Chapter 94

The day of the entrance examination had arrived.

Meditation? Warm-up? None of that is necessary.

I am Daisy Pagger, the maid of Weatherwitz, an awakened sword demon, and a countess. I am the hero who delivered the final blow to Mephisto and the founder of the demon ironing technique.

I was not afraid of the entrance examination.

The venue for the examination was near the royal castle.

Inside the white building, reminiscent of Mephisto's temple, there was a vast open space, not unlike a racetrack.

The densely packed tiered seats surrounding the circular arena reminded me of the Black Lagalho.

"Have you arrived, senior?"

"Hmm."

Jin, who had arrived earlier, was trying to pull Andert up from the chair where he was sitting.

I sat right next to Andert, who was not moving at all.

"Jin, where is Count Sereinye?"

"He is with the people who seem to be the examiners."

I focused my mind and confirmed the group gathered on the opposite side of the arena.

There were three examiners in the robes of the Church of Logue.

Their expressions were not good, and beside them, in the shade, the King of Astroza, Count Sereinye, and the white-haired Calepha and Skuld were resting comfortably. It must be uncomfortable for them.

'Is Dshero there too? Given his status, it seems he was invited.'

Even from a great distance, I could feel Count Sereinye looking at me and smiling.

He wrinkled his nose and turned his head.

"More people are taking the exam than I thought. Even a cursory glance shows that there are many formidable individuals."

Seeing Jin, who seemed somewhat excited, I suddenly had a question.

"How did you learn from the Sword Saint?"

"…Sword, you mean?"

Just as Jin was organizing his thoughts.

"How do you do it? Roll like a dog."

A flat voice was thrown out. It was Andert.

"Mad dog."

He looked up at me with a deeply displeased expression.

"Why would he call me by that damn nickname? The Sword Saint treats those he accepts as disciples mercilessly. He pushes them through ridiculous training, treating them like dogs, pushing them to their limits, and even to the brink of death, and only teaches sword techniques to the few who remain."

Jin, with an uncomfortable expression, immediately countered.

"That training is not ridiculous. It is basic training to build physical strength, muscle, and mental fortitude."

"You're making a joke. The Sword Saint doesn't even accept those who haven't even mastered the basics. Isn't that true for you too? You might have been a wandering mercenary, but your skills were good enough to rival any knight. You must have thought so too, right?"

"…"

"The worst thing about the Sword Saint is that he casually touches people's traumas. Not only does he touch them, but he endlessly stimulates them until they break. He doesn't teach sword techniques to those who can't overcome their traumas. Even after rolling like maggots, they can't surpass the second wall."

Trauma.

According to Andert's testimony, the Sword Saint's training methods and the Church of Logue's training methods seemed to have many similarities.

"Can I surpass this wall in my lifetime? From the moment I started to doubt, the existence of the Sword Saint became distant. How did this man surpass the third wall? What kind of life did he live?"

"…"

"True learning begins from there. The Sword Saint taught us that. Well, he later taught us to kill people and in many ways was not a human teacher. But for those who pursue strength, there is no better teacher than him."

Listening to the continuous story, which seemed out of character, I had a question that I couldn't help but ask.

"Why do you want to become stronger?"

What was the reason Andert and Jin pursued strength?

'From the way they grind their teeth, it doesn't seem like they were treated lightly.'

Andert, without even blinking, countered my question.

"I want to ask you the same thing. How did you reach that level at your age?"

While avenging my enemies, somehow…

"Call me master. Then I'll tell you."

"Bullshit."

Andert, chuckling, swung his long legs and moved to the higher tier seats.

'Strangely, he's been quiet lately.'

In Midwinter, he was busy giving bizarre quizzes, but after using past memories to bring us to Astroza, he has been unusually well-behaved.

'Is he being cautious because we're in a foreign country?'

He's not the type to be cautious.

Since the most bombastic kid is being quiet, it's a welcome change, so I pretended not to care.

After Andert left, I took a moment to gather my thoughts.

As someone who was supposed to teach, I realized I had left Jin alone for too long.

That said, I hadn't been completely idle.

"I don't think I should teach you sword techniques."

Jin looked at me with a slightly surprised expression.

"More accurately, I can't teach you. I've never learned advanced techniques like sword techniques. And I've decided that what you need is not just to improve your martial skills."

Jin is already a skilled swordsman.

He didn't learn to use a sword like me, who used it haphazardly on the battlefield, but was a talented individual who learned under the legendary genius, the Sword Saint.

Therefore, he is not lacking in skills like cutting or thrusting.

"Why is that?"

"You are a sword demon."

"…Does that mean I shouldn't become stronger because I might fully assimilate?"

"What does that matter? Even if you fully assimilate, I can stop you alone."

"Oh, right."

Jin's face showed a slight sense of relief.

My main intention is to help Jin overcome the wall of being a sword demon.

Since I have a similar experience, I might be able to teach him in a similar way.

"Do you have a face that comes to mind when you think of someone precious?"

Jin hesitated for a moment before answering.

"My younger brother comes to mind."

"But you said you had no family last time?"

"Yes. My family consisted only of my younger brother, who died a long time ago."

"Is there anyone living whose face comes to mind?"

"No."

"An old friend?"

"No."

"A lover?"

"No."

A tough situation.

A sword demon is someone controlled by the sword.

Therefore, it is easy to lose control over the sword. The phenomenon of complete assimilation occurs when this control is completely lost.

However, when I surpassed the second wall, although I did not gain physical evolution, I obtained the control to prevent complete assimilation.

Then, how did I obtain this control?

By overcoming the fear of being a sword demon and fully accepting myself as a sword demon.

Then, how did I overcome the fear?

"These scars are my pride. Huhu. Among the former princesses of Pen Rota, I am the only one with such glorious scars. Scars left by a hero!"

A presence that reassured me, a sword demon, and made me proud.

"Teach me so that I can protect those I trust and overcome like you, senior."

A presence that said it could help me as a sword demon.

"Since you have confirmed that I am alive, discard the sword. Forget the time you wielded the sword. Just live as a maid who serves you."

A presence that taught me that the sword demon is only a part of me.

Thanks to these presences, I was able to overcome my fear.

If I didn't have people who needed me and whom I needed, it would have been impossible to achieve this realization.

But a sword demon with no friends, no family, and no lover.

"If you have nothing, give up on surpassing the wall."

"…"

"If you don't want to give up, start by making friends."

"…Do I have to?"

"Yes."

"Please tell me why."

He moved his lips but stopped.

I judged that conveying my realization in words would be meaningless.

'After all, I don't know much about Jin.'

I haven't even asked the most fundamental question about the existence of 'Swordsman Jin'.

"Why do you want to become stronger?"

Jin, who hesitated slightly, answered in a prepared manner.

"Because the Great Mage Mephisto might still be alive."

Oh, I didn't expect that name to come up.

"He is dead, Jin. He perished with Andert Pagger. It's been four years."

"But no one has found their bodies, right? He might still be alive somewhere. He could be building his strength, waiting for the right moment."

Hmm, that's a surprisingly solid reason. You want to protect the world, don't you? You have the makings of a hero.

"Are you worried about Mephisto's resurrection? Is that the only reason you want to become stronger?"

Jin's expression stiffened slightly.

It seems he wasn't prepared to answer this question.

That means, the story on this side is more likely to be honest.