Under the Arhebts Special Act, information about a Sword Seeker who voluntarily reported their attainment was made public throughout the Empire. This served both to keep that individual in check and to advertise them.

I wield these weapons. I possess these abilities.

Announcing those facts was itself a form of advertising. A Sword Seeker could find work anywhere, and every conceivable organization eagerly sought such top-tier talent. Simply making their information public meant letters would pour in from all directions, begging them to join.

... Of course, needless to say, none of this ordinarily happened out of the blue. No one reached the realm of a Sword Seeker overnight. Word naturally spread about anyone approaching that realm, and it generally took another few months after those rumors began for them to become a Sword Seeker.

During those months, organizations, noble houses, and knightly orders prepared to recruit the individual in question. They conducted thorough background investigations so they could make an offer that would appeal to their target. Thus, when the list of Sword Seeker-level fighters was updated, those groups would think, So they've finally made it? and present the offers they had prepared.

This time, however, was different.

The list had been updated without warning. And the person on it... was someone they had occasionally heard rumors about, but had never taken much interest in. He was known to be an Expert and had been active for less than half a year, so they had considered it too early to approach him.

Yet now he was suddenly a Sword Seeker?

Had he been hiding his abilities?

They had little information about him and no idea what to offer. Hidden masters living outside the public eye sometimes made surprise appearances like this, but even that was uncommon. Bewildered, the various groups reviewed his information...

『Real Name - Najin.』

『Former Working Name - Ivan.』

『Area of Activity - Cambria.』

『Realm - Sword Seeker』

And the moment they read the number at the end...

『Age - 18.』

The entire Empire was thrown into an uproar.

2.

Among those gifted with the sword who had received sufficient support, the average age of Sword Experts was measured as the late twenties to early thirties, while that of Sword Seekers was the late fifties. This had been common knowledge for more than a thousand years, ever since the Empire's founding.

Naturally, geniuses occasionally appeared and broke those records, but never by a particularly large margin.

There was good reason for this. Advancing to a higher realm meant raising the soul's stature. Only through years of honing oneself could one cleanse the grime from the soul and achieve sublimation... Regardless of talent, advancing took a great deal of time.

That was what made Sword Saint Karon such an anomaly.

He had ascended through the realms far too quickly, moving forward without obstruction. He raced onward, breaking every record for youngest attainment. The gazes initially filled with jealousy, suspicion, and doubt had turned to admiration and envy by the time he reached the realm of a Master.

A genius without equal.

A genius whose like would not be seen again for another thousand years.

Not even ten years had passed since such praise began pouring down on Karon. And now, the Empire faced yet another shocking event.

『Sword Seeker Realm Attained at Eighteen.』

『Najin, an Adventurer of Cambria.』

A boy had appeared who had become a Sword Seeker at just eighteen. He had beaten the record of Karon, hailed as an unparalleled genius, by a full twelve years, and the average by nearly forty.

"This is impossible!"

"Something is wrong!"

Countless people raised their voices.

The loudest among them were none other than the historians who chronicled the Empire's history. They had also protested in the Sword Saint's day, and they considered themselves the Empire's living history.

Now they would have to rewrite the history books. Having already revised countless volumes because of the Sword Saint, they were beside themselves.

"The results are wrong. This defies reason—it is an aberration!"

"We must consider the influence of cultists."

"The examination was flawed. A second examination is required..."

Their wording was rather extreme, but public sentiment favored their views. It simply made no sense. Breaking a record was one thing, but how could anyone break it like this?

"Even the Sword Saint—the very Sword Saint hailed as an unparalleled genius—grew under the support of the Order of the Sword. He had a solid foundation! But what of this boy? He has no foundation whatsoever. He appeared out of nowhere. Even his place of origin is unknown!"

"Everything about him is suspicious!"

"He's only been active for half a year. Could he be a homunculus created by a mage tower?"

Countless people insisted that something was wrong.

As the public clamor grew, the Empire released the details of the examination and information about the person who had conducted it. Those who had protested applauded, delighted, and rushed to disparage the examiner...

『Cypria Gachevska.』

But the moment they saw the examiner's name, they all had to shut their mouths. Those who had questioned her competence and raised doubts until then also turned deathly pale.

The Empire's great archmage.

The Fourth Pillar of the Empire.

Cypria Gachevska, the Ever-Radiant Point.

Everyone knew what it meant to question her abilities. They also knew that if she expressed displeasure over it, most organizations would be blown apart. In the end, silence enveloped the Empire.

Then was it entirely true, without a single falsehood?

Had someone really reached the realm of a Sword Seeker at just eighteen? Was such a thing even possible?

Amid the public confusion, the decisive blow fell. The emperor summoned the Sword Masters, ostensibly to commemorate this historic moment. Once the emperor himself intervened, all of it became truth.

... Najin was called to the imperial court.

Until the imperial court released further news, there was nothing more to be learned. Countless people waited with bated breath for word to arrive. Even as they waited, the news continued spreading swiftly throughout the Empire, announcing the appearance of the youngest Sword Seeker.

* * *

The lord of Trevache, Marquis Edelmar, rose in a standing ovation the instant he saw the words emblazoned across the letter: 'The Youngest Sword Seeker, Najin.'

"Bravo, bravo!"

Had they seen? This was the young man he had picked out. Hadn't his judgment been spot-on? Hadn't he said the young man would cause a major stir? After shouting all this, the marquis guzzled his treasured wine straight from the bottle and issued orders to the theater troupes he sponsored.

They were to turn this into a play immediately. To dramatize the tale of Najin and Dieta. This was Trevache's chance to establish itself as a tourist destination.

This time, even his knights could not stop him.

The marquisal House Trevache had indeed been the first noble house to contact Najin, and it was drawing all the public's attention. Marquis Edelmar was not about to miss his chance to earn a reputation as an investment genius who had foreseen the future.

Sword Seeker Roselin Ascalo already knew that Najin had reached the Sword Seeker realm, so she wore a rather relaxed expression amid the uproar in the adventurers' city.

"Boss, did you see that?"

"Kid, I know all about it. Your boss knows these things at a glance, huh? Didn't I tell you that boy was going to make waves?"

"You saw all this coming back then?"

"Of course, you punk. Not just anyone can be a commander."

"Even that this Ivan fellow... was eighteen?"

"Of cour... What? Hold on, what did you say?"

Roselin snatched the newspaper her subordinate had been reading. The moment she saw the words printed in enormous letters—'Attaining the Sword Seeker Realm at Eighteen...'—her eyes widened.

Eighteen? Eighteen?

She'd thought he was at least in his mid-twenties!

Roselin blinked, dumbfounded. With even her thrown into confusion, the adventurers' city spent a tumultuous time awaiting Najin's return.

The Snake That Swallows Gold.

Dieta, head of the Dieta Trading Company, entered the meeting room humming. Naturally, she was delighted. Her company's share price was soaring by the moment.

It was well known that Najin and Dieta were extremely close, both professionally and personally. As a result, people came to seek information from her not only from within the adventurers' city, but from outside it as well.

She was a merchant, and she knew very well that even intangible information could sometimes possess tremendous value. Having pocketed a hefty sum in gold, she could not stop smiling.

'Well, that's one thing.'

The mere fact that the man she had set her sights on was doing well was enough to delight her. Seeing interest pour in from all directions did sting a little, but what did it matter?

'The first spot is mine.'

His first investor and his first friend.

Being first held tremendous value wherever one went. And she intended to claim other firsts, one by one. Indulging in such fantasies, Dieta spread the newspaper she had brought across her office desk.

Come to think of it, he'd never told her his age, had he?

Now she would finally find out. Her heart fluttering, Dieta checked the newspaper...

"Huh?"

Her breath caught.

She coughed as she struggled to breathe. After coughing several times, she thumped her chest and checked the newspaper again.

Eighteen. The number had not changed.

Dieta was twenty. In other words, Najin was two years younger than her.

"He was younger than me? Seriously?"

Dieta's eyes widened, and those of Pasion, the knight guarding her at her side, widened too. For two reasons: first, Najin's age; second, the discovery that his lady's eyes could open that wide.

The two stared at the newspaper, round-eyed.

Sword Saint Karon, master of the Order of the Sword, adjusted his clothing, dressed in the order's formal uniform for the first time in a long while. Ordinarily, he would throw on a loose robe and head off, but this occasion did not permit that.

The emperor had issued a summons to the sword lords.

Sword Masters wholly occupied with the Battlefield of Stars or the Demon Realm were exempt, but those who also operated in the interior, like Karon, were required to answer. Of course, he would have gone gladly even without that obligation.

"So the boy's name was Najin."

Karon chuckled.

A Sword Seeker at eighteen. He had expected the boy to be young, but this exceeded anything he had imagined. Karon burst out laughing at the news that his record had been broken.

He was, after all, the boy's unofficial teacher. He ought to congratulate his pupil on his debut.

"I can't very well go empty-handed."

Karon crooked a finger, and the waiting High Priest brought him a sword. It was this year's most ambitious creation, forged by a master artisan of the Order of the Sword. This would make a suitable gift.

Yuel Razian, executioner of the Order of Starblood, had stormed a hideout of demon contractors near the Demon Realm alone. She smiled upon reading the urgent telegram that had arrived.

"So the time has come."

Yuel already knew Najin's age and realm. He had been close to becoming a Sword Seeker back then, and now he had advanced in just a month? Impressive. Murmuring to that effect, Yuel swung her sword.

Blood sprayed with every swing. The spells the demon contractors had painstakingly prepared tore apart like sheets of paper, and their bodies were dismembered into tiny pieces.

She released a carrier pigeon bearing her reply—'I will answer the summons'—then tipped a bottle of liquor into her mouth. Enjoying the pleasant buzz, she readjusted her grip on her sword. Cutting down heretics was enjoyable, but meeting that boy promised to be even more so.

The demon contractors' screams echoed.

Amid those echoing screams, Yuel's sword flashed.

Gerd, the Empire's foremost warrior.

After sending letters to the Sword Masters in accordance with the emperor's wishes, he returned to the grassland reserved for him alone. Then he swung his sword. Even with the entire Empire in an uproar, the old man's daily routine had not changed in the slightest.

He simply swung his sword.

Silently, as he always had.

3.

Blindfolded, Najin was guided somewhere. All manner of spell formulas were inscribed on the blindfold, and even when he blinked beneath it, his surroundings remained indistinct.

'I think I might be able to see...'

If he strained his eyes, the scenery did grow clearer, but the formulas on the blindfold began emitting a loud hiss, so Najin simply closed his eyes.

How long had they walked?

The Royal Guard leading him stopped.

A heavy rumble sounded as a door opened. Once they stepped inside, the Royal Guard removed Najin's blindfold. He blinked several times, adjusting to the dazzling lights.

Then he opened his eyes and looked around.

The chamber resembled both a courtroom and an arena for duels. Najin stood in the center of the circular space. When he raised his head, he saw people looking down at him.

Sword Saint Karon.

Yuel Razian, the murderous fiend.

Gerd, the Empire's foremost warrior.

The three Sword Masters came into view. Karon shrugged at Najin, while Yuel openly waved to him in greeting. Her face remained expressionless, however, making the gesture somewhat awkward.

And Gerd...

The old man who was the Empire's foremost warrior watched Najin with narrowed eyes. His gaze was devoid of color, betraying even less emotion than Yuel's.

'Then...'

Najin lifted his head a little farther, toward the man seated a level above the Sword Masters. His long platinum-blond hair resembled starlight. There was no need to ask who he was. Only one person in the Empire could sit above the Sword Masters.

"I greet the Sun of the Empire."

Najin dropped to one knee and bowed his head. Just as he was about to bow all the way down, a voice rang out, telling him that was enough. Only after receiving permission to raise his head did he do so.

"You know why you have been called here, I trust."

The emperor smiled.

"You have proven your attainment through your soul's stature. Yet you are a seeker of the sword—a swordsman."

He swept his arm. His clothing fluttered, and clusters of light scattered.

"A swordsman uses his sword as a brush to tell his own story. He proves himself with its point."

The scattered light shone upon Najin.

"Prove yourself before the Empire's proud sword lords."

In short, he was being asked to demonstrate proof that he was a Sword Seeker.

Was this why his sword had not been confiscated, even for an audience with the emperor? Najin straightened his bent knee and rose.

"Gladly."

He drew his sword.

With three Sword Masters watching, Najin focused on every movement more intently than ever before. He raised the blade in a clean arc, its point aimed at the ceiling. A single sword held straight toward the sky.

With it, he concealed half his face.

The sword salute Ivan had taught him.

Closing both eyes, Najin focused inward.

What he drew with his sword's point were stars. The stars he had dreamed of in a place where no stars could be seen. Najin opened his eyes and lightly swung his sword.

FSSSH!

Clusters of gold and white light scattered along the blade's point. The golden light gathered into small circles, while the white became lines connecting one circle to the next. Together, they formed a constellation of white and gold.

The lights illuminating Najin were eclipsed by the light he had created and could no longer be seen. Only the radiance of his sword aura filled the chamber.

And the three Sword Masters and the emperor watching the sight widened their eyes. They could do nothing else.

White and gold.

The two colors that formed stars existed side by side, in sword aura shaped like a constellation.

Though the two colors had not blended into platinum, the aura the boy had drawn was infinitely close to starlight. No one present failed to understand what that meant. Perhaps no one anywhere in the Empire would.

The boy's sword aura resembled that of King Arthur.