episode_0060

The next day, a carriage truly arrived in front of the lodging.

The coachman, unlike yesterday, treated Uncle Fosao courteously as well.

Upon arriving at the Defensive Swordsmanship Association, even more people had gathered than yesterday.

They all appeared to be apprentices dreaming of becoming ‘Swordsmen’.

All of them were men, young men similar in age to Ritsu.

It was impressive to see them discussing among themselves or diligently sparring with swords.

It reminded me of the time I had just learned swordsmanship from my Master.

I, too, had been that passionate.

But I had trained alone, as there was no one to practice with.

As I quietly walked across the training ground, people murmured as they watched me.

“Could it really be that girl?”

“That’s absurd. She looks no older than my younger sister…”

I entered a place called the ‘Grand Lecture Hall’.

A wide, large circular space.

People were packed into the tiered seating.

This place, which resembled an arena, was where swordsmanship was demonstrated and taught.

A man ascended the platform.

“The first disciple of Sword Master Sir Bin Carlos, a legend of the 20-Year War, Priscolla Tia Anshier, has graciously accepted the association’s invitation. Please welcome her with a round of thunderous applause.”

As the brief introduction concluded, cheers and applause erupted.

Clap clap clap clap—!!

Guided, I stepped onto the platform.

Then, as the applause gradually died down, a look of bewilderment settled in people’s eyes.

It was as if they couldn’t believe that the legendary Sir Bin Carlos’s first disciple was that ordinary girl.

I offered an awkward greeting.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all.”

There was no reply.

Only a cold, heavy atmosphere hung in the large lecture hall.

An old man sitting in the front row asked.

“Are you… joking right now?”

“Pardon?”

“Sir Bin Carlos’s disciple… this scrawny girl? That’s impossible!”

Others began to speak up from different directions.

The commotion spread like wildfire, soon becoming a noisy, uncontrollable uproar.

I, too, was utterly dumbfounded.

Because I had no idea that ‘Teacher Bin’, the humble contact person in the lower village, was such a highly renowned individual.

If I hadn’t heard the story from Robert-nim, I would still be unaware.

Why did my Master accept me as a disciple, of all people?

“I came all this way, expecting to see Sir Carlos’s legendary swordsmanship. What an absurdity!”

The old man abruptly came onto the platform.

Pointing at me, he shouted, asking what kind of lecture a clueless brat like me could give.

Laughter erupted here and there.

It seemed everyone thought similarly.

“If it’s true that this child is his disciple, shouldn’t Sir Carlos be quickly brought to Deseo before his age-related illness worsens!”

“……”

Clack.

I gripped my scabbard.

I could tolerate insults against myself.

But I could not tolerate insults against my Master.

Whoosh—!

“…Gasp?!”

The Grand Lecture Hall, which had been roaring with laughter, instantly fell silent.

Their faces were astonished at the sight of me, who had drawn my sword like lightning and was precisely pointing it at the old man’s jaw.

Indeed.

In the world of the sword, there is no proof as simple and clear as a direct demonstration.

Click.

Sheathing my sword in a stance I had practiced tens of thousands of times.

Once again, I bowed to everyone.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Tia Anshier, Master Bin Carlos’s disciple.”

There was no reciprocal reply.

However, the Grand Lecture Hall’s atmosphere had become remarkably different from before.

Everyone looked at me with eyes that acknowledged me as a ‘Swordsman’.

“Then, I’ll begin.”

The lecture took quite a long time.

Except for short breaks, I had to speak in the lecture hall all day and personally demonstrate the swordsmanship I had learned so far.

Scribes wrote down all my words and actions—even recording the gossip about my Master in between—and the apprentices received instruction and had their stances corrected.

It was dusk when the schedule successfully concluded.

Everyone clapped and expressed their gratitude until the very end.

The Association President personally handed me 300 gold along with a Provost certificate.

The certificate was a sword-shaped bronze statue.

As a bonus, they said that once I became a Provost, I could not participate in arena matches for reasons of fairness.

The 300 gold received as lecture fees was effectively the prize money for winning the arena.

Anyway, there was a risk of injury if I competed more, and the betting scene was nearing its end, so I thought it turned out for the best.

Finally, they said my name would be placed in the ‘Hall of Fame’.

It was a tradition to engrave names as a gesture of gratitude for making significant contributions to the development of swordsmanship.

“Your name will be placed right here. Under the name ‘Tia Anshier’.”

The Association President pointed to one wall.

Innumerable nameplates were densely hung there.

“Wow—”

It was so fascinating that I scanned through the names inscribed in the Hall of Fame.

At that moment, I saw a familiar name among them.

“…Joseph?”

“Is something the matter?”

“Is this ‘Joseph’ the same Joseph who uses two swords?”

“It seems you know him. Yes, that’s correct.”

“Where is he now?”

“He sometimes visits the association, but recently he went on a business trip for personal reasons. Do you perhaps have a message for him?”

“Oh, no. It’s fine.”

So Uncle Joseph was here.

The Association President explained proudly.

“If you have any urgent messages, you can send them through this association. The communication network among members within Deseo is very well established, so you can send a letter here anytime.”

“Yes, if such a need arises, I’ll contact the association!”

“Haha. Understood.”

“Then… may I return now?”

“Of course. It was an honor to meet you, Miss Tia Anshier.”

We exchanged farewells.

Upon returning to the lodging, Uncle Fosao was waiting in the room.

“Well, did you have a good time?”

“Yes! Ta-da—! Look at this—!”

When I showed him the coin pouch and the sword statue, Uncle Fosao gave a thumbs up.

And he said he had prepared a snack party for me, to reward me for my hard work.

He couldn’t buy much because he had to save money, but he said he bought as much of what I liked as possible.

If it’s snacks I like…?

“Wow—!”

There was the most familiar and longed-for snack.

“This is—’Ginger Biscuit’!”

“Hehe… that’s right. T-Tia likes it.”

“So this was in Deseo too—!”

I immediately put it in my mouth and crunched on it.

It was a bit harder than the ginger biscuits from Taildon.

But the bitter and slightly spicy aroma, which could only be felt from ginger, was exactly the same.

Chewing it slowly, my body quickly warmed up, and I felt better.

“Hehe—”

Lying on the bed and eating the biscuit, I felt happy.

I had earned a lot of money!

I was acknowledged as an excellent Swordsman by people!

I was promoted to Provost!

And I even got to eat ginger biscuits after a long time!

A thrilling sensation swelled up in my chest.

Honestly, I couldn’t believe it.

I had expected only misfortunes after coming to Deseo…

In this city without dreams or hope, I had expected to live a desperate life just to gather 1,000 gold…

But it wasn’t necessarily like that.

There could be such perfectly happy days too.

Now, perhaps I could reattach the hope that I had slowly chipped away from my heart?

I lifted the ginger biscuit.

The thin biscuit was transparent in the gentle light.

Staring blankly at the snack, I said.

“Thank you, Uncle.”

“Huh?”

“It’s all thanks to you.”

At that time, when I was accused of being a petty thief.

If I hadn’t met Uncle Fosao, what would have become of me by now?

I would have been trapped in Deseo’s dark and gloomy underground prison, counting down the days to my death.

The hand Uncle reached out to me when I had fallen seemed dazzlingly bright.

He pulled me out of a hellish pit.

And even now, he’s right beside me, protecting me, helping me, and cheering me on.

It’s strange.

Just a month ago… he was someone I really disliked.

I hated him so much that even being near him made me shudder.

Now, my past self feels awkward.

Uncle waved his hand.

“…I, I didn’t do much. T-Tia did it all herself.”

“Uncle, are you going to keep saying that? When a woman compliments you, it’s best to just say thank you.”

“Th-thank you… Hehehe—”

Crunch.

I bit into the biscuit.

The pounding, thrilling sensation spreading through my chest.

As expected… it’s addictive.

“Uncle, you’ll be forty-five next year, right?”

“Uh, uh-huh.”

“It seems a bit late, but shouldn’t you still get married?”

“Ugh—! T-Tia… that’s a bit of a p-painful remark…”

“You can’t live alone your whole life. You should get married too, Uncle, build a proper family, and have children.”

It sounded a bit like nagging, but half of it was sincere.

Village elders usually started to weaken from around fifty years old.

Then, if they developed an illness, they would become extremely frail and need someone to care for them.

Usually, they have a husband or wife, so they care for each other in their old age.

But if they were widowed early, or had no one like that at all…

They would face death alone, miserably.

What’s more, Uncle Fosao lives alone in a secluded spot in the forest, not even inside the village.

This means if Uncle gets hurt or sick, there will be no one to look after him.

I couldn’t help but worry.

Uncle Fosao hung his head low.

“I, I… I’ve given up. Women… dislike someone like me.”

“Then you should learn about women while you’re with me. How to talk to women, what kind of reactions are good. I’ll gladly help you!”

“…R-really?”

“Of course!”

I encouraged him greatly.

Then, Uncle’s eyes changed, as if he had made a decision.

With a smooth motion.

He suddenly got up from his spot and cautiously approached me.

“T-Then… Tia… C-can I try… advanced techniques?”

“Advanced techniques?”

“Yes. It’s a massage technique… I’m curious what this technique feels like to w-women… I’d like T-Tia to teach me.”

I had already known that Uncle was good at massages.

‘Advanced techniques’?

Does that mean the massages he’d given me until now were ‘basic techniques’?

I don’t know much about massages, but it seemed the techniques were divided that way.

Come to think of it, my Master also divided swordsmanship into basic and advanced levels.

So this must be… a kind of advanced course.

I was curious.

What exactly *are* advanced techniques?

Perhaps it involves elaborate hand movements?

“Okay! That works out well. I’m a bit tired myself from lecturing all day today.”

“…W-want to bathe first?”

“Yes!”

After washing my body clean in warm water.

To receive the advanced techniques, I lay prone on the bed in light clothing.

Uncle Fosao rubbed his hands together.

“R-Right then… I-I’ll begin.”