I entered the novel in Dragon God Year 981, Month 13.
And now it was Dragon God Year 984, March.
It had already been over two years since I started living as Aiden Stroke. Since Part 1 began in the latter half of 988, that left roughly four years.
For reference, there was one important event scheduled to occur between now and the start of the original story.
Namely, in three years, in 987, the list of the Continent’s Twelve Heroes would be updated.
The Church of Struggle selected a new set of the Continent’s Twelve Heroes every ten years, so the previous update to the list had been in 977. Blake Shaw, whom we were on our way to visit, had been a member of the list from two generations ago—that is, up until 967.
As the owner of the Great Educator (S) trait, he was aptly nicknamed “the Professor” and was exceptionally skilled at teaching others. Among the renowned warriors of the current generation, many had received his instruction, which had earned him high regard.
His strength was also beyond reproach.
After all, the incident that had truly made Regenshauer famous in his twenties had been his victory in a fight against this man.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The sound of wind being sliced.
In front of a tidy cabin, children who looked around ten years old were swinging wooden swords. And an old man was correcting their postures from behind.
Character sheet.
<Blake Shaw>
[Level: 59/61]
[HP: 16] [STR: 15] [AGI: 15]
[MP: 16] [Mental: 07] [Sense: 20]
[Divinity: 06]
[Traits: Thousand Hands (S+), Great Educator (S), Astonishing Insight (A), and 3 others]
[Skills: Blake Weapon Arts · Extreme (S), Blake Mixed Swordsmanship · Extreme (S), Blake Attribute Mixed Heart Method (A+), Wiblet Empire Grappling Arts (A), Hundred Gale Steps (A), and 13 others]
[Description: Age 74, human race. Third son of the prestigious martial family, Count Shaw, from the Wiblet Empire. A former Triple Star, he has mastered all sorts of weapon arts and heart methods.]
According to the setting, Blake had been a dedicated hard worker who had fully reached Level 61 when he fought the Thousand-Man Slayer. However, now his body had aged, dropping him to Level 59.
I waited until Blake finished teaching the children before approaching him.
“Excuse me. Are you Blake Shaw?”
“That I am. And you are?”
“I’m Aiden Stroke, the one who contacted you by letter recently. I happened to be passing through the area, so I thought I’d pay you a visit.”
“Oh, I had a feeling, but so you’re that Aiden. The topics we discussed in those letters were quite intriguing. You have remarkably deep insight for your young age.”
“You flatter me. Compared to you, the master of all weapon arts, it’s nothing I could boast about.”
“Haha, you’re gilding this old man’s face.”
I had been steadily making contact with prominent figures across the Prima Continent, using my position as the inheritor of the Seal of Struggle. Blake, right in front of me, was one such figure.
“Are the five behind you your companions? It wouldn’t do to leave them standing outside, so come on in, all of you.”
We entered the spacious cabin where Blake lived.
“It’s humble, but have a seat.”
“Thank you for your hospitality.”
“Ahem. If you don’t mind, I’d like to continue the discussion we had in our letters.”
Blake got straight to the point without any pretense.
I nodded without hesitation.
Soon, the two of us exchanged opinions endlessly on the characteristics and matchups of various weapon arts, as well as the masters who used them.
It had started as a way to humor Blake, but as we continued, I found myself genuinely enjoying it.
The interest I’d had in the world-building and techniques of Reca Chronicles since my reader days had persisted even after entering the novel, and naturally, my knowledge had grown significantly in both quantity and quality over the past two years.
This conversation with Blake was a great opportunity to make full use of that accumulated knowledge.
Suddenly, he asked me.
“Aiden, do you happen to know a lot about the current Triple Star trio as well?”
“Of course.”
“I see. Then, could you try ranking their strengths? I’m curious about your opinion.”
I thought for a moment before replying.
“Among the three, the Sword Saint stands out as exceptionally strong, while the Celestial Chantress and the Scales are evenly matched. But if I had to bet money, I’d put it on the Celestial Chantress.”
“Why do you think that?”
My opinion seemed unexpected, as Blake showed great interest.
Ask anyone, and they’d usually agree that the Sword Saint was the strongest among the current Continent’s Twelve Heroes without question. However, for second place, it was typically not the mage Celestial Chantress but the warrior from the Holy Nation, the Scales, Flora Markroti, who got the nod.
Of course, my thoughts differed a bit.
“The Scales is fundamentally a battle priest who combines healing magic and martial arts. By general rules, she’d have the edge over a mage of the same level in one-on-one combat… but she doesn’t seem to have the most suitable mindset as a warrior. In a mock battle, maybe, but in real combat, I think Duke Alabur would win.”
Flora was [62/63] when she appeared in the main story.
That was two levels higher than the Level 60 Celestial Chantress, Tristan Alabur, but considering her relatively young age, she’d probably just reached Level 60 at this point.
The setting book generally treated Triple Star level as 60 and above, but it wasn’t a hard line like ‘you must be at least 50 to enter the Twelve Heroes.’ She was probably only in the mid-to-late 50s when she was first selected for the Twelve Heroes in 977.
Yet, there were two reasons she’d been chosen for the Triple Star: one, her potential was extraordinarily high, making it certain she’d soon reach Triple Star strength; two, her origin in the Holy Nation meant heavy influence from the church.
The existence of the Triple Star, considered the pinnacle even among the renowned Continent’s Twelve Heroes, made for good political propaganda.
After hearing my explanation, Blake burst into laughter.
“Hahaha! Intriguing. Have you ever met Flora personally?”
“No. I’m just guessing based on records of her spars and rumors, so feel free to disregard it.”
“Actually, I visited the Holy Nation a few years ago and instructed that child Flora. And I felt something similar to what you just said. It’s not pleasant to speak ill, but apart from her outstanding skills, she seemed to have many mental aspects still in need of polishing.”
He smiled faintly as he looked at me.
I already knew that Blake rated Flora lowly. I also considered her the weakest among the current Triple Star, but to build rapport, I’d used more provocative wording than usual.
When the atmosphere had ripened just right.
I brought up the main topic.
“Mr. Blake. As the sub-master of the Blispiel Clan, I have a request. I’d like to invite you to our clan house in Elanore.”
“….”
Blake looked at me steadily.
His eyes were hard to read.
<Aiden Stroke>
[Level: 39/60]
[HP: 10] [STR: 10] [AGI: 13]
[MP: 18] [Mental: 05] [Sense: 13]
[Divinity: 05]
*Equipped: Fortune Wheel Amulet (S) (Divinity +1)
[Traits: Thunder God Physique (S), Great Educator (S), Firebird (S-), Swordsmanship Genius (A), Reverse Veins (A), Serene Clarity (A), Spirit Affinity · Strong (A), Magic Prodigy (B), Mana Eye (B), Culinary Prodigy (B), Dexterity (B), Mana Control (C), Lung Capacity (C), Adventurer (C), Alchemy Prodigy (C)]
[Skills: Alsigima Resonance Shatter Art (A), Silent Realm (A), Alsigima Heart Method (A), Tranquil Heart Method (A), Brandish Harmony Heart Method · Extreme (B+), Taramu Blood Current Control Heart Method (B), Stroke Heart Method (B), Stroke Swordsmanship (B), Mirvana Strong Wire Art (B), Northern Advanced Swordsmanship (C), Itanga Tribe Weapon Arts (C)]
[Description: Age 16, human race. Sub-master of the Blispiel Clan. Once notorious as a wastrel throughout the principality, but he has reformed.]
It had been a while since I’d seen my character sheet.
Thanks to the effects of various elixirs and the Firebird (S-) trait shared with Chesa, my potential level had finally reached 60, and the traits and skills sections had become even more splendid.
But the most important fact was that my current level was about to enter the ‘near-Twelve Heroes’ tier of 40.
This meant that, once conditions were met, Swordsmanship Genius (A) would evolve into a title trait.
Personally, the title trait I hoped for, Sword Demon (S+), had three major acquisition conditions.
- Possess Swordsmanship Genius (A) trait.
- High [AGI] and [Sense] values.
- Master multiple types of high-grade swordsmanship.
I’d fulfilled 1 and 2.
The issue was 3.
As you could see from my skills list, the only one falling under ‘high-grade swordsmanship’ was Stroke Swordsmanship (B).
That was why I absolutely needed to win over Blake, who had the Great Educator (S) trait.
By recruiting him as the clan’s dedicated instructor and receiving his teachings, I could quickly master various swordsmanships. Moreover, it would allow rapid growth for Epio and other future melee companions—a win-win.
“An invitation.”
Blake stroked his white beard.
Suddenly, he opened his mouth while looking at me.
“I have one question.”
“Go ahead.”
“When you invite me as the clan’s sub-master… it’s not just for a meal, but a proposal to stay long-term at the clan house, right?”
“To put it bluntly, yes.”
“Hmm….”
Blake seemed deep in thought at my words.
According to the setting, the reason he lived in seclusion in this remote place without affiliating with any group was to leisurely cultivate his martial studies without getting entangled in any interests.
So, he’d surely reject my proposal this time.
But this should change his mind.
I pulled out the card I’d prepared for the negotiation.
“This is a gift I prepared personally for you, Mr. Blake.”
“This is…!”
Blake’s eyes widened.
What I’d taken out was none other than the Spear Saint School Defensive Arts Primer (A-) I’d stealthily acquired from Melkina.
This manual, originating from the eastern Ciencia Continent, was the technique used by a certain warrior Blake had once crossed blades with. For some reason, Blake had come to need this Spear Saint School Defensive Arts, and he’d wandered the continent desperately searching for that warrior from his past, but the warrior’s whereabouts were already unknown.
Incredibly, however, several Dragon Horse Cult executives in Part 2 used this Spear Saint School Defensive Arts.
From the circumstances, it seemed that warrior who’d fought Blake had been kidnapped by the Dragon Horse Cult side—likely an attempt by Aliki to turn him into a subordinate via Fanatic Brainwashing (U) that had failed.
“I gave up searching for this technique long ago. To think I’d encounter it again in a place like this… Heh.”
“What I want isn’t for you to become our clan’s backer. That would be burdensome in your retired state.”
“Then what?”
“If you accept this proposal, we’ll treat you as an honored guest and martial advisor at the clan house. We’ll spare no funds for your research on the manual, and there’s no need to show your face publicly at all. The only thing we ask is that you provide teachings when we request it—externally, of course. Including this technique you’re researching now.”
“…You seem to know what technique I’m researching?”
“If my guess is right, aren’t you studying a way to counter the Dearside School’s techniques? And this Spear Saint School Defensive Arts is perfectly suited for that.”
His eyes went wide.
“Why do you think that?”
“I heard that right after your spar with the Thousand-Man Slayer, you began wandering the continent in earnest. I just deduced from various circumstantial evidence, including that.”
“…Aiden, you keep surprising me.”
Blake had fought the Thousand-Man Slayer in the past.
And he had some acquaintance with the Sword Saint as well.
Having experienced the two peerless swordsmen who spanned eras, it was natural for him to take an interest in the Dearside School that had produced them.
And as time passed.
Creating a heart method and manual that surpassed the Dearside School’s advanced techniques became the life goal of “the Professor.”
“…The conditions you mentioned don’t sound bad at all. Especially since the Blispiel Clan seems financially affluent relative to its size. I hear that fellow Camillo has remarkable business acumen?”
“…You know a lot about us.”
“I have deep connections with the head of an information organization spanning the entire central region. It’s entirely thanks to him that my view remains broad even while staying in this cabin.”
Blake looked at me steadily as he said that.
Then, with a short chuckle, he added.
“I’ll visit Elanore soon.”
I clenched my fists tightly.
Upon returning to Elanore, I brought Kurt to see Bailey.
“Sir, I’ve brought the blacksmith.”
“A blacksmith? That kid?”
He furrowed his brow in displeasure at the sight of the 13-year-old boy.