Published: July 5, 2025
Since the Great Demon War, Abel felt that he had been traveling by ship quite a bit.
Abel liked traveling by ship.
That was because there was plenty of free time on deck.
Most of the time, he would swing his sword, read books, or drink coffee.
Right now, Abel was practicing his swordsmanship, which had become a daily routine.
He was being watched by a certain golem.
"Hey, Ryo."
"What is it, Abel?"
As Abel swung his sword, he called out to Ryo, who was pondering over the magic formula displayed on the ice panel, muttering about it.
"I feel like number four has been staring at me for a while now."
"Huh? Oh, yes, it is."
"Why is that?"
"Hmm... Maybe it's because the Royal Knight Order members are watching you, Abel?"
"Really?"
"Seeing that, number four might have thought to try copying you. Or maybe it has decided that it can now defeat you and is giving you a challenging look."
"Yeah, I think your latter interpretation is off, Ryo. Number four isn't that rebellious of a golem."
Abel glanced at number four and defended it.
"Well, it's certainly trying to learn something by watching you."
"I see."
Abel nodded at Ryo's words and continued to swing his sword.
After a while, number four left Abel's side and began swinging its sword in a corner.
Slowly.
As if confirming each movement: footwork, weight transfer, sword and arm movement… each one was done slowly.
Once Abel finished swinging his sword, he looked at it from afar and murmured.
"Somehow, it feels like my sword… or rather, it has a Hugh-style vibe to it."
"It seems that it learned while mingling with the Royal Knight Order. Many knights have likely studied the Hugh style, right?"
"Yeah, that's true. Although I also learned it, most royalty and nobles start studying swordsmanship from a young age, and the foundation is mostly from the Hugh style. It’s refined and eliminates waste. It's easy for the learner to understand, and it seems to be easy for the teacher as well."
"It might have been a good idea to send number four to train with the Royal Knight Order."
Ryo muttered as he watched number four swing its sword in silence.
Then, after a while of practicing alone, number four approached the Royal Knight Order, and noticing this, the knights began to include number four in their sword discussions.
"Those guys have started talking about swords... but number four can't speak, right?"
"Yeah. But it can understand what they are saying."
Ryo answered Abel's question.
"There’s likely a connection between those who live by the sword and those who share that same life."
"I see... Number four and the knight order, that's impressive."
Since he thought it would be impossible for him, Abel shook his head in admiration.
Before long, Zack and Scotty, two squad captains, seemed to join the circle of sword discussions.
"Those two have joined as well."
"Of course, they are squad captains of the Royal Knight Order, after all."
Ryo tilted his head in confusion at Abel's surprise.
"When it comes to squad captains, they often have opportunities not only to work on their own swordsmanship but also to help their subordinates. To respond appropriately during those times, they need to grasp how their subordinates generally approach and think about swordsmanship. It might even be their duty to understand how other members of the order approach their swords."
"I see. That's impressive, squad captains."
Ryo's logically sound answer managed to convince Abel instead.
Yes, sometimes Ryo could be like this.
Sometimes he would provide such sensible answers.
After a while longer, Nils and Amon also joined the sword discussions.
"Now it's not just the Royal Knight Order, but even Nils and Amon…"
"Those who live by the sword likely see their positions as trivial matters."
Abel was surprised, and Ryo nodded in agreement.
"Is that so?"
"If we confine ourselves to the narrow perspectives of only the organizations we belong to, we never know when we might be caught off guard. For those who live by the sword, getting caught off guard could mean losing or, in some cases, leading to death. I think it's wonderful to actively seek interactions with others outside the organization who are headed in the same direction."