--and then my days of training began.

　In the morning, I'm in Solstice's room.

　In a room full of books that smell of paper, I focus my attention on my right hand as I catch my breath.
　I gather my magic power to make the red magic emblem shine.

(Slowly ... like hot water flowing.)

　Solstice is watching me with her cheekbones on her desk, her crimson eyes behind her glasses.

　Yesterday, I succeeded one in ten times.
　Today, I want to succeed more often.

　But.....

It's not collecting hot water, is it?

　It felt like it was spilling through my fingers.
　I stuck with it for about five minutes, but it didn't help, and I exhaled heavily, sweat glistening on my forehead.

'No, I can't get it together,'
Huh.

　The girl with the glasses sighs, too.
　I look at her apologetically.

"I'm sorry. Can we do it again?
It's not worth it.

　As I say it, Solstice's two small hands grab both of mine.
　Instantly, my palms feel hot.

(Ah, this feeling!)

　The closer you get to your face and the more you breathe together, the more vividly you feel the magic flowing through your body.
　Don't spill it, don't spill it.

　Pooh.

　A bright red adventurer's seal shone on the back of his right hand.

'Yes!'

　I laugh, in joy.
　He looks at me, and then Solstice looks at their linked hands. Then she asks me, a little distressed.

'You know, you didn't fail on purpose, did you?
'What?　Why?
Because...

　Looking back at Kyoton, Solstice stammered for some reason.
　He turned away.

It's nothing, you rag!
What?

　He let go of my hand vigorously.
　........Somehow, Solstice's cheeks, they feel a little red. Is it my imagination?

　Then I practiced controlling my magic power.
　Eventually, when today's practice was about to end, I suddenly thought, with my right hand glowing red, I asked him a little.

"Come to think of it, can Illtimina-san and Kilt-san also use magic?
Hmm?

　Solstice, who had been reading her book, looks up.

'Right. If it's elementary magic, you should be able to use it.''
...only elementary?

　They both looked awesome, though.
　She laughed, as if it was on the surface.

'Those two, you know, they're the magic warrior types who use their magic powers on their own magical tools rather than Thanatos magic.

　A magic tool...

You mean those white spears and the great sword of thunder?
Yeah. That kind of magical weapon is designed to use the contractor's magical power to activate its built-in magic. It's much easier to activate than using Than Thanatos magic.
Hmm?
Of course, Thanatos magic can do a lot more than that, can't it?

　The wizard girl said so.

'But Thanatos magic gets harder to activate the higher up you get, the more difficult it is to activate.
Really?
Yes. ...It's a little early, but I'll let Merle know.

　She said, placing the book on the desk and turning to me to explain.

'The first thing we need for magic is the Thanatos magic letters. The combination of these determines what you can do. In short, the chanting text.
"Hmmm?
'Chanting a chanting sentence will activate the magic. But that's the hard part.

　How hard is it to chant?

First, the pronunciation. And the speed of the chanting. Don't make any mistakes.
Yes.
Next up: a singularity drawn by a magical animator.

　You know, the one that Solstice always writes in the air with that big magic stone on her wand when she's using magic.

'Getting the letters wrong is out of the question. And the hardest part is the amount of magic you can put into it.
The amount of magic?
Yes. You have to put the right amount of magic into each letter. You can't use too much or too little, because the letters will be distorted. And the higher up you are, the smaller the margin of error for the magical power you pour into it.

　Then she abruptly cuts off her words.
　She looked at me with her crimson eyes and told me in a hushed voice.

''If you fail, the magic power will flow back to you. You will be pouring an excessive amount of magical power into your body and especially your brain. Or worse, you'll die.
..........

　Wait a minute.
　Magic is such a risky thing!

　Solstice laughed as I was stunned.

''Well, to prevent that from happening, magic activators like my wand usually have a safety device on them.
Safety?
If it detects a back-flow, it cuts the magic off inside the wand. Don't let it reach the user.
You mean like a fuse?
'Hyuzu?　What's that?

　Oh......

'I'm sorry, it's nothing. --but is it?
Well, all right. --Yes. But sometimes the cheap ones don't have a safety feature. So, Merle, if you want to use magic, you have to make sure you're buying the right kind of activator, right?
Yeah, I promise.

　I nodded broadly.
　But I was worried about being on my own.

Then you can pick out Solstice, too.
.......... Well, okay.
Yes!

　That's a relief.
　Solstice looked at me with a hokey face, looking at me with her cheekbones, and eventually, she let out a sigh.

''Well, that's it for today.
Oh, yeah. Thank you, Solstice. I'll see you tomorrow?
Okay.

　He gets up and tries to leave the room.
　At his back.

"...I wonder if Marle is not good enough to have me around?

　A small murmur collides, like a soliloquy.

(????)

　I look back at her, wondering.
　But she's waving her hand 'bye', so I have no choice but to leave the room, nodding my head.


　◇ ◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇


　This afternoon, I'm in the garden with Mr. Kilt.

Today, I'm going to give you some pointers on how to fight Marl.

　As I sat on the lawn, the beautiful master standing in front of me said.

(...my way of fighting?)

　When I was scowling.

"Merle, give me your dagger.
Oh, yes.　

　I remove the 'Marl's Fang' from my waist belt, sheath and all.
　Kirt, who has received it, immediately pulls out the dagger.

　The light of the sun reflects the brilliance of the blade.

　Gazing at it, Kirt-san shook his silver hair in a ponytail and nodded his head in satisfaction.

''Hmm. Nice sword.''

　It's just a compliment and I owe Illtimina, but it makes me happy.

　But the next moment.

　sizzling sound

(...what?)

　Her left hand gripped the blade.

'Oh, oh, um, Mr. Kilt!
Don't scream.

　Don't make a fuss, they say!
　Although the blade is short, it's a very sharp blade that has slashed many demons and even humans in the past.

(Kirt-san's hand, you're going to get slashed!

　I want to close my eyes and turn my face away at the thought of it.

　... but...

(Huh?　........no blood?

　Kilt's white hand gripped the blade so tightly that the skin bit into it.
　And yet, instead of slashing his fingers, not even a drop of blood comes out.

(Huh?)　(Magic tricks?)

　Mr. Kilt laughs slowly at me when he notices me.

'Do you understand, Merle?'
What?
You can't slice through a blade by simply pushing it.

　sigh

　Mr. Quilt puts more effort into it.
　But there's no blood.

Is that so?
Hmm. But the--

　As she said it, she opened her left hand that she was holding.
　She touched her index finger to the blade and moved it just an inch to the side.

　Pfft.

Oh.

　There was blood.
　Red streaks ran down my white fingers. A ball of blood had formed there.

''If you pull the blade, you could easily cut it like this.
Uh-huh.

　I nodded and fished in my pocket.

(There it is, a handkerchief.)

Mr. Quilt, here!

　When I offered it to her, her neat white beauty was surprised and then smiled happily.

'Sorry,'
Nope.

　I tie it to my fingers.
　He stares at the handkerchief with his golden eyes and immediately looks at me with his master's face.

"The point is, Marle. "The point is, Merle, when you cut something, you don't need much power.
Uh-huh.
'If you let the blade touch your opponent and move it at that moment, even if it's an impotent child, you can cut him with it. Just stroke him. There's no need to try to push the blade in with all your strength.

　........I see.
　If you think about cutting off the opponent's flesh to the bone or something else and push in, you won't be able to cut him.

　-- just stroke it with the blade.

(Yeah, that's a way of fighting, even for a feeble child.)

　Mr. Kilt says, wiping his own blood from the blade of The Fang of Marl's Fang, as he wipes his own blood on it.

'If you're going to aim for it, you'd better go for the neck or wrist, where there are large blood vessels. If you make them bleed, you can rob them of their strength. If you make him bleed to death, you'll make him lose his strength, and then he'll bleed to death. That's what makes them so fearful, and that's what makes them so nervous.
Yes, sir.

　I nodded.
　'But I have a few questions.

'But, Mr. Kilt?　As for the personals, that's fine, but what about the demons?

　It reminds me of a red fang dragon.
　I have a feeling that that rocky outer skin would never be cut by just stroking it.

　Kirto-san laughed.

'That's true. But I can't change the reality that 'Marl is powerless'.
..........
Then let's just let them help us, shall we?

　Huh?

　In front of my astonished face, Mr. Quilt picked up one of the firewood piles in the corner of the yard.
　With a pop, he throws it straight up.

　Soon, the wood drops.

　Right underneath it, Kirt pointed the blade of the Marl Fang upwards.

　Gasp.

　The wood stabbed halfway down the motionless blade.

　Noticing, I muttered.

'....Counter?'
Yes.

　As if to praise a well-rounded student, Mr. Kilt nodded and smiled.

'Keep your blade in their path. That's all it takes, and most of the demons will stab you on their own.

　I see.
　To be honest, it might not be possible against a red-fanged dragon. But if it's a slightly weaker demon, it should be good enough.

(Perfect for a helpless kid.)

　Finding the light in my blue eyes, Mr. Kilt nodded in satisfaction.

'Hmm. The 'caressing sword' and 'counter' are the two ways you should fight, Marle. -- Do you understand?
Yes, Master!

　I replied cheerfully.

'Master?' And Mr. Kilt rolls his golden eyes.

(Oh ... I just said it.)

　She was surprised and smiled at me in a panic, saying, "Well, that's good.

Okay, that's the end of the class. Now it's time to build your body. Let's go!
Yes!

　With motivation, I got up.

　--And so began the hell of steady muscle training.

(Ki...tight.)

　Mr. Kilt had changed classes to a demon sergeant, not a master.

''You can't even be an adult! The moment I refused, however, I had a feeling that she would never practice again, so I had to do my best.
　But I had a feeling that the moment I refused, she would never practice again, so I had no choice but to try my best.

(I feel like my body is going to break down...)

　But just before that happens, the Golden Mark demon hunter will properly assess it and switch to another part of the task.

''Hey, just in case it breaks, I have Sol here to help me out.
Oh, devil....
Hmm. You're a demoness quilt, aren't you?

　What a beautiful smile.

I'm dying.

　This may be the first time I've overworked my body to such a limit, including in my previous life.

　Eventually, when the sunset was about to disappear into the western sky of King's Landing, I finally finished the entire menu and collapsed on the grass.

'Hmm. Good job.

　crumpled

　She smiles happily and strokes my sweat-covered hair.

(Ugh...)

　I couldn't reply, but her gentle voice came to my ears.

'Now just watch the straw man move.
...?

　He looked up languidly.
　Mr. Kilt was holding a wooden sword in his hand.

　He holds it up.
　Then he swings the sword quietly.

　Vertically, horizontally.
　Up and down.

　Soundlessly, as if dancing.

(----)

　It was beautiful.
　In my fuzzy consciousness, only the beautiful sword dance of the Golden Mark Demon Hunter jumped into my retinas and burned into the back of my mind.

　Just like being sucked in, I'm fascinated.

(Ah ... someday.)

　Someday, I want to catch up with that sword - or so I thought.

　She flutters her beautiful silver hair and dances.

　In the world that was stained by the sunset, my blue eyes continued to stare at the figure forever--.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　The evening hours were in Illtimina-san's room.

　As usual, a study session for the common language of the Albac continent........................not.
　As a matter of fact, I've already learned to read and write, so after tonight, I'm going to do something else with her.

''Huh, Marl.''
And you'll be nice, Miss Illtimina?

　I lie down on the bed.
　On top of me, Ms. Illtimina is riding a horse.

　Her plump thighs are pinching my legs, and her big, bouncy hips are resting heavily on top of them.
　Her beautiful dark green hair spilled over her shoulders, tickling my cheeks and neck.
　She smiled lustily.

'Of course, Marle. I'll make you feel good, okay?
Uh-huh.

　We can smell the soap on our bodies.
　We both just got out of the bath.

　My heart is pounding and my heart is racing.
　Her white fingers gently touch my bare skin as I take off my clothes.

　I tremble, as if a current of electricity flowed through me.



　She laughed in amusement as she struggled to hold back her voice from leaking out.

'It's okay ... trust me. You can speak out but, see, just relax?
Uh, yeah...
Oh, there's a good boy, Merle.

　I let out a sweet breath.

Come on, let's make you feel better, Merle.
Oh, please!

　I close my eyes, determined to make up my mind.
　I hear Illtimina-san's laughing voice, and then her white fingers begin to move bewitchingly.

　-- to massage my back.

　Yes, that's right.
　My body, which was exhausted from the muscle training with Kilt-san, was going to be massaged by Illtimina-san, who was worried about me.

(Yes, that's it?)

　I'm a gentleman, you know.
　But Ms. Illtimina's voice is so s*xy that I could be mistaken for one.

　--a sinful woman.

　This Ms. Illtimina looked surprised as she touched my spine.　

''Oh my goodness, you're really elaborate, aren't you?　My muscles are cramped.
I knew it?
Yes. .... this has to be done every day.

　I'm kind of happy about that.

(Well, I'm happy too, but...)

　Wouldn't it be great to get a massage from a beautiful lady every night?

　Guh, guh.

　White fingers press down on my back.

(Oh, that feels so good.)

　My bad blood circulation is restored and my muscles soften.
　With my melting profile, Illtimina-san narrows her crimson eyes and laughs gently as she asks me this question.

'How is your study with Sol?　Can you properly teach Merle about magic?
Yes.

　I nodded.

"Solstice is really amazing. I was surprised.

　And so we talk about it all the time.

　Teaching other people things is actually a hard thing to do. Because if you don't really understand it, you can't do it.
　It's no good if you only have a vague understanding of it.
　If you don't understand the reasoning and the logic, you can't translate it into a sentence, and you can't communicate it to others.

　But Solstice can do it.

　He's a genius who understands so much at that age.
　He is a genius who has worked hard to become one.

I really admire you, Soltis.
Okay.

　The sister smiled happily at my honesty.

　Then she rubbed my arms and shoulders.
　The parts of my body that had been moving poorly due to fatigue and pain became much easier to move.

(Iltimina-san is good at massaging too, isn't she?)

　Really, she can do everything.
　This do-it-all woman, while continuing her massage, asks me this question

'How's your practice with the quilt?　Isn't it hard?
It's a big deal.

　With all sincerity, I replied.

'But it's hard, but it's not hard.

　I added, laughing heartily, too.

　Mr. Illtimina said, "Oh? And an amused look.
　The look and the expression on his face encourages me to continue.

　And so I speak again.

　Every day, Kirt-san goes from the guild where he is staying to this house for me.
　Moreover, Kirt-san's training wasn't to teach me 'how to fight', but to teach me 'how to fight Marl'.
　I was happy about that.

　He was looking at me carefully. He's thinking about me.

　That's how you get motivated.
　It makes the hard part less hard.

That's why I believe in you, and that's why I'm going to be strong if I work hard enough.
Okay.

　Ms. Illtimina nodded, 'Yeah, yeah,' she said.

　Her massage went from the center of her body to the ends.
　She rubbed her upper arms, her calves, and eventually, the tips of her fingers and feet.

　All the while, she would ask all sorts of questions.
　She asks me calmly about meals, baths, happy times, sad times, and all the things that happened today.

　So I talked a lot about what I felt.

　I talked about how I felt at the time.

　Discontent, joy, emotion, anxiety, I said it all.

　And she was sure to say it all out loud.

Okay.

　And he listened calmly to all of that and just accepted it all.　

(.........what?)

　Eventually, I realized.
　Saying everything out loud, before I knew it, I felt lighter inside.

(Don't tell me... could it be... Illtimina-san?　(For that?)

　I was amazed, and my heart was full of wonder.

　She was soothing my tired body from the massage, and she was also soothing my mind by letting me talk about the day's events.

　She was trying to protect both my mind and body.

(Oh, what a person...)

　She has a beautiful smile on her white good looks and a beautiful smile on her face, staring at me with her crimson eyes.

'What is it, Marle?'
''................. No.

　My heart was too full to answer.
　I felt like I couldn't tell you how I felt, no matter what I said.

　Yeah, the three people around me are really awesome people. I'm going to have to work a lot harder to be with them!

　I squeezed my little fists together so that she couldn't see me.

　Soon, the massage was over.

'Thank you, Miss Illtimina,'

　I say it with all my heart and soul.
　She hears me, and she smiles at me with a rare, girlish smile, and looks at me with a

Yeah, you're welcome.

　That white hand gently stroked my hair--.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　--The days of training went by in the blink of an eye.

　Five days have passed since then.
　Tomorrow will be the last day off work for the demon hunter.

　Every day until then, I spent the morning with Solstice, the afternoon with Kilt, and the evening with Illtimina.

　And tonight, at dinner.

Well, it works one out of two times. At least you're doing well as far as controlling your magic?　
Okay.

　She nodded at her sister's report.

'It's just that my pronunciation of the Thanatos alphabet is still a bit of a no-no.

　The bespectacled girl added as she ate her food.

　Yeah, it was hard to pronounce the magic letters.
　It's different from the common language of Albac, not to mention Japanese.

　And there were some characters that I couldn't differentiate between, like the unique Japanese pronunciation of the "L" and "R".

(The day when we can use magic is far away...)

　There's a long way to go.

　And now, Kilt reports.

'As for the body, the groundwork has been laid.
"Huh?
It's a growth period for him, but he's changing fast. It's a testament to his motivation, isn't it?

　Master seems satisfied.

　I'm glad.
　I'm happy for him as an apprentice.

(But it's true, I'm less tired than I was at first.)

　Is that a sign of muscle gain?

　It's probably because of the nightly massages that Illtimina gives me.
　Thanks to them, my metabolism has been improving.

　And I feel much better the next day because I feel refreshed every day after listening to her stories, and I can concentrate better the next day.
　I'm sure the effects of my practice are even greater.

(Also, I get to see a lot of Kirto's swords, too.

　I can't use a sword now, but I've been doing some imagery training.
　I can't wait to try it out.

　As I listened to the three of them, I couldn't stop myself from eating for some reason.

　Crunching and munching.

　I'm probably eating twice as much as I did five days ago.

'Hmmm. But I eat a lot.
Mugu Mugu I've been starving like crazy lately.

　Is it a double punch of growing up and training?

　Mr. Kilt chuckled.

Looks like we're gonna have another Sol, don't you think?
'Wow, Mr. Kilt, that's terrible!
You're worse than me...

　Huh?
　At Solstice's glare, I faked a dry, "Haha~" laugh.

　The two older ones chuckle.
　Then, Illtimina pays off her laughter and looks at her two companions again.

'So, both Sol and Kilt, if that's alright?
Hmm. Well, it's all right.
Well, good.

　Hmm?
　What are you talking about?

　I couldn't help but stop eating, and the three of them stared at me.
　The light in their eyes is serious.

　Without thinking, I straighten my posture.

　Then, as Iltimina-san represented, she opened her mouth.

''Merle.
Yes, sir.
Tomorrow, the holidays are over. From the day after tomorrow, we must leave King's Landing again for a new commission.

(!)

　They're going.
　But I...?

　The fear of being left alone snatched at the back of my mind.　

　Looking at my anxious face, she says without changing her calm tone.

'We're not sure if we want you to go with us on that quest, Marle.
..........
The test will be held there tomorrow.

　A test?

Tomorrow, I'll be taking another round of beginner's quests to take down people.

　thumping

　My heart skipped a beat.

"So, let's see what you have achieved today. We'll see how well you do.
Okay.

　I nodded.

　I had to do it.
　They're not trying to be mean to me. They're only saying that because they're scared for my life.

(But...)

　I look at the three of them.

"I believe in Merle.

　His eyes, his expression, spoke eloquently.　

(You wouldn't be a man if you didn't respond to this, would you?)

　I say, "Watch and learn.

"Keep your eyes open, guys.
Yes, sir.
I know.
"Mm.

　Iltimina, Soltis, and Kilt all laughed and nodded.
　I laughed, too.

　And with a laugh, I reached for my food and ate the steak meat off.

(I need to save lots of energy and get ready for tomorrow!)

　Munching. Munching.

　Everyone gives me a surprised look.

　They stare at me for a moment.

Hang in there, Merle.

　Iltimina-san smiled softly.

　Both Solstice and Kilt-san nodded widely, and then the three of them began to eat their food again.

　-- The red and white moon shines in the night sky, where the stars twinkle.

　The four of us, illuminated by the moonlight streaming in through the window, were simply nourishing our spirits for the fated tomorrow.