Systemless in a Parallel World

There were a few things Zayn had to take into consideration when he was being trained by Merlin.

Even before he was taught the Double Saber Kalivan technique, a long time passed in which he was taught many other things that were just as important. Being oblivious to the basics when it came to wielding a weapon came with that disadvantage. Merlin's lectures were thorough but they drained his energy much faster than he expected.

The first thing Merlin focused on was Zayn's physical fitness. It was very important to maintain a good physique when it came to handling weapons effectively. The physical demands of close combat were not to be underestimated. That was the first big hurdle Zayn had to overcome.

Not only was Zayn's body still underdeveloped because he was only a 13-year-old boy, but he had never actually had the chance to have nutritious meals that were perfect for his body's growth and development. That was also why Zayn changed quite a bit in the four months of hellish training. He was forced to work out almost every single day before Merlin filled his stomach with potions and special meat.

While his physical fitness was taken care of with the hellish workout, Merlin was also trying to prepare Zayn mentally. Merlin didn't think that Zayn lacked severely in this aspect, but it was important to understand the stress one had to face in close combat. One had to be prepared to make quick, effective decisions that would inevitably decide over life and death.

Zayn understood that very well. His mental training was the least arduous because he had already been under a lot of stress since he left the Academy.

However, there was a lot more that he had to learn and understand. Zayn had always treated weapons like weapons, but he had never given them the required respect. What that meant was pretty simple. Weapons were tools to kill, not toys to play around with.

Safety was one of the most important things one would have to take into consideration when wielding a razor-sharp weapon that could easily reap someone's life. Zayn had killed more monsters than he could count on his fingers and he understood that a single wrong move could end up killing someone.

But, he had never given it much thought before. It was obvious that he had to handle his weapons safely and make sure that he wouldn't cause any accidents, so why was it necessary for Merlin to teach him that? That was something Zayn had wondered until he realized just how important safety was.

Merlin demonstrated this quite clearly in a fight against Zayn. He blocked some of Zayn's attacks, forcefully altering Zayn's momentum and attack, causing the young Normie to injure himself...with his own blade. Merlin repeated the same process several times with eerie precision and ease. It was almost as if Merlin might as well be able to do the same with his eyes closed.

The demonstration combined two essential lessons. One was the importance of safety while handling weapons, and the other lesson could be summarized in one word; Familiarity!

Not only was it important to handle a weapon safely but being familiar with the weapon in question was paramount. This included various factors such as soul particle conductivity, the sharpness of the blade, how endurable it was, its weight, balance, edge geometry and much more.

There were too many factors to consider when fighting seriously, and Zayn, the kind of person who liked to fight instinctively, had never even thought about something like that.

Learning all of this from scratch was not easy for someone like Zayn. He liked to fight using his instincts, which meant that he had to adjust his fighting style completely. It was quite a challenge for Zayn to change that much, but he was more than willing to adjust. After all, it allowed his strength to increase drastically in the long run!

However, even after he had learned all of the previously mentioned lectures, he had yet to learn the Double Saber Kalivan technique. He was itching to ask Merlin about it but thankfully Merlin gave Zayn two rather simple instructions before he finally began teaching the Double Saber Kalivan technique.

One of them was about throwing a bunch of more than ten books at Zayn and telling him to study them thoroughly. The Books were about tactics, which included the understanding of basic close combat tactics, such as footwork, timing, and distance control.

Zayn had to study the books and show Merlin what he had learned. Afterward, Merlin pointed out and corrected Zayn's mistakes with great finesse. Merlin was very precise. He liked to go into details and tried to demonstrate to Zayn clearly why it was more important for certain steps to be used the way they were and not modify it. The efficiency of his lectures was amazing, and Zayn sometimes wondered if Merlin had been a great scholar in his past life.

As for the last instruction he gave before teaching the Double Saber Kalivan technique, it was even simpler than the tactics he taught Zayn. Merlin told Zayn clearly that it was important to keep training whenever he had some time to spare. Continuously training with blades and staying updated with new techniques and tactics was extremely important. It would allow him to keep improving his knowledge, and combat prowess!

In between all these lectures, Zayn spent a considerable amount of time in the Archives of the Adventurer Hall and in the City's Library. He was not sure how Merlin did it but the Adventurer procured him the necessary permission to enter the VIP section of the City's Library. That was quite advantageous because it allowed him to learn much more than he could have hoped for in four months.

Of course, it was not the most important thing he learned in these four months, but knowledge was power, and Zayn was pretty sure that the knowledge he procured in the Archives of the Adventurer Hall, and Cerek's Library would come in handy one day!