The Lost Duo and the Iron Blood Sword
“Then let’s meet back here in thirty minutes.”
Vincent said that and headed down the one path among the four that we hadn’t taken yet. Alright, let’s go. I watched his retreating back for a moment before walking toward the remaining path. This time I’ll actually get there, right? I couldn’t believe finding the training grounds could be this difficult. I’d managed to navigate the academy just fine, so why was this happening now? I scanned my surroundings as I walked to the end of the path.
······ Thirty minutes later.
“······.”
When I returned to the crossroads, Vincent was already there waiting. He sat on a bench with a completely dazed expression. As I approached, he must have sensed my presence because he looked up at me.
“······Not there either?”
“Nope.”
The path I’d taken had no training grounds at the end. No matter how much I searched, it simply wasn’t there. It seemed Vincent had the same experience. I sat down beside him in a daze.
“······.”
As we just sat there, one thought came to mind. Oh, right. The spirit medicine. The Fire Jade that Elena had given me was safely tucked inside my martial arts uniform. How exactly do I consume this? Banya had said I could just eat it, but that “just” probably came with its own proper method. Maybe there was a specific location where it would be more effective, or a certain way to ingest it that improved absorption.
Vincent might know. I didn’t actually know what kind of person Vincent was or where he came from. I’d simply assumed he was a swordsman from the East. But somehow, I had a feeling he would know. It was an instinctual judgment.
I pulled the wooden box from my pocket.
“Vincent.”
He turned his head toward me, still sitting there with that vacant look.
“What?”
“Do you know how to use this?”
I opened the box and showed him the Fire Jade. Curiosity flickered in Vincent’s eyes.
“A jade? And it’s a Fire Jade at that? Who gave it to you?”
“Director Elena.”
“Ah······. Haha, I see.”
But the moment Elena’s name came up, his curiosity vanished. He almost looked scared. What did Director Elena do? It seemed something had happened between them during the time she stayed in the North.
“What’s with that reaction?”
“It’s nothing. You were asking how to use it, right?”
I wanted to press him about his strange behavior, but Vincent brushed it off. I decided not to pursue it further.
“Yeah.”
“You know how these jades contain an unknown amount of mana, right? You just have to control and absorb that mana using your affinity or dominance. Only as much as you can handle.”
“Does it work the same with Fire Jades?”
“Fire Jades are easier to consume in places filled with fire energy. But eating them in any mana-rich location works fine. It’s just more comfortable that way—the effect is the same.”
I’d asked on a hunch, but Vincent knew far more than I expected. If your affinity or dominance is high, the effect must be even better. In that case, it should be perfect for me. Both my affinity and dominance were practically at the highest level.
I glanced again at Vincent, who was once more sitting there in a daze. What kind of person is he, really? Vincent and I spoke casually to each other, yet neither of us minded. It felt like we’d been close from the very beginning. He seemed knowledgeable, strong, and had a good personality. I was genuinely curious about him.
“Vincent. What are you doing here?”
A black-haired handsome man approached the dazed Vincent and spoke to him. He gave off a rather noble, princely impression. He looks familiar somehow······. As I was thinking that, Vincent lifted his head to look at the man.
“Ah, Allen. Me? I got lost again.”
The man called Allen accepted Vincent’s words as if it were the most natural thing in the world. It seemed this wasn’t the first or second time it had happened.
“Heading to the training grounds again today?”
“Yeah. Can you show me the way?”
“Looks like no one gave you directions.”
At those words, Vincent turned his head and looked at me.
“There wasn’t anyone to give directions, but there was someone who got lost with me.”
Allen’s gaze shifted toward me.
“My name is Adel Ifrit.”
I’d spoken casually with Vincent, but Allen’s aura made it feel inappropriate to do the same. Allen stared at me quietly before speaking.
“If you’re Adel, then you’re Daren’s friend?”
Daren’s name suddenly came out of Allen’s mouth.
“You mean Daren, sir?”
When I tilted my head and asked, Allen let out a small sound of realization.
“My name is Allen Gawood. I’m the eldest son of the Gawood family and Daren’s older brother.”
So that was why he looked familiar. Now that I thought about it, he did resemble Daren. The difference was that Allen looked colder—like he had ice in his veins.
“Did you get lost too?”
“Yes. Somehow it happened.”
“······.”
Allen looked back and forth between me and Vincent without saying a word. His gaze clearly categorized the two of us as the same type.
“Wait a second.”
When Vincent spoke, both Allen and I turned to him. Vincent, who had been quietly listening, asked with a puzzled look.
“Adel, then you’re an academy cadet?”
“That’s right.”
“Then why are you speaking so casually to me?”
He didn’t seem upset—just genuinely curious.
“You didn’t say anything about it. You didn’t even tell me your age. Should I start speaking formally?”
“······.”
I won that little verbal exchange.
“Sigh, do whatever you want.”
Vincent seemed annoyed by this kind of back-and-forth. Allen, who had been watching silently, asked,
“Were both of you heading to the training grounds?”
“Yep.”
“Yes.”
“······I’ll guide you.”
“Oh, that’d be great.”
As expected, it seemed this wasn’t the first time. Vincent accepted the offer naturally.
“Follow me.”
We finally set off for the training grounds.
***
“Allen, how did you know?”
While following Allen, Vincent asked the question.
“Know what?”
“That Adel is Daren’s friend. You recognized him just from the name.”
Allen answered without even needing to think.
“It’s basic. If you’re the child of a prestigious family, you should memorize the names of every new academy entrant for the year. That’s what I believe.”
He muttered that he had received several letters from Daren. So that’s how he knew me. I’d found it a bit strange, but now it made sense.
······By the way, where are we? The path Allen took was the same one I had walked earlier. But I had never seen this place before. It feels like some kind of illusion magic. It gave off a slight hallucinatory vibe.
Tap.
The place where Allen stopped was a staircase leading underground. Was this here before? Just what had I been doing for those thirty minutes? I really was something else.
“Let’s go down.”
Even while lost in thought, I followed Allen’s words and descended. After going down for a few minutes, we stood in front of a door.
Oooong.
When Allen approached the door and infused mana into the handle, it clicked open. It’s like a shelter. Located underground with a mana-powered door lock. It seemed this place also served as an evacuation shelter in case of enemy invasion.
Step.
The moment we entered, pure white smoke enveloped my body, refreshing me. As I looked around curiously, Vincent explained.
“It’s one of Lord Helen’s abilities. To put it simply, it’s healing smoke. When you enter the training grounds, your body is brought to peak condition.”
The fact that it was “one of” his abilities meant there were at least several more. I couldn’t even begin to imagine just how great and powerful a person he was. I stopped thinking about it and looked around the interior of the training grounds.
Inside, countless people were either training individually or sparring. It was so loud that normal conversation was nearly impossible.
-This way.
Allen must have known how loud it was, because he spoke directly into my mind. I nodded and followed Allen and Vincent. These two seemed more famous than I thought—many eyes followed them, and I could hear a few whispers.
“That’s Allen Gawood. He really does look cold, just like his nickname, the Iron Blood Sword.”
“Is that Vincent? I heard he’s the disciple of ‘that person.’ Is it true?”
“Who’s the guy next to them?”
Rumors said Allen was as cold as his appearance suggested, and Vincent appeared to be the disciple of some renowned figure. Even setting the rumors aside, it was obvious that both of them were strong.
Why are there so many eyes on us? Even though the gazes weren’t directed at me, it still felt burdensome.
When we reached a suitably empty space, Vincent was smiling brightly. I walked up to him and said,
“Vincent.”
“Yeah?”
“Let’s spar.”
Vincent seemed to dislike bothersome things, but the moment we entered the training grounds, his expression had turned cheerful. I figured he wouldn’t refuse a sparring request.
“Sure.”
As expected, Vincent didn’t refuse. Allen, who had been listening, spoke up.
“This should be interesting.”
“Huh? What should?”
“Daren’s letters said that Adel is the greatest talent in the academy. I’ll get to see why he thought that.”
“Hmm, is that so?”
“······.”
I didn’t respond even as I listened to their conversation. This is embarrassing. I didn’t know if my talent was truly the best, but having others praise me like that was quite mortifying.
“Adel.”
Vincent’s face was still smiling as he called my name.
“How about the loser has to grant the winner one request? What do you think?”
“······You’re stronger than me.”
“Come on, I have some conscience. I’ll hold back appropriately.”
“······.”
Everyone who says things like that usually has no conscience at all.
“Then match my level of strength.”
“Got it.”
Honestly, I hadn’t accepted with the intention of winning. If I had, I would have added conditions like not using mana, using only one hand, or losing if I moved. I had accepted simply to learn from the experience. Though I wonder if I’ll actually be the one learning. In reality, I’d probably end up improving it in my own way.
“I’ll act as the judge. The rule is simple—the one who surrenders loses.”
“Okay.”
“Understood.”
At Allen’s words, Vincent and I moved to opposite sides.
“Make sure you don’t kill each other.”
Even as Allen said that, he probably knew no one would die. There was no way a powerhouse like Vincent would accidentally kill me, nor would he accidentally get killed.
“Ready.”
Oooong.
An invisible, formless aura began to form around Vincent’s body.
Fwoosh.
I responded by raising flames that flickered like heat haze.
“This should be fun.”
Even after seeing that, Vincent only thought about how entertaining it would be. If I win, great. If I lose, I learn something. I thought this spar would be fun too.
“Begin.”