170 CHAPTER XVIII -- NEW Brave and Treasure Princess ③ (1/2)

The next day, I saw my sword master, the former swordsman.

I put my broken heart out of my mind and focused on the old man in front of me.

I had heard that he had retired as a swordsman, so I thought he must be quite old ...... but I was surprised to see the old man than I had expected.

Roughly, he's about sixty years old?

I just felt an aura that I couldn't underestimate that he was an old man, and I thought it was safe, or rather fearful, to be taught by him.

He's like an expert swordsman character that often appears in comics.

Even standing silently, I can feel the tremendous pressure.

”Nice to meet you. I'm Kite. It's nice to meet you.

I'm going to be teaching you the sword, and I'm afraid of offending you, so I greeted you as respectfully as I could.

”It's nice to meet you too. You can call me Aaron.

You must be Aaron. Okay.

As you can see, I'm an old man who retired from the front lines ten years ago, but don't worry, I'm going to do the job I've been entrusted with, so don't worry.

Yes, of course. I'm not worried about it!

I did a little bit, but it's only a little bit, so no, right?

That's very nice of you. Then let's start practicing right away ...... I'd like to say, but let's start by learning about the brave men and this world.

Are you sure?　I appreciate that.

Honestly, I was in trouble because no one would tell me what to do.

I was almost trapped in a room that was prepared for me, and I couldn't find out for myself, and I was just about to give up.

I see. I knew Your Majesty didn't explain things properly, did he?　Well, I guess you're right that you don't understand about brave people exactly, so you can't even explain it.

'You don't understand about brave men?　What do you mean?

Huh?　You're too irresponsible to call me out and not understand.

'It's easy. It's that they're lazy and haven't learned anything. I'll tell you more about it in the moving carriage.

I've had that feeling about laziness after watching ...... for the past two days, but even if you're the king, I don't think you should say that with impunity.

Well, that's not the point: ......

Carriage?　Where are you headed?

You'll find out where you're going when you get there. Now, please follow me.

Hmmm. Is there something to talk about that has something to do with the brave men?

With that in mind, Aaron and I got into the carriage.

'Well, where shall we begin? ...... Did you hear that in this world, there is a human world and a demon world, and that there are three major human countries?'

The human world?　The demon world?　Three countries of people?

No. ......

You didn't teach me that.

Okay. Well, let's talk about it.

Thank you.

”In this world, there is the demon world where the demons live and the human world where the humans live. And in the human world where we live, there's the Kingdom of Alvar, where we live, and the Vector Empire to the east and the Garum Kingdom to the south.

The Kingdom of Alvar, the Vector Empire, and the Garum Kingdom.

Yes. And my kingdom and the Eastern Empire have not been on very good terms with each other for hundreds of years now.

Is there any cause for this?

Why would you want to summon a brave man to destroy the Empire?

''Well ...... our kingdom has become a country that respects the aristocracy with an emphasis on bloodline. It is a country where even the common man can become a nobleman if he does something good, and even a nobleman is usually reduced to a slave if he fails.

The Empire is in trouble!　But I guess the Empire is better for me if I want to be an upstart.

I see. But how did that difference develop into a conflict?

”Easy. It's easy. The imperial system is faster to develop. In a meritocratic empire, even the common man does his best to help the country grow in order to rise to the top. By comparison, in kingdoms that are soft on the aristocracy, the upper echelons of the aristocracy and royalty have been corrupted. Feeling secure that their status will not be lost, the aristocrats have become arrogant, and instead of learning and working hard, they only think about how to get richer and more comfortably. Such a kingdom would be envious of an empire that is more developed than their own .

Ah, it was a bad pattern for the kingdom one way or the other .

''Could it be that because it's ......, you're thinking of taking it away from the Empire?''

'Do you think it's a childish idea?　I think so too.

Oh come on .

''Is it safe to say that ...... even if you're retired, Aaron-san, who originally served the kingdom, is okay with that?

I wouldn't talk about it inside the castle. I suppose that's why I'm talking to you in the carriage.

Oh, so that's what the carriage is for?

Not for transportation, but for real talk.

You're right, we can't eavesdrop inside the carriage.

No, sir, we know where we're going. But we're going the very long way.

Really? ......

Where the hell are we headed?

'Before I got down to brass tacks and started teaching the sword, I wanted Lord Kite to know just how bad this country is.

Why?　It's possible I'm going to hear that and try to flee this country, isn't it?

Honestly, I don't want to fight for this country, okay?

He'll find out sooner or later. Well, then, it might not be so shocking if you told him in advance.　Besides, I thought Lord Kite would be able to change this country, so I told you what's really going on in this country.

Yes. ......

I don't think I have the power to change the country or anything like that, you know?

First of all, I'm not even sure I'll be alive in a year, and I'm not sure I'm strong enough.

Are you worried you can't do it?

”To be honest ......, I guess so . I haven't even had a fight with anyone in the last fifteen years.

I had never been in a violent fight since I was born, even if it was just an argument.

That's why I was so resistant to hitting people.

And I had never wanted to take the lead in anything.

I don't think I could have survived the war and changed this country.

Really. But I think that's okay. The previous generation of brave men used to whine about the same things when they first came to our world.

'Really?　I heard you had defeated the Demon King, so I figured you had some special skills to begin with.

''It seems that he learned a unique sword technique in the previous world, but on the contrary, it seemed to get in the way of his use of the sword in this world, so he had a lot of trouble in the beginning.

Unique swordplay?　Did he do Kendo or something like that?

In the beginning, you went to ......?

Well, if you've been doing kendo, you'll get used to using a sword faster than I did.

'Yes. Well, it's better to let people experience this rather than explain it with their mouths. So, let's head to our destination.

knock-knock

Mr. Aaron knocked on the wall on the side with the carriage driver.

Is that a sign?

...... and so on, the carriage soon stopped .

Apparently, it was a signal to say that you can stop at your destination. I think that was his signal to stop at our destination.

When you get off the carriage, you enter a building that looks like a prehistoric church.

”Master Aaron, it's good to see you. How can I help you today?

When I entered, a person who looked like a priest came hurriedly.

Mr. Aaron, you're a former Sword Saint, you're a great guy after all.

I'd like to use the room in the basement for the statue.

'I don't have any reservations today, so that's fine, but ...... what do you plan to do for us?'

The priest looked at me and Aaron in turn as he listened to Aaron's words.

'I've got a few things I need to look into. Don't worry, it won't take long.

Yes, ...... I get it.

Then, without saying anything else, the priest handed Aaron the key.

Aaron then led me to a basement room.

There was a statue of a woman on her knees with her hands outstretched in the empty space.

No, didn't you say she was a goddess.

What is this?

I'll explain later. In the meantime, touch the statue.

That's the one you're talking about, isn't it?　I understand.

Well, if you can explain it to me... I put my hand on the goddess's hand.

Then an incredibly bright light shot out from the statue.

Wow!　What is this?!

Oh, and don't take your hands off of it until the light goes out.

Yes, sir.

Then, resisting the glare, I continued to hold the goddess statue's hand.

Then ...... after a while the light subsided and there was a card in the goddess's palm.

Then take the card.

This one?　Oh, what?　It's gone: ......

The moment I touched the card, it disappeared without a trace.