episode_0043

The forest was already beautifully colored, enough to feel the approach of fall. I walked slowly through the forest, feeling Yugram following me silently.

In this world, it is said that spring and fall are seasons when the gods of the gods are the gods of the gods, and summer and winter are seasons when the gods of the gods of the gods are the gods of …

However, from my perspective, who should be more sensitive to the power of the Grim Reaper than anyone else, there is no particular change. Whether it is spring or winter, it is just as filthy painful. Well, actually, there may be some difference in the amount of magic power consumed, but it is not something I can feel.

Even if we leave aside the four seasons and the power of the gods, the important thing is that there really is a god in this world. Just look at this curse that has been eating away at me my entire life, and it seems like it would be impossible for a human being.

Anyway, even though this is a world where gods actually exist, strangely enough, there are no priests on this continent.

In some ways, it seems a bit strange. If it were a fantasy world like this, wouldn’t there be priests who heal people with their faith, and among them, there should be saints or saints at the highest level?

However, healing is just a magic that only a few with talent can use, and while there are those who study theology and those who believe in religion, there are no priests as I think of them. No, if you define the concept of priests as ‘those who perform miracles by borrowing the power of God’, then those who believe in the religion of the dead would rather fall into that category.

According to mythology, the god of death and the god of death are equal and appear as brothers, but the other gods, fearing his power and cruel nature, begged the god of death to banish him and seal him deep underground. If you look at it that way, the other gods who should easily lend their power to humans are the ones who are active and lively, while the sealed god of death is a mess, but the reality is the opposite.

─Perhaps the world where the gods live is not this continent, but another world. Being sealed deep underground means that it is closer to this continent.

Suddenly, I had that thought, but even if it were true, nothing would change. Should I seal the god and ask him to lend me his power to cure my curse? At the point of sealing the god, I would have to be a being superior to God or at least on par with him. Then, wouldn’t this curse, which wasn’t directly placed by the god of death but was merely borrowed from, be able to be destroyed on its own?

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“Expedition?”

“Yeah, it doesn’t seem so bad. What do you think?”

After returning from our walk, we were all having lunch together when Ayla brought up an unexpected story. Mathias also seemed to be hearing it for the first time and just quietly looked at me.

“Well, if you look at it from a good to bad perspective, it’s a good thing, but can we get in?”

“This expedition plan seems to have been put together very hastily. It seems like it would be quite difficult to gather people, so even those who haven’t even graduated from the academy like us are in a situation where they have to put in the effort. Of course, they will still filter out people based on their activity history.”

An expedition is usually a large group of people, usually tens or hundreds, moving according to a certain plan. Since the money and time involved are enormous, the fact that such an expedition was hastily organized meant that something enormous had happened.

“According to the receptionist, the lord’s son was injured while inspecting the territory. It wasn’t a serious injury, so it didn’t matter that much, but… it seems he encountered an ogre in the mountains.”

“─Ogre?”

Ayla’s expression hardened and she nodded at my surprised question.

Ogre! From my previous life’s knowledge, it was a very familiar being, and the ogres of this world also had almost the same characteristics. With a body that was five or six times larger than a normal human’s, tough hide that could easily deflect a normal sword, and a fairly high intelligence and cunning in using tools, the ogre was a disaster to a normal human.

If such a being had appeared, it would have been understandable to urgently organize an expedition. I don’t know how many ogres the lord’s son had seen, but if a male and female had appeared on the mountain… it wasn’t hard to imagine what the mountain would have become in a few years.

“This is an urgent mission from the lord. Just participating here will earn you a lot of points?”

“I don’t mind if Ayla and Mathias are okay, but… Are you really okay with that? The other person is an ogre?”

I admit that Ayla is quite strong, but she is like a child in front of an ogre. No matter how much Ayla swings her sword, will she be able to cut the ogre’s hide? Ayla snickered at my worried gaze.

“Of course, there’s nothing we can do about the ogres. But princess, why would there be so many people in the expedition? Most of them are just doing odd jobs like escorting the knights to the mountains so that the real powers, like the ones who fight the ogres, don’t waste their energy. Of course, we’re on that side too.”

“That may be true, but…”

“Well, if it’s dangerous, you can just run away, right? We’re not even real guild members. We’re just kids who haven’t even had our coming of age ceremony yet, so what?”

Well, if I were a real mercenary or a guild member, the success or failure of a single request would have a huge impact, but since we were only participating in an academy event, there was no harm in running away to save our lives if it was dangerous.

“What does Mathias think?”

“I will do as the princess wishes.”

That’s not what I was asking, though.

I glanced at Yugram’s face from the corner of my eye, but there was no particular expression on his face. Well, if it was really dangerous, Yugram would have reacted somehow. No matter what happened, wouldn’t he be able to come back alive?

“Okay. Let’s join the expedition.”

Let’s go for it!

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“..So, there are three second-year students in the academy. This person is a healer..”

The youngest of the knights, Gerard, frowned at the new additions to the expedition. It was understandable, since there were two short girls who didn’t even reach his chest, one girl who was about shoulder-length, and a grown man, who were all healers. Of course, healers were valuable personnel, but direct combat was more important.

Since I had received a letter of recommendation from the guild, I couldn’t help but include it. However, I couldn’t help feeling uneasy. Gerard shook his head and, in a matter-of-fact manner, assigned the group to a tent built as a temporary accommodation, and told them to wait until all the members of the expedition gathered, before turning around and grumbling.

“..They’re just a bunch of luggage.”

It was a small voice, so he probably wouldn’t have heard it. No, even if he had heard it, Gerard didn’t think it would matter. Even though he was the youngest of the Academy students, what could he do to himself, a member of the Knights? However, Gerard’s thoughts were off the mark.

“Do you have any business?”

Gerard turned around and said as he heard the sound of footsteps following him even after passing the empty space where the tent was set up. The one behind him was the tallest girl among the guild members he had just encountered – Ayla.

“It’s nothing. It’s just that my brother seems to be very displeased with us.”

“Hmm.. I apologize if you heard that.”

“No, no, that monologue is just a monologue. The look in your eyes, hyung. That provocative look in your eyes that makes you wonder what help those guys who aren’t even worth a fist can be. If we left it like that, it seemed like he’d pick a fight with us at any time.”

I don’t care, but if you get caught by the Masked Princess, it could be a bit dangerous for you, Gerard thought for a moment. A mask? Now that I think about it, one of the short girls was wearing a half mask. It was so striking that it was a bit strange that she remembered it now.

“So, you’re going to show off your skills?”

“Isn’t the expression too brutal? Let’s just say that I’m applying for a duel because I admire the knights.”

Ayla smiled, but Gerard felt his anger rising. The fact that Ayla had not corrected her intentions was tantamount to accepting it. However, as a knight, he could not be angry at a young girl who had not yet reached her coming of age ceremony─Gerard held the sword without removing its scabbard. A scabbard locked with magic was generally not removed, so he did not have to worry about any unfortunate incidents that might occur.

“You may draw your sword.”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can handle you if you use a real sword without wearing armor. I’ll have to be in your debt for a while, but I don’t plan on becoming an enemy of the Knights from the start.”

It meant, ‘I might kill you.’

“I’ve been training with the sword since before you were born. You’d better not provoke me.”

“Knight, it doesn’t matter how many years you’ve been training. What matters is whether you’re stronger than me or not. Besides, seeing as you’re taking on these chores, I can tell where you stand in the Knights Order. I don’t understand why you’re so confident. Wouldn’t it be better for me to get caught by you alone than for you to get caught by our princess and be embarrassed in front of everyone else?”

Ayla held the twin swords without removing the scabbards, just like Gerard. The colors of the scabbards, divided into black and white, stood out. Gerard was about to rush out and attack the arrogant girl, but he couldn’t help but hesitate at Ayla’s changed momentum as soon as he grabbed the swords. Ayla’s murderous intent made it seem as if her ponytail was fluttering around her waist.

Gerard slowly adjusted his stance. He held the sword with both hands, raised it higher than shoulder height, pointed the sword tip at the opponent, and twisted his body diagonally to limit the opponent’s attack area.

For some reason, Gerard felt his hands getting wet. He felt the tension he only felt when sparring with his seniors in the Knights. Most mercenaries or thieves would not be able to properly block even a single sword strike from Gerard’s swordsmanship in this position, but for some reason, it didn’t seem like it would work on the girl in front of him.

The physical differences were obvious, and the opponent in front of him was wielding twin swords. If he had attacked first, there was a very high chance that he would have the advantage, but for some reason, he had no openings at all.

“The player tried to give in, but if he won’t come, there’s nothing I can do.”

Ayla charged along with the horse and swung her right hand. It was almost a coincidence that Gerard blocked that lightning-like strike. It was probably the defensive movements and survival instincts that had been ingrained in her body for over ten years that made it possible. It was a speed that the eyes could not follow. The power transmitted to the hand was not great, but that was not important. Just because there was not much power, it did not mean that it would not be cut.

Before he could even feel relieved that he had blocked the attack that had come flying at him, a sword came flying at him from a different angle. Gerard tried to block it right away, but the sword did not move. This was because Aila had tied Gerard’s sword with the sword of the one who had attacked first. If he properly understood and applied the direction of the opponent’s power, he could permanently immobilize the sword of the lower class.

Thump, Ayla tapped Gerard’s stomach with the hand she had in her left hand. That was the end. Gerard accepted defeat and let go of his strength, and the sword that had been attached to him as if it were one body finally moved as he wished.

“..Wow, that’s amazing.”

“It’s okay. The princess is much more powerful than me, so don’t bother her unnecessarily. This is not a warning, it’s advice.”

Ayla put her sword back on her waist and left without a word. Gerard, who was looking at her back, sighed.

There were many times when I felt the difference in talent after joining the Knights. Still, I thought to myself, “Maybe someday I can do it too?” and tried hard, but it felt like I had hit an insurmountable wall.

“Are my 16 years of training less than that girl’s years? ”

Gerard’s bitter mutterings were a cruel truth.