[The Saintess, Anastasia Lacroix - 14]
[The Saintess, Anastasia Lacroix - 14]
"Keuheut!"
"101 to 0."
"If you can't draw out your magic power freely, the match itself can't even be established. Please learn it quickly."
"I, I can use it if I transform!"
That was true.
Although Eris was a quarter-blood, she was a Beastkin, and she was capable of drawing out magic power by transforming.
Certainly, I think she could put up a good fight against a Holy Knight in that state. Looking purely at specs, she would have the upper hand over most Holy Knights.
However, she couldn't defeat Holy Knights with a beast's fighting style that lacked any technique whatsoever.
No matter how much the Cathedral Holy Knight Order had people doing administrative work for rear support, they were still people who had properly passed the ultra-high-difficulty Holy Knight exam through their own skill.
To them, Eris, who simply charged at them screaming like a beast, was no different from dealing with a magical beast.
And Holy Knights were...
...a group created to become masters at hunting monsters.
"Can you control the magic power you've drawn out?"
"Hmm."
"Control it. You must learn how to handle everything within your body."
"H, hey. Ed-ssi? Uh, um. Ed-sunbae? Teacher?"
"Feel free to call me whatever you like."
"Then 'Master', that feels just right."
"I have no intention of raising a disciple, but since you're learning from me for a month, it's fine to call me Master temporarily. Anyway, is there something you wanted to say?"
"Th, that is. ...Are all Holy Knights as strong as Master?"
I see.
Was that what she was worried about?
Frankly speaking, she can't beat me just by training for a month. It's funny to say it myself, but I was on the talented side, I didn't spare any effort, and I had accumulated countless experiences on the battlefield.
Basically, it was a war against monsters, so I had a lot of combat experience against monsters, but my track record of dealing with criminals was by no means shallow either.
In other words, it meant a guy with talent also put in the effort and accumulated experience.
Even if she had some talent, I hadn't lived so softly that I would be defeated by Eris, who knew nothing, in just a month.
"I'm a bit of a special case. And the Cathedral Holy Knight Order is a rear-guard unit; to be more specific, they handle administrative tasks more often."
"U, um?"
Eris seemed not to have understood what I meant.
Seeing this, I could tell how smart the Saintess was. The Saintess understood the meaning just by me saying this much.
Eris looked older than the Saintess no matter how you looked at it, so it seemed inevitable that they would be compared.
Just as I was thinking for a moment to explain it again to suit Eris, the Saintess put a cookie in her mouth and said.
"There is no one in the current Cathedral Holy Knight Order who can beat Ed."
"Th, that's amazing. Master."
"...I don't like things that sound arrogant, but yes. Honestly, that's the case."
Harold, as the Captain, had some skill, but I didn't think I would lose to him.
Of course, you shouldn't think you'll lose a fight and must always do your best to win, but you should be able to grasp the difference in skill to some extent.
Even if I fought Harold 1-on-1, I probably wouldn't lose.
If it were the Pope in his prime when he was active, I might lose, but I thought I might be stronger now.
Since it's been quite a while since he stepped back from the field.
Of course, this is just a prediction, and the Pope might be stronger.
"When did you become a Holy Knight, Master?"
"At 10 years old."
"Oh."
"Eh."
She opened her eyes wide, as if it were information even the Saintess didn't know. Come to think of it, I don't think I'd ever told her.
"10 years old!? At such a young age!?"
"That's the first time I've heard that too."
"Even though I look like this, I hold the title of 'Youngest Holy Knight'. The 'youngest' here doesn't mean I'm the youngest right now, but that I obtained the Holy Knight qualification at the youngest age."
"Why did you become a Holy Knight so early? Was being a Holy Knight your dream?"
"No, my family went bankrupt, so I had to do something. A person who was a Holy Knight at the time recognized my talent and supported me. Thanks to that, I was able to become a Holy Knight."
I had talent. I also had a reason to work hard.
If I didn't work hard, my family and employees at home would all die, and I would have to live my whole life with the disgrace of being 'Bloody Valtus'.
The people of the main family committed the crime, and we knew nothing.
I was so resentful of that, so I worked like crazy, and thanks to that, I was able to become a Holy Knight.
After that, as soon as I turned 15, I went to the battlefield, and since the war moved into a cold war, I was able to come to the Cathedral like this.
As we hunted strong monsters, including Battle Ogres, the momentum of the monsters was greatly broken, and it was effectively humanity's victory.
As monster attacks noticeably decreased, everyone laughed and cried with the feeling that they had protected their countries, and laughed and cried again for the ones who died.
"That's amazing, Master..."
"Interesting."
"What is? That my life was about to be ruined?"
"Don't you think you've been treating me too roughly lately?"
"That's just how I treat you."
"You've got some guts, I like it."
The Saintess laughed heartily.
At first, I just kept up the formalities, but since she preferred it this way, I was just treating her like this.
Perhaps she had a tendency to be infinitely generous to people she liked; she would just let it slide if it was 'her person' making the same mistake, but she tended to be very displeased if it was a stranger.
Though she didn't show it.
"You said your base element is wind, Master? Can you use other elements besides that?"
"Yes."
"Which ones?"
"I can use them all."
"All?"
"Yes, all of them."
"..."
"...Hey, are you in a position to call me a monster? You're quite monstrous yourself, aren't you?"
I should get my facts straight.
I'm still in the realm of 'genius', but the Saintess is truly in the realm of 'monster'.
I was at a level that could appear occasionally in history, and while those who handle all elements are rare, they aren't non-existent. But the Saintess was simply a being that surpassed the 'realm of humanity'.
She wasn't a person who filled a hexagon, but rather a situation where one vertex was just stretched waaaay out.
"Well... I'm a bit clumsy with light, darkness, and fire. So I don't use them much in battle. I use light to blind the opponent, or fire literally when I need fire."
I couldn't keep using light magic in a place like a dark cave, so I sometimes just used it to light a fire somewhere.
I don't really prefer darkness magic, and I don't use it well either.
It's just at the level of 'having learned it', so to speak.
Therefore, it's a shabby level compared to others who could use all elements. Because it's not like I can handle everything at 120%.
"That's amazing."
"The Cathedral Holy Knight Order is by no means weak either. Eris, you can transform, but that doesn't change the fact that you're a complete novice in other areas. If you fight without thinking like you did when you fought the Saintess last time, you'll be defeated quickly."
"Like when I fought the Saintess?"
"Of course, they might not be able to subdue you in one blow like the Saintess, but they can still win easily if they use tactics and strategy. Even if you have the upper hand in simple physical ability."
"Hmm..."
I looked at Eris's expression and gripped the wooden sword again.
"It seems you're not convinced. Alright, then try transforming. Come at me while transformed."
"U, uh? With a wooden sword?"
"Yes, it's enough."
"..."
I could clearly hear the sound of her pride being hurt, and Eris's cheek twitched.
It seemed she had some pride in her transformation.
Come to think of it, seeing its efficiency, it was true that it was something to be proud of.
If you could win everything just by having higher physical ability, no one would learn techniques.
Why would you train in techniques?
You'd just have to train your physical ability.
The world isn't that simple, which is why it's annoying and interesting.
"Hup."
Eris took a deep breath and transformed right there.
Ears and a tail appeared again, and at the same time, her nails grew longer than before; she was truly a beast-like figure.
I took a stance and watched Eris, and when she lunged, I lightly dodged and struck her head with the wooden sword with a ttak.
"Ouch!"
"You are too honest."
"H, honest?"
"Your magic power is saying you're about to charge, and your gaze is looking at where you're going to aim. Tensing your body is also too honest, so any Holy Knight would be able to interpret your next move from those movements."
"Keu-euk."
"...Do you get the idea now? You have potential, but overall, you're currently at the level of a D-class monster. It's a level that adventurers who have trained a bit could easily subjugate."
I thought maybe I was being a bit harsh, but since she didn't seem to understand the seriousness yet, I thought it couldn't be helped.
Thinking she might be hurt, even though she's not the Saintess, she's still a young girl, Eris slapped her own cheek hard.
With a crisp sound, Eris's cheek turned as if it were burning red.
"I'm coming."
"Good. That's a good resolve."
"But it's almost dinner time, isn't it?"
As the Saintess said while half-lying on the chair, I went "Ah," and put down the wooden sword.
"Can't be helped, let's eat first. Isn't everything people do just to eat and live?"
"Hmm, that's true, but... it's a bit of a letdown."
"Let's train again after eating."
"Yeah... Huh? After eating, again? We've been doing this since morning?"
"You will train during all your waking hours. The Beastkin's recovery ability is good. Even if you run out of stamina, you'll be fine by tomorrow, right? You must train except for sleeping time, bathroom time, and meal time."
"..."
Eris stared at me with her mouth wide open.
"Are you trying to kill me!?"
"I've tried it, and I didn't die."
"..."
I wasn't joking; I had trained like that before.
At an age younger than Eris.
"If I didn't die, there's no way you, with the blood of a Beastkin flowing in you, would die. And..."
I looked at the Saintess.
"We have the strongest healer on earth here, who can even deceive the God of Death."
The Saintess smiled, seemingly in a good mood, and said.
"Don't worry, I'll save you even if you have a heart attack."
Eris slumped down right there.
I can't escape from the Saintess either.
Since I've already become unable to escape, I decided to make sure one more person couldn't escape either.
It's a bit unfair for me to be caught alone.