A Perfectly Legal Young Man

"Right. Get ready, then. We'll start training in a few days."

Zoldat smiled faintly and waved a hand. He pulled a training Wooden Sword from a nearby snowdrift and looked at Cain.

"No need! From what you just said, fighting can increase Battle Aura, right? I think I'm already getting the hang of it!"

Cain gave a helpless smile and rested a hand on the hilt of his Wooden Sword.

"Want to try?"

"Of course!"

Thud! Thud! Thud! Five minutes later, Zoldat sat on the stone steps, holding his bruised and swollen face in silence...

Beside him, Cain cast healing magic on Zoldat's battered face and nodded slightly.

"Not bad. You stayed on your feet through my attacks for quite a while. You've got talent, Zoldat."

Stayed on my feet? You just kept hitting me so I couldn't even fall down!

Zoldat held his swollen face, utterly speechless. Cain had been too damn fast. Zoldat hadn't even seen when he swung his sword.

At the start of the fight, Zoldat had felt as though something enormous had slammed into him. His vision went black, and he lost consciousness. When he came to, he was falling through the air into a snowdrift.

Only later did he learn that Cain had spent five whole minutes beating him into this sorry state. That felt a little personal.

Five minutes! Did Cain have any idea what those five minutes had been like?

And yet...

Pure and powerful.

So this was how far away the rest of the world was...

Zoldat stared at the brilliant sea of stars in the night sky, looking a little lost.

But when he remembered that the man casting Intermediate Healing Magic before him was a Sword God, he suddenly felt much better.

Cain was a Sword God. What ordinary swordsman could beat him? Zoldat had held Cain's sword at bay with his own body for five minutes. That was impressive enough, surely.

"Intermediate Healing Magic."

Cain cast Intermediate Healing Magic once more, and the bruises on Zoldat's body soon vanished as he sat on the stone steps.

Intermediate Healing Magic was slower than the rapid healing of Advanced-class magic. Serious injuries required the caster to keep applying it.

"Incredible. You're a Sword God, yet you can use healing magic this advanced? And with Chantless Casting, too."

Zoldat looked at his hands and felt his fully healed body, unable to hide his amazement.

"Honestly, Mia and Rina are going to be jealous."

Cain pursed his lips.

"I'm a swordsman. Unless I absolutely have to, I'm not taking on the duties of a mage or support healer. Please don't pile extra work on me."

Cain had no intention of doing two jobs for one wage. Unless they paid him two wages, it was out of the question.

"Is that so? Then I can relax. Let's head back, Cain."

Cain nodded. Strictly speaking, he was still an apprentice mage. Master Roxy hadn't declared him graduated yet. Besides, he had no desire to offend anyone by taking their work.

"Come to think of it, why would a Sword King of the North God Style want to kill Roxy?" Zoldat asked as Cain helped him to his feet.

Cain steadied Zoldat. His brow furrowed as he thought it over, but nothing came to mind.

"I don't know either. I asked Master Roxy, but she has no idea. Whatever the reason, I won't let them succeed."

"I see. If things get bad, you two could hide out in the Asura Kingdom for a while. Or try the Neris Duchy or the Bashirant Duchy."

"You could also go to the Shirone Kingdom in the central part of the Central Continent. I hear their capital, Ratikia, needs adventurers."

Cain pressed his lips together.

"I see. But I don't plan to be an adventurer forever. I wanted to learn magic so I could grow stronger. After this, I might travel around learning Swordsmanship from different schools, until I surpass even the gods of legend..."

"That's quite a grandiose thing to say. Still, Roxy really seems to want to be an adventurer. Before you arrived, she kept trying to find people to form a party with, but they all turned her down. You're probably the first adventurer who agreed to team up with her. From the way she is now, I'd say she wants you to stay with her."

Cain's face reddened. He kept helping Zoldat along, but said nothing more to the man's nosy grin.

If Master Roxy wants me to stay with her, what should I do? Choose my dream, or choose her?

Cain thought it over, then smiled faintly as the answer came to him. He had to fulfill his dream. That was why he had started this journey. Of course, if his teacher wanted to adventure with him, all the better. He only hoped the day they parted would come a little later.

Master Roxy really did seem to love exploring labyrinths. Cain could tell she had an adventurer's heart; she always grew excited whenever labyrinths came up. She had adventures of her own.

But Cain was bound to leave someday. He respected his teacher deeply. Once he gained the strength he wanted and fulfilled his wish, he would certainly go looking for Roxy. Who knew how many years that might take, though...

"By the way, Zoldat, do your legs have to shake that much?"

The nosy look vanished from Zoldat's face.

"Don't overestimate me. I thought you were going to cut me down back there. It took everything I had not to collapse on the spot."

Can this guy really become a King-class Swordsman...?

Cain's mouth twitched as he looked at Zoldat, who was still too frightened to walk without support.

Back at the inn, Cain took Zoldat to his room on the first floor, then went upstairs. He had just opened his door when he heard a creak behind him.

He turned to see Master Roxy stepping out with a large pillow in her arms, her cheeks red. Instead of her usual clothes, she wore a blue nightdress that matched her hair. Rubbing her eyes, she looked like a sleepy little kitten, still a bit dazed.

Master Roxy looks cute in her nightdress, too...

Wait. Master Roxy looks like a little girl. Back in my old world, wouldn't I get arrested for thinking that...?

Roxy stepped out and found Cain staring at her from across the hall. Her hazy blue eyes went wide, and her face flushed crimson. Click. She shut the door and retreated into her room, clutching her pillow in embarrassment.

Cain's mouth twitched. Was she embarrassed? But I didn't see anything. Her nightdress covered her perfectly well.

How strange. I only went out to see what was making all that noise. Why did I run into my foolish apprentice the moment I stepped outside?

Roxy lay on her bed, hugging the large pillow. Cain's gentle smile appeared in her mind again, and she pressed her lips together.

What's wrong with me? I dream about him, and now I see him the moment I open my door! Why is that foolish apprentice of mine everywhere...?

She shook her head, trying to clear the image of Cain earnestly swinging his sword from her mind. Then she stared up at the ceiling and sighed. Humans were considered adults at fifteen. Cain was a demon, and given the Demon Race's high mortality rate, perhaps he was already considered an adult at twelve.

A perfectly legal young man.

"No. Honestly, what am I thinking...?"