It was a cloudy day, one of many in Braavos.
In the courtyard of the red door house, Viserys Targaryen, with his silver-white short hair, picked up a blunt iron sword and wiped sweat from his forehead.
He was a tall, slender swordsman.
Ser Roland Lake, the instructor Viserys was facing, appeared somewhat shorter and sturdier.
Ser Roland, wearing a warhammer coat and wielding a blunt spear, sparred with Viserys.
Moro, Syrio, and others watched the knightly combat with folded arms; it was not the graceful danger of a Water Dancer, but the iron storm of a knight.
"Your Majesty, we are conducting basic knight training, primarily focusing on foot combat with sword and shield, various weapon training, and archery training," Ser Roland said.
"Let's go," Viserys nodded.
An instructor doesn't need to be an exceptionally strong warrior, only capable of providing professional training to an apprentice.
A strong knight apprentice becomes strong entirely through training, talent, and effort.
Robert and Eddard once trained together for many years in the Eyrie, but Eddard, at best, was only at the tail end of first-rate strength.
A knight needs to be strong in one area and proficient in many; generally, in addition to a longsword and spear, he must be familiar with at least other weapons.
This prevents being unable to temporarily use various weapons during a chaotic battlefield skirmish.
Formal knight training also includes training hounds and warhorses, exercising falcons, going on hunts, participating in jousting tournaments, and playing the harp.
However, Roland and Viserys had limited conditions in Braavos, so they could only conduct a 'beggar's version' of training, without all the frills, mainly focusing on fighting.
Foot duels occupied most of their time; horses were too scarce in Braavos, and there was no place for them to be used.
But this didn't significantly impact Viserys, as he was quite confident in his horsemanship, which was good.
This was because horses were a means of transport for nobles, not merely a knight's mount. Everyone, men, women, and children, would ride, and noble maidens also had to learn.
"Strength, endurance, and speed are the soul of a knight. The Way of the Knight is very arduous, and victory belongs to those who are most tenacious and cunning," Roland Lake shouted, then urged Viserys to use faster and fiercer moves.
Water Dancers are swift and deadly, emphasizing quick, elegant movement, stealth, and balance.
In unarmored combat, Water Dancers prioritize speed and accuracy above all else.
Knightly combat is not like this; armored knights, like 'tin cans,' have high defense and heavy loads. This type of combat requires more strength and a longer duration.
Viserys began to wield the blunt sword, with a shield in his other hand; sword and shield combat for a knight was never an easy task.
Full plate armor and blunt weapons inherently carry significant weight, increasing a knight's physical exertion and reducing his speed.
Roland Lake could no longer suppress Viserys with a sword, so he now used a long spear.
With the spear's reach advantage and elusive attacks, Ser Roland still made Viserys suffer quite a bit.
Viserys felt that the number of times he was hit and retaliated was roughly equal; once he was hit less and retaliated more, it would mean his technique had advanced another level.
Left, right, thrust upwards, or strike from the side.
The spear striking the blunt sword, armor, or shield would produce a pleasant clang of steel.
Every time Viserys finished training with Roland's spear, he always felt stiff and sore, with bruised contusions, but his recovery ability was very strong, perhaps another benefit of having 'krypton ed' so many attributes.
This effect was exactly what Viserys wanted; his one day had to be used as three days, only then could he make up for his training time.
Others began combat training much earlier than Viserys; if he were in Winterfell or another castle, noble children would practice martial arts every morning from the moment they learned to walk.
"Faster! Faster!" Syrio shouted. "Like flowing water, even in armor, you must dance."
Viserys retreated at extreme speed, dodging left and right like a kite with a broken string. Ser Roland's long spear could not catch Viserys's fleeting figure.
Viserys wielded his blunt sword: "The Way of Insight, with my five senses."
He needed to rely on himself, using all his senses to capture the enemy's movements.
His keen five senses allowed Viserys to gradually achieve striking after the enemy but landing first, using Insight to observe the enemy's attack rhythm.
"Boom!" Roland's spear blade thrust to the left, while Viserys defended on the right. Viserys had already perceived that this was a feint.
"Besides Insight, there should also be balance," Viserys had already found his advantage; his attributes were comprehensive and balanced, which gave him a great strength.
Most Water Dancers or knights found it difficult to achieve balanced attributes, always seeming to lack in one area.
However, Viserys could employ the tactics of Tian Ji's horse racing, surpassing Water Dancers in strength and knights in speed.
Viserys began to defend and counterattack, then lured Ser Roland's spear to attack.
Roland's spear darted out like a venomous snake, mostly finding empty air, occasionally scraping against the shield with a clanging sound of steel.
Viserys dodged and maneuvered, then turned agilely, waiting for Roland's stamina to slowly deplete.
As Ser Roland's relentless attack rate began to slow, Viserys's spinning cuts became faster and faster, like a torrential storm of offense.
"Crack!" Ser Roland retreated step by step, while Viserys, conversely, charged with his shield, which began to crack, with splinters flying.
The scales of victory quickly tipped in Viserys's favor; his arms also grew sore, and the edgeless iron sword felt heavy.
However, Ser Roland's situation was even worse; Viserys dodged a dangerous side thrust from Ser Roland.
Viserys's figure evaded the long spear, then he delivered a fierce forehand chop, striking Ser Roland in the chest and abdomen.
Roland Lake sat on the ground, the long spear flying from his hand.
Roland sat dizzy on the ground, removed his face guard, his ears still ringing from the impact.
"The Warrior blesses," Roland said with a wry smile. "Next time I can't win, I'll have to surrender beforehand."
Although he could only be considered a second-rate knight, he could at least personally train a first-rate warrior.
A moment later, Ser Roland rose and rested on the bench.
"Well done, Your Majesty," Roland said. "Logically, a physique like yours shouldn't possess such strength, and the Warrior has also granted you excellent endurance and speed. Knightly combat is always so arduous; victory often belongs to the most enduring. Fight cautiously, conserving your stamina while exhausting and luring the enemy. Knights will underestimate you because you look like a handsome youth, not a burly brute."
"A beautiful dance," Syrio said. "A storm of steel. But you must continue tomorrow, Viserys."
"Let's unleash faster and fiercer attacks tomorrow..." Viserys also dropped the blunt sword and broken shield in his hand.
Roland and Syrio were both very satisfied with Viserys's progress.
Speed is paramount; this is the theory of the Water Dancer.
And invincibility is the realm demanded by knights.
"Do not think; your observation will tell you the answer, thinking after Insight," Syrio said.
"I am the sum of my senses," Viserys said. "My eyes, nose, tongue, skin, and ears."
"Exactly," Syrio nodded. "The sword is a part of your arm; use the senses of all parts of your body to observe your surroundings. Observation is faster than thought."
"You have great talent, but you must do even better, Your Majesty. But humility and self-reliance are equally part of the Way of the Knight," Ser Roland added.
"Every knight has flaws. I have witnessed dozens of duels and heard of many more wars; no matter how strong, how swift, how precise a knight may be, as long as he is human, he ultimately has limits."
"There are always limits, but I will surpass them," Viserys nodded. He still needed to 'Krypton Gold' (invest heavily, implying in-game currency/attributes) and train incessantly, review, recover, and through this, push his attributes beyond their limits..
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