Chapter 18- The tavern heroine and the dean.

The voice of monsters could be heard through the trees.

Beside Ren, who was lost in thought, they seemed to have smelled the sweet aroma wafting from the fruit in the burlap sack he had placed on the ground just a moment ago.

However, the interest of the monster that appeared was no longer focused on the fruit.

It was inevitable that its attention would be drawn to the soft flesh of Ren and Lo.

“Unless you attack me, I won’t touch you.”

The monsters that appeared did not heed Ren’s words and attacked all at once. The monsters looked like lizards with brown scales covering their entire body, and they were E-ranked monsters with low intelligence and not very strong.

“Kiiiiiiiiiiii 』

“Keeeeee 』

However, it’s rare for E-rank monsters to use magic. The magic they used to make the terrain slightly rise to make it easier for them to run through, and to surround the area with clods of earth to make it harder for Ren to move.

Ren sees this and sighs,

“I’m just going to let it slide, that’s all.”

Ren swings his flaming magic sword and shoots out flames to scare them away.

But in doing so, he thought it might be a good idea to surprise the monsters by using star killer to counteract its magic anyway.

……That had an effect on them.

“Guh! 』

The raised dirt path that the oncoming one ran through turned back to just dirt when it was touched by a flame about the size of a spark that was released. The monster falls under its influence.

But it was only part of the story.

The magically raised path of earth remained basically intact, and only the feet of one of the creatures collapsed lightly.

Ren, who was taken aback, blinked repeatedly, thinking that he must not have been using such a strong flame.

It certainly looked like the magic had lost its effectiveness. ……

But he wasn’t not mistaken. The deformed ground crumbled away at the touch of a faint flame.

“The current flame…”

Perhaps because they were startled by the strange flames, the monsters were running away in a panic.

Ren looked down at the flaming magic sword and recalled the scene created by the flame earlier.

It was definitely not a mistake. Clearly, the faint flames were having some effect on the opponent’s magic.

It wasn’t the entire flame. Only a small portion of the flames that Ren released seemed to exert a special power and destroy the opponent’s magic.

The nature of the fire was nothing short of star-killer.

“I will show you! The mighty sword of one who can handle magic! 』

Edgar’s words come back to him once more.

Just like the blade of ice that he had released, Ren’s fire had the strength of a mighty sword.

As he recalled the fact, the shock of using so much magic power rushed through Ren’s body.

Even though it was such a slight effect and still not practical, it was a lot of wear and tear just to have a little bit of star-killer mixed in with the power of the flame’s magic sword.

However, Ren naturally relaxed his cheeks, and for the first time in a while, he felt content.

“…… Even like that, I feel like I’ve grown up for the first time in a long time.”

Just when he thought the road to becoming a sword saint was going to be hard, he thought he had another inspiration.

He was pleased that he got the same feeling as when he first started learning hard swordsmanship.

The results he has just achieved can be said to be a product of coincidence, but it’s due to Ren’s tireless efforts to improve his hard sword techniques, and the improvement in his cloak technique.

It’s still far from being his own original martial technique, and he has no idea how to use it, since only a small portion of the flame is effective.

But the joy is immeasurable. Ren knew the importance of this first step.

“Lo! Did you see that?”

He was so happy that he spoke to Lo,

“Bruu!”

Lo did not look at Ren, but answered in a cursory manner while eating grass on the ground.

Could it be that she was doing that all the while the battle was going on?

“…… As always, you’ve got a lot of guts.”

Wishing to see if he could reproduce the technique he had just used, Ren tried it many times on the monsters that attacked him. On the way, he defeated several ferocious monsters that just wouldn’t run away, but he was unable to reproduce the same effect as the first time.

(I need to practice.)

Ren, who felt that he should not push himself too hard after the first day, decided it was time and started his return trip to Elendil on Lo.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

Licia, who had taken a hot bath in the morning to help her sleep, was walking around the mansion.

She hadn’t seen Ren yet this morning. She thought it would be a good idea to take a hot bath before greeting him so that she could freshen up, but even now, after taking a hot bath and drying her hair, she still couldn’t see him.

“Hey, do you know where Ren is?”

Licia, who was walking in the house, asked the servant.

It seems to be early summer by now, and the sun is still shining through the windows a little, as not much time has passed since dawn.

“If you’re asking about Ren-dono, he left the mansion before dawn.”

“I wonder what’s going on……. Did he go to the lion sanctuary or something?”

“No. He told me that there are some fruits that can only be picked at that time of the day….”

The servant also twisted his head a little with Licia, as if he didn’t understand much.

As they did that, the heard the sound of the entrance door being opened.

『Ren-dono, welcome home.』

“Oh? Is that the fruit you were looking for? 』

“Exactly. I couldn’t resist the urge to eat it when I thought of it. 』

Licia thought she heard Ren talking to the knight, and then he appeared in the hallway where Licia and the servant were.

“Ah, Licia-sama.”

Ren was holding a burlap bag in his hand, which wasn’t very big, but not small at all. Something red was visible through the mouth, which wasn’t fully closed.

Licia, her hair still slightly damp, rushed to his side with light steps.

“Where have you been?”

“I just remembered this fruit. I really wanted to try it, so I left before dawn and picked it.”

Ren proudly smiles and shows off his burlap sack.

Licia was surprised to see the fruit inside.

“Morning glow berries?”

“Yes. As you may know, Licia-sama, these berries turn red only for a few dozen minutes in the early morning. I heard that they don’t taste good if harvested outside of those hours, so I went there in the morning.”

Moreover, since the method of cultivation by human hands hasn’t yet been established, they are often fought over in the forest. Ren knew a good spot, so he went there and harvested enough for everyone in the mansion.

Licia smiled happily at this, and it was heartwarming to see ren laugh.

The servant had gone before she knew it, so they continued talking alone.

“Aren’t you tired?”

“I’m not that tired because I rode on Lo. I also had to fight some monsters, but I can’t say that I was exhausted at all.”

“Then, go take a relaxing bath.  Do you want to leave them in the kitchen for now?”

“I will ask the head chef to make it available to everyone in the mansion.”

The two of them started walking around talking and enjoying the morning conversation, as usual, with some random talk.

Licia remembered just before they parted.

(She wondered if he used that mysterious sword when he fought the monsters.)

Licia knows that Ren has such a sword.

She had seen it up close and personal many times during their escape from Jerukku.

“Licia-sama, I’m going to the kitchen now. —-“

“I’ll see you later! Have a good day!”

Licia hurriedly replied, realizing that she had been a little dazed in front of Ren.

Licia remained in the hallway,

“…… really, what kind of power is that?”

The root of her interest is not so much an interest in mysterious powers as it is in Ren’s power to be unique.

Licia muttered as she looked out the window and looked up at the morning sun.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

At first, Ren was unsure about spending much of the holiday weekend practicing that technique.

He thought that while the new technique was important, he should not forget about the training he had been doing steadily, and should go to the holy lion’s sanctuary.

In the end, however, he decided to practice before he forgot the feeling he had when he released the flame for the first time.

The results weren’t so good.

There was no way he could perfect the new technique in just a few days.

“I’m tired.”

Ren looked up at the rising sun as he lay sprawled out in the forest.

He knew from the beginning that he was too drained of magic power. He has not felt this dizzy in a long time.

He’s very confident in his physical strength, but not in his magic power.

The situation was due to the greater consumption of magic power compared to when he used the cloak in his training at the Lion’s sanctuary.

“I better start heading back…..”

Riding Lo back to Elendil, he had recovered some of his strength by the time he arrived in town.

After arriving in town, Ren visited the Adventurers’ Guild. He had hunted a number of monsters that had attacked him during his training, so he stopped by the Adventurers’ Guild to have the monsters he had hunted appraised.

As he waited for the assessment, a woman’s voice reached his ears.

“It’s Ren, isn’t it?”

After the appraisal, Ren left the counter and walked to the dining area of the facility. The woman’s face was full of joy as she gulped down a sumptuous meal and a glass of wine, while Klonoa, sitting next to her, smiled.

“Estelle-sama, and even Klonoa-san, why are you here?”

“I had a little chat with Viscount Clausel on business, and on my way back I was grabbed by Estelle on the main street.”

“That’s how it happened. I happened to see Klonoa, who was also on her way home from work and I pulled her in here.”

“Oh, I see.”

In other words, Klonoa-sama was the victim.

He sat down opposite them, thinking that it would be rude to leave after being called on like this.

“Ren, you can ask for whatever you want.”

“I understand. Then I won’t hesitate.”

After ordering some food, Ren looked at the two people in front of him before the food arrived.

Klonoa was dressed as neatly as before.

Estelle, on the other hand, was, in a word, cool. Dressed in a white shirt and black pants, she hung her usual coat over the back of her chair.

She was very bold as she slurped down a large wooden mug.

“But Ren, what are you doing this morning during the holidays?”

“I’ve been out in the woods for various reasons.”

“Oh, hunting?”

“Something like that. And also, I’m thinking a lot about how to become a sword saint.”

Estelle took another sip and munched on a large steak.

She might seem rough if put into words, but in fact, she never forgot her elegance in her bold movements. This is especially true as she slides the knife across the steak.

“Fufufu, struggle young man. That’s the only way to become a sword saint.”

Then Klonoa spoke to Estelle, “Hey, hey”.

“When did you become a sword saint, Estelle?”

“Hm? It’s been a long time ago.”

“Don’t you think it would be helpful if she told you what it felt like then, Ren-kun.”

“…… What is it, Klonoa? You suddenly sound like an educator.”

“I am an educator, after all.”

Estelle ate another piece of steak she had cut up.

She had already slurped down several mugs of sake, but there was not the slightest sign of intoxication.

“I became a sword saint when I was just a general.”

Since that time, she had been a member of the holy lion’s sanctuary, and during one of her assignments, she had almost died. A combination of various factors and unforeseen circumstances, combined with the fact that she was on a mission with an elite few, put her in a difficult situation.

“I had several men with me, and I did everything in my power to bring them home alive.”

Her determination paid off, and she somehow managed to complete the mission without losing any of her men. The reason she was able to do so was that she had reached the realm of a sword saint.

“I fought single-mindedly with my life on the line and opened the door. A door that stood in front of the realm of the Sword Saint.”

“It was so last-minute, wasn’t it?”

“Ah. In my case, it took a sense of crisis at the point of life and death to go on. The desire for life in a place where life was at stake awakened something deep within me.”

Estelle continues, Yes.

She added that she had heard stories about Ren’s past.

“You seem to have risked your life before. So maybe it’s not a sense of danger that’s needed.”

“Maybe it’s training?”

“That’s true, but what Ren needs is another trigger. I think Ren is stronger now than I was then. Don’t be in such a hurry, try what you can.”

“Wow, that’s unusual for you, Estelle!”

“Don’t be ridiculous. It was you who told me to lead Ren.”

He was curious about how well the two sitting in front of him got along.

“I see that you two are good friends.”

“Estelle and I have worked together several times.”

“We’re both reasonably good at what we do.”

Ren nodded and continued to enjoy the conversation with the two of them.

Estelle had refilled her drink for who knows how many times, but she wasn’t drunk at all when she left, which was outrageous since she had mentioned that she hadn’t had enough to drink.

But,

“I’ll hold off on this one. My husband says I shouldn’t drink too much.”

She said some unexpected words.

Both Ren and Klonoa, who had doubts about whether they could tolerate such a large amount, swallowed those words.

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