The Survival of the Third-rate Villain

Chapter 60 60 - The Ghoul [3]

considering that i'll be fighting the boss monster anyway..."i'll do it."

i decided to accept ivan's request.

and immediately after doing so, he smiled at me.

though, it's weird to see an almost-skeleton face smile.

anyway...

"can i ask something?"

i said to ivan.

-sure, what is it?

he responded.

and hearing that...

"why are you so angry at the boss monster?"

i asked him that question.

-yeah, i was wondering as well.

-meep...

zephyrus and pyro followed.

-...

ivan became quiet at my question, and it started to scare me.

though...

"..."

i didn't show it on my face.

then finally, after a while...

-remember when i said all the servants died?

ivan finally spoke.

i just nodded at his question.

-it's not entirely true...

and then ivan declared that!

-one of the servants survived.

he said.

then suddenly, his already scary face became even scarier as he got angry!

and with that face...

-he's the one that led the demon here. he conspired with them to destroy the territory!

ivan exclaimed in anger.

-for what?!

-for a fucking eternal life?!

his enraged voice sent shivers down my spine.

"..."

i just waited in silence, letting ivan calm himself down.

-...

-...

zephyrus and pyro did the same.

and after a while...

-raye.

ivan turned to face me.

"yeah?"

i responded.

-with your current strength, you can't win against that bitch.

he said.

'his words are starting to get more vile now.'

it's kinda funny seeing a skeleton curse.

anyway...

"well, i already kinda expected the boss to be stronger than me."

i replied.

hearing my words, ivan nodded his head.

and looking me straight in the eyes...

-i'll help you get stronger.

ivan said that seriously.

"huh?"

i was stunned.

and before i could even respond properly...

-i'll teach you how to properly wield the sword. i'll be teaching you our family's techniques.

ivan followed up.

"wha...?"

*****

"hup!"

swoosh—

swish—

fwip—!

i swung my sword again and again.

and seeing me do that...

-wrong! your posture, distribution of strength, hand and feet placement... all wrong!

ivan shouted at me.

"ugh..."

we immediately started training as soon as i accepted his suggestion to teach me.

-place your feet and hands like this, and swing like this...

swish—!

ivan said, demonstrating a simple but clean vertical slash.

"..."

fwip-

i imitated his stance and tried my best to copy his moves, and with that...

swish—!

i swung my sword straight downward!

-that's better.

ivan muttered.

and his words made me smile.

though...

-but that's not enough. do it a few more times.

my smile immediately disappeared after hearing that.

and so...

swish—

i continued swinging my sword again and again.

-meep!

pyro cheered for me.

-do your best, young man. he might've lost a lot of his strength, but ivan was a very strong swordmaster before.

and zephyrus did the same.

swish—

-no! your hand is holding the hilt too firmly!

ivan exclaimed.

"ugh..."

and i just groaned in annoyance.

...

...

after about 8 hours...

"haaa... haaa... huff..."

i was out of breath, tired from swinging my sword.

it felt like my arms were about to fall off.

and seeing me like that...

-that's enough for today. you should rest first.

ivan stopped our training.

'thank god.'

i thought.

clank—

and then i let go of my sword.

thud—

i immediately sat on the ground, catching my breath.

i was so exhausted, hungry, and thirsty.

-meep!

pyro, concerned about my condition, quickly approached me.

"haaa... i'm... huff... fine..."

i said to reassure him, but he didn't seem to believe me.

-good work.

zephyrus said as he flew over.

and looking at him...

"thanks."

i simply replied and nodded my head.

...

...

after resting for a while, i headed out of the mansion with zephyrus and pyro.

i then drank a lot of water in the spring, and while i was there...

i also ate the last stock of giant boar meat i had.

'ugh, my body is killing me...'

i thought, feeling pain all over.

it felt like my muscles were complaining about being overworked.

but even though i want to stop the training...

i can't.

i need ivan's teaching, after all.

'i need to get strong fast and leave this place.'

and so, i need to endure this.

*****

after eating and drinking on the 1st floor...

i cleaned up the left and middle rooms down there, killing the monster wolves and kobolds.

and after doing that...

i went back to where ivan was.

-you should rest properly, and after that, we'll continue the training.

ivan said that as soon as i came back.

"yeah, i'm just here to say see you later."

and i responded. read exclusive content at empire

-meep!

-see you later, ivan.

pyro and zephyrus followed.

and with a smile on his face...

-haha, yeah, see you later.

ivan replied.

"..."

oddly enough, he didn't look scary anymore to me.

and so, with that...

i went back to the 1st room on the left.

though, before doing so...

"i'll be using your room."

i said to ivan.

and with a laugh...

-feel free to. so rest up properly.

ivan said that to me.

creak—

thud-

and i left the room.

...

...

and just like that, before i knew it...

10 days had already passed.

...

*****

swoosh—

-you've really improved a lot.

ivan said, seeing me demonstrate the moves he taught me these past days.

-you're not really talented, but you make up for it with hard work and pure dedication.

he added.

and hearing his words...

"thanks."

all i could do was thank him.

"it's all because you're the one that taught me."

i added, smiling at him.

-is that so? i'm flustered.

ivan responded, smiling.

"yeah, you don't really look like it."

and i jokingly added, seeing his creepy rotting face smile.

we'd gotten really close after spending so much time with each other.

-meep meep!

pyro then approached me and congratulated me on my improvement.

-you're not that weak anymore, huh.

and zephyrus kind of did the same.

and proudly...

"haha, thanks."

i responded to both of them.

"anyway, i should rest now."

i added.

normally, i would train more until i was exhausted.

but today was different.

after all...

i'm gonna fight the cannibal tiger tomorrow!

-rest well.

ivan said.

and with that...

"yeah, i will."

creak—

thud—

i left the room with pyro on my shoulder and zephyrus on my head.