"Th-that Sword God, I, I..."
The red-haired mage's legs were trembling. Cain pressed his lips together, took an Asura Silver Coin from his pocket, and placed it in her hand as she blinked at him nervously.
"Thanks for showing me the way."
Without looking back, Cain walked straight into the Adventurers' Guild tavern.
"Huh?"
The red-haired mage stood in the white swirl of wind and snow, her mouth twitching. Only after Cain entered the tavern did she let out a long breath. She stared at the silver coin in her hand, lost in thought.
"Swordsmen from the Sword Sanctum really do have something wrong with their heads..."
"Well, look who's back! Our great hero!"
"Welcome back, Cain!"
Inside the Adventurers' Guild tavern, Zoldat and a roomful of adventurers spotted Cain coming through the wooden door. They raised their wooden mugs and cheered his name.
Cain gave them a calm nod. His mind was full of questions about Teacher Roxy, and he was in no mood to celebrate. After accepting a mug from Zoldat and having a drink, he made his way through the crowd, looking for her.
Zoldat knew what Cain wanted at a glance. With a faint smile, he patted Cain's shoulder and pointed to a quiet corner of the guild, where his dear Teacher Roxy was sitting.
"Roxy's been waiting for you there for a while."
"Well, Roxy is an excellent mage, don't you think, Cain?"
"Of course she is. Teacher Roxy's amazing! She hit a Red Dragon flying at full speed with magic!"
Hearing Zoldat praise Roxy, Cain folded his arms, gave a little snort, and spoke with an involuntary smile.
"Cain, o-over here." Roxy glanced at him shyly, pressed her lips together, and beckoned. A new magic book with gold-edged patterns lay on the table before her.
Could this idiot apprentice of mine keep his voice down? W-we were drawing enough attention already.
For some reason, Cain felt a little relieved. He smiled and walked toward Roxy's table. He was not into little girls, of course, though that claim was losing its credibility.
Behind him, Zoldat gave a knowing nod and watched Roxy and the boy before her with an amused look.
Please use Divine-Rank Swordsmanship on Zoldat, my dependable apprentice.
Roxy noticed Zoldat and the adventurers beside him watching her and Cain. Blushing, she pouted and shot them a displeased glare.
Only then did the adventurers look away, and the guild tavern grew lively again.
"Seriously, that Cain. I have to admit, he's got a good eye."
Of course, Zoldat meant Cain had a good eye for adventuring companions, nothing else.
They had all seen Roxy's talent for magic during the Red Dragon hunt. Of the dozen or so mages there, she was the only one who could hit a Red Dragon moving at that speed.
"Still, I never expected Cain, a Sword God of the Sword God Style, to know magic too. And he can cast without chanting. That caught me by surprise."
"Roxy probably taught him. It's incredible, but why doesn't she use Chantless Casting herself?"
Zoldat and the others gathered around, smiling as they clinked mugs and discussed the gossip, along with plans to expand their adventuring party.
Cain had stepped in and recovered the adventurers' pay from the nobles. That meant Zoldat's Thunder Adventurer Party no longer had to disband, and they had received more than fifty Asura Gold Coins.
Cain and Roxy had gained the most, of course. Ten percent of the two thousand Asura Gold Coins would go to them, as agreed from the start.
"With the money from selling the spoils of the three Red Dragons, we earned 323 Aras Gold Coins in all. Cain gets two hundred, and the remaining hundred are mine."
Cain folded his arms and frowned slightly.
"We agreed to split it evenly, Teacher Roxy..."
But before he could finish, Roxy cut him off with a rueful smile and a wave of her hand.
"This is already a fortune. I couldn't possibly spend that much. Besides, you were the one who slew the Red Dragons. I don't want to take a share I didn't earn."
In truth, Roxy already felt that taking a hundred Asura Gold Coins was getting far more than her share from Cain.
Cain shook his head. Teacher Roxy was too hard on herself, and she lacked confidence despite being an excellent mage.
"Without your magic, I couldn't have slain the last Red Dragon. You taught me Wind Bullet, too. That spell saved my life, so please don't feel you owe me anything."
"And there are still twenty-three Asura Gold Coins left, right? I say I take 150, you take 150, and you get the remaining coins as well."
A faint smile rose to Roxy's lips. Feeling touched, she looked at Cain as he pushed the bag of coins back toward her, his expression utterly serious, and gave a small nod.
Her apprentice would become a fine Sword God someday.
Aside from her old adventuring party on the Demon Continent, most of the parties Roxy had joined during her travels had fallen apart over unfair divisions of pay. She would fight for her share with strangers, but with Cain, she felt she could trust him.
"You don't need to, Cain. I've already taken 123 Asura Gold Coins, and I'm more than satisfied."
As she spoke, Roxy slowly pushed the thick, gold-patterned magic book toward Cain, along with the bag containing two hundred Asura Gold Coins.
"What's this?" Cain looked at the magic book, which was clearly expensive, and pressed his lips together.
Teacher Roxy is such a fool... Didn't we agree she wouldn't spend money carelessly? Cain sighed softly, then smiled at her, touched by the gesture.
"I spent a long time looking for this Grand Grimoire at a reputable magic bookshop. It contains nearly every type of basic spell from beginner to Advanced-class, including healing and detoxification magic. It's very comprehensive."
"It has detailed instructions, too. Though since you can cast without chanting, I suppose you don't really need those..."
Roxy spoke as she twirled a strand of blue hair near her forehead, her lips pursed.
Having an apprentice who's too gifted can be a problem in its own way.
Her Sword God apprentice was a genius mage capable of Chantless Casting.
"I see. I love this gift. Thank you, Teacher Roxy."
Cain rested his hand on the encyclopedia of magic and gently ran his fingers over it. When he looked at Roxy, his eyes were bright with joy and warmth.
Ah, whenever he gets the chance to learn magic, my silly apprentice makes that adorable face, like a child who's just seen candy.
But Cain's eager gaze made Roxy shy. He was a boy, after all. Why was he looking at her as if he were about to confess his love?
Roxy blushed and composed herself. The mood had grown a little strange. She had to do something.
"Ahem. D-don't think it's nothing special just because it's one book. I'd say only the Grand Grimoire kept in the Sharia Magic University library has a more complete collection of spells than the one I chose. It was quite expensive, though."
Roxy still remembered the shop clerk asking two hundred Asura Gold Coins for it. Luckily, she had once saved the shop's owner when he was an adventurer, so he had sold it to her for next to nothing. Even so, it had cost twenty-three Asura Gold Coins. That stung.
But when she thought of giving it to Cain, her gifted apprentice, Roxy felt that although it was expensive, it was worth every coin.
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