episode_0138

Perhaps because I trained hard in my usual way, I gained a lot of stamina.

However, the problem is that with that much stamina, it is not easy to keep up with Leo, the ‘main character’, or Alice, the ‘sword-wielding heroine’.

“That’s because you’re putting your skills into something like a gun.”

Geumseong looked at me and said with a very displeased expression.

“If you compare the skill of wielding a gun and the skill of swinging a sword, it is obvious that the physical ability of the sword wielder is much better. In the first place, isn’t it possible to handle a gun sufficiently with a few weeks of training?”

After hearing that, I seriously thought about whether I should refute it or not, but I chose to just keep my mouth shut.

The Winterfield area in the north is not terribly hot even in midsummer. But even here, summer was summer. Although the temperature was in the mid to late 20s, the sun was high in the sky, and training in the scorching sun with little shade was definitely not easy.

I was running around hard under the blazing sun, and during my break I was lying down exhausted.

And then, Geumseong looked down at me and said this.

Even though I felt like refuting, I also thought that I shouldn’t waste my energy by talking pointlessly.

In the first place, I was the one who went to find Geomseong, Geomseong didn’t come to find me.

Furthermore, Jennifer, one of the disciples of the Sword Master, immediately went down the mountain after learning swordsmanship to some extent. She only learned enough to think, ‘This is useful in actual combat,’ and went down to learn how to mix in firearms. From the Sword Master’s perspective, firearms must be an incredibly unpleasant object.

“Hmm, still.”

Geumseong looked at me quietly and said.

“The spirit itself doesn’t seem to be bad.”

I was trained to turn back time over and over again.

If my stamina is lower than the other two, the best I can do is find a trick.

I’m not saying that I’m going to fall back and commit misconduct. If I do that, I’ll get on the black sheep’s bad side.

As you climb the hill, you look back in time to find a good place to stand. A place that is less slippery when you put your feet up, a place that is easy to hold onto with your hands, a place where you can put strength into your toes without the rocks slipping out, and a place where you can use a little less strength in your thighs.

I search for such a place step by step and move forward while conserving as much stamina as possible. Because I didn’t need any other strength to turn back time.

“No, have you been here before?”

Geomseong said as if he was genuinely curious.

It’s an obvious guess. From my perspective, I was running along the optimal route by turning back time by the second, but from the perspective of others, it would have looked like someone who had already been there and seen the whole route was moving.

Even though he lived alone, he never neglected his training, so it must have seemed that way to Geomseong.

“No matter how you look at it, he’s a strange guy. At first, I thought he was just a talentless guy who got lucky.”

Blacksmith sat down on the floor, slightly to the side of me, and looked down at my face.

“Who told you that you could come all the way to where I live?”

“… … .”

“At first, I thought you heard it from one of my disciples, but I guess you might have found the location in another way. Well, even though I’m hiding, I didn’t use any special methods.”

As expected of a swordsman, he seemed to have seen through my true identity to some extent, just like when I was training before.

Judging by the slightly raised corners of his mouth, I seem to have definitely succeeded in attracting Black’s attention.

An unidentified entity that suddenly appeared in the midst of a free daily life. That’s how it would appear to the eyes of the blacksmith.

“What is your identity?”

“… … .”

I thought about it seriously.

The face of the previous swordsman who had said, ‘Come back again’ overlapped. Well, the swordsman back then and the swordsman now are not different people. I just met the existence of the country a little later.

So, I was thinking about telling that story to Geomseong this time, but I stopped.

If it’s a blacksmith, I might believe it. He’s a person who can judge situations incredibly quickly. But…

If you want to be an information dealer, come see me once before I die. Then I will try to guess your identity. I would prefer that you don’t tell me anything. Riddles become boring when the questioner gives too many hints.

That’s what Geomseong said at that time.

Although it was a situation where some people might feel like their lives were unfair and that everything they had done was meaningless, that’s what Geomseong said.

If the person who poses the riddle gives too many hints, the fun of solving the problem disappears.

And, I was also a disciple of Geomseong. I was acknowledged by Geomseong himself.

Then, as a disciple, I shouldn’t take away my master’s play.

I sat up from my seat.

And then he looked at my ‘teacher’ and said.

“Are you curious about how I found out about this place and how I was able to utilize this training method?”

“Wouldn’t a human being be curious about that?”

But even as he said that, Geomseong was still smiling subtly. As if he already knew that I wouldn’t teach him.

“It’s a secret.”

But I can’t suddenly tell you the answer here.

At my words, Geumseong’s eyes widened for a moment.

And within that time,

“Khuh… … !”

Yes, he let out a short laugh, as if he had just drunk some poisonous, but very delicious and precious alcohol.

“So, is that it?”

Geumseong looked at me and smiled as he spoke.

“If you want to know your secret, you’re saying we should go to the system together? Because if I watch from the side, I can see what kind of secret you have.”

“That’s not exactly a wrong guess.”

I looked straight at the sword and said.

“In addition to the secrets that allowed me to move around here, there are many secrets in the system that you will enjoy knowing.”

“And of course you wouldn’t tell me all your secrets directly, right?”

“Of course.”

At my words, Geumseong looked at me for a while. There was still a somewhat sinister smile on his lips.

“You cheeky bastard.”

But at least this time I didn’t hit my forehead or anything.

*

“Everyone, pack your bags.”

The next morning, Geomseong said so.

We were sitting around a small, old table, eating food made from the meat of a rabbit-like animal, when Geomseong openly said that.

“Master?”

Leo, who had been eating meat diligently, had a blank expression for a moment. However, Geomseong did not seem to change his mind after seeing Leo’s expression.

“Everyone, let’s go down after eating today.”

… … Did I go too far?

Did you offend the Prosecutor’s Office by appearing overly arrogant?

In the original, since he had a generous personality, I thought it was better to make an interesting proposal rather than a practical deal, but it seems that wasn’t the case.

While I was wondering if I should turn back time to before that conversation, Geomseong continued speaking.

“But, Sylvia.”

“Yes.”

Blacksmith Frederick absentmindedly turned his gaze back to his bowl and spoke as he picked up a piece of meat and put it in his mouth.

“Is there a house in the system where I can stay?”

“… … .”

I was speechless for a moment, then suddenly came to my senses. The time was so short that if it weren’t for Alice or Geomseong, I probably wouldn’t have been able to recognize them clearly.

Even so, it was two out of the three people sitting here right now.

“Of course.”

Just in case, I reserved one of the guest rooms in the palace. It wasn’t a room specifically for Geomseong, but a room I had left empty in advance in case I brought someone else to the palace.

Finding a separate house is something that can be thought about slowly and over a little more time, but for now, it would be best to just settle down there.

There probably won’t be many people in the palace who would oppose it. The knights probably won’t die from love for it, right?

Although I don’t really like blackface, I decided not to bring it up on purpose.

“Then I will believe it.”

After saying that, Geomseong continued eating.

Alice and Leo turned their gazes to me as if they wanted me to explain, but I, like the Black Knight, just focused on my meal.

*

“… … Mr. Black?”

After the supply line has finished its distribution, it checks its status according to the manual and then returns to the system.

If things had gone as planned, we wouldn’t have had time to take the airship. If it had been just one more day late, the supply ship would have been flying towards the island.

But since Geomseong had pulled himself together much faster than expected, we were able to catch the supply ship on our way back.

Leo was the eldest son of a family close to the royal family, and Geomseong was… … Geomseong.

And it’s no wonder that Jaden was surprised to see such a sword.

Jayden, who had rushed from the front lines upon hearing the news that his younger sister was returning to the system, immediately recognized the old man wearing tattered clothes.

“Are you Jaden? I’ve heard from Jennifer a few times.”

Even though Geumseong said that while stroking his chin, Jaden couldn’t even answer properly and just opened his mouth.

And soon, his expression turned disappointed as he realized that he had to be here and that he couldn’t have a longer conversation with Geomseong.

“They say he’s my disciple’s brother, so I’d like to see his skills sometime.”

Hearing Black Star say that, Jaden turned his head towards Alice and me.

“… … .”

By the way, I was thinking of not talking to Jaden, so I just looked away.

Jaden slumped his shoulders again, looking disappointed, but who knows.