fake? !

However, Ace knew that George was like this.In George's view, honor is nothing but nonsense, and those swordsmen's spirits are just fancy rules that bind people. People who really tie their heads to their waistbands will never gamble their lives on the honor of their opponents. emotional.Therefore, Ace guessed that George was a mercenary.

Ace really wanted to pull George over and have another hard fight.But he couldn't do it, not because George didn't want to, but because the character set would collapse.

In the past three years, Ace has set himself up as a person who is immersed in the sea of ​​books and whose greatest wish in life is to go to the imperial capital to become a scholar.

Scholars are positions only available in the Pansy Empire. They do not marry wives or leave heirs all their lives. They are not sorting books in the royal courtyard, or practicing in various places.They are the most noble people in the empire, whether they are civilians or nobles, they are respected very much; but at the same time, they have no titles or official positions, and they have dedicated their lives to the vast sea of ​​books.

Ace is a young man with good martial arts talent, but yearning to become a scholar.He has been struggling between responsibilities, sense of honor, and dreams, wandering in confusion. ——Of course this is all fake, he is just a character set that Ace has been managing.

This is Ace's pavement for not cultivating the mind of the Knights well now, and for leaving the Neumann family in the future.

And becoming a scholar is also the best and most reasonable way Ace can think of.

In this way, even if Viscount Neumann knows that Ace is his cheap son in the future, he can't do anything to him.Killing a scholar, unless it is a public trial by the empire, otherwise, even the nobles, or even the royal family, will be punished extremely severely, even the death penalty.

If Viscount Neumann knew the truth before Ace became a scholar, an "adopted son" with an unintentional title who will leave Westphalia far away in the future, Viscount Neumann might turn a blind eye to it only eye.After all, it is a very honorable thing for a scholar to come out of an aristocratic family - of course, that scholar cannot be the sole heir to the title, otherwise it would be a joke.

Viscount Neumann scoffed at Ace's idea, only thinking that in a few years Ace would understand how stupid he is now.

As for George, he knows Ace's talent in martial arts better.Although George was only a low-level swordsman, he had received the most orthodox martial arts training and performed extremely well.It only took Ace less than three years, and he was on par with him in terms of sword moves, or even better. With such a talent, even if he cultivated his mind a little slower, he would be a good genius in the imperial capital.

It was impossible for Ace to watch his character design collapse, so he could only watch George regretfully put his sword back into the scabbard, pretending not to care.