Shiba didn't expect that the man would gift that wooden sword to him even before testing if he were proficient with the sword, but Shiba didn't plan to reject it since, at worst, it could serve to distract the opponent.
"Then, I will accept your kindness. I will take good care of this wooden sword."
The people in the town felt endless gratitude to Shiba, so they would feel down if Shiba turned down their offers of something. That man was the same as the rest. Although he had been teaching Shiba, he also liked having someone else to battle.
As soon as they started, the system was already giving instructions to Shiba, and the apprentice stage was reached really quickly, but at that moment, neither Shiba nor the man were surprised.
The instruction that the system gave for using the sword was far better than those in martial arts.
That was because Master Liye's level of swordsmanship was far higher than his level of martial arts. Of course, any of them was at a high enough level that Shiba wouldn't be able to understand the difference.
The system was made by Master Liye, so it was better to teach the things in which Master Liye was more proficient. Of course, Master Liye's overall level of everything was more than enough to teach someone like Shiba.
Before going to sleep, Shiba's swordsmanship was as good as his martial arts.
Reaching the apprentice stage hadn't been surprising, but that speed to reach the limit left them speechless.
"If it weren't because I only have one, I would also give you a real sword. Not having a real sword with this talent is really a pity."
Although Shiba had some talent regarding swordsmanship, his quick progress was due to the system's teachings. Master Liye told that he was a Law God, but his swordsmanship was almost at the next level since he already mastered the Sword Essence. Thus, even a little advice from him through the system had incredible effects.
The man had a real sword he got on his travels, but no one knew how to create one in that town, and the only things that were similar to weapons besides his sword were those used to cultivate vegetables. Nothing that worked as a sword.
"I am also surprised."
Shiba couldn't tell about Master Liye to others, so he could only accept that it was a matter of talent despite being sure that it wasn't the case. Of course, the fact that he had been eager to learn mattered in being so quick, but without the system, he wouldn't be so fast to learn even in his dreams.
"Tomorrow, let's have a battle outside. Since we are both Level 2 Mortals, using Earth Step in battle should be beneficial to both of us."
A friendly battle like the one they could have wouldn't have a huge effect like a battle where life was in danger, but it was still better than nothing. It was also better than just use Earth Step randomly to move like Shiba planned before having the chance to train with that man.
"I will be pleased."
There was no way Shiba would turn down that offer, so the next day they spent the morning battling instead of teaching others. Since they already had some knowledge regarding the skill, they only needed to ask some questions about parts they didn't understand, so it was alright if they asked in the afternoon. Anyway, seeing the battle was also good for their understanding since both were using Earth Step.
They repeated that for another three days, but none of them advanced to the next level.
When circulating the energy on the body, energy from the outside would also enter the body and merge, but the energy in the air of that area was so thin that advancing was far more difficult than in other places.
Once Shiba heard that information from the system, he felt that it was already time to leave that town and continue his travel.
He already had some battle experience, and he wasn't progressing anymore by staying there, so leaving was the best option that also the system recommended.
Shiba had a chance with the system, but he couldn't be negligent, or he wouldn't be able to reach Rank 1 before being sixteen.
As for the people in the town, since there was already someone else who managed to master it, they would still have someone to guide them.
Thus, the next day, Shiba informed about his intentions to continue his travel to the rest of the town.
Everyone was sad to hear that, but they also understood that Shiba wanted to try to reach Rank 1, and he wouldn't be able to do it remaining there due to his age. Even young ones would find it difficult to reach Rank 1 without leaving that area. The difference for them was that without the block of lacking a skill to master, going to train to the outside would be far more effective.
The situation wasn't that bad in the past, but since the weather changed, the energy in the air also diminished. They had no idea about why those changes happened in the past, but they guessed that they were related.
Early on the morning of the next day. The whole town was outside to bid farewell to Shiba. They hadn't been together for a lot of time, but even if Shiba decided to continue living there, they would have accepted him.
"Here are some old clothes from our oldest son and some food. I wish you luck with your travel. You will always be welcome here."
The middle-aged man who received Shiba the first day gave a backpack to Shiba.
The clothes were taken from his home, but the food had been shared by the whole town. It was a small town, so there wasn't too much, but Shiba was still thankful for it.
"Thank you. Maybe when I turned strong enough, I will be able to come back to visit you all."
He thought that if he became a powerful expert, he needed to help the people in that town to become prosperous again.
"If you meet my brother, please tell him that we are still waiting for him."
The son of the middle-aged man was still hoping that his big brother would come back, and he thought that maybe Shiba would meet him. Shiba had seen a drawing of him, so it wasn't impossible that Shiba could recognize him despite having been some years since the picture was drawn.
"Little brother. If you have a name, better to tell it to us now. Maybe in the future, we will hear your name from stories brought by travelers."
The man in his twenties laughed. He thought that given Shiba's talent with the sword, maybe some academy would accept him, and thus, he would be able to obtain enough resources to advance to Rank 1 in time.
People in their town didn't have names because they didn't need them. They were so few that never felt like using them. Some of the oldest ones had names in the past, but they had already forgotten about them.
However, as someone who traveled, that man knew that it was usual for others to have names, so he wondered if Shiba had one.
"My name is Shiba, although this is the first time that I tell my name to someone. I completely forgot about it."
Something like introducing himself was too strange for Shiba since he hadn't done it before. Since those in the town didn't mention names at all, he forgot to mention his own name.
"Don't worry. It is not like we need them between us. However, I hope that you say it to a lot of people from now on. If you become famous, I will be able to boast the fact that I have helped you to train."
The man laughed after speaking, and Shiba smiled.
"Sure."
Since he decided to use that name at least until obtaining revenge, he wanted it to be known. Although others wouldn't understand its meaning, he could reveal it when he was about to fulfill his revenge. He wanted to see the faces of those owners when they discovered that their killer was a former slave they had tried to kill. Of course, he was nowhere near strong enough for that, so it remained in his imagination.
"Farewell. We will meet again if there is more fate between us!"
Shiba didn't know if what he said had any sense or not, but he felt that it was cool.
"Farewell!"
Everyone in the town shouted as Shiba walked off the town.
Once he stopped hearing the voices of the people of the town, Shiba started to move as quickly as possible with Earth Step.
Although he didn't fear sleeping one night outside, he would rather find a place to sleep before dusk.
Life in the town was easier than outside, and he liked it, but he didn't want to forget his past and his objective. To obtain revenge, he needed to get strong, and to get strong, he couldn't choose an easy life in that town.