episode_0011

4 silver coins. After paying for a week’s stay at the inn, doing laundry and bathing, and buying some old clothes, there was still money left. I tried ordering the cheapest food at the inn. Thin soup and bread that hadn’t sold and had been left out for several days came out. It wasn’t delicious, but if I dipped the hard bread in the thin soup and ate it, it was somewhat edible, even if it hurt my jaw. The hard bread crust scraped my throat as it went down. I sighed and stretched, murmuring to myself as I recalled yesterday’s events. “There was so much I didn’t know….” While I was with Ban, I realized there was so much I didn’t know. Choosing the profession of an adventurer means there will surely be times I have to work with various people in the future, even if I don’t want to. I can’t be a burden to others when that time comes, so I felt it was important to build up at least some basic knowledge. “I learned a lot from grandfather, but that doesn’t mean grandfather taught me everything.” Grandfather Leon was a soldier. Even I, who didn’t know much, could tell he didn’t seem like a regular soldier, but grandfather himself had introduced himself as a soldier. Anyway, because of that, grandfather’s knowledge was bound to be biased towards that kind of thing. He did teach me about adventurer work, but a lot was missing. There was no internet in this era. Since the limit of knowledge a single person possesses was clear, this was natural. “What Ban taught me was mostly ‘don’t trust people’ level, but it was definitely useful.” I started to think Ban wasn’t such a bad person after all. If he was a bad person from the start, there’s no way he would have calculated the money properly and left it after showing disgust towards me yesterday. Remembering what I experienced in Diran, instead of giving me money, he probably would have beaten me a few times and then thrown me into a pit full of goblin corpses, but he didn’t do that. He did choke me and throw me right away, but that seemed like he had restrained himself to the fullest extent. If I meet him again later, I won’t be able to act like I know him, but my gratitude will remain. Because if I hadn’t been with Ban at that time, I would probably be sleeping on the streets right now. “For now, I’ll rest today… and try hard again starting tomorrow.” There’s the stinging skin from being dragged on the ground when Ban threw me down yesterday, and perhaps overexerting myself on the downhill slope while escaping was the cause. My ankle was also swollen. “Are you finished? May I clear the table now?” The innkeeper’s daughter subtly approached and asked, and I nodded, telling her she could clear it. Then I headed towards the back door of the inn, confirmed there was no one around, and drew my sword. “…My foot does hurt, though.” Even so, I shouldn’t skip sword training. I have no talent. Therefore, I must work as hard as I lack talent. Everyone knows that obvious fact, yet finds it hard to do. If they lack talent, they don’t work hard; they give up. It’s not because they are weak, but because they can’t see the fruits of their efforts. When those with talent do something, it’s like walking a moonlit street at night. The moonlight illuminates the darkness, making the path visible. On the other hand, those without talent merely walk in the darkness. They have no sense of direction and don’t even know if they’re moving forward. Perhaps they’ve lost their way and are walking backward. “But I’m not like that.” I have no talent so the path isn’t visible, but the destination I need to reach is clearer than for anyone else. My trait made me that way. [Military Swordsmanship E] Due to your small physique and body type that makes it difficult to build muscle, you are not suited for swordsmanship, and your talent is also shallower than others’, leaving you lagging in all aspects. However, through your efforts and the guidance of an excellent teacher, you have advanced one step, and are now able to at least claim the name ‘Swordsmanship’. This trait had grown once before. From F rank to E rank. Where could there be more definite proof of growth than that? Where could there be anything that proves the value of effort more certainly than this? Knowing that if I strive, I will grow, there was no reason to give up. So I swung my sword. According to grandfather’s teachings, following the sword path. “…Ugh.” The sword trembled. Perhaps because I overdid it yesterday, my whole body was creaking and screaming. This morning, once I relaxed, I couldn’t move for almost 40 minutes. The muscle pain was severe. My injuries also sting, ache, and throb. But if I rested because of that, my sword would rust as much as I lack talent, so there was no other choice. I took a deep breath, and once again gripped the sword firmly. The sword tip did not tremble. The most basic thing in swinging a sword is for the sword tip not to tremble. Only when the sword doesn’t tremble can you move on to the next step. My condition isn’t good today. While holding the sword, let’s just focus on the sword tip not trembling. They say if you have talent, the sword tip doesn’t tremble even when you first hold it, but I wonder why I’m still like this. As I sighed in regret, my breathing faltered, and the paused sword trembled. “Grandfather looked so sharp when he held his sword.” Even at an age where his muscles had all gone, when he held his sword, he became one with it and emitted a sharp presence. No matter how many times I thought about it, I could tell he wasn’t a regular soldier. Because I learned from such a grandfather, I could boast that even if I lacked talent, my fundamentals were solid. “My problem, excluding talent, is just one.” I lacked muscle. Because I lack muscle, I can’t grip the sword properly, and I can’t swing it properly. If muscle is considered a part of talent, there’s nothing much to say, but I could make an excuse. What I ate was so poor, there’s no way muscle could form. “I have to use the earnings from yesterday for immediate living expenses and save some as emergency funds, so I can’t spend any more, but in the future, when I earn money, it would be better not to skimp on food.” I don’t know exactly what my age is set to right now, but surely a height of 139cm isn’t fully grown. I believe there’s still potential for growth, and there’s no harm in consuming plenty of nutrients starting now. “I don’t even expect 160cm, but I really want to reach at least 150cm.” I have to fight on the front lines, but this body, which feels like it would fly away if kicked, is really not it. I swung the sword irritably. Even at a glance, the sword path was crooked like a child’s scribble. My arm feels numb. I retrieved my sword and sat under the shade of a nearby tree to rest. “To be this exhausted after doing just a little bit of that yesterday…” All I did yesterday was climb a mountain for 3 hours, scout for trap locations for 2 hours, approach the goblins to attract attention, and then run down a steep hill that was practically a cliff. “…Huh.” Me, looking at it this way, it seems like I did a lot yesterday, isn’t it reasonable to be tired? As soon as that thought occurred to me, I immediately fell into the ridiculous temptation of ‘I did all that, maybe it’s okay to rest just for today’. I shook my head, but since my body being heavy and tired was an undeniable fact, the temptation sounded sweet, and I trembled and then let out a shout. “Ugh! Aaaaaagh-!” “Quiet!” “I’m sorry!” I tried to shout to break off lazy thoughts, but shouting behind the inn caused the innkeeper to come out and scold me. I quickly apologized and used my sword as a cane to force myself up. I kept telling myself I had to work hard, but how much had I really worked hard to be resting under a tree shade like this? I picked up my sword again. Last time Rie briefly logged in, she compared me to a new character she made. She said, ‘The character I made three days ago already has Swordsmanship B.’ I don’t know if it means they reached B in three days of learning swordsmanship, or if they grew existing swordsmanship to B, but it was definitely true that the gap between me and that character was incredibly vast. “Moreover, she said they start as upper class, not as an orphan like me, so their status must be at least commoner, maybe even noble?” The world they lived in was too different for an orphan from the slums to charge forward shouting for revenge. It didn’t break my spirit, but it seemed unavoidable to sigh. “If I work hard, I can reach it.” I knew well how empty the words I just spoke were, but I had no choice but to believe them. If I don’t believe that, what can I do? I swing my sword, just as grandfather taught me, I move my legs, just as grandfather taught me. That was the best effort I could make. My whole body was covered in bruises and wounds, creaking and not properly obeying my commands, but I could endure enough. No, I believe that only by enduring will I be able to accomplish whatever comes next. “…If there were internet broadcasts in this world, I might have been able to get by on my cute looks.” When my body is tired, I start having all sorts of fantasies. “But that’s not the case.” I gripped my sword and stretched it high towards the sky. And brought it down forcefully. As expected, the sword path was messy, but I thought, the momentum is excellent. “You know that training when your body isn’t in good shape is just wearing yourself down, right?” A familiar voice. I recognized who it was immediately, and after sheathing my sword, slowly, without turning around, I curled my body into a ball. Like a roly-poly. “…Uh, what’s that?” A bewildered voice was heard, which made me feel rather puzzled, so I voiced my question. “Didn’t you come to hit me?” Ban. Ban had come looking for me. This time, to avoid making eye contact even by mistake, I squeezed my eyes shut and whispered in a low, creeping voice. “Me? You?” “Yes, Ban, me.” “…I still feel bad and that feeling hasn’t gone away, but I came looking for you to apologize?” “…What?” “Those eyes, they’re a type of curse, right? That’s why you kept hiding them to avoid making eye contact, and that happened when my eyes met yours by mistake, didn’t it? No matter how much I thought about it, it seemed strange, so I thought it over carefully and came to that conclusion, what do you think?” “…Uh.” Could this be called a curse? Since I couldn’t answer because I wasn’t sure, Ban clicked his tongue as if frustrated and opened his mouth. “Since you’re not denying it, I’ll assume that’s the case. I’m sorry. For a moment, my emotions surged to the point where I couldn’t control them, and I couldn’t see straight.” “…It’s okay.” This was the first time I’d met someone who apologized like this. So, just when I was thinking this alone was enough, Ban continued speaking. “But apologizing with just words feels really inadequate, you know. I came to tell you about a recent rumor that’s going around.” “…A rumor?” A rumor, he says. “They say a saint has appeared.” “A saint…?” “It’s been widely talked about recently. They suddenly emerged into prominence within the last few months, said to be skilled with a sword and possessing excellent divine power, able to cure incurable diseases and curses.” A mysterious genius who suddenly emerged into prominence…. I felt a strong sense of incongruity. As I fell silent, perhaps Ban interpreted my silence in a certain way, and continued speaking a little more. “They say they’re so kind-hearted they can’t just pass by someone in trouble. If your eyes are a curse, I’d recommend meeting the saint once.” “…Thank you. By any chance, do you know the saint’s name?” “…Hmm, it was probably ‘Rie’? It was quite a feminine name for a man. Well, I’ll be going now, I think you’ll be uncomfortable if I stay here.” Just like that, Ban disappeared as if fleeing. All sorts of thoughts flooded in at the sudden information.