episode_0002

Militia Air Grants.

One day, she was chosen directly by the church that received the oracle, and she is said to be the most talented saint among all the saints of all time.

Originally a commoner, she suddenly entered the church and became loved by everyone for her divine magic and gorgeous looks.

She was a hero who deserved the description of a true saint who was not usually proud, arrogant, or hypocritical, but did true good.

The fact that such a Militia had brought a request to Glenn, who had a shabby appearance, quickly spread throughout the guild.

However, adventurers never approached Glenn carelessly. Even if they wanted to check the truth of the rumors, they would naturally cringe when they saw the gold badge on Glenn’s chest.

The man sitting in front of Glenn, interrupting his reading, was one of the adventurers who had heard such rumors.

“So, then?”

“So that’s why? What else do you want to hear?”

“No, you can’t stop there, honey! So what did you say!”

A man who looked to be in his thirties shouted fiercely in front of Glenn. He was holding a glass tightly as if he was going to smash it, and he was almost shoving his rather excited face towards Glenn.

Ugh, the smell of alcohol. Is this kid trying to kiss me? Glenn tried to answer him with a slight frown.

“I rejected it.”

“Yeah! I rejected it… Huh? Rejected it? ”

“Oh, I rejected it.”

“Why are you rejecting me, Emma! You’re just kicking away such a golden opportunity!”

Again, again, he gets excited. Now he’s banging his glass on the table as if he’s going to break it and screaming.

I glanced around for a moment, but I didn’t see anything special. After all, this was the same adventurer’s guild as yesterday. This kind of commotion wasn’t happening for a day or two. On the other side, there was already a group of people who were drunk and singing disgusting songs in dirty voices.

So, Glenn was willing to tolerate his friend Grimes’s stupid behavior. So, he calmly conveyed the following message with his lips.

“Then will you accept it? It would be a bit much to just say, “Thank you,” and accept such a difficult request from such a high-ranking person. I have my own thoughts, too.”

“Are you a gossip?”

“What?”

Look at this kid crossing the line. Glenn wanted to smack him on the head for his sudden derogatory remark, but he held back.

If you were hit by the hand of ‘Red-Eyed Glenn’, it would not only cause a bump, but also a dent. If you were going to kill your friend with one nonsense, hundreds of people would have already been slaughtered. He had a lot of patience. So he decided to just listen to his friend who was spitting and going wild in front of him.

“No, think about it. Imma! Not anyone else, but the Air Grant doctrine! High, high! The saint of saints! Even the beauty of beauties! That person asked you for private lessons, right? If it’s true to what you say! There’s a witness, so it’s not a delusion, it’s reality! If such an incredible beauty comes to you and says, “Please teach me something,” then, huh? Even if you don’t know, shouldn’t you accept? Even if it’s martial arts? It uses your body, right? Then, huh? “Yes, that’s right. Let’s start with a light lesson,” and check your body’s flexibility, huh? Carefully and carefully, “Those clothes are a bit uncomfortable, so should you take them off?” and induce exposure, huh? And then, “Oh, this side is a bit stiff,” and slowly touch your arms and legs, then your thighs and chest… ”

“I’ll touch you.”

“Kkaaaak!”

This is not it. Glenn didn’t listen any longer and just gave her a single blow. Very weakly.

Of course, Grimes stopped his dirty talk and grabbed his forehead at that moment. He must have been too drunk. He spouted such blasphemous nonsense. It wasn’t a new thing for a friend to be a womanizer, but what he said today could have gotten into trouble if it had gotten to someone’s ear.

“Your opponent is not your typical adventurous young lady. She is the saint of the Air Grants Church. As you said, she is a saint among saints. It is rumored that no one in the Air Grants Church has as much devotion to God and divine power as she does. She is also an incredible warrior who defeated the Demon King. What would happen if you carelessly messed with someone like that?”

No, from the beginning. Would I have thought that way? Me! I am so thorough in my self-respect! I cut off, cut off, and cut off my human relationships!

I’m not saying that he has no dark intentions at all. But isn’t he the type of person who would imagine such a relationship? Who would think that his neck would be cut off…

“No, no! Oh my, it hurts… But, even so, if it’s someone like that, rather than rejecting them, you could set some conditions and gain some advantage. Like, asking for a higher salary, or asking them to do something to get a title or something. Don’t you think it’s a shame to reject them outright? That’s my opinion! Ouch…”

Glenn snorted at Grimes, who was complaining about pain but was saying something plausible. You’re good at saying things plausibly. You changed your opinion after seeing what I thought.

Grimes was also a fairly veteran adventurer. He was also a peer of Glenn. Although Grimes was two years older, they maintained a good relationship with each other, citing the difference in skill and the fact that they had joined at the same time.

As I have continuously observed during my adventures, Grimes is definitely not the type of person who has easy relationships with the opposite sex. He doesn’t stop women from coming to him, doesn’t stop women from leaving, and goes to women.

Of course, he was involved in a lot of fights, and Glenn almost got involved. He threatened to punish him if he did it again, so he didn’t do stupid things like force him into romantic relationships anymore. Although he sometimes tried to persuade him to go to a brothel or said something stupid like that.

“Well, they said they’d give me a big salary. But I still won’t accept it.”

“Huh? Wait. As an adventurer, you can’t just let that go. The pay is good, and you’re guaranteed to get paid, so you’re not going to do it?”

This time, the atmosphere was different. A moment ago, it was Grimes, who was good at talking to women, but this time, it was the veteran adventurer Grimes in front of me. He was scolding me. Why don’t you do something that pays?

Hmm, that’s how it should be. That’s how Grimes should be. Glenn tried to keep the corners of his mouth from rising. Then, he slowly explained.

“Again, I don’t take such a tricky request lightly. It’s always been that way.”

“I said that three times today because I don’t understand! You said it was private lessons! Well, from what I heard, it seems like it has to be achieved within a certain period of time. What else is difficult about that?”

“Hoo……”

Glenn sighed. Finally, he raised his right hand. He opened his index finger and folded the rest.

“There are three main reasons.”

Grimes held her breath for a moment. This wasn’t the first time she had seen Glenn do this. He often made this gesture when explaining his intentions to others. She remembered him explaining things this way on the battlefield, even to the enemy.

‘There are two reasons why you died. First, your defenses were weak. You didn’t pay enough attention to the adventurers’ infiltration. You were practically neglected because you were less well-armed than the regular army. And second…you met me.’

Glenn’s voice began to penetrate Grimes’ ears as she briefly remembered the past that still gave her goosebumps when she thought about it.

“First. Suspicious. Very suspicious. The de facto highest-ranking priestess of the Air Grants Church, the great saint Milicia, a master of sacred magic, is asking me for personal lessons? To teach her martial arts? As far as I know, there are quite a few masters of combat among the ‘monks’ of the Air Grants Church. We’ve even had exchange battles before. It doesn’t make sense that she’d ask me for lessons.”

“Well, there may be personal reasons. There may be some painful circumstances that prevent you from receiving instruction from the monks…”

“Yeah. That’s right. That’s the second one.”

“Huh?”

Glenn held up his middle finger.

“Second. Lack of information. She didn’t say much except, “Teach me martial arts. As soon as possible.” I questioned her a little, but all she said was, “You have to acquire the skills within two months,” and “This isn’t something I can talk about here.” There’s a high chance that she has some kind of background that she can’t tell me, or is difficult to tell me. And that’s painful.”

“Your bones hurt, why?”

This kid, judging by the way the corners of his mouth are slightly smiling, I guess he knows what he’s asking for but he still wants to know. Glenn opened his mouth, thinking that he should just give it a try.

“Why? Phew… I’ll say it again, she’s a saint, the highest-ranking priest of the church. And she’s asking to be taught martial arts. Let’s think about it logically. When would a high-ranking priest ask an adventurer, who isn’t even an expert, to teach martial arts? Why would she choose such a difficult method when there are plenty of other ways? That’s the same as advertising, “I can’t use methods that actively utilize my position.” She has her own reasons for not being taught martial arts by the monks within the church. She can’t even invite or visit a martial arts expert. So the last resort was to recruit adventurers. And usually, the reasons given by those in high positions… are probably politically motivated and difficult for an ordinary citizen like me to handle. I don’t want to know. ”

Yes, a background that I don’t even want to know. There must be something that has been eating away at Glenn and making him tired. No, it wasn’t just Glenn’s idea. Even among adventurers, there were many who found requests from nobles or high-ranking officials difficult and tricky. This was because simply defeating monsters was likely to lead to political entanglement.

In particular, in cases where adventurers and others actively got involved, there were many cases where it was difficult to get the hands of ‘their own people’ dirty. If they failed, they could just blame the adventurers and cut them off. In cases where they took on such a risk, it was usually because there was a huge reward waiting for them.

So, if a person of high reputation, especially a ‘saint’, were to make a request, it would be suspicious. Well, considering her beauty that could shake the world, an ordinary adventurer might be tempted and give in. The problem is that Glenn is not one of those ordinary adventurers.

“Aha, so that’s why ‘Red-Eyed Glen’, the master of ‘self-preservation’, rejected it outright. He might get caught up in some political conspiracy and lose his head. ”

“I know right.”

Glenn felt fortunate that Grimes was quick to understand his situation. After all, Grimes must know why the red-eyed Glenn was in such a shabby state.

“Well, you had a lot going on too… But that’s not enough. If it’s private lessons, can’t you meet up secretly and do it? Like taking time out at dawn or at night to secretly receive lessons. And then, the two of you who were touching each other in a secret space eventually made eye contact and overlapped each other… Sorry, I’m really sorry! I won’t imagine anything lewd! ”

Glenn immediately thrust his left fist at Grimes, who was suddenly falling into Samcheonpo, and the effect was amazing. Grimes instantly flinched, and Glenn, who was slightly agitated, let out a sigh.

“Well… I did consider that possibility, aside from your dirty imagination. That was just the problem.”

“Huh?”

To Grimes’ puzzled expression, Glenn responded by holding up the ring finger of his right hand.

“Third. I have no teaching skills.”

In fact, this was the most painful problem that led to the rejection of this request.

There was no source of Glenn’s skills. It was due to his ability. Glenn was not a martial artist, strictly speaking. He considered himself to be something between a magician and a martial artist. Some called this Glenn a magician. It was a title for a combat expert that had never been known on the continent.

When Glenn first entered the dojo and began training, he wanted to use a sword. His master was a master of all weapons and martial arts, and many students under him were able to receive much instruction in using swords, bows, spears, axes, and bare hands. The master had great insight, and after having Glenn practice a few times, he said this.

‘You have no talent.’

Glenn was immediately frustrated. However, his teacher was a great person. When the person who frustrated him asked why he was great, he immediately taught his disciple a different path.

In the eyes of his master, Glenn seemed to have great potential for using martial arts. Glenn wanted to use a sword, then a spear or an axe, but at the strong urging of his master, he eventually decided to practice with his bare fists.

And after two years of rigorous training, the master said this.

‘Something’s missing.’

What is this again? Glenn wanted to get angry. After torturing me to death for two years, how can this be considered insufficient? He looked back at himself.

Was it because I lost many exchange matches or practice matches? I tried to recall, but it wasn’t. Was it because I didn’t have enough training? That was absolutely not the case. There was nothing lacking in the first place. I completed the same amount of training as everyone else, and my teacher threatened me not to do more than that.

Then what on earth? Just when he was about to wander, it was his master who helped Glenn again.

‘You know how to use magic?’

Glenn was puzzled by his master’s words, because the answer was obvious: no.

Even during his two years of rigorous training, he had never felt any magical power before entering the dojo. However, the master paid no attention to Glenn’s answer and took some action against him. After lying down for a week, Glenn began to sense strange currents and energy around his body.

And he figured out that he could infuse his body with magical powers.

He could make his bare fist as hard as steel, his bare fist as hot as flame, his bare fist as cold as ice, and his bare fist as sharp as the wind. Glenn cheered and practiced hard.

And then, ‘Red-Eyed Glen’ was born.

“And that’s all self-study.”

“Huh? All of them?”

“Oh, everything.”

“No, no! The master taught me martial arts and trained me! He even ‘baptized’ me so I could feel the magic! But you said it was all self-taught?”

“Of course. The Master is a martial artist, not a magician. Even magicians rarely know how to mix magic with martial arts. Above all, the Master only teaches you physical training and basics, and leaves you to figure out the rest on your own. He is definitely not the type to teach you amazing techniques. Especially not on such an unfamiliar path. Anyway, in the end, I had to try everything on my own. How can I maintain the hardness of steel without any side effects? How can I maintain my fiery fists without getting burned? How can I maintain my icy fists without getting frostbite? It took me four years to master it. ”

Four years? Grimes was starting to understand. If he had been able to forge a new path on his own for four years, it would actually be incredibly fast.

However, if you were to teach it to someone else, it would be a different story. Since there was no textbook, you had to rely on your own skills to pass on the teachings. In other words, if you were to assume that the path you had walked was a new martial arts textbook, you would have to teach it to the ‘saint’ as it was, but the problem was that the conditions for teaching were limited.

“If I were to teach this technique to someone else? Obviously…I’d end up talking nonsense like “Swoosh like this, swoosh like that, and then show it off like this.” Since it’s a result gained through physical contact, it’s so hard to express it in words.”

“Kuah, that would definitely be the worst teacher ever.”

“That’s right. So I wish you would just give up like this.”

“Yeah…Huh? You want me to give up?”

Glenn answered calmly to Grimes, who was looking at him with a face that said, “What are you talking about?”

“Oh. I declined, but he said he’d come back in two days. It’s been a day, so it must be tomorrow.”

“Hearing that story, I feel like there’s something even more sinister hidden there? Or is he perhaps personally interested in you?”

Glenn snorted at Grimes, who was looking at him with an expression that said, “How about this!”, as if it wasn’t worth responding to.

“I look almost exactly the same as I did yesterday.”

“Uh, the shabby clothes, the bushy hair, the big glasses, the crooked lips…all of it?”

“Yeah. If you were a woman, would you be interested in a man like this?”

Grimes shook his head at those words. In fact, he should have advised him to change his appearance, but he knew deep down why Glenn acted like that. There was a reason for it. So instead, he could only lament and make fun of his friend’s romantic relationships.

“Oh my, that’s right. I was just wondering if my friend was having a good time with a girl after such a long time. When the day comes that you get a girlfriend, it won’t be strange if the sun rises in the west, really.”

“You’re being sarcastic. Anyway, I wish ‘Saint’ would give up quickly. I’m wasting my time reading. And now, I’m drinking like this.”

“Oh my, I’m not expecting too much. It’s too much for someone who struggles in books. But, a martial artist is a reader. How can this be so terribly incompatible?”

“This face doesn’t even look like a martial artist?”

“You’re being sarcastic!”

Pooh-hoo, Glenn expressed his delight at the joke. Grimes also smiled. It happened often. His shabby appearance did not match his great skills. That was Glenn’s personality at the moment. Grimes lifted her glass. Glenn also lifted his glass, which was starting to get dusty.

The glasses clinked together with a loud bang.