Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: The One Who Bestowed Teachings (3)
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There were three possibilities to consider.
‘They might not be too far from the city, for one.’
If the group made a determined escape after an attack, it wouldn’t take long to return to the city. At least not for Arietta. If she set her mind to moving at full speed alone, she could travel much faster than a horse galloping at top speed.
‘Or maybe they’re just scouts tracking our position, and their main force hasn’t arrived yet.’
This seemed the most likely to Azel.
The Dragon Shadow had already attempted to kidnap Arietta with considerable force in the Varan Forest and failed. No secret society, no matter how impressive, could mobilize more than that so easily. Perhaps they were simply keeping tabs on the group’s location in real time while waiting for enough forces to assemble.
‘Lastly… they might have already set a trap along our path.’
The group hadn’t chosen their route with the goal of confusing pursuers. They had simply picked the fastest way to the capital.
So the enemy could easily predict it. It wouldn’t be strange if they concentrated their best forces ahead and lay in wait.
‘This is the worst-case scenario.’
Azel had no idea how much force the Dragon Shadow could muster. Last time’s level wouldn’t be much of a crisis for him—at least not from his perspective. But what if they had been holding back even more?
‘Since I can’t gauge the organization’s scale or true nature, it’s hard to say.’
The Dragon Demon Worshippers were a kind of cult. Harshly ostracized by society, they operated in secrecy from the shadows, and naturally, little was known about them.
‘Right now, all I know is that their headquarters is supposedly the Dark Snowfields in the north.’
In the frozen northern lands of the continent lay a Demonic Realm called the Dark Snowfields, where Dragon Demon Hybrids hostile to humans were said to gather. That place was believed to be the origin of all Dragon Demon worship. Hidden from human eyes, the Dragon Demon Hybrids emerged to recruit worshippers in the shadows and build their organization.
‘Hm?’
Suddenly, he heard a rustling sound. Azel cracked his eyes open and saw Arietta getting up and approaching.
Azel lowered his voice.
“Princess?”
“Hm. I can’t sleep for some reason. It’s odd.”
“Isn’t it because you skipped breakfast and slept past noon?”
“Pointing out a lady’s sleep schedule? That’s not something a refined knight would say.”
Arietta sat beside Azel with a prim expression.
He had learned this since the journey began: Arietta really slept a lot. When staying in proper lodgings, she always overslept, delaying their schedule bit by bit. After it happened twice, Zail and Boer adjusted the itinerary assuming she would sleep the entire morning.
Azel gazed at the campfire and said calmly.
“There are enemies.”
“What?”
Arietta flinched in surprise. Azel continued without looking at her.
“They’re not about to attack right now. They’re not close either. I can just feel them watching us from afar with far-sight magic.”
“Hmm…”
Arietta frowned and glanced around before asking.
“Like last time—how do you even know?”
Arietta had never been called insensitive in her life. Yet Azel easily detected things she couldn’t.
Azel replied.
“It’s a technique.”
“A technique?”
“Detecting gazes on you is a skill every Spirit Order practitioner learns.”
“Such a thing can be established as a ‘technique’? I could understand if you were a mage, but…”
“Spirit Order is ultimately another form of magic. Since it manipulates the mind, things like that are possible.”
“Amazing. I’ve never seen anyone use such a technique besides you. I’ve met plenty who can sense presences in a certain range, like me, but…”
Azel gave a wry smile at her words. He found it strange that this technique—essential in the Dragon Emperor War for detecting not just gazes but the hostility or killing intent behind them—had fallen into disuse.
‘No matter how you look at it, mind-manipulating techniques seem to have been heavily实战ized…’
He hadn’t been sure against just Zail, but sparring with Boer confirmed it. They shared the same weakness. The core of Spirit Order had been lost to practice, leaving only the superficial form to evolve—or so it seemed to Azel, like a bad joke.
Suddenly, Arietta asked.
“How did you use that technique on Sir Boer? Can you teach it to me?”
“It’s simple. I just slightly twisted his senses.”
“Twisted his senses?”
“Sir Boer is a quadra master, so he knows defensive techniques to counter penetration strikes that bypass armor. Against such opponents, there are many ways to make your technique work past their defenses, and I used the most basic one.”
Spirit Order acted on the mind. And like Zail, Boer was vulnerable to mind manipulation. All he did was maintain a mental barrier around his own mind.
Such a rigidly built wall was no issue for Azel. He slyly found a gap, bypassed it, and slipped over it like scaling a castle wall to touch Boer’s mind.
As a result, Boer’s mind produced a tiny error when blocking Azel’s attack. Boer thought he had countered at the perfect moment with his defensive technique, but it was actually subtly too fast or too slow.
‘As expected, the techniques themselves remain to some degree. But the lineage is broken, so their true meaning and higher techniques have been lost…’
Boer hadn’t failed to respond entirely. He noticed the sensory discrepancy, reinforced his mental defenses, and switched to other techniques.
But Azel had countless counters for those. It looked like Boer kept falling for the same trick, but the reality was different.
‘Is this true of all Spirit Order practitioners?’
That was what Azel wondered most.
During the Dragon Emperor War, techniques were actively taught and shared. But there was no reason for that now.
Both Spirit Order and magic were power in themselves—knowledge others didn’t have. Back then, humanity faced a common enemy that demanded total unity, but not anymore. Passing on secrets was like giving away your wealth, so judging the overall level from Zail and Boer was premature.
Arietta, having heard the explanation, marveled.
“I see. I’ve seen Spirit Order practitioners affect minds plenty of times, but I didn’t know they could do that.”
Zail and Boer had some mind-manipulating techniques too. They could exude intimidating auras or mimic beast roars to terrify foes. Such skills were highly useful on the battlefield.
By comparison, Azel’s were far more subtle and refined. He produced a variety of effects, like magic, through countless methods.
Suddenly, Arietta said.
“Your masters must have been remarkable people.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because they raised someone like you. Well, I can’t speak to their character, but as teachers, they must have been skilled.”
“Hmm…”
At her words, Azel recalled memories.
Arietta spoke with a serious expression.
“I thought I had plenty of real combat experience until now.”
She had undergone her coming-of-age at fifteen and fought in many battles since.
Sometimes against monsters, sometimes evil black mages, sometimes showing her strength in border skirmishes.
It was harsh for a young girl. But Arietta had fulfilled her duty without a single complaint.
Over time, she gained confidence as a warrior. She wouldn’t waver over trifles like in her first battle, letting allies die…
“But recent events showed me that was arrogance.”
Arietta’s combat experience was biased, like a child’s picky eating.
She had never fought equals. Even when tactically disadvantaged, her personal strength was always superior.
Being threatened by a small group with power to match hers was disorienting. She couldn’t perform at full potential and kept getting dragged along by the enemy’s intentions.
“Sir Azel, without you, I surely would have been captured by those scoundrels. My master would have scolded me as pathetic.”
“For that, you handled it quite decisively, I thought.”
“No need for comfort.”
“No, really. In my view, the only time you truly floundered was against the Earth Dragon. Otherwise, you weren’t bad—not perfect, but solid.”
Two years after her first battle, and she was only seventeen. There was no reason to grade harshly. Arietta gave a wry smile.
“I thought you were flattering me, but you don’t forget to poke where it hurts.”
“I’m just honest.”
“You wicked man.”
Arietta pouted, but unlike her tone, she looked like any girl her age.
A moment later, she asked.
“Sir Azel.”
“Yes.”
“Have you fought many strong foes?”
“Hmm. Quite a few, I’d say.”
During the Dragon Emperor War, he had survived death countless times. Each Dragon Demon Hybrid was immensely powerful, and the famous ones were walking calamities.
Arietta said.
“Can you tell me about your masters?”
“My masters…”
Her words brought back old memories. Events from a few years ago for him, but ancient history for humanity…
5
Azel’s first master was an old vigilante who taught him martial arts in his childhood village in the mountains. A former mercenary, he knew systematic swordsmanship.
“He was a very strict old man.”
Azel didn’t tell Arietta the man’s name: Logan.
Logan, who trained the vigilantes’ youths, highly praised Azel’s talent for killing a bandit alone without adult help, despite no prior training. He took him as a personal disciple, separate from the others.
Looking back, those three years until Logan’s death formed the foundation of Azel’s greatness. He drilled basics thoroughly, taught structured swordsmanship, and drew on his retired mercenary experience to foster flexible responses.
“My second master… well, an eccentric. In every way, from head to toe.”
After Logan died, Azel left the village and wandered as a mercenary for two years.
Young and often dismissed, it was still a time when anyone who could fight was needed. Even pushed as arrow fodder, Azel racked up merits, survived, and gradually made a name.
That’s when he met a one-armed swordsman of astonishing skill.
“One-armed swordsman?”
Arietta asked in surprise. Azel answered.