October 2, 2020
This time, there are two consecutive updates. This is the first part.
“Nero, that’s enough for now————Bam!!!”
With that voice, my consciousness fades away.
“…”
I wake up.
The impact of being slammed to the ground had completely severed my consciousness.
In front of me, once again, only the ground mixed with snow and dirt spreads out.
It seems I hit my entire body hard. A dull pain spreads throughout my body, robbing me of the strength to stand up.
Ah, now that I think about it, my cheek that was punched and my side that was kicked are starting to hurt terribly.
“I, I…”
I lost.
Did I lose?
Not yet, the match isn’t over————I don’t even feel the urge to motivate myself.
I understand. No, I should say I’ve been made to understand, this kind of thing.
I can’t win against Chrono.
No matter how much I struggle, I can’t see a vision of victory. It’s the same as when I faced Sariel in the Galahad War. No, it’s even clearer than that—I can understand the difference in strength.
Why, why is this guy so strong? Is it the blessing of the evil god?
No, that’s not it either… Chrono didn’t even draw his weapon, let alone use much magic. He didn’t even make me feel like I could get hurt, let alone bring out his full power.
Until I was crawling on the ground like this, I didn’t even understand the difference in power between me and him.
“Am I… still this weak?”
This is the second time.
The despair of my own weakness.
Yes, back then too, I was like this, unable to do anything————
Nero Julius Elroad was a child prodigy, showing talent in both swordsmanship and magic from a young age. As the first prince, expectations were already high, and he exceeded them with his achievements, making him a genius and the future king.
“————Father! Is it true that to obtain the Demon King’s blessing, one must overcome the seven great trials!?”
“Ah, Nero, you’ve been sneaking into the forbidden library again…”
Carrying an old grimoire and pressing his father, Miriard, for information on how to obtain the Demon King’s blessing was a daily routine for the 5-year-old Nero.
The legend of the ancient Demon King Mia Elroad is the most famous hero tale on the Pandora Continent, known by all. Every boy on Pandora inevitably dreams of the Demon King’s throne once.
And young Nero was no exception.
With Dragon King Gavinal at the forefront, there are serious men vying to become the new Demon King of the continent. But even as a child, Nero had the determination and drive to rival them.
“So, how do I take on these trials!?”
“Calm down, Nero, first sit down. Listen, I’ve told you this many times, but blessings aren’t something you can obtain overnight. They are granted only after being acknowledged by the great dark gods————”
As the Avallon royal family, who claim to be direct descendants of Demon King Mia, they should be pleased by young Nero’s enthusiasm. But there are limits.
Blessed with talent, Nero, even as a child, could imitate the training of real knights and the training of priests. And he sought to take on even more rigorous trials.
Young children require constant supervision, but Nero, even at the age of 5, right before entering the academy, was a bundle of dangerous energy, requiring the full attention of his attendants and guards.
“You’re only 5 years old. It’s far too early to undertake the training to obtain a blessing.”
“But, Demon King Mia was already hunting monsters alone at the age of 5! In the depths of Asbel Mountain, she caught a fish monster this big————”
“That’s from the entertainment book you read the other day, isn’t it?”
“Guuuh!?”
Famous legends are told throughout the ages. And they are often pursued not as accurate historical facts, but as more entertaining and thrilling stories—essentially, they are depicted as superheroes, and the image of Mia was highly admired.
“Nero, it’s good to admire the Demon King. It’s only natural for a man, especially one from the Avallon royal family, to strive for it seriously. But at your age, you shouldn’t be pursuing only strength. Training is an important part of the discipline, but I want you to learn many more things.”
“Is that… necessary to become the Demon King?”
“Of course. For example, Mia had an older sister.”
“The ‘Healing Princess Aria,’ who performed the miracle of resurrection.”
“Exactly. But before she performed the miracle of resurrecting her younger brother Mia, she was simply an older sister, her only family. And Mia cherished her sister Aria deeply.”
Whether as an entertaining story or historical record, it is generally written that way. At least, it is certain that the young Mia lived alone with her sister Aria in a small sheep meadow in the Asbel Mountain Range, and there are several anecdotes indicating their good relationship.
According to the ancient documents held by the Avallon royal family, when in a pinch, Mia would sometimes cry out, “Big sister, help me!” or not…
“You don’t have an older sister, but you have a younger sister, right? A small, cute, angelic sister.”
“Ah, Big Brother, you’re here—”
“Ah, Nel.”
The young Nel, noticing us, runs over with a smile, flapping the small white wings on her back.
“First, cherish your family. Nero, you’re the older brother, so you must protect your sister.”
“Yes, Father.”
Hugging his sister, who giggles and clings to him, Nero’s eyes shine with admiration for the Demon King and the sense of duty as an older brother.
Nero, age 6. Congratulations, starting school.
In Avallon, the royal nobles attend a school called the Academy from the age of 6. Being a prince, Nero was thrown into an environment, though limited by status, where he mingled with many children of his age.
Combined with his innate talent and the burning admiration for the Demon King, Nero had already undergone training unimaginable for his age, making him truly exceptional.
“Ahh, wait, Nero! Come back and sit down for the lesson————”
“Then, try to stop me—!”
He often skipped classes that he had long since mastered, considering them a waste of time. Though spoiled behavior wasn’t tolerated even among the children of the royal nobles, leading to inevitable capture… the Academy teachers, who dealt with children, couldn’t stop Nero.
By this time, Nero had already mastered ‘Rapid Dash,’ allowing his small body to move freely, jumping over walls, climbing onto roofs, and running around the capital of Avallon with great mobility.
“After all, the capital is vast. There are still many places I haven’t been to… There’s plenty to explore!”
Attending school, Nero became interested in the world beyond the royal castle. Exploring the capital was far more meaningful and enjoyable than attending boring classes.
Above all, skipping school was the best way to escape the troublesome surveillance eyes————or so Nero thought at the time.
“Hehe, Laurent is easy. Let him keep looking for me while running around today.”
The elite of the elite knights selected to guard the young prince was a young man named Laurent. Nero thought he had been escaping his dedicated guard’s eyes almost every day, becoming free…
“That area is the slums, right… Come to think of it, I’ve never been there.”
As Nero’s habit of skipping school to explore the capital reached the point where the Academy teachers were almost resigned, Nero was on the large city wall guarding the capital, eating the lunch bought from a nearby stall while gazing at the townscape.
He noticed the slums by chance. However, it was inevitable that he would eventually go there.
“Alright, today I’ll go that way!”
So, perhaps it was fate that Nero headed towards the slums that day.
It was a dirty space he had never seen before.
Crumbling walls, muddy alleys filled with dirt or filth, stagnant air filled with a stench… It didn’t seem like part of the same capital.
“…Is this what a dungeon is like?”
Thinking of it as a city, it’s the worst environment, but assuming it’s a dangerous area teeming with violent monsters, it seemed normal.
Nero, of course, was familiar with dungeons. Especially the ancient ruin dungeons, which hold remnants from the time of the Demon King Mia, were of great interest. Discovering and conquering undiscovered ancient ruins was also one of Nero’s dreams.
Thinking about it, if he turned back from such a poor environment, conquering dungeons would be impossible.
This is practice for dungeon exploration————with that determination, Nero entered the slums.
“But, surely no monsters will appear, right?”
Though he saw several filthy people moving like zombies, they were still living Avallon citizens. Even in ruins that seemed to be full of the atmosphere where race-type monsters might appear, nothing really came out.
To put it mildly, he occasionally saw thieves armed with blades, but Nero, after all, had a sense of secrecy. He intentionally avoided dangerous-looking people as he navigated through the slums.
That was about the time he got used to the stench in the air.
“Wait, you little brat!”
“To make sure you can’t do bad things anymore, I’ll chop off your legs!”
Even in the noisy slums filled with angry shouts and strange cries, Nero’s ears caught quite the ominous words.
Without thinking, as if instinctively, Nero approached to investigate.
“Ugh… Move aside!”
In a corner of the alley, there was a small girl surrounded by big men.
She seemed about his age. With long black hair tied into a ponytail, her face and clothes dirtied, she looked very much like a slum child, yet she had a wildflower-like delicacy.
The girl was holding a small bag slung over her shoulder, staring bravely at the surrounding men.
“Hehe, you’re really giving us trouble.”
“You can’t escape anymore.”
No matter how you looked at it, it seemed like they were trying to rob a small child.
For Nero, this was also the first time he had encountered such a dangerous situation.
The man’s extended hand was about to grab the girl.
“…”
Nero hesitated only for a moment.
No, perhaps he didn’t even hesitate, merely acted reflexively without thinking.
“ريح شفرة قطع———— ‘Wind Blade’!”
Leaping from the corner into the alley, Nero cast a basic wind-based attack spell.
Though impressive for a 6-year-old, it had no lethal power. Nero had no intention of hitting them anyway.
“Whoa!? What the hell, magic!?”
“Wh-Who are you, jerk!?”
Fortunately, the men reacted slowly. None sensed the magical aura beforehand; only when the wind blade scraped the ground, causing a spray of mud, did they realize they’d been attacked.
Compared to the imperial guards at the royal castle, their response was shockingly slow. “I can do this,” Nero thought and dashed out.
“————Take this!!!”
Amid the confusion, Nero launched a powerful flying kick at one of the men.
The force of the kick from a child’s body was limited, but Nero’s legs were fully charged with ‘Rapid Dash.’
It had enough impact to send an unprepared adult flying.
With that, Nero landed gracefully in front of the girl.
“Come on, let’s run!”
“Wh… Okay!”
The girl seemed startled by the sudden interference, but her judgment was good. She said nothing extra, just started running immediately, led by Nero.
“Damn, wait, you brat!”
“Shit, is the kid with their friends!?”
Apart from the man kicked away, the others started chasing Nero and the girl.
“ريح شفرة قطع———— ‘Wind Blade’!”
Though almost biting his tongue while running, Nero managed to muster up another attack spell.
“Wow! The kid’s casting magic again!”
“The brat’s a magician!”
“Magicians are a bit risky, aren’t they!?”
“But he’s just a kid, stop being scared and chase him!!”
They haven’t given up, but it was enough to buy time. Running through the maze-like narrow alleys, it seemed easy to lose these men, who likely lacked decent tracking or pursuit skills.
“Hey, where are we running to? I don’t know, today’s my first time here.”
“No wonder your face is unfamiliar. Follow me. If I get us back home, they can’t follow.”
“Alright, I’ll trust you.”
From then on, the girl led the way.
Passing through multiple alleys, climbing walls, going through abandoned houses, climbing onto roofs, they took quite an acrobatic route.
Along the way, Nero realized that the girl’s speed and agility were as good as his, if not better. It seemed she could also activate ‘Rapid Dash.’
And finally, they reached the destination.
It was a large building, too large to be a house, too small to be a temple, made of stone. At the top of a not-so-tall spire was an unfamiliar cross-shaped object.
“Is this your home?”
“Yes, St. Julia Monastery.”
“A monastery? So, like a temple?”
“Not that grand, it’s just an orphanage.”
This was also a first for Nero. Not just the concept of an orphanage, but meeting a child without parents, an orphan.
“So, what’s your name, eh… um, what’s your name?”
“Ah, my name is… my name is Ex.”
He was about to give his real name but remembered the alias he had prepared for such situations. Successfully, he managed to use it.
“I am Lin.”
With a radiant smile, the long black-haired girl, Lin, said:
“Thanks for helping me, Ex. It’s a dirty place, but you’re welcome!”
“…So, it was you who stole from them.”
“Hmph, around here, it’s the victims’ fault if they get robbed!”
Unapologetically, Lin turned over the bag she had been holding so carefully and took out bread, potatoes, and other food items.
“That bag, was it enchanted with spatial magic?”
“Yes, isn’t it convenient?”
“…Is that so?”
“Some dumb merchants stay at cheap inns even though they carry good stuff.”
Speechless from disbelief.
He had thought she was a pitiful girl being robbed by men, but it turned out she was the one who had stolen their belongings.
“So, I’ve been unknowingly helping you with the theft.”
“Eh, it’s fine. Those guys probably gathered the food through awful means anyway.”
“That doesn’t justify your stealing, does it?”
“But just doing good deeds won’t fill your stomach. Especially not for people like us————Hey everyone, food!”
As Lin distributed the stolen food to the little children in the orphanage, Nero couldn’t find the words.
That day was full of first experiences, and even the intelligent Nero couldn’t quite figure out how to process it all.
The slums, which he had stepped into with a bit of adventurous spirit, felt like a different world. The people living here were different in every way from where he was born. Even the little children.
Lin’s act of stealing was undoubtedly a crime.
But is there a crime in the children who staved off their hunger with the food she brought back?
If it is a crime… then who could satisfy those children’s hunger?
Where is justice?
“…But it was fun.”
I’ll go back tomorrow, Nero thought.
Running through the slums, returning to the orphanage, seeing Lin happily chewing bread alongside the children, even covered