Determined to Advance

Norn and Aisha began growing little by little.

When they had just been born, they had still been tiny babies who could not even open their eyes. In the blink of an eye, several months had passed, and now they could already babble away while clinging to their mother's arms.

At this rate, it would probably still take about another year before they learned to call their brother and sister, but it was something worth looking forward to.

By the time Rudeus and Hilde had their tenth birthdays, the two children would probably already be scurrying all over the place.

Not long afterward.

A letter from the Shirone Kingdom arrived at the Greyrat house.

The Shirone Kingdom was located in the eastern part of the Central Continent, separated from the Asura Kingdom by the long, narrow Red Dragon Mountains, and lay between the King Dragon Kingdom and the Disputed Territory.

The Greyrat family had never dealt with anyone from the Shirone Kingdom, but the instant they saw the sender's name, they understood the purpose of the letter.

The sender—Roxy Migurdia.

It was a letter reporting on her recent circumstances.

In the two years since she had left the Greyrat house, Roxy had started traveling the world again. She returned to her old trade, making money for travel expenses as an adventurer while building up her reputation.

When she arrived in the Shirone Kingdom, she heard there was a famous labyrinth nearby, so she tried challenging it alone.

In the end, she succeeded in one go.

Because she had made a name for herself as the "magician who conquered a labyrinth alone," she unexpectedly received an invitation from the Shirone Kingdom's royal family and became the Shirone Kingdom's court magician. After that, she also found a King-tier spell in the Shirone Kingdom's library and devoted herself to studying it for a long time.

At present, she had already become a Water King-tier magician.

After reading it, Hilde was filled with emotion.

"A Water King-tier magician, huh? I heard that's a level capable of holding off a thousand soldiers on the battlefield. Of course she'd receive courteous treatment wherever she went. The Shirone Kingdom may have more than two hundred years of history too, but it still falls somewhat short compared to a nation on the level of the Asura Kingdom. Being able to recruit a Water King-tier magician as their court magician should make them very happy."

"Still, I really didn't expect our teacher to become such a big shot. It feels unreal."

Hilde could not help saying.

Rudeus, however, wore a complicated expression after he finished reading the letter.

"Master Roxy has already become a Water King-tier magician... Compared to her, I've been standing still all these years. What does that make me?"

Rudeus leaned back against the large tree behind him and murmured to himself.

The afternoon sunlight was still bright, spilling through the gaps between the leaves onto the tips of his hair and onto Sylphy, who was lying on his lap. It was now the turn of spring into summer, the best season of the year. Beneath the azure sky stretched an endless green plain. Yet Rudeus felt shadowed.

"Have you made up your mind, Rudeus?"

Hilde, sitting on a branch, lowered her head and asked.

Rudeus looked up.

Their eyes met, and in Hilde's gaze, Rudeus saw the same smile as always.

"Yeah. Everyone's improving. I can't just waste my time either."

Rudeus's tone was melancholy.

"Come to think of it, the school Master Roxy mentioned before was called Ranoa Magic University, right?"

"Ranoa... Magic University?"

Sylphy, lying on Rudeus's lap, suddenly realized something and slowly sat up. "What's that?"

"It's a school where you can learn all sorts of knowledge. My teacher graduated from there. Before she left, she also recommended that I go there for further study."

"Where is it? Is it far?"

"Pretty far... If I went, I probably wouldn't be able to come back for two or three years."

Ranoa Magic University was located on the Northern Continent, separated from the Asura Kingdom by the Red Dragon Mountains. On top of that, it was covered in heavy snow for more than half the year, so there were not many times when travel was possible.

If he were to go there to study, there would be travel expenses, living expenses, tuition...

Taking all that into account, it would probably be no small expense.

There was also the issue of time.

Taking all of that into account...

"No!"

Sylphy's sudden shout cut off Rudeus's thoughts.

"Sylphy?"

"No... no! Rudy leaving, I don't want that!"

Before Rudeus could react, Sylphy had already hugged him tightly, bawling her eyes out as tears streamed down her face.

"I-I don't want to be separated from you, Rudy!"

Her tears soaked the front of Rudeus's clothes.

He stared in shock at the tear-streaked Sylphy, frozen for a moment.

"Rustle—"

Hilde jumped down from the tree branch.

She looked at Sylphy, who was clutching Rudeus tightly and crying, and frowned slightly.

She was just about to say something when she saw Rudeus give a faint shake of his head, indicating that he would handle this himself, so she said nothing more.

Sylphy cried for a long time, until her eyes were swollen.

In the end, only after Rudeus comforted her and promised they wouldn't be separated did Sylphy finally calm down.

When it was time to part at sunset, Sylphy was still reluctant to let go, tugging at Rudeus's sleeve and asking again and again if she would still see him tomorrow, if Rudeus wouldn't suddenly leave. The attachment and reluctance in her chest seemed ready to burst out.

After seeing Sylphy off, Hilde couldn't help teasing him.

"Didn't see that coming, Rudeus. You're pretty good, huh?"

"What?"

Rudeus froze for a second.

"Look what you've turned that little girlfriend of yours into. The moment she heard you say you were leaving, she clung to you and wouldn't let go. From the look of her, she seemed like she wanted to make it a done deal right there and take you for herself." Hilde held back a laugh.

Rudeus: "..."

What kind of wild talk was that?

Then he sighed. He hadn't expected Sylphy to be this attached to him either.

Maybe it was also because, in this village, he was the only person her age she could really talk to.

But no matter what, he had to find a way to resolve this.

With that in mind, Rudeus brought up the matter at the breakfast table the next day.

Rudeus's idea was to take Sylphy with him to school. Of course, there was no way her family could afford Sylphy's tuition, so his family would have to pay for Sylphy's tuition too, and she could just pay it back later—after all, as long as Sylphy became a powerful magician, earning money wouldn't be hard.

But Hilde felt it was unlikely.

She knew a little about Paul's income. Although he had no problem supporting the whole family and even had some spare money to buy things, attending school in this world was a luxury. If it was just Rudeus alone, it should be fine, but if Sylphy was added on top of that...

"No."

Sure enough, after thinking briefly, Paul answered decisively.

"There are three reasons. First, our family's finances aren't that comfortable. If it were just you going to school, that'd still be manageable, but adding Sylphy on top is definitely impossible. Not to mention Hilde. Do you think that if the family had money, we'd prioritize Sylphy over Hilde?"

"Second, you're still too young. Your magic may already be very good, but in the end, you're still just a child. The environment on the Northern Continent is far harsher than in the Asura Kingdom. As your parents, we can't let you travel that far and take such a huge risk."

"Third, your sword training is still only half-baked. If you give up swordsmanship now, you probably won't be able to improve anymore later."

"Taking all that into account, no."

Paul stated the reasons for his opposition.

It wasn't a casual refusal. He genuinely couldn't agree for those reasons.

But Rudeus had considered these problems too, so he had prepared countermeasures.

"As for swordsmanship, Father, please continue training me. And regarding my age... Father, when do you think I'll be able to travel far from home on my own?"

"Fifteen... mm, no, twelve," Paul said after weighing it.

"Twelve?"

"Yeah. Because I also left home when I was twelve."

"All right. I understand."

The atmosphere at the dining table was as solemn as a negotiation.

No, this was a negotiation, really.

From the very beginning, Hilde's gaze had been fixed on Rudeus, never looking away.

Rudeus really did want to take Sylphy to school with him.

It was a little...

Annoying.

"Then there's the matter of school fees. Father, please introduce me to some work. Since I can read, write, and do arithmetic, I can serve as a tutor, or do work related to magicians. Preferably something with higher pay."

Rudeus calmly accepted the twelve-year-old limit Paul had proposed.

"Oh? Why?"

"I want to save up Sylphy's tuition."

Rudeus said it with the expression of someone preparing a bride price so he could marry a wife.

Hilde didn't really want to hear any more.

She glanced at Rudeus and spoke in a cool tone.

"The way you're doing things won't help Sylphy. If she even relies on you for something like this, it won't be good for her."

Rudeus stared at Hilde in surprise.

He hadn't expected Hilde to actually oppose him at a time like this.

He had originally expected that Paul might object to this, but he would only need to persuade him.

But why was Hilde against it?

Still, he answered at once, "Though it might not benefit Sylphy, I think it would be a good thing for me."

"..."

Hilde silently looked away.

The atmosphere at the dining table was so heavy it felt like water might drip from it.

Paul glanced at the two of them, then after a brief moment of thought, said, "If that's the case, it should be fine."

"I'll ask around."