Ch.14 I Was Bullied So Hard I Was Isekai'ed Into A World of Sword And Magic And Emerged As The Lightning Samurai God To Hatefuck My Former Bully Until She Got Heart Eyes

— Law Greyrat —

I sat in a chair at the back of the room and glanced out the window. The clear sunny sky brought a smile to my face as I tried to tune out the noise in front of me.

It had been three weeks since Rudy and I had arrived within Roa, and within that time we had adapted to our jobs somewhat.

There were still periods of time within the day where I would stop and think about the family we had to leave behind. I’d wonder how much trouble Paul was giving Zenith and Lilia, or if Norn and Aisha would even remember Rudy and I when they got older.

It still hurt, but a part of me knew that everything would work out in the end.

Rudeus and I would get the money necessary to continue on our path, and our family would cheer for us all the way.

All in all, life was good, and I knew in time, it would be even better.

“I don't understand!” Eris shouted loudly, making me let out a sigh as I took my attention away from the window and toward the front of the room.

“Then maybe you should listen!” Rudeus scolded her which only made the red-headed little shit angrier.

“Well maybe if you explained it better this wouldn’t happen!” She slammed her hands on the table and stood up.

“I don’t know how much better I can explain it, it’s addition! Basic math!” Rudeus argued back, and Eris practically growled at him with clenched fists.

A bead of sweat went down Rudeus’ face as he glanced at Ghislaine who was sitting in the seat beside Eris’. The beastwoman was looking down at her paper, clearly struggling to get a grasp on the equations Rudeus had given them minutes earlier.

“It’s simple.” I stood up, taking their attention and getting Eris to redirect her anger at me. I watched as her narrowed eyes slowly lessened to the point of minor annoyance as I approached and pointed my finger at her paper.

“Addition is the simplest form of math. To find the answer to problems like these, all you need to know is how to count.” I explained as I glanced at Eris who crossed her arms and frowned, it was clear she didn’t have much interest in my words, but she heard me out anyway.

The girl had been hesitant to learn anything besides Sword Styles and Magic, and even the latter she barely had interest in.

Rudeus had only recently managed to get Eris in the classroom by explaining math skills were crucial for any aspiring Adventurer to have.

Which was true, and had been confirmed by Ghislaine, which was the only reason Eris even considered being in this room at all.

“Then how do you solve it?” Eris tilted her head and I gave the girl a small smile.

“Well, the equation is five plus three, so all you need to do is count to five and then go up three more numbers.” I explained. “Use your fingers if you have to.”

Eris started doing as I instructed, and I noticed Ghislaine was doing it as well. The beastwoman Sword King apparently didn’t know any math or even how to read, which honestly didn’t surprise me much.

Never in either of my lives have I met someone who embodied the title ‘muscle head’ more than Ghislaine Dedoldia.

“It’s seven!” Eris shouted suddenly and looked at me to see my reaction. I shook my head, and she narrowed her eyes and looked at her hands again before looking back up at me. “It’s eight!”

“That it is.” I nodded proudly and placed my hand atop her head. “Good job.”

Eris closed her eyes and proudly smiled as I ran my hand through her wild red locks.

If there’s one thing I’ve noticed about Eris in the last few weeks, it’s that she’s obsessed with Ghislaine, and tends to respond positively to rewards for figuring things out and taking time out of her day that could be better spent swinging a sword.

Basically compliments and good treats are the way to her heart. Similarly enough to Ghislaine. These girls were such simple creatures.

Because of my understanding of this, and my skill with the blade, Eris has come to respect me quite a bit. Not quite to the level of Ghislaine, but more than Rudeus at the very least.

Magic is of little use in Eris’ eyes. She figured that out when she asked Ghislaine how useful it could be at the lower levels and the beast woman had told her the truth. Magic wasn’t shit, at least not beginner magic. Especially since Sword God heavily countered traditional mages who had to chant with its quick rush strategies.

Which is why she doesn’t see Rudeus as too important. Unlike me, Rudeus isn’t a swordsman, and while he has a much higher mana pool than me, we pretty much have the same skill set magic wise. At least for now while Rudeus has no teacher to help take him progress further. One couldn’t be considered a King Class mage without knowing a King Class spell, and those don’t just grow on trees. I have no doubt that with Rudeus’ absurd talent in Magic he’ll surpass me one day, I’ll just keep up through my own swordsmanship.

Because of this, Eris typically refers to Rudeus as a lesser version of me, which neither of us take to kindly.

Rudeus is bullshit in his own right, but with how Eris views swords vs magic, it’s hard to show her just how bullshit Rudy is.

“So this one would be six?” Ghislaine asked as she showed me her paper. The equation read four plus two. I turned to the woman with a proud smile and nodded.

“Yup, that’s correct!” I did the same thing that I had done with Eris and patted the top of the beast woman's head, running my hands along the base of her ears, and she clearly took more of a liking to the action than Eris. Ghislaine pushed her head up into my hand and let out a low rumbling purr, which would be kinda cute if I couldn’t remember the ass beatings she has given me on several occasions.

“See, you both are making good progress.” Rudeus spoke up with a satisfied smile.

“It’s still boring though!” Eris crossed her arms and held her head high as she glared down at Rudeus who’s smile grew nervous.

My older brother gave me a look, and I immediately understood what feelings he was trying to convey.

… We really need to do something about that attitude she has when it comes to him.

I'd say we should have them spar, but Rudeus destroying Eris with magic probably wouldn’t have her respect him anymore than she does already, in fact it may make their relationship worse.

She likes me because I’m good with a sword, and Ghislaine for the same reason along with all her adventuring stories. But in her mind she has no reason to respect Rudeus.

That needs to change. As her bodyguard, I’m assigned to trail her everywhere, but if I have to tutor Eris on top of that, what’s even the point of Rudeus being here?

I don’t want Philip or Sauros to start asking that question, so we need to figure out how to get this ignorant, hard headed girl to respect her tutor.

Maybe Rudeus could figure something out?

“I’m leaving! Ghislaine, can we go do more sword training?!”

“Not now, Lord Sauros wants me at his office after your lessons.” Ghislaine shook her head, making Eris pout but she didn’t press forward on the matter.

Her respect for Ghislaine really shows in times like these. If anyone else barring her grandfather had said no to her, she would have made a fuss about it and pushed to have her way.

Instead, Eris shot Rudeus one last glare and left the room, leaving the three of us.

“I don’t think she likes you much.” I said blandly and got an even blander look from Rudeus.

“You don’t say.”

“Hey, all that sarcasm certainly won’t help you with her.” I snorted and grew even more pleased when Rudeus let out a defeated sigh.

I knew something needed to change, but before that, I could take my time and enjoy teasing my older brother. There aren’t many chances to do so with him. Not without getting roasted and manhandled in an argument. The guy could talk his way around almost any disagreement.

“If we’re done here, I’m going.” Ghislaine stood up.

“Alright, that’s fine.” Rudeus smiled at the beastwoman as she left the room. When she did, he turned to me and raised a brow. “Shouldn’t you be following Eris? You’re her guard.”

“Ah, I should, shouldn’t I?” I crossed my arms and frowned. Knowing Eris she was probably in her room getting changed so she could go out and practice with the sword. I turned back to Rudy and placed a hand on his shoulder. “You should really figure out a way to gain Eris’ respect. Things cannot continue on like this.”

“I know what you mean, don’t worry, I’ll figure it out.” Rudeus assured me with a small smile. I returned it before leaving the room and heading down the hall toward Eris’ room.

If Eris wanted to get some training in, I may as well join her. I didn’t really gain much out of it, but Ghislaine wasn’t the only one who could teach Eris a thing or two about swordsmanship.

Hell, I could probably teach her the techniques From the Water and North God Schools more precisely.

After a minute of walking I reached Eris’ room just in time for her to open the door.

Her eyes widened momentarily before she frowned at me. She had changed, completely discarding her dress for a long sleeve shirt that was rolled up at the sleeves, and some pants.

“Took you long enough!” Eris crossed her arms and looked down at me with intense red eyes.

“Sorry about that, I’m here now though. Would you like to spar outside until your dinner?” I asked, knowing that was exactly what she wanted to hear right now.

She briefly smiled and her eyes lit up before she realized she was showing too much happiness and schooled her features.

“Hmph! I’ll allow you the honor of accompanying me!” She held her head high before walking past me.

“Very well, My Lady.” I shrugged and followed after her.

I doubted anyone would ever be able to take that bratty attitude away from her. It seemed like she’d end up having it for the rest of her life, especially with Sauros enabling it as much as he does.

Eris stopped all of a sudden and turned around with a pout on her face. “Eris! Call me Eris! Since you’re better at the sword than me I will allow you that honor, be grateful!”

I gave her a mock bow. “Thank you, Eris.”

Eris' lips twitched upwards, she quickly turned around, hiding her smile.

Despite her brattiness she could be rather cute.

I followed Eris down the stairs and into the courtyard before she turned back to look at me while tapping her foot.

“Well…? What are you waiting for? Get the practice swords!” She demanded, and I eyed her like she had lost her mind.

Normally I would grab the practice swords when I was training with Paul, but that was different.

I owed Paul for training me, Father or not, he was my first sword master and I would give him respect for that.

This girl… I owe her nothing.

“No, get them yourself.” I leveled my hardened blue eyes at her, and I didn’t miss how her eyes widened at my denying of her order.

“Why would I?!” She shouted with narrowed eyes, and I was almost certain she was gearing up to hit me. A common tactic of Eris’ whenever she didn’t get what she wanted or she was annoyed.

“Because I’ll be acting as your instructor for today.” I placed one of my hands on the palm of my sword, which made Eris’ eyes gravitate toward it. “You forget that I’m Advanced in all three Sword Styles. At the moment, I can teach you just as much as Ghislaine can. I am quite literally your superior in everything when it comes to combat.”

I wasn't even lying either. Sure I may not be a Sword King like her, but that doesn’t matter. It’s not like Eris can learn Saint or King level techniques yet.

Eris' eyes remained narrowed but I could see that the gears in her head were turning. I was making sense to her.

Eventually she turned away with her head held high and walked into the shed. She walked out a few seconds later with two practice swords and wasted no time throwing me one.

“Be grateful!” She shouted and before I could say anything, she rushed forward with her blade and tried to hit me with a downward slash. I sidestepped the attack with grace and ended up behind her. I gave her a light push which had her stumbling away for several feet before she inevitably fell and ate dirt.

I pointed my wooden sword at her and leveled an unimpressed stare as she pushed herself back to her feet.

“I get that you want to start quickly, but rushing into a fight isn’t a good way to start one, unless you have an inkling of what you’re doing and what your opponent is capable of.” I lectured.

Eris grit her teeth and rushed forward again, and this time my blade met hers as I blocked her attack. We continued like that for several blows. She’d swing, I’d block, rinse, repeat.

I wanted to let her take her energy out, while also helping her realize that trying to attack me straight up wouldn’t help her in a fight against someone stronger than her.

As she is now, she doesn’t stand a chance against me, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t capable of catching me off guard.

I let her continue slashing for several minutes before I got bored and parried her attack. Once I did, I bonked her on the head lightly with my practice blade, making her fall on her ass as she rubbed her head with tears in the corner of her eyes.

As I looked down at Eris, I realized that Sword God Style wasn’t the best sword style for her to pursue. There was no harm in learning Sword God Style, but in Eris’ case, she’s so stubborn and hard-headed that she doesn’t even understand the concept of changing up her attack style, at least not yet.

Sword God Style is pretty basic with its attacks, and of all the three Sword Styles, it is without a doubt the most predictable.

Water God Style is almost a perfect counter to Sword God Style, due to their fluid ways of blocking, parrying, deflecting, and counter attacking. North God Style is a good counter to both because of the sheer unpredictability of the style.

Eris is too easy to read, but I can tell just by observing her for a few weeks that she’s not the type to stay still and wait for someone to attack her, which means learning Water God Style wouldn’t appeal to her.

Her best bet is North God Style, where her ability to conceal her intentions in battle can grow, and with that growth, her Sword God Style should also improve a bit.

I nodded to myself, proud of my assessment. I’d make a good master one day, perhaps I could find some little rich kid to teach for some money while Rudy, Sylphy, and I are at the Magic University.

That’d be ideal.

“I figured it out.” I placed my hand on my chin and nodded sagely. Eris narrowed her eyes as she picked herself off the ground and dusted off the dirt her clothes had picked up.

“What is it?” She asked with clear anger in her tone, but I ignored it.

“You’re pretty predictable as you are now, so I’m going to teach you North God Style, and that should help with making your attacks harder to read.” I explained with a small smile.

Eris paused for a second as her face took a contemplative expression.

“… Does Ghislaine practice North God Style?” Eris questioned after a few moments of silence.

“Eh, I don’t really know.” I tapped my chin in thought. “I haven’t asked her, but with the way she moves on all fours, I wouldn’t be surprised if she was at least somewhat familiar with it.”

“So she doesn’t?” Eris asked as she crossed her arms under her budding chest.I shrugged my shoulders in response. “Then I don’t want to!” She declared and eyed me with an authoritative gaze. “If Ghislaine doesn’t practice it, then it’s useless!”

I deadpanned at her. Was she being serious?

The more I looked at her, the more I realized she was in fact being serious.

“Listen…” I started, shaking my head in disbelief that I even had to explain this shit to her. “You and Ghislaine are not the same. From what I can tell, Ghislaine is more than capable enough to prioritize Sword God Style without having to worry about predictability issues because she’s just that fast and powerful. You on the other hand are not. What you need right now is to learn how to actually fight an enemy stronger than you by using any means necessary.”

Eris’ stern look remained and I realized I wasn’t getting through to her. Perhaps long explanations wouldn’t help me here. I guess I’ll need to switch up my tactics a bit.

I let out a sigh and stabbed the wooden blade into the dirt.

“Eris, do you want to surpass Ghislaine one day?” I asked with genuine curiosity. I actually didn’t know what she wanted in her life besides being an adventurer like Ghislaine.

Eris blinked in surprise at my question and averted her eyes to the ground in the thought. After a few seconds, she looked up at me with a gaze full of resolution.

“Yes, I do.”

I nodded at that. At least she has drive. Being a Sword King ain’t no joke, and actually working toward a goal like that deserves some real respect.

“I see, then what if I told you that learning North God Style will help you surpass Ghislaine?” I asked and her eyes widened.

“How?!” She asked/demanded almost immediately after the words left my mouth.

“Simple. If Ghislaine doesn’t know North God Style, or at least not as much as I do, and North God Style was basically created to defeat opponents that are stronger than the user.” I explained with a hand on my hip. “Hypothetically, if you learned North God Style from me and ascended to the rank of North Saint, you’d have a better chance of beating Ghislaine than you would if you were a Sword Saint.”

Eris’ eyes grew even wider as she looked down at her wooden blade. After a moment or two, she nodded and pointed the blade at me.

“Teach me.” She demanded and a satisfied smirk came to my lips.

“As you command, Eris.”

Sometimes all you have to do is butter a person up a bit before you pitch an idea. Even if that idea isn’t even plausible any time soon. I wasn’t a North Saint, and neither would she be for a very long time, if ever.

Eris learning North God Style was going to greatly increase her combat skill, and even if she didn’t take to it like she takes to Sword God Style, getting an understanding of the way North God Practitioners fight would go a long way in helping her grow.

— Rudeus Greyrat (Later) —

Rudeus sat in the well decorated room of Philips study. He waited patiently with Philip’s butler, Thomas, standing beside the chair their employer would soon sit in.

There was a reason Rudeus had decided to come here today, and it had to do with a certain red haired girl that was giving him trouble.

Eris was… something. She was a bratty, spoiled, disrespectful little fuck that Rudeus had tried and failed to teach.

She didn’t respect anyone who didn’t have the name Sauros or have a gift with the blade, which made any attempt at teaching her blow up into a mess of anguish and ignorance.

Sure, she listened to Law and Rudeus’ brother could sometimes manage to keep her calm enough for him to finish a lesson, but most of the time, Eris would grow bored, and when she grew bored, she would grow disrespectful, and it would only get worse from there.

If Rudeus couldn’t teach Eris anything, then what was the point of being here?

The whole reason they came to Roa was to make some money working for a rich family, yet the entire time they spent here had been less of Rudeus working and more of him relying on Law to either placate Eris enough to listen, or to get him to teach her the curriculum Rudeus had set for the girl.

Things couldn’t continue to go on as they have been, and after several hours of thinking, Rudeus had finally come up with a solution to their problem.

A solution that would make Eris respect him.

All he needed now was to convince Philip of allowing his daughter to end up in such an extreme situation to show her of Rudy’s importance, and to create a spark of respect in the insolent girl.

Rudeus flinched as the door to the room opened and in walked an easygoing Philip.

Rudeus put a smile on his face as he greeted the man who was over ten minutes late to their meeting.

“Good evening, Lord Philip.”

“Yea, good evening to you as well, Rudeus.” Philip walked over to his chair and took a seat. He gestured forward and Thomas poured out two cups of tea before returning back to his spot beside the brown-haired man. “You wished to speak to me?”

“I did.” Rudeus nodded and took the cup of tea that had been poured for him. He took a sip and swallowed before putting the cup back down. “It’s about Eris.”

Philip’s easygoing nature vanished at Rudeus’ words, and the man grew more serious.

“Is something wrong?” Philip questioned as his red-eyed narrowed.

“I do believe so, but not anything concerning her health and safety if that’s what you meant.” Rudeus clarified and Philip nodded in understanding.

“Ah, that’s good. I will admit, you had me for a moment.” Philip’s easygoing smile returned.

“Forgive me for not being clearer, Lord Philip.”

“No no, it’s quite alright. Please continue, what do you wish to say concerning my daughter?”

Rudeus paused for a moment and tapped his leg. He didn’t want to offend Philip by speaking ill about Eris, but he also needed the man to understand that Eris as she was now wouldn’t be able to function amongst anyone with an ounce of self respect.

“Eris… is quite hostile.”

“Quite indeed.” Philip chuckled. “Before you, every single one of her tutors had run away out of fear or incompetence. However you have been managing well, it seems.”

Rudeus scratched the back of his head and smiled nervously at Philip.

“Well… actually I do have to admit even I have been having trouble.”

“Oh? Is this a new development?” Philip tilted his head with clear curiosity.

“It is not.” Rudeus clarified and cleared his throat. “Ever since I started teaching Eris, she has been incredibly disrespectful, but yet I’ve tried my best to continue teaching as you have employed me to do so-”

Rudeus paused and Philip gestured for him to continue.

“Even with my ability to persist, Eris has shown to be quite a… stubborn child student, and while I can tolerate her, I fear that her attitude will pose a problem in her future.”

“Oh?” Philip raised his head a bit and folded his hands together.

“Yes, as Eris is now, I believe she may cause problems at future events, ward off any future acquaintances and prevent new alliances from being made with your family. I know I’m not exactly the most experienced when it comes to the intrinsic nature of noble politics, but I believe the ability to communicate with others respectfully is a horrible trait to miss out on.”

As Rudeus finished, Philip stroked his chin and silence descended upon the room.

“You… make a good point. For the future of the Boreas Greyrat family to remain strong, Eris must be able to communicate with guests and show her understanding of the arts, as any noblewoman should.”

Rudeus smiled slightly at that. He had purposely made it seem like he had a better grasp on Eris than he did so Philip wouldn’t question his ability to deal with Eris. At the same time he had also made his concerns seem as if they stemmed from a place of actual concern for Eris’ future, which would definitely be in danger if she continued to act the way she does.

“Tell me, Rudeus, how would you go about correcting Eris’ attitude?” Philip leaned forward and placed his chin on his hands as he eyed the green-eyed boy intently.

Rudeus didn’t back down, this was the moment he was waiting for after all, and the only way Philip would agree to such a plan would be if Rudeus was absolutely confident he would succeed.

“I believe that we should organize an event that would make Eris believe her life is in danger.”

Philip raised a brow at that. “You wish to put Eris’ life in danger?”

“No, Lord Philip. I wish to make her believe she is in danger.” Rudeus clarified, and Philip still looked confused but leaned back and let him continue. “What I mean is, Eris as she is now doesn’t understand how well off she is, and the belief that the world owes her everything has skewed her perception of reality. I believe that if an event occurred that made Eris believe she had nearly ended up losing her life, she’d live more sincerely and open up her mind to what the world is truly like.”

As Rudeus finished, he kept a straight face as Philip pondered on his words.

After almost a minute of silence, Philip looked at Rudeus with an expressionless face.

“You truly are nothing like Paul.” Philip said with a sigh, which brought a smirk to Rudy’s face. “What did you have in mind?

— Chapter End —

Beta Readers: @Basilisk @LuluViBritania (FF.N, SB, WN and QQ)/-LuluViB|99th Britannian Emperor(Discord)/ @Dragonboy1

Author’s Not: Writing this fic is honestly pretty fun and it’ll most likely be the first of my stories to be completed just because of the estimated final word count.