Episode 22: Age 15, With Sword

In the arena, a mock battle facility attached to the private training grounds of Egenhardt.

On this battlefield with no obstacles, only a vast area set up, two swordsmen face each other.

One is clad in the armor of the Anciness family knight order, while the other is lightly equipped with only a chest plate as notable protection.

The swords they possess also show a clear difference—one is a fine sword issued to knights, the other is a plain stone sword, well-made but crude. An obvious disparity exists between them.

However, the latter… the lightly equipped young man shows neither cold sweat nor a stiffened face at this difference, simply standing there with a cool expression.

“…I’m coming.”

He mutters with a steady voice and slowly raises his sword.

…In an instant, astonishing acceleration.

A crater forms at the point where he had been standing, as if gouged out, and the surrounding air trembles violently.

Pale blue flames burst forth from the crude stone sword he grips. Like a beast hunting its prey, the young man charges with dimensional acceleration and delivers a strike without a shred of hesitation toward his target.

“—-Kh”

Clenching his back teeth, hands damp with sweat, the opposing knight receives it.

Instantly, an explosive shockwave erupts.

A scorching heat wave generates simultaneously, raising a dazzling gust.

…However, the young man taking it full in the face doesn’t slow down at all.

On the contrary, he accelerates further while unleashing additional consecutive strikes.

The red mantle attached to the armor… proof of the Anciness family knight order captain, flutters.

GAGAGAAAAN!! The sharp sound of blade against blade rings out intermittently. Sparks scatter about, one exchange, two exchanges… the sword fight continues.

It seems as if it might go on forever, but battles end in a moment’s opening.

—-BAKIN!!

A sharp sound that pierces the eardrums echoes.

The stone sword wreathed in blue flames shatters.

The pulverized fragments of the sword are consumed by flames and turn to ash.

Got him!!

Certain of this, the knight’s swing closes in on the young man.

…But.

“—!?”

The knight captain’s swing cuts through empty air.

The young man’s figure is gone.

The confident strike ends as a miss, and that becomes a huge opening.

…The sword wasn’t shattered.

He deliberately let it go!!

By the time he realizes this, it’s too late.

“GAAAAAAA!!!!”

A roar that could be called a howl.

The young man has taken a low posture, practically crawling on the ground.

He slips into the knight’s widely exposed chest and presses his palm against it.

“[Smash]!”

Explosive magical power rises up.

Using acceleration rivaling a jet engine, the young man slams the knight down.

In an instant, double… triple… no, even more layers of shockwaves dominate the area.

“Gaha…”

A blow that expels all air from the lungs… no, so powerful it feels like every bone in his body might shatter. But showing a knight’s pride, he manages to defend well with magic.

I won’t lose like this—the knight captain tries to regain his stance while harboring fighting spirit in his eyes.

…But a crude stone blade is already pressed against his neck.

“Kuh…! …I surrender.”

The young man before him radiates the eyes of a lion that has captured its prey.

That stone sword created instantly by magic holds unmistakable killing intent.

The armored warrior acknowledges his defeat with a bitter expression.

“Match decided!!”

When the referee called the outcome of the match, the gallery erupted.

The victorious young man at the center of it all, however, shows a nonchalant demeanor.

As if the result of the match means nothing, the handsome young man brushes off the dust on his face and body.

Just who is he—

“Arcs!”

“Owah?!”

The inevitable impact!!

Not enough to break his stance, but the suddenness makes him let out an absurd voice.

“E-Eleanore-sama… suddenly hugging me in a place like this is…”

“Do you dislike being hugged by me?”

“Ah, no, it’s not that. Um… there are people watching, and right now I’m a bit dirty so—Mmph”

To my lips as I hurriedly try to explain, she gently presses her beautiful index finger.

“I don’t care at all who sees… or what state you’re in, you know?”

Eleanore aims those black eyes at me as if to say, “Don’t you feel the same?”

Wh-what is this young lady saying…!?

If you say something like that, I can’t say anything anymore…!?!?

…But even so, staying like this is still bad.

Somehow trying to get this crazy young lady to let go, I seek help with my eyes from the knight acting as referee.

We’ve crossed swords several times over these five years, so we should have enough rapport to understand each other with just eye contact…

“…”

Hey, wait, you! Don’t look away!?

And everyone else somehow isn’t meeting my eyes either…

And yet I feel warm gazes too!!

If it’s come to this, there’s nothing I can do.

I’ll be restrained until this young lady, currently hugging my arm with a cheerful smile, is satisfied.

I still have work left today, so I hope she’ll release me in about two hours.

…Somehow, I was acting cool about fighting the knight captain, but I’ve lost my composure.

Well, I’m not really good at that sort of thing anyway, so it’s fine.

…And so, I’m Arcs Leefort, 15 years old.

Doing my best to avoid the bad ending.

***

To never again repeat the helplessness and misery I tasted five years ago, I intensified my training from that day forward.

Sword, magic, tactics.

To obtain the power to overcome any obstacle.

At first, I just threw myself into it recklessly, but after about half a year, I began training together with the knight order directly under the Anciness family.

Well, naturally, as expected of combat professionals, I was shown the overwhelming difference in skill.

However, I couldn’t afford to be discouraged by such things. After all, if I gave up, it wouldn’t just be game over but life over. I continued to pour sweat more than them, more than anyone in this world… enough to be able to say that.

Well, when you put that much into it, even someone without particular talent like me apparently sees some results.

I became able to win easily against ordinary knights, and victories against leader-class fighters like the captain and vice-captain increased.

Considering the beginning, it’s a remarkable transformation, but it’s still not a place to rest. In the original work, much, much stronger guys appeared in droves. I must be stronger than them.

The death of the childhood friend me means Eleanore’s bad ending.

This must be avoided at all costs.

…That said, currently I feel like I’ve hit a wall in terms of strength.

How should I put it, it seems a bit stagnant…

I’ve acquired techniques to handle even captain-level opponents, but that’s also partly because I know my opponents.

After all, I think experiencing more various situations would increase the scenarios I could handle.

It’s not like assassins threatening my life will come at me only in situations I’m used to. It might be necessary to go outside and cross swords with unknown people.

No, but I also have my job as a butler, so I can’t neglect that… The time I can allocate to gaining experience is limited.

This is my current situation, lacking in every way.

Even though there’s still room now, I need to come up with ideas early considering what’s ahead.

Soon, Eleanore’s enrollment… in other words, the start of the main story is also approaching.