The morning after his audience with the king, the sun was already high when Leo finally woke up in the inn's big bed with a splitting headache.
He didn't remember how he'd made it back to the Sapphire Inn, but he vaguely recalled single-handedly drinking dozens of nobles—including King Robert himself—under the table at the feast.
Back on Earth, his corporate job had meant plenty of client dinners, and he'd always been the guy who could hold his liquor. That experience, combined with his new game-enhanced body, had made short work of Robert.
Once the king passed out, a string of cocky young lords stepped up to challenge him. Leo took every one of them on and knocked them out cold, one after another.
After God knows how many rounds, he finally blacked out himself. When he woke up the next day, he found himself back in the familiar inn bed.
His head throbbed painfully. Hangovers sucked.
Luckily, after he washed up and demolished a huge breakfast (technically lunch), the feeling gradually faded.
He figured it was another perk of his game-character physique.
Standing in front of the bronze mirror in his room, Leo admired his reflection: handsome face, solid muscles, and a sharply defined eight-pack. Satisfied, he changed into fresh clothes and headed out.
His destination today was still the Red Keep.
With the tourney only two months away, he needed an intensive crash course. Before crossing over he had never held a real sword in his life. Relying only on his system's Warrior skills wasn't going to cut it if he wanted to stand out.
He needed proper knight training—swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, horsemanship, mounted combat, the whole package.
And the man waiting to teach him was the legendary Barristan Selmy—Barristan the Bold.
At the feast the night before, while everyone was deep in their cups, Leo had asked Robert if Barristan could train him intensively for the next two months. Robert, drunk and in a good mood, had agreed without hesitation.
As Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, Barristan wasn't thrilled about the order, but he couldn't refuse the king. He had no choice but to obey.
When Leo rode his swift white stallion into the Red Keep's training yard, Barristan—who had been waiting a long time—already wore a face like thunder.
"Ser Neo, you're late. Very late. Punctuality is one of the most basic honors of a knight," Barristan said coldly, displeasure written all over his face.
Leo showed the legendary white-haired knight zero disrespect. He honestly admitted his mistake and promised it would never happen again.
Seeing Leo's sincere attitude, Barristan's expression eased a little.
"As your teacher—even if only temporary—I must warn you: wine and women are poison to the bones. A true knight must stay far away from both, no matter how tempting they seem."
"Yes, yes, you're absolutely right. From now on, unless it's absolutely necessary, I won't touch either of them lightly," Leo replied respectfully.
Barristan, of course, knew exactly why Leo was late.
At yesterday's feast Leo had been the star of the show. He had drunk more than ten nobles under the table—including King Robert, who still hadn't woken up.
The fact that Leo had even shown up at the training yard was already more than Barristan had expected.
What truly displeased him was what Lord Gyles had said the day before.
As a legendary knight who had earned every honor through blood and steel on real battlefields, Barristan had little patience for someone who seemed to be taking shortcuts.
In his eyes Leo was nothing more than a spoiled young lord who had never known hardship. His fair, unblemished skin made it obvious—the boy had never spent a day sweating under the sun or training properly.
Barristan had only come because it was the king's command.
At least the young man didn't carry the usual arrogant, nose-in-the-air attitude most noble sons had. That was something.
Still, Barristan kept his face stern. "How many years have you trained with the sword?"
"Well… heh… I… I've never actually learned swordsmanship before," Leo answered honestly.
Barristan's eyes widened in disbelief. He stepped forward, grabbed Leo's hands, examined them closely, then flung his arms away in anger.
"What am I supposed to say to you? A knight who has never trained with a sword? And yet you had the nerve to claim you would defeat other knights at the tourney? This is…"
Barristan was speechless. Leo's soft, white hands had no calluses whatsoever. It was clear this was a pampered young lord who had never done any real labor or martial training in his life.
(The game model obviously hadn't gone so far as to add calluses.)
Barristan felt completely numb. He was furious inside: How the hell did that duke father of his raise him? Even a second son who couldn't inherit should at least have been taught proper swordsmanship!
He had assumed Leo simply hadn't trained seriously. He never imagined the boy had never trained at all.
And now he was supposed to teach this spoiled brat swordsmanship and horsemanship so he could perform well at the tourney?
It was laughable.
If Leo embarrassed himself in the lists and people remembered that Barristan had been the one training him, he would become a laughingstock.
No. He had to resign from this duty.
Even if it meant losing face, he had to go speak to the king.
Barristan took a deep breath to steady himself. "My abilities are limited. I don't believe I can turn you into a skilled knight in two months… or rather, one month and twenty-odd days. I'm sorry. I will personally explain the situation to His Grace."
With that, he placed his left hand on his sword hilt and turned to leave.
"Wait!"
Seeing Barristan about to walk away, Leo quickly reached out and grabbed his arm.
Barristan froze, then tried to pull free—but to his shock, Leo's grip was incredibly strong. He couldn't shake it off right away.
"What are you doing? Let go!" Barristan was getting angry.
"Sorry! Sorry!" Leo quickly released him and said earnestly, "Ser Barristan, I understand your concerns. Yes, when I was younger I relied on my parents' indulgence and never properly learned martial skills. But after everything I've been through, I've turned over a new leaf. I swear I'll work as hard as it takes and endure any hardship to learn properly!"
Barristan sighed. "Even so, it's too late. The tourney is less than two months away. Even if I'm willing to teach and you're willing to learn, you still won't be able to defeat anyone at the tourney."
"You never know until you try," Leo countered.
"How about this? You teach, and I'll learn. If after two months you still believe I'm not qualified to compete, then I won't enter the tourney. Until you give your approval, you can deny that I ever learned anything from you."
"What do you think?"