Chapter 2:
Training Begins
A WELCOME MOOD settled over Viscount Razel's spaceport. The viscount
himself had come to greet his new charges, and in addition to knights and
military officers, various other officials and persons of authority were in
attendance.
One of the people they were all there to meet was the heir to Count
Petack's family. A door opened, and Peter Sera Petack appeared, dressed in
rather gaudy clothes. The outfit, laden with ornamentation, could hardly be
considered appropriate for a meeting with Viscount Razel. What stood out the
most about him was his pink hair, styled into spikes. He was deeply tanned,
wore loud makeup, and his body was so thin that it was clear he neglected his
physique. One had to wonder if he really was the heir to a prominent noble
house.
"Hmmmm?" Peter said in greeting, his words drawn out and dramatic. "So
you're Viscount Razel? I do hope you'll take good care of me."
He was treating the viscount as if they were close friends, but that wasn't
enough to anger Razel. The boy's attitude did annoy him, but he wouldn't let it
show.
Even if he is a bit of an idiot, I have to think about our future relations,
he thought. I can use him to benefit House Razel.
The viscount welcomed the boy with a sunny smile that masked his
ulterior motives. "Glad to have you, Peter. It's wonderful to meet you. Now, I'm
sure you're tired from your journey, so I suggest you get some rest. We'll be
having a welcome party for you tomorrow, and I hope you'll enjoy it."
The boy was supposed to be here for training, but here they were throwing
a party for him, and the viscount had extended an invitation to him personally.
Peter was receiving a very warm welcome indeed, but he didn't seem
particularly impressed. On the contrary, he acted as though such treatment were
only natural.
"Very well, then why don't you show me to my room already? I'm tired,
so I'd like to hurry up and rest."
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Both the people there to greet him and the vassals who had escorted him
went pale at his attitude, but Viscount Razel didn't scold the boy for it. The
boy's family had sent him an abundance of gifts; this immense amount of money
and mountain of resources had made the viscount incredibly tolerant.
"I'm terribly sorry about that, but I hope you'll allow my lovely daughter
to show you around tomorrow."
This was a hint that the viscount was offering Peter his daughter's hand in
marriage. Even if there was nothing commendable about Peter's personal talents
or disposition, the viscount had his heart set on building a strong connection to
the Petack family. For that reason, Viscount Razel had arranged to have his
daughter stick close to Peter on a daily basis. It wasn't uncommon in the Empire
for political marriages to be arranged in such a way during a youth's training, yet
Peter didn't seem to realize that was the intention.
"Fine by me. Would you say your daughter's a beauuuty, Viscount?"
Everyone around them—not only the viscount's vassals, but House
Petack's people as well—was plainly astounded. However, Viscount Razel
simply laughed. "Well, I am somewhat biased, but she is my beautiful pride and
joy."
If this is all there is to him, even my daughter should be able to
manipulate him easily enough.
The boy himself was trash, but the viscount hoped they could foster a
relationship. Despite recognizing Peter's lack of worth, he still planned to wed
his daughter to him.
***
I feel betrayed.
After arriving at Viscount Razel's spaceport, I took a shuttle with some
other noble children down to the planet's surface.
House Razel's planet was composed entirely of self-contained cities that
utilized arcology—a blend of architecture and ecology. Each city had everything
it needed to function as its own entity. Every aspect, from food production on,
was taken care of internally with no need for external trade. The cities were
surrounded by looming walls and capped with ceilings of clear glass. Within
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these walls, the cities even extended underground, and they were crammed with
even more people than seemed feasible.
Additionally, the planet was completely ruined, riddled with holes from
excessive mining. Its environmental destruction was so complete that the only
way the planet could remain livable was through its arcology approach. It wasn't
to my tastes, but it was comfortable enough inside one of these self-contained
cities, so that was fine. It wasn't my place to comment on another lord's
territory, so no matter how decimated House Razel's planet was, it was no
concern of mine.
What I didn't like, and what made me feel like I'd been betrayed, was how
I was being treated.
"This is where you'll be living from now on!" one of House Razel's
knights—a vassal's vassal, really—declared to all the students in my group.
We were inside a building on the viscount's sprawling estate. The hallway
we'd been led to was lined with two-person dorm rooms. Upon hearing this, the
noble children muttered things like "This can't be!" in their surprise, but the
knight was hardly listening.
"You are not here as guests, but as students. As such, you will follow our
policies."
One of the doors was open, and there were two beds and two desks inside.
The others in my group seemed to find the accommodations completely
incomprehensible. Meanwhile, I was curious as to what kind of fellow I'd be
rooming with, but I wasn't too upset; the room I'd been living in at the time of
my death in my previous existence was even humbler than this. What did trouble
me was the viscount's betrayal.
The knight said, louder this time, "Once you've left your belongings in
your rooms, gather on the grounds. Quickly now!"
I checked the nameplates by the doors and entered my assigned room,
dropping my things off inside. The boy I'd be sharing a room with was a baron's
son named Kurt Sera Exner. Heh, I win. I was a count, so I was ranked higher
than him in the Empire.
As I gloated, the knight started shouting once more since we were all
taking our sweet time. "Hurry up! Why are you dawdling?"
"Where do you get off acting so high and mighty?" one of the students
shot back. "You're just a vassal knight! I'm the second son of a count, I'll have
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you know!"
The boy thought to intimidate the knight with their difference in status, but
the knight didn't even flinch. "So what? This is Viscount Razel's domain—your
name has no power here."
As he said this, the knight knocked the disgruntled trainee to the floor.
Seeing this, the rest of the kids all quickened their movements as if suddenly
remembering why they were here. I hurriedly changed my clothes and came
back out into the hallway to find the knight yelling like some hot-blooded anime
character. Guess I'll call him Hot-Blooded Knight from now on.
"If you've been lazing around back home, I'm gonna whip you into
shape!"
It seemed all my expectations of being entertained and pampered didn't
apply to Viscount Razel.
"Damn, this isn't what I imagined."
I was grumbling to myself, but my roommate, Exner, looked unruffled. He
had short blond hair with a bit of curl to it and purple eyes. He was tall and well
built, so handsome that he stood out even among the nobility, where beauty was
the norm. I'm not gonna like this guy, I thought to myself. The other children
were flustered by the Hot-Blooded Knight, yet Exner alone didn't seem at all
bothered. His attitude seemed to say, "That's all it takes for you to lose your
cool?" I felt like he was looking down on the rest of us, and it really pissed me
off.
The courtyard outside our dorm was set up like an athletic field, filled
with various equipment for us to make use of in our training. It made me feel
like I was back at school in my former life. When we filed out into the yard, the
knight was already there, dressed in a tracksuit, looking exactly like a gym
teacher.
"We'll start with running! Get the hang of it quick, 'cause it's gonna be
your new morning routine!"
When the kids heard that, they all grimaced like it was the end of the
world, I didn't think running was that bad. When I looked at the schedule, I saw
that our mandatory wake-up time was later than my usual. However, I was
feeling rather defeated for a different reason, and it wasn't because the training
was harsher than I'd expected.
"I screwed up. Viscount Razel is the complete opposite of me."
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Why did this happen? I was planning on being entertained. Had he
forgotten how much money I'd spent to be here? Wouldn't one expect he'd suck
up to me a little because of that? Yet it hadn't happened. The reason was pretty
clear: Though he'd accepted the vast amounts of money and gifts I'd sent him,
Viscount Razel wasn't the sort of covetous or corrupt person to desire such
payoffs. Apparently, I had come to the territory of a man of virtue, a truly good
person, the type I hated above all else. I could take the other insults, but this was
downright infuriating.
"I've come to the wrong place."
I had no way of knowing I'd be training with a family who wouldn't be
swayed by bribes. Maybe the Empire wasn't as rotten as I'd thought it was.
While I was ruminating on all this, the Hot-Blooded Knight yelled at me,
"What are you doing? Move your feet!"
***
A month had passed since the noble children had been taken in for their
training. Viscount Razel had gathered all the teachers to evaluate this year's
crop. He found his favorite, Peter, at the bottom of the bunch.
One of the educators was particularly annoyed with the boy. "Will you
please give him a warning, Lord Randolph? I've given up on him sleeping
during class, but I simply cannot believe that he invites ladies to his room and
fools around with them until morning."
Peter was in a special class of children whom the viscount wanted to
flatter for their connections. Their training was different from Liam's, and they
were being entertained in just the way Liam had been expecting. Their meals
were gourmet, and their instructors were all top-notch. If they caused problems,
they were given a gentle suggestion to change their behavior rather than a stern
reprimand.
"You're right, I'll tell him myself." Viscount Razel hadn't expected much
from Peter in the first place, but he assured the teacher he'd talk to the boy and
changed the subject. "What about the other students?"
The knight in charge of Liam's class stood up and delivered his report
with zeal. "I really let them have it on day one, so they're all well behaved by
now. They've gotten used to life here."
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No matter how passionate the knight was, the other people in the room
showed little interest. Those children's families had been deemed unworthy of
bonding with. Still, Viscount Razel at least figured he should ask if there were
any standouts.
"Have any of them caught your eye?"
"Yes, definitely Kurt of House Exner. He's very talented and has a fine
disposition. Then there's Liam of House Banfield. Now he's an interesting kid."
Liam had been called interesting, yet the viscount's reaction to the name
was frosty. "House Banfield, eh?"
In Viscount Razel's mind, House Banfield had been the impertinent
nobles who'd shown up on the first day with three thousand ships. They'd even
brazenly demanded that the viscount resupply and repair their vessels. Their fleet
had been of horrid quality, and their knights and soldiers had come across as
poorly trained. To him, the family had no redeeming qualities whatsoever.
House Banfield is worthless—unlike Count Petack's family. House
Petack's fleet was state-of-the-art with well-trained troops. They're the main
family I should be forming ties with.
House Petack had brought a very reasonable three hundred ships with
them, and those had left immediately after dropping Peter off, so as not to
burden the viscount. He'd received a report stating that their conduct at the
spaceport had been flawless, and he was duly impressed.
Every noble had a personal army, but many of these were on the level of
pirate fleets. House Petack's fleet, on the other hand, had been comparable in
quality and experience to the Empire's regular army, and Viscount Razel had
been in awe of it. He was grateful that such a family had entrusted their child to
him.
"Considering their abilities, I think it would be advisable to give these two
boys a higher level of instruction," the passionate knight suggested.
But Viscount Razel, who valued the family more than the individual, shot
down the suggestion without even considering it. "There's no need. Continue to
train them as you have been."
***
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It wasn't long after being entrusted to another house for training that I
came to a certain realization.
"This is too easy. I'm bored."
Each day, I woke up early, exercised, took classes, and performed the
work of servants to learn about the function and feelings of those in my employ.
I quickly found this lifestyle lax compared to the responsibilities that usually
clogged my schedule. I didn't have to deal with any electronic paperwork in my
office, nor did I have to entertain any annoying visitors. Compared to the
training I'd undergone to learn the Way of the Flash, the exercise didn't even
serve as a warm-up for me. I basically spent my days with my head cocked to
the side, going, "Huh? Is this it?"
Presently, I was cleaning the lawns of the Razel estate, but all the handy
tools available made it easy work. I was partnered with a girl with reddish-brown
hair and a lively personality named Eila Sera Berman. Eila could start up a
conversation with anyone, she was cheerful, and she was easy to get along with
—not exactly my image of a noblewoman. Her figure was average, but her
sunny disposition and the cuteness of her smile made her come across as the
prettiest girl in our little group.
"Come on, let's get this done quickly." Though Eila was being made to
perform menial labor, she didn't grumble about it and still wore a smile on her
face. Quite the diligent young lady.
The two of us, working in the coveralls we'd been provided, probably
looked like nothing more than servants of the mansion.
A group of fellow students who'd been playing sports nearby passed the
two of us as we worked. While the two of us were working, they were just
goofing around, though they called it "athletics." We'd all come to House Razel
for training, but there was a clear difference in our treatment.
I spotted Peter from House Petack among them—he was apparently a
favorite of Viscount Razel's. Beside him was the viscount's daughter, Katerina
Sera Razel. The blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty strode along in her tennis gear.
The pair gave off an aura of youthful fulfillment. Meanwhile, I was feeling
increasingly annoyed.
"Why does he like Peter so much?"
Peter couldn't have surpassed the gifts I had supplied to House Razel—
mine were several times the normal amount—and yet I was the one being treated
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as a servant. If Viscount Razel wasn't swayed by gifts, why did he favor Peter
so?
"Are you curious about Peter too, Liam?" Eila asked me.
I continued my work as I answered her. "Yeah, I am. Viscount Razel
really seems to like the guy."
"Well, there's nothing we can do about that."
"Do you know anything about it?"
Eila looked up pensively and replied, "From what I hear, Peter's family is
impressive. His territory is growing fast."
His domain is developing quickly? Well, so was mine.
Eila went on, "See, it used to be incredibly rundown, but through reforms,
it was built up to become unrecognizable from its old state. It seems his people
revere him as a wise ruler, plus I've heard that Peter has full mastery of his
sword style. He's just the heir, so he's not officially a count yet, but I guess
people are expecting a lot from him."
After hearing Eila's explanation, I understood everything. No wonder
Viscount Razel wanted to keep me at a distance. True, I had also developed my
territory and gained mastery of the Way of the Flash, and I didn't intend to let
Peter beat me on either of those fronts, but there was obviously a fundamental
difference between the two of us.
I was a villain, and Peter was a wise ruler with a brilliant future ahead of
him.
Since Viscount Razel looked down on me for all my ostentatious gifts, it
was only natural that he'd take a liking to Peter. If he knew all that about Peter's
reputation, then he'd obviously researched mine as well.
"It's no wonder he hates me," I muttered.
Looking worried, Eila tried to cheer me up. "Don't get so down about it.
Most of the kids here are getting the same treatment we are."
Since Viscount Razel hadn't favored her either, that meant Eila must have
been the same as me.
"I'm not down about it. I'm just wondering why you're in the same
position I am."
I was growing curious about Eila. She seemed the upstanding sort to me,
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so I didn't understand why she was getting the same treatment as the rest of us.
"Huh? What do you mean? It makes sense to me." Eila proceeded to tell
me about her background. "I'm the third-born daughter, and my brother is the
heir back home. He's already finished with his noble training, so they're not
expecting much from me. They probably just sent me here thinking they might
be able to benefit from establishing a relationship with Viscount Razel."
Her tale was rather sad, but Eila spoke with a smile. Stories like hers
weren't uncommon among the children of nobility, so it wasn't as though Eila
was especially unfortunate. There were kids like her everywhere.
"Sounds like you've got it rough too," I said, though it was a low-effort
comment on my part.
Eila's smile grew a little. "You're a nice guy, Liam, sympathizing with me
over something like that."
True, it wasn't really worth the sympathy, given that she still faced a life
of nobility. In any case, I was interested in the part about Viscount Razel not
liking her. He hadn't given in to my ample bribes, and I imagined all the kids in
the same boat as us had been deemed a problem, whether it had to do with them
or their families.
In other words, Eila was a comrade of mine.
I'd started to think coming here was a mistake, but maybe it wasn't so bad
after all if the kids around me had villainy in their veins.
Eila stepped away and noticed a boy cleaning by himself, as if he'd fled
from his partner. It was Exner, wearing the same coveralls we were.
"Oh, it's Kurt. He's your roommate, isn't he?"
We were in fact roommates, but Exner was apparently too proud to let
anyone get close to him. He wouldn't even open up to me, so we hadn't had a
decent conversation despite having lived together for a month.
"Yep, but His Majesty Kurt doesn't seem to like me."
"Oh, yeah? Well, I think it'd be better if you tried to get along with him."
What makes her say that?
Exner picked up on my staring, turned around, and walked off. His blatant
antagonism really did annoy me.
"I just don't like him."
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I didn't like the face he always made that seemed to say, "I can do
anything." He really was talented, one of the best kids here from what I could
tell.
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Eila came closer, her expression dead serious. "That's not good, Liam."
"What isn't?"
"You two were practically dropped into each other's laps, so you should
get along! It's like fate that you both came to study in the same place, you
know?"
I guess you could call it that. A bunch of kids with different backgrounds
from all corners of this vast Empire had come together to study in one place.
Some might even call it miraculous. Not me, though. I had no desire to push
myself to befriend people I disliked. Plus, I was a count, and there was no reason
for me to play nice with the son of some lowly baron.
"If he bows his head to me, I'll consider it."
"You really are a self-centered guy, aren't you, Liam? That might kind of
work for you, though."
I thought she was exasperated with me, but when I looked at her, I saw a
mischievous glimmer in her eyes.
***
Kurt Sera Exner was utterly disappointed in House Razel, where he'd
been sent to study a month ago. He stewed in silence while tending to the estate.
"That should do it."
House Exner was what Imperial nobles tended to call an "upstart" family.
Kurt's father had been a knight, and he'd earned his peerage by making a name
for himself on the battlefield piloting a mobile knight. As a result, he'd become a
noble in name, but the domain he'd been awarded was incredibly poor.
Poor or not, House Exner was a barony of the Algrand Empire. As such,
there were certain things expected of a family of their rank, and Kurt's formal
training was one of them. However, when he'd arrived, he'd found his days
filled with nothing more than playing around. He woke up early, exercised,
studied, and worked...but it just wasn't enough.
"I had more to do at home."
Kurt's father was a master of the Ahlen style of swordsmanship, a major
style in the Empire. He was known for his talent with a sword and thus had
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achieved much as a warrior. Kurt had studied the same style and already earned
full mastery. Strong and diligent as he was, Kurt felt there was nothing for him
to learn from Viscount Razel. In fact, he almost wanted to run away from this
place, but he knew he wouldn't be allowed to do so.
"There was no reason to pay so much for this."
Kurt was irritated at the fact that he wasn't getting enough out of the
program to justify the money and gifts House Exner had given House Razel. If
only he were being taught something really meaningful, that would do him some
good in the future. This, however, was just a bunch of children having a ball on
another planet. They were receiving an education, but it wasn't nearly strict
enough for his liking.
But he detested one aspect of this experience most of all.
"Aha ha ha, we'll party until morning!"
"Oh, Peter!"
A boy and a girl passed by, clad in gaudy outfits. These children, who
were receiving special treatment from House Razel, only made Kurt feel more
pathetic. The fact that they had been singled out for their social standing and
financial assets made Kurt feel small. It was like House Exner's worth—or
rather lack thereof—was being rubbed in his face. He could hardly bear it.
"What am I even supposed to learn here?"
As he continued with his groundskeeper work, Kurt was thoroughly fed
up.
***
I'd finally gotten used to life in House Razel's domain.
While we were all gathered on the athletic field one day, the Hot-Blooded
Knight raised his voice, seeming more agitated than usual.
"Starting today, we'll be adding martial arts matches to our program! Do
not take this training lightly! You don't want to get hurt."
The Hot-Blooded Knight was always passionate when it came to things
like sports, and all that passion made him pretty insufferable, as far as I was
concerned.
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"Now, select your preferred weapon! After that, we'll hold sparring
matches in pairs. You can start by facing your roommates."
Nobles typically studied martial arts as part of their repertoires, so
everyone here must've had the basics down. Just as I had studied the Way of the
Flash, I was sure some of the others had learned similar forms.
All the weapons prepared for us were high-tech. Instead of wooden
swords, there were laser blades. I picked up a sword grip with no blade and a
beam of light extended out of it. This was a shock sword, pretty much a toy used
for training purposes. Normally, it only stung you a little when you were struck
by it, but a master swordsman could unleash its hidden power and easily take
someone's life. We'd just be practicing today, though, so a jolt of pain was the
worst we could expect.
Other light weapons included spears, bo staffs, and axes. Every student
went and picked up their instrument of choice.
"Well, I guess I'm facing you." I stood with my light katana facing Exner,
who stared coldly back at me. He'd picked a broadsword-style shock sword with
a double edge. These Western-looking blades were popular in the Empire, so
Exner was obviously the more orthodox of the two of us.
He said, "I'm not good at holding back, so I'll apologize in advance."
It was clear from his words that he was looking down on me, so I decided
to take a stance and impress upon him the hierarchy between us.
"I don't think you realize the difference in our skills. I have a full
mastership in the Way of the Flash, so don't hold back. Of course, you can
always say you were if you want an excuse when you lose."
Exner cocked his head and looked at me as though I were stupid. "The
Way of the Flash? Never heard of it. Is it some obscure style?"
"Oh, now you've done it. I'm gonna make you eat those words!"
I'm gonna beat the crap out of him, I decided, squeezing the grip of my
shock sword. I couldn't start with the shock sword in a scabbard, but the Way of
the Flash didn't require a proper opening stance.
The Hot-Blooded Knight scanned the group, confirming that everyone
was ready.
"Looks like you're prepared. All right, then...begin!"
At the knight's signal, we began our matches. While the Hot-Blooded
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Knight watched over us, I leapt forward to beat Exner down. However, I
immediately hit a roadblock—Exner had reacted to my swing and blocked it
with his own blade.
"Ngh!"
I intended to knock him out with one quick blow, but he'd met my attack.
We both sprang back to put some distance between us.
He matched my movements?
Exner held his light blade straight up and silently watched me. Getting
serious, eh? I detected no weak points in his stance. I could tell that if I slashed
at him, he'd be able to parry it.
He's strong!
I took my own stance in order to face off against him. I'd thought I'd be
able to take him down easily, but instead, I'd just realized a fatal flaw in the Way
of the Flash.
***
As he faced off against Liam, Kurt had broken out in a cold sweat and lost
all of the composure he'd started out with.
Who is this guy? I figured he was strong, but this is insane.
Facing off against Liam, Kurt was starting to get an idea of the boy's true
abilities. He'd assumed Liam was strong, but standing in front of him, Kurt
could feel Liam's strength permeate his skin. Shocked, he experienced a fear
he'd never felt before—all because of this boy.
I mocked his style as obscure, but what was that move? It resembles
another style, but he called it the Way of the Flash. Is it some sort of branch
style?
House Exner had risen to power on the battlefield, and Kurt's father had
trained him rigorously to make him a warrior as well. Kurt had obtained mastery
of his style at a young age because he was stronger than his peers. Therefore,
he'd believed no one in his age group at House Razel would be able to compete
with him. How could he not? But he sensed that the boy in front of him, who
was his own age, was even stronger than him.
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"Looks like I took your style too lightly. I'm sorry."
Liam spoke just as carefully. He too had lost his earlier composure. "It's
the Way of the Flash. Remember it."
"I won't forget it."
Sweat dripped down Kurt's cheek and fell from his chin. Still, he smiled.
If I make a bad move, he'll take me out in one hit. As his heart thrummed in his
chest, he realized he was feeling as nervous as he would if he were facing a
superior. He couldn't even blink in case he missed a subtle movement from
Liam.
Where do I strike? How do I do it? I can't picture my sword reaching
him.
He couldn't imagine any moves that would touch Liam. If he lashed out
recklessly, he could easily see Liam landing a counterattack.
The two of them were stuck there, frozen in their stances. Neither one
moved, but both were exchanging invisible blows and parries in their minds.
Because of their level of skill, they were having a battle that no one else around
them could comprehend.
Seeing this, the Hot-Blooded Knight stomped over to them.
"Don't slack off, you two!"
He rapped the both of them on their heads with his knuckles. All the other
kids looked over and laughed at them, except for one, who was watching them
mysteriously.
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