Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: Descending the Mountain
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As you know, I'm quite the coward.
So this current situation is unavoidable.
"Master! Where on earth are you?!"
I was hiding atop a tree where Nameless's gaze couldn't reach, my body concealed by the leaves.
'I don't wanna go!'
I knew it was pathetic to act like this at this point,
but when it actually came time to leave, my feet just wouldn't budge.
And who could blame me?
'I've lived here for 300 years... how am I supposed to go out into the world...'
Too much time had passed since I'd holed up in this remote corner of the mountain.
Only after everything had settled down did the thought of meeting someone other than Nameless make my head spin.
Besides, back then Nameless was just a kid, which made conversations flow easily.
But talking to other people out in the world? That would surely drain my mental energy.
Still, with my honor as a master on the line, I couldn't just stay put.
Running and hiding like this was only buying me a little more time anyway.
'At least let me mentally prepare...'
I tried to console myself and steel my nerves.
I peeked out from the leaves,
and spotted Nameless in the distance, shaking strawberries to lure me out.
'That little punk?'
Did he think I'd pop out the second I saw the strawberries?
For some reason, it irritated me, and I furrowed my brow.
"Please, Master! When are we leaving?!"
Nameless had been circling the same spot for a while,
but finally seemed to decide I wasn't there and moved on.
"Phew..."
It felt like I'd aged ten years.
Of course, I knew running around like this wouldn't last;
he'd catch me soon enough.
Even so, I wanted to delay leaving the mountain just a bit longer.
Once Nameless was completely out of sight, I jumped down from the tree.
'No one's around, right?'
I whipped my head around to check, extending my senses—and suddenly, a presence hit me, sending chills down my spine.
"...Why is Nameless's presence right behind me—"
I stiffly turned my head, anxiety gripping me.
"Master."
"Kyaaak!"
Nameless was right in front of my nose, and I nearly jumped out of my skin.
'What the hell is with this guy?'
Calming my pounding heart, I stared at him in disbelief.
No matter that he'd left my sight and I'd let my guard down,
he couldn't have just popped out like he'd been waiting.
'Nameless definitely wasn't this good before.'
For future reference, I needed to check this out.
"Master, stop running away—"
"...How did you do it?"
"Pardon?"
"How did you find me? What did you do?"
I put on my sternest face, the kind I rarely used even with Nameless, and asked in a low voice.
This was that important.
There was no reason someone else couldn't do whatever Nameless had done.
But even faced with my resolve, Nameless sheepishly scratched his cheek.
"Even if you ask how... I don't really have much to say."
"What?"
My eyes narrowed.
'What does that mean?'
For some reason, Nameless blushed like he was embarrassed.
"I smelled Master's scent from up in this tree..."
"...What? Scent?"
Scent? I'd bathed today, though?
I hurriedly lifted my arm and sniffed, but there was nothing.
'...How dog-nosed is this guy?'
I seriously needed to ask if he had any canine beastkin ancestors.
I eyed another chance to bolt,
but ended up getting dragged back by the scruff of my neck.
"Nameless? I'm your master—don't you think you're handling me a bit roughly?"
"I wouldn't know."
It felt so weird.
'Tch, is this how master-disciple relationships usually go around here?'
Come to think of it, Nameless had always loved teasing me since he was little.
My 300-year-old geezer instincts were itching to flare up, but I barely held back.
If I kept running, I'd never leave at all, so I swung by the hut, grabbed the packed bag from yesterday, and hoisted it on.
"Master? It wasn't that big yesterday..."
"It's your imagination. Just your imagination."
The bag was bigger than me, but I straightened up and looked up at Nameless.
"Have you packed everything you need?"
"Yes, I packed my stuff, and I packed you, so nothing's missing."
"What did you just—"
"The sun will start setting soon. Let's get going."
I glanced up at the sky at his words, but it had only just risen.
'This punk again?'
I was about to snap at him when he started pushing my back.
"Hold on—stop pushing!"
"Yes."
"Whoa!"
The moment his push stopped, I nearly tumbled backward.
"What are you doing so dangerously?!"
"Master wouldn't fall from something like that, right?"
True, but this was about attitude, wasn't it?
Nameless's demeanor rubbed me the wrong way,
but his smug grin left me speechless.
I shook my head quietly and turned back for one last look at the hut.
The dilapidated shack was on the verge of collapse.
"Hmm, it's a place I'd grown attached to, so leaving feels regrettable."
"We'll come back anyway, won't we?"
"True enough."
Nameless was right, of course.
'Yeah. We'll return.'
Having a place to come back to after a long journey was a joyful thing.
"Let's go, then."
I flashed a bright smile.
As we walked for a while, a sudden question popped into my head.
'Come to think of it.'
There was something I hadn't asked Nameless.
"Nameless."
"Yes, Master."
"Where are we headed?"
Normally, as the master, I should lead the way,
but
'I don't know the roads.'
I'd never left the mountain, so I had no choice.
That was why I was blindly following Nameless, but I had no idea what awaited at the end.
It was only natural to be curious.
Swallowing my embarrassment, I asked—and Nameless gave me a dumb look in response.
"Pardon? I'm just following you, Master."
What?
"What are you talking about? You know I've never left this mountain, right?"
"I've only been to the nearby village and my hometown myself."
Oh no. Big trouble.
We were two people who had never once explored the world.
Dizziness hit me, and I pressed my forehead.
"How could you, my disciple, not prepare even one thing like this?!"
"Shouldn't you, as Master, have looked into it at least once?"
Playing dirty with incitement and fabrication?
This guy needed a dose of fact-based reality.
I furrowed my brow and pointed at him with my most furious glare.
"Hah! Your sky-high master spends every spare moment teaching you or training—where would I find the time?!"
At a loss for words, Nameless turned his head away and stared straight ahead.
"And when I took you as my disciple, didn't you say you'd handle all the miscellaneous stuff?"
I poked his side with the finger I was pointing.
"Answer me!"
Poke. Poke.
Nameless looked up and rubbed his face dryly over and over.
"Sigh... Master, then how about we go to that village I always visited?"
"The village you always went to? The one where you bought the strawberries?"
"...Yes."
It was the one place I knew about from Nameless, and I was curious about it anyway.
"Hmm, that seems fine enough."
My anger hadn't fully subsided, so I grumbled a bit.
"Yes, then after the village, we can buy a map there."
"That sounds solid."
A journey with a map? How romantic.
I pictured it in my mind.
'A wandering ronin swordsman traversing the world with just a wooden sword.'
The corners of my mouth twitched upward.
"How long to the village, then?"
"About a week if we walk."
"What."
I'd figured three days at most, but this was way longer.
Had Nameless been trekking to some distant village for strawberries all this time?
"Wasn't it the closest village?"
"Yes, it was."
There was no reason to lie about this,
and his face didn't show any signs of deceit.
So it must be true.
"Hmm, so no sword practice for a whole week?"
"We can rest along the way if it takes too long."
I'm not used to going without swinging my sword,
but honestly, I didn't feel like I could advance my realm through practice right now anyway.
'The wall...'
It felt so close, just a little further,
yet I'd been stuck for years. The thought alone made my chest tighten.
If I had one hope, it was that this journey would help me break through that wall.
Wondering how I looked, lost in thoughts of advancing to the next realm,
I gave Nameless, who looked worried, a small smile.
"No need to go that far. But we'll need to do some Internal Energy Circulation."
"Ah, you mean the Mana Breathing Method?"
I shot him a sharp glare.
"Internal Energy Circulation."
"Ah, yes."