Sir Hero, It’s Time to Train!

“Oh dear, damn. Why did they have to leave through the west gate today?”

Ethan, the captain of the Flamme West Gate garrison, frowned deeply, clutching his chronic gastritis-stricken stomach.

Next to him, his subordinates showed similar symptoms, suffering from intense stress at his side.

“Hoo, hoo. Contact the mansion and tell them that the two have not returned yet. And…”

Under normal circumstances, his subordinates would have moved sluggishly, but at Ethan’s command, they moved quickly and efficiently.

Ethan, already suffering from stress-induced gastritis and symptoms of reflux esophagitis, was never one to be trifled with.

The subordinates were well aware that they could become targets of his anger at any moment.

Having issued his orders, Ethan took a deep breath and spoke to his adjutant, Marin, who was nervously standing by.

“Tell the scouting team to prepare to go out immediately.”

“Y-yes? Are we really going out?”

“Hey, then what else are we going to do if we don’t go out? And why are you talking so much instead of just doing as you’re told? Because I did what I was told, I’m suffering like this, so why aren’t you doing what I tell you to do? Don’t you want to work? Then you might as well quit. No, wait, should I quit first? Damn it. What are you doing? Aren’t you getting ready?!”

“But if we go outside the gates, the mansion will think something happened and start grilling you.”

Marin moaned, but Ethan turned his eyes and said energetically.

“But what if we just stay here? Huh? Two Countesses come and pester us every hour about when their son and daughter will return, and we’re just supposed to wait? Maybe if they came together, I’d understand, but why do they come separately?!”

“Well, I’m not really sure about that…”

“And wouldn’t you know it, the Count happened to return today. And the young master and the young lady went out hunting? Haha, what do you expect the Count to say when he finds out?”

The two young children had left the house to go monster hunting. It was Ketn who had permitted it, and the two ladies had given their tacit consent…

Yet, it was him who had ultimately opened the gate and let them out. Meaning, he was the one set to bear the brunt of the blame.

‘Why didn’t you stop the young children from going monster hunting? You are irresponsibly neglecting your duty as the head of gate security!’ – he couldn’t refute such accusations. He could only blame the common unfairness experienced by middle management in organizational life.

“… I should have stopped them, I absolutely should have. That damn East Gate captain, leaving me to clean up this mess!”

“It’s not like the East Gate captain can read the future, and while it’s true he shirked his responsibility, he probably didn’t think it through.”

“Damn it, I should have politely sent them off to the South Gate! I’m going to lose my job because of that cursed fellow!”

Whatever the case, the burden of a proverbial time bomb was passed among the garrison captains of the north, south, east, and west gates, and it exploded at the West Gate.

Ethan harbored a grudge against the East Gate captain who shirked the responsibility onto him.

“If I get fired, I’m going to hug that guy and jump off the East Gate. Definitely!”

“…….”

Marin sighed deeply, realizing that there was no point in trying to stop Ethan.

It seemed prudent to first report the situation to the mansion and organize the external scouting team.

Just as he was about to sneak away to avoid further incited rants from Ethan, the mention of the East Gate captain led him to pause.

“What…?”

The West Gate faced a large forest, making it difficult to spot objects from the walls.

To examine the surrounding area properly, one had to either approach closely or maximize their eyesight.

At that moment, two figures emerged in Ethan’s field of vision, close by. Realizing what he saw, Marin grabbed Ethan’s shoulder and shook him vigorously.

“Captain, captain! Get a hold of yourself!”

“If I get fired, I won’t even get my pension… How am I going to explain this to my family…”

“Please, get a grip! The Young master and the Young Lady have returned!”

“That damn young master, wretched young la—Huh? Who showed up?”

“Young master Christian and Young Lady Aira are here!”

“What?!”

Ethan snapped out of it at Marin’s cry and instinctively leaned his body out of the castle wall.

Finding his eyesight settled on one spot, the soldiers, witnessing the duo’s bizarre behavior, all turned their gazes to the same point.

“…?”

Ethan tilted his head at the sight of the duo who had come so close. He blinked a few times, then asked Marin.

“What are they carrying?”

“They’re each carrying one half of an ogre, its body and head separated.”

“……”

“The young lady is carrying the body alone, probably because she lost.”

That much was apparent. What Ethan wanted to know, however, was…

“Was the South Gate captain’s story true…?”

“Wow, maybe we’ll end up receiving an ogre body as a gift. Could I take a sick day tomorrow?”

Christian and Aira broke through the West Gate, dragging the ogre’s head and torso.

“What?! Father returned?!”

As soon as Ethan announced the hunting party’s return, Aira’s face brightened right up.

However, Christian’s expression remained a mixture of confusion and curiosity.

‘Father?’

He was now used to his mothers. It no longer felt awkward or uncomfortable.

But the father was different. Meeting him for the first time left him anxious and uneasy.

‘Still, I have to meet him. No, I want to meet him.’

Though his master from his previous life had left home to wander the world, she did not deny her roots.

Her strength was founded on the mana circuits and swordsmanship of the Worden family.

Though the master was reserved about sharing family tales, whenever she spoke of her father, her eyes sparkled.

‘She said he was incredible.’

At her peak, his master was among the continent’s greatest. For her to speak so highly meant her father must have been immensely strong.

Christian himself was a renowned figure across the continent and a practitioner of the sword. As a fellow swordsman, he, too, wanted to witness his father’s strength firsthand.

‘I wonder if I can cross swords with him.’

Among the knights in this era, none of those Christian had seen until now left him satisfied.

The gap between the peaceful times and the age of despair felt larger than anticipated.

‘But Father should be different, right? No, maybe the knights in the hunting party might…’

Christian’s heart brimmed with both expectation and excitement, contrasting with Aira’s pure joy over her father’s return.

“You look super excited, Aira.”

“Of course! I get to show Father how I’ve changed. He’ll be so shocked!”

“What, are you planning on sparring with Father too?!”

Christian didn’t fully understand Aira’s excitement.

By the time their father had left Flamme for a hunt, Aira had barely begun sensing mana.

Now, only a few months later, she had created a mana reservoir and succeeded in body activation.

On top of that, she was adeptly controlling waves, so it was only natural she’d want to boast her achievements.

Having always been compared to Christian, it seemed Aira was eager to finally display her accomplishments proudly.

“No, why would I spar with Father…? Anyway, let’s hurry up and go!”

“Wait, Aira.”

“Hmm? Why?”

Just as the eager Aira was about to dash off to the mansion, Christian gently stopped her. With a sigh, he pointed out a crucial detail.

“Isn’t it a bit… inappropriate to take that with us?”

Aira, on the verge of dragging along the ogre’s body, hesitated at Christian’s words.

“Should I wrap it nicely?”

“Your unveiling certainly would be something. Mother might faint.”

How would hunters feel if their children presented them with a monster’s body as a gift?

Young Aira couldn’t quite grasp it yet, but she suspected it wouldn’t be a displeasure. Perhaps they might look at their children’s achievements with intrigue?

“Hmm.”

The West Gate garrison, with nervous faces, watched Aira and Christian discuss.

If this went on, the rumor of ‘gifts from the Young master and Young Lady’, propagated by the South Gate guards, might indeed reach them.

As Aira continued deliberating, Christian offered a compromise with a resigned smile.

“If you’re eager to show Father, why not take just the head? Surprise him as a gift!”

Aira, seeing the merit in the idea, nodded, eyes sparkling.

“Ooh, a surprise gift! Then let’s just take that.”

Instead of dragging along the ogre’s body, Aira handed it over to Christian and carefully cradled the head. Several soldiers turned their heads, unable to handle the sight.

“Um… Young Lady? Young master?”

But Ethan, sensing potential disaster, couldn’t just watch silently and spoke up.

“Sir Ethan! We’ll be back to collect the rest later, so don’t dismantle it, okay?”

“Eh? No, Young Lady! If you carry that just as it is!”

“Let’s go, Christian!”

The issue was Aira wasn’t in any mood for conversation with Ethan. She brushed off his earnest plea with a flick and ran joyfully towards the mansion.

Ethan glanced desperately at Christian who, with an amused look, watched Aira dash away, letting waves explode behind her.

“Young master! Please, talk some sense into the Young Lady!”

“Me? Why?”

“But, master… The ogre’s head…”

“Father might like it, you never know? And since the body obstructs traffic, please keep it at the West Gate headquarters until we return to collect it. Well then, I’m off, too!”

“Y-young master…”

Ethan watched dumbfoundedly as Christian left, disappearing like a whirlwind. Marin quietly retreated, eager to avoid the conversation.

“… Why on earth are they taking the head, and why are they even planning to come back for this?”

He couldn’t fathom being left with a headless ogre torso, nor could he get his head around the siblings’ intent to parade their trophy.

If his own children ever brought a monster’s head as a present, he’d scrape together every penny to send them to the temple. Thus resolved Ethan, shaking his head in exasperation.