After Strict Instructions 2

There are exactly three dozens of knights lining up in a formation in front of me at the moment.

They are Baron Heldrick's private unit. Different from ordinary soldiers, they are considerably educated in academics and expertly trained in combat.

I accepted the Baron's request to have a small lecture of swordsmanship to help them further improve their abilities.

An official request from a noble is considered an honor to receive. For commoners, there are usually many benifits that they can gain from accepting them.

With that said, I can use this to gain his favor. Having a good relationship with nobles - specially those who manage bigger towns or cities - is always a good thing.

I'm also curious to see how capable the knights are now. Just like how it was with Fin's magic, I want to see if the proud swordsmanship of knights have improved or not. That's actually another part of the reason why I accepted the Baron's request.

"And that's just some of Lady Eria"s achievements. Make sure to learn from her."

Baron Heldrick himself is by my side, introducing me to all of the knights. His voice sounds intimidating, and he's aggressive in ordering them. I thought he would be similar to the gentle Jonah, but it seems he's not.

"My name is Eria. As you have heard from Baron Muro, I am here to instruct you."

I made my self-introduction. It doesn't seem like the knights are too skeptical about me. Their master approved of me, so that's to be expected. I've also been told that they were informed about me prior to this meeting. If they know I'm that strong, then they really don't have any reason to doubt me.

Of the 36 knights I counted, 33 of them were men, while the remaining 3 were women. All of them were well equipped.

They're supposed to be only training, but real swords were hanging on their waists. Some of them already have cuts and bruises. Obviously, they weren't just practicing, they were fighting for real. From that, I can tell that they're serious about getting stronger.

"That's all."

After that, a few knights raised their hands to ask questions.

"I heard you can use magic. Are you going to teach us magic as well?"

"Is it true that you defeated the basilisk in a single blow?"

"Are you single?"

Of course, I answered all of them.

When the Q&A part of my introduction was over, one person came forward and also introduces himself to me.

He's a middle-aged man with a stern expression on his face. His looks is that of a veteran warrior, and he was covered with scars, the biggest of which was the one displayed across his left eye.

"My name is Marcus. I'm the captain of the knights here. I apologize if I wasn't able to introduce myself earlier, since we're also in the middle of practice."

"No, I should be the one apologizing. I didn't think of coming earlier."

It's early in the morning when I arrived to meet Baron Heldrick. I thought at first that it would just be a meeting to discuss when I would start the lecture, but it turns out that it would start whenever I would come.

When the Baron and I arrived here, everyone immediately stopped what they were doing to greet us.

If my recollection of the events is correct, Marcus, who just introduced himself now, looked pretty annoyed. His and the other knights' first impression of me is important, so I decided to apologize to appear better.

"Mm? It seems that you're not just pretty, but well-mannered as well. I'm honored to meet such a person."

Since I bowed my head when I apologized, he immediately took my attitude as well-mannered.

"And I hope to learn things from you as well," he added and gestured for a handshake.

After I took his hand and shook it, it was decided that we would begin the lecture right away.