Chapter 65

Reincarnated as a Sword Emperor in the Sword Master's Family (65)

The two people who had escaped from the training room immediately went to the Zephyrus Hall and requested to rent a space used for discussions related to employment or contracts.

Since the space was lined with the Magic Tower's soundproofing magic, even Bermuda could not eavesdrop on the conversation there.

As soon as they entered the conversation room, Ninyan began to speak.

"I remember. 'Aquamarine'—wasn't that the B-rank adventurer guild that was downgraded after most of its members were killed eight years ago? Are they starting their full activities again?"

"Yeah."

"According to rumors, they've had a falling out with the Federation Council, and it's said that their relationship with 'Moby Dick' isn't good either. Are you here to recruit me to such a place?"

"That's right."

Leonard calmly agreed with her words.

Although Ninyan was speaking negatively about 'Aquamarine,' her eyes still sparkled.

'Is he trying to lower the evaluation of the Aquamarine Adventurer Guild to negotiate from a more advantageous position? Too honest a method.'

From the start, Ninyan's eloquence wasn't particularly outstanding. Generally, one's speaking ability is proportional to their social skills and friendliness, and as a half-elf, she was inevitably ostracized in human society.

She might have had some experience with negotiations and discussions during her time as an adventurer, but applying that experience was a different story.

"I'm sorry, but I have no intention of going along with your chatter."

Leonard cut off Ninyan's words abruptly.

"Even without you saying more, the Aquamarine Adventurer Guild is in a bad situation. Neither the Federation Council nor Bermuda is on our side. If we can't get out of this on our own, we'll sink to the bottom."

"Then what?"

"That's true for you as well, isn't it?"

With those words, Ninyan's demeanor changed.

A thick killing intent emanated from her single eye, spreading throughout the room.

However, weapons were not allowed in the conversation room, so both were unarmed. If not, Ninyan would have drawn her bow and aimed at Leonard, perhaps even firing a shot in anger.

"…What do you know about me?"

In response to Ninyan's questioning, he answered with a calm face.

"Nothing."

"What?"

Leonard's honest answer left her momentarily stunned, but she quickly regained her sharp gaze and shouted.

It wasn't something someone who knew nothing could say.

"Stop joking! Are you trying to mock me, human!"

She took a step forward, extending her fingertips.

Her intention was to grab his collar, throw him to the ground, and choke him until he answered.

However, Ninyan was greatly mistaken.

The difference in their levels of mana cultivation and whether they had weapons or not was meaningless.

There was no way she could win against Leonard at this distance.

Bang!

Ninyan was thrown into the air, spinning half a circle before crashing to the ground. She couldn't understand what had just happened.

"Ugh!"

The impact of the fall forced the air out of her lungs.

If Leonard had struck with full force, her ribs might have shattered, piercing her lungs and causing fatal injuries. He narrowly reduced the speed, resulting in just a bruise.

"An amateur shouldn't touch a martial artist's body so carelessly."

It was the Golden Hand technique of the Point Seizing School, the Seven Absolute Hand Techniques.

If you can't break through the seven interruptions, you lose the flow of power.

'If it's too fast to interrupt or too strong to be interrupted, it's useless.'

Neither applied to Ninyan.

He could throw her a hundred times if she attacked a hundred times. Even with a bow, he was confident he could win easily, and with just one hand, he could subdue her.

A B-rank adventurer was no ordinary person.

Even without a proper match, Ninyan's pale face revealed the gap between them. She wouldn't last a few seconds in a continued fight.

"Get up."

Leonard, who had subdued her with one throw, said.

"I was trying to provoke you, so I'll let it go this time. If you attack again, I'll break a few of your limbs."

"…Provocation? Were you testing me?"

"Yeah."

Ninyan raised her upper body to glare at him.

Her lower body still lacked strength.

"Before I came to you, I found out that you save all the money you earn as an adventurer. You accept every request without fail and even save on equipment and consumables. Why?"

"…"

"If it's for yourself, there's no need to save on equipment and consumables. If the rumor about your elven blood is true, your sense of time would be very different from humans. Yet, you're acting urgently, which means there's a pressing reason."

Leonard's quick deduction from a few clues was so close to the truth that even Ninyan felt a chill down her spine.

Her reaction itself became a clue, completing his deduction.

"You don't share any close relationships in this city. It means you distrust all the humans here. You're saving money not for yourself but for someone else. Putting all this together, the conclusion is very simple."

The person Ninyan was trying to save with her savings was being held captive by someone in this city. They might have demanded a large sum of money, or she needed that much to attempt a rescue.

Ninyan looked at him with a dazed expression, her secret exposed.

"…Very impressive. So what? What else do you want to say after exposing my secret?"

"I already told you my purpose from the beginning."

"The invitation to join the Aquamarine Adventurer Guild? Is that really the main point?"

If that were the case, there was no need for such an approach, her eyes seemed to say. Leonard firmly stated:

"Aquamarine doesn't have the capacity to trust anyone right now. So, we need to build trust first before recruiting you."

"What?"

"You don't ask for help from anyone because, like Aquamarine, the other party is too powerful. I'll solve that problem. Join the Aquamarine Adventurer Guild. That's the proposal I came to offer you."

Ninyan was momentarily speechless, staring at Leonard's crimson eyes.

As if trying to see through his true intentions, she locked eyes with him intensely before closing and reopening her single eye.

"…How can I trust you?"

"You don't need to trust me. Just remember that Aquamarine needs a new member, and you need help."

"It's about mutual interests. Human cunning knows no bounds."

"Do you have the confidence to accept unearned kindness?"

Leonard's words made Ninyan smile bitterly.

"No. I accept your proposal. If you help me solve my current problem, I'll join the Aquamarine Adventurer Guild."

"I'll draft a contract."

"Fine."

While not as formal as a standard contract, a simplified contract still had considerable binding power. They read the simple contract, then each dropped a drop of blood on the signature line.

Hum.

This was a simple and clear proof that Leonard and Ninyan had agreed to the contract. Even a great mage couldn't tamper with or cancel a completed contract.

Leonard took charge of storing the simplified contract.

"Now, it's your turn to tell your story."

Ninyan sat opposite Leonard, choosing her words carefully before starting her story.

It was a detailed record of a life spanning several decades.

* * *

The half-elf, Ninyan, was unfortunate from her childhood.

Her mother was captured by slave traders outside the forest and sold to an unknown noble. She managed to escape and return to her hometown, only to realize she was pregnant.

She wasn't cruel enough to blame the unborn child or hold the newborn responsible for her past.

"I'm sorry, I can't love you."

Every time Ninyan looked at her, her mother's painful memories resurfaced, and she would cry.

Ninyan was innocent, but her mother couldn't hide the sadness and pain she felt because of her.

Perhaps because of this.

The forest elves ostracized Ninyan, calling her a half-breed because of her human blood. She had no trouble with basic needs but had no close relationships with others. She drifted through life like a leaf in the wind, carrying her sadness and pain.

The only thing that added color to Ninyan's otherwise colorless life was her younger sister, who appeared one day.

"Big sister! Ninyan big sister!"

"Why do you call me big sister?"

"Huh? Because you're my big sister! Big sister, you're so silly!"

"You're the silly one. I don't have a younger sister."

"No, I do! Mom said you're my big sister!"

"…What?"

They had different fathers but the same mother.

They were half-sisters.

Unlike Ninyan, whose ears were only half-grown, her younger sister, Vivian, had full elf ears.

While Ninyan's mother, traumatized by her past, couldn't approach her, and her father, who shared her pain, couldn't either, Vivian followed Ninyan around with an innocent face.

Vivian was the only one who liked Ninyan, who no one, not even herself, liked.

"Big sister! Let's climb that mountain peak today!"

"I can't use elemental magic like you. I'm a half-breed."

"Half-breed is a bad word! So what if you can't use elemental magic! We can climb together, holding hands!"

"…I can't win against you."

Vivian's kindness, which could crush even the thorns that unintentionally sprouted, and her warm approach, like the sun in spring, melted away the sorrow and pain that had built up inside Ninyan.

Thanks to Vivian, Ninyan regained the strength to live and found the courage to challenge life outside the forest.

"If you need my help, call me anytime, Vivian."

"Big sister, why are you leaving?"

"Because you're the only one who likes me here. I'll find people I can love and who can love me, and I'll tell them your story. When that day comes, I'll come back to see you."

Leaving behind a tearful Vivian was painful, but Ninyan didn't stop her steps.

Leaving the familiar forest, like looking at the palm of her hand, brought a mountain of difficulties. Sleeping on the streets, starting a fire for the first time, and eating food she didn't like were all hardships.

Living as a half-elf in human society was more difficult than she imagined. Some lusted after her beauty, while others tried to pry into her past.

If Ninyan hadn't had a talent for mana cultivation and broken through the External Force Stage in her hometown, she would have been in danger.

"The Arcadia Empire doesn't discriminate against the Ain race... but it's too far to visit. If I want to use a spatial gate, I need to focus on earning money for a few years."

Decades after leaving her hometown, a message from Vivian arrived.

It was a high-level wind elemental magic that could transmit voice over hundreds of kilometers for blood relatives. Ninyan was delighted to hear Vivian's voice.

"…Atlantis, Maritime Federation!"

Hearing her desperate plea for help, Ninyan rushed to Atlantis.

Despite being at the 8th stage of the External Force and using wind elemental magic, the distance was vast. It took her months to reach the beach, where she finally found a boat to Atlantis and searched for Vivian.

And then.

"Vivian!"

"Huh? What's this, you freak?"

She encountered the A-rank adventurer guild 'Santa Maria,' which was exploiting her beloved younger sister through a fraudulent contract.