Sparring with My Precious Disciple's Rival (1)
Led by Ceres's gentle hand, the tour of the Baekya Knights headquarters began. It had been three years since our reunion with my disciple, and this long-awaited time together should have been filled with nothing but joy and happiness.
But as we ventured deeper into the knights' building, I began to feel increasingly uneasy about strolling through these halls alongside her.
"Captain Ceres, who is that man beside you...?"
"This is the most precious person to me. From now on, whenever he visits, don't block him—step aside and let him pass."
"I-Is that true? This pretty boy gigolo really has an appointment with you, Captain...?"
"What did you just say?"
"Ah, n-nothing! My apologies...!!"
"You'd do well to watch your words. Any insult toward him is no different from an insult toward me."
"I-I'm sorry!!"
That discomfort likely started with the apologies from the guards at the entrance. They had been a bit curt in turning me away at first, but wasn't that simply them fulfilling their duty as sentries protecting the knights' gate?
If I were young, I might have taken offense... but now, I can understand their position and let it slide with broad-minded forgiveness.
I inwardly thought the situation wasn't serious enough to warrant their captain, Ceres, stepping in to extract apologies from them.
"Master, this way. There's so much I want to show you."
"Take your time showing me, Ceres. The day is still long, is it not?"
Of course, that single incident alone didn't make my time with my disciple truly uncomfortable. The real issue arose afterward, as Ceres led me by the hand through every corner of the headquarters.
"Captain Ceres's outfit..."
"I've never seen her dressed so fluttery and cute before..."
"Who's that guy walking beside her? Never seen him around... sticking so close to Captain Ceres like that."
"No way he's her lover, right?"
"Nah, come on. Someone as strict about rules as the captain bringing a lover into the knights' order? No chance."
"Maybe that guy begged her to let him in."
"Yeah, using the excuse of being the captain's lover to waltz into the Baekya Knights easy as pie."
"......That face of his is annoyingly punchable, too."
Genuine concern and worry for Ceres, their reliable captain who led the knights. And at the same time, suspicion and simmering anger directed at me, standing by her side as we toured the grounds.
......Whispers carried on the wind, laced with a hint of jealousy and envy, from the knights around us.
"This is where I handle my daily duties, Master."
Perhaps blissfully happy in our time together, Ceres ignored the faint voices of concern drifting from nearby. She continued the tour with the same soft smile I remembered from her childhood.
But before being my disciple, she was the captain of the Baekya Knights, and I worried for her reputation. Though happy, I couldn't simply smile and enjoy it blindly.
......Yes, if it were me and Ceres brought in some young stranger claiming to be her lover, I'd react the same way.
Still, that didn't mean I intended to flee this awkward situation. From the moment I regained my youth, I'd vowed to make up for everything I couldn't do for my precious disciples by their side.
How could I back down so weakly over something like this?
Keep my wits about me, quietly do what I can for my disciples, and eventually the opportunity will come. The moment to reborn as a master they can be proud of.
As if that thought were a prophecy, the chance to reborn as a master my disciples could be proud of—with my rejuvenated body—came swiftly to me as I toured the knights' headquarters with Ceres.
Time passed, and soon it was 3 p.m. As Ceres and I observed the training grounds where countless knights were drilling,
a man who appeared to be her direct aide approached and whispered to her.
"Captain Ceres."
"What is it? I specifically asked not to be disturbed today."
"Vice-Captain Aclerea... is looking for you."
"......Hah."
At the name Aclerea, Ceres grimaced as if utterly fed up, letting out a short sigh.
With no idea what was happening, I quietly listened to the exchange between Ceres and her aide.
"I'm in the middle of an important prior engagement, so tell her I'll meet her later."
"But if I relay that, the vice-captain will..."
"Is it so urgent she needs to see me during my appointment?"
"No, but... actually, I don't really know. It's the vice-captain, after all."
"Haa... Just tell her. I'll come see her later."
"......Understood."
The aide departed with Ceres's orders, and the situation seemed resolved without incident.
"Haa... Well then, shall we move on, Master? You must be thirsty—let's have some tea..."
Shring...
"My disciple... perchance, is this the vice-captain Aclerea?"
"......!! Master!"
If not for the figure of the black-haired, red-eyed vice-captain who had silently approached me and now aimed her cold sword tip at my throat.
A razor-sharp gaze that brooked no movement, paired with the bloodthirsty sword tip pressed to my throat.
"Sheathe your sword, Aclerea."
"......"
"That's an order as your captain. Sheathe it now."
If not for Ceres's voice, cold as falling frost, I was certain the blade at my throat wouldn't have been withdrawn until it had cleaved something apart.
Shring...
Hair dark as the night sky, eyes red like pooling blood. If my disciple Ceres was the silvery-white moon shining brightly above that night sky,
then Aclerea, vice-captain of the Baekya Knights, embodied the encroaching darkness swirling around it.
"......"
"......"
"......"
After the sword was sheathed, a short, awkward silence stretched between the three of us. Ceres's icy voice broke it.
"Aclerea. Are you treating your captain's words as a joke?"
"...No."
"Then what is this rudeness toward my guest?"
"Not rude. That man's not welcome here."
"Watch your words, Aclerea."
The tense standoff between captain and vice-captain crackled with menace. While they clashed, I watched silently for a moment before slowly speaking to Vice-Captain Aclerea.
"Why do you say my presence here is unwelcome? I'm curious about your reasoning, Vice-Captain Aclerea."
"Master......!"
"......!!"
Perhaps she hadn't expected me to question her first. Aclerea looked at me with slightly widened eyes before slowly replying.
"You beat me. Ceres is the one the knights—all of us—trust and rely on."
"......Continue."
"That person got shaken for the first time. Stood by her side without qualification. You're an insult to the knights order—to us."
"Hohoho... So that's it."
Aclerea's blunt declaration strangely eased the discomfort I'd felt until now. I couldn't say it outright, but as we'd toured, every knight we'd passed likely shared her view.
"However, there are two flaws in your words."
"......What?"
"My disc—er, Captain Ceres isn't shaken. She's simply savoring a happy moment that's come her way, adopting this cute look for a brief respite."
"......"
"Captain Ceres will remain your trustworthy captain, as always."
At my voice, brimming with conviction, Aclerea seemed to falter slightly. But her suspicion and anger toward the man who had presumptuously claimed the captain's side lingered.
I continued with a pleased smile, warmed by the fact that someone cared for and protected my disciple.
"And the second flaw: you say I lack qualification."
"......Yeah."
"Then how about you test me yourself? To see if I deserve to stand by your captain's side, alongside all of you."
Clank...
"Of course, not with words or talk—but with the sword."
"......!!"
In that instant, every knight on the training grounds, Aclerea included, doubted their ears. Though she'd lost to Ceres and yielded the captaincy, Aclerea was a knight her equal in skill.
For an unknown young adventurer to boldly challenge her to a duel was unheard of.
"What say you? Will you accept my challenge?"
"......Arrogant. You."
"Hohoho, at my age, one grows a bit shameless."
Aclerea glared coldly at my sly smile, then drew her sword—signaling her acceptance.
"...Fine. I'll test you. As you wish."
"Thank you for accepting so readily."
A duel with real swords against the knights' vice-captain, Aclerea. The knights wondered if someone—no, the captain—should stop it, glancing at Ceres.
But her face, which they checked, held only worry... for their vice-captain, Aclerea.
"Haa... Master, you'll have to go easy on her."