Published: July 5, 2025
It is the fourth night of the seven consecutive postings.
The two, having reached a consensus, left the inn while leaving Andalusia and Feiwan behind.
If they felt disillusioned after visiting the training grounds, they could just return to the inn, complete the paperwork, and leave the fortress immediately.
The training ground had stands constructed atop the walls.
From there, one could observe the training and watch mock exercises.
The two had come to one of those stands.
From there, they watched what kind of training was being conducted.
They saw, but...
"They're running..."
"Younger folks, huh? About fifty of them?"
"So, are they the ones we've been asked to train?"
"That may be the case, but… why are they running without swinging their swords?"
Abel tilted his head.
At that moment, a voice was heard from the stand across.
"Run, run, run! In battle, if you run out of stamina, you die! Even the most skilled swordmaster will die if they lose their stamina! So run and build your stamina!"
It seemed an elderly man in the stands was shouting.
"What he's saying is very reasonable."
"It resembles Ryo's thoughts."
"Indeed. Those who can move until the end can stand until the end. Those who stand until the end survive."
Ryo declared.
Having come to "Fai" for several decades, he still held that belief without wavering.
Rather, as time passed and he interacted with more people, he became increasingly convinced.
"Is that shouting man the instructor?"
"That would be my guess. Even from a distance, he looks like a swordsmanship instructor."
Holding a wooden training sword and with long white hair tied back, he looked unmistakably like a swordsmanship master.
While the two were observing for a while, someone called out to them.
"Oh, you've come!"
It was Molgar, the chief guard.
"If it leads to avoiding war..."
"Despite how it seems, Abel is a swordsman."
Abel and Ryo answered, each with their own thoughts.
One of them had a slightly twisted disposition, though.
"Let me introduce you to Elder Masuda."
Saying that, Molgar turned to the elderly man and shouted.
"Instructor!"
In response to that voice, the long-haired elder turned to look at them.
Understanding the situation, he hurried over to the three.
"Molgar, are they the ones you mentioned?"
"Yes. This is Lord Ryo, a C-ranked adventurer, and Lord Abel, his baggage carrier."
Molgar introduced them as he had heard.
"Hmm. Lord Ryo, I look forward to your training. And... baggage carrier?"
After shaking hands with Ryo, Elder Masuda turned his gaze to Abel, inspecting him from head to toe.
"You're Lord Abel, right? You look every bit a swordsman. That stature... no, that sword you're carrying is a magic sword, isn't it? How can someone like you be just a baggage carrier?"
"I was called a baggage carrier by Ryo, so there's no helping it. Since I don't have a Guild Card, I'm a baggage carrier."
"I-I see."
Elder Masuda accepted Abel's outright explanation, albeit with a skeptical expression.
"While you are a baggage carrier, as you can see, you're quite skilled."
"I agree."
Elder Masuda concurred with Molgar’s words.
Those who could tell understood.
Abel was no ordinary swordsman.
"Don't mind it. I'm just a baggage carrier."
Abel's response remained unchanged.
At this point, someone began to feel uncomfortable.
Half-jokingly saying, "Abel is my baggage carrier," Ryo hadn't imagined it would be taken this far.
Ryo felt a sense of awkwardness.
From now on, he decided to use words more carefully.
"If you're teaching from the basics, then Abel is the right person."
"Me? Why is that?"
Abel tilted his head at Ryo's words.
"Because you properly learned that Hume-style or whatever it is, right?"
"Oh! The renowned orthodox Hume-style swordsmanship? That sounds reassuring."
Elder Masuda nodded vigorously.
Even in such a remote place, it seemed Hume-style swordsmanship was known.
"I learned it quite a while ago. Since then, I've been practicing it on my own as an adventurer... ah..."
"So you were a former adventurer after all."
"Must have been a high-ranked adventurer."