Chapter 4: The First Card
Koushirou lifted the covers, climbed out of bed, put on his glasses, let out a slight yawn, and then walked out of the room.
He had originally planned to go wash up, but after stepping out, he saw Kuina crouching behind a pillar, staring at something. Curiosity piqued, he walked over.
Just as he was about to ask what she was doing, Kuina turned around, raised a finger to her lips, and whispered, "Father, keep your voice down. Don't disturb Ian!"
Koushirou leaned out to look and immediately saw Ian on the training ground, drenched in sweat.
The morning sunlight shone down on Ian, the beads of sweat glistening with its rays. His faintly defined muscles radiated a sense of strength and beauty. Koushirou could tell that Ian was already exhausted, panting heavily, yet his sword-swinging movements continued without pause.
"What's wrong with Ian? This is the first time I've seen him train in the morning!" Kuina asked curiously.
Koushirou smiled faintly. Though he didn't know the reason, he could see that Ian's practice today was more serious than ever before.
"Don't disturb him. You should train somewhere else," Koushirou said.
Kuina nodded, clenched her fist, and said, "Ian is working hard to get stronger too. I can't afford to slack off!"
At that moment, Ian was completely immersed in his own world. In truth, his mind was a complete blank. An intense wave of fatigue washed over him, leaving him in a daze. The only reason he could still swing his sword was pure subconscious instinct.
He didn't even know how many times he had swung the blade.
If no one had interrupted him, he might have kept going until he collapsed from exhaustion. But just then, a loud, brash voice rang out: "Ah! You're so sneaky! Starting without me!"
Ian snapped out of his haze and turned to see Zoro, holding two bamboo swords, glaring at him angrily.
Sweat dripped from his cheek. Ian wiped it away and said, panting, "Sneaky? I don't recall needing to wait for you, do I?"
Zoro stared at Ian for a long moment, then suddenly pointed at him and said, "You're a strong guy too, aren't you? Fight me!"
This kid was a challenge maniac. Ian didn't want to bother with him, but Zoro charged at him with a yell. Seeing his aggressive stance, Ian instinctively swung his sword at him.
*Bang!* A direct hit, right in the face! It was exactly like how Kuina had hit him yesterday...
Zoro's nose, which had just started to heal, started bleeding again.
If you ignored his fierce determination, Zoro was a complete novice in swordsmanship. Ian, having practiced basic swordsmanship for so long, had no trouble beating him. But the moment his sword struck Zoro, Ian realized that his swing felt different from before. Though it was a reflexive action, both speed and power were perfect!
And even more absurdly, at that moment, a voice echoed in his mind.
"Defeated opponent. Gained 50 experience points!"
He quickly checked his status and found that not only had his basic swordsmanship proficiency jumped significantly, but his experience points had also increased!
With levels came experience points, but Ian had never figured out how to earn them before. Now he understood: he had to defeat opponents to gain them.
It made sense. Every time he had sparred with Kuina before, he had lost. And he felt too embarrassed to pick fights with the snot-nosed little brats who were his junior disciples. So Koushirou had always paired him with Kuina, meaning he had never won a match and never learned how experience points worked.
While Ian was checking his stats, Zoro was tending to his nose. The red mark on his face from yesterday hadn't even faded yet, and now Ian had added another one.
"Damn it! That woman was bad enough, and now you too!" Zoro said bitterly, stuffing his nose.
Ian shrugged. *My fault?*
"Just you wait! I'll surpass you both sooner or later!" Zoro shot Ian a glare, then walked to the side and started swinging his sword furiously.
Well, now there was another name on his list. Ian looked at the wooden sword in his hand, speechless. He hadn't expected his first real interaction with Zoro to happen like this.
Watching Zoro's practice, Ian couldn't help but speak up: "You idiot! Why are you swinging so hard without knowing how to control your strength!?"
Zoro had just joined the dojo, and Koushirou hadn't taught him any techniques yet. His practice was completely chaotic, swinging the two bamboo swords wildly with no form whatsoever.
Hearing Ian's voice, Zoro paused and asked, "Then what should I do?"
Ian shook his head, walked over, pressed down on Zoro's shoulder, and shoved his waist. "Straighten your back! Tuck your hips in, lift your head, and puff out your chest! Put down the other bamboo sword. You haven't even mastered one-sword style yet, so stop trying to use two!"
After correcting Zoro's stance, Ian demonstrated the proper movements. These were the same techniques Koushirou had taught him. As the senior disciple of the dojo, Ian was now passing them on to his new junior brother, Zoro.
To be fair, Zoro's talent was truly astonishing. After just one demonstration, he had fully memorized the movements, and his sword swings began to look proper.
"Alright, keep at it on your own!" Ian left him and went to wash up. His whole body ached, and he reeked of sweat.
While showering, Ian checked his stats and saw that his swordsmanship proficiency had risen to twenty-eight thousand. He hadn't expected that practicing with full concentration could multiply the proficiency gain so much.
Thinking about it, it made sense. Practice done with focus versus without was bound to yield different results.
He then checked the card shop and was surprised to find that the draw countdown had reset to zero!
That meant Ian could finally draw a card!
He had been wondering what the cards were for, but without a chance to test them, he had been left guessing. Now, he had finally waited for the opportunity.
Eagerly, Ian was about to select a draw when the system's voice rang out: "First card draw guarantees a three-star purple card. First ten-draw guarantees a four-star orange card. Confirm draw?"
Ian was speechless. It was exactly like a typical card game model—first draw and ten-draw bonuses, with the same card rarity system...
A ten-draw was out of the question. To do a ten-draw, he would need one million Berries. For now, he could only do a single draw, and it was free.
"Confirm draw!" Ian thought.
The card was facing away from him. As Ian confirmed, a fantastical star-shaped pattern lit up on the back of the card. Then, with a flash of light, the card flipped over, revealing a long-haired samurai.
The samurai had a handsome face, slicked-back hair, and wore a dark red suit of Warring States-era samurai armor. In his hand, he held a katana. What stood out most was the large, blinking eyeball on his right gauntlet!
"You have obtained a three-star purple card: Mitsumune Yosuke Hidemitsu!"