From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman: My Hotshot Disciples Are All Grown Up Now, and They Won’t Leave Me Alone - Volume 4 - Chapter 1

Chapter 1: An Old Country Bumpkin Takes Up Teaching

“Ummm... I think it’s this way.”

After my daily training, I left the office and started heading somewhere besides home. Though I had a set destination, I didn’t really know the way there. I was pretty sure I was going in the right direction, at least. Should’ve asked Curuni to come along... But I didn’t want to bother her.

“Oh, there it is.”

Either way, it seemed I’d chosen the right path. I spotted a small smithy squeezed into a row of compact buildings a little off the central district’s main street.

Made it here.

“Excuse me.”

“Yo, welco— Ooh, Master!”

A hearty voice greeted me as I opened the door. This was Balder’s Smithy, the shop run by my former pupil. We’d bought Curuni’s zweihander here, and Balder had forged my sword from Zeno Grable’s materials.

Balder’s as big as ever. I guess a blacksmith needs to be bulging with muscles to do his work.

“What’s up?” Balder asked.

“I’d like you to check my sword.”

“Hmmm?”

I saw a suspicious glimmer in his eyes. I hadn’t done anything I should feel guilty about, so why was he looking at me like that?

“Something happen?” he asked.

“Well, I used it a bit too much.”

I removed the sheathed sword from my belt and handed it to Balder. From what I could tell, the blade wasn’t visibly damaged. But that was the opinion of an amateur—it was best to leave this stuff to the experts. The idea of walking around with a sword in questionable condition made me anxious.

“Hmmm... All righty, then. Lemme take a peek.”

“Yeah, please do.”

Balder drew the sword. His eyes were so intense that it was like he was having a staring contest with the blade. He touched it every now and then and ran a cloth along its edge. I got tired of watching him pretty quickly, so to pass the time, I turned my attention to the weapons decorating the shop.

They were really nice swords. Surena, an adventurer of the highest rank, favored this smithy, so that was pretty much a guarantee of Balder’s skill. I was also satisfied with the sword he’d forged for me. I doubt I’ll ever depend on another blacksmith for as long as I remain in Baltrain. Balder being my former pupil is a point in his favor too.

“You sure used the edge a lot... What happened?” Balder asked.

“Uhhh... You hear about the recent uproar?”

“Yeah. Heard the rumors, at least. Right, you’re with the knights, huh?”

“Technically.”

I’d cleaned my blade after the incident, but Balder could still see how much the edge had been used. I had no idea what he was looking at or how he’d figured it out, but this level of expertise was one of the reasons I wanted him to check it out. Even if the blade hadn’t dulled, I’d used it to cut down a ton of people—it could be chipped or damaged in ways I couldn’t see. So, to clear such anxieties from my mind, I’d decided to come here after today’s training.

“How is it?” I asked.

“Hmmm...” Balder’s expression wasn’t grim, but it wasn’t cheerful either. “Well, it’ll be fine after a quick sharpening. It’s not that worn out.”

“That’s good to hear.”

My sword was truly outlandish. After such a lavish feast of foes, no normal blade could be returned to its prime with just a little sharpening. The way I’d abused it, a standard iron sword probably would’ve broken in the middle of the battle. Its strength had to be due to Zeno Grable’s materials. Also, I think it was called...elven steel? He’d apparently thrown some rare metal in the mix, so that had probably made the blade even more durable. Not that I knew much about metalwork.

“Anyway, Master, you sure are amazing,” Balder said as he started cleaning the specks of dirt and dust off the blade.

“Hm? How so?”

“I mean, it don’t matter how sturdy a sword is if you can’t use the edge properly—a bad swordsman will dull or break a blade in no time flat. You gotta handle swords with skill. And yet, despite all your skill, you still abused the heck out of this thing. Must’ve been one hell of a fight.”

“Ha ha ha, thanks.”

It felt pretty nice to have my swordsmanship complimented, even if it was the biased opinion of a pupil. Anyway, it was pretty uncommon to take on that many foes at once. A normal sword would dull after cutting down five people—maybe ten at best. On that point, this sword continued to demonstrate how abnormal it was. A part of me thought this masterwork was wasted on me, but I couldn’t guarantee that something like the assassination plot wouldn’t happen again. It was best to have as nice a weapon as possible. Because of that, I wanted to persuade Allucia to get a new sword, but she wasn’t going to listen to me. It was a little dispiriting.

“Hmmm... Guess I’ll redo the coating while I’m at it... Hey, Master?”

“Hm?”

“Mind leaving this with me for a day or two? I wanna reapply the elven steel coating after I sharpen it.”

Hmm... What to do? There was nothing going on right now that I would need a sword for. A few days without it was probably fine—I’d spent over a week without a sword before getting this one.

“You can take any of the swords lying around here as a replacement,” Balder offered.

“Oh, sure. In that case, I don’t really mind.”

I was just thinking that my waist was going to feel awfully light, but I had nothing to complain about if he was offering a replacement. It was nice to think that my weapon would be restored to prime condition. Also, I doubted an incident like that was going to come up again in only a few days.

And so, I decided to leave my sword with Balder and choose a new temporary partner. Not that I planned to be very picky about it. However, setting the right mood was important when making these kinds of choices.

“Now then, which to pick? Hmmm.”

I selected one at random. It really was a nice sword. The blade was very sharp, and its center of gravity was just right. If possible, I wanted something the same size and weight at my hip. Wielding something too different, even if only temporarily, would leave me feeling restless.

“I guess this works.”

After looking at a few with the eyes of an amateur, I settled on a totally plain-looking longsword. There was nothing outstanding about it, but I could tell it was a solid weapon. I made a living wielding a sword, but I wasn’t any good at forging them, and I didn’t have a trained eye for choosing the best ones.

“Mm. Not bad.”

I placed it at my hip. The weight and size were just as I thought they’d be. It’ll be good enough to trick my brain for a few days. And since Balder had forged all the swords in this shop, none of them were going to be shoddy.

“Okay then, the sharpening and coating fee will be ten thousand dalcs,” Balder said.

“Yeah, sure thing.”

I’d come here initially hoping to get my sword sharpened, so this expense was within my expectations. Also, I’d gotten the sword for free, so paying this much would make me feel better about that. Getting free stuff sounded nice in theory, but I made a living teaching swordsmanship, and from my perspective, skilled labor deserved appropriate payment. Balder was an excellent blacksmith, so it was only right to compensate him accordingly. Well, Surena paid him to forge my sword, but I personally hadn’t given him a single dalc.

“All right, come by again the day after tomorrow,” Balder said. “I’ll have it done by then.”

“You got it.”

I paid him, fitted the replacement sword to my belt, and then left the smithy. It really had been the right choice to let Balder, a specialist, take a look at it. No one distrusted my eye for detail as much as I did.

“Okay, time to head home.”

I had nothing left to do today. Well, that wasn’t entirely true—I still had the important mission of going home, having dinner with Mewi, and showing her affection. She was getting accustomed to her new lifestyle, and once in a while, she even talked about her time at the magic institute over dinner.

It was fun listening to her stories. Above all else, I was relieved to hear that she was settling in as a student. Still, even though I frequently asked her what was going on and what kinds of classes she was taking, she kept a lot to herself. I didn’t really need to force it out of her, so as things were now, I simply listened whenever she decided to share something.

The sun was sinking to the west, and my shadow stretched out long and far. If I head straight home, I’ll get there well before sunset. I pondered over what to have for dinner and also thought about how comfortable our financial situation was.

“Hmmm... I guess we still have enough ingredients.”

I considered the state of our food stores. If I remembered right, we still had plenty. Generally, Mewi and I spent most days outside the house, so we prioritized food that could be preserved for a long time.

Mewi had been eating very well lately. She was currently at the age where she should be growing like a weed, but since she hadn’t gotten enough to eat in her early years, she’d been malnourished. But now, to put it nicely, she was a hearty eater. To put it poorly, she was a noisy one. Manners aside, it was a salve for the heart to watch a child eat so much. I was looking forward to her growth.

Incidentally, our household bought groceries every few days—Mewi and I primarily ate at home. Because of the escort mission for Prince Glenn and Princess Salacia, I hadn’t really taken her out to eat much lately, so maybe it was a good idea to treat her to something.

“I’m back.”

With such thoughts in mind, I reached my house, which I’d finally gotten used to. I’d been given this place due to a strange connection to Lucy, and it was practically perfect for my life with Mewi. Now, if one more person joined us, our home might become a little cramped, but I had no current plans to get another housemate. I’d need to find a wife for something like that to happen. To repeat—I didn’t have any plans in that regard whatsoever. It felt a little pathetic of me as a man to admit that, though.

“Mm, welcome home.”

“Yo, welcome back.”

“Hmm...?”

Two voices? Again? Another familiar voice had greeted me alongside Mewi’s. Lucy was lounging around in my home again without asking. This house had belonged to her, but it was ours now, so I felt like it was fine to complain a bit.

“Welcome back, Master.”

“Oh?”

And just as I entered the room, planning to give Lucy a piece of my mind, a third voice brought me to a stop. Someone else?

“Ah, if it isn’t Ficelle. What brings you here?”

A woman with black hair wearing the robes of the magic corps was sitting quietly at the table and sipping at a cup of tea Mewi had likely prepared for her. Huh. This is the first time one of my pupils has visited my home. I never imagined it would be Ficelle.

“The commander brought me,” she explained briefly.

“I-I see...”

She didn’t show much emotion when she spoke, but that wasn’t unusual for her. I knew it was part of her character, so I wasn’t going to say anything about it.

“Hm? What happened to your sword?” Lucy asked.

The red sheath for my sword was pretty conspicuous—so much so that it made people curious about why a plain old man had one at his hip. But that also meant it was obvious when my sword was absent.

I didn’t really have a reason to keep that information from her, so I said, “I left it with my blacksmith. This guy’s filling in.” I patted the blade at my hip. “So? What do you need?”

I was starting to get used to Lucy’s eccentric behavior. I knew she wasn’t the type to show up someplace when she didn’t have any business being there. She’d gone out of her way to bring Ficelle too, so she had to need something from me. Whether I’ll comply is a different matter...

“Right. I have something I want to consult you about,” Lucy said.

“Hmm...” That was unusual. Judging by her personality, I figured that everything she brought to my doorstep would either be an order or a coercive request. But I was fine with giving advice.

I nodded and took a seat at the table, which was only big enough for four. I sat next to Mewi, whereas Lucy and Ficelle were across from us. It really did feel cramped in here with four people. Looks like two or three is the limit for permanent residents.

“By the way, have you been to the magic institute yet?” Lucy asked.

“Yeah. I brought Mewi there a couple times.”

“I see. I see.”

So this had something to do with the institute. I had plenty of knowledge regarding swordplay, but none about magic.

“At the start of this year, a sword magic course was established at the magic institute,” Lucy said.

“Yeah, I heard from Ms. Kinera.”

It was a course to raise sword magic users like Ficelle. According to Kinera, there weren’t that many students taking it. Is Lucy here to get some help with shoring up their numbers? I’m pretty sure there isn’t much I can do about that.

“Oh? You’ve met Kinera?” Lucy asked with a surprised look.

“Mm-hmm. She toured us through the school. She’s also Mewi’s homeroom teacher.”

Kinera was a teacher at the institute, so I didn’t think it was strange for Mewi and me to know her. Still, I didn’t know how many teachers they had there—if there were tens or even hundreds of them, meeting one specific teacher was likely improbable.

“Kinera is talented,” Lucy said. “Her defensive magic is first class.”

“Hmm.”

Did that mean all the teachers were relatively talented with magic? Perhaps they needed to be in order to serve in their roles. I’d never seen defensive magic for myself. Wonder if it can block Ficelle’s sword magic. Maybe she’ll show me next time if I ask. Maybe it can’t block sword magic, but I am genuinely curious about what it’s like.

“Ah, we’ve gotten off track,” Lucy said. “Back on the topic of the sword magic course, Fice here is serving as the teacher.”

“Oooh.”

My eyes naturally shifted toward Ficelle. The fact that she was my former pupil remained prominent in my mind, but now she was in a position to teach others. Time sure flies. Oh, Ficelle is looking awfully proud. I feel like a ton of my pupils make that face.

“But she sucks at teaching,” Lucy added.

“Uhhh...”

Ficelle’s expression stiffened. It was usually hard to interpret the emotions behind her voice, but her face was always easy to read. She was a little like Curuni in this respect. Well, in Curuni’s case, every facet of her behavior was easy to read.

“Um... Ficelle?” I prompted.

“People are only cut out for certain things,” she answered, averting her eyes.

“I-I see.”

Her behavior really highlighted her youth—it made me feel a little warm and fuzzy inside.

Lucy didn’t specify how exactly Ficelle was bad at teaching, but knowing Ficelle’s personality, I doubted she was high-handed or anything.

“I like Ms. Ficelle’s classes, though...” Mewi said quietly, joining our conversation.

“Hm?”

Ms. Ficelle...? Miss? Huh? Ficelle is Mewi’s teacher?

“Mewi is taking the sword magic course,” Ficelle said, her triumphant expression making a comeback. “She is indeed my student.”

“Oh, I see.”

That wasn’t what I was getting at, though. This was the first I’d heard about Mewi learning sword magic. She never really talked about her classes at all.

“Huh? You didn’t know?” Lucy asked curiously.

“Nope. This is news to me.”

Among the people here, I was the only one who hadn’t known about Mewi taking this course. I’m technically her guardian, dammit. At any rate, it was surprising that Mewi was taking a course that had anything to do with swords. By nature, swordsmanship and anything related to it were techniques meant for conflict. Kinera had mentioned Mewi having an aptitude for offensive magic, but I hadn’t expected her to learn how to use a sword.

“You could’ve told me,” I said to Mewi.

“It’s not like you had to know or nothing...” Mewi said, huffing and turning to the side.

Yup, she’s being shy.

“Ha ha ha!” Lucy cackled. “It makes sense that she wouldn’t tell you—Mewi joined the class out of admiration for your swordplay!”

Mewi gasped. “Hey!”

Ooh, I haven’t seen Mewi panic like this often. I mean, it’s gotta be embarrassing for me to find out.

It wasn’t like I had to learn stuff like this from Mewi—with Lucy around, the truth would reach my ears eventually. I felt a warmth in my heart at how Mewi had tried to keep it a secret from me, and I was also happy that a child like Mewi had been impressed by me. Swordplay was a skill, an art, and I wanted to teach my pupils more than just the act of slaughter.

“Dammit... Why did you tell him?” Mewi mumbled, making a complicated expression. It was like she had no idea what to do about her embarrassment.

“Hee hee, sorry about that.” Lucy apologized, but she’d known exactly how Mewi would react. She had as rotten a personality as always, but I’d gotten to see Mewi being cute, so all was forgiven.

“So? What do you want from me?” I asked.

“Oh yes. That.”

We’d gone off track with all this stuff about Mewi, but it was time to get back to the matter at hand. If I had to guess, Lucy had brought Ficelle here because she was bad at teaching sword magic. I knew nothing about magic, but I had plenty of knowledge regarding swordsmanship and teaching. In short, Lucy wanted me to teach Ficelle how to teach others.

“Want to try teaching at the magic institute?” Lucy asked.

“Huh?”

Wait. Seriously? That’s what you want? 

I was flabbergasted. “No, no, no, no... What?”

“You’ll be paid appropriately,” Lucy added. “I don’t think it’s a bad deal.”

“Uhhh... That’s not really the problem.”

Don’t move things forward on your own, dammit! Be it swordsmanship or magic, teaching others meant passing along one’s techniques to another, so it was only proper to be paid for it. That part made sense, but nothing else did. Why would a swordsman teach at the magic institute?

“Are you sure I’m the right fit?” I asked. “I can’t use magic.”

Would the students be okay with a teacher at the magic institute not being able to perform magic? After all, the students there were highly motivated to nurture and grow their inherent magical talent. It was just like my dojo—that was a place to learn swordsmanship, so it had naturally been a gathering spot for people with a great interest in swordplay. Would students brimming with an interest in magic really accept an old man barging in without knowing the first thing about magic? I was used to Lucy’s reckless behavior by now, but this still sounded unreasonable.

“Don’t worry about that,” Lucy said. “I’m not asking you to teach magic. You’re quite clearly a swordsman.”

“So you do understand...”

That was exactly my point. I’d only gone to the magic institute to accompany Mewi. They couldn’t expect anything more from me, nor did I want to get more involved than that.

“I want you to teach them how to use a sword instead,” Lucy explained. “That’s what you do to begin with, isn’t it? I don’t see the problem.”

“Hmmm...”

I didn’t hate teaching or anything. I wouldn’t have taken over the dojo if I had. However, it felt too strange to be teaching swordsmanship at a school for magic. Maybe it was just my own prejudice speaking, but I couldn’t accept with such unease rooted in my mind.

“I’m in agreement, Master,” Ficelle said. “I want to see your swordplay again.”

“R-Right...”

And now I had the support of the current sword magic teacher. A part of me wondered if she should really be fine with this. Essentially, Lucy was attempting to make me steal my pupil’s spotlight. People did have things they weren’t cut out for, and I understood that Ficelle’s personality wasn’t suited to teaching new pupils. However, dragging in someone from the outside wouldn’t help the next generation grow.

Ficelle couldn’t just keep claiming that she was bad at teaching. Not everything was decided by seniority, of course, but spending a long time in the same environment meant she would steadily gather more juniors and subordinates. Even setting aside my personal reluctance, a part of me worried that taking this on without due consideration could hamper Ficelle’s growth.

“What do you think, Mewi?” Lucy asked, trying to get the opinion of an active sword magic student.

“Either way works...” she answered.

A part of me would’ve been depressed if she’d outright objected to it, but if she had, I could’ve used it as an excuse to refuse. It seemed everyone was in favor of me going to the magic institute.

Maybe I can use my title to get out of this. “But I’m serving as a special instructor at the order, remember?”

“Allucia said she wouldn’t mind if it’s just once a week,” Lucy said. Apparently, she’d already gotten this approved.

“Oh...”

I was once more reminded how fast Lucy was to act. Don’t run around removing any obstacles in the way before trying to convince me, dammit!

I decided to bring up the other thing that was bothering me. “Oh yeah. Regardless of Allucia’s approval, is it really all right for someone with a royal appointment to take up a second job?”

Ultimately, I was just hired help, but the main issue was the man who’d hired me: the king himself. I didn’t feel more obligated than necessary just because he was royalty, but I had to at least perform the duties expected of me. If I was criticized for not fulfilling my obligations as a special instructor because of this job, I would lose face.

“Mm. That’s not a problem,” Lucy said.

“How so?”

“I can’t go into detail, but I made sure it’s not a problem.”

“Whaaa...?”

How much clout did Lucy have, exactly? Was she like this in front of royalty too? I couldn’t even imagine how she’d made the problem go away. Still, I knew she wasn’t the type to lie or spout nonsense. If she said it was fine, it was fine. How she’d accomplished it remained a mystery, though.

“I’m not forcing or ordering you to do this,” Lucy added. “I’m simply consulting you.”

Now she’s easing off. On the surface, this put me at ease, but a part of me felt like she was doing this to reel me in. Hmm, what to do...? As I’ve mentioned before, I wasn’t against teaching swordsmanship. But I did have two solid concerns: I would be teaching somewhere foreign to me, and I was unsure about whether I could moonlight at the academy while being a special instructor of the Liberion Order.

Even during my first visit to the order, a ton of the knights had stared at me like they were questioning who the hell I was. It wasn’t hard to imagine how much worse it would be at the magic institute. If I was going to teach, I preferred to do so in a place where I was comfortable. My bout with Henblitz had cleared things up at the order, but how were things going to end up at the institute? Lucy had likely confirmed the logistics of the situation with the key parties, but had she considered the minor details and emotional aspects? Probably not. She was the type to sort those things out in the heat of the moment.

Those who were directly involved were going to suffer the most from this. I found it hard to feel motivated when I imagined being stared at like that again. However, it was really hard to refuse when Lucy had already cleared it with Allucia, when she’d somehow worked things out with the king, when the actual teacher, Ficelle, was okay with it, and when Mewi, her student, was in agreement.

“How about going there and seeing the students before deciding?” Lucy suggested, providing me with a compromise. “Feel free. I’m sure you’re curious about them.”

This wouldn’t be my first visit to the magic institute, but it would definitely be my first time as a potential teacher rather than a visitor. Checking out how the students would react sounded like a good idea to me. This was different from my time in the dojo, though. There, students would come to me to test the waters—here, I was going to them.

“Hee hee, sounds fun,” Ficelle said, smiling slightly. She was in an awfully good mood.

“It’s settled, then,” Lucy said. “I’ll get the papers ready.”

“Hang on, I haven’t decided yet,” I protested.

“It’s best to be prepared, isn’t it?” Lucy insisted.

“You’re not wrong, but still...”

Say I did go to the magic institute to teach swordsmanship—it would mean being a new hire. In that case, there was paperwork to do. A part of me felt like getting all that ready ahead of time blocked off my path of retreat.

“The magic institute has some quirky students, but they’re basically all good kids,” Lucy said.

“Here’s to hoping...” When it came to teaching, obedient children were easier to handle than quirky ones.

Lucy nodded. “Okay then, I’ll get things rolling for you to come take a look.”

“Yeah, sure.”

It was almost like this was being forced on me, but nothing was decided yet, so I figured it was fine to approach this in a carefree manner. Besides, I was also curious about Mewi’s behavior in the classroom. That last bit of curiosity was purely personal, though.

“I’ll contact you when a schedule is set,” Lucy added. “I don’t think it’ll take that long.”

“Got it.”

How was she planning to contact me, anyway? Was she going to barge into my house again? Passing a message through Allucia or Ficelle would be far less of a surprise, so that would be preferable.

“See you, Master.”

“Yeah, take care.”

Lucy left with Ficelle in tow. In the end, things had been settled without much input from Ficelle, but Lucy probably just wanted her around for this. She was the current teacher, after all, so her consent would help convince me.

“Hmph...”

After they left, Mewi huffed somewhat awkwardly. You’re still embarrassed? Are you that shy about me seeing your swordplay? What an adorable girl.

“You could’ve told me you were learning sword magic,” I said, teasing her because she was so cute.

“Hmph!”

This time she was seriously pouting. I felt just a little bad about it.

“Well, let’s get ready to eat.”

Our guests were gone and the sun was about to set. I’d stood up and was about to get dinner ready when I spotted a bundle of clothes sloppily strewn around the room.

“Mewi, if you leave your uniform out like that, it’ll wrinkle.”

“Hmph.”

“You wear it every day. It’ll reflect poorly on you.”

“I get it already...”

With that annoyed grumble, Mewi left the living room and reluctantly folded her uniform. She had been supplied with a uniform to attend the magic institute—it was primarily blue and distinguished by a skirt and pelisse. It was a very cool and clean design appropriate for a school of elites.

The robes Ficelle and Kinera wore were apparently proof of them being full-fledged wizards, so students didn’t wear them. Instead, they had a uniform to show they were affiliated with a school of wizardry. Incidentally, the boys wore trousers instead of skirts.

“It suits you, so take care of it,” I added.

“Shut up...”

“Ha ha ha.”

This could’ve been me playing favorites as a parent, but the blue uniform matched Mewi’s blue hair very well. Even considering her naturally thorny eyes, the sense of unity suited her wonderfully. It would be rude to say that clothes could make anyone look good, but it was touching to see this temperamental tomboy in such a formal outfit.

I wasn’t trying to tell her to be girlier or anything—she was free to grow up however she liked. Still, I wanted her to acquire at least the bare minimum education and culture that I could provide her with. Ultimately, Mewi would be the one to suffer if she lacked these things. I couldn’t be her shield around the clock. One day, she would grow up to be independent, and I didn’t want her to end up in a situation where she would be ashamed of her upbringing. So, even if she didn’t really like it, I sometimes had to scold her.

“Swordsmanship, magic, and culture. You sure have a lot to learn,” I said.

“Hmph.”

One day, she would no longer need me to intervene. I was happily looking forward to that time...but I was also a little sad about it.

◇

“Ooh, they’re really going at it.”

The day after Lucy and Ficelle’s visit, I dropped by the order’s training hall, just as I always did. Noticing my arrival, Allucia came over to greet me.

“Master, good morning.”

“Mm, morning.”

No matter how this thing with the magic institute ended, my regular job wasn’t going to change. My role here was the same as usual. I had to train the knights—and get some training in for myself too. After all, slacking off at this age would have an immediate effect on my body. I was already a plain old man, so I had to do what I could to maintain my physique.

“Master, what happened to your sword?” Allucia asked curiously.

Hmm, why does everyone I know bring that up right away? I guess that red sword really does stand out when paired with an old man like me.

“Aah, I’m just having it sharpened,” I said. “I’ll have it back the day after tomorrow.”

“Is that so?”

That was the end of it—there was no reason to elaborate.

It was early in the morning and the sun was just about to rise, but inside the training hall, several knights were already swinging their wooden swords enthusiastically. I was an early riser, so while I found it admirable that they were here before me, it also worried me a little. Allucia in particular also had her official duties as knight commander to attend to. I really wondered when she ever got a break. I’d casually brought it up before, but she’d simply said, “I’m not pushing myself, so it’s fine.” Well, she wasn’t the type to act recklessly to get things done, so if she said it was fine, it probably was.

“Anyway, you’re here awfully early,” I remarked.

“Things just worked out that way today,” Allucia said. “Now that our escort mission is over, office work seems to have settled down too.”

“I see. That’s good to hear.”

I often mused over how much free time people in power had, including the commanders of the order and the magic corps. If things were slow for the leaders of powerful military forces, it was probably a good thing for the world because it meant things were much more peaceful. From another perspective, things being too peaceful could lead to a deterioration in strength and morale, but there was no need to worry about that within the Liberion Order. Lucy was maybe a bit too much of a free spirit, though.

“Oh yeah—Lucy and Ficelle visited me yesterday,” I said, stretching my muscles before my training. Lucy had already told Allucia about my offer from the magic institute, so I figured it was fine to bring it up.

“Ficelle was there too? Their visit must’ve had something to do with the institute, right?” Allucia asked.

“Yeah, that. They want me to teach swordsmanship there. Didn’t Lucy tell you?”

Allucia’s reaction wasn’t quite what I expected. I was a little uneasy about how much Lucy had actually told her.

“Umm... I heard the institute would like to borrow you, but nothing more than that,” Allucia said.

“I see...” Dammit, Lucy. You really didn’t go into detail. Now I have to explain it. “Um, the magic institute wants me to take up a teaching position for their sword magic course.”

Allucia nodded agreeably. “Ah, that sounds nice. It’ll help your reputation.”

This response was better than her outright rejecting the idea, but it bothered me a little how she was fixated on something as useless as my reputation. I was pretty sure she was the only person who cared about that.

“My reputation, huh? That doesn’t really mean anything to me.”

“You don’t pay it enough attention,” Allucia retorted. “Normally, it’s something to be delighted about.”

“Is that how it works...?”

“Yes, it is.”

It was true—taking up a teaching position at the well-renowned and storied magic institute would be a considerable honor to my name. I didn’t really care about that stuff, though. If anything, I didn’t want to draw more attention to myself.

“Regardless, as long as you don’t spend every day at the institute, it won’t be a problem for us here,” Allucia said.

“Right. That’s good to know.”

Say that I do go along with their idea—how often do they expect me to teach the class? Lucy had mentioned once a week, and this was infrequent enough that it wouldn’t be much of a problem for the Liberion Order. I certainly didn’t want to neglect my duties here just so I could teach over there. Also, how long do they expect me to teach at the institute for? I have no idea. I hope Lucy gets all the details ironed out soon.

I could set those thoughts aside for now. Here in this training hall, I was a special instructor. I had to do my duty.

“Guess I’ll get warmed up and start training everyone,” I said.

Allucia smiled. “I’ll accompany you.”

“Sure, thanks.”

Not wanting to get in anyone else’s way, Allucia and I went to a corner of the training hall. As usual, we began our training session by closing our eyes.

It wasn’t complicated—we always started off with some meditation. This helped me to get settled in body and mind so that I could face my sword properly. I’d followed this routine ever since my days of teaching at the dojo, and it was something Allucia was accustomed to as well.

It was still early in the morning. The spirited shouts of the training knights and the sounds of wooden swords clashing resonated through the sparsely filled hall. The amount of time I spent on meditation varied from day to day. Sometimes, it took only about five minutes. However, if something unpleasant had just happened or if I couldn’t really get in the mood, it could take up to half an hour.

“Haaah...”

I estimated that around ten minutes had passed since I’d closed my eyes. Things today were looking just a bit better than average. It was difficult to keep both body and mind in perfect condition around the clock—doing so would inevitably exhaust the spirit. Working that hard was fine in a fight for your life, but when it came to daily training, things were a little different. A bit better than average was the best balance to maintain, and it was important to be able to bring out a certain level of strength in any given situation. That was what I believed, at least. Though, in an actual battle, there was no time to casually stand around meditating.

“How’d it go for you, Allucia?” I asked.

“I’m done too. Not bad, I would say.”

“Very good.”

Allucia opened her eyes when I did—she seemed to have reached the same state of mind. She was far younger than me but was already making steady progress toward developing the presence of one who walked the path of swordsmanship. This was the result of her rare talent and constant effort, and I was once more reminded of just how splendid my former pupil was.

My one anxiety was whether my teachings had wasted all her talent. This wasn’t something I was going to bring up with her, though. I knew her personality, and even if my anxieties were true, I was sure she wouldn’t answer me honestly. The only thing I could do now was serve in my role as a special instructor to the best of my ability. This position had suddenly fallen into my lap, but now that I was here, I had to do it properly.

“Then, shall we?” I asked.

“Yes, Master.”

I kept an eye on all the knight’s movements, going around and focusing on face-to-face attacking and strike practice. This wasn’t the dojo, and the knights weren’t really “pupils,” so we pretty much never went over the basic forms. Instead, I decided to concentrate on practical exercises. As to be expected of members of the Liberion Order, they all had terrific fundamentals. It was my job to demonstrate my experience and slowly add my personal techniques to their repertoires.

The path of swordsmanship couldn’t be walked in a single day—it was the same for any other path. Frankly, if everything could be easily learned, then nobody would have it hard. Daily accumulation of skill was the true secret to mastery.

With such thoughts in mind, I continued instructing the knights, sweating it out with them, and the time flew by.

“Okay, that about does it for the day,” I said.

“Yes. Good work.”

Before I knew it, the sun had already passed its zenith. I’d gotten in a good sweat, and my fatigue was at just the right point. Pushing yourself too hard every day didn’t lead to anything good—growth required a moderate burden accompanied by adequate rest. Back in the dojo, we hadn’t ever spent the whole day on training either. Well, most of my pupils had been children, so they hadn’t possessed the endurance or attention span necessary for that anyway.

And just as my duty was over for the day and I was wondering what to do next, an awfully tyrannical and childish voice resounded through the hall.

“Don’t mind me!”

“Hm?” I turned toward the voice and spotted yesterday’s guest. “If it isn’t Lucy.”

Once she saw me, she waved her hand high in the air. “Oh! There you are.”

“Lucy, it’s rare for you to come all the way here,” Allucia said, still wiping away her sweat.

“Mm-hmm.” Lucy nodded. “It’s about that recent matter.”

By that, she probably meant the thing with the magic institute. We’d only talked about it yesterday afternoon, so it hadn’t even been a full day yet. She was as fast as always.

“To get right to it, I’d like to borrow Beryl tomorrow,” Lucy continued. “Do you mind?”

“I don’t,” Allucia agreed, ignoring my feelings.

Is this really okay? I feel like this old man is being toyed with a little. Why is it that things I should have a say in always seem to be fully under the control of others? Guess I’m starting to get used to it, though.

“That’s the gist of it,” Lucy said, turning to me. “Beryl, can you come to the magic institute at nine in the morning?”

“I can... That makes for an unexpectedly relaxed schedule,” I said.

So my plans for tomorrow had been decided. Nine was awfully late in the morning for me. I could almost consider coming to the office to get a bit of exercise in first.

“You just wake up too early,” Lucy retorted.

“Ha ha ha, you’ll feel better if you get some proper sleep and wake up early too,” I said.

“I have my own rhythm.”

I didn’t really intend to tease anyone for their daily routine. Lucy did indeed have her own lifestyle. Still, I got the impression that she was prone to staying up late for research.

“I’ll have Fice wait for you in front of the gate,” Lucy said. “See you later.”

“Sure thing.”

Having said her piece, Lucy left the training hall. She really was like a storm—getting too close was harmful, and she left a trail of destruction in her wake. At least it wasn’t boring around her, so knowing her had been ultimately positive. Probably.

Even though this would be happening tomorrow, I didn’t have to rush to prepare anything. I could visit the institute with nothing more than my sword.

Oh, I guess I should tell Mewi about it once she gets home today. I’m pretty sure she’ll pout.

◇

The next morning, I did as I was told and headed to the magic institute in the northern district instead of the order’s office. I had plenty of time—I wasn’t escorting Mewi there or anything—so I took a casual stroll from my home all the way to the institute. There was a certain charm to slowly taking in the sights around me.

“Oh, I’ll have to check out that place later.”

On the way, I made a mental note of buildings that looked like restaurants. There were still so many spots I knew nothing about in Baltrain. I needed to improve my knowledge of the local geography, even if only a little at a time.

The central district was home to various organizations that served as the pillars of Liberis, like the order’s office and the adventurer’s guild branch building. None of the buildings were as large as the palace, but they were all relatively tall, which offered a sense of how prosperous the city was.

By comparison, the western district focused on commerce. It had many street stalls and shops, so the buildings weren’t very large. It still had the atmosphere of the big city, but was almost like a lower city crammed with people. That was only compared to the central district, though. The western district was definitely thriving too.

Today’s destination—the northern district—was home to important buildings like the palace, the magic institute, and Sphene’s church. This was also where nobles and other big shots owned homes and villas. While there were houses in the central and northern districts, most civilians lived in the eastern district. Both Curuni and Ficelle lived there too, if I remembered right.

Now, who was it that said the central and northern districts are way too expensive to live in? Even if it was somewhat far from the city center, I now had a home in the central district. I recoiled a little at the thought, though perhaps it was a little late to be having that reaction. I’d already accepted the house, so there was no point in grumbling about it now. I decided just to make the best of it.

I continued down the streets while observing the tide of people who were out and about in the morning. I had thought I’d be able to walk with Mewi, but she’d left the house early in the morning. Maybe she’s embarrassed. We’d gone to tour the institute together and I’d taken her to register, but it seemed things were different this time around. After scarfing down today’s breakfast—which had been the same as usual—she’d left the house immediately.

“I guess she doesn’t like the idea of walking there with me...”

In all likelihood, she didn’t want to be seen with me while wearing her uniform. Ever since she’d enrolled at the magic institute, we’d hardly even left the house together in the mornings. Her classes had a fixed schedule, but both my start and end times at the office were very flexible, so I could always accommodate her. We’d strolled around aimlessly or gone to the marketplace a bunch of times, but never while she’d been wearing her uniform. She must be shy about it.

I was far too old to be her brother, and we looked nothing alike. Sometimes, I honestly wondered if we would ever have a proper father-daughter relationship. I didn’t think people looked at us weirdly, so that was good. To me, she was like a daughter, but I didn’t know how Mewi felt about me as her father. I was definitely her guardian, at least. And since I didn’t feel comfortable asking her about it directly, her true feelings on the matter remained a mystery. At any rate, there was no need to rush her answer or force one out of her. I hoped she could just take her time digesting the present at her own rate.

With such thoughts in mind, I reached the front gates of the magic institute. A woman with black hair wearing a robe—Ficelle Harbeller—was standing there waiting for me.

“Ah, Master.”

“Yo, Ficelle. Did I keep you waiting?”

“No. Not at all.”

Today’s plan was to observe how Ficelle taught sword magic—I would also learn what the contents of the course entailed. That said, I didn’t know anything about magic, so it was possible this would end with nothing more than that. Lucy had told me it would be fine, but I still felt really out of place. I didn’t want to display any negativity in front of my former pupil...but a part of me wanted to go home.

“Where’s Mewi?” I asked.

“Oh, she went on ahead,” Ficelle answered with an expressionless nod. “Seems she was shy about you two arriving together.”

“I see.”

I was definitely interested in how Ficelle taught sword magic. According to Lucy, she sucked. Still, if there was anything I could do to help her improve, I was planning to teach her in private after class was over.

“Let’s go to the classroom,” Ficelle said. “Today’s lecture is in the morning.”

“After you.”

Ficelle passed through the gate and toward the school building with smooth strides. This was my third time visiting the institute, but I was still in awe at the size of the building and the extent of its grounds. I was starting to wonder whether the entirety of Beaden could fit inside. Well, probably not. The countryside had an abundance of fields, so they took up a ton of space. Back in the day, I’d run around all over the village with seemingly endless energy. Ah, how nostalgic.

“Ms. Ficelle! Good morning!”

“Mm. Morning.”

As we walked through the school building, the students we passed greeted Ficelle. It was touching to see her in the role of teacher. Allucia was the knight commander, Surena was an adventurer of the highest rank, and others among my pupils had reached the greatest heights of success, but for some reason, I couldn’t help but look at Ficelle with the eyes of a parent. It was probably because she was so much like Curuni, though I couldn’t even begin to imagine Curuni teaching anyone anything.

“Oh yeah, how many students are taking the sword magic course?” I asked out of curiosity.

According to Kinera, it wasn’t a very popular class. How many people did “unpopular” entail, exactly? I didn’t think it would be down to one or two students, but it would also be problematic for Ficelle if there were too many. When it came to teaching, it was naturally easier with fewer pupils—you could cater to each student’s individual needs that way. Things were different with a big group. Magic in particular was supposed to be a world brimming with talent, and if everyone had a different starting point, their goals would differ greatly too.

“Now, there’s five,” Ficelle answered. “Not a lot.”

“I see...”

Ficelle’s expression remained unchanging, but I could tell by her tone that she was a little disappointed. Five did seem like a small number. According to Kinera, around six hundred students were currently attending the magic institute, so only a very small percentage were taking this class. Maybe it was because learning to use a sword in a school for magic was considered heresy or something. That thought made me a little sad as a swordsmanship instructor.

“But now that you’re here, it’ll be fine,” Ficelle added. “It’ll get popular.”

“Y-You think...?”

Allucia and Surena had acted the same way—why did she have such unconditional trust in me? It did make me happy, but sometimes, it felt like my heart would burst because of the tremendous expectations they had for me.

“Here. We’ll be in this classroom today.”

After walking through the building for a while, Ficelle stopped in front of a room. Five students were waiting beyond the door. I wasn’t going to be teaching them or anything, but I was still a little nervous. They were probably going to give me that “Who’s this old fart?” look, which was something I’d never experienced back in the dojo. The first time I’d been exposed to it was when I was first introduced at the order’s office. I still couldn’t get used to it.

Well, it wasn’t decided yet that I would be teaching here—today I was only here to observe. It was best to take it easy.

“Morning, everyone.”

While I prepared myself, Ficelle opened the classroom door. I followed her in. Just as she’d said, there were five students seated within. One of them was Mewi. She really is taking the sword magic course. Much like Mewi, the other students were also wearing blue uniforms, and the sense of unity was really nice. The knights of the Liberion Order also drew quite the picture when they were all formally clad in their armor, though during most of the time I spent with them, they wore training clothes and wielded wooden swords.

The students looked at me with a clear mix of suspicion and curiosity. This was to be expected. They were here for their usual sword magic class, and their teacher had suddenly brought in an unfamiliar old man.

“Good morning!”

One of the female students replied to Ficelle’s greeting, but she was the only one. The others bowed slightly or glanced over at us. Hmmm, I don’t get the feeling they hate Ficelle or anything. It’s like none of them are assertive. The girl who’d raised her voice looked full of motivation, but nobody else did.

“Ms. Ficelle, who is that?” one of the other students asked.

He was somewhat younger than Curuni or Ficelle. He had short brown hair and somewhat almond-shaped eyes. He also seemed to exude some sort of aura—something similar to Princess Salacia and Prince Glenn—so he was either a noble or from a wealthy family. This was just my own impression of him, of course.

“This is Master Beryl,” Ficelle answered with a triumphant look. Why do all my former pupils make that face when they talk about me? “He taught me swordsmanship. In short, he’s your teacher’s teacher.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” I said. “I’m Beryl Gardenant. At Ficelle and Lucy’s—I mean, at the headmistress’s request, I’ll be sitting in on today’s class. Please don’t mind me. Act as you normally would.”

I got my introduction out of the way as fast as possible and passed the baton to Ficelle. I was nothing more than a visitor today. First, I had to see how Ficelle taught her class, and if anything came to mind, I would make a suggestion without interrupting. That was my plan, at least.

The students’ reactions were just as expected—a mix of understanding and doubt. Well, that didn’t really matter. The important thing was for me to see what Ficelle was made of.

“Let’s begin,” Ficelle said. “Everyone pull out your wooden swords. One thousand swings.”

“Ficelle, wait a sec,” I said, interrupting immediately. We never did anything like that, even back at the dojo.

“Hm? Master? What’s wrong?” Ficelle asked, her tone the same as usual.

Oh come on, you’re not questioning this one bit? What you said was a total shock for me, just so you know.

Back in the dojo, Ficelle had put a lot of focus on repeating practice swings, but going for a thousand out of the blue was definitely too much.

“Isn’t a thousand swings overdoing it?” I asked. I hesitated to straight out reject her lesson, so I tried easing her into it as gently as possible.

“One swing a second is a thousand seconds,” she replied. “Not even twenty minutes.”

“No, no, no, no, no.”

What’s with the muscle-brained logic? I don’t remember teaching you that! I was starting to understand why Lucy thought she sucked at teaching. A sword magic course was still a class on magic, so weren’t there other things that needed to be taught? What about how to activate magic, or how to weave the necessary mana, or other stuff like that? And yet, Ficelle’s instructions had nothing to do with magic whatsoever. What she was trying to accomplish was pretty much the same thing you would learn at a dojo—and in a really severe style too. Also, the people here were younger, or at most, the same age as Ficelle. A grown and trained adult might be able to pull off one thousand swings, but that number was generally too much of a burden on the body.

“This is how I practice swordplay,” Ficelle said.

“That may be so, but still...”

She had, in fact, done a ridiculous amount of practice swings at the dojo. I could acknowledge that, but it was unreasonable to expect that of everyone, even if there were only five people here.

“I can do it!” the energetic girl who’d greeted Ficelle earlier shouted cheerfully. “I’ll swing one or even two thousand times!”

Being energetic and obedient was a good thing, but I felt like she could get stronger by focusing that energy in a better way.

“I admire your spirit, but just swinging won’t really... You know what I’m saying?”

I implied that she wouldn’t really improve that way. Practice swings were certainly important. We did them at the dojo too. However, doing those and nothing else wouldn’t make anyone any better.

“Mrrrgh! This sure is complicated!”

The girl put her hands on her head and sank into thought. It was rather nostalgic. We had plenty of children back at the dojo who could claim that “Cheerfulness is all I have going for me!” In general, kids like that were very generous—it felt rewarding to teach them. And this girl was attending the institute, so she had a bonus talent in magic.

“Um,” mumbled the boy who’d asked who I was. He really did have an aura about him. Taking a closer look, I saw that he had really intelligent eyes. He seemed exceptional, and I was almost starting to think that Ficelle’s practice swing hell would’ve been fine.

“Hm? What is it?” I asked.

“Ummm... Mr. Beryl, what would you...?”

He was probably asking what I would do to teach them. Well, since I’d interrupted, I had to make some kind of suggestion. I didn’t want to become someone who just said no to everything.

“Well, let’s see... First, I’ll have to see what everyone’s swordplay is like,” I said. “Oh, if possible, I could use some introductions too.”

Before we continued, I wanted to at least know these kids’ names. I’d practically stolen Ficelle’s teaching position, but she didn’t show any signs of arguing. I was grateful for that in a way, but I also thought that it would be best to teach her a little about teaching.

“Yes! I’m Cindy Loveaut! Age fifteen!” exclaimed the cheerful girl.

“I’m Lumite Bafang,” said the boy with the aura. “My father holds the title of viscount.”

After watching things play out, the others introduced themselves too.

“Fredra Eneq...”

“Nesia Gand. I don’t really care what we do, but let’s get to it already. I don’t wanna waste time.”

And lastly, Mewi joined in. “Mewi Freya...”

I nodded. “Great, thanks everyone. Once again, I’m Beryl Gardenant.”

Okay, now I have a name for each face. Lumite really was a noble—he did have a certain refinement to him. I didn’t want to be rude, but I wondered why the son of a viscount was taking a sword magic course. There was no point in questioning it, though.

As for the other two, Fredra and Nesia, neither seemed to be adults yet. Cindy had introduced herself as fifteen years old. I had a sense that they were all around that age. Lumite was probably the oldest among them—he seemed to serve as a kind of leader here.

“Okay then, let’s start with five,” I said. “I’d like everyone to show me five practice swings.”

I needed to get a feel for their current capabilities. At any rate, starting with a thousand practice swings out of the blue was definitely too harsh. Maybe Ficelle had been doing nothing but practice swings this whole time. If so, the way she’d stated “Now, there’s five” made sense.

I bet there were more students at first, but they got tired of practice swings and stopped taking the course.

“Okay! Here I go! Heya!”

The first to get right to it was Cindy. Yup, it’s great to have so much energy. However, there was no polite way of putting it—she wasn’t particularly good. With each swing, her center of gravity pitched about. Her arms weren’t held to her sides either.

“Cindy, mind if I adjust your form a little?” I asked.

“Go ahead!”

At times like these, it was faster to correct her faults by adjusting her body directly rather than telling her what was wrong. Those talented enough to absorb everything from purely verbal instructions were very rare. Back in the dojo, Allucia had been pretty much the only one who could do that.

“Keep your legs apart like this—you’ll maintain your center of gravity better that way. Each time you swing, keep your arms together more like this. Yeah, that’s the spirit.”

“Ooh! I get it!”

I shifted the position of her stance from behind and then had her swing again. It was looking a fair bit better than before. Having the correct form was really important for practice swings.

“Mr. Beryl, please take a look at my form as well,” Lumite said.

“Yeah. Let’s see it.”

Lumite gave me a practice swing. Hmm, he’s got better form than Cindy, but...

“You’re extending your arms more than necessary,” I said. “There’s no need to swing all the way to the floor. Focus at your eye level and get a grasp for when to pull back your elbows.”

“Understood... Like this?”

“Yup, just like that. Good, good, very good.”

Lumite repeated his swings with earnest eyes. He had a good foundation. On a side note, even though he was the son of a noble, he didn’t look down on me or boast about his social status. In that regard, he must’ve been in the minority. Actually, he’s the first noble I’ve met, so I’m just guessing. It would be nice if they were all like him.

“M-Me too, please...”

“And me. Check me out too, Mr. Beryl.”

“Go ahead.”

After watching Cindy and Lumite, Fredra and Nesia joined in too. It reminded me of my days back at the dojo, and I was starting to get really motivated. All right! Let’s keep up the pace!

“Hee hee. You really are amazing, Master,” Ficelle mumbled in satisfaction for some reason.

Hey, Ficelle, this is for your sake. You can’t continue teaching like this.

“Ficelle,” I said. “You need to properly consider what it means to teach swordsmanship.”

“Erk...”

Her expression didn’t change, but I could tell that she was sulking a little. In terms of temperament and personality, Ficelle wasn’t really suited for teaching others. Unfortunately, she couldn’t just insist she was bad and refuse to do her job. Now that she’d accepted this position as a sword magic teacher, she had to put in some effort and take responsibility for the students attending her lectures.

Though this was the reason I had come here, guiding the students while simultaneously seeing to Ficelle’s growth felt like a lot to do at once. Also, I could teach the kids how to use a sword, but sword magic was a different matter. Being entrusted with everything would be an issue. In short, there was a right person for the right job, and I could only pray that Ficelle would learn to teach sword magic properly.

“Hmph...”

Watching us from the corner of her eye, Mewi swung her sword too. Her major problem was that she wasn’t as physically strong as the others. Her life up until now had been far too impoverished, and her muscle mass had suffered for it. I felt like it was my duty to continue filling her belly with plenty of good food.

“Mewi, you’re pitching forward,” I said. “You can’t swing using only your arms.”

“I know...”

So, as I provided guidance for the students, Mewi included, the minutes flew by. Having taught at the dojo, I was pretty used to this, but instructing these students at the institute was a somewhat fresh experience. They listened to what I had to say, and after a while, they no longer looked so bad.

After getting a look at everyone’s practice swings, Cindy threw me a sudden question. “Oh yeah! Are you strong, Mr. Beryl?!”

“Hm? Hmmm...”

Strong? Am I? I wonder about that. I don’t think I’m weak, but I find it hard to confidently claim that I’m strong. I’d won against Henblitz, Surena, and Allucia, but I’d taken advantage of their weaknesses to sneak in my victories. In that unreasonable fight against Lucy, she’d held back, and it’d ended in a draw.

As I continued to ponder that question, Ficelle answered for me.

“He’s strong. Very strong.”

As expected, she was wearing that proud look again. I was starting to get used to it.

“I know you’re strong, Ms. Ficelle, but...” Fredra said shyly.

“He’s stronger than me,” Ficelle said, raising her voice somewhat. “Have a complaint?”

“N-No... That’s not what I mean...”

“Now, now,” I cut in, trying to calm Ficelle down.

It was only natural for them to question my skill when they hadn’t seen it for themselves. That was especially true when I wasn’t just watching them, but teaching them. It was proper to want to know the extent of my abilities.

“Then why don’tcha give us a look?” Nesia said. “Let’s see how strong this guy is.”

“Hmmm...”

So it’s come to this. Well, he has a point. Can’t blame him for being curious about how strong this mystery old man is.

“Ficelle, is it possible for us to go outside?” I asked.

“We can,” she answered. “The schoolyard should be empty.”

To be honest, I was a little interested too—I wanted to experience sword magic for myself. I’d witnessed Ficelle’s sword magic when she’d apprehended that pickpocket in the western district and during Bishop Reveos’s arrest. A glance was all I’d needed to know it was amazing, but how would it feel to fight against such a thing myself? Having this type of interest and curiosity was part of being a swordsman.

“Okay, then,” I said. “How about if you and I have a casual bout outside?”

“Mm, sure,” Ficelle agreed.

So, we put our practice swings on pause and then left the classroom to go outside.

“Isn’t this exciting?!”

“Yes. It should be educational.”

Cindy was full of expectation, while Lumite’s interest took the fore. I didn’t really want to spoil the mood, but I couldn’t guarantee that this would be a good match. Though I was definitely interested in sparring against a sword magic user, I couldn’t claim that I was capable of winning. Frankly, I had no idea, and if she constantly threw long-distance slashes in succession, I could easily see a future where I was utterly defeated.

“Hmph...” While all the other students were getting restless at this sudden match between teachers, Mewi—the only one who knew of my abilities—huffed, showing no interest in this at all.

Even if I did lose to sword magic here, I didn’t want to look pathetic. I had to put up a strong fight, even if I was ultimately defeated. This was, in part, because I wanted to maintain some pride in front of Ficelle and the other students...but mostly, I wanted to save face because Mewi would be watching. According to Lucy, she admired my swordplay, though Mewi had never told me that directly. Still, now that I’d heard that, I couldn’t just fight sloppily and yield.

“Hee hee...”

“Um, Ficelle?” I said. “Take it easy, okay? The goal here is to put on a show for the students.”

“I know. Hee hee...”

The whole time we walked from the classroom to the schoolyard, Ficelle maintained an eerie smile. She was definitely motivated. If she unleashed her magic at full throttle, forget winning or losing, it wouldn’t be much of a demonstration for the students. I tried conveying this to her, but I wasn’t sure she was getting it.

Is this going to be all right? I’m a little worried now.

After walking through the school building for a while, we found ourselves in a corner of the magic institute’s enormous grounds.

“Mm, it’s empty,” Ficelle said. “Here should be fine.”

“The campus sure is huge.”

I was once more reminded of how vast the grounds were. This was probably so the students could really let loose and relax during their time here. It had surely taken a ridiculous amount of money to set this place up. Guess that shows how much Liberis is investing in cultivating wizards. I didn’t know whether they were actually getting a return on their investment, though. Maybe I could ask Lucy about it later.

“All right, let’s start off slowly with no magic,” I suggested.

Ficelle nodded. “Got it.”

Sword magic was important here, but swordsmanship was the foundation it was built upon. I decided it was best to begin by showing the students what pure swordplay looked like.

“What? Not gonna use magic?” Nesia grumbled.

“Ah, no,” I said. “To be precise, I can’t. I’m just a swordsman.”

“Really...?” he said, looking suddenly less excited.

Yup. Sorry for butting in when I can’t even use magic. But that’s not my fault—blame Lucy for pushing this on me. It was none other than your headmistress who said this would be fine.

“I’ll be in your care,” I said to Ficelle.

“Mm, likewise.”

We got our wooden swords ready and bowed. I was honestly happy to see that everyone I’d taught at the dojo still remembered their manners. Ficelle would hopefully pass the etiquette along—I didn’t want to see these five students become ruffians who would just swing their swords around recklessly.

Now then, even back in her days at the dojo, Ficelle could be called a prodigy. Had she gotten rusty during her time at the magic institute? It was time to find out.

With our greetings over, we backed away from each other and assumed our fighting stances. Ficelle stepped in first with a keen thrust.

“Hm!”

“Hup... Hoh!”

I took half a step to the side to dodge it, but the moment I thought I’d gotten out of the way, she drew back her sword and thrust again. I knocked her blade to the side, and the shrill sound of wood clashing against wood resounded around us.

“Hah!”

Keeping up her momentum, Ficelle spun on her heels and attacked with a horizontal slash.

“There!”

I blocked the strike at her sword’s center of gravity, then counterattacked with a downward slash. Ficelle calmly analyzed the trajectory and did as I had, swaying her upper body a little to evade the blow.

“Hoh.”

“Mrgh.”

I stepped in, slashed up, down, rotated my wrists, and attacked horizontally. I was far from going all out, but the speed and power behind my strikes were in no way lax. Ficelle blocked and evaded the chain of blows, then jumped back a little.

“Mm. Swordplay’s looking good,” I complimented.

“Ahem.”

Ficelle casually danced back a few steps with a proud smile. Her footwork was exactly as I remembered it. If anything, her movements were a little more refined than they’d been back at the dojo. It seemed she hadn’t been slacking off on her training, even after becoming a wizard. As her instructor in swordsmanship, I couldn’t have been happier.

“Wow. That’s pretty crazy.”

“So fast...!”

“Oooh! Amazing!”

I could hear the students’ astonished voices. Naturally, neither Ficelle nor I was giving it our all just yet—we were still warming up and checking things out. Ficelle’s swordplay was very close to perfection, and she had very few weaknesses. Among my pupils, Allucia was probably the closest to perfecting her swordplay. In terms of stamina and the number of attacks she could unleash, Surena was a step above the others. And in terms of raw strength, Curuni possessed significant potential. As for defense, Rose was very likely the best.

However, Ficelle’s strength lay in the fact that she had taken all these facets to a very high level while also being able to attack from afar with sword magic. In terms of the flexibility to adapt to any situation, Ficelle’s techniques surpassed everyone else.

“Okay. Time to start using it,” Ficelle said.

“Sure thing,” I agreed. “I’m looking forward to this.”

The next moment, mana surged from Ficelle’s wooden sword. This was my third time seeing it, but I was still pretty nervous. Just the thought of those swift, sharp slashes flying at me had my sweat running cold.

Also, you’re not going all out, right? You’re gonna hold back like when you caught that pickpocket, right? Even with no knowledge of magic, that mana around your sword is looking awfully concentrated. Is it just my imagination? Please be my imagination...

“Mgh!”

“Whoa?!”

Ficelle swung her sword far, far faster than before. A magic slash shot out, nearly matching the speed of her swing. It grazed my clothes.

Holy crap! That was close! She’s definitely serious!

“Hmph!”

A second slash, then a third followed. Ficelle swung her wooden sword while taking steps forward. With each swing, a torrent of mana flew my way at a terrifying speed. And at the same time, she was closing the distance, so I had to focus more and more on everything within my field of vision as she got closer.

“Hup! Whoa?!”

I warded off one of the magic slashes with my sword. The impact was several times heavier than when we clashed blade-to-blade. I felt a numb tingling run up my arm, and I could tell by instinct—this was bad. I definitely couldn’t take a direct hit. Not only was she attacking from outside my range, but the speed and power of each strike were remarkably amplified.

To put it frankly, she was pretty much cheating.

Still, she did seem to understand that this was a performance. She was holding back in her own way. If she hadn’t been, the magic would’ve split my wooden sword in two. Seeing how the impacts were still very real gave me a glimpse into her tremendous control. Though, it wasn’t like I had another sword magic wizard to compare her to.

I had almost no experience fighting wizards. The only one I’d battled before this was Lucy, and she was a pure wizard who didn’t use weapons. Nevertheless, I could still tell that Ficelle’s sword magic was at a very high level. I could also tell how troublesome it was to deal with it.

Unlike Lucy’s magic, Ficelle’s was based on her swordplay. Thus, it was fairly easy to tell when an attack manifested and where it would come from based on her stance and movements. What was more, she was my former pupil, so I knew her form well.

However, there was one huge difference between Lucy’s and Ficelle’s fighting styles: while Lucy had fought at a distance, Ficelle was closing in.

If I only paid attention to her magic, I wouldn’t be able to react when she attacked me directly. And if I only watched out for her sword, I would get tripped up by her magic. She also had the option to just keep her distance the whole time if she wanted to. In short, if she felt like she was about to get counterattacked, she could send flying slashes at me and retreat to safety. She had very little need to overreach and step too far in, so it would be extremely difficult to take her by surprise with the same trick I’d used against Allucia. Ficelle was pretty much never going to get close enough for me to grab her.

Sword magic is a real pain to deal with.

“Ey!”

“Oooh!”

Ficelle’s wooden sword slipped through the gap between her magic slashes and whizzed past my face. Dammit, I already knew it’d be like this, but this is really tough! She’s totally cheating!

In terms of the simple volume of attacks, Surena exceeded her. However, because Ficelle’s strikes ignored range completely, there were fewer opportunities to fight back.

“Whoa there!”

I was forced into the rather lame position of desperately dodging Ficelle’s attacks. I was barely getting by, but Ficelle had complete control over the pace of the fight. As proof of that, I was starting to sweat, but she remained perfectly composed. Since she didn’t feel particularly pressured, there was no need for her to rush things, and with less burden on her mind, she didn’t have to physically exhaust herself.

“Mrgh... I really can’t get through.”

However, even though her expression remained cool, it seemed she was unsatisfied that she was incapable of getting through my defenses.

You’re unsatisfied? I’m the one who swore to myself not to look horrible in defeat, and I was the one to suggest this bout, so that puts more stress on me.

Either way, things were looking pretty bad.

What do I do about this? I’m pretty sure it’s only a matter of time before she gets through.

“So how about this?” Ficelle muttered.

“Hmm...?”

Her approach to the battle changed. Her movements were still the same as before, but the wavelength of her magic was different. To be specific, the speed at which magic slashes came flying at me was now all over the place.

Huh? Seriously? You can adjust the speed? Nobody told me that.

“Sword magic sure is amazing!” I exclaimed.

“Mm. But only because I learned your techniques, Master Beryl.”

I couldn’t help but grumble and admire this feat. When the magic slashes were fast, it was extremely difficult to counter them, but it was even worse when Ficelle let loose a mix of slow and fast slashes. Attacks I expected to reach me right away were overtaken by other magic slashes or by Ficelle herself. Even if I wanted to parry them, it was very hard to estimate the power behind each magic slash at a glance. If I put the wrong amount of strength behind my sword, I would lose my balance and give her an even bigger opening. This was horrible for my nerves.

“You little—!”

I parried an incoming magic slash. As I did, Ficelle’s wooden sword came flying at me. I dodged it, and she used that opportunity to back off again and throw more magic slashes. This sequence repeated over and over. I had no opportunity to counterattack. Technically, I could’ve if I’d wanted to, but if I did, I would definitely take a hit. The thought of what would happen if I got hit by that magic made it very hard for me to resort to such tactics.

So what do I do? It would be too difficult to attempt the trick I’d used against Allucia. There were needle thin openings in Ficelle’s form, just like there’d been with Surena, but Ficelle was out of range so I couldn’t take advantage of them. Resorting to pure strength like I had against Rose wouldn’t work either—all I had on me was a wooden sword.

If I could only get in range, there would be a way to survive this.

Oh, right.

“Then let’s try this!”

It was the same loop as usual. The moment I parried a magic slash, Ficelle closed in. I repelled her, and she backed off. The moment she did, there was the slightest gap—something that couldn’t really be called an opening. That was when I recklessly attacked her with my wooden sword. To put it simply, I threw it.

“Wha?!”

Having calmly dominated the pace of the fight this whole time, Ficelle finally raised her voice in shock. I couldn’t blame her. The moment she thought she was back at a safe range, a spinning sword had come flying at her.

“Hyup!”

“Mrgh!”

For the smallest instant, she came to a stop. Ficelle reacted quickly and struck down the wooden sword, but the unexpected attack had created a blank in her mind and movements. Taking advantage of that, I closed in, grabbed her by the back of her collar, swept her legs out from under her, and tossed her to the ground.

“That’s one.”

“Mrgh... I lost...”

My finishing move hadn’t had anything to do with swordsmanship, let alone sword magic, but I was glad to display the art of fighting on a broader level.

“A-Amazing! That was amazing!”

The first to raise a delighted cheer was Cindy. Still clapping her hands repeatedly, she lingered in the excitement of the moment.

“He really handled all that...? Crazy.”

“Th-That’s our teacher’s teacher for you...!”

“Magnificent... Simply magnificent!”

The other kids’ impressions weren’t bad either. If anyone says I cheated, I’ll be a little depressed.

“Hmph.”

Having watched silently from beginning to end, Mewi huffed as she always did, but there was an air of satisfaction to her expression.

“That was some astonishing skill you put on display,” I said, helping Ficelle back to her feet. “Just what I’d expect of you.”

“I didn’t predict a throwing attack... I still need more training.”

Much like in the bout against Allucia, when faced with opponents who possessed skill beyond a certain level, my physical abilities and techniques reached their limits. So, to win against such opponents, I naturally had to exploit their weaknesses or somehow force my way into a momentary opening.

At this high level of combat, victory was less about perfect swordsmanship and more about experience in battle. So, with all my years behind me, I was capable of eking out a win. In an honest battle, it would be extremely harsh to withstand all of Ficelle’s attacks and launch a strike of my own. Knowing this now was more than enough of a boon. I wasn’t planning on picking any fights, but I knew very, very well how little a chance I had against a wizard if I approached the battle with foolish honesty.

“Do people really just chuck a sword like that?” Nesia asked.

“Hmm, maybe not in a formal contest,” I told him. “In an actual battle, it’s more than possible.”

“It’s just as Master Beryl says,” Ficelle added. “Use anything you can in battle. There’s no need to fuss over things. If you do, you’ll lose.”

“I see...”

Ficelle was young, but she had proper knowledge regarding combat. This was the major difference between her and Curuni, who was about the same age as Ficelle. In this respect, she was at the same level as Allucia and Surena. It made me wonder whether Ficelle’s maturity was a result of Lucy’s guidance.

“So what you’re saying is that adding magic to swordplay is only one such means to victory...” Nesia said.

“Exactly,” Ficelle said. “I’m happy you’re studying it, but there’s no reason to get fixated on sword magic to the point of excluding other methods.”

Ficelle would be lying if she said she didn’t have a fixation on sword magic. However, she didn’t let that show—she made sure to try and teach these kids that sword magic was only one method of fighting. Her attitude was definitely praiseworthy. Being able to make that clear distinction is part of her inborn nature, I guess. Normally, you’d show more bias toward your own techniques.

“Will I be able to fight like that too...?” Mewi muttered.

“You will,” I said, plopping my hand on her head and ruffling her hair.

“Cut that out...” she mumbled, staring at the ground.

“Ha ha ha.”

“I said cut it out!”

It wasn’t like she was really against it. She was just embarrassed. I knew Mewi well.

“Ah! Mewi! So sneaky!” Cindy yelled. “I wanna be able to fight like that too!”

“Right, so do I,” Lumite added.

“Ha ha. I’m sure you’ll all be able to,” I told them.

Even an old country bumpkin like me had reached the status of special instructor for the Liberion Order (to be specific, I’d been forced into it). It was up to their own effort and luck, but I wasn’t going to ruin the hopes of such young budlings by saying so. Whether their efforts came to fruition also depended on the effort shown by their teachers. Ficelle and I both bore great responsibility in this regard.

“Master, Master.”

“Hm?”

“Ahem.”

“Right. You’ve gotten even stronger than before, Ficelle. Well done.”

“Hee hee.”

Ficelle slid in beside me and seemed to want some head pats too, so I complied. Huh. I’ve been reunited with several of my pupils since coming to Baltrain from Beaden, but haven’t praised any of them like this. I wasn’t pampering her or anything, but I was delighted to see someone I’d taught show so much growth. I couldn’t help but feel proud.

“U-Umm... Mr. Beryl, the class...”

“Oops, right.”

And as I ruffled Mewi’s hair with one hand and Ficelle’s with the other, Lumite shyly called out to me. Oh yeah, we’re in the middle of a sword magic class. No point in just patting heads. Let’s get back to teaching.

“All right, since we’re already outside, let’s enjoy the weather and get some practice swings in.”

“Yes!” the students replied in energetic unison.

So, under the clear blue sky, surrounded by students with gleaming hope in their eyes, I spent a while providing them guidance. This was time well spent.

◇

“Hoh! Hiyah! Taaah!”

“Mm-hmm, everyone’s looking good.”

Cindy’s spirited shouting resounded beneath the clear skies. I’d gone around watching everyone do their practice swings while pointing out flaws here and there. They were still rough around the edges, but all of them were somewhat better than when we’d first started. If they got a grasp of the fundamental forms and repeated this daily, they were likely to develop proper instincts for swordsmanship.

“Hmph! Hmph!”

The two boys, Lumite and Nesia, had passable forms. As was to be expected, boys and girls had different musculature. Given the same environment, upbringing, and training, men often ended up being a bit stronger. To put it bluntly, swordsmanship could be summed up as waving around a heavy stick. As such, muscular men often had an advantage. In that sense, Allucia, Surena, Curuni, Ficelle, and Rose all defied convention.

Now that I think about it, aren’t a lot of my successful pupils women? I’m pretty sure we had a fifty-fifty ratio back in the dojo, though.

“Hrmmm.”

Anyway, as for what the actual teacher here was up to, Ficelle simply watched me teach. I wasn’t going to reprimand her for that or anything. She was trying to learn how to teach others in her own way. When it came to sword magic, I had no knowledge whatsoever, so Ms. Ficelle would have no choice but to take over. She had to learn what she could as soon as possible.

After a while longer spent under the sun, Ficelle suddenly raised her voice.

“Ah, Master.”

“Hm? What is it?”

“Class is almost over.”

“Oh, already?”

If I had to guess, it’d been about an hour since we’d started. Man, time really flies when I’m teaching swordsmanship.

“Okay, everyone. Let’s stop here. Back to the classroom.”

At my instruction, the students stopped swinging.

“Yes! This was fun!” Cindy replied cheerfully, having raised a good sweat.

Cindy really was a good girl. She was a little simple in a way, but being obedient was more than enough of a positive point for a student. I wanted to see her grow more and more. And if possible, I wanted her to be Mewi’s friend. I had a feeling she would be able to close the distance with Mewi.

“Thank you very much,” Lumite said, setting aside his wooden sword. “This was time well spent.”

“You’re welcome.”

It wasn’t very strange for the son of a noble to learn swordsmanship as a hobby. However, having the groundings for magic and going out of his way to choose sword magic felt somewhat unique. I was curious about what had brought him to this decision.

“This was very interesting.”

“Yeah, I really feel like I’m getting better.”

Fredra and Nesia also had a positive opinion of today’s class. This did make me question how Ficelle had been teaching them to date. She probably hadn’t given it much thought and had resorted to the mindset of “Anyway, just swing your swords.” This was something that needed to be improved in the future. After all, I wasn’t going to be here to watch over these students until they graduated.

“Hmph...”

As for Mewi, she was the same as usual. She’d also listened to my instructions and had done just as I’d told her. I didn’t have anything to say to her—and if I did, I could just bring it up when we got home.

“Oh right, there’s something I want to ask everyone while I have you all here.”

With classes over, there was still something on my mind. Now that I felt like I was a little closer to everyone, I raised a question on our way back to the classroom.

“Why did each of you choose the sword magic course? If you’re aiming to be wizards, I’m pretty sure there are a ton of other courses to take.”

The magic institute was huge and well-known by the populace. It was no exaggeration to say that all things related to magic in this country converged in this one spot. So, I wanted to know why they were learning sword magic specifically.

For example, Lucy didn’t use sword magic. That meant there were other paths to mastering wizardry. She used a great variety of spells, so there had to be classes for those too. Of the six hundred or so students enrolled in the institute, only five attended this class. What had inspired these five to take up sword magic?

“Because I like to move my body!” Cindy answered energetically—as usual, she was the first to respond. “I don’t hate magic...but I figured I might as well do it the way I enjoy most!”

“I see.”

That made sense. Simply having the groundings for magic didn’t mean you loved it. There had to be those like Cindy who preferred getting physical with a sword or any other kind of weapon over using magic.

“I was interested in it from the very beginning,” Lumite said next. “I’ve practiced with a sword a little at home too.”

Well, nobody would take such a minor course without any interest in it. This was especially the case for the son of a viscount. He’d learned to use a sword back at home too, so this was a reasonable development. I still wondered why he hadn’t quit after Ficelle had put them through practice swing hell, though.

“I, um...wanted to join after seeing Ms. Ficelle...” murmured Fredra.

I laughed. “Ha ha ha. Isn’t that nice, Ficelle?”

“Mm. Watch me all you want.”

Fredra apparently admired Ficelle’s sword magic. For any who pursued the path to mastery, having a junior who aspired to be like you was a delight to witness. I also felt great when people looked at me like that. It did make me feel a little itchy, though.

“I’m pretty much the same as Cindy,” Nesia said, playing with the wooden sword in his hand. “Swinging a sword suits me more than magic.”

He had an honest personality when it came to martial arts. One way or another, he reminded me of Henblitz. I couldn’t tell their exact ages, but Nesia had the best build among the five students here.

“I just felt like it...”

As expected, Mewi was the last to speak. Her answer was pretty much what I’d anticipated too. According to Lucy, she admired my swordsmanship, but she was never going to say something like that in front of me. I had no reason to tease her about it either—I didn’t want her to pout again. If possible, I wanted her to take that admiration to the point where she came to enjoy swordsmanship itself. A sword was too heavy to swing based only on admiration.

“Thanks, everyone,” I said. “I’m sure you’re all here for sword magic, but I’m glad to hear you enjoy wielding a sword on its own too.”

What one likes, one will do well—or so they say. People learned things faster when it involved something they liked, and this was true for every field of study. It wasn’t impossible to get stronger by swinging a sword begrudgingly, but I doubted there was anyone out there who would do such a thing.

I turned to Ficelle next. “I won’t always be around to observe, y’know. Make sure you watch them properly too.”

“I’ll try...”

“I-I’m counting on you here...” I stammered.

Is this really going to be okay? I’m getting a little anxious. Either way, my main job was at the Liberion Order. I was only helping out at the institute because they were in a pinch. I didn’t have the qualifications to be a teacher at the magic institute—I couldn’t use magic and I wasn’t a staff member. It wasn’t hard to imagine how Lucy had forcefully pushed things through to get me here.

Ultimately, it was Ficelle’s role to guide these five. If there were any other skilled sword magic practitioners, they could be potential candidates too, but that wasn’t my job here.

“Mr. Beryl, you’re only here for today?!” Cindy yelled in shock.

“Not exactly. I do plan on making this more than a onetime thing...but my primary job is as a special instructor for the Liberion Order.”

I would definitely feel bad about ending things as they were now, so I wanted to teach them what I could. However, I only expected to be involved up to a point—maybe until I was confident that they could wield a sword beyond a suitable minimum threshold. They weren’t here to learn swordsmanship. They were here to learn sword magic.

“Special instructor for the Liberion Order... No wonder.” Lumite nodded in understanding.

The other students didn’t say anything, but their expressions seemed a little different now. Titles were awfully convenient at times like these. As long as the title applied to the current situation, it guaranteed a certain level of superficial appreciation.

At least in Liberis, being a special instructor for the Liberion Order was a big deal. I was of course not going to brandish that title around meaninglessly, but it was nice to be able to quickly establish a certain level of trust. It’d felt like nothing but a heavy burden at first, but I planned to rely on it for situations like this in the future too.

“Wow... Mr. Beryl, you’re a real big shot, huh?!” Cindy shouted in excitement.

Ficelle agreed for some reason. “Yup. Master Beryl is amazing.”

I didn’t know whether to feel happy or itchy. To be precise, I wasn’t amazing—my title was.

“Ah.”

“Oh?”

And just as we got back to the classroom, an unfamiliar bell echoed through the building.

“The ending chime,” Ficelle said. “Today’s lesson is over.”

“Aaah.”

Having a signal to set a fixed time for classes did make this feel like a school. There was no such thing for the knights at the training hall, and back at the dojo in Beaden, we didn’t have anything so clear-cut either.

“Mr. Beryl, thanks so much for today!” exclaimed Cindy.

“Of course. See you later.”

With Cindy’s cheerful farewell, the students got their stuff and dispersed. Since classes had a fixed end time, they probably had other lessons to attend. They couldn’t be at the institute to only learn sword magic, after all.

“All right, I guess I’ll head over to the office,” I said.

“Right.” Ficelle nodded. “I’m leaving too.”

I’d come here in the morning and hadn’t done much more than teach, so I hadn’t personally gotten to swing my sword much. As such, I was planning on going to the order’s office to say hi and get some training in. It seemed Ficelle didn’t have any business left at the magic institute either.

“Oh yeah, how often is the sword magic course held?” I asked after we saw the students off.

“Twice a week.”

“I see.”

That was similar to the typical dojo—or maybe somewhat less than typical. At least, that was what I thought as an old man who’d been holed up in Beaden for all his life. I didn’t know what was normal in the big city.

Twice a week would make it a little hard for me to show up for every lesson. Just as I’d told the students, I was a special instructor for the Liberion Order, not a teacher for the magic institute. Allucia had said that once a week wouldn’t be a problem, so it was only appropriate to come here that often. I decided to consult Lucy about it later.

Lucy had said that today’s trial run would consist of nothing more than letting me observe today’s class, so I hadn’t actually agreed to teach here or anything. At this stage, I could probably still refuse. However, after seeing Ficelle today, I didn’t believe she could properly teach this course. I would feel bad just saying, “Okay, do your best,” and abandoning her.

So, I was planning to support her without getting in the way. I would join in here and there to spur Ficelle’s growth. The magic institute was a gathering of haves over have-nots, and here we had five whimsical students who’d chosen to learn the way of the sword. I did feel a desire to see their growth.

“Ficelle, you’re gonna have to learn how to teach,” I said.

“Erk...”

“Don’t sulk about it...”

I was suddenly a little anxious about the future. Was this really going to be all right? It would be problematic if she continued assigning nothing but practice swings. I wasn’t sure how much this course was going to go into practical battles, but there had to be a certain number of practice matches involved. Sword magic was clearly a technique for combat, so she had to teach these kids how to fight.

“You could just watch them forever...” Ficelle grumbled.

“Things would be easier if I could,” I said. “But you can’t be so halfhearted about this.”

“Ugh...”

“Come on now.”

“I know... I’ll try...”

I only had one body and I couldn’t clone myself. Also, I was incapable of using magic. Ficelle was now in a position to teach at the magic institute, and regardless of how that’d happened, it wasn’t acceptable for her to make light of that, ignore it, or entrust it to me just because she wasn’t suited for it.

“I don’t know the details, but you accepted this job,” I told her. “You have to fulfill your responsibility.”

“Mm...”

Ficelle had learned everything there was to learn at my dojo and had graduated without a hitch. It wasn’t quite right to treat her as a pupil again at this stage. Maybe it was best to interact with her as an experienced teacher instead. Regardless, I was delighted that she’d gone from learning swordsmanship to being in a position to teach it. If my techniques and experiences could be of any help, I wanted to do everything I could for her.

“Hee hee. I still have a lot to learn.”

“I’ve got great hopes in you, Ms. Ficelle.”

“Mrgh.”

Exchanging such idle chatter, we left the classroom.

“Phew, I’m a little beat.”

“Hee hee, good work today, Master.”

It was a little while after the five students had left for their next classes. I stretched and grumbled a bit as Ficelle and I walked down the corridor. The lesson had only been an hour long, but teaching unfamiliar students in an unfamiliar environment had been mentally taxing. I’d even had a match with Ficelle, so I was worn out. Still, I felt more satisfaction than fatigue. A greedy part of me wanted to see those five students’ growth to the very end, but that wasn’t my duty.

“There really are a lot of students here,” I commented, looking at the people coming and going around us.

“Yes. Just not a lot taking sword magic,” Ficelle said.

Six hundred students felt very different from my days at the dojo. We just so happened to be walking around while students were between classes—a ton of kids were hurrying through the corridors.

I knew that pretty much all of them were aiming to become wizards. It was easy to imagine the vast amount of knowledge they had to absorb. Swordsmanship was about more than just swinging a sword. Practical experience was of course important, but classroom lectures, or more specifically, acquiring knowledge, was also key. This was probably even more important when it came to magic.

“Oh yeah, you attended the institute after leaving the dojo, right?” I asked Ficelle.

“I did. I worked really hard.”

“Very impressive,” I said, praising her honestly.

“Heh heh heh.” Ficelle’s expression was unusually soft for her.

Back in her dojo days, I hadn’t known that Ficelle could use magic. During the five years she’d spent with me, I’d never heard anything about it. I had no idea when she’d awoken to her magical talent, but she’d definitely only started studying it after graduating from my dojo. In other words, it was a relatively recent thing.

She’d set her mind on swordsmanship first—from my perspective, she’d grown considerably at it—and then, she’d set pure swordplay aside to follow a new path. This must’ve required a ton of effort. Even if I suddenly manifested a talent for magic, I probably wouldn’t put my swordsmanship aside to learn to wield it. In that respect, her youth had probably played a part in her decision-making. At my age, if I discovered a new talent for anything, I would need considerable courage to devote myself to it—especially if I wasn’t sure that my talent would blossom.

“Today, I taught them just as I used to back in the dojo. Was that fine?” I asked Ficelle somewhat belatedly.

“Sure. Not a problem.”

I didn’t know how much sword magic relied on swordplay as a base, but judging from what I’d seen from Ficelle, its fundamentals were completely reliant on the blade. Though she was a wizard, Ficelle’s core talent focused entirely on swordplay. It was like she was using magic to assist and reinforce her own style.

“The sword magic course only started this year...but it’s not popular,” Ficelle muttered, her expression darkening a little.

“Well, five definitely isn’t a lot.”

It was probably hard to get people to attend a class where magic served an auxiliary role. Many who attended the magic institute likely had a genuine interest in magic.

“If not enough people are interested...it’ll get canceled,” Ficelle muttered.

“Huh? Really?” I hadn’t heard anything about that. Lucy had never mentioned it.

“It won’t vanish right away,” she continued. “But if the roster consistently has so few people on it, the school will decide that there’s not much purpose in continuing to provide the course.”

“That makes sense...”

The school wasn’t a charity—it was a place of learning, but it was also meant to teach students skills that benefited the nation. Things that didn’t lead to a profit would eventually be weeded out. The same went for a swordsmanship dojo.

“But it should get popular now that you’re here...probably,” Ficelle said.

“Ha ha ha... Those’re some serious expectations I have to live up to.”

It suddenly felt like I was burdened with the heavy responsibility of reviving this class. I did intend to do everything I could, but I honestly didn’t know whether it would get popular. I was ignorant when it came to magic—my teaching here would basically just be an extension of what I did at the dojo. Still, even if there were only a few of them, now that I was in a position to teach, I wanted to give the students a good experience. But I didn’t want to overextend myself either, so I was simply going to do what I could.

“Anyway, what’s it feel like to be able to use magic?” I asked, not wanting to drag the previous topic out too long.

“At first, I kind of just realized, ‘Oh, this is mana.’ I’m sure the same goes for most people.”

“Hmmm...”

Mana. Mana, huh? I guess that’s essential when it comes to magic, but as someone who can’t use it, it sure is a mystery. That said, I’d personally witnessed Lucy and Mewi’s magic, as well as Ficelle’s sword magic, so I couldn’t deny its existence.

“It sure is a luxury to be able to use both long-range magic and a sword,” I said. “I’m jealous.”

A sword was naturally used at close range. I was pretty envious of being able to add a long-range option without having to switch weapons. I’d wielded a bow before—and it’d felt rather clunky—but sword magic was very different from that.

“Don’t be,” Ficelle said. “Not a lot of people know this, but magic actually can’t be used from that far away.”

“Huh? Really?”

I’d been certain that magic had a very long range, so Ficelle’s statement was unexpected. What did she mean that magic couldn’t be used from far away? It sure looked suitable for long distances to me. Even if mana limited the amount of firepower available, it seemed far easier to use than bows and such.

“Hmm... Mana is a medium,” Ficelle started explaining. “The farther it is from the body, the harder it is to control. Also, it gets weaker. If you try to send it flying too far, you get tired fast, and it becomes less powerful.”

“Is that so...?”

That was honestly surprising. But judging by what she’d said, this was something that anyone who had a talent for magic already knew. Was controlling mana that hard a feat? In my arbitrary image of how it worked, it was like weaving invisible dough and sending it flying. It turned out it wasn’t that crude.

“For example, what does it feel like to throw a magic flame far away?” I asked.

“It’ll disperse once you’re no longer able to control the mana,” Ficelle answered. “Anyone with talent can manifest magic, but maintaining the scale and extent of a spell is very difficult.”

“I see...”

That meant it wasn’t a valid strategy to line up wizards like some kind of fortress battery. Magic was surprisingly inflexible. I was starting to realize just how amazing Lucy was for being able to shoot a never-ending barrage of magic.

This also explained things with Mewi. She had a talent for magic and could create fire from thin air. However, making that fire bigger, maintaining it, or sending it flying required specialist knowledge and techniques. That was why Mewi was currently only capable of igniting a flame.

“Then...what exactly is sword magic?” I asked.

“Strictly speaking, it can be done without a sword. However, having a medium makes it easier for the caster to maintain a clear image. Also, adding an ‘edge’ to magic is a new thing. I don’t know of anyone who practices with other types of mediums, but technically, staff and tome magic should also be possible.”

“Hmmm...”

Holding a book in one hand and shooting magic fitted the image of a wizard perfectly. However, wielding a sword and magic simultaneously was a far more exciting thought for a swordsman. To put it bluntly, it was just plain cool.

Lucy had once told me that the magic humans were currently capable of manifesting was less than one percent of the magic present in the world. If so, further research could create many other new kinds of magic. Turns out, sword magic is relatively new too.

“So you’re at the forefront of the study of sword magic,” I said.

“I wonder...” Ficelle pondered for a moment. “Well, there are other practitioners, and the commander was the one to teach me.”

Ficelle looked somewhat pleased, but she didn’t affirm my words. According to the one who’d taught her, Ficelle was better at sword magic than anyone else. If so, it was no exaggeration to say that she was the foremost practitioner.

“Either way, you’re still extremely talented,” I said. “You’ll have to keep giving it your all.”

“Mm...”

Was sword magic going to one day gather more and more practitioners and become one of the greatest forces among wizards? I certainly hoped so. But judging by the current state of Ficelle’s class, things were looking pretty grim.

“Hm? You’re...Ficelle?”

“Ah, Vice Principal.”

As we went through the school building talking about such things, an old man—someone clearly different from all the students we’d seen in the corridors—walked toward us. He seems to be a staff member here. Vice principal, huh? I assume he’s rather important.

“And who is this?” he asked, turning a vigorous gaze toward me.

“A pleasure to meet you,” I said. “I’m here as a temporary lecturer for the sword magic course at the institute’s request. My name is Beryl Gardenant.”

Since he’d put me on the spot, I’d called myself a temporary lecturer, but that wasn’t necessarily wrong. My first impression of this man was that he was very old—he seemed a fair bit older than even my dad. His hair and beard were completely white, and deep wrinkles ran across his face. However, despite his advanced age, he stood up straight. He didn’t use a cane or anything either, so he definitely had a capable lower body.

“I see... I’m Faustus Brown—the vice principal of the magic institute.”

Huh? Did he just sigh? Was it something I said?

“Please refrain from making a mess here,” he said.

“Right...”

With that, he immediately turned on his heels. What did he mean by that? I was just teaching kids how to wield a sword.

“Allow me to give you a warning,” Brown said, suddenly coming to a stop and turning around.

“What is it?” I asked.

“As long as you have the headmistress’s permission, I won’t say anything about your presence here. However, be sure to stay away from the lower levels.”

“I’ll bear that in mind.”

“Then if you’ll excuse me.” With that, he walked away for good, leaving behind a strange atmosphere.

“Ficelle, the school has a lower level?” I asked.

“Mm-hmm. I don’t know what’s down there either. We were also told to stay away.”

“I see...”

Even the staff here didn’t know the details. That meant it must be a highly classified secret. Lucy might be able to tell me about it if I asked, but I didn’t have any intention of delving too deeply. I didn’t like someone keeping their eye on me, so I decided to just do as I was told. Besides, if Lucy hadn’t divulged the information, it meant I didn’t need to know. It would be a waste of effort to wonder about it.

“What kind of person is the vice principal?” I asked.

“To him, magic is above all else,” Ficelle said. “He’s very earnest when it comes to his craft. He’s also very strict.”

“Hmm.”

Magic above all else. That didn’t have a great ring to it. Sword magic was relatively new, so perhaps he didn’t really accept the use of magic in support of swordsmanship.

“Hey, does the vice principal...?” I started to ask.

“Mm. He doesn’t really approve of sword magic...I don’t think.”

“I see.”

His reaction had been bad. What was more, if someone with the influence and status of a vice principal had such an opinion, the current situation looked grim. I wanted to do something to help, but the fate of the sword magic class was entirely up to those in charge.

“Are there factions among wizards?” I asked.

I was just a little curious now. Just recently, I’d gotten involved in the neighboring country’s dispute between papists and royalists, so I couldn’t help but wonder. I doubted it was going to devolve into a civil war—at least, I wanted to believe so—but I wanted to avoid getting dragged into something weird again.

“I wouldn’t really call them factions,” Ficelle said. “There are all kinds of magic. Everyone has their favorites. But there are people who are anti-wizardry—people who say things like, ‘Who the hell do you think you are, distorting the mysteries of magic with your filthy human hands?’”

“Th-There’re people like that too, huh...?”

I doubted there was anyone like that in the magic institute, but it was good to know that they existed. In all things, there were supporters and dissenters. There were surely some who criticized swordsmanship for being barbaric too.

But since this faction explicitly described themselves as “anti-wizardry,” they weren’t against magic itself. In short, they recognized the existence of magic, but they didn’t accept it being used by human hands in the form of wizardry.

“There sure are all kinds of people in the world,” I said.

I’d never even thought of such things during my days in Beaden. Pretty much my entire life had been spent in that village. Coming to Baltrain had been eye-opening—it had certainly broadened my views on the world.

While I was still curious about how the dojo back home was doing, my new lifestyle was so fresh and stimulating compared to my days teaching swordsmanship in Beaden. Even this current matter was something I would have never experienced in the countryside. So, even though Allucia had practically dragged me here to take the job with the order, things weren’t so bad.

“What’s wrong, Master?” Ficelle asked as I basked in nostalgia.

“Oh, nothing. I was just thinking about how amazing Baltrain is.”

“Hm?”

I gotta cut that out. Now’s not the time to be so moved. I’ve got work to do at the order. Gotta keep it together.