Outside the town, it seems there are magical beasts.
“What are magical beasts?”
“I’m not a scholar, so I don’t know the details, but apparently when they created and migrated to this world in the past, they also brought along animals, including for the purpose of food.”
“Ah, I can see why they’d do that.”
It seems they fled, but if they don’t eat, they’ll die.
“They say that at the time they either kept animals outside the town or released them to maintain the ecosystem, but this world is so filled with Astral that the animals absorbed magic and became magical beasts.”
“Evolution, huh?”
“Do magical beasts become stronger?”
“More or less. That’s why there are magical beasts outside the town. There are huge bears, boars, and stuff like that.”
“Wow…”
Can I take them on?
“There are jobs where people hunt these creatures. They sell their meat and also gather medicinal herbs in the forests because plants, like animals, have changed due to being imbued with magic.”
“Medicinal herbs? Do they restore HP?”
“Herbs are materials for making potions. These kinds of herbs, or animal parts, can be sold at the academy and in industrial areas.”
Is that what you’d call a part-time job…
“Is it profitable?”
“It’s somewhat lucrative. There are even students who work hard at such jobs to pay for their tuition fees, and some who study these creatures outside the town.”
“I’d like to try going sometime.”
It really intrigues me.
“Of course, it’s you, the ‘brain-dead hero.'”
“Most people would be scared hearing about magical beasts.”
Well, I’m not entirely free of worry.
“I can take down a bear with one hit.”
“I’ve heard that.”
“Given how I could shatter one of Ms. Jenny’s automata in a single strike, I think it’ll be fine. But you need permission from your parents, the teachers, and the student council president to go outside, you know.”
“Is that so?”
“I get the parents and teachers, but why Sharl too?”
“It’s the student council president’s job to manage the students. The order is, you get the permission from your parents, then submit the request to the student body president. If she finds it acceptable, it gets submitted to the teacher. In our case, it’s our homeroom teacher, Ms. Jenny.”
Hmm…
I don’t think getting the approval from Sharl or the teacher would be an issue.
The problem is what my parents will say…
“Let me think about it. Father and mother…”
“Especially Mother. She doesn’t like fighting, you know.”
“Most of the time, parents objecting is the biggest hurdle. In warrior families, they might actually encourage their children to go…”
Cedric looks at Frank.
“Don’t lecture me. Ilmera and I were sent, but I wanted to go anyway, so it was fine with me.”
Sharl, being part of the warrior family herself, was perhaps told the same thing?
It must be unreasonable…
“Ah well. Let’s just go to the weapons shop. I’m curious.”
“You’re a boy, alright.”
“Let’s head on up.”
We climb the nearby stairs to the second floor. Sure enough, the floor is a weapon shop. It sells swords, spears, even axes to bows and arrows.
“Awesome! This is something you’d never see in Japan!”
“We don’t in Germany either.”
“Not in England either.”
Of course.
“Are there no guns?”
“Many wizards dislike guns.”
“Be careful. In their world, just talking about firearms can make people angry.”
That’s such a hassle.
“Alright then. How much does a sword cost?”
I take a look at a sword leaning against the wall that looks cool.
“Whoa! 300,000…?”
That’s expensive!
“Of course, weapons and armor are expensive.”
“Even a cheap sword costs around 100,000… Say, can you even use weapons?”
Weapons…
“I’ve never used one. My martial art is unarmed combat.”
I’ve only held a knife a few times in my life.
“I guess weapons aren’t necessary for you then.”
True, but…
“Every boy’s dream.”
“I get the appeal… Are you gonna buy one? You’ll deplete your funds!”
Hm…
“Umm… Are there any second-hand ones?”
“You’re trusting your life to a weapon, mate. Don’t do that.”
“True…”
“But I’d still like to try one…”
“I could lend you one, if you want. I have plenty at my disposal.”
Plenty?
“Do you really have that many?”
“Being from a warrior family has its perks. While they won’t buy me comics, they will buy me weapons.”
For things that have entirely different price ranges…
“How about selling the weapons they bought you?”
“That’s exactly what my brother did, and got thrashed by father for it afterward.”
Scary…
“Fair enough… then lend me one.”
“Sure, no problem. But, not right here in the shop.”
“So, where can we go?”
“Not in town either… How about we go to the academy’s practice grounds? There, we have the freedom.”
The Colosseum…
“Can we really go in there?”
“There shouldn’t be any problems. Students use those areas on holidays and after classes.”
“Alright, let’s head back to the academy before I buy something.”
I really want that trident they have there…
“Alright.”
“That’s probably for the best.”
We decide to go back, leave the store, and after we ride the magic circle back to the academy, we head to the practice grounds.
“There’s no one around.”
We seem to be the only ones at the practice field.
“That’s good. Sometimes it ends up in fights.”
“True. Give me a sword.”
“Here.”
Frank brings out a sword and hands it to me.
“Whoa… lighter than I thought it’d be.”
I thought it’d feel heavier.
“It’s a beginner’s sword. Try swinging it.”
“Hear me out, Frank?”
Upon pulling the sword from its scabbard, I swing it, and a “Swish” sound is heard.
“Does it feel like this?”
“Nice!”
“Uh… though my movement’s fast, the sword feels like a stick…”
Cedric praised it, but from Frank’s professional perspective, it’s lackluster.
“Is it bad?”
“Probably. If you use the technique like that, you’re likely to break the sword. You may even kill your opponent though…”
Hmm, bad, huh.
“Frank, can you show me an example?”
Saying so, I handed the sword back to Frank.
“First, your stance should be like this.”
Frank slightly bends his knees, lifting the sword.
“Feels like you’re in the zone.”
“Seems strong.”
Frank and me nod our heads in agreement after taking a look at him.
“Feels a bit embarrassing.”
“Stop worrying about that.”
“Continue! Continue!”
As Frank swings the sword at our urging, it appears razor-sharp and creates a clean line in the air.
“Like this.”
“How does it compare to mine?”
I asked Cedric.
“At glance even I can see they’re very different. You’re wasting a lot of energy.”
See…
“Alright, Frank, come at me.”
I taunted him with my fingers.
“Why do you want to fight like this? Normally, you wouldn’t challenge someone who has a sword.”
“Think of this as practice. Here, there’s no way we’ll die or even get injured, right? We’re good, we’re good.”
“Damn… I won’t hold back then.”
Frank readied his sword.
“Hey, both of you, hold on a sec. Someone’s coming?”
Cedric stopped us, so we look towards the entrance to see a black-haired girl standing there.
“Ah, it’s Yuika.”
“Looks like your cold’s improved.”
Hmm…
So this is Akaba’s top scorer.
Now, how thick is this person’s head exactly?
Thank you for reading.
If you found this work ‘interesting!’ or the continuation is ‘intriguing!’, bookmarking it or evaluating it by changing the stars ★★☆☆☆ to ★★★★★ would be a great encouragement for me to continue writing.
Thank you very much!
