"There is a flower called 'Nayohana' just ahead.

　Avril pointed to it and said.

First, you have to pick the weak flower. I'll give you a time limit. You have fifteen minutes. You have fifteen minutes to complete it.
"So ...... isn't the only test first?
Mm. I've got another one in mind.
If you want, you can say both at the same time. I can't be bothered to do them one at a time.
Hold on, don't panic. Besides, the second test won't start until I get the weak flower.

　The name of the flower is Weak Flower ......, which may or may not be familiar to you.
　I don't know much about flowers.
　If Avril's ordeal is that simple, I'll just go pick the weak flower.

Hey, hey!　Kurt!　Wait a minute.
What's up, Lara?
How are you going to get them?
What?　I'm just gonna go to the weak flower and come back, okay?
No, no!

　Lara pointed in the same direction as Avril and shouted.


Lara pointed in the same direction as Avril and shouted: "There's a big waterfall in front of us and we have to climb up it!


　What, you mean that?

"Yeah. What about it?
"Are you going to take a detour to get it?　That would take a long time, wouldn't it?

　Lara's question continues.

　I don't know what she's talking about.
　There's a huge waterfall on a cliff right in front of me.
　The flow is so steep that it would be extremely difficult to ascend it without using magic,......, but it would be impossible for a human being.

Kurt ...... seems to be up to something again.
Nothing is impossible with Kurt.

　I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to do this, but I'm going to try.

There's no specific ...... route, is there?

　I ask Avril a question before we start the trials.

No, of course not. Incidentally, ...... a detour route that doesn't go through the waterfall would take 30 minutes no matter how short the route. Doesn't sound very practical, does it?

　Apparently, you have to ascend this waterfall to get the weak flower in time.
　Of course, I wasn't going to take the trouble of choosing a circuitous route.

Well, ...... let's go up the waterfall.
"So Kurt. What are you going to do?
Well, there are many ways. Specifically, I can think of three, ten, or five.
Oh, that's too many!

　Lara's surprised.

Let me take the easiest way out of all of them this time.

　I raise my palm to the waterfall.

"Waterfall. Lift me upward.

　Then .......


"Oh, the waterfall is flowing back?


　Seeing this, Lara ...... and Marise and Cynthia looked at me in black and white as if they couldn't believe their eyes.

　It is true.
　By using the water magic Create Flow to manipulate the water flow, they succeeded in making the waterfall flow backwards.
　By doing so, the waterfall is now rising from the bottom to the top, instead of from the top to the bottom.

"Yo!

　Plunge into the waterfall.
　Then, instead of going against the flow of the water, I let the flow of the waterfall go from bottom to top, and I reached the weak flower in no time.

So this is the weak flower. ......

　It was a weak purple flower.
　I plucked it and jumped off the top of the waterfall to get back to Avril and the others.

　By the way, ...... just pulling out the flower from the roots might cause difficulties later on, so I use a fixing spell at the same time.
　This way, the weak flower can be put back in its original place, and it will grow its roots again.

"Okay, I've got it. That's it, right?
"Oh, yeah. ...... I didn't expect you to get it that way. I assumed I was going to use body enhancement magic and ascend against the flow of the waterfall. ......

　I'm sure you're not complaining.

So ...... the ordeal continues, right?
"Uh-huh!　Yes, yes!

　Averill crossed his arms, trying to regain his composure.

The weak flower has a legend that is said to be a thousand years old.
"Legend?



　When I asked, Avril continued her story in a smooth voice.

"There was once a noble family. That noble family was a so-called knightly family, and they were ...... prepared to kill even their lord for the sake of strength.
　Two children were born to such a noble family. They grew up as the first son and the second son, and soon there was a gap in their skill with the sword. For some reason, the second son was stronger than the first and the first son was weaker. Now, ...... what do you think the nobleman did with the first son?

　Life is cruel, and from the point of view, the first son was weak and the second son was strong.
　The family was obsessed with strength. They might dispose of the weaker first son.

"It seems the nobleman killed the weaker son. We don't need the weak ones in this family!　As long as the strong second son lives, that's all that matters!　That's why.

　It seems that my prediction was mostly correct.
　It seems that my prediction was mostly correct, but guessing it is not the test.

"When my eldest son was killed by his family, his face was painted with tears of regret and grief. "When my eldest son was killed by his family, his face was painted with tears of regret and grief, 'Why should I kill him just because he was weak? And when the eldest son was killed, there was this flower nearby that was bathed in his tears and blood. Because of this anecdote and its weak appearance, the flower came to be called "Nayohana.
　--Now, here's a question.

　Avril's voice became more serious.

If you were the nobleman, what would you do with the weak eldest son?　Would you kill him because he is weak? Or not? I want to hear your opinion.

　Hmm.
　Apparently, there is no definite answer to this question.
　It's like a moral question.

　But the answer was so obvious that I didn't bother to answer it.


"Kill them?　What kind of nonsense is that?


　Yes.
　No, that's an option.

"Well, why is that?
Strength is not an absolute measure. Some people feel differently.

　I just wanted to be strong.
　That's why I reincarnated in the last 1000 years to find someone stronger than me.
　But ...... there are some people in the world who think this idea is wrong.

So it's too early to kill him just because he's weak. Maybe the eldest son is smart, right?　Maybe he's good with his hands.　He may be more kind than anyone else.　It would be a loss to the family if you didn't recognize that and killed him.

　It's okay to have a variety of people.
　I had no intention of interfering with anyone who did not value the strength I sought.
　And I'm not going to change who I am, no matter what people say about me.

　Besides, .......

If you want, I can make your weak first son stronger than your second son, right?

　It would also be fun to reveal the nose of the second son who thinks he's strong.

　As I continued.

"Hahaha!　You got me. That's a perfect answer!　You passed!

　Avril smiled pleasantly.

You're strong. But strength is addictive, and there are those who fall in love with it. As you said, there are people with various talents in the world. It's just too dangerous to look at it with just one measure of 'strength' ...... is what I'm trying to say.
I agree with you.

　If you are drowning in strength, you will end up like the ...... "Four Wise Men" of the Empire.
　If you get carried away with your strength, you'll end up like the "Four Wise Men" of the Empire. You'll be too proud to improve, and you'll end up corrupted.

You have passed the test. You're not only strong, but you have a right mind. I think that's the most important thing.

　I think that's the most important thing," Avril said with straight eyes.