I Obtained Sword God Level Talent

58 – 058. Discipline (1)

“First, calm down, both of you, and listen to me.”

I, taking the role of traffic controller, sat Chun Hwa-young and Friedrich down. Then, I cautiously brought up the heavy topic I had been putting off.

“We need to go to the western border, like the Crown Prince said. It’s late, so we’ll go as soon as it gets light.”

It was something I’d forgotten for a moment due to Chun Hwa-young and Friedrich’s argument.

Now, as evening was approaching, wasn’t the reason the Crown Prince came to find me because of the incident at the ‘western border’?

“Brother! Please, call me by my name, not ‘Crown Prince.’”

“……Okay.”

Friedrich suddenly voiced his opinion. I nodded silently and continued.

“It’s highly likely that this enemy will be more powerful than any you’ve faced so far. The power of an ‘evil species’ far surpasses your imagination.”

A subtle pallor fell across everyone’s faces at the serious warning.

*Gulp!*

Chun Hwa-young, it seemed, hadn’t expected things to progress so suddenly, and he swallowed hard, glancing at me nervously.

“Brother. Does that mean… you’ll be selecting personnel to head to the western border?”

The Crown Prince, nonchalantly uttering the embarrassing word ‘brother,’ turned his gaze towards me.

“Something like that.”

I quietly agreed.

Just as he said, the battle that was bound to happen at the western border was obviously not going to be easy.

Demonspawn, and countless fiends led by it. No doubt, those gruesome subterranean beasts would be hunting our lives.

So…

“Ariel, Leon, and Mary, it’d be best if you three sat this expedition out.”

“Y-Your Holiness…!”

“W-What are you saying? Frey!”

Ariel’s voice, sharp with disbelief, pierced the air.

But I had no intention of changing my mind. Ariel was fragile right now. Not the former senior mage of Helios Magic Tower, but a novice priest taking her first steps.

“Ariel, it’s a decision I made because your divine magic isn’t strong enough yet.”

“B-But! While everyone else is fighting hard to resolve the situation, I can’t just sit quietly in the Imperial Residence…!”

…This is quite the predicament.

Ariel’s blue eyes were brimming with tears of frustration.

I sighed softly and revealed my honest feelings.

“Of course, if you could carry a major part of the burden, you could come.”

“A major… burden?”

“Yes. Can you use divine magic? By tomorrow morning?”

“That’s…”

Impossible.

Even I, who had spoken so casually, knew that very well.

No matter how talented Ariel was, with her ＜Heaven-sent Talent＞, mastering a completely different field in just a few days was out of the question.

*Thump!*

“…Okay, I understand.”

But why?

I never thought the Ariel I knew would give up so easily. And, true to my expectations, she suddenly stood up, speaking softly.

“I’ll practice. By tomorrow morning. I’ll make sure I can use divine magic.”

*Tap tap tap!*

Ariel’s voice, like a declaration, echoed loudly in the reception room.

Having said her piece, she marched off. Judging from her climbing the stairs to the second floor, she was probably headed to her room to start practicing.

“U-Um, is that really okay…?”

Cheon Hwa-young, who had been silently watching the situation, spoke with deep concern.

Had they become close in just that short time? Her gaze towards Ariel’s retreating figure was filled with worry.

“What do you mean, ‘okay’?”

“Well… I was a little worried you might be, you know, hurt.”

“…I guess maybe.”

“Huh?”

“Hyung-nim. Do you have… something else in mind?”

I forced a wry smile and shook my head.

“One thing’s for sure. Feeling left out is better than dying pointlessly.”

“…!”

“Y-yeah, I suppose so.”

The two quick-witted guys understood my explanation and readily agreed.

The recent past.

I almost lost Ariel. Or rather, to be precise, Ariel threw away her life for me as I was dying.

…And so.

I couldn’t include Ariel in the party heading into that death trap. It wasn’t overprotection, or favoritism. It was just the result of a realistic assessment.

“What if, just hypothetically,”

“…?”

“What if the Saintess succeeds in manifesting her divine magic by tomorrow morning?”

It was the Crown Prince who asked. His serious gaze, now a little awkward, cut across the drawing room and landed on me.

“Then what?”

“Huh?”

“We go. Together. Even though the formation of this ‘Guild’ kinda just… slipped by, I don’t plan on taking it lightly.”

“…As expected!”

“Hyung-nim! I knew it!”

Respect shone bright in their eyes.

* * *

*Fizzle….*

“Ugh. This is really hard.”

The Imperial Residence. Ariel’s room.

Slumped in a comfy armchair, Ariel held her hands out, palms up. A torrent of mana pulsed from her hands for a moment, but it soon dissipated, unable to take shape.

*Fizzle!*

It had been happening countless times already.

Though it was already deep into the night, nearing dawn, Ariel couldn’t fall asleep. It was all because she desperately wanted to master the divine magic of her new destiny… ‘Priest’.

“Haa…”

Ariel let out a deep sigh, a stark contrast to her usual cheerful demeanor.

“Surely… they said the theory was the same as magic.”

What tormented Ariel most was the theory behind divine magic.

Isn’t it strange?

Magic and divine magic had remarkably similar structures.

The three elements of magic – initiation, incantation, and manifestation – were followed exactly by divine magic. The only unique thing was that the medium was ‘divine power’ instead of mana.

“If only I had a mana hole…”

Ariel’s anguish slipped out through her lips.

She knew it. In her current state, she was nothing but a burden to Frey.

*Fzzzt! Fzzzt!*

Again, blue mana flickered at Ariel’s fingertips. But with her ‘mana hole’ destroyed, Ariel couldn’t even stir mana, let alone succeed in initiating divine magic.

“……”

*Phoo*, feeling needlessly dejected, Ariel let out another deep sigh.

“You said I was a cherished child, didn’t you?”

The situation was so frustrating. Unlike herself, Ariel looked towards the ceiling and grumbled in a petulant voice.

The sad truth was that it wasn’t the night sky above her, but the white ceiling of the mansion.

*Fzzzt! Fzzzt!*

“Just… what am I supposed to do…”

With a tearful face, Ariel’s adventure didn’t end. It was almost time for the sun to rise. But she seemed like someone who had forgotten all about sleep.

But then, that was when it happened.

*Clank!*

“……?”

Suddenly, a heavy metallic sound echoed from a corner of the room, the closet.

*Creeeak.*

With a hesitant heart, Ariel rose from her spot. Then, with cautious steps, she slowly opened the door of the closet.

*Clank!*

“Wh-what a shock.”

A bewildering scene assaulted her vision.

The Grail, the very ＜Grail of Life＞, was clattering from inside her closet for some reason!

‘Ariel.’

“G-Goddess…?!’

The one who moved the Grail was, as expected, the goddess Ceres. The goddess, silent until now, called her name softly.

‘Your anxious heart is delaying the miracle I have granted.’

“W-What does that mean?”

Ariel spoke, her heart far from calm.

Anxious heart, how could she not be anxious? Soon, in just a few hours, Frey would be leaving for the West where a fierce battle was expected!

‘…Ariel. It must be because you are a mage. Originally, knights and priests who mastered mana would all calm their minds, and attain enlightenment through earnest meditation.’

“Huh? Meditation…?”

Ariel tilted her head, as if unable to understand.

Which was only natural.

Ninety-nine out of a hundred mages refused the act of ‘meditation’ itself. For those who sought truth and indulged in the material world, it must have felt rather useless.

‘Sit cross-legged. And organize your thoughts. The miracle that will bloom from your fingertips. The things you wish to accomplish with that miracle. That which you wish to protect.’

“……!”

But, why was it?

Ariel was deeply moved by Ceres’ advice. In a daze, she quickly moved to a different spot.

Then, hastily, kicking off her shoes, she climbed onto the bed and sat cross-legged.

Whoosh-!

And then, a surprising thing unfolded.

Just as she closed her eyes and focused her mind, tiny white light particles began to surround her!

‘…What is this?’

Ariel instinctively realized.

This was a sensation similar to when she first mastered ‘magic’ in the distant past.

Swish──!

The unique energy she was encountering for the first… no, second time. ‘Holy Power’ swirled around her with a fresh sound.

To be loved by a god. To walk the path of faith according to one’s destiny. That fact ignited into an astonishing phenomenon.

Flash!

It was the moment Ariel finally transformed into a true ＜Saint＞.

* * *

Friedrich slept in the mansion. He wouldn’t be leaving for the west until early morning, so there was no need to return to the imperial palace.

“Hrmm.”

It was early morning, the sky just beginning to lighten.

Friedrich rubbed his eyes, waking up. It wasn’t because of anything particularly important. He was simply feeling a burning thirst and wanted to get some water.

Creak—!

If it were a room in the imperial palace, he could just order a servant outside the door. But this was outside the palace. So, Friedrich had to go downstairs to the first floor himself.

But then.

“Uh… Brother?”

“……”

Swish.

Friedrich stepped into the mansion hallway, rubbing his eyes, and checked again.

Frey.

The man Friedrich had arbitrarily decided to call ‘Brother’ was standing with his back against the wall in the hallway. Moreover, Frey had a faint smile playing at his lips, for some reason.

Frey’s eyes turned towards him.

“What is it? At this hour.”

“That’s what I should be asking. Surely, you haven’t been sleeping yet?”

“No. Just, I was on my way back from the bathroom.”

“I see.”

“Sleep well. I should get to sleep now too.”

“……Yes.”

Friedrich, watching Frey walk away, scratched his cheek. He had no idea what he had just witnessed.

Whoosh—!!

“Wh-What?!”

The mansion was silent, then a fresh and tranquil sound spread through the hallway. It was at that moment.

“Good heavens…!”

The source of the sound was the door of the room where Frey had been standing against the wall.

The Saint, Ariel. She was obviously on a new path. That dazzling light—if his memory served, that was one of the hallmarks of divine magic!

‘Wait. So then?’

Only then did Friedrich’s gaze turn towards the door of the room Frey had entered.

Dawn was slowly breaking. Frey, unable to sleep, stood before Ariel’s room.

Contrary to his usual gruff way of speaking and cold demeanor… the scene was overflowing with his tenderness.

His brain, jolted awake, began to whir. Friedrich gaped, then stifled his laughter, letting out a few choked giggles.

The amount of time Friedrich had known Frey? That fact no longer mattered to him.

Who gave Frey this manor?

Who oversaw the design of Frey’s room?

Friedrich knew.

Frey’s room had an attached bathroom, with a toilet.