CHAPTER 88: WHAT A WARM NIGHT

"Tell me, then."

He looks at me, and our eyes lock. "You’re serious? I should?"

"Yes. Tell me about Kairo Rolerville."

"Alright. Brace yourself. I tend to be a little.. giddy. When talking about him." His voice’s slightly loud.

Oh, look. A K otaku.

I nod.

"Okay, let me begin with this; You know how the Nuncapor continent doesn’t favor mages, and mages are treated like outcasts there, right?"

I nod, "yes."

Everyone knows that.

"Well, in the Kafer Empire, it’s even worse. Like, they hate the very idea of people who don’t use swords, spears, or shields, or even bow and arrows."

I nod.

Okay, I didn’t know that one.

"So, there was this one guy who’s dead now. But, back then, like a hundred or so years ago; he was one of the greatest warriors on Cryst. An Earth Mage." His voice’s still loud.

At this point, I won’t be surprised if he starts squealing like a fan girl.

"So?"

"That great Earth Mage was a great lance then! He was even the first lance!"

I nod, "oh."

"And he was from Kafer! Can you imagine how sad his life must have been as a mage in Kafer?"

"Hmm." I hum.

It’s just like how weapon users are subtly hated here in this Jalozi Empire, and even the Levarian continent as a whole. Weapon users are really lucky that in this Jalozi Empire— as mage centered people— they don’t blatantly hate them. In fact, now they even roam around, get positions, become mercenaries and soldiers.

I heard back then, not too long ago, they were hated by mages. Sometimes mages even plucked out the cores of weapon users from their hearts in public; causing them to die. Kind of like a public execution used for warning the citizens against the idea of becoming weapon users.

It’s all because of the current Emperor’s grandfather that the hatred against weapon users in Jalozi has quelled. To am extent.

"That Earth Mage eventually discovered an extremely talented noble boy from the swordsmanship family of Rolerville; one of the three great Duchal families in Kafer, and he took him as his disciple. By force."

So that’s where K learned that bad habit from.

"And that boy was none other than.. Kairo Rolerville!"

I nod, smiling under my mask.

"But isn’t it odd? An Earth Mage training a swordsman who became the greatest in the world?" His voice suddenly drops low.

Nothing weird about it. I’m a mage and was trained by a swordsman.

"Apparently, the mage was familiar with swordsmanship and the art of body tempering. So he saw Kairo as the perfect board to draw his masterpiece." He touches his lower lip. "I think people say the man mastered weapons despite being an eighth circle Earth Mage because he was looking for the path to the ninth circle or something. No one really knows though."

Is that the thing where K said all paths lead to the ninth core? But that’s only for weapon users right? Hmm. This world is too confusing.

"Anyway! Kairo grew stronger, his master grew old and died without reaching the ninth circle. Kairo became the Duke of the Rolerville household. Then the wars Delarus, his eventual rival, started across the Nuncapor continent began. Kairo fought and fought and fought and fought and fought until he couldn’t take it anymore. And, a tale that even mothers and their children know; the warmonger and Kairo the legend fought. The hero; Kairo, who had become the strongest swordsman in the world after countless wars, and defeated all the world’s strongest swordsmen, even all his generation’s great lances— fought against Delarus the warmonger, and he won. I think it was during their battle that the moon got cleaved. It truly shook the world.

No one knows how the moon is still floating in space, but it is. And as Kairo won, he became dubbed the Golden Swordsman. And Delarus disappeared for over twenty years, we all thought he was dead. Then, you know the rest."

I take in deep breaths, and breathe them out.

Intense.

"Now, don’t you think Kairo’s a legend too? I mean— if you disregard the fact that he got defeated by Delarus after he returned— he does have a clean sheet. No defeat, ever since he was born. He has only tied with Delarus in past multiple fights. Hell, I even heard he once destroyed a kingdom that attacked Kafer for no reason on his own. I hear he can split mountains with his sword–"

"Which makes me wonder.." I squint my eyes into a narrow glare, "just how strong is the guy who defeated him? This Delarus?"

"...That’s the second question on my mind right now." He holds his spear tight with his left hand, preparing to stand up, "the first question is; where the hell is the Golden Swordsman; Kairo Rolerville?"

He’s probably eating dinner with the other S-rank mercenaries right now.

"Yeah, that’s the bigger question." My voice’s warm.

He stands up with a low grunt, and he stretches his waist as it cracks, and..

Shing!

He sheathes his spear back in the strap hanging on his back. "It’s about time for me to rest, Blank. The moon’s almost making its way. Plus, all this talk about legends made me hungry."

He’s right. We’ve talked for more than an hour, and it’s almost night already.

"I’m gonna go eat dinner with the other soldiers in the cafeteria. You coming?" He asks as he walks toward the entrance of my tent.

"Are you expecting me to come?"

He scoffs, "to be honest— knowing you, no. I don’t expect you to come."

I nod, "then I will betray your expectation, and come." My smile widens.

"You. Haha! You better come!" His laughter doesn’t stop as he walks out of the tent. Leaving me to my thoughts.

I stand up, and I walk toward the entrance of my tent, and I look outside; the cleaved moon is fully up now.

It’s night.

Nah, I’m not going to eat in that crowded place. My eyes are already drowsy.

I’m gonna sleep.

I zip up my tent. Making sure no one can come in.

I head to my bed, take off my mask, and I lie down.

Thank goodness, and K that I’ve already tamed hunger. I’ve not even eaten for six days straight.

"I’ll eat tomorrow." I whisper.

The world around me blurs, and my vision distorts, until finally..

Blank.

I sleep.