User blog:Thrycius/Zheiro and The Moonlight Sculptor: Chapter 9

'''Disclaimer: This is a crossover fanfic between Brave Frontier and The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor. I don't own either of those; they belong to their respective owners, namely Gumi/Alim and Nam-Hi-Sung (남희성) respectively.'''

'''Disclaimer (extended): This crossover fanfic now also contains some elements from the Type-Moon universe, owned entirely by Kinoku Nasu. I don't own anything from there, either.'''

Is this your first time seeing this story? Go directly to chapter 1 here!

After settling down for the day, Zheiro and his companion had finally begun training like Thrycius had promised to do.

However, it was a lot harder than Zheiro had expected, given that he had already been fighting on his own for over half a year now.

“What fighting style is this, anyway? It’s not really like the one I’ve seen you use before.” Zheiro asked.

“I’m teaching you the Imperial Formless Sword Technique. It’s actually a skill tailored for sculptors, so it’s quite suited for you.”

Zheiro blinked. “Hold on. There was actually a sword technique for sculptors? Are you serious? I thought sculptors weren’t suited for fighting at all.”

“Well, to be fair, this is more a technique for moonlight sculptors,” Thrycius admitted. “After all, only moonlight sculptors can use it. Since you’re going to be a moonlight sculptor yourself, you might as well learn it, right?”

“But that doesn’t explain why there would be a sword technique that was specifically made for sculptors, especially for those so specialized in something like Moonlight Sculpting. I’ve never even heard of it myself until you told me, and I’m someone aspiring to be a master sculptor.” Zheiro countered.

“It’s actually quite the amusing story. You see, a long, long time ago, a sculptor named Geihar Von Arpen once took over the entire known world, singlehandedly uniting all of humanity, by using these techniques.”

At the statement, Zheiro found himself staring blankly at his companion in disbelief. “You’re joking, right? That’s impossible. If such an event happened, not only would it become a well-known legend, someone like me who seeks to be a master of sculpting would definitely have heard of it! Or rather, I doubt that an event like conquering the entire world would be so easily forgotten by everyone, sculptor or not!”

“It’s funny, because that’s precisely what happened. Who would expect a lowly sculptor to be the one who united a continent? Everyone laughed at him, scorned him; his own children looked at him with prejudice, even after he became emperor. Even the sculptors of the time couldn’t believe it and refused to accept his teachings, thinking he was a liar. It is safe to say that the finals years of his life had been far from fulfilling, and after death he quickly disappeared from history, as many bards refused to remember his tale, unbelievable as it was. All the bards, that is, except one—and I am from his family.”

“So that’s why you know the story, even if no one else has heard of it before,” breathed Zheiro. “It was a family secret, right?”

“Well, you could say that.” Thrycius said vaguely. “In any case, it was with these techniques that he was able to conquer the known world. Since it’s a sword technique intended for moonlight sculptors, it would be suited for you.”

“So,” Zheiro concluded, “Was this the real reason you had me learn how to fight?”

“More or less,” Thrycius admitted. “Moonlight Sculpting and the Imperial Formless Sword Technique are a set of intertwined skills that should be learned together, as there are techniques in both skillsets needed to master skills in the other. Originally, I was going to have you learn the basics of cutting the intangible first before teaching you the Imperial Formless Sword Technique, but the appearance of the assassins caused me to move things ahead of schedule.”

“I see. But why not just teach me from the start, along with moonlight sculpting?” Zheiro asked. “You could have just told me why from the start.”

“Ha ha ha! Just listen to yourself now!” Thrycius laughed. “Don’t you remember how adamant you were about learning how to fight to begin with? Even though you gave in quickly, you were always protesting whenever something felt like it had nothing to do with moonlight sculpting. Now though, you’re far les reluctant to learn from what I have to teach you. This is why I decided not to tell you everything at first.”

“Hold on,” Zheiro protested. “Even if I complained, I did what you told me to do anyway. So there really was no reason for you to hold things back.”

“On the contrary,” Thrycius countered, “Learning is far less effective when you aren’t willing to learn, even if you are being taught. Moonlight Sculpting may be an art, but the Imperial Formless Sword technique is intended for combat. I would rather you not half-heartedly learn something that you would need to use in a life-or-death situation. So yes, there was a good reason for me not to tell you initially.”

“You know what,” Zheiro sighed, throwing his hands up into the air. “I give up. Trying to argue with you is useless; I doubt there’s anyone out there who could match words with you.”

“I know, right? Ha ha ha!” Thrycius laughed, not even trying to be humble. “Now, can we return to combat lessons?”

“Listen, Zheiro.” Thrycius started. “The most important part of the Imperial Formless Sword Technique, or almost any combat style, is the footwork. Along with the usual footwork involved, Geihar included what is called ‘Seven Celestial Step’. If you can master this, evasion and countering will be like second nature to you. The rest of the sword techniques can be used during any moment of the Seven Celestial Step footwork. There is also a breathing technique, but I will teach you that later; what that that does is allow the body to calm down and respond to enemy attacks in the most effective way.”

“I see…” Zheiro nodded, trying to take everything all in. “So the basis of everything else in the Imperial Formless Sword Technique lies in the Seven Celestial Step footwork and the breathing technique, am I correct?”

“Yes and no,” Thrycius replied. “You’re forgetting Moonlight Sculpting, which is also just as important. You see, if a moonlight sculptor can cut through even the intangible, what defense can hold against a moonlight sculptor?”

“None?” Zheiro asked. “Unless I’m missing something else.”

“You’re not missing anything,” Thrycius confirmed. “There is no defense that can be used against a moonlight sculptor, no matter how thick the armor or how strong the defensive magic is. This special ability, unique only to Moonlight sculptors, was so deadly that it allowed Geihar to unite the continent.”

“But I only want to use these techniques to master Moonlight Sculpting, not conquer the continent,” Zheiro protested. “If I need to fight, then so be it, but I’ll probably only do so to defend myself.”

“That’s perfectly fine,” Thrycius admitted. “But you should learn the techniques anyway. What you do with it afterwards is up to you.”

Zheiro only nodded in response.

“Continuing on,” Thrycius said, already moving on, “There are also five special sword techniques which, when used, can allow you to dominate any fight, but again I will teach you those later. More importantly for you to learn is the basics of the Imperial Formless Sword Technique.”

“Well, it is important to learn the basics.” Zheiro agreed. The basics were everything, no matter which profession one chose to follow.

“I’m sure most summoners would actually disagree, but let’s not get onto that.” Thrycius snorted. “Now, back to the basics. Probably the most important thing to keep in mind is not to block.”

“Not to block? How am I supposed to defend myself, then?” Zheiro asked.

“When Geihar created the Imperial Formless Sword Technique, he kept in mind that most sculptors were frail and weak, at least when compared to an actual swordsman or warrior. Thus, the Moonlight Sculptor’s greatest defense is actually his offense, which can cut through any opponent’s defense. In combat, your goal would be to strike first, taking out the enemy before they get the chance to attack. Under situations where the Moonlight Sculptor is attacked first, however, is where the Seven Celestial Step comes in, along with the swordplay.”

“I see. We use the Seven Celestial Step footwork to evade the enemy attack and strike at the same time, is that how it works?” Zheiro asked.

“Correct,” Thrycius applauded. “If the enemy attacks first, you must either evade, parry, or strike even faster. Blocking was considered difficult for the weak sculptor, and thus must be used as a last resort. Now, allow me to demonstrate: take out your sword and give it to me.”

Thrycius then grabbed Zheiro’s sword, giving him a large branch to use instead. “Now, when the enemy swings his sword at you,” Thrycius said, making Zheiro bring the branch towards him in an arc, “You should take a small step to the side and swing your own sword at the same time, like so.”

Both Thrycius and Zheiro swung their weapons, before they rested near the other.

“I don’t get it,” Zheiro finally said as they both stood frozen in position. “We’re both in danger of getting hit like this.”

“That’s because you’re not looking carefully,” Thrycius smirked. “While our weapons are close to the other’s body, our position and stance are different—try moving your branch closer to me, as if to continue your swing.”

Zheiro attempted to move his branch further until it would rest on Thrycius’ arm, but failed. “Eh?” he said in confusement.

“Do you still not see it? The crossguard on my blade stopped your branch from hitting me, yet my blade is next to your neck and unhindered by anything. Had I finished my swing, you would have lost your life while I stand unharmed. This is but one example of how you should fight.” Thrycius said. “The crossguard of your sword will be doing most of the blocking for you. Thus, the Moonlight Sculptor should worry more about evading or parrying enemy strikes, and then countering at the same time.”

“But the crossguard is so small,” Zheiro protested. “Can I really rely on such a thing?”

“You can,” Thrycius answered. “The shape of the crossguard hasn’t changed for centuries, simply because it works well and is efficient. To be honest, using the crossguard to block strikes isn’t all that unique, but it did become the basis for the Imperial Formless Sword Technique. Of course, cleanly evading enemy strikes and then striking at their arms while they are still extended is perfectly viable too.”

“I see.” Zheiro nodded. “So the basis of the Imperial Formless Sword Technique really is that of evading and parrying enemy attacks.”

“Actually, the basis is striking the enemy first,” Thrycius laughed. “I was just talking about situations where the moonlight sculptor must react to an enemy who strikes first. Now, let’s try to move these things into real practice. Here, take your sword back.”

Zheiro gulped as he took back his iron sword, trading back the branch he had received earlier.

This probably wasn’t going to be fun at all, was it?

“No, no, not like that. Don’t wait for me to strike, take the initiative!”

“Easy for you to say,” Zheiro panted, leaning heavily on his iron sword, covered in bruises left by the branch his companion wielded. “You’re too fast for me. I can’t even hit you at my level! Can’t you go a little easier on me?”

“I wish, but with the assassins potentially close by it would be better for you to learn how to instinctively avoid attacks as soon as possible. Real battle is probably the fastest way to improve in combat; since there is the fear of death, people will generally move and react to dangerous things faster, “ Thrycius said, before pausing. “Well, that is if they don’t freeze up in fear and get themselves killed instead.”

“So, in other words this is you simulating battle as close to the real thing as possible, right?” Zheiro asked

“Correct!” Thrycius praised. “I swear, you’re learning to catch on really quickly lately. When we first started on our journey I had to explain every little thing to you, and look at you now! You really did learn how to think when I asked you to! Soon I won’t have to explain so much to you in the future and can focus on my storytelling again.”

“That may be so,” Zheiro continued, “But even if we are simulating real battle, the fear of death isn’t present since I know you won’t kill me.”

“The fear of death may not be there,” Thrycius admitted, “But the pain is. And that’s pretty close, in my opinion. After all, pain is the body’s way of telling you to avoid something potentially dangerous.”

While Thrycius was talking, however he suddenly spun away in a smooth, dance-like motion— and in it’s place a lightning blur sped by.

“Oh my,” Thrycius nonchalantly said, as if he was just going out for a stroll and hadn’t just dodged an attack by a flying monster. “It looks like our combat practice attracted some monsters. How convenient, too. Watch the enemies here and learn how to move like the wind. Perhaps then you’ll be able to move fast enough to land a strike on me.”

Zheiro would have retorted, but the monsters were already on them.

He could never just get a break, could he?

The battle took a lot longer than Zheiro thought.

It’s not that the monsters were strong—Zheiro could actually shrug off most of their attacks when they did hit.

The real issue was that it was also difficult to hit flying enemies that were also moving too fast for him to hit normally.

“Can you not just stand there and give me some tips if you’re not going to help me?” Zheiro shouted at his companion in annoyance. “After all, wouldn’t I be learning faster that way?”

“You might be learning things faster, but you won’t learn how to adapt to different situations on your own,” Thrycius said with a laugh, waving back and forth with odd movements like a drunkard yet still somehow dodging everything the monsters could throw at him.

Usually since Zheiro was the only one fighting, the monsters would target him first, but as the monsters here flew in the sky the would simply target either of them at random.

Thrycius however, unlike Zheiro, didn’t attack, simply avoiding their attacks in the strange manner that he did, laughing all the while at his futile efforts to hit them.

Actually… his companion looked more like a leaf simply floating down a river as the water easily flowed around obstacles.

“You might want to pay attention lest you get hit,” Thrycius commented, still laughing.

“I don’t see how learning how to move like them would help me land a hit on you,” Zheiro finally admitted as he tried to fight them off. “You’re already dodging them well enough, and they move way faster than I do.”

“They’re not actually all that fast,” Thrycius revealed. “That’s why I can still dodge them. Actually, lightning-quick movement is quite effective for landing a hit on me as I am now—not to mention that I am weak to lightning as well, being that of water. If these monsters were a lot stronger or faster, I might actually have some trouble.”

“So even you can have trouble against monsters,” Zheiro said in surprise. “I never would have thought.”

“Zheiro, Zheiro. I am only a storyteller, not a warrior. Have you forgotten? You really shouldn’t expect a storyteller to be that skilled at fighting.” Thrycius replied with a grin.

“And I’m training to be a Moonlight Sculptor, a profession which had allowed someone to unite the world,” Zheiro retorted. “When it comes to you, I really shouldn’t have any expectations others might have.”

“Ha ha ha! Good answer!” Thrycius laughed. “Now, would you mind hurrying up and finish off these monsters? We don’t have time to waste all day.”

Zheiro could only nod in response, one again turning his full attention to fighting the monsters off.

Now, if only he could figure out how to move like them...

Today, the King once again visited Ixia.

Like always, they had their witty banter, constantly trying outsmart the other with only their words.

And like always, neither of them made any real progress; the King was unable to get any closer to Ixia, and Ixia wasn’t any closer to making the King leave her alone.

That is, until the Queen suddenly slammed open the door.

“There you are! What is the meaning of this?” the Queen roared, the volume of her voice causing both Ixia and the King to flinch.

The Queen’s anger was clearly directed at the King, however, so Ixia made no move to respond, only observing how her King would act.

“I don’t understand,” he simply said, his face impassive as all traces of his earlier attempts to court Ixia disappeared. “What are you talking about?”

“You know full well what I’m talking about!” The queen raged, holding up a small parchment. “I’m talking about this!”

Both Ixia and the King glanced at the parchment in the Queen’s hand, but Ixia couldn’t make heads or tails out of it.

“Um,” Ixia finally interrupted. “Is it really okay for me to be here?”

“Actually, Ixia, you should listen to this too,” the Queen said. “This concerns you as well.”

“It does?” Ixia asked, confused. She may be the royal weaver and tailor, but the affairs of the country were generally none of her business.

“After all, this parchment is an assassination order for your childhood friend,” The Queen said angrily. “And that’s why I want an explanation, now!”

Ixia felt her eyes widen in shock and anger upon hearing the news. “Wait!” She cried out. “Is Zheiro all right?”

“I would think he is,” The Queen replied, quite confident in her attempt to reassure Ixia. “Even the messengers I sent out myself weren’t able to get close, since Zheiro had a powerful companion who refused anyone to approach. ”

Ixia let out a sigh of relief. If Zheiro was travelling with someone strong, then he would probably be safe.

“Hold on,” the King started, holding up his hands in an attempt to pacify his wife. “Someone sent an order to have my dear Ixia’s most cherished friend assassinated?”

“And I’m quite certain that you know just who that someone is!” the Queen accused, glaring daggers at the King.

“Are you accusing me of this?” The King asked, almost dangerously. “Because I most certainly did no such thing. I only sent messengers to ask how he was doing and to visit.”

“Right, to visit,” the Queen snapped, crumpling the parchment in her hand. “I suppose it didn't matter to you whether he visited us alive or dead, did you?”

“What are you talking about?” The King calmly countered. “Of course it would be preferable if he visited alive. Why would I do anything to make my dear Ixia here sad? To begin with, that assassination order does not contain my seal upon it, so it was not me who sent gave out the order.”

To her own astonishment, Ixia actually found herself siding with the King. While the Queen was right to be angry for her, the Queen was also being rather irrational right now, based on her actions. Ixia may have never seen her Queen this angry before, before it was also true that anger clouds one’s judgement.

Then again, her own judgement might have been clouded by her own belief that her childhood friend would definitely fulfil his promise, and thus would not dare die until he did so.

“Your seal might not be on this parchment, but there is no other seal present, so the possibility is still there,” the Queen seethed. “And besides, who else has the motive, ability, and power to send out such an order?”

“My Queen,” Ixia decided to interrupt. This argument wasn’t going anywhere, and she did not particularly care for conflict, regardless of who was involved. “Please, calm down. I do not wish to see my friend’s face so twisted in anger. And as for you, my King… If you insist that it was not you who sent that missive to have my friend assassinated, do you have any idea as to who could send it?”

The King thought about it for a moment. “I have an idea who it could be,” he finally admitted, “But if I told you without any solid proof, both of you would probably be even less likely to believe me. I will have to investigate, so please excuse me.”

And just like that, the King pardoned himself as he regally strode out the door, disappearing into the castle hallways.

“The nerve of that man,” the Queen spat out after the King’s steps could no longer be heard. “Sending out an assassination order, and then denying it? Who does he think he is?”

“My Queen, please calm down already,” Ixia called out. “If Zheiro is travelling with a powerful companion, then it should be alright, shouldn’t it?”

The Queen looked at her blankly before sighing. “Honestly, Ixia, I have no idea how you do it. My husband is constantly throwing himself at you, your friend who you truly love is possibly in danger, and yet you’re this calm?”

Ixia simply smiled in response. “Of course I am worried, but a good friend of mine told me that I had to be strong especially in times like this, so what else could I do but stay calm?

''A/N: Not my best chapter, imo. Anyway, special thanks to Restire for continuing to help me proofread this chapter, and youtube user Skallagrim, for uploading videos that gave me ideas on how Zheiro's fighting style should be. I didn't get to it all, though; for example, the importance of distance and etc.''

Yes, Thrycius was demonstrating legit fighting that you'll probably never see in movies or games because rule of cool.

''Anyway, if you're interested in realistic fighting, or just want to see his comments on various things including how realistic fictional weaponry is, go check out his channel. It's pretty interesting.''

''Unfortunately, the one video that I used for reference here was unlisted, so you can't see it anymore. Oh well. I did, however, see it before it was unlisted so I was still able to access it afterwards.''

Another point: The story about Geihar Von Arpen is obviously from the Legendary Moonlight Sculptor.

''Also, that Ixia scene. I'm still not that great with her scenes, so I hope I portrayed it correctly. Liam and co showed up a lot earlier, but it takes time for messengers to travel, so this scene didn't occur until now, apparently. We have the Queen accusing the King of trying to have Zheiro assassinated, who obviously denies it.''

''So who do you think is right? The Queen, or the King? Ixia is actually more neutral about this, hence why she's leaning more towards the King's side right now. She certainly has concern for Zheiro, but she's not letting her emotions get the best of her.''

However, it doesn't mean that Ixia believes the King is entirely innocent, either.

''Anyway, like usual, please leave a comment even if you didn't like it; constructive criticism is always helpful. Thanks!''

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