“That roof doesn’t have no damn sword stuck in it.”
He closely observed the house while cursing the informant who gave him the wrong information. It was much smaller when compared to the houses that nobles lived in. If one had to compare, the house looked as if a decently wealthy citizen could live in it. Regardless, it was more than enough for three people: Gazef and the old couple working as live-in servants.
Committing it to memory, Brain resumed his walk.
He was not heading to any destination in particular.
He no longer wanted to go around looking for magic items, weapons, or armor.
“What should I do…”
His muttering disappeared into empty space.
It wouldn’t matter even if he were to just go off somewhere and disappear. Even now, his mind was strongly drawn to that idea.
Although he searched his heart for what he wanted to do, he only found an empty hole in its place. Not even the ashes of his shattered goal remained.
So then why—.
Looking down, the katana was in his right hand. Underneath his clothes, he was wearing his chain shirt.
The reason that he was gripping this katana before he arrived at the capital was fear. Even if he knew that it would do nothing to the monster called Shalltear who blocked his attack at full power with the nail of her pinky, the anxiety of being without it was too much for him to bear.
Then why was he still holding it? It wouldn’t have mattered even if he left it behind. As expected, was it because he was nervous?
Thinking it over, Brain tilted his head.
No.
However, as to what emotion prompted him to bring his katana with him, no answer came.
Brain walked while remembering the capital from back when he visited it for the first time. While buildings like the palace and the Magician’s guild were unchanged, he spotted many buildings that were new. As Brain tried to enjoy the gap in his memory, there was a commotion further down the road.
He frowned at the commotion. The sound coming from in front of him was filled with the sharp feeling of violence.
As he was about to turn to take a different path, his eyes became drawn to an old man. The old man looked as if he was slipping through the crowd as he headed deeper inside.
“…W-what? What are those movements?”
His eyes blinked several times as words involuntarily spilled out. Those movements were too unbelievable. They made him think as if he had just seen a daydream, or perhaps a result of some sort of a spell.
It was doubtful whether even Brain could follow the old man’s movements. Such technique was only possible if one could read the flow of the push and pull forces generated by both the individual and the whole crowd.
—What he saw was a mastery of the body.
His feet moved towards the old man without hesitation.
Having pushed aside the other people and arriving at the center of the crowd, what Brain saw was the moment when the old man struck the man’s chin at high speed.
Just how? That attack just now… if it was me, could I have dodged it? That might be hard. Did he trick that man’s senses? Am I just thinking too much? Anyways, that was a clean textbook strike, not a single wasted movement…
He could feel his groans of admiration spill from his mouth as he ruminated over the attack that he had just witnessed.
Not only was he unable to see it clearly, it was very difficult to compare a swordsman and a martial artist using the same unit of measurement. However, even that short amount of time was more than enough to understand that the old man was considerably powerful.
The old man may even be stronger than him.
While biting down on his lips, Brain compared the side of the old man’s face with the data of skilled opponents that he had in memory. However, he was different from all of them.
Just who is he?
In the blink of an eye, the old man moved out of the crowd. A boy walked away, as if to follow him. Acting on impulse, like he was being drawn in, Brain began to follow the boy.
It felt as if the old man had eyes on his back, making it hard for Brain to follow him closely. But with the boy, that was not a concern. And even if the boy was found out, Brain himself would still be safe.
Shortly after he started to tail them, Brain detected the presence of several other followers. However, whether they were following the old man or the boy was none of his concern.
Eventually, the two turned a corner and their path continued to grow darker. Brain felt nervous, it was like he was being lured out.
Does the boy not think it’s suspicious? Just as Brain began to wonder, the boy spoke to the old man.
Because they had just turned a corner, Brain was able to hide in the alley and listen in.
To sum up their conversation, the boy wanted to study under him.
What nonsense. That old man won’t accept a greenhorn like him as a disciple.
When comparing the abilities of the two, if the boy was a pebble, then the old man was like an enormous gem. They lived in completely different worlds.
…How pitiful. I didn’t think that not knowing the difference in skill between you and others could be this pitiful. That’s enough, kid.
Brain thought to himself without saying it out loud.
While he meant it for the boy, it was also directed at his past self who was foolish enough to believe that he was the strongest.
As he continued to eavesdrop— he didn’t pay much attention to the bit about brothels— it seemed to have been decided that the old man would train him maybe once or twice. An old man of that caliber, to a boy like him, Brain could think of nothing that would be worth teaching.
What’s going on? Did my eyes get hazy again? No, that’s not it. That kid’s skills aren’t anything special and he doesn’t even have any talent!
Just what sort of training was he going to give him? But from this position, he could only hear, not see. Unable to resist his curiosity, Brain killed his presence and slowly moved to try and peer over the corner. At that moment—
A terrifying energy pierced his entire body.
His scream could not be described in words.
His whole body froze solid.