Volume 01 – Chapter 03

Chapter 03: The First Level-Up

 

Although Ren was the son of a knight, his actual sword training took a while to start since his parents had decided to wait for him to grow first.

It was because when Roy was young, he had pushed himself too far and got greatly injured. Ren’s parents wanted to avoid the same thing happening to him.

“I think it’s about time for you to try swinging a sword,” said Roy a few days after Ren’s seventh birthday. “We’ll start training in the afternoon. There are a lot of wooden training swords in the storehouse so choose whichever you like.”

After finishing his breakfast, Roy left the house through the door with a long sword strapped to his back.

Although he held the title of a knight, his usual occupation was just to hunt monsters. The only knight-related work he did was to report to the baron, something he had to do a few times every year.

(It helps keep the village safe and gets revenue, so it’s like hitting two birds with one stone.)

As Mireille once mentioned, Roy’s hunting of monsters increased the revenue of the poor village they lived in and since both the Ashton family and this village would have difficulty getting by with agriculture alone, it really helped them.

“What about you, Ren? Will you go to the book room again today?”

“That’s right…… Thanks for the food. I’ll be heading to the book room now.”

Ren, who had finished his breakfast a while after Roy thanked Mireille and left.

 

“Well then.”

Ren opened the old door to the book room and went inside.

The Ashton family’s book room couldn’t be called big and was wide enough to only just barely fit three single beds when lined. It only had a single bookshelf on one wall and a desk by the window.

Ever since Ren had turned three years old, he had been visiting this room almost every day and it had become something like his daily routine.

“What should I read today?”

The books he had used to practice his reading and writing were placed on top of the desk.

While Ren had no problem understanding speech, he couldn’t read or write the language of this world. Therefore Mireille taught him the letters, and it was only about a year ago that he was able to read books by himself.

Ren got nostalgic remembering those days and opened a book to read.

That book contained geographical information about this world and it was the same as what he remembered from the game.

The first page had information on all the continents of this world, starting from the one he lived in.

 

This continent was called Erfen, bearing the name of the chief god Erfen.

It was situated in the center of the world and almost all of the land was fertile. On top of that, it had abundant mineral and aquatic resources, resulting in it being known as the continent blessed by the chief god.

However, in its long history, it had suffered from wars and damages caused by monsters and the demon lord. Therefore, most countries were either destroyed or had been annexed by other nations.

 

────However, the country Ren was born in was an exception.

Being the stage for The Legend of the Seven Heroes, the Leomel empire was a mighty nation on the western part of the Erfen continent.

Ever since it was founded by a person called the Lion King about a thousand years ago, it had emerged victorious in many wars. Its military force was unmatched by any other nation, and no country dared to go against it.

On top of that, the seven heroes who had defeated the demon lord were all citizens of the Leomel empire. That’s why most countries felt like they owed Leomel a debt of gratitude and didn’t interfere with it any of its affairs.

“At any rate, this village is really out in the boonies.”

The old map Ren looked at next contained information about this territory—including the village he lived in—and the territories surrounding it. The map also had the name of the territory he was in and which noble family ruled over it.

Those were all names he had never heard of in the game, so he concluded that this place really was in the countryside.

It would take little more than two months to reach the imperial capital from this village by carriage. Even visiting the city where the feudal lord—a baron—lived would take 10 days for a round trip going east.

 

Having reconfirmed this information, Ren straightened his back while still seated on the chair.

“It’s time to study.”

He had taken a long enough break.

Ren lightly slapped his cheeks to revamp himself and opened a notebook, but unlike usual, he lacked concentration.

He knew that he couldn’t focus on his studies because he was too excited about the afternoon training session.

“……I’ll get nothing done at this rate.”

Ren tried to concentrate many times after that but the result remained the same.

In the end, he gave up trying and went to the storehouse where all the training equipment was.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

Upon returning home in the afternoon, Roy placed the monsters he had hunted on the dirt floor inside the kitchen and went to the yard where Ren was waiting for him.

“Were you studying in the book room again?”

“Yes. I was learning about the geography of this area, and the feudal lord’s name was written on the map as well.”

“You already know that much? Seems like the only thing I can teach you now is the sword──── By the way, did we have that wooden sword in the storehouse?”

Roy was looking at the sword in Ren’s hands.

“This won’t do?”

“It’s fine. I was just surprised we had such a small one.”

Inside the storehouse, Ren had found many wooden swords, including a small one that looked like his wood magic sword. He thought it would be okay and summoned his magic sword instead. He also had the bracelet equipped, but since he was wearing training-use leather armor, it was hidden from Roy. Moreover, both the bracelet and the magic sword were growing bigger along with his growth, so he did not feel uncomfortable wearing them.

(I should hide the bracelet better just in case.)

Although he had no reason to hide his Summon Magic Sword skill, due to how Ren Ashton behaved in the game, he felt a bit hesitant to reveal it.

“As for the training, come at me whenever you want.”

“────Huh?”

Ren was dumbfounded at Roy’s declaration.

“Although the Ashtons are a knight family, I was born and raised in this countryside village, so I’ve got no experience teaching someone how to use a sword. Even my dad taught me the same way.”

In other words, he was someone that preferred actual combat.

Ren himself had no idea what would be the correct way to learn how to use a sword, but since Roy had learned it the same way, he couldn’t say that the method was wrong.

“Come on. No need to hold back.”

Surprisingly, Ren’s excitement hadn’t dampened.

He gripped his magic sword tightly and lowered his posture────

“────Got it. Here I come!”

He stepped forward as if trying to launch himself.

Ren hadn’t moved his body with such force ever since he had reincarnated. That’s why he was surprised at his own physical capabilities.

“That was a nice movement!”

Ren swung the wood magic sword in a wide arc while listening to Roy.

Naturally, he had no intention of using Nature Magic (low), and he put his entire force behind that downward swing.

However, Roy easily stopped that blow. He held his wooden sword horizontally and as soon as the swords clashed, a strong shock rushed through Ren’s arms.

“We’ll keep this up until you can’t move anymore!”

“Un…… Understood!”

After giving a firm reply, Ren charged at Roy again and again, trying to get past his defenses. However, due to the difference between their body and physical strength, none of Ren’s attempts bore fruit.

 

Nonetheless────

(This is quite fun.)

Ren felt surprised at his enjoyment and continued to face Roy without giving up. Even the simple act of swinging his sword at Roy was really enjoyable for him.

(I think the reason I’m enjoying this is that I can increase the level of my skill this way────!)

The result of his hard work would come in the form of a level-up. That thought alone made him endure his fatigue.

Even though he was short on breath and couldn’t hold a candle to Roy’s physical strength, he continued pushing himself without backing down just for the level-up that awaited him.

 

However, no matter how resolute he was, Ren was still seven years old.

Around thirty minutes after the training began, exhaustion soon caught up to him and he fell on the ground powerless.

 

 

“……Sorry for that shameless display.”

“Don’t be stupid. Those movements weren’t what you’d expect from a seven years old──── Anyways, I’m going to heat the bath now, so what will you do Ren? Rest some more?”

Ren nodded saying “I think I’ll just do that,” to which Roy replied “Got it,” and walked away.

Ren waited for him to disappear into the house, and looked at the bracelet hidden under the leather armor.

 

・Magic Sword Summoning Art (Lv. 1:  2 / 100)

 

“Alright!”

He couldn’t raise the level of the magic sword itself without mana stones, but just as the skill description said, he managed to raise the proficiency of Magic Sword Summoning Art by using the magic sword.

Having finally confirmed it, Ren made a relaxed smile and rejoiced wholeheartedly.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

Since then, training with Roy in the afternoon had become a daily routine for Ren.

“Let’s call it a day.”

“Tha…… Thank you very much……”

Roy decided to end today’s training after seeing Ren sprawled on the ground in a good mood.

As a matter of fact, Ren’s movements had gotten a lot better since his first training session. His stamina and physical strength were also steadily increasing.

“……Let’s check today’s result.”

Ren waited for Roy to head back and secretly looked at the bracelet.

 

・Magic Sword Summoning Art (Lv. 1:  88 / 100)

 

The proficiency he gained after every training session which usually lasted till he fully exhausted himself was “2”.

Going by the proficiency he had gained, a little more than a month had passed since he started pushing his body to the limits every day.

The reason he came this far wasn’t just because of his gamer mindset of working hard for a level up. After all, moving a character through a controller was completely different from actually performing those movements.

(I guess it’s because of them.)

The only thing he could think of was it was due to Roy and Mireille’s influence.

Unlike Ren’s parents in his previous world, Roy and Mireille both genuinely praised him when he did his best. Seeing their happy faces inspired him to work harder.

“My parents never praised me during my life as Shiina Ren……”

Shiina Ren’s parents divorced when he was a child, and his custody went to his mother.

However, he started looking more and more like his father while growing up, causing his mother to hate him until she eventually stopped speaking to him. His mother was rarely at home when he entered university, and they spoke only a few times every year.

That’s why he felt really satisfied with his current lifestyle.

While the lack of daily appliances was a bit inconvenient, Ren could easily declare that he was happier in this life.

“……Guess I’ll work hard again tomorrow.”

For him, working hard wasn’t a big deal if it made his parents happy.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

The next day, and the day after that were the same. Ren continued fighting against Roy until he was completely exhausted.

After six more days of training, a change occurred in his body.

“Huh……?”

Around one hour after the training began, Ren’s body became strangely light, and he felt that he would be able to jump off into the sky if he were to put strength in his legs.

“What’s wrong? Did you get injured……?”

When he saw Ren stop moving with a surprised expression, Roy called out to him anxiously.

“I-It’s nothing! Everything is fine!”

“I hope so…… Don’t push yourself, okay?”

“Yes! I understand!”

As Ren replied, he realized that not only had his body become lighter, but his physical strength had also increased significantly.

He tried thinking of the reason behind that change, but nothing came to mind.

However, he didn’t want to worry Roy, so he lowered his body and charged at him as usual.

But right when he took a single step, Roy noticed the change that had taken place in Ren. 

“S-So fast……?!!”

Even Roy, who entered the forest daily to hunt monsters, was surprised at the speed Ren charged at him with.

Naturally, he knew that Ren’s physical capabilities were much higher than a usual seven-year-old’s.

But his current speed surpassed that of the monsters which appear in the forest.

“Guh……”

However, Roy still held his sword sideways and tried to stop Ren’s attack.

When their swords came into contact, Roy’s feet dug into the ground and his wooden sword creaked.

“HAAAAAAA!!”

Ren didn’t stop attacking.

A loud but dull sound could be heard each time their swords clashed.

(My body feels light……!)

His wrists weren’t getting numb and he could swing the magic sword as he envisioned.

“How did you become strong all of a sudden──── I-I see! Ren! Are you────!”

Roy’s eyes were now narrowed and he furrowed his brows as sweat formed on his forehead.

Having reached a hypothesis, he took a stance with his sword, and for the first time, he decided to attack Ren himself. But right as he prepared himself……

“────H-Huh……?!”

Ren’s body suddenly lost strength and he fell to his knees.

“You’ve reached your limit, huh.”

“B-But……I’m still feeling fine……”

Ren, who couldn’t understand what was going on, saw Roy approach him with a huge smile on his face.

He reached out to Ren and lifted him up in his arms.

“Well done! Never in my dreams did I expect my son to be a skill holder!”

“W-Wai…… Dad……?!”

“I’m sure the sudden increase in your strength was due to your skill leveling up! I don’t possess a skill so I don’t know how it actually feels, but I can’t think of any other reason!”

Being held up in Roy’s sturdy arms, Ren finally realized what had happened.

(That’s right. I think 「Magic Sword Summoning Art」 leveled up during this training session.)

He remembered that Physical Ability Up (low) would be unlocked at Lv. 2.

It was no wonder his body felt light and his physical strength had increased. Perhaps he had reached his limit because his mind hadn’t caught up with the sudden change in his body.

“Now that it’s settled, let’s go to the church and get your skill appraised……is what I’d like to say, but……”

Roy suddenly went quiet and looked at Ren with a dejected face.

“Sorry. We’ve got no leeway of money so we can’t take you to the church.”

“Umm…… Does it take a lot of money to get someone’s skills appraised?”

“That’s not it. The money I can get by hunting two monsters would be enough for the appraisal. After all, in a city with a church, all children get appraised as soon as they are born.”

Then what’s the problem? thought Ren but then he remembered where they lived.

“Is it because this village is so out in the countryside that……it’s difficult to gather the travel expenses……?”

Roy nodded after hearing his words.

“The closest church from here is in the city where the baron lives.”

Even by carriage, it would take ten days for a round trip.

“I can manage the travel expenses for the three of us, but while we’re not here, we would need to hire mercenaries to hunt monsters for the village. It’ll be tough to get the money for that.”

Since Ren was planning on hiding his skill, this was more convenient for him. His plan was to quietly spend his life in this village so this was one less worry for him.

“I think there’s no need to get my skill appraised.”

“Ren……”

“It’s not like I would die if I don’t know the name of my skill.”

“Aren’t you……being really mature……? I think most kids are like, you know, really eager to know the names of their skills……”

“That might be how others are, but I’m different.”

Although Roy was astonished hearing those words, he burst out laughing so loudly that his voice seemed to reach far beyond the horizon.

Hearing that loud laughter, Mireille hurried out of the house thinking something had happened. When she heard that Ren was a skill holder, she was overjoyed and tightly hugged him.

 

────From that day onwards, Ren spent most of his days training his sword skills.

Six months passed, followed by a year…… And soon, a few more years passed as Ren continued making the most of that time.

 

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