episode_0061

Cold sweat ran down my back.

The swordsman appeared in front of me.

This would have surprised me even in normal times.

Even more so in situations like this.

Because it was so simple to guess the intention.

The probability that he, the sword of the Elbrent Empire, would appear to help me kill the prince of the Elbrent Empire would be significantly lower than the probability of being struck by lightning five times in a row in a dry sky.

He appeared to catch me.

Maybe it’s to kill him.

Either way, I can assure you that it will never be beneficial to me.

“I realized my purpose at that age. No matter how much I think about it, it’s absurd.”

Contrary to the rumors that circulate from time to time, the swordsman spoke in a light, yet completely unreadable voice.

“It is truly a genius, a talent given from heaven, so there is no shortage of praise for it. … No, in fact, even the expression ‘genius’ should be seen as an insult.”

His tone was friendly and gentle, as if he had met a close friend.

I don’t feel any tension or nervousness.

He looked peaceful, as if he was lying in a rocking chair and looking up at the sky with drifting clouds.

On the contrary, I was caught up in extreme tension.

I was confronting him with my mind extremely concentrated in order to see all of the swordsman’s movements.

‘Dangerous.’

As was the case in this situation, the swordsman in front of me was a very dangerous man.

maybe.

No, definitely not.

‘Stronger than me.’

It is an intuition that is close to certainty.

The swordsman will definitely be stronger than me.

The situation is different from when I met Ethan.

My intuition at that time stopped at the level of feeling a strange sense of alienation from Ethan.

However, my intuition was warning me in an incomparably more forceful tone than before.

The person in front of you is dangerous.

The moment you let your guard down, your head will disappear.

In other words, it means that he has reached a level that is significantly higher than me and Ethan.

In other words, it would mean that I had grown to the point where I could read that person’s momentum, but I couldn’t afford to be happy about that right now.

‘… Not good.’

Even if you meet him at full strength, he is a dangerous enemy.

I met such a person in a state of physical and mental exhaustion.

If you do it wrong.

‘Die.’

It’s like riding a tightrope at a great height.

If you make a wrong choice, even for a moment, you die.

“Why are you saying nothing?”

Unlike me, who was extremely nervous, the swordsman’s tone did not waver from start to finish.

“You let this old man talk alone. Although he has skills, he lacks respect.”

Laughing, the swordsman made a lukewarm joke.

“… I have a good idea of the Duke of Geom’s intention in coming. Who can talk calmly when a blade is hanging over their neck?”

Although his shameless words and actions were annoying, there were benefits to having conversations like this that I didn’t have.

This gives you some time to recover some of your lost physical and mental strength.

Therefore, I decided to go along with what the swordsman said.

“Huh. Did you recognize me? You have a really sharp eye.”

At my words, the swordsman opened his eyes exaggeratedly and pretended to be surprised.

When I saw that face, I suddenly had the urge to punch that face.

Of course, it was an impulse that could not be carried out.

“I’m speaking openly since you already recognized me, but I also don’t want to trample on young shoots. However, since you harmed His Highness the Prince, isn’t it inevitable?”

Saying that, the swordsman made a truly pitiful expression.

‘… ‘A snake-like old man.’

okay. The word snake would be appropriate.

The swordsman I actually met and had a conversation with gave me the impression that he was not a cold and hard person like rumored, but rather a sinister and sly snake.

Both his expression and words were soft and gentle, but I knew. Those things were clearly made.

The rumor and the present, which is the real story?

That’s something I couldn’t figure out right now.

“… Wouldn’t you be generous and just pretend you didn’t see it?”

“Hmm… I’d like to do that if I had the same feelings, but… It’s because I’m just a noble. I can’t do anything that goes against His Majesty’s wishes.”

The swordsman shakes his head as if he feels sorry for him, but at the same time he feels sorry for him.

I clicked my tongue as I looked at that disgusting expression.

The acting skills are truly excellent.

At this level, his acting might be better than his swordsmanship skills.

You can’t go against the emperor’s will.

Everyone who knows the name of the swordsman knows that this cannot be possible.

The swordsman is a person who has become a living legend by accumulating numerous achievements as an imperial warrior from a young age.

His accumulated achievements attracted support from many people of the empire, and that support naturally became his background.

The person with the might of the strongest on the continent, and the support of the people, is none other than the swordsman Dreyr Hexler.

A person like that, no matter how much the emperor, cannot be easily manipulated with just a few words.

If he wants, he can even refuse the emperor’s orders.

He probably knew that better than anyone else, but saying something like that was clear deception and ridicule.

“… It’s a little different from the rumors. I thought you would be a more rigid person.”

“Well, as usual with rumors, aren’t they exaggerated and distorted? I’m not a very dignified person.”

The old man smiled, as if he were a good old man.

“Now that I think about it─”

“Well, isn’t that enough now? Still, I think I gave myself enough time to catch my breath.”

“… … .”

… This human was also aware of it.

That I was intentionally buying time.

There is no way that insidious person truly cared about me, and it should be seen as an action born out of leisure.

The freedom of knowing that it doesn’t matter whether I recover my stamina or not.

Confidence without doubt that you will win.

There are no absolutes in the world, and such thoughts can be seen as arrogance that should be avoided as a warrior.

If a person with such confidence were a swordsman, no one would call it arrogance.

That much weight was on the old man in front of me.

‘… ‘I can’t do this anymore.’

Anyway, whether it’s arrogance or confidence, the one thing that is certain is that we can no longer waste time.

Now, I can’t put off fighting that old man.

I felt a bit of regret over that fact, but it didn’t really matter.

Because I knew that from the moment I met him.

but.

“… But before we start, can I ask you one question?”

“Hmm? What?”

“Why did you come here yourself? Your territory is far away from here, and I don’t think the matter is too serious for you to come here on purpose.”

That was the question.

No matter what the human nature of a swordsman is, there is something called weight.

It is true that murdering a prince is a very serious crime, but that is only the position of the Elbrent Empire, and for swordsmen, it is a different story.

Moreover, the culprit is nothing more than a student at the academy.

Because of my actions while escaping and resisting pursuit, the rumor that my skills were extraordinary seemed to have spread, but even so, no one guessed that I had reached the point of insanity.

It’s natural. Because that doesn’t make sense in common sense.

However, the swordsman himself moved his body to catch that guy.

That was something I couldn’t easily understand.

“Huh. Now that I see it, he was a very shameless young man who killed the prince of the empire and didn’t feel anything serious about it.”

“It’s not that heavy. It’s just that I didn’t think it was something that someone like a swordsman would rush to.”

The old man tried to trick him again, but he nailed him again.

“… Hmm.”

Then the swordsman erased his exaggerated expression and looked at me blankly.

“… Well, as someone who is a long time ago, I can probably answer that question with a gift on the way.”

I really didn’t like the way they were talking as if my death was a confirmed issue, but I decided to stay quiet for now to hear the story behind it.

“Of course, originally, it wouldn’t have been something I would have done myself.”

The swordsman continued calmly, as if telling an insignificant story.

“In conclusion, it is a coincidence. I happened to have some business to take care of around here, and I happened to hear a rumor about you, so I decided to move like this.”

But, he added.

“A young man who was said to have excellent skills… No, I never would have thought that you, who are so young that even such an expression would be appropriate, are a warrior who has reached the level of consciousness.”

The swordsman let out a small laugh.

“It may be a coincidence, but I think it turned out well. Perhaps if I hadn’t stepped forward, the damage to the empire would have been greater… . Oh, it may be unfortunate for you.”

Grinning, the swordsman had a smile on his face.

“… I see.”

I nodded quietly.

“Okay, are all the questions resolved?”

“Yes, well… .”

“That’s a good thing.”

Seeing the swordsman nod his head as if everything went well, I came to a conclusion in my mind.

This human.

‘That’s a lie.’

You are lying.

I was convinced that it was no coincidence that this old man came here.