No one had access to the secret cellar but me so my operation became much quieter. The biggest problem was Olaf! At most he could take 25 hits before he would blackout. I had utilized much of this time to test out various vital points. If I hit certain spots I could knock him out in as little as 12 hits. Likewise, I found that he would still blackout even if I only hit him in the foot, though it took 25 strikes.

After four hours of rinse and repeat, I had got my sword skill up to Level 5, unlocking the sub-skill Rapid strikes.

Rapid Strikes- Three Strikes each dealing 150% damage lvl 1/5

Olaf was the problem.

After level 5, leveling the sword skill will take exponentially longer. I needed to increase the number of strikes. After four hours I had only reached 240 strikes. It took 120 just to get from level 4 to 5, and I could expect it to double from now on. Which means 240 strikes to get from 5 to 6. 480 for 6-7, 960 for 7-8, 1920 for 8-9, and 3840 for 9-10.

So I needed to get 7440 strikes. I had a long way to go so I needed to figure out a way to speed things up.

Splash!

I tossed the water and woke Olaf. The last few times he immediately started crying, this time was no different.

I broke him.

This time I tried a different approach, I talked to him. I said, " So Olaf, don't you ever get tired of being a piece of trash? "

He held his arms up in fear, stuttering as he spoke, " Please..dont..hurt me anymore. "

I laughed and sternly said, " You think I should stop? You are the only one to blame. Your own actions led to becoming a useless drunk. Is this how you want to be seen forever?"

He shook his head and I continued talking, " You know your little scheme is over. Your father in law knows about everything. I gave him your mothers Ruby and your journal. Now that he knows about you stealing money from him how are you going to continue this lame ass lifestyle?"

His eyes began to bug out as he loudly exclaimed, "What?! Why did you do that!? "

He was now visibly shaken, which was good.

I quietly said, " He is perfectly fine with what I'm doing to you, in fact, he lent me this cellar so I can continue until I kill you. "

He was overcome by fear, so I continued talking and said, "Yes well that's one option, but I would like to give you a second option. Do you know why you are such a bad fighter that you would lose to a child? "

He quickly responded with, " You are no child, you are a demon.".

This made me laugh but I didn't let him deter me. I said , " You are a bad fighter because you have no training. You were an only child raised with a woman. You were thrust into the military with no training and you were scared. I don't blame you, being in battle with no training is terrifying. But it is no different than being with a woman the first time or getting blackout drunk, all can be terrifying without some modicum of training or experience. Let me ask you a simple question. Why don't you move your head out of the way when I swing my sword? ".

He absorbed my words and thought for a second.

" I hadn't thought to try.", Olaf admitted.

I rubbed my jaw and said , " Hmm, so this time when I attack try leaning your head back slightly as you see my sword coming towards you. ".

He seemed confused by the basic concept of dodging.

" I will try it.", Olaf stated apprehensively.

"Are you trying to train me? Why? Why are you doing this? ", he questioned.

I smiled and said, " I had a spell cast on me that made me appear as a child, but I am not weak. I have to grow strong, and you sir are the way I'm going to do it. Either way, I'm going to beat you. At least if I train you, you can go become a soldier and live a normal life. ".

Olaf was filled with hope, his expression joyous, his voice full of emotion as he exclaimed, " I would like that! "

I smiled wickedly and uttered softly , " Good, then let's begin. ".

Thump! Thump! Thump!