Chapter 76

Reincarnated as a Sword Emperor in the Sword Master's Family (76)

It was the very next day.

The 'Exploration Permit for the 5th Sea Zone,' which I had won through the duel, was hung in the center of the cockpit. Although we had not yet been recognized as A-grade, we could easily pass the grade review if we just recruited a few more members.

Vivian, who had been brought from the Santa Maria, which had lost its captain and faced the threat of disbandment, exceeded expectations.

"What is this kid?! She's ridiculously competent!"

"Hehe."

Vivian blushed and smiled shyly, receiving Francis's high praise and a pat on the head.

It couldn't be helped.

A high-level wind spirit mage was already a top-tier asset, but there were also differences in skill in handling spirit magic. If you left everything to the spirit, the control of power and direction would be inconsistent, and it would often be swayed by moods and the environment.

However, Vivian didn't make mistakes even with complex instructions and could summon the ideal form of wind.

"I've done a lot of this in Santa Maria! At first, I made mistakes and got scolded, but after five years of continuous practice, I got the hang of it!"

Francis asked in a shocked expression.

"How many times a day did you do this? This thing?"

"About thirty times after I got used to it? Before that, I did over a hundred times. Back then, I had to drink mana potions to even call my friends. Now, I'm fine without them!"

"...Conrad, the abuse you suffered from that scum has become the foundation of your growth. You seem more like a veteran than someone with ten years of experience."

Ninian looked at her brother with a face that seemed both angry and proud. She didn't know what to say about how his skills had improved due to the exploitative contract.

Francis, who had a similar bitter smile, turned to Ninian and said:

"Thinking about it again, isn't Vivian a senior to Ninian on the sea? She has not only been to the 5th Sea Zone but also taken on higher-level and more diverse quests."

"Keh! You're not wrong."

As an adventurer, Ninian had several times more experience, but the evaluation in Bermuda was indeed as such.

Although she had worked diligently for five years, she had only taken limited solo missions, while Vivian's name had been recorded in reports from an A-grade adventure guild.

Ninian, who seemed frustrated that her younger sister had surpassed her, accepted the comment with a frown.

"Don't take it so seriously; it's just a joke. You're learning archery well from Leonard, right? If your skills improve further, getting re-evaluated to A-grade won't be difficult."

"Ah, just as the captain said."

Ninian's face brightened at Francis's words and she replied:

"I'm only at the level of hitting one out of a hundred, but I feel twice as strong compared to before. If I can achieve hitting one out of a thousand, getting an A-grade should be easy."

"Huh? Is that a level in archery?"

"It's just a basic level."

Leonard interjected in their conversation. He glanced at Ninian and advised:

"The archery I taught you is considered beyond the beginner level only from the point of hitting one out of ten thousand. You're not even at that level yet. If you start feeling complacent now, your path will become even longer."

"...I'll keep that in mind."

"Then there's no time for idle chatter."

Unable to withstand his pressure, Ninian stretched her shoulders and returned to the shooting target.

She had left her position to watch Vivian's training.

Francis, who watched Ninian's back with a face that said 'I can't stop her,' asked him cautiously:

"How is Marian? Is she doing well?"

"Not bad."

Leonard answered, turning to look behind him.

He had just finished teaching Marian swordsmanship. This room was a training facility inside the Aquamarine's hull.

Reflecting on her training, he gave an objective evaluation:

"Her movements were unrefined and full of habits and gaps due to too much practical experience. It took some time to correct them."

"Correct them? How?"

"I kept targeting her weaknesses until she realized them on her own. After being hit a few times, she couldn't help but understand. She could fix them in four to five tries, so she's a prodigy."

"Hmm, if four to five tries make her a prodigy, what about geniuses and ordinary talents?"

"I haven't taught ordinary talents, but geniuses usually grasp the feel of it in about ten tries."

"What about a genius?"

"Once."

Leonard's eyes recalled the opponent he had fought the day before.

"Christopher Conrad, he was a genius. Even after losing an eye, he immediately recovered his sense of distance and never exposed the same weakness twice."

It wasn't a full-out battle, but there was a reason he couldn't kill the guy until he used a potion.

He would run two moves ahead when Leonard prepared a fatal move one move ahead.

It wasn't a proper counterattack, defense, or evasion, but he managed to keep his life. He survived with talent alone despite the overwhelming difference in sword skills.

Marian had a talent that was one in ten thousand, but Conrad had a talent that was one in a billion.

However.

'Even a dragon's offspring cannot become a dragon if it cannot look up to the sky.'

Despite having the talent to advance to the Transcendent Realm, the time he wasted on alcohol and women made him a mediocre swordsman.

It was proof that talent alone was not enough.

Most of the absolute masters, like the Ten Respects and the Seven Virtues, were not geniuses. Too much talent often devoured even themselves and blinded them with arrogance.

Sword Emperor Yan Wuhex, despite being a genius, had transcended the Harmonious Realm due to his even more intense madness.

"...Gallano has returned, I heard."

Leonard, shaking off his old thoughts, changed the topic.

"Since I've finished helping Ninian and Marian with their training, I think I'll pay him a visit."

"If you're going to see Gallano, I'll come with you."

"Fran? Why?"

Francis's face darkened slightly as he answered:

"I also knew the brothers Gallano and Dentuso."

"Dentuso... wasn't he one of the three Transcendent Realm experts in the Aquamarine Adventure Guild?"

"Right. He used a spear larger and heavier than his own body."

He was a spearman who could sink a ship with one throw and instantly kill a giant monster.

A formidable warrior who was practically the vanguard of the Aquamarine Adventure Guild.

He also stayed behind with Njord on the last day to hold off the pursuers, and his fate was unknown. The conditions for survival were far from good.

"I'm going to meet the family of the guild member who followed the former captain to the end, as the current captain of the Aquamarine."

"You might be blamed."

"Since Leonard is going to recruit him, I'll have to face him anyway. They say it's better to take the first blow."

Leonard finally nodded.

"...Alright. Let's go together."

* * *

The first sea zone of the Atlantis Maritime Alliance, Oureichalcos, was a very prosperous and wealthy area due to its characteristics.

The amount of logistics converging on the central city of Atlantis was literally enormous, and even with tens of thousands of workers working all day, it was common for the work to spill over into the next day.

However, as the light grew brighter, so did the shadow behind it. People who had fallen out of or been eliminated from the urban competition gathered in undeveloped areas for various geographical and political reasons, forming slums.

"Looks like Gallano lives in this area."

The streets were not properly maintained, with large rocks and tree roots protruding from the roads.

Leonard moved, kicking away the obstacles.

The slum dwellers, who had thought about starting a fight in the alley, backed away when they saw this. The power in his kicks alone was enough to show that he was not someone to be trifled with.

That was exactly Leonard's intention.

'They're weak to the strong and strong to the weak. If I just show a little power, they'll back off on their own.'

There was no reason to waste time.

Leonard and Francis, who had come to find Gallano, crossed the deserted road and headed towards the address they had received from Bermuda.

The area was so chaotic that it took quite a while even with a well-drawn map.

Still, they finally reached their destination.

"Ah? What are these brats doing here?"

"They both look good, but they're a bit unlucky. Are they a couple?"

"This isn't a place for a date. Do you have any business with our boss?"

Gallano's residence.

A few muscular thugs, who seemed to be his henchmen, as described in the list Francis had compiled, were blocking the entrance and talking to each other.

Their average skill level was around 4th Rank of the External Force Realm. It wasn't bad, but it was far from enough to make a name among the many adventurers in Atlantis.

'They look like they could scare the forest away, but the malice and killing intent in their eyes are negligible. They're not real villains.'

When you kill enough people, the smell of blood and the aura of killing emanate from your eyes and actions. The more and more vicious the killings, the stronger the killing intent becomes, unless you are born with a natural killing aura like a Heavenly Killer.

Leonard, who was an expert in killing intent, could tell that the thugs were harmless despite their appearance.

"I've come to see Gallano."

One of the thugs stepped forward as a representative.

"If you want to hire the boss, go through Bermuda. Otherwise, you'll be severely punished."

"This isn't a hiring request. It's a recruitment for a guild member."

"Guild member? The boss?"

The thugs looked at each other in confusion, then burst into laughter.

"Ha-ha-ha! Get lost! The boss is good at fighting, but that's all he has!"

"Every time he wants to go to sea, he drinks like a fish, and he doesn't care even if the client goes ballistic!"

Francis frowned at Gallano's more serious condition than he had imagined, and Leonard counted once.

This was the second time.

"The decision to accept or reject the offer is up to Gallano. We have no business with you. Move from the entrance."

Leonard's stern warning made the laughing thugs stiffen and stand up.

Their bulging muscles under their clothes were intimidating.

However, Francis barely held back his laughter and took a few steps back. He expected that if Leonard spoke twice, the third time would be different.

"...This brat is a bit disrespectful."

"Yeah. Should we teach him a lesson?"

"I understand you want to show off in front of your girlfriend, but you might get seriously hurt. Be careful."

All three were nearly two meters tall, casting shadows over Leonard's entire body.

They were threatening, but there was no killing intent.

It seemed their purpose was just to intimidate.

Leonard, realizing this, looked a bit disappointed as he let go of his sword hilt and clenched his fists.

"—I won't kill you."

Would they realize that their restrained response had saved their lives? The thugs, surprised by the sudden shift to a fist fight, instinctively responded with punches and kicks.

They had a sense of pride that they couldn't use weapons against a kid who hadn't even drawn a knife.

And then.

"Oooh!"

"Ugh! My bones, my bones! Wait, ugh!"

"Oof!"

The area around Gallano's residence, which was already quiet in the silent slum, was now filled with the sounds of pigs being slaughtered.