Ch.101101. In the Wild

“…I lost.”

The young man swallowed hard as he stared at the blade pointed at his throat. Though it was a practice sword with a blunted edge to prevent cutting skin, any sense of safety had vanished the moment he was attacked. Just when he thought he might actually die, the sword stopped as if by magic.

“Well, that ended before I could even try anything. I learned something new today as well.”

The young man bowed his head respectfully. As soon as he retreated, another person who had been watching from a distance quickly jumped forward. With the customary greeting of “Please teach me,” another match began, and immediately ended with the challenger taking a hit to the ribs and collapsing.

“Hehe, today I won’t go down in one hit like last time. Prepare yourself!”

The confident young man who stepped forward was rolling on the ground screaming in less than a minute. The defeated were lifted by their comrades and unceremoniously tossed aside. The pile of young men stacked like luggage grew larger, and only when there was no one left to challenge did the matches finally end.

“Are you really a monster? You haven’t even broken a sweat.”

A young man with a pale face rose to his feet and let out a hollow laugh.

“Lord Rex.”

The added title was something Rex still couldn’t get used to despite hearing it hundreds of times. He smiled bitterly as he set down his sword.

“It’s cold out.”

At least he had adapted to speaking informally rather than formally. It felt awkward to speak down to someone who was clearly much older than himself. Because of this, he still occasionally hesitated before speaking, but even this was significant progress. At first, he had made the same mistake repeatedly and been scolded by Charlotte.

“Such modesty. This little cold is nothing to Lord Rex.”

The young man limped away with difficulty. The other young men sprawled around were similarly staggering. Very few remained uninjured. Rex didn’t feel particularly sorry. After all, they had requested to be taken seriously, so he had simply obliged.

The young man straightened his clothes and spoke.

“I shouldn’t say this when I’m always in your debt, but Lord Rex, you truly are a monster.”

“The real monster is over there.”

Rex shook his head and pointed toward the mansion. The young man responded with an incredulous voice.

“Even having such a thought is absurd. Not just us trainees, but even the knights consider Lady Charlotte to be in a class of her own. It’s like trying to reach an unreachable sky.”

“It’s unreachable because you decide it is. Nothing is impossible if you set your mind to it.”

As Rex muttered with an indifferent expression, the young man shrugged and changed the subject.

“Everyone would be surprised to learn that Lord Rex is only eighteen. Honestly, if I were you, I would have joined a famous knighthood by now and secured a decent title.”

“Most people would want money or fame. I don’t dislike those things either.”

“Ah, come to think of it, a lot of time has passed. When we first met, it was three years ago. I never thought you’d stay this long.”

“Anton!”

In the middle of their conversation, other young men waved from a distance. The young man who had been speaking to Rex clicked his tongue and turned away.

“I’ll be going now. Please teach me again next time. See you.”

The young man left, groaning as if still in pain from the sword strikes. Rex watched his retreating figure with a slight smile, then looked up. White snowflakes were falling from the dark sky. Feeling the cold touch on his skin, Rex began to move.

Three years.

‘Has it been that long already?’

Time had flowed mercilessly. Leaving his hometown, arriving in Lindvale, experiencing various incidents. The time he had spent in Edenhar was much longer than his time in Lindvale, but he didn’t feel any particular emotion about that fact.

Because it had passed so quickly.

Autumn turned to winter, and the new year arrived. Then spring again. Summer, autumn, winter. After several repetitions, three years had passed.

If asked what had changed, nothing had. Only the seasons were different. Rex still hadn’t reached the level of an Apostle, or even faced the wall of the next realm, and his days remained filled with training.

If asked what had changed, he couldn’t give a definitive answer.

But if asked whether the past time had been worthless, he could answer with certainty.

The past three years had been fulfilling to the point that he couldn’t have spent them more perfectly even if he could go back.

The realm of the Apostle. He hadn’t achieved what was immediately visible. But he had gained what wasn’t visible. Through consistent research and trial and error, he had become more skilled at handling mental imagery. He could now operate the Heavenly River Formation without any special ritual, and his understanding of swordsmanship had deepened incomparably.

And he had earned recognition.

[How long do you intend to stay?]

Kaordix’s voice echoed in his mind.

[Didn’t the Sword Apostle say it herself? That she has nothing more to teach you.]

One year ago, after seeing the Kaiserion style Rex demonstrated before Charlotte, she had declared that his training was sufficient. He had perfectly absorbed all the teachings she had given, and now her help was no longer necessary.

Minor advice might still be possible, but it wouldn’t be of much help in elevating his realm. What he needed now was not the teachings of others, but the effort to slowly pioneer his own path.

So he was free to leave.

But Rex didn’t leave.

‘I don’t have anywhere else to go. Lindvale? Locking myself in a dungeon won’t help me achieve anything. And aimlessly wandering around seems pointless. If I’m going to train anyway, this place is better.’

[Don’t you get tired of seeing the same scenery every day?]

‘…Not really?’

Kaordix let out a heavy sigh. The voice cut off. Apparently, it was Kaordix who had been frustrated. Unfortunate, but what could be done? Rex genuinely didn’t find the daily routine of endless training at Edenhar tedious.

He would wake up early in the morning to practice sacred arts, then have a brief match with Charlotte. After meals, he would spar with the trainees of the Edenhar Viscounty. Not just trainees, but many people wanted to cross swords with Rex. Knights. Though the frequency of challenges had decreased lately, at first he had to move constantly without rest due to the flood of duel requests.

Due to the nature of duels, determining victory or defeat could be ambiguous.

Still.

From three years ago until now, he had never lost.

Recently, he had been able to achieve clear victories that anyone would acknowledge.

Excluding Charlotte, there was only one opponent he had not completely surpassed.

“Sir Allen.”

Even before Rex spoke, Allen was already looking in his direction. On the surface, he appeared to be just a dignified elderly man, but in reality, Allen was the most skilled sacred warrior in the Viscounty. Charlotte had informed Rex of this fact when they first met, but he hadn’t properly appreciated it then.

Now he understood.

‘Compared to Master… similar? No, slightly above.’

Allen was a genius whose talent was considered exceptional even within the Sword Order. Like Rex, Allen had also earned Charlotte’s recognition.

And now he was teaching Chloe the Order’s secret techniques.

“You’ve come. Thank you for dealing with those incompetent fellows again today. I keep warning them not to cause trouble, but they never listen.”

“Not at all. I don’t consider it a nuisance. It’s actually somewhat enjoyable.”

“That’s good to hear. Ah, have you come to see Chloe?”

When Rex nodded, Allen stroked his beard and lowered his gaze. Like the trainees who had collapsed after being struck by Rex earlier, Chloe was sprawled on the ground, gasping for breath.

“Get up.”

Allen’s voice was cold. It was a completely different attitude from how he treated Rex, without a trace of warmth. Wheezing as she caught her breath, Chloe slowly rose to her feet.

Three years ago, Charlotte had instructed Allen to teach Chloe, and Allen had carried out that instruction with all his might. Though it wasn’t officially announced, he was essentially Chloe’s master.

No matter that Chloe was a guest of the Viscounty, he couldn’t treat a disciple like an honored guest. As a result, Chloe received the same treatment as any other trainee and was undergoing rigorous training under Allen’s tutelage.

“The Ten Thousand Sword Style is not lenient enough to accommodate your circumstances. Because you’re out of breath, because your heart feels like it’s going to burst—if you collapse from such trivial factors, you’ll never progress even if you spend your entire life trying.”

“…I know.”

Chloe bit her lip tightly and brushed her hair back. Her once glossy red hair was now dull and unkempt, sticking out in all directions. Chloe hadn’t been idle during these three years.

She had broken through the wall before her and ascended to Sacred Flame. Her limbs had grown, and her once vibrant appearance had matured to its peak.

But like Rex, Chloe was not satisfied with herself.

“I can do more.”

“That’s the spirit.”

Allen raised his hand with a satisfied expression. Rex, who had been about to sit on a nearby rock to watch them, suddenly turned his head as he sensed a pressure emanating from somewhere.

“It seems we have a visitor.”

Allen had sensed it too.

“Chloe. Today’s training ends here. I will go to greet our guest, and you clean up.”

“Yes.”

Chloe nodded with a disappointed expression.

“Then with me…”

As Rex approached casually, Chloe looked at him with narrowed eyes.

“No.”

“I haven’t even said anything yet.”

“You were going to ask for a match.”

“How did you know? No, that aside, why are you refusing?”

“Are you seriously asking?”

Chloe rolled her eyes as she answered.

“You always ask for matches, but you never go easy on me. You beat me mercilessly—why would I want to spar with you?”

“You were the one who told me not to go easy on you in the first place.”

“Still! There should be limits. You change when you hold a sword. Besides, I’m tired now and want to rest. I won’t do it.”

Rex awkwardly scratched his cheek. Fortunately, Chloe didn’t object to helping with the cleanup. It didn’t take long to gather the dozens of swords scattered on the ground and pile them in one place.

“By the way, who could that visitor be? Seeing Sir Allen go out personally, it must not be an ordinary person.”

Chloe tilted her head curiously.

“Who knows.”

Rex gazed indifferently in the direction of the mansion.

“They’ll handle it. Let’s go eat.”

“Aren’t you curious at all?”

“It’s probably not related to us anyway, so why bother?”

“You never know what might happen in this world.”

Chloe retorted sulkily before walking ahead toward the mansion.

‘Why is she suddenly upset?’

Rex blinked with a puzzled expression.