บท 125: To Defeat the Sword Master (3)
The most famous gladiator among Eisenmarkt, the Land of Proof.
The gladiators there are divided into several ranks according to their skills.
Pawn, knight, bishop, rook, queen and king, all chess pieces.
There are seven stages in total, including an introductory test for those entering the place for the first time.
And that stage of the present Land of proof... was completely filled.
'I did expect this.'
Kuvar thought, shaking his head.
He thought this would happen.
After Ignet Crescentia ascended to Sword Master, the Land of Proof, which gained reputation, was the holy place for swordsmen.
Even the knights of prestigious families flocked to the place.
In addition, the rising sun, Ilya Lindsay, made the situation even worse.
The Land of Proof was gaining power and sucking all the swordsmen, and thanks to that, the audience were happier watching it, both more quantitatively and qualitatively than before.
Kuvar was curious.
"Why did you come to us, to Irene?"
"…"
"It seems like you heard everything so I'll speak comfortably. I don't understand you, as you said, now you might have more articles to write than ever, day after day, talented people are flocking to this place."
"Right, and you are one of them."
"But compared to the old champions and other swordsmen you mentioned, this is less entertaining. Especially Irene… do you know this young man?"
"I don't know much. I was curious about it, and there was a limit as it only mentioned that he was from Hale Kingdom and had an outstanding performance in the Demon Subjugation earlier this year. It is like someone who has been hiding for a long time has been revealed to the world for the first time."
"… fine. Then you know how absurd the things we were talking about were."
Kuvar looked at Hinz.
He knew that Irene had great skills and potential.
However for others, he was just a young man who gave off a gentle impression.
And if he said that he would defeat a Sword Master in 4 months, he would be the centre of a joke.
'To Irene, why is this one acting like this?'
Kuvar tried to use his spirits, and same with Lulu and Bratt.
All three of them stared at him waiting for the reply.
"… wait, give me time to think."
Hinz said politely.
Unlike the first time, Irene and his party were calming themselves instead of refusing him.
But the elf was a veteran reporter, so he wasn't flustered.
It was the same for reporters, they were hated everywhere.
In addition to the articles, there were times when Hinz would change the flow of the speakers with his clever speech.
But not now.
The orc with great senses, a sorcerer cat which could see through him and the eldest son of the Lloyd family who had cool judgement.
In front of these people, showing an honest heart was better than playing tricks.
Judging that, Hinz opened his mouth.
"First of all, I will tell this from a reporter's point of view. Reporters are more attracted to raw stone than finished work."
"Stone?"
"Right. Not a strong person that everyone knows, but an existence which no one knows. It is the greatest joy for a journalist to come across such an existence and to process it as an article."
"Then…"
"The reason why Elf Hinz clings to Irene Pareira is different, do you know about Ignet Crescentia?"
Everyone nodded at his question.
Everyone knew her.
The strongest swordsman in 20s. A rare genius who could threaten even senior Sword Masters.
The elf who said her name spoke.
"When she first set foot on the Land of Proof, she said she would defeat all the strong men within a year and turn into a champion. Everyone laughed. Although famous, she wasn't good enough to claim the title... however… in that year, she didn't just become a champion but even reached the great level of Sword Master."
"…"
"It was a shock and I laughed at her with other people."
It was beyond common sense for them.
An existence which deviates from ordinary standards.
At that time, Hinz thought it was just a random event.
Something which happened once in a hundred years, so he didn't have to care.
It wasn't that he couldn't laugh at her but he knew how good Ignet was.
He felt bad and continued with his life.
When a famous swordsman appeared, he would put out his prediction in the articles, and when things don't happen well, he writes appropriate mockery.
Like that, he passed the articles and spent his days.
And two months back.
Another great incident happened which shocked everyone.
Hinz too.
Just like the general public, he too said 'I didn't know!'.
Despite the fact that he had the personality to get closer to anyone faster, analyze them, which was a quality he was proud of, he did nothing.
He was disappointed in his own eyes.
"Not this time."
"… what do you mean?"
"It is because of the two failures I had. I guess it is some kind of feeling. The cat is a sorcerer, right?"
"Yes. Sorcerer."
"Then you might be able to understand how I feel. I fall short when compared to you, but…"
"Of course I understand. If you have been a reporter for 20 years, it wouldn't be strange to have a sense similar to a sorcerer. Anyway, you think that Irene can meet the champion, right?"
"I think so."
"Hmm."
"I won't lie about what I felt when I met Mr. Pareira… watching the champion go to the place of the champion, the meeting and talks… little by little, I began to feel that."
"…"
"So please. Before being a reporter, I'm first a gladiator fan… before Lindsay reigns from the title of champion, I want Irene Pareira to win a battle. I want to watch a legend begin sooner, and watch it closely. I am ready to do my best… only that, phew."
Was it because he spoke with a lot of sincerity, unlike usual?
Sweat was forming on his face. And his face was a little red.
Hinz couldn't tell what was happening, but he was nervous.
Kuvar and Bratt stared at him.
"… It is a statement which has no logic whatsoever."
"Right. But that, have you two met?"
"Uh. He is the reporter who informed me of Ilya's whereabouts."
"I see. Anyway, I agree with Mr. Kuvar."
The Orc said first, followed by a blue haired young man.
Fortunately, they were people who were bound by common sense.
Thankfully, as they were the tougher version of ordinary people, they saw and experienced unusual things.
Besides, it wasn't them who had the right to make a decision.
Bratt, looked at Irene Pareira and asked.
"What do you want to do? It is your thing, you decide."
Hearing what Bratt said, Irene turned his head and looked at the elf.
Hinz swallowed.
This man was more special than the orc and the cat.
Hinz felt naked as he waited for Irene's answer.
A question came out from Irene's mouth.
"Fine. What should I do?"
"… nice! Ah-sorry!"
Hinz, who cheered by getting up, apologized.
He had never been so nervous and embarrassed in his life.
He smiled and looked at Irene.
"There is nothing too troublesome. And… if you have something to be proud of to raise a topic that will be admired by the public… please don't hesitate to speak."
"Hm. If that is the case, then I can speak better than my friend."
"Me too! Me too! There are so many things Irene can be proud of!"
"Come on, wait a minute. Don't speak high… let's move to a quiet place and talk."
Hinz, who calmed Lulu, asked to change places.
Irene and the party nodded as they headed to a room.
After a while, Kuvar and Lulu bragged about Irene.
"…"
Hinz, who listened to it, went blank faced.
He didn't have the spirit to take all of it.
It was because the stories which came out of the three people's mouths were unbelievable.
'Preliminary trainee of Krono… after getting to the second position by a narrow margin, he went back to his family for reasons.'
'Five years later, in the subjugation battle, he went alone against the demon.'
'A month ago, he didn't just overwhelm the Partizan but was also recognized by Jet Frost the 101st swordsmen…'
'Even the blacksmith Vulcanus recognized him as the master of the 10th sword?'
None of it was normal.
But the most important was the last part.
He was promised the numbering sword by Vulcanus.
It wasn't just a promise, it was now a story which had to be done.
At least, from what Kuvar and Lulu said it gave that feeling.
But this couldn't be directly written in an article.
There was better timing, and there were things which had to be checked.
Early in the morning, he will send an apprentice to interview Vulcanus and Jet Frost.
Due to the short time of 4 months, he can't go to Hale Kingdom.
'The important thing… if everything I heard is true, then a third miracle would happen.'
A rival he couldn't complete when he was a preliminary trainee.
The two geniuses reunite after 6 years and settle things on stage!
There couldn't be anything more heartwarming than this.
Hinz, full of excitement, held Irene's hand.
"I will try my best to raise the rankings as soon as possible and make you challenge the champion!"
"... Alright."
Irene responded with Hinz's words.
Noon the next day.
After an early lunch, Irene, Judith, and Bratt appeared in the "Land of Beginnings," an introductory test of the Land of Proof.
Normally it would take a week with all the swordsmen, but thanks to Hinz's network it happened right away.
Judith who crushed the candy in her mouth said,
"Let's go. Destroy them all!"
"Yes."
"Smash the queen levels and king levels and Ilya and smash everything. You will be smashed too."
'… why me?'
Receiving Judith's eyes, Irene looked at her.
And then entered the Land of Beginnings, the crowd gathered and caught their eyes.
Watching that, he moved forward with a determined expression.
"Let's go."
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