Ch.103103. Vacation (2)

“Um… Your Majesty, what is this exactly?”

I was sitting in front of the queen with her arms crossed, my left arm strapped to some strange machine-like contraption. Charitably speaking, it was a fantasy-style blood pressure monitor. Less charitably, just a restraint. I slightly twisted my lips as I stared at the cold, yellowish metal of unknown origin.

“First, I’m trying to figure out what you’re lacking. For that, I need to check your current condition.”

The queen unfolded her arms and approached the metal machine, resting her chin on her hand. Her gaze swept over my bare upper body. Behind the queen stood a robed magician wearing glasses almost as large as her face, nodding her head. She barely reached my chest in height. She approached the machine with small steps, checking the complicated levers and buttons by fiddling with them.

“This is a device to measure your magical power. How your mana circulates, how much you possess, and if there are any notable characteristics. Additionally, it can check your physical condition.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. This machine was originally designed for Your Majesty and 7th Circle archmages, so even the Hero should be measurable without any problems.”

The magician enthusiastically supported and explained the queen’s words. Her pronunciation was slightly lisped.

“Excuse me, but who are you?”

At my question, the magician looked up from the machine and stared at me. Behind her glasses were large heterochromatic eyes—one yellow, one blue. Her shoulder-length light green hair framed her face. Despite her innocent and cute appearance, she emanated a deep power that couldn’t be ignored.

“Oh, I apologize for my late introduction. I am Laura Morin, the Tower Master of the Royal Tower.”

Laura bowed her head as she spoke. Was the Tower Master such a young person? No, despite her appearance, she must be quite old. The vast ocean-like magical power I sensed told me as much. It wasn’t magic a child could possess.

“Despite appearances, she’s a 7th Circle archmage. I asked for her help once, and she accepted quite readily.”

“How could I refuse Your Majesty’s command? Besides, to be the first to examine the Hero’s body that no one has studied before… it’s an honor.”

That’s too much excitement in your eyes to just call it an honor. I shifted my hips awkwardly to the side to distance myself from Laura, whose cheeks were flushed. She looked like she wanted to dissect me. Seeing my disgusted expression, Laura cleared her throat and turned away.

“Let’s begin the examination. Please take a deep breath.”

I followed her instructions and took a deep breath. Laura nodded and pressed what appeared to be a green start button. A tingling current ran up my left arm and spread throughout my body. It wasn’t particularly pleasant, but the sensation disappeared quicker than I expected.

“Now, let’s see what results we get.”

Unable to hide her excitement, Laura rubbed her palms together and approached the gauge panel. Looking at the numbers appearing on the panel, she repeatedly made understanding sounds, occasionally tilting her head and writing something on her clipboard.

“How are the results, Laura?”

“As expected, Your Majesty. The Hero’s magical power is beyond measurement, just like yours or mine.”

Laura held up the paper with the measurement results. The queen took the sheet and looked at it with curious eyes.

“I see. So this ‘7+’ means his magical power exceeds the 7th Circle.”

Laura turned to me with a smile on her face, seeing my confusion.

“When magical power exceeds the 7th Circle, measuring it becomes meaningless. The recovery rate is already on a different dimension, and even the same amount of magic differs in quality.”

Laura explained enthusiastically, and the queen nodded. Wait a minute. Does that mean the queen’s magical power also exceeds the 7th Circle level? When I looked at the queen with a surprised expression, she returned my gaze as if wondering why I was staring at her.

“What is it?”

“Nothing… nothing at all.”

Well, of course. The queen was unrivaled in talent in the original work. If she obtained the Sword Master qualification at the youngest age ever, it wouldn’t be surprising if her magical power was comparable to a 7th Circle archmage.

“Well, now that we’ve confirmed your mana capacity… you probably don’t need to take the elixir, but I had already set it aside for you.”

The queen handed me a bottle that had been placed on the table next to the measuring device. Inside was a sloshing blue liquid. It looked like a galaxy fallen into the sea, with stars twinkling inside.

“Here, take it. It will help you in some way.”

“I am deeply grateful for your kindness, Your Majesty.”

“What’s there to be so grateful about? Just say thank you and be done with it.”

The queen spoke in a slightly pouty voice and released my restraint. I massaged my numb arm as I received another sheet with my measurement results.

“Please check the results yourself, Hero. They are quite satisfactory. Your physical potential far exceeds normal levels, and your mana circulation is very healthy. There seems to be no way to further enhance your body with elixirs or procedures.”

I nodded and read the paper written in cute handwriting.

“How much further you develop depends on your training. Once you cross that threshold, you’ll have entered a heavenly realm beyond humanity.”

Laura explained, placing her hands above her waist as if to say “ahem.”

“And it was I, Laura Morin, who developed the precise measuring device for such extraordinary people.”

“That’s impressive, Tower Master.”

“Please just call me Laura. I don’t particularly like my title. It doesn’t sound friendly.”

Laura shook her head as she answered. Yet her expression showed she was quite pleased with my compliment. If a magician of her caliber was proud of it, it must be quite an extraordinary device.

“Well then, shall we move on to the next step? We’ve done the measurements and given you the elixir. Laura, will you join us? I think you might find it interesting.”

“Of course, Your Majesty. After seeing these measurement results, my interest in the Hero has only grown.”

Laura clenched her fist with sparkling eyes, and the queen tossed me my shirt. The queen smiled at me as I put on my clothes.

“It’s time for practical training, Ilroy. I haven’t been taking sword lessons for a while because there haven’t been knights matching my level, but now a good opportunity has arisen.”

Practical training?

I followed the queen in confusion. Without her usual escort knights, her movements were unhindered. After passing through a long corridor and several flights of stairs, we opened a door leading outside to a spacious and sturdy-looking training ground. Probably the queen’s private training ground.

“Have you ever improved your swordsmanship by sparring with someone?”

I cautiously shook my head. I had only sought a little guidance from Duke Quenore, and back then I was incomparably weaker than I am now. My fight with Aryen was hardly what you’d call sparring. The only person I’d seriously discussed swordsmanship and martial arts with was probably the Holy Sword. But she wasn’t saying anything at the moment.

“Actually, I believe there’s no royal road to swordsmanship. It’s about figuring out how to better use your sword while handling it, how to defeat the person in front of you. It’s different from learning the basics.”

An elderly knight waiting at the training ground naturally handed a sword to the queen. Then he looked at me and handed me another sword.

“Are you sparring with the Hero today, Your Majesty? You haven’t come to the training ground for a while.”

“This isn’t for my training. Are there even any knights left who can teach me anything?”

Despite the queen’s words potentially hurting his pride, the old knight just laughed it off. Judging by their interaction, they seemed quite close.

“I did teach you when you were young.”

“For what, three years? Then you lost to me, and after that, you just nagged me to keep coming to the training ground regularly.”

The old knight smiled proudly at the queen’s provocative words.

“Well, that’s because Your Majesty was so exceptional. I taught a child who had the potential to become the strongest swordsman in the kingdom’s history. I have no regrets losing to a child who had only held a sword for three years.”

The old knight glanced at me and handed me another sword.

“Doesn’t the Hero use dual swords?”

I nodded and accepted the sword from the old knight. It had a dulled blade. Holding the dual swords, I looked at the queen. She looked at me with curious eyes and gestured.

“Come on, what are you waiting for? Let’s begin.”

I had wondered, but I didn’t expect to be sparring with the queen. I gripped my swords, recalling my exchanges with Duke Quenore. I wondered how strong her swordsmanship would be. She probably wouldn’t lose to the Duke even if they fought.

“Come at me with all your strength. If you can’t become stronger simply by increasing your power, then figuring out how to utilize the power you have is another approach. Fighting someone of similar or greater strength helps tremendously in developing that utilization.”

The queen raised her head as if it was natural that I was the inferior one. That was confidence—confidence that she could win with pure swordsmanship against any opponent. I stood in my familiar stance with my dual swords. No matter how I tried to find an opening in her, none was visible.

“There’s no point in trying to probe.”

My mind settles. The moment the sparring begins, the person before me is not the queen but my target to defeat. I calmed my spirit and loosened the strength in my wrists. Openings aren’t found; they’re created. Recalling what Duke Quenore once told me, I launched myself forward.

“Ooh.”

Laura’s brief exclamation. And the queen before me smiled deeply.

“I’m pleased. That’s a good attitude.”

BOOM–!!!

The sound of swords colliding echoed not just through the training ground but throughout the entire palace.

==

“…Not easy.”

Somehow, I was able to walk home. I escaped from Daphne and Marianne, who were worriedly looking at my battered self, and returned to my room to lie down.

To cut to the chase, I lost. It wasn’t as pathetically as before, but it wasn’t a close match either. I definitely went all out against the queen. She wiped her smile off and responded with full force, and while it seemed like we were fighting evenly, before I knew it, I was rolling on the ground.

“I thought I might not actually lose.”

I’ve accumulated experience over time. My swordsmanship has grown through hundreds of battles in the mist recently. I even thought I wouldn’t be pushed back if I fought Aryen again.

“That was arrogance.”

Arrogance indeed. While pursuing strength, I had already thought of myself as strong. That’s an attitude someone seeking improvement shouldn’t have. I sighed deeply and repeatedly clenched and unclenched my fist. Since we agreed to spar regularly every three days, I should show a better performance next time.

“Phew.”

I exhaled briefly and sat in a meditative position. I closed my eyes, intending to review today’s battle. How did the queen move? Where was she looking when I first charged at her? Did she take a defensive stance next, or an offensive one? How powerful were her swings? What exactly was the attack that defeated me?

My thoughts continued one after another. I tried to understand those movements, those insights. Why she swung her sword that way, why she moved like that. And gradually, the darkness behind my closed eyes lightened, forming some kind of scenery.

“…Huh?”

This scenery seems familiar.

“[It was pitiful watching you struggle alone.]”

Ah.

I opened my eyes wide at the voice I hadn’t heard in a long time and looked around.

“You don’t need to turn your head like that. I’m right here.”

Before my searching eyes, the Holy Sword appeared. Silver shimmering hair, ruby-red eyes, and a brightly blooming flower crown.

“Learning only from that vixen—no, the queen—won’t be as effective as having me with you. In fact, you might not need the queen at all.”

“Wait, why are you suddenly appearing like this after being quiet all this time?”

“Crisis awareness.”

The Holy Sword appeared suddenly and said something strange. As I stared at her with wide eyes, she snapped her fingers.

“Let’s spar, Ilroy. Since this is in your mental world, it won’t put much strain on your physical body.”

In the Holy Sword’s hand was her true form—the holy sword itself—and in my hand was Neoul.

“I’ll train you so intensely that you’ll be able to defeat that woman in the blink of an eye.”