Chapter – 02
Eastern Marquis!
He was the lord of the Lawrence Marquisate, one of the ten marquises of the Barda Empire, and a man whose martial prowess with the sword was considered among the top in the empire.
If the Ilya County family was a family of mages, then the Eastern Marquis’s family was the head of a family so powerful it could be called a family of knights.
And he had come to the Ilya County family, bringing only a single escort knight.
“It’s true, I tell you. Having experienced it myself, I think I can understand how you feel. Truly, when it’s a matter concerning one’s child, it’s filled with worry, and it’s not easy to find an answer…”
“I feel the same frustration. So, for now, I’m just observing, but according to the knights, his swordsmanship training isn’t just a hobby he’s casually picking up for fun.”
“That’s what I mean…”
*Knock, knock, knock.*
“Count, Prince Pirancheva is here.”
“Send him in.”
As the door opened, Pirancheva, having changed into new clothes, entered the room.
Pirancheva bowed towards the Eastern Marquis in greeting, then spoke to his father, Count Amand.
“I heard you were looking for me.”
“Yes. Greet him properly. This is the Eastern Marquis, lord of the Lawrence Marquisate.”
Upon hearing the name ‘Eastern Marquis’, Pirancheva’s eyes sparkled.
He had memorized the names of all the people famous for their swordsmanship in the empire.
Among them, the Eastern Marquis was a swordsman so exceptional he was counted among the best in the empire, no, on the entire Frances continent, someone he had wanted to meet someday.
“It’s an honor to meet you for the first time. My name is Pirancheva.”
Seeing him politely observe etiquette, yet still appear unfamiliar with it due to his youth, the Marquis couldn’t help but laugh.
“Just speak comfortably. A child should act like a child. It’s not too late for you to learn and acquire manners and etiquette once you enter the academy, so speak comfortably.”
“Ah… Thank you.”
“Sit here.”
As Pirancheva sat opposite the Eastern Marquis, his gaze met the Marquis’s head-on.
*Gulp!*
Before his penetrating eyes that seemed to see right through him, Pirancheva felt as if all his secrets were being laid bare.
‘With just his gaze, he could probably sweep away hundreds of monsters. What kind of gaze is this intense?’
He felt like a child who had done something terribly wrong, waiting to be scolded.
Seeing Pirancheva at a loss, the Eastern Marquis let out a slight chuckle.
“You have eyes similar to my daughter’s.”
“Is that so?”
“I heard you had an accident?”
“Yes. I fell from a horse.”
“That’s similar too. And after that, you lost all interest in magic, for which you had a genius talent?”
“That’s why I’m worried.”
“Pirancheva?”
Startled by the Eastern Marquis’s call, Pirancheva hurriedly answered.
“Yes, Marquis!”
“What’s the reason you’ve come to dislike magic?”
“It’s not that I dislike it. I’m just learning swordsmanship to perfect my own magic theory.”
Although Pirancheva made an excuse, the look in the Marquis’s eyes didn’t seem particularly convinced.
“Magic theory?”
“Yes. Well, both mages and high-ranking knights use mana, so I started wondering why we distinguish between knights and mages.”
“Hmm……”
“So, while learning swordsmanship, I’m researching the most efficient ways to use mana.”
It was an excuse he blurted out without thinking, but it sounded quite plausible.
“You say exactly the same thing as my daughter. She says she’s researching why a mage’s magic is more powerful, even though a mage’s mana and a knight’s mana are the same.”
‘Who is the Eastern Marquis’s daughter?’
Thinking of the Eastern Marquis’s daughter from his memories, an image of a girl came to mind.
‘Elina Lawrence.’
He remembered seeing her when he was young. They hadn’t spoken much, but despite her pretty appearance, she had a sharp tongue.
He briefly wondered if she had been influenced by training in swordsmanship with the knights, but since it didn’t concern him, he lost interest.
‘I remember she had an incredibly strong pride in the sword.’
“So, that’s why I’d like to ask a favor of you.”
“Of me?”
“Teach my daughter magic. In return, I will teach your son swordsmanship.”
“Teach magic… to Elina?”
“Yes. I don’t know what schemes they’re harboring, but wouldn’t it be mutually beneficial? I think it would be fine for them to interact just until they enter the academy. Once they enter the academy, they will naturally find their own paths to follow.”
‘If Elina had the same experience as me…’
As Pirancheva’s thoughts reached this point, he recalled the top rankers among those who had mastered swordsmanship in his previous life.
‘Since she’s a girl, she probably woke up as a girl, right? Surely Elina isn’t that tanky cannon fodder? Since she’s a knight, Rose, the number one rank in the knight rankings, is the most likely candidate.’
While Pirancheva was lost in thought for a moment, the Eastern Marquis asked him a question.
“What are your thoughts? Will you learn swordsmanship from me?”
Pirancheva looked at his father, Count Amand. Seeing no particular reaction from him, he stated his thoughts clearly.
“Yes. I want to learn swordsmanship. I want to perfect my magic even more through swordsmanship.”
With an answer like this, it seemed neither of them would be disappointed.
“If you permit it, I will teach him well and send him back.”
“Sigh… Swordsmanship in a mage family…”
Seeing Count Amand sigh and nod, the Eastern Marquis asked Pirancheva.
“Are you confident you won’t give up halfway?”
“Yes. I’m confident.”
Seeing the bright, determined look in his eyes as he clearly conveyed his will, the Eastern Marquis thought that Pirancheva was no ordinary child.
“If you learn swordsmanship, you must not neglect your magic. Understood?”
“Yes. The purpose of learning swordsmanship is to complete my own magic.”
*Fwoosh!*
Flames ignited in Pirancheva’s palm.
When Pirancheva manifested magic, the Eastern Marquis was inwardly surprised, his expression changing slightly.
‘He materialized magic without casting. Not only that, there was no flow of mana either.’
Although fire magic is a basic 1st-circle spell, to deploy magic without casting or a flow of mana, one needed to be at least a 3rd-circle mage.
But the fact that Pirancheva, only 7 years old, had reached the 3rd circle was unbelievable.
“You…?”
His father, Count Amand, was also surprised, his eyes wide open as he looked at Pirancheva.
“It’s not what you’re thinking, Father. I just changed the magic system a little.”
“You changed the magic system?”
“Yes. Sometimes, when manifesting magic, the body can’t handle it, causing cancellations. After that, just training stamina felt lacking, so I trained swordsmanship alongside it, and I discovered an unexpected fact.”
“An unexpected fact?”
“It’s not yet at a stage where I can tell others. It’s an unestablished mana theory, and if I’m not careful, many people could be led astray.”
“Hmm.”
“So, by building stamina and learning swordsmanship, I plan to establish and develop my own magic system and theory.”
Even Pirancheva himself thought he had come up with a good cover story.
“I see. But you must stop immediately if it’s dangerous.”
“Yes, I will do that.”
Count Amand slightly bowed his head to the Eastern Marquis and spoke.
“If you, Marquis, would teach Pirancheva, I would gladly entrust my son to you. In return, I will teach Elina magic and help the young lady achieve what she seeks.”
At Count Amand’s words, the Eastern Marquis’s expression brightened.
“Thank you. On my way back, I will take Pirancheva with me. Once we arrive, I will send Elina to you. I entrust her to your care.”
“The pleasure is mine.”
* * *
Pirancheva prepared to depart for the Lawrence Marquisate. His nanny, Anna, wanted to accompany him to the Lawrence Marquisate, but Pirancheva said he would follow the Eastern Marquis alone.
“Don’t worry. I’m not as much of a child as you think, Anna.”
“Young master…”
“It’s fine. Well then, I’ll be back. You must stay healthy until I return.”
After packing a simple bag, he bid farewell to everyone and set off for the Lawrence Marquisate with the Eastern Marquis.
The journey from the Ilya County territory to the Lawrence Marquisate was quite far. Even traveling on horseback, it took a good ten days.
Pirancheva rode his horse slowly beside the Eastern Marquis.
“This must be your first time living away from home. Aren’t you afraid?”
“I don’t want to be foolish enough to give up my dreams because of fear.”
“Is that so?”
“If I’ve decided to learn swordsmanship, it’s best to learn from the best master, and in the empire, your family’s swordsmanship is the best, so isn’t this the best opportunity for me? But if I hesitated because I was afraid of leaving home, I don’t think I would reach the future I envision.”
The Marquis thought the answer was far too mature for a 7-year-old and chuckled. Then he thought of his own daughter, Elina.
‘Do those called geniuses have something in common? Their answers and feelings are so similar.’
“What is your future?”
He asked, hiding his inner thoughts.
“To become the empire’s number one mage, no, magic swordsman. And also to hunt a dragon and become a dragonslayer.”
Hearing someone say they want to become a dragonslayer, nine out of ten people would scoff, but the Eastern Marquis was instead startled.
― *I will become the empire’s number one swordsman. And hunting the demons called the root of all evil to become a devil slayer is my future.*
The only difference was hunting dragons versus hunting demons. The two had given the same answer.
“Heh heh.”
“What is it?”
“Nothing. I just remembered a little rascal who gave the same answer as you. So, do you think you can hunt a dragon by learning swordsmanship?”
“I’ll have to try, but I think it would be difficult to hunt a dragon with magic alone.”
The Eastern Marquis tilted his head and asked.
“Why do you think that?”
“I read in a book that dragons are the progenitors of magic and that they taught magic to humans.”
“That’s correct.”
“Then, dragons aren’t fools; they wouldn’t have taught humans magic that could harm them.”
The Eastern Marquis became interested in Pirancheva’s words.
“So, I judged that I couldn’t defeat a dragon with magic alone. No, to be precise, I don’t think I can win using the magic the dragons taught us.”
“So, you plan to learn swordsmanship to create your own magic, is that it?”
“Yes.”
It wasn’t the real reason, but through his excuses, a plausible reason had formed, and with this reason, it seemed no one would criticize him for learning swordsmanship.
“That’s a good thought.”
‘So, is that why Elina wants to learn magic?’
Hearing Pirancheva’s words, the Eastern Marquis could understand why his daughter Elina wanted to learn magic instead of swordsmanship.
‘She must think that since the swordsmanship passed down to humans originated from the demons, she can’t defeat them with their own swordsmanship, so she wants to learn magic to find a way. Still, dragons and demons… The imagination of these children….’
