81 History IV

Matthew looked over at Jacob and couldn't help but grin. The young lord was growing quickly, enough so that he was capable of surviving his attacks for more than thirty seconds now.

Given the amount of time they spent together was short, this brought on a great surprise to him.

Even knights in training may not be able to handle the full might of his attacks for that long within such a short period of time.

It was easy for him to see Jacob's moves becoming sharper, he was viewing the fight with more than just his eyes. Instead, he used his body to sense danger approaching.

'It won't be too long now...'

Matthew thought to himself as he knew that Jacob was taking one step closer to achieving Battle Sense. Or Sixth Sense as some people liked to call it.

Upon obtaining it, he would react to danger before he even knew it was approaching. As long as someone had bad intentions towards him, then he would know it.

The skill was not easy to learn and not every knight obtained the skill.

Some took months, some never learned it. Yet, its only been a couple of weeks since he began teaching Jacob and the young lad was already beginning to show signs of achieving it.

Cleary he was a genius.

Jacob wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand as he shook the collar of his green shirt to help cool himself down.

At his side was a mace that was attached to a brown leather belt around his waist. On the left was a shirt sword that was still sheathed.

"I've been meaning to ask you Matthew, but do you know any sword stances?"

Matthew nodded.

"A few, but it would be best if you learn the Valroian Sword Style. It's the most basic in all the land, and a lot of other stances are derived from it."

Matthew told him.

Jacob did not know that, but he already knew about the various sword arts a person could obtain.

In Pathfinder if a player wanted to use any sort sword they should learn a style. It was easy in the game since all you needed to do was put a skill point into the style you wished to learn.

Here, Jacob could not do such a thing.

Although he planned on using a mace as a weapon it was never a bad idea to have another weapon as a side arm. Thus, he picked the sword.

In his head he already had a style in mind.

"I know that learning the fundamentals is how one builds a strong foundation, but I would like to know if you had any other styles you could teach me. Mostly interested in the Earthguard Sword Art."

The sword style that Jacob just named was one of the many sword arts that knights could learn. It was not a problem if Matthew did not know it as he could learn it elsewhere.

"Haven't heard of anyone talking about that style in a long time. Many upcoming knights focus on the Stormwind Sword Art, Flamelord Sword Art, or the Imperial Knights Sword Art. It's been what? Ten or so years since anyone has told me they wanted to learn the Earthguard style."

Jacob laughed lightly.

It was not too surprising to him considering the Earthguard style focused more on defense than offense. Whilst the others had a wide selection of attacks they could use incorporated into them.

The charm in this style was that it could be incorporated into any weapon a person had in their hand. Something the other styles did not do. They were exclusive to the sword.

"So you do know it."

Matthew nodded and motioned for Jacob to take a few steps back.

With sword in hand he took a step back with his left leg whilst positioning his sword down low angled to his left as well. In this angles stance his body was covered and Matthew could intercept any attack that came his way.

"This is the stance you would take if you don't have a shield. If you did you'd adjust it to where your shield is at the ready and your weapon is placed right underneath it."

Matthew explained as he dropped his stance a little showing the difference in height between the two versions.

"This stance is primarily a defensive one, but not used often in this day and age. Mostly because when one takes this stance they need to be unmoving like the earth."

Jacob watched in silence as Matthew explained it to him. Much of it was new information to him as this world was more in depth than Pathfinder was.

Still the movements were the same.

The reason Jacob wanted to acquire this sword art than any other was due to the high chance of countering your opponent. It was easy to force them to lose their balance and tilt the fight in your favor.

Not only that but one can change in and out of this stance once they are proficient in it with ease. Meaning you could parry a blow then while your opponent is dazed, quickly change forms and attack.

What was not common know was the fact that sword arts were capable of elemental effects. Such as covering your blade in fire, wind or even lightning.

Some may believe this to be magic, but it is not. It's really the peak form of sword arts, only obtainable by years of practice.

You couldn't sword your sword and summon a gust of wind, or throw shares of ice out of your hand. All it did was turn your aura into an element that added bonuses to your attacks.

After Matthew finished his demonstration he left the training field and returned to the estate.

Jacob on the other hand gazed up towards the sky.

'The festival should be staring soon, might be time to use the experience I've gained so I won't be a sitting duck.'

With the arrival of the festival, the city was starting to change. Decorations were being tossed up all around and certain colors were being worn. Specifically orange, yellow and white.

The entire city would celebrate, and the activities would bring commoners and nobles alike together. Well, in a sense of belonging not in interacting with one another.

Still, Jacob was most looking forward towards the tournament. By his calculations the generals should not be far from the city and would be arriving soon.

Many men and women looking to make a name for themselves would travel here and participate in the tournament. There was a chance they might catch the eye of a noble, or lady. Some just wanted the rewards that came with being ranked high.

In his free time Jacob has been doing a bit of research on a couple of men. There were four of them he had his eye on and he could only question who would win the tournament.

Maybe he'd bet on them all, or put all his money on one.

Turning his body, he headed back into the mansion. He should check up on Angelia's mother to see how she was fairing.

He was also curious what was going on at the Frost estate.