Akatsuki Translations

Proudia, 【The Nameless Orphanage】

Some time after the series of attacks, the assailants had been handed over to the knights, and Ur and his companions had returned to the orphanage. With the children back, the once ghost-like orphanage regained some of its brightness. Ur and the others had returned to the guest room.

“We’ve handed them over to the knights, but they’re just small fry, including the golem user. They won’t provide any useful information,” Zain said.

Zain, who had demonstrated the incredible feat of cleaving a giant golem in two with just a staff, hadn’t changed his attitude since returning to the orphanage. He showed no signs of fatigue or anything of the sort.

“The magical tools the golem user was using also self-destructed when the golem was destroyed,” Diz added.

“Still, that golem must have been expensive. Now that it’s been utterly destroyed, they’ll likely hold off for a while. Things should quiet down around here for some time. You’ve done well,” Zain remarked.

“I didn’t do anything though,” Ur muttered.

At most, they had caught some thugs who were barely above the level of novice adventurers and turned them over to the knights. Ur didn’t think he had done anything worthy of thanks. However…

“Hey, Ur! Are you Ur the Omen Bird Butcher?”

“Ur! Tell us about your adventures! They must be awesome, right?”

“Is it true you’re from here, Ur?”

The children seemed oddly attached to him. Apparently, stories about Ur had spread even to this orphanage. When the orphans realized that Ur and his companions were the actual adventurers from the rumors, their excitement was incredible. Even now, Ur found himself unable to move, surrounded by clinging children.

“The children are noisy,” Ur grumbled.

“You were once like that too. Play with them,” Zain responded.

“Was I really like this?” Ur wondered.

“Considering how often you caused trouble, these kids are actually better behaved.”

Ur couldn’t argue with that. He silently resigned himself to being climbed on by the children and having his hair pulled. A short distance away, Shizuku was playing house with some of the orphans. The children were remarkably well-behaved in front of her.

“Now everyone, let’s sing a song together,” Shizuku suggested.

“Okay!” the children cheered.

《Yay!》 Akane had somehow joined in as well. It looked peaceful and fun over there, while here, Ur had practically become a playground for the children.

“At least I’m relieved that my predecessor hasn’t weakened. Really,” Diz said. She too was covered in children, giving piggyback rides, but she was in a slightly better state than Ur. In response to Diz’s words, Zain, as usual, dismissed them with a curt “Nonsense.”

“Don’t be absurd. I’ve gotten dull. Thanks to that, my staff nearly broke.”

“The fact that it didn’t break is surprising enough,” Diz remarked.

“I’m not about to be outdone by someone who’s long since retired from the front lines.”

“How do you even know my current skill level when I haven’t shown you yet?”

“I can tell just by looking.”

“What’s the deal with this old man?” Diz muttered.

Ur agreed. He really wondered what was going on. The fact that Zain was the former Hero was shocking enough for Ur. Of course, he had no idea that Zain had mastered such incredible swordsmanship.

To Ur, Zain had always been a taciturn, unfriendly, yet kind-hearted old man who helped the “Nameless” orphans. Nothing more, nothing less.

“You could have told us, you know,” Ur said.

“What good would that have done? The name and deeds of the Hero are useless in raising orphans. Exceptions like this recent incident rarely occur,” Zain replied.

“Well, that’s true, but…” Ur trailed off.

He couldn’t help but think that if he had learned even a fraction of that incredible swordsmanship, his life as an adventurer might have been a bit easier. Of course, Ur didn’t think he could do what Diz did, but was it wrong to want even a small taste of that skill?

“If you absolutely need it now, I can teach you that technique,” Zain said.

“Huh? Really?” Ur exclaimed in surprise, looking at Diz. She just shrugged.

“I’ve seen Diz’s 【Magic Severance】 a few times, but isn’t that a Hero-exclusive technique?” Ur asked.

“In a sense, it is. But that’s only the result, not the intention,” Zain replied.

“The result?”

“None of the 【Seven Heavens】 except the Hero can use it. They have too much.”

“What do you mean?” Shizuku inquired.

Suddenly, Shizuku was beside Ur. Looking back to where she had been earlier, Ur noticed that the orphan children were now asleep. Even the kids who had been clinging to Ur earlier were now slumbering.

“…You put them to sleep well. They were so excited earlier,” Ur commented.

“They were scared and tired, it seems. Once I sang to them and helped them relax, they fell asleep quickly,” Shizuku explained.

The children who had been brave in the face of thugs, excited by Zain’s swordsmanship, and rowdy upon meeting Ur were, after all, still children.

“Thank you, 【Priestess of Wintour】,” Zain said to Shizuku, glancing at the sleeping children.

Shizuku’s eyes widened slightly in surprise. “You… know?”

“Yes, I know. Do your best.”

“Understood,” Shizuku bowed her head.

It was a brief exchange. Diz narrowed her eyes with interest at their interaction, but there was no further conversation between the two. Zain turned his attention back to Ur.

“【Magic Severance】 is merely a phenomenon that occurs after mastering a skill and stripping away everything else. Essentially, anyone can do it, not just the Hero.”

“Stripping away…?” Ur asked.

“That’s why the other Seven Heavens can’t replicate it. Or rather, they don’t need to. They already have blessings. There’s no reason for them to strip away what they have. They just need to master what they possess to reach their peak.”

“I see…?” Ur said, uncertain.

“But if you want to train in Magic Severance, it doesn’t work that way. Even just enhancing your body with magic takes you further from pure 【Magic Severance】.”

Zain glared at Diz, who raised both hands as if asking for mercy.

“It’s impossible to reach the realm of 【Magic Severance】 without physical enhancement…!” Diz protested.

“That’s because the purity of your single strike is insufficient. If it were just about raw power, there’s no way my frail arms could unleash 【Magic Severance】,” Zain retorted.

“That’s easy for you to say…!”

“You’re different from 【Heavenly Sword】 who was born with divine talent. You must surpass them in the single point of cutting down, or you’ll be nothing but a hindrance.”

Seeing Diz cornered and lamenting her inability was a rare sight indeed. But it seemed that this was something beyond even her capabilities. Ur couldn’t even begin to imagine how to approach it just from hearing about it. He only understood that it was incredibly difficult.

“I somewhat understand that it means continuing to master a single point, but what happens when you reach the realm of 【Magic Severance】?” Shizuku asked.

“You sever everything,” Zain answered Shizuku’s question in one simple phrase. It was an incredibly simple answer, but Ur had just witnessed the true power behind those words. He had seen Zain cleave a giant golem in two with a mere staff, not even a weapon.

“The skin of demons, barriers of ancient magic, blessings of spirits, scales of dragons, even the very laws that govern a place – it severs them all.”

“…”

Ur unconsciously swallowed. Of course, he couldn’t fully grasp the essence of what Zain was saying, but he felt he had touched upon a fraction of the power hidden within that jet-black sword flash. Diz bowed her head to Zain once more.

“I will work hard,” she said.

“Do your best, Guardian of the World,” Zain replied.

Diz seemed to have made up her mind. As for Ur…

“Hmm…” he hesitated, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

Originally, Ur had been quite lax in his martial arts training. His daily routine focused mainly on building stamina and repeating practical movements to ensure he could move his body effectively in any situation.

The cause was likely his overwhelming combat experience against monsters, particularly those far beyond common sense. He had prioritized survival skills, undeniably neglecting technique and theory. But this “black sword flash” seemed to emphasize the areas he lacked most, and he couldn’t imagine how to acquire such a skill.

“Just to confirm, can this technique be reproduced with skills other than swordsmanship?” Shizuku asked, raising her hand for an additional question.

“It’s possible. Cutting, thrusting, striking, or even magic can work. What’s important is the purity, not the means,” Zain explained.

“I see…” Shizuku said, looking at Ur with a smile. “Let’s do our best, Ur-sama!”

“…Alright,” Ur replied, thinking to himself, “It’d be nice if I could manage it before I die.”

Seeing Ur’s reaction, Zain stood up with a sigh. “If you find it difficult, I’ll teach you another technique.”

“Another one?”

Zain retreated to the back and returned with a large basket. Ur frowned, then noticed the basket was filled with a large quantity of “wild herbs.” His face contorted.

“These are magical herbs, medicinal plants, and poisonous plants collected by the children. I’ll teach you how to sort them and brew ‘tea’ before the day is over.”

“…How helpful…” Ur said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Alas, it was indeed useful.

◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆

After the arduous task of brewing tea with a taste so vile it could knock him unconscious, Ur finally received a “passing grade” from Zain. By then, the sun had long since set.

As expected of the City of Sin, Proudia, the city remained bright even at night due to the magical lamps. However, it was quite a distance to their inn. As Ur was considering this, Zain simply said, “Stay here for the night,” and so they did.

“Hey, Lynne? Can you hear me? We’re staying somewhere else tonight, so we’ll be back at the inn tomorrow morning. Yeah, that’s right… Echelle? Yeah, please explain… Sorry about that. I’ll treat you to something next time. Alright, bye,” Ur finished his magical communication.

Stretching, Ur looked around. Cracked windows, walls with drafts, an eerie exterior, and a pitch-black landscape due to extreme power-saving at night. It was a nostalgic sight indeed.

“This place looks like some cult hideout or something…” Ur muttered.

《Nii-tan, isn’t this the hole you made in the wall?》 Akane asked.

“No way that’s still here…”

《Look, here. It’s from when you got kicked during a fight. They hid it.》

“…I guess I’ll fill it in before we leave…”

Ur wondered if this was what it meant to have one’s hometown preserve embarrassing memories. The hole in the wall was a bit too large to laugh off as a good memory.

“Well, it’s nostalgic here after all. I’m glad we came before the battle,” Ur said.

《You sound like someone who’s about to die, Nii-tan.》

“Well, I might die.”

As Ur said this, Akane flew up to his head in her fairy form and repeatedly smacked him. Ur silently endured it, understanding her concern.

《Nii-tan, you can’t keep being so reckless!》

“Look who’s talking, Akane. You’re the one on a grand adventure.”

《I’m fine!》

“No, you’re not.”

The two glared at each other. After a while, Akane seemed to give in first, her shoulders drooping.

《It’s pointless, isn’t it?》

“Yeah, totally.”

Ur sighed as well. It was truly futile, this quarrel of mutual worry and insults.

“All we want is to live normally…”

Ur thought that even if they couldn’t live safely in the city like Zain, it wouldn’t matter. He just wanted to live out his life with Akane, without worries or strange obstacles.

That wish might have become an unattainable dream since Akane became a 【Spirit-Bound】. But Ur had no intention of giving up.

《Nii-tan, you really need to be careful.》

“I may have said that, but I have no intention of dying. We’ve come this far. I’m not about to kick the bucket now.”

Whatever the 【Sun-Devouring Ceremony】 might be, or whatever fearsome trials may lie ahead, Ur had no intention of giving up. Even if it was clearly a difficult task far beyond his capabilities, he had no plans to stop fighting against it.

《…Alright, I understand》

Akane smiled softly at Ur. Instead of smacking him as before, she gently stroked his head with care and affection. Then she floated away from Ur.

《I’ll sleep with the little ones. They’re still a bit scared.》

“Okay. Good night, Akane.”

After seeing Akane off, Ur let out a yawn.

Ur was tired too. He had taken a nap—or rather, passed out—at the Adventurers’ Guild, but today had been too eventful. Especially Zain’s Spartan training at the end. Was it his imagination that his fingertips still smelled of herbs?

However, it felt somewhat wasteful to go to sleep right away. The scenery of the 【Nameless Orphanage】 was overwhelmingly nostalgic for Ur.

For Ur, a Nameless wanderer, places that could evoke such feelings were quite rare.

Ur quietly walked through the orphanage, trying not to make any noise. Although there were signs of many repairs, the fundamental parts hadn’t changed at all. It was amusing how everything seemed smaller now.

As he walked around the orphanage, he noticed light leaking from a narrow storage-like space at the bottom of the stairs leading to the basement.

Huh? The children should be asleep by now, right?

Intrigued, Ur quietly opened the door, and…

“…Diz?”

Diz was there. Standing tall, holding an old sword that must have been stored somewhere.

And for some reason, she was completely naked.

Faced with a naked Diz, Ur should have either immediately apologized or pretended not to see and left immediately.

But Ur could do neither

“…Wow.”

In the storage room, under dim light, she stood in front of an old mirror that must have been stored there. Without a stitch of clothing, sword in hand, she was staring intently at her own reflection, in a stance.

Ur often fought alongside her. Sometimes, he even received training from her. He thought he had seen her sword stance countless times.

But Ur realized he needed to revise that perception.

Ur had never truly seen Diz properly before.

“—————”

She was breathtakingly beautiful, just standing there in her stance. So beautiful that Ur forgot to run away or apologize.

Exposing her body and holding the sword, she slowly moved the blade. From her toes gripping the ground to the soles of her feet, calves, thighs, waist, abdomen, shoulders to arms, and finally hands and fingertips. She observed every part moving correctly, her movements careful not to miss even the slightest detail.

All her power flowed seamlessly into the sword. The sword cut through the air as if it were a part of her body. Though the movement was so slow that even an insect could land on the blade, Ur felt as if everything in its path would be sliced apart.

In this dusty storage room of the old orphanage, a worn-out sword was quietly cleaving the world.

“……”

Ur stopped hiding. He entered the room, closed the door, and sat down right there.

He didn’t want anyone else to see this. It was a base desire for exclusivity. He didn’t want to show this sight to anyone else. Ur silently monopolized her sword dance.