Learning Talent
The Imperial Knights? Who did she mean?
Beware the Imperial Knights.
The handwriting was similar to the other letters. It was definitely a note written by Chloe. But I couldn't decipher the meaning behind it. In the end, there was only one thing I could do.
Mercury, I have something to ask you.
—What is it?
Mercury responded instantly to my call.
Do you know what these words mean?
—Hmm? It means exactly what it says. Beware the Imperial Knights.
...No kidding. Who doesn't know that?
I don't mean the literal words. I mean the meaning behind them. Who are the Imperial Knights she's talking about, and what am I supposed to watch out for?
—I do not know that either. Deciphering human intentions is not the domain of a god. Rather, it is closer to the domain of humans.
...
Why did she have to beat around the bush just to say she didn't know?
Whew. Let's hold back the curses for now.
I took a short breath to calm myself down.
So she didn't know who to watch out for, or why. It wasn't something I could ask Liam or Oliver either. I felt a bit bad, but I couldn't fully trust them yet.
Then let me ask you something else.
—Go ahead.
There was no way to verify the note right now anyway. I decided to change the subject.
What is the state of the Yeong-sik de Russell of this parallel world?
According to Liam and Oliver, the Yeong-sik of this world had fallen into a river a year ago and had been in a coma ever since. But now that the owner of this body had changed, I wanted to know what had happened to the original owner.
—He is brain-dead. Thus, he is neither dead nor alive.
Then what happens when I finish my mission and return to Earth? What happens to him then?
—Nothing will change. The body will simply fall back into a brain-dead state.
Hmm, so that's how it goes. Just because we were parallel versions of each other didn't mean our fates would play out the same way. It was a pity, but the son Chloe had loved, the original Yeong-sik de Russell, was still asleep.
Understood. Um... Mercury, can I ask just one last thing?
—As you wish.
I swallowed hard and asked the question.
Where did Chloe—this guy's mother—go?
—...
Mercury paused for a moment, as if trying to gauge my intentions.
—Do you mean her soul?
Yes.
—Unfortunately, the afterlife is not under my jurisdiction. Your case was a highly irregular exception.
Then is there anything you actually kn— Ah, never mind.
I barely managed to suppress my rising irritation.
For some reason, it weighed on my mind. Having briefly experienced the afterlife myself, I was curious about where Chloe's soul had gone. Of course, knowing wouldn't change anything.
I shook my head to clear my thoughts. She was someone who had nothing to do with me anyway. Wherever she went after death wasn't my concern right now.
—However...
Yes?
Mercury suddenly spoke up first.
—This is purely my own conjecture.
What is it?
—I believe she likely went to a good place. She did not seem to have committed any evil deeds.
That was unexpected. I didn't think Mercury was capable of saying something like that. I didn't show it, but I was secretly surprised. It finally felt like I was talking to a real person.
A chuckle escaped my lips. When Mercury asked what was wrong, I replied in a quiet voice.
"I think so too."
Early dawn, before sunrise.
Thick darkness still hung outside the window.
"Phew..."
Sitting up in bed, I stared blankly around the room. Only the sound of my heavy breathing echoed in the silence. I had run into a problem.
Something was wrong.
My body felt strange.
No matter how much my environment had changed...
"How did I wake up this early?"
Who was this body? My average sleep time was thirteen hours. No matter how unfamiliar the place, I had never slept less than ten hours in my life.
And yet, I had woken up not in the afternoon, not in the morning, but in the pitch-black dawn?
I wasn't even sleepy. My mind was crystal clear. Something was definitely, seriously wrong.
Or did I... sleep for over a whole day?
Mercury, sorry to bother you so early.
—What is it? Speak.
How many hours did I sleep?
—...Are you serious?
Huh? About what?
—Are you really asking a god about your sleep duration? Do you not know how to read a clock?
Mercury's tone carried a hint of irritation.
So petty. She told me to ask her anything.
—What did you just say?
"Ack, I'm sorry!"
Damn it, I couldn't even think freely around her.
I'm sorry. It's not that... It's just that I've never slept less than ten hours in my life. I was worried I might have slept through an entire day.
—...No. You slept for slightly over five hours.
Contrary to my fears, I hadn't slept for a whole day. But that only made it more mysterious. Why on earth did I wake up?
I understand. Sorry for asking such a trivial thing.
—Fine. I shall take my leave.
Mercury's voice faded, and I tried to go back to sleep.
About another hour passed.
Under the fluffy blanket, I finally fell... not asleep.
My eyes remained wide open.
"Shit, what is wrong with me?"
I couldn't fall asleep at all. No, to be more precise, how should I put it? My body felt... restless? Like it was itching to move.
I had never felt this way in my life. I felt an overwhelming urge to run outside right this instant.
Mercury...
—What is it now?
I can't sleep. What should I do at times like this?
—Do you wish to die?
...My apologies.
—Figure that out on your own.
Yes, ma'am.
I had no choice but to get out of bed.
The sun had not yet risen.
The blue-tinted air of the pre-dawn and the scent of grass mixed with damp earth—it was a landscape I had never experienced on Earth.
"What am I... *pant*... doing right now? *pant*..."
I was currently jogging.
"*pant, pant*... This is so damn hard... Why am I running? *pant*..."
I had tried running once back in high school to lose weight. But after seeing no results even after a year, I had given up on it for a good ten years.
So this situation was definitely bizarre. I had gone outside just because my body felt too restless to stay in bed?
Am I out of my mind?
Leaving the hill where the mansion stood, I ran a lap around the village along a small stream.
It was just as Liam and Oliver had described. Thanks to the streams flowing everywhere, agriculture was the main economic driver of the Russell Territory. Consequently, I was surrounded by fields.
Unlike the quiet center of the village, the fields were already populated by tenants harvesting crops early in the morning. And their reactions upon seeing me were all identical.
"Y-Young Master Yeong-sik?"
"My goodness, what brings you to the village!"
"Y-Young Master? What are you doing at this hour...?"
Their expressions looked as if they were seeing a ghost. Well, I had been in a vegetative state for a year, and the moment I woke up, I was out for a morning jog. It was only natural for them to be shocked out of their wits.
"Ah... hello, haha."
I waved awkwardly at the bowing villagers. From the snippets of conversation I overheard, news of my awakening from the coma had already spread throughout the entire village.
Leaving the startled villagers behind, I finished my jog and only returned to the mansion's hill after the morning sun had fully risen.
"*pant*... *gasp*... Hello. I'm back again."
Standing at the top of the hill in front of Chloe's grave, I paused to catch my breath.
My oxygen-deprived lungs burned as if they were tearing apart, and severe cramps flared up in my feet and calves. Every single cell in my body was screaming for mercy.
To think I had run while enduring this pain. My current state couldn't be explained simply by calling it strange. It was a phenomenon I couldn't even understand myself. Yet, it didn't feel bad.
A cool breeze wrapped around my body. The blue sky and the hills stretched out like a panorama. The scenery before my eyes was beautiful enough to blow away all the pain.
"Phew... What is this? Why is it... *pant*... fun when it's so exhausting?"
It was a refreshing feeling I had never experienced before.
After taking a shower, I was guided to the dining room by Albert.
"Good morning, Yeong-sik. Did you sleep well?" Liam asked.
"Albert, my brother must be tired. There was no need to force him awake," Oliver added.
At their words, Albert waved his hands in denial.
"No, Master Oliver. Young Master Yeong-sik was already awake before me."
"What?"
"Hmm? Was the bed uncomfortable?"
"Well... I believe it would be best if the young master explained it himself."
At Albert's words, Liam and Oliver tilted their heads, looking at me.
"W-Well, you see. I couldn't sleep, so I went out for a bit of a morning walk."
Clang!
Clang!
Inside the spacious dining room, the clear sound of two knives dropping echoed.
It was a reaction I had expected to some extent by now. If they knew I had been running instead of walking, they would have lost their minds even more. I quietly sat down as if nothing had happened.
A moment later.
A strange tension hung between us as we began our meal. Liam and Oliver kept stealing glances at me.
"Are you... are you really alright? You're finished already?" Liam asked, concerned.
"Listen to Father. Suddenly starving yourself will put a strain on your body," Oliver chimed in.
"I'm fine. Really, I just don't have much of an appetite."
"I-I see."
"...If your body feels strange in any way, tell us immediately, alright?"
A half-eaten plate of turkey sat untouched in front of me. The taste was impeccable, just like yesterday, but my appetite still hadn't returned.
Should I ask them to reduce my portions?
Perhaps as a consequence of sweating like a pig, I kept reaching for water instead of food. Watching me gulp down water, Liam asked,
"So, how did it feel to visit the village after such a long time?"
"Um... it was a good experience. The village was peaceful, and the people seemed nice."
"I'm glad to hear that. However, it is still dangerous to wander around alone. I will assign guards to accompany you next time."
"...Understood."
Liam's concern was natural. I had only recently woken up from a coma. Furthermore, as the son of the baron, there was always a chance I could get caught up in an accident.
"Father, speaking of guards..."
"Hmm? What is it, Yeong-sik?"
I carefully voiced the thought that had crossed my mind during my morning walk.
"If it's alright, I'd like to learn... martial arts."
Clang!
Clang!
The knives hitting the floor made that clear, ringing sound once again. As if he had anticipated this, Albert placed fresh knives on their plates.
"M-My apologies, Albert. I seem to have been startled for a moment," Liam stammered.
"Yeong-sik, martial arts? Where is this suddenly coming from?" Oliver asked.
Looking at the two of them sweating bullets, I slowly began to explain.
"I just feel like I want to learn something. Swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, anything is fine. I was hoping you could find someone to teach me. Would that be alright?"
"Haha. Oliver, I didn't mishear that, did I?"
"You heard correctly, Father. Yeong-sik says he wants to learn martial arts..."
"I-I see."
Honestly, I didn't even understand myself why I was bringing this up. Was it to save Lercelon? To fulfill Mercury's demands? Neither. It was more like I just had this burning desire to learn something quickly.
"Would it be alright?" I asked again.
"Haha, of course it's alright! To hear such words from your mouth, Yeong-sik... I've lived long enough to see everything. Eating less, starting to exercise... I am so proud of you, my son!"
"I will do my best to help you as well. I clearly see your determination to lose weight!" Oliver added.
...It seemed they saw it as nothing more than a burning passion for dieting. I felt a bit wronged, but there was no need to correct them.
"I will have someone find an instructor immediately, so tell Albert what times you prefer," Liam said.
"Yes, thank you!"
My heart fluttered.
It was a thrilling feeling.
The hope that I could change.
The vague expectation that I would become strong.
My body was itching so much I could barely contain it.
"Then, is there a specific weapon you wish to learn?" Liam asked.
"Pardon?"
Liam's sudden question caught me off guard.
"If you want to learn martial arts, you must choose a weapon. Just name whatever comes to mind first."
"W-Well..."
It was a question I hadn't prepared for. After pondering for a brief moment, I slowly opened my mouth. I didn't know if it was the right answer, but I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.