“My lord.”

After a moment’s thought, Nelia spoke. “We won’t be able to conceal the child’s spiritual root, but I believe we should keep his middle energy center a secret.”

“That would be best.” Julius nodded in agreement.

This was unprecedented—an absurd talent that defied common sense. It was an immense blessing for House Alastor, which revered martial prowess, but it would be a thorn in the side of their enemies.

And perhaps—no, certainly—there would be people within Alastor who would gnash their teeth over the extraordinary talent Kyle had manifested. Julius’s own children were an immediate example. Among those staring hungrily at the throne, desperate to become head of the house, could there truly be anyone who would not envy their young nephew’s talent?

“And as for the child’s future training...”

“Kyle.” Before Nelia could finish, Julius fixed his gaze on Kyle. “Your spiritual root is special. What sort of swordsmanship... do you wish to learn?”

Kyle did not answer immediately, simply gazing back at Julius. His silence did not seem contemplative, but Julius continued without waiting for his grandson’s answer.

“I possess a lightning spiritual root, and I have embodied lightning in my sword.”

Julius raised a hand to his side in demonstration.

CRACKLE!

Purple lightning coiled around his hand, then stretched out into a sword. It was a divine feat Julius had never once shown Kyle before.

“The cultivation method is called the Boundless Heavenly Lightning Art. The sword art is the Nine Heavens Thunder Sword. Both are martial arts of the highest order, so you cannot learn them just yet. But if you wish... I will pass on everything I know and guide you.”

Arian’s eyes widened. Not one of her siblings had ever heard such words from their father, Julius.

At most, they were occasionally summoned to the Hall of Sword Pinnacles to demonstrate their swordsmanship and receive advice. Yet now the head of House Alastor, the Thunder Emperor himself, one of the Ten Greats, was saying he would pass on everything to a ten-year-old child.

“Grandfather.” Kyle spoke as he gazed at the lightning in Julius’s hand. “Is that lightning a sword, too?”

“It is.”

“Is all your swordsmanship lightning like that?”

“It is.”

“Grandfather.” Kyle grinned. “Do you want lightning to be the only sword I wield?”

Julius’s eyes wavered slightly. When he remained silent rather than answering at once, Kyle continued with a smile.

“You and Lady Nelia said earlier that my spiritual root was the world itself. That it contains everything and can become anything. Wouldn’t it be a waste to make a sword out of nothing but lightning?”

Nothing but lightning.

Those words could sound arrogant and rude. No, there was no other way to hear them. Julius was holding that very ‘nothing but lightning’ in his hand.

Yet he could not scold his grandson. Kyle’s golden eyes, gleaming like gold itself, were not captivated by the lightning in Julius’s grasp. The lightning sword that inspired awe in everyone who saw it was merely a sword in his young grandson’s eyes.

“... We also said it lacked harmony.”

Julius broke his silence. Kyle chuckled and nodded.

“Isn’t that what makes it fun? If it lacks harmony, I just have to make it harmonious.”

“It is difficult enough to excel at a single thing.”

“I’ll be good at just one thing.” Kyle held up a single finger for him to see. “The sword.”

A spiritual root of chaos or whatever it was—Kyle did not really understand all that. But this body possessed an absurd talent beyond comparison with anyone else. And it was not just his spiritual root and circuits that were exceptional. He also had an affinity for spirits and goblins.

He intended to use all of it as a foundation for his sword.

“Does my sword leave you dissatisfied?”

The corners of Julius’s mouth rose in a gentle smile. He was not trying to chastise his arrogant, impudent grandson. How should he put it? It was more like a petulant complaint that his grandson was not captivated by the sword he had gone to the trouble of showing him.

“No. Your sword is amazing, Grandfather.”

He meant it sincerely. He had long known Julius was a swordsman who had reached a remarkable level, but today was the first time he had seen his true sword rather than the one he showed during their ‘play.’

Sword aura, aura perfected into a blade. Sword force, far beyond even that level. Julius Alastor truly deserved to be called a superhuman of this age.

‘It’s different from the sword force I achieved in my past life, though...’

It was difficult to compare without knowing the full extent of Julius’s power. But from what he could sense now, Julius’s sword force—the sword force of this era—seemed more versatile. Greed entered Kyle’s eyes as he studied the lightning sword.

“It’s amazing. But that alone won’t satisfy me. And there’s another reason I won’t inherit your swordsmanship.”

“What reason?”

“Have any of my uncles or aunts inherited it?”

“No.” Julius shook his head. “To begin with, only Katarina, Dante, and Seros have awakened lightning spiritual roots.”

“Why haven’t you passed your swordsmanship on to them?”

“Because they do not meet my standards.”

“Hmm.” Kyle folded his arms with a chuckle. “If I fought Aunt Katarina, Uncle Dante, or Uncle Seros right now, do you think I could win?”

Seros had been away from the Sword Tower for the past five years, so Kyle had never even met him. Still, he asked. Julius answered in disbelief.

“Of course you would lose.”

“Then why are you offering to pass your swordsmanship on to me?”

“Because your potential is extraordinary.”

“Grandfather, it’s been five years since I came to the Sword Tower. By now, I know all about the Sword Tower’s—no, Alastor’s—family precepts and rules.”

Kyle cleared his throat and continued in a solemn tone.

“Strength is everything here. My talent and my future potential don’t really matter right now. Because those are things for the distant future.”

“...”

“To put it bluntly, I could fall from the manor and die today. I could come down with a terrible illness in a year or so. I might get cocky because of my talent, make an enemy, and get killed. Or I might ruin my body by rushing my training.”

“Heh...” Julius chuckled softly and shook his head. “You are barely ten, and you would lecture the head of House Alastor on the family’s rules?”

“I’m an Alastor pureblood, too. Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that I haven’t proved anything yet.”

“And that is why you refuse to inherit my swordsmanship?”

“It’s one reason. There’s still one more.”

“Let us hear it, then. What is your remaining reason?”

“If I inherit your swordsmanship, I’ll come to understand it very well.”

“Naturally.”

“Then wouldn’t that give me too much of an advantage when we face each other someday?”

Arian’s and Nelia’s mouths fell wide open.

Julius’s did not. Instead, he stared blankly at Kyle. Surrounded by their astonishment, Kyle shrugged.

“So I won’t inherit your swordsmanship for now. It wouldn’t be fair when we fight someday. I haven’t proved I’m better than my uncles and aunts yet, either. And I want to wield swords other than lightning.”

“Could you not wield this sword alongside them?”

“If I focused more on other swordsmanship than what you taught me, could you stand it?”

“No.”

“There you go.”

At the sight of Kyle chuckling, Julius finally had no choice but to laugh as well.

And laughing, he asked, “Do you want to become head of the house?”

It was a weighty question, not one to ask with a smile.

“You dislike the idea of having an advantage when we fight. That means... you genuinely intend to defeat me.”

“‘Defeat’ sounds a little bloodthirsty between family members. Let’s say ‘surpass.’”

“That sounds more bloodthirsty to me. Do you know what surpassing me means?”

“Of course. It means surpassing the head of the house.”

“It means becoming the head of the house.”

“I’ll think about that when the time comes.”

To be honest, Kyle was not particularly keen on becoming the head of this enormous, illustrious house called Alastor. That was part of his nature, carried over from his past life.

Kyle—the Sword Demon—liked being free. Living as he pleased, swinging his sword to his heart’s content, and fighting strong opponents: that had been the Sword Demon’s life. It was why he had quit as commander of the Crow Mercenaries and shaken off his followers whenever he had the chance.

But that nature had not remained unchanged to the very end. Eating alone was pleasant, but sometimes a meal shared with others tasted good, too. Drinking alone had its romance, but sometimes the noisy company of others made drinking enjoyable as well.

So later. Later, if he found himself thinking it might be worth trying his hand at leading the house...

“I don’t need to give you a definite answer right now. I haven’t proved anything yet.”

Kyle was only ten. Today was his birthday, and today he had awakened his spiritual root. Even if his talent was so great that calling his future certain rather than merely promising would not be an exaggeration, he had yet to prove a single thing.

He intended to prove himself by filling in the gaps and building himself up, one step at a time.

“...”

Julius gazed at Kyle with calm, settled eyes.

A treasure of a monster.

A monster of a treasure.

Perhaps ‘monster’ was too harsh a word, but he had no intention of changing his assessment. If anything, his conversation with his grandson had only strengthened it.

He was a peculiar child. He had been precocious even at five, but now, on his tenth birthday, Julius could scarcely think of him as a ten-year-old at all.

Most children would be captivated by Julius’s sword. They would not speak of qualifications or proof. Nor would they boldly declare their intention to surpass the head of House Alastor.

Coming from a ten-year-old, all those words should have been not maturity or spirit but reckless arrogance. Rudeness. Disrespect.

Yet Julius could not feel that way about his grandson. Was it because those golden eyes were so sincere? Because his brilliant talent provided ample grounds for his confidence? No, that was not it. There was something almost detached from worldly concerns in his grandson’s words.

Could such detachment possibly belong to a ten-year-old child?

“Kyle.” Julius spoke with a gentle smile. “I thought I could raise you like a flower in a greenhouse. I believed you could prove your talent even there without becoming a fragile blossom. But a greenhouse does not suit you.”

Rather than answering, Kyle waited for Julius to continue, a grin on his face.

“I will grant you privileges appropriate to the potential you have shown. But I will not shelter you unconditionally. You said you wished to prove yourself.”

“What do you mean by not sheltering me unconditionally?”

“I mean I will not exempt you from danger. When others see you as a rival and compete against you, or attempt to trample you, I will not always protect you.”

“Good.” Kyle answered readily. “I’d rather be a weed that grows anywhere than a flower in a greenhouse.”

Competing and trampling others.

He meant the contest for the throne. Julius’s refusal to protect him ‘unconditionally’ in that contest was exactly what Kyle wanted. He had no intention of remaining under his grandfather’s protection forever.

“Starting today, you may read every book in the grand library up through grade three.”

“What about the higher grades?”

“They would be meaningless to you at your present level. It is astonishing that your middle energy center is already open, but... as I said earlier, keep that a secret for the time being.”

“All right.”

So martial arts from grade two onward used the middle energy center? Kyle nodded. He was short on mana at present, so he would first have to fill his vessel, steadily and patiently.

“If there’s a middle energy center, is there an upper energy center, too?”

“There is.”

“Is it here, by any chance?”

Smiling, Kyle pointed to his head. Julius looked momentarily surprised, then nodded.

“How did you know?”

“What else is above the chest besides the head?”

Just as he thought. Kyle was pleased.

‘The world has changed a great deal, but does the path of the sword ultimately lead to the same place?’

He had not been able to conjure flames and lightning with a sword as people did in this world.

But he had been able to cut through flames and lightning.

“Grandfather, have you placed a sword in your head?”

Was it an innocent, childish question, or did it carry some other meaning? Rather than pondering that, Julius answered first.

“I have.”

As his grandson smiled in satisfaction, Julius added, “Opening the upper energy center is the gateway to transcendence.”

Kyle’s smile deepened.

* * *

They encountered their relatives on the way out of the Hall of Sword Pinnacles, but were not detained. Rather than stop Kyle and Arian to question them, the relatives chose to enter the hall themselves.

‘A mana cultivation method, hmm.’

For the moment, Kyle boarded the elevator with Arian.

He had received permission to study martial arts up through grade three in the grand library, but he did not intend to go there immediately. Nelia, the Librarian, was still in the Hall of Sword Pinnacles, for one thing. And first, he wanted a clearer understanding of his body’s condition.

Arian glanced at her son, who was deep in thought with a serious expression.

His extraordinary spiritual root was not simply cause for celebration.

As of today, her son had entered Alastor’s succession contest. It was not something Arian could prevent by force of will. His potential was beyond all reason, and he enjoyed the head of the house’s favor. On top of that, her son himself was insisting on ‘proving’ himself in the contest.

‘Whew...’

What could she do for him? What should she do? Arian quietly bit her lip. Her son wanted to prove his worth and stand on his own, but she was his mother. She would support him in every way, materially and emotionally.

‘I’ll have to resume my own training first.’

She had let her training lapse ever since her marriage, but she would have to take it up again, if only to help her son. Her damned husband still had not emerged from seclusion after ten years, after all.

“I’m going to think in my room for a while.”

Once they returned to Rose Manor, Kyle said that and hurried upstairs.

The moment he entered his room, he opened a desk drawer. Inside was the bundle of mana stones he had been using to feed the spirit.

CRACKLE...!

Electricity sparked from the thunder crystal, and a purple snake quietly poked out its head. It gazed at Kyle with glittering little eyes, but he gently pressed its head down with a finger.

“Next time.”

Checking his body came before making a spirit contract. Kyle plopped down on the floor and poured the mana stones out within reach.

‘Let’s see just how bizarre this body is.’

Swallowing hard, he reached for a mana stone.

Author’s Note

The story has passed 10,000 favorites... Thank you for enjoying it.

Thank you for writing recommendations.

After I abandoned no fewer than four free serials last year, you probably don’t have much faith in me as an author, but I’ll repay you with an entertaining story.

I expect the story to go paid at around chapter 50. I’ll age the protagonist up as much as I can before then.

The pacing is a little slow because I want to build up the narrative first. These family members will be with us for a long, long time...

I’m already in my mid-thirties now, so it’s not as easy as it used to be to casually write a simple “I love you.” Part of it is all the guilt I’ve accumulated after botching and abandoning four new stories. Sorry for rambling so much in the afterword.

Anyway, I still love you. Happy New Year!