Prologue: A New Honor
I had safely made it back to the imperial capital! The streets were well-built, unlike those of Toweyezant. There were crowds and carriages. Despite not being born in the capital, all of it caused an odd swell of nostalgia within me, so I took this as a sign that I had gotten attached to this place. I took a deep breath, letting the air fill my lungs.
Unlike the bumpy outward trip, the return had been fairly uneventful. We still encountered the usual hordes of monsters, but that wasn’t much compared to an airship crash.
“That was a lot easier than usual,” I mumbled to myself.
Kris’s cheek twitched. “Are you serious?! Sir?!”
Sir Killigan remained silent.
I always ran into some sort of trouble on escort jobs. This time was no exception, but all’s well that ends well. As a bonus, I got a Flying Carpet, a Smartphone, and Telm’s Relic out of it. I patted the Carpet, who was sitting next to me, and got a chop for my troubles. I had been hoping she might finally accept me as a passenger, but it seemed I had been getting ahead of myself.
When we reached the clan house, I parted ways with my savior Kris. She took the title of MVP for combat, emotional support, and Relic charging.
“Hmph, that was a complete mess. Sir,” she said. “Don’t call me again unless you have a good reason, human weakling.”
“Wanna go out for drinks?” I offered.
“I need to report to Lapis. Sir. Besides, it’d just be you, me, and Sir Killigan! What the hell even is this guy? He barely even talked!”
Despite being talked about, Sir Killigan remained still as ever.
“Good question,” I said. “But he helped you, didn’t he?”
“Th-That’s a bold interpretation. In that regard, I’m genuinely impressed. Sir.”
“Well, at least I didn’t bring on a third traitor.”
Kris recoiled, utterly at a loss for words. Sir Killigan patted her on the shoulder. At first, I had been uncertain about him, but he had consistently exceeded my expectations. And by the end, Franz seemed to have developed a good opinion of him. It probably helped that Telm had turned out to be a traitor despite seeming like our sanest member.
Just then, Sir Killigan twitched. With almost mechanical movements, he slowly lifted his helmet. Kris watched with astonishment as what appeared wasn’t a face, but a paper bag with two eyeholes.
“Kill, kill,” he said, perhaps as a way of goodbye. He then walked into the clan house. Many battle-hardened hunters moved out of the way for him. He went up the stairs, most likely to the third floor, where Sitri’s laboratory was.
“It was Killiam the whole time,” I said.
I had trouble believing it until I remembered Sitri had already told me. Seeing him covered in armor renewed my appreciation for how overwhelming his presence normally was.
“I would’ve smacked you if I wasn’t so nice. Sir,” Kris said to me.
“I always knew you were a nice person!”
Kris jabbed me with her finger. “I know when I’m being made fun of. Sir.”
And so, our escort mission came to an end.
I sat down in my office. For the first time in days, I wore my usual clothes instead of Perfect Vacation. I could finally get comfortable. Toweyezant hadn’t been all bad, but lazing around here was what suited me best. Even perfect comfort isn’t always perfect.
I still had some drudgery to deal with, but I put it off for later. And just as I made that decision, there was a knock at the door. I told whoever it was to enter, and in came Eva, composed as ever. She hadn’t taken part in the escort mission, so this was my first time seeing her since my departure.
“Welcome back, Krai,” she said. “How did your job go? I’ve heard a few rumors.”
“It’s good to be back. I’d give it about thirty points. Did anything happen here?”
“Thirty points? Hmm. We didn’t have any noteworthy issues. The only odd thing was the Knights of the Torch returning from their expedition. However, they’ve already departed.”
“Oh? That’s some unfortunate timing.”
“Well, that’s the life of a mercenary. Touka seemed very disappointed though.”
The Knights of the Torch boasted the largest membership of any party in First Steps. They were one of those rare parties that excelled at coordinated maneuvers, almost like a professional military. They regularly traveled the world in search of battles and rarely returned to the imperial capital. They probably didn’t even think of the capital as their home base.
The Knights of the Torch had been with us since the founding of our clan. Though they had little reason to join up with us, they cooperated when Sitri presented them with expensive potions. In other words, they had been bought. Their leader, Kongoin Touka, lived by the mantra of “even lives can be bought.”
Touka and Sitri got along fabulously, which meant she also got along with me. If they had been in the capital at the time, I could’ve just left the job of protecting the emperor to her party. What a shame that they had already left.
I yawned, slouched in my chair, and pulled out my new Smartphone.
“That’s right,” Eva said, “I hear Toweyezant has finally succeeded in its goal of establishing a forest.”
“Yeah, there was a huge fuss about it. But it had nothing to do with me.”
“That’s not quite what I heard.”
“It was all a product of their hard work.”
According to Franz, the head of Toweyezant had been too giddy to focus on the conference at hand. Still, I maintained that I had nothing to do with the trees. Crowds of people had come to offer their thanks, but I sent them all away, saying I didn’t know what they were talking about. Likewise, I turned down their gifts. Their gratitude should have been directed at Little Sister Fox.
Who would’ve thought a phantom could be so helpful? There were rumors saying a forest had popped up in a day. Talk about expediency! In retrospect, shoving Little Sister Fox off onto those people was irresponsible of me. Getting in touch with her seemed like a good idea, and now that I had a Smartphone, I could talk to her even over long distances.
“But never mind that,” I said. The future is what’s important, and I had been waiting a while to bring this up. “Eva, there’s something I want to talk to you about.”
Avoiding eye contact, Eva said, “That reminds me, about the crimson dragon head Luke brought in. We had it taxidermied, per his request. Where should we put it?”
Looks like Eva has her fair share of headaches. But I’ve got bigger concerns than a stuffed dragon.
“Ah, just put it on any old wall. Now, I’ve got a request from the emperor...”
He had personally requested that I mentor Princess Murina. It was too big of a task for one person, all the more so if that person was me. Before I could continue my explanation, Eva sighed heavily.
***
Phrases like “the strongest” weren’t used when speaking of the youngest man to reach Level 8. The Thousand Tricks had incredible foresight and charisma. Commanding his talented party members, he had quickly made Grieving Souls a name known throughout the empire. He hadn’t built a reputation with might but instead through leadership.
Exceptional strength gave many high-level hunters an independent streak, but Grieving Souls hadn’t lost a single member since its establishment. In some ways, that was more impressive than any measure of raw power.
After the Gathering of the White Blade, Princess Murina had talked with her friend Éclair Gladis about the Thousand Tricks.
“He’s a fearsome man,” Éclair had said. She spoke in a low voice, as though she was sharing something confidential. “Don’t be fooled by his doltish behavior. Lots of hunters lack manners, but his problem isn’t a lack of education; he simply doesn’t have any respect for social status.”
Princess Murina had never seen her friend look so unnerved.
“He’s bold and conniving,” Éclair continued, “so much so that many people have tried to fight back, but none have succeeded. After the auction, I began looking into every incident he’s been involved in.”
House Gladis was considered a model for all Zebrudian nobles to follow. The daughter of the house, Éclair, had a certain grace that allowed her to stand tall in the face of any adversary, even if she was up against an adult. But none of that grace was present as she spoke to Murina in hushed tones. She could tell something had happened between Éclair and the Thousand Tricks, but had it really been that shocking of an incident?
“To that man, his ‘Thousand Trials’ are a game. He very well may not even realize the pain they inflict on people. If you find yourself meeting with him again, I’d suggest you be careful.”
Murina trembled as she recalled that conversation. Like a mother bird forcing its chicks to learn to fly, that man carried out his “Thousand Trials.” It was said he inflicted these trials as a means of helping hunters grow, but despite their name, they involved life-threatening battles that scared off even seasoned veterans. During their journey to Toweyezant, Princess Murina had glimpsed his aberrant talents at work.
“Thousand Tricks, you are not to tell anyone of this. The truth is, Murina is incredibly unlucky.”
When her father Rodrick Atolm Zebrudia requested that the Thousand Tricks protect and tutor Murina, it was most likely done in the hope that he might ameliorate her misfortune even a little bit.
Her duties as a member of the imperial family had compelled Murina to undergo a variety of training regiments. This naturally included academic learning, but also extended to lessons with blades and magic. She had even entered treasure vaults on a few occasions. Despite all this, she remained easily defeated. It wasn’t that she lacked talent—it was that she had been born under a star that brought her misfortune in all its forms.
The reason Murina stayed out of the public eye was that activity on her part seemed to enhance the disasters she invited. Franz Argmen the captain of the imperial guard wore Relic armor that allowed him to shoulder the damage of another. Normally, this would be used to protect the emperor, but instead, Franz bore the damage meant for Murina. Even for the elite Zero Order, this was what it took to protect her from freak accidents.
Very few people knew of Murina’s poor luck. If knowledge like this got out, some evildoer or another would surely see this as an opportunity. Her father’s decision to keep her nature a secret was no doubt the correct one, and while he didn’t blame his daughter for her misfortune, he wasn’t unaffected by it.
For a bit over a decade, the imperial capital had been assailed by an unnaturally high rate of trouble, from natural disasters to battles between criminal organizations. Murina had felt like her heart was going to stop when she heard the news of the treasure vault suddenly appearing. It would be unreasonable for Murina to blame herself for all this, but she did believe her bad luck influenced the course of events.
She had already given up on finding a remedy to the situation. Even the prognosticators at the Astral Divinarium couldn’t come up with anything better than suggesting that Murina try not to make any waves.
“Her luck is bad?” the Thousand Tricks said, echoing Rodrick.
To an outsider, this would probably sound like a joke. The hunter seemed shocked by the news. He sank into a brief silence, eventually screwing up his face even further.
“Oh, give me a break,” he eventually said.
“What?!” Captain Franz yelled, his face reddening further.
This young man, known for his “preterhuman artifice,” chose to believe that Murina really was unlucky. He also indicated that guarding and training her was too large of a task even for him.
Murina couldn’t stop herself as she gulped and tried to make herself smaller. Hunters had the right to accept or deny any quests offered to them, but this man must’ve known what it meant to refuse a request from the imperial family. Even Murina’s unshakable father was at a loss for words.
“That must be some extraordinarily bad luck if it’s worth keeping classified,” the Thousand Tricks said. “So Telm and Kechachakka making their way into my team, the attack by the dragon brood, the airship crashing, and the encounter with a treasure vault were all because Her Imperial Highness has bad luck?”
Murina couldn’t help but be taken aback by how blunt he was about it.
“Y’know, I thought it was really odd that I wasn’t getting reprimanded for all our mishaps,” the Thousand Tricks muttered to himself. “I suspected that His Imperial Majesty was the unlucky one, but no, it was his daughter. This is why you need to be prepared for anything. If it’s that bad, then could something happen again?”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself!” Captain Franz shouted. “Her Imperial Highness might have bad luck, but this was the first time we’ve had this much trouble. You have no right to be dissatisfied when dealing with these problems was what we hired you for in the first place!”
“Huh?”
“C-Captain Franz is right!” Murina protested. It was the first time in a while that she had raised her voice (not that that was very high). “I’ve never before had such a string of ill encounters!”
These misfortunes couldn’t be ascribed to simple misfortune. Encountering a treasure vault while traveling in an airship was beyond the pale, and including Telm and Kechachakka had been the Thousand Tricks’s own decision. It was unfair to blame everything on the imperial princess.
“If this happened regularly, I would have died a long time ago,” she added.
“Indeed,” said her father. “I never would have brought her along to the conference if this was normal for her.”
Even the Noble Spirit turned against him. “Stop playing dumb. Sir. There’s no way that could have all been caused by bad luck!”
The Thousand Tricks took a determined step forward. Unsure how he might argue back, Murina took a step back.
“Yeah, uh-huh!” he said. “Luck isn’t something you can gauge just by looking. This was all just a coincidence. The blame rests with Telm, Kechachakka, and that treasure vault. Not with me or Murina. I’d be delighted to accept this job!”
Murina didn’t know what had caused that man to change his mind in such a short interval. Her father had offered to pay him with a ticket to the Supreme Warrior Festival, but she didn’t think that had been what caused the turnaround in attitude. The Thousand Tricks was a hunter who built his career on his cunning; he had probably anticipated Franz and her father’s arguments.
And that’s what led her to believe that he was testing Murina’s resolve. It was almost unheard of for a member of the imperial family to receive training from a hunter. She didn’t know what sort of regimen she might undergo, but this was very likely a gamble for both the Thousand Tricks, as well as the empire.
“If something happens, please contact us immediately. We’ll be at your side in an instant,” Captain Franz said to her, ever the worrywart.
“I’ve heard nobody has ever died during one of his Thousand Trials,” Murina said, trying to sound as confident as she could.
If this training offered even the slightest chance of improving Murina’s situation, then she had no choice but to take it. She understood that she had been sheltered for most of her life. It was only natural that she would fear lessons from someone who instilled terror even in hunters, but she had her pride as the daughter of the emperor. She breathed in and out, soothing her tense nerves.
“Yes, Your Imperial Highness, but that doesn’t preclude other tragedies.”
“I-I’ll be fine. Now, I have preparations to make, so if you’ll excuse me,” she said, trying to sound as strong as she could, before running off.
***
A treasure hunter’s main job was delving into treasure vaults. However, that task required a variety of talents, which meant many hunters took on all sorts of work. Some examples included mercenary work, bounty hunting, and escort jobs, as I had just done. Magi and Alchemists received offers to help with research, and capable healers like Ansem were called upon to help treat the injured.
After I informed Eva about my conversation with the emperor and his daughter, she briefly thought it over. I gave her an encouraging glance, which caused her to say, “That is, um, quite incredible. You really do receive requests of all sorts.”
“Well, the circumstances are what they are.”
“Yes, very unique circumstances. I heard Princess Murina had her reasons for staying out of the public eye. Becoming her mentor requires significant skills and connections.”
“Can’t say I think they made a good choice. I didn’t want to take this job, but I wasn’t left with many other options.”
At first I had wanted to act aggrieved and frame the imperial princess’s bad luck as the source of all the mishaps. That would give me an excuse to turn down the mentoring job. But then I learned that her luck wasn’t that bad; it just meant she couldn’t go outside without risking abduction, and carriage wheels tended to break on her. Clearly, my bad luck was far greater (or far worse, if you will) than hers. In a panic, I tried to pivot to saying it wasn’t anybody’s fault, and I suppose nobody found that unnatural.
“But can you actually do anything about this?” Eva asked. “If it’s bad enough to be kept a secret, it can’t be any easy problem to solve.”
“I’ll sidestep it.”
“Huh?”
I folded my arms and sighed. Bad luck that brought nothing more than bandits and bad carriages wasn’t worth the theatrics they gave it. If that was bad luck, then what about a guy who ran into treasure vaults on outings, got abducted by Cave People, got beat out at auctions, encountered dragons at hot springs, and got hit by lightning while going for walks?
They said fortune tellers had certified her bad luck, but those bunch were anything but trustworthy. Had the imperial princess ever been called a bad luck bargain sale? I was certain they were just imagining things. Besides, wasn’t her luck already pretty good if she had been born a princess of a major nation?
I closed my eyes and gave a hard-boiled shrug. “If it’ll give them any peace of mind, I’ll go along with it.”
And by that, I meant Ark would. I had accepted the job, but nobody specified that I do the training. And what even was there that I could teach? The imperial princess probably wouldn’t turn down lessons from someone like Ark. And if he couldn’t do it, I could find someone else in my large clan. And with an army of guards already surrounding the princess, I didn’t see any need for us to work too hard.
“Oh, I just remembered,” I said, changing the subject. “Look, Eva. I got something nice for the escort job and as an advance payment for working with the princess.”
I pulled out a ticket and set it on my desk. It was called a ticket, but it was made of metal and engraved with elaborate patterns. Even to the untrained eye, its fine craftsmanship was apparent.
I noticed Eva narrowing her eyes and explained, “It’s a ticket to the Supreme Warrior Festival.”
“Ah! I’ve heard rumors, but I’ve never seen one in person.”
The Supreme Warrior Festival was a tournament held annually. From all over the world, warriors of all vocations gathered to compete to be recognized as the best—they competed for the title of Supreme Warrior. In an era that lionized the mighty, there were a number of combat tournaments, but this was one of the most famous.
Descriptions couldn’t do it justice, but the fights were spectacles to behold and the tournament was popular even among normal people. The winner was granted fame, fortune, and joined a long list of renowned champions.
This was a platinum ticket, something that required very special connections to get. Most nobles, to say nothing of hunters, all yearned to have it. Franz had informed me that this wasn’t just any old ticket. Swords and staves were carved into its silvery surface, but nowhere did it list an assigned seat. With this single ticket, I could bring a number of companions with me.
When you worked for the emperor himself, you got paid lavishly. The emperor had mentioned that I should show Murina what true strength looked like and I had a number of friends who wanted to go to the Supreme Warrior Festival.
“Krai, don’t you dislike this sort of thing?”
“No, not at all. I’ve always wanted to go at least once in my life. And it’s almost hard to believe, but this ticket lets multiple people spectate.”
“I see. It is a hallowed festival. I hear many warriors invite their friends and family.” Eva spoke in a low voice and seemed unconvinced. But I wasn’t going to dwell on it.
“Why don’t you come?” I asked my helpful vice clan master.
“Huh? You’re really going to the Supreme Warrior Festival?”
Eva looked like she didn’t entirely believe me. Was it that surprising?
“I was told to show Murina what true strength looked like. Training isn’t just about your own work; sometimes it helps to observe the experts.”
Sure, I had lived my life avoiding combat as much as I could, but I was still fascinated by mighty warriors. Like many people, I had once aspired to become a champion.
I dusted off and redonned a hard-boiled demeanor. “It’s an honored tournament. As a Level 8, I see no harm in making an appearance.”
“Then I see no harm in going to offer my support.”
Did Eva have someone she wanted to support? I didn’t. I didn’t even know who was going to be taking part.
“Why not bring the whole clan?” she suggested. Now there was a good idea. “This is a rare opportunity. I’m sure Tino and many of the other hunters would be delighted to attend.”
“That sounds great. I think there’s a limit on how many people can spectate but—oh, maybe some of our own will be combatants?”
Ark was the first to come to mind, but our clan had a number of moniker-bearers. There would be nothing strange about one or two of them taking part.
“I haven’t heard of any of our members participating, but it’s possible considering the size of the Supreme Warrior Festival. Will that be a problem?”
“Not in the slightest. They’d have my full support. It would be a great honor if someone from our clan won the tournament.”
“Hm? Y-Yes, it would. Krai, I feel like we aren’t quite on the same page.”
“You do?”
I didn’t see how we could have ended up on different pages. All we had talked about was luck and bringing everyone to the Supreme Warrior Festival. If anything, I wanted to know just how misunderstandings could form from such a simple conversation. Eva looked oddly put off, but eventually, she nodded as though dispelling her concerns.
“If you say so, Krai,” she said.
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