Chapter 28
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: Truly Fortunate
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I slash through the empty air. The sword strike swung from the edge of the training ground rides the wind, shooting over a distance of more than twenty meters to leave a scar on the scarecrow before scattering apart. Along the path to the scarecrow, only faint afterimages linger, and the breath I expended to unleash it comes out in rough gasps.
"Man, I wanna be a hero too. Isn't this straight-up cheating?"
A grumbled voice drifts over from the side. Sio watches me from nearby and lets out a sigh.
"You're doing it again. Just think of it as you teaching him well. Why do you have to make such a fuss?"
"A kid who hasn't even trained for a full year is reenacting something I spent ten years perfecting, right in front of my eyes—what do you mean 'taught well,' you punk?"
No one had ever managed to imitate it before.
Sio keeps grumbling as he kicks at the dirt. Where had that Sword Saint gone, the one who'd insisted on respect because he was thirty-five? All that remained was a pathetic uncle whining like someone had stolen his rice bowl.
"Sio... you're looking seriously pathetic, so cut it out. I treat you like a master every single time—what does that make me?"
"Sigh... So, when's Seren coming? Now that she's a saintess, she won't bother with chores anymore."
"Becoming a saintess doesn't make her irresponsible. She's probably off doing some volunteer work."
After that day, Seren had been officially recognized as a saintess with my backing. She still had plenty to learn and continued her life at the temple, but the bullying had stopped.
Everyone from the Pope on down had been thoroughly educated about Seren, so unless they'd lost their minds, none of them would dare entertain foolish thoughts.
Naturally, Seren had started visiting the palace again after that. She'd show up wherever Sio and I were, chat for ages, and then head back—that had become routine.
She talked so much that once or twice, I'd ditched Sio and bolted. Each time, her deeply hurt expression had stabbed at my heart. In the end, I'd learned to sit there obediently when she arrived. Truly a tragic state of affairs.
"Sio, I'm heading out for a bit today. Not sure if I'll be back by tonight..."
"...Hero, if you go and get your ass kicked for no reason, I'm not saving you."
"Come on~ What makes you think I'm heading somewhere dangerous~? Just grabbing a drink real quick."
"Sigh... Fine. Be careful out there. And you know what I'm gonna say."
"What?"
"The world doesn't run purely on kindness. Evil has its own role to play, too—that's what keeps the world turning, barely."
"Sio. A so-called 'necessary evil' that preys on kids is just plain evil. Trash that needs to be wiped out."
I shoot him a cold look for a moment before turning on my heel. A drop of sweat, still fresh, patters to the ground, followed by another. I slide Beatrice back into her sheath.
...Don't go too wild out there. Moderately. No killing.
Sio's voice calls from behind, and I give a small nod.
I leave the training ground behind, pass through the palace, and step out into the marketplace for the first time in ages. It's as bustling as ever. Countless imperial citizens go about their daily lives without a care, while the filthy dark underbelly reveals itself in piles of trash and ceaseless petty crimes.
This had always been my first priority as a hero. The rotten roots of the empire—ones I couldn't uproot due to lack of strength, ones I'd been crushed under while forced to merely watch. Eradicating them.
That was my primary goal. That's why I'd whipped myself into shape, why I'd endured the grueling training. Now that I finally felt capable, I headed out without hesitation.
All I carried was Beatrice, tucked into a shabby scabbard—perfect camouflage for blending into the market.
A cacophony of random noises fills the air. The streets teem with people of all ages and genders, unchanged as ever. I walk slowly, glancing into the alleys—still shrouded in darkness, utterly ignored by passersby. As if it was none of their business.
The sounds are unmistakable. Something whipping through the air, a scream from whoever it strikes, mocking laughter. They're coming from the alley, yet no one steps up. So I head that way.
Word was, the ones who controlled this market were all part of the same outfit anyway.
I kick aside the trash piled up from the alley's entrance and press forward, one step at a time toward the growing screams and jeers.
- "Ugh... S-sorry... Please spare me..."
- "Heh~ We won't kill ya~ Gotta keep you working hard from now on—why would we?"
The same nauseating voices, no matter when I hear them. Evil scum preying on others, utterly devoid of any conscience. More than enough justification to draw my sword.
The blade gleams purely white even in the dark alley, drawing their eyes. Those greed-filled gazes go blank for a moment before filling with even greater avarice. The sword's fine craftsmanship screams value, enough to make even enemies covet its wielder's strength.
- "Hey~ Don't try anything stupid. Hand over that sword and scram~ We'll let you live."
- "Nah, I saw it first. That's mine."
No killing.
Sio's words echo in my ears as I raise my sword. They won't die from losing a limb.
Sio Style Swordsmanship Form 3: Iron Cutter
Sword ki surges forth with the wind.
The slash swings at a speed invisible to ordinary eyes, carrying sword ki on the wind. A technique that once felt burdensome now flows naturally. It scrapes the narrow alley walls with a faint explosive crack—far too late for them to react.
- "What the—...! Guh...!!"
I fire the sword ki and dash forward, clamping my hand over the mouths of the two whose arms and legs have flown off. I didn't want their screams kicking things off.
"Where's your hideout? Nod if you know."
They both nod frantically.
"Then guide me there quietly. You don't want to do anything stupid."
I don't want to kill anyone, after all.
They clutch their severed wounds and lead the way. I simply follow behind. To the imperial citizen sprawled on the ground, I just motion for them to leave.
The brief guidance leads to a small entrance descending underground. A place reeking worse than anywhere else, yet brazenly out in the open. Not exactly hidden—if it was this obvious, they could've swept it clean ages ago. The thought flickers through my mind.
Rotten. Everything's just rotten.
"If you're coming along, then come. Otherwise, get lost."
- "W-we'll head back...!"
The two guides flee from me, still bleeding profusely. I open the entrance door. No guards in sight, so I walk the connecting corridor naturally. At the end, another sturdy door looms, firmly locked.
I knock twice—knock knock—and a voice responds.
- "Password."
Password.
"Rotten things just need to be cut out."
- "Wrong. Looks like a tough customer's here."
"No, that's correct."
I'll make it correct.
Sio Style Swordsmanship Form 2: Moon Dropper
Heavy sword ki crushes like a blunt weapon.
The holy sword, laden with dense sword ki, slams into the door with crushing weight like a bludgeon. The sturdy iron barrier tears apart like paper, and the guy who'd spoken from behind topples over, pissing himself.
Filthy coward.
I sever only his ankle before knocking him out with a chop to the nape. They'll all be put to labor, so I make clean cuts. Can't have issues when they reattach later.
The space beyond is rowdy as can be. Much like the market above, the air carries a human stench mixed with booze, shabby men serving drinks, women trembling nearly naked, and children locked in iron cages.
I let out a sigh at the sight and step forward.
- "Who the hell are you? New face—how'd you get in?"
I deflect the sword pointed my way and speak.
"As of today, you're all sentenced to slavery. No exceptions. You're nothing but parasites gnawing at the empire."
I swear it in the name of the hero.
- "Crazy bastard...! Kill him quick!!"
Dozens rush me, swords drawn at my declaration.
My shield, brimming with holy power, doesn't yield to the wicked onslaught.
Holy power fills the body.
I infuse my body with holy power and swing my sword. The wicked foam at the mouth from the aura radiating off me, dropping their blades.
I was merely delivering judgment upon evil.
"I didn't kill anyone. So it's fine, right?"
"...Yeah, you did good. No injuries?"
"Of course not—who's my master, after all."
"Freakin' talent monster. Those weren't just street punks; most could handle sword ki, and a greenhorn fresh off a year of training captures them all?"
"Thanks for the praise. So, where's Seren?"
"She pouted that you weren't here and left. Says tomorrow, keep your hands up and face the wall when she arrives."
Ah.
Society doesn't turn solely on goodness. Both the righteous and the wicked play their parts as cogs in the world's machine.
The ones I'd dealt with were little more than the government's errand boys. Deep-rooted filth that the authorities had long overlooked—instead of the effort to purge them, they'd just collected extra taxes to keep the nation afloat, turning a blind eye to their crimes.
When I returned after handling them, those troubled expressions were so revolting that I swung my sword at the palace wall. The deep gash I left served as a warning: behave yourselves.
Sio had sighed and called me a reckless lunatic with no brakes, but even now, he didn't think my actions were wrong.
Seren had blushed upon seeing me like that, saying she liked this side of me. I'd smacked her back when she claimed it was a momentary lapse—still felt unfair.
And the child I hadn't been able to save? Sio had rescued her that very day she'd been dragged off. In her newly built shack, she lived on with a faint smile.
"Huh? The big bro who tried to save me back then...?"
She still remembered me. Remembered that ugly side of me from that day.
"Hey~ Glad you're safe."
"Thanks so much back then!"
"I didn't even save you."
The child gazes at me and beams.
"Just knowing you tried to help made me so happy."
The only one who tried to help me.
She brushes the dust from my clothes as she says it. Wipes the blood from my hands.
Truly fortunate.