How the Villain Invests in the Female Lead

Chapter 35: Archive of Martial Arts

I nodded indifferently as if I had expected it. Then, I glanced at Li and said,

"We’ll head to the Archive of Martial Arts in ten minutes."

Li nodded.

"Yes, sir."

My wife frowned.

"What about me?"

I replied,

"You’ll stay in the room."

My wife grimaced before pouting in dissatisfaction. She was clearly unhappy with my answer.

"Fine."

Ten minutes later, Li and I arrived at the Archive of Martial Arts, where students could exchange their credits for technique manuals.

As the finest academy on the continent, it possessed countless high-quality manuals, many of them even superior to those owned by some noble families. Moreover, the collection was remarkably diverse, catering to students with all kinds of different talents and traits.

After talking with the Archive manager, I decided to spend 100 credits on a technique manual for Li.

[Silent Fang (D – ) ]

The user would gain mastery over short blades, focusing on finishing enemies in a single strike with overwhelming speed. However, this technique required someone with the proper assassin traits and compatible bloodline skills. Otherwise, it was practically useless.

The Archive manager scratched the back of his head.

"Sorry. That’s the cheapest manual I can offer you. Its potential can even reach S Rank if it didn’t require the conditions you saw."

I rubbed my chin while reading the manual.

"Thank you. I like it."

Afterward, we returned to the dormitory room, and I handed the manual to Li.

"It’s yours. Practice hard. I want you to master this manual within a week. Can you do it?"

Li nodded nonstop, clutching the manual as if it were a treasure.

I could understand her reaction. Given her status, owning a technique manual was almost impossible.

It was a golden opportunity for her.

"Thank you for your kindness. I will master it within five days. I swear." Her voice was full of gratitude.

I nodded.

"Keep that motivation. In the future, I’ll give you even better things."

It was an investment for the future. I wouldn’t let her talent go to waste.

A second tool.

Soon, the afternoon arrived. I left Li in the room because the academy’s rules didn’t allow maids to attend lessons.

Since it was a practical combat class, all the students gathered in the academy’s training yard.

Jonathan held an iPad, his fingers occasionally tapping the screen as if checking something. A few minutes later, he turned his attention to the students and cleared his throat.

"First of all, I want to assess your true strength... without mana. Each of you will fight me."

He continued,

"That way, I can create a personalized training program for each of you based on your current abilities."

He glanced at the students for a moment before calling the first name.

"Lancelot du Lac. Please, come forward."

Lancelot nodded calmly and stepped forward. His expression became steady and heroic. A smirk spread across his face as he tried to look like an ancient god of war stepping out of a Renaissance painting.

I focused my eyes on Lancelot. I also wanted to see how strong he really was.

The first match quickly began.

After just a few exchanges, I could already tell Lancelot was as strong as I had expected.

His combat technique was nearly perfect. His movements, and each slash, were flexible and slippery.

I couldn’t help but click my tongue in admiration.

My wife stared at Lancelot and said,

"He also possesses some manuals like me. Especially the Sword Adaptation (SSS+) manual. Even though he can’t cultivate it to the highest level due to his SSS potential limit, he is still quite formidable."

A few minutes later, Jonathan nodded before stopping the match.

"Very good. You’re the strongest student I’ve ever fought in my whole career, but there are a few things you need to improve. In the future, you will even surpass me by a lot."

Then he called the next name.

"Tristan de Lyonesse."

The mannequin moved to the center of the yard and the fight began.

I frowned as I watched his combat style.

Tristan’s style was not human. He exploited the traits of the mannequin, using their limbs like snakes – completely boneless – yet each of his strikes aimed directly at Jonathan’s vital points.

I wondered how destructive those attacks would be if he infused them with mana.

My wife bit her lip as she watched Tristan with visible discomfort.

"He’s a bizarre one. I’ve even destroyed his mannequins before, but that bastard always finds a way to come back to fight me. I’ve never even seen his true body. To me, he’s even harder to deal with than Lancelot."

Jonathan nodded in satisfaction.

"Good. But you still need to improve a few things."

Then he called the next name:

"Scarlet Pendragon."

My empty eyes fixed on the crimson-haired girl as she approached Jonathan.

Just a few seconds later, my pupils widened in surprise as silver armor materialized over her body. A large number of swords appeared, floating around her, ready to fight as if they had a will of their own.

"What is that?"

My wife rolled her eyes.

"This is a blessing from her title: Knight of War."

"The weapons in this world are almost like her dogs. She can manipulate them with her mind without wasting mana. Not only that, she can forge them from the void in just a few seconds. Any weapon that faces her will be destroyed."

I forced myself to form a slight smile on my soulless face.

"She’s basically broken . I guess the only way to defeat her is through close combat at the highest level."

My wife nodded in agreement.

"You’re right. Her weakness is her [SSS – ] potential, it limited her swordsmanship. We just need to beat her through a different approach."

I shrugged.

"You say that as if anyone in the world has a potential higher than your sister. Only a few people do."

My wife raised an eyebrow.

"And you’re one of them?"

I said nothing, refusing to give an answer.

"Who knows."