Chapter 19: Winter Preparations(2)

“…Say, Karls.”
“Yeah, Arsene?”
“Did you have any knights in your family tree?”
“No. We’ve been carpenters for generations. You’re teaching Hans, so you should know. He’s got no talent.”

Karls replied gruffly to Arsene’s sudden question.

“Then you must have had at least one lumberjack, right?”
“I don’t think so… but seeing him today, maybe there were one or two.”

Karls said so, stood up, and shouted.

“Hey, son!”
“Yes, Father!”
“I know you’re excited, but pace yourself! The rest of us can’t keep up!”
“Just let me finish this one!”

Hans said so and swung his axe with all his might.
He had accompanied the woodcutters a few times before, but this was the first year he was actually doing the heavy lifting.
The village adults had teased Hans, saying he should take care of his back if he wanted to be a man—

—Thump!

But now they were all staring at Hans’s axe work, dumbfounded.

“Did that really just fall after only three swings?”
“He didn’t even chop the other side. Wow, we have a strongman in our village.”
“Hey Karls! What did you feed the kid! If you have something like that, you should be eating it and keeping Katherine in line!”

Karls just shrugged at the villagers’ banter.
He was also surprised, but he couldn’t deny he was pleased that his son was being praised.

“Alright! My son’s done something amazing. Let’s finish up quickly and go back for some beer! I bought a barrel the other day.”
“Really? Then I’ll prepare the snacks.”
“You mean your wife will prepare the snacks.”

As the villagers chuckled, Hans, drenched in sweat, returned.

“Hey Hans, good work.”
“Thanks to you, we can slack off for two days.”
“Come have a beer with us later.”

Hans gave the adults perfunctory replies and went straight to Arsene.

“Chief.”
“Yes, good work.”
“…Can you teach me again today?”

Arsene nodded with a pleased expression.

“Of course. Everyone! I’ll be spending some time with Hans. Please follow Karls’s instructions and work diligently. If you get tired, feel free to go home and rest early today.”
“Teach him well. Maybe my son will actually become a knight.”
“Don’t push him too hard, Arsene. We still have a mountain of work to do. If Hans collapses, we’ll be the ones suffering.”
“Hey Bern, are you already thinking about slacking off?”

Bern turned away, as if hit by Arsene’s words.
The other villagers laughed, but Hans wiped his sweat and waited for Arsene.

“Let’s go.”
“Yes, Chief.”

As soon as they walked a short distance away, the previous commotion seemed like a lie, replaced by quiet stillness.
Even though much of it had been cleared, the Great Forest was still the Great Forest.

“Were you always this strong?”

Arsene, stretching as they reached the clearing where they always trained, asked Hans casually.

“No, I used to be weak. You know that, Chief.”
“Yes. You were always getting sick. Did I ever tell you? When you were eight, you were very ill—”
“My father crossed the Great Forest in the middle of the night to get medicine from the city.”
“I must have told you. Always be grateful to your father. Karls is a good man.”

Arsene smiled faintly and looked Hans up and down.
After suffering from a serious illness in his childhood, Hans hadn’t been able to use his strength properly.

That’s why, even though he was old enough to work as a laborer, he had been assigned to childcare.
But the superhuman strength Hans had displayed while chopping wood today—

‘…It must be Avalli.’

Hans had been attacked by a demonic beast and was on the verge of death, but thanks to the mysterious power Avalli had shown, he had barely survived.
Perhaps some kind of miracle had been bestowed upon the boy in that process.

Of course, Arsene was the only one who knew.
Kyle had told Arsene, and only Arsene, about what had happened that night.
Even Avalli herself didn’t remember what she had done.

“So, when did it happen?”
“Well…”
“Hans, there’s no need to hide it from me. You’ll be learning swordsmanship from me for a while, so I need to know how strong my student is.”

Student.
Hans’s face brightened at the word Arsene used for the first time.

‘Cute.’

That was why Arsene liked the people of the pioneer village, especially the children.

These innocent people felt like a different species compared to the human scum he constantly encountered in the city.
Of course, once the pioneer village grew and established itself, they might become just as territorial, but… that was something he, as the village chief, would have to deal with.

“Well, I had a dream.”
“A dream?”

Hans nodded and started explaining his dream.
The story of the night of Kyle’s welcoming feast, the moment he had been attacked by a demonic beast and was dying.

“It was so vivid. It still feels like it actually happened, not a dream.”
“A silver-haired girl as beautiful as a goddess. If it wasn’t a dream, I should search the area. But then, would Envel be jealous?”

“…You’re teasing me.”
“You caught me.”

Arsene smiled faintly and picked up a nearby practice wooden sword.

“Perhaps you’ve been blessed by the Goddess.”
“…The Goddess?”
“It happens sometimes. Stories about ordinary children suddenly displaying tremendous strength and fighting demonic beasts.”

Most were just exaggerated rumors, but… Arsene knew that some of them were ‘real’.

“Let’s spar, starting today.”
“Really?”
“Honestly, Hans, I didn’t know you were that strong. I was planning to start with the basics and build up your muscles first.”

But things were different now.
This slender boy possessed strength greater than several adults.

“Try your best.”
“…Are you sure you won’t get hurt?”
“Strength isn’t everything. You’ll see. And Hans, don’t worry about your opponent. In a real fight, you die, and that’s it. If you’re busy being nice, and you end up dead, how am I supposed to face Katherine?”

Katherine’s message, relayed through Envel, was a worry any parent would have.
Whether or not he became a knight, the moment he picked up a sword and fought, he had to become friends with death.
Even Arsene, a mere instructor in the city, had faced death several times.

“Understand?”
“…Understood.”

Hans nodded at Arsene’s words and adjusted his grip on the wooden sword with a serious expression.
But instead of rushing at Arsene immediately, he took a small step back.

‘Low stance. Eyes always forward.’

He hadn’t learned much from Arsene in the past few days.
This defensive stance was all he knew.

Village guards didn’t have many opportunities to actively attack enemies.
So, defense came first, attack second.

“Here I come.”

Arsene closed the distance in an instant.
The wooden sword hurtled towards the top of Hans’s head, taking the shortest path.
Hans flinched at the attack, but managed to block it with his wooden sword.

‘Huh?’

It was lighter than he expected.
It looked like Arsene had swung with all his might, but the impact wasn’t that strong.
Perhaps his strength was even greater than Arsene’s—

“Gah!”

“Hans, don’t get distracted during a fight.”

Hans’s wooden sword slipped from his grasp as his hand went numb from the pain.

“I told you, strength isn’t everything. Whether or not you have talent is honestly beyond my judgment… but you haven’t even learned to walk yet. Focus.”

“…Understood!”

Hans shouted with renewed determination and resumed his stance.

And after about half a day had passed.

“Hello. Are you still alive?”

Avalli waved her hand in front of Hans’s face as he lay sprawled on the ground.

“…I’m alive.”
“Really? How many fingers do you see?”
“Two.”
“You really are alive. Honestly, Chief, why did you beat the kid up so badly?”

Avalli pouted and glared at Arsene, who was taking a drink nearby.

“He has to learn by getting hit to be able to move in a real fight, Avalli.”
“Isn’t that a bit too Spartan?”
“Spartan?”
“Ah. Um… Anyway, I’m saying go easy on him, Chief.”

Hans chuckled and sat up, hearing Avalli’s words.

“What, Avalli. Are you worried about me?”
“Yeah, I’m worried.”

Avalli had watched Hans dying right next to her.
The sight of Hans trembling and moaning in the throes of death had left a deep scar in Avalli’s heart.

“Do you really have to become a knight?”

Although she wanted to support the boy’s dream, Avalli hoped he would live a peaceful life if possible.
Until yesterday, she had thought it was something like weight training and hadn’t taken it too seriously, but seeing him beaten up like this made her worry.

“Don’t worry, Avalli.”

But her concern only fueled Hans’s passion.

“I’ll get strong soon.”

That’s how boys were.

“Sigh… Do what you want.”

Avalli said so and sat down nearby with a sullen expression.
If Hans was seriously injured, she was the only one who could heal him.

“Let’s go again, Chief!”
“Alright! Let’s do it!”

And so, Hans was beaten up all day long.

That night, Karls’s wife, Katherine, came to the house furious, but after a serious conversation with Arsene, she bowed her head, saying, “Please take care of him,” and returned home.
As Avalli read, the sound of Hans swinging his wooden sword in the yard next door filled the air like white noise.

‘…He’ll do fine.’

Another day in the pioneer village came to an end.