episode_0043

“… … .”

“… … .”

In a confrontation with the man, Ethan, there is an exchange of silence.

How long has it been like that?

“… Hahaha!”

Ethan suddenly burst into laughter.

It was a cheerful laugh that did not match the dull atmosphere from a moment ago.

Evan, who had been laughing for a while, spoke with a smile still remaining on his face.

“I finally got caught.”

Satisfied, like a hunter who successfully catches difficult prey.

“When life is poured out on him, he doesn’t even flinch, but when life is poured out on his companions, he just moves without even thinking about it.”

He chuckled.

“… … .”

Unlike that bright expression, my expression was distorted as if I had chewed something.

‘… ‘I was hit.’

I was completely blown away.

Into the trap set by Ethan Bertrand.

The life that Ethan had radiated a moment ago, and which has now disappeared as if washed away, was a bait thrown by Ethan.

Just like the life I experienced when I first met him.

From the beginning, Ethan really had no intention of attacking the group.

That was why my companions were looking at me with puzzled eyes.

Because they didn’t even notice that Ethan was breathing out his life.

If life had been directed at me like in front of the ice cream shop, I would have easily overlooked it.

However, Ethan’s killing spree seemed to be targeting the group, and my body ended up moving reflexively.

I feel pathetic for being fooled, but at the same time, it was such an exquisite move that I felt like there was nothing I could do about it.

If he had really intended to touch the group, it would have been too late to think and act.

‘ha… … .’

I can’t help but sigh.

In the end, I ended up getting tangled up with this crazy guy.

“Hmm. If this happens, wouldn’t it be better to move places?”

Ethan asked with a calm face.

“It seems like not everyone knows about your skills… Wouldn’t that be better?”

That was true.

Among them, Estelle is the only one who knows even remotely about my skills.

Even in front of Mary, I have never shown my full potential.

Everyone probably knows that I’m hiding my skills, but they don’t know the specific level.

So, before the group feels more suspicious, it might be better for the two of them to talk separately, as Ethan said.

That was the car I was thinking of.

“I don’t know what the purpose is.”

A sharp, yet dignified voice intervened.

“Are you planning on harming this guy?”

The person who did not hesitate to use a high-handed tone against the Ten Swords of the World was, of course, Estelle.

She came next to me and glared at Ethan with sharp, unwavering eyes.

Before she could continue speaking, I raised my arm and blocked her path.

Then he looked into her eyes and shook his head slightly.

“… Are you okay?”

Estelle asked that with rare concern in her eyes.

“It’s okay.”

I nodded, looking at her with unwavering eyes, hoping to reassure her.

“… I understand.”

In the end, that didn’t make the young worry go away in her eyes, but she still nodded.

“Then let’s change places.”

I said to Ethan, who was looking at this with interest.

The party is also the party, and there are other problems as well.

This is still the middle of the street.

Because the sun is setting, there are fewer people than during the day, but there are still many people around.

Whether you have a conversation or not.

This wasn’t something I was going to do just standing here.

***

So we moved to our seats.

The group was sent into the villa first, and Ethan and I came to a deserted place not far from the villa.

“Hmm. You are a bold young lady.”

Ethan said with an expression of interest.

There was no need to ask who it was referring to.

“Looking at the level of escort, it doesn’t seem like it’s just the level of a noble family’s daughter… .”

There’s no way he wouldn’t notice what I noticed.

He would have already noticed his presence right away, but the moment Estelle came forward and faced him, the secret guards who had been quietly hiding their presence all began to keep an eye on him.

“I can’t believe that such a young lady is trying to protect you even though she knows that the other person is me. This guy is blessed.”

Suddenly he made a sly expression.

“Besides, she wasn’t the only one who did that. The other girls behind me were also glaring at me with their eyes wide open?”

He is a martial artist whose name is included in the Ten Swords.

It wouldn’t be surprising if he thought those gazes directed at him were rude, but he didn’t seem to care much.

No, on the contrary, he seemed to be having fun.

“It looks like your skills aren’t the only thing you’re good at. I feel like I’m looking at myself when I was young.”

“… … .”

… How should I react to these words?

I couldn’t find the appropriate answer.

“Now, let’s talk in earnest.”

While I was in such trouble, Ethan changed the topic.

And then he asked me.

“How old are you?”

“… I’m eighteen.”

When things get like this, there is no point in hiding it any longer.

I obediently answered his questions.

“Eighteen? Really?”

Ethan’s eyes widened.

“Really? Aren’t you just lying about your age? Didn’t I just become younger after taking a medicine made in some strange magic tower or something?”

“… It’s true.”

What do you mean by medicine that makes you younger?

If there was such a medicine, the continent would have been in trouble a long time ago.

“Huh… … .”

Ethan exclaimed with a mixture of amazement and bewilderment.

“I did it in the first place when I saw him with his student, but… Are you really eighteen?”

This was a muttering that was close to talking to myself.

“Do you have any gifts?”

“… No.”

“… It’s as absurd as it is, but I’m still glad.”

What on earth is so fortunate?

I had doubts, but Ethan did not answer my doubts.

“What is your name?”

“… This is Wade Heblon.”

“Heblon? This is my first time hearing this last name. Which family is it?”

“You’re a commoner, so you probably wouldn’t know even if I told you.”

“What? A commoner? Then what about the teacher? What is your teacher’s name?”

“There was no separate teacher.”

“… What?”

His eyes widened, more violently than he had ever seen before.

“… So you’re saying you learned it on your own? Martial arts?”

“Yes.”

I nodded calmly.

I knew that this world was a world in a novel, and I decided to try not to interfere with the flow as much as possible.

However, that didn’t mean I planned to live without doing anything.

If this world progressed safely according to the original story and the story finally ended, I planned to live my life freely.

And I decided that I needed strength to live a free life without interference from anyone.

Because I knew that in a world like this, a person without power would most likely suffer an injustice or get caught up in an insignificant incident and die.

Because of that, I started learning martial arts.

At first, he was a candidate for magic, but after getting a taste of it, he realized that he was woefully untalented and immediately gave up.

Anyway, I jumped into the path of nothingness.

However, although it was good to have such a goal, actually taking steps was more difficult than I thought.

You might not know this if you were a master from a noble family, but I was the child of a commoner with no background.

It was not an environment where I could find a proper teacher.

Of course, there were swordsmanship classes and martial arts studios in Lakenwood, but honestly, the martial arts they taught were not of a very high standard.

It might be okay as a foundation, but there was no future if you only learned that.

Fortunately, the knights of the Bluenoa family were nearby, but no matter how much they cared about me, they were not willing to teach me their martial arts.

In this world, the value of proper martial arts is difficult to convert into money, so it was only natural.

As soon as I started, I was blocked by a wall, but I didn’t give up.

“How?”

“I learned theories from books, watched knights and warriors training, and stole their skills.”

If you can’t learn a proper martial art from someone, you can make it with your own hands.

With that in mind, I learned the basic concepts from books and started creating my own martial art by looking sideways at the training of knights and other skilled warriors who occasionally showed their faces to the family.

At first, it was easier said than done.

Because even making the frame was difficult.

However, as time passed and trial and error accumulated, my own martial art gradually took shape and developed.

And along the way, I became stronger and stronger, until now.

“… Huh, indeed.”

Ethan, who heard my story, looked at me with eyes that were beyond absurd.

“… Wherever I go, I hear people calling me a genius, but I guess I won’t even be able to hold my head up from now on.”

Ethan clicked his tongue and shook his head as if he was fed up.

Then, he looked at me again.

“There are still a lot of things I want to ask, but there’s no need to ask each one of them.”

For the first time, that voice, which had never had any weight before, had weight.

And at the same time.

Boom─

The surrounding air also became heavy.

By the energy radiating from Ethan.

It wasn’t the thick and creepy life I had seen before.

Something much heavier and fiercer than that.

It was a spirit of speculation.

Speculation itself is an energy that is nothing special.

Because everyone has it.

Even a mere beast or small creature harbors even a weak spirit of fighting when it comes to fighting.

However, the speculation emitted by the man in front of me was on a different level from those things.

Just by facing it, my body became heavy and I felt pressure as if my whole body was creaking.

This is not just because the man is the pinnacle of martial arts, the Ten Swords.

Probably no other member of the Ten Swords would have the same fighting spirit as this man.

A man who suddenly appeared and began to make a name for himself by slaughtering monsters on the front line.

After the war with monsters subsided, the man visited the strong all over the continent, went through countless battles, achieved countless victories, and finally reached the peak.

A man who never stops fighting and ensures his life through fighting.

A ghost crazy about fighting.

That’s why it’s a ‘demon ghost’.

The speculation of such a person is probably more heterogeneous and special than that of any other person on the continent.

“Okay, then… … .”

With a face filled with anticipation.

“One round, let’s stick together.”

The ghost laughed.