A story of adventure that fills one’s heart with excitement.
No matter how grand the epic, it usually starts humbly.
A hero is not made in a day.
The young knights, who had decided to challenge the impossible, naturally had to face countless difficulties and hardships.
“How did you even get in here?”
“Kiddo, the big brothers and sisters are having an important conversation right now. Could you step aside for a moment?”
The students couldn’t find any connection between the grandiose title of ‘Mercenary King’ and the dazed girl standing before them.
The head of administration tried to explain the situation by showing a photo from a news article, but they still had to calm down the director of Leon Academy, who was sulking.
Fortunately, as soon as they offered some praise, the girl beamed with joy.
Everyone squeezed out words of admiration, handing over five autographs for her family as well, finally overcoming their first hurdle…
Yet, the next challenge came without a moment’s rest.
The head of administration, who had comforted Karin in his arms, posed an obvious question to the excited students.
“You’ll be away from the academy for quite some time while you wander. How do you all plan to handle that?”
Thinking it over, they realized everyone was still a student at the academy.
In a situation where demonic attacks were frequent, if a large number of students suddenly went missing, it would surely cause an uproar.
Someone suggested just dropping out, but that idea was immediately rejected.
If all of that person’s students withdrew at once, it would draw too much attention.
Professor Riyan was already in critical condition.
If a demon sensed something amiss and launched an attack, humanity would lose the great Masseuse that very day.
Therefore, there was only one way left.
“I’ll go inform Professor Riyan.”
Cain looked around at everyone and made this declaration.
Even the progenitor dragon had once been controlled by demons.
Professor Riyan was the only person they could seek help from without fear of information leaking.
A cold sweat ran down Cain’s back as he thought about it.
When the professor heard of their plan, he would undoubtedly be furious, scolding them for foolishly risking their lives without even understanding their own limits.
Cain was certain of it.
“So, you’re saying you want to leave the academy temporarily to wander freely in search of treasures?”
“You want me to come up with a reasonable excuse for the progenitor dragon so you can skip all your classes and go roam outside, putting my own life on the line as your professor?”
However, something seemed off.
Though he spoke as if he was scolding them, Professor Riyan wore a smile he could barely hold back, brimming with pride.
Drawing a slight arc with his mouth, he made his proclamation.
“I accept your proposal right this instant.”
Cain, caught off guard by the unexpected reaction, stared at him in confusion.
Professor Riyan opened his mouth with a bright voice.
“A professor’s duty is to guide their students. If you wish to travel in search of your dreams, who am I to stop you?”
At that moment, Cain realized something.
Even now, the terrible aftereffects were still gnawing at him.
Professor Riyan, renowned for his insight that surpassed even the progenitor dragon, surely had not failed to see through their plan.
Yet here he was, not even considering the connection between the students’ dungeon explorations and his own injury.
Although a wave of pity swept over him, “I am always on your side. Whatever dreams you pursue, I will support you, and even if the world doubts you, I will believe in you alone.”
The professor said this with unwavering conviction, despite the illness that clouded his mind.
Thus, the professor never lost to the illness.
Even if his body was dying, his spirit remained unbroken.
…That trust could not be betrayed.
If he believed his students could achieve anything, then Cain had to make it happen, no matter what.
“Go. Pursue your dream, my disciple.”
And so, Cain moved forward.
To accomplish the impossible dream, endure the unbearable pain, fight against unbeatable foes, and grasp the unreachable stars in the sky.
He shared the professor’s words with everyone, steeling their resolve.
With determination hardened, they began their battle against the impossible.
Reality was, of course, brutally harsh, and countless trials and tribulations continued to block their way.
But none of that mattered now.
Professor Riyan had dispatched his students.
When the demons heard this, they attacked, attempting to take hostages.
They all banded together to repel the enemy.
No matter how many times they fell, they rose again to face their foes, achieving justice and honoring their teacher’s name.
In the dungeon, their supplies ran out.
Facing certain starvation?
They hunted the beasts they captured and made dungeon meals out of them.
Disgusting or revolting food meant nothing to them.
For him, they would gladly roll in the mud.
***
Now, to this final situation.
Despite having conquered numerous dungeons, they still hadn’t found the cure to save their teacher, and now, they challenged the impregnable demon maze.
The Tomb of Qin Shi Huang, one of the Four Great Labyrinths.
In the ancient emperor’s underground ruins, who had clung to life, searching for the elixir of immortality, they found themselves on the brink of annihilation.
The Lord of the Undead, unkillable no matter how many times they struck him down.
The Mercenary King, fighting at the front to protect everyone, eventually lost consciousness, leaving only Cain able to continue fighting.
The immortal king swung his sword, his eyes gleaming, but this, too, was just another hardship to overcome.
The young man closed his eyes in silence before his foe.
‘I think I finally understand what the professor was trying to say.’
He had thought it strange.
Ciel, the young boy, trusted the professor and followed his teachings more than anyone else, yet he hadn’t reached the realm of sword’s mind.
But perhaps the problem was that he followed the professor too closely.
He’d fixated only on executing the professor’s instructions perfectly, without understanding his intent.
Do not be bound by the form of swordsmanship.
Forget the flashy techniques and focus on the essence.
Had he erased all elements except for the essence, he shouldn’t settle for emptiness but strive to fill it.
Wield the sword not with the hand, but with the heart.
Thus, what he must imbue in the sword was the will of humankind.
“Never will I yield.”
“I will cut down anything that stands in his way.”
“Even if it’s an enemy that can’t be killed, it doesn’t matter.”
“If the possibility doesn’t exist, I’ll create it.”
He turned his resolve into his sword.
Thus, the young man wielded his sword without even lifting it.
Against an enemy whom it was impossible to defeat, He forced death upon the immortal being.
Cain, in the end, cut through the world with his heart.
It was a moment when a young man left his footprint in an unprecedented, unattainable realm.
***
[“The Worst Demon Maze in Imperial History Has Been Conquered!”]
I lie on a sunbed, wearing sunglasses.
Sipping on a bubble tea I bought nearby, I leisurely skim the newspaper under the sunlight.
The empire was in complete upheaval due to this sudden incident, but my expression remained calm as I observed it all.
‘Indeed, one should live life with this kind of leisure.’
Normally, I would have been trembling in fear, wondering if this was related to the original story, and if so, how the story would unfold and what kind of threat might approach me.
But now, there isn’t an ounce of urgency within me.
This time, my plan succeeded perfectly.
Helping delinquent students skip school.
Encouraging their truancy, even falsifying reports—there is a limit to how rotten one can be.
Moreover, the best part was the situation in the training hall.
Look at this beautiful scene.
Even though it’s class time, didn’t everyone choose to skip rather than suffer through my dreadful lesson?
The empty lecture hall.
Just seeing the students rushing in urgently lifts my spirits….
“…Huh?”
A sudden, incomprehensible sight came into my view.
I rubbed my eyes in confusion, but that did nothing to erase the image of students running toward me.
A group of muscular knights, covered in mud and blood as if they hadn’t bathed in three weeks, approached me.
Seeing me lying on the sunbed, they shouted with pale faces.
“P-Professor has collapsed! There’s no time left. Stuff everything that could be helpful into him!”
The students babbled incomprehensibly.
I wanted to take off my sunglasses to show them that I was perfectly fine, but I couldn’t.
A few students lifted me, wrapping their arms around me from behind, holding me in place.
They pried open my mouth.
A huge amount of medicinal herbs, far more than I could handle, forced its way in.
Under the threat not to spit it out but to swallow it all, I forced it down with teary eyes.
The students, celebrating, left me a complete mess.
They even shed tears as they hugged me tightly.
But my misfortune didn’t end there.
“Is it true that you’ve reached the realm of the Sword’s Mind?”
“They say you turned a student who had never learned swordsmanship into a Sword Master in just an hour. How did you do it?”
“Please share your thoughts on being simultaneously nominated as a candidate for the Imperial Swordmaster and the Adventurers’ Association President!”
A swarm of reporters bombarded me.
The barrage of incomprehensible questions left my head spinning.
…Something was going seriously, terribly wrong.