The wind never stays anywhere.

It merely gets swept away, or sweeps everything away.

That nature of the wind resembled my life. All my life, I had been swept along by something or swept something away myself. That must have been why my sword took the same form.

In my homeland, they said a sword was a mirror that reflected its owner.

"Your homeland has so many lovely sayings."

"... It's a good place."

"Did you say you came from the eastern continent?"

"Yes. A great empire in the east, in the midst of vast grasslands."

"So you're from the 「Great Land」."

"That's another name for it."

No one had ever loved my sword.

Nor had anyone loved me.

Who could love a gale that wandered endlessly without a destination, so easily swept away or sweeping something else away? To everyone, I was someone who would leave someday. I thought so myself. I imagined I would wander without end, then one day depart this world as suddenly as the wind.

"I envy you."

Yet why was it?

At some point, my wind had found its center.

"I want to live like you, wandering freely, bound by nothing."

Just as a raging storm has an eye at its center.

Just as a whirlwind that comes rushing in as though to sweep away the world has a center.

"But I can't, can I? I carry too much. My shoulders are far too heavy to fly up into the sky like the wind."

You stood at the center of my 「Gale」.

"So come blowing my way from time to time. Come to me sometimes at dawn, and set me free, if only for a little while. I'd like that."

"..."

"When I'm with you, I feel alive."

You would not have known, but I was no longer a mere wind. A wind that gains a center inevitably becomes more than a passing breeze. It becomes a storm, a whirlwind.

"Could you do that for me?"

When you asked me, I thought the same thing.

That I, too, only felt truly alive when I was with you.

But I could not say it aloud.

My heart was pounding as though it might burst, your floral scent was sweeter than ever, and your moist eyes shone brighter than ever.

Seeing you in your pure white silk nightclothes, I settled on something I could call a purpose for the first time in my life.

I would continue to live like the wind. I had been born that way and lived that way, so I could not change my nature or my fate. But perhaps there was one thing I could change.

"Gladly."

I would become not a wind swept along by something else, but a wind that swept everything away. And once I became a mighty wind, I would become a gust of gale and sweep you away. I would blow away everything that tormented you, scatter every burden you carried, and let you, whole and unburdened, fly into the sky.

"... Thank you."

You would not have known. That your one request had made me resolve to become a storm. That I had decided to become a wind that blew for you alone.

"Then this time, I'll tell you my name. When you come again, call me by it."

You would never know how momentous that decision was for me.

But whether you knew did not matter.

"My name is Dorothy."

That little smile you gave as you whispered your lovely name was enough.

"A mage from 「Oz」, the magic city of Belma, the Heavenly Empire."

Yes, that smile was enough.

"Dorothy, the mage of Oz..."

Enough for me to become the storm that would sweep you away.

The vivid rush of memories left my head reeling. I barely held on to my sinking consciousness, and the moment I opened my eyes, time began to flow again. The memories of 「Gale」 had been long, but in reality, only an instant had passed. A subtle power flowed from the hand holding my sword.

「You must control it completely, young descendant.」

The subtle power began in my palm, flowed past my wrist and forearm, and reached my heart. Once settled there, it spread through my blood vessels into my entire body.

With it, my body grew light, as though it had lost its weight.

Like a feather.

No, lighter than that.

Yes. Like the wind.

『To sweep you away in an instant, I had to become a stronger wind.』

My second heart, the 「mana heart」, throbbed mightily. The 「path」 extended throughout my body, granting me superhuman strength. But it did not stop there. The unknown power enveloping my body made me impossibly light. I even found myself thinking I might be able to soar into the sky just like this.

『A faster, mightier, more unrestrained wind.』

The world slowed as though it had stopped.

Slower, and slower still.

『For that, my sword had to become more like the wind.』

『The wind, by its very nature, is invisible to human eyes.』

『By the time one notices, it has already brushed past their cheek. It must appear and vanish without anyone realizing it.』

『Yes, anyone.』

In the slowed world, my body moved as though creaking. The unknown power spreading through me enabled movements beyond my body's limits. The sword in my hand moved at an unbelievable speed.

Along a single path. No, along a single line.

『That is how the wind must be.』

My body was not swinging the sword. The tremendous power spreading into the blade was forcibly dragging my body along. The sword was trying to wield me.

I could not let it sweep me away.

My body was not yet ready to use 「Gale」 in its entirety. I could never withstand the recoil that would follow a single swing. I had to control it. The sword must not wield me. I had to hold it firmly and wield it myself.

I could not be swept away.

"Hoo!"

I clenched every muscle in my body. The pressure I exerted became pressure on my 「mana heart」. That force was a leash, keeping the unknown power flowing through me from running wild.

It was a bizarre feat that a mere 「sword walker」 should never have been capable of.

「Yes, that's it, young descendant.」

Had an ordinary sword walker attempted it, their second heart and all the 「paths」 spread through their body would have immediately snapped and shattered. But my heart and my path were different.

「What steel in this world would let a mere wind sweep it away?」

My heart and my path were made of iron.

"Hup!"

The surging, unknown power was slowly forced down. Instead of bursting out, the compressed force became trapped within my body. With it, wind entered every breath I drew and released. A quiet gale.

'My body feels like it's going to burst.'

The wind whirling within me was calm, yet violent.

I thought I had a vague idea of what this power was.

'The opponent I fought as Petel's champion. The power that idiotic knight used.'

The level I was striving for.

The level that defined the truly powerful on this continent.

The special power granted only to 「sword runners」.

Wings.

The power I felt from Gale was astonishingly similar to wings.

That was why my body was screaming so terribly.

This was a power I had not yet been granted.

"Hoo..."

With a single breath, my heart beat with a shuddering intensity. Yet it did not burst. The great blood of steel flowing through my veins firmly protected my body. Keenly feeling the tremors throughout me, I slowly closed my eyes.

And when I opened them the next moment, someone else's memories unfolded before me.

『I must not be swept away by anything.』

My grip on the sword changed. I held it so lightly that I seemed ready to let it fall at any moment. It felt as though I held a reed rather than a sword. My grip was precarious, as though even a gentle breeze could sway it.

『For you, I decided to become a wind that could not be swept away.』

Holding that precarious stance, I saw a faint line before me. Beyond it, an arrow was flying toward me. Staring at the arrow, I swung my sword along the line. The loose, swaying swing traced a curved trajectory.

『Not a wind that is swept away, but a wind that sweeps anything away.』

The next moment, the arrow bent along the trajectory my sword had drawn. The arrow that had been flying straight curved around, lost its force, and fell to the ground. The arcane power that had dwelled in its tip was gone without a trace. Like a lamp extinguished by a fierce wind.

"What the—"

For the first time, the elf standing ahead of me showed an expression. Bewilderment crossed that impassive face, as though this sudden development defied understanding. But the confusion did not last long. After freezing briefly, the elf hastily reached for the quiver. To nock another arrow. To continue the fight.

I had no reason to stand by and watch.

『Nothing remains unshaken before a blowing gale.』

I kicked off the ground with a sharp tap.

My body shot forward at an astonishing speed. It was not a leap, but movement rivaling a mage's 「teleportation」. For that brief instant, it felt as though my body had become a gust of wind.

『Falling leaves tremble.』

『Rotten branches shake, and the trunks of ancient, deeply rooted trees shudder.』

That speed approached the power of a 「sword runner's」 wings.

Movement at a blinding speed that defied common sense.

The distance between the elf and me closed in an instant. The elf's face, distant only a moment ago, was now incredibly close. I could clearly see those beautiful eyes trembling violently. The dense undergrowth shook, scattering leaves in every direction. Before the leaves fluttering in the air could reach the ground, my sword moved like the wind.

『Tall zelkova trees that hid the sky roll across the ground, uprooted.』

『Countless rocks lie scattered over the fields, cracked and shattered.』

With the distance between us so small, the elf no longer tried to use the bow. Instead, the elf drew daggers from the waist to fight me. This was no clumsy dagger work. The technique was so lethal and skillful that it reminded me of the assassin from the Free City who had once owned 「Fang」.

The two daggers stabbing from my blind spots were threatening enough.

Only...

『Before the whirling wind, all things fall equally.』

Compared to my 「Gale」, the elf's blades were simply insignificant.

"...!"

My blade blocked the dagger the elf thrust at me.

CLANG!

With a subtle twist of my blade, the elf's dagger flew into the air. The elf's expression contorted at the loss of the weapon. My sword never stopped, tracing curved trajectories through the air. As though performing a beautiful dance of flowing, connected movements.

The elf's body twisted and was abruptly pulled toward me. I drove my shoulder into the off-balance elf's chest, then struck the temple hard with my sword's pommel.

"Guh—"

With a single cry, the elf's body shook violently, and the fight ended. The drifting leaves finally reached the ground and crumbled, and the elf collapsed onto the dirt as well.

THUD!

The gale circling me fell asleep.

"Hah..."

As I looked at the fallen elf, eyes rolled back, weakness washed through my body. It was not enough to leave me immediately unable to fight, but extreme fatigue engulfed me. Holding my sword in a trembling hand, I steadied my breathing and reflected on the 「Gale」 I had just unleashed.

My conclusion?

'This sword is insane.'

I had been right.

「Gale」 was on an entirely different level from the swords I had eaten so far.

In more ways than one.

* * *

The unconscious elf was deemed unable to fight. Since contestants in the Racial Duels were eliminated upon death or incapacitation, the elf who had ambushed us was removed from the grounds by Arena officials.

But I had no time to concern myself with that.

「What did you feel when you wielded the arcane power within Gale just now?」

I felt no exhilaration at winning my first fight against an elf. I had a greater question that made such things unimportant: curiosity about the sword I had just wielded.

"For a moment, it felt as though I'd become a 「sword runner」."

「It felt as though you'd become a sword runner, did it? Not the right answer, but close.」

Remnants of the 「Gale」 that had engulfed my body still lingered. The sensations that sword had brought me were more intense than those of any blade I had ever eaten. Truly, far more.

「The Gale contained within the sword you ate resembles a sword runner's wings, but it is distinctly different in nature. A concept you'll find difficult to understand yet, no doubt. Aren't you merely an insignificant 'sword walker'?」

"..."

「Yet even someone as lacking as you must have realized how vast the gap is between a sword walker's sword and a sword runner's.」

Liam was right.

Though I had drawn out only a portion of it, the presence of 「Gale」 was intense enough to blot out every other blade I had consumed, if only for an instant. Truly, far more intense.

「As always, you must discover for yourself exactly what power resides within the blade called Gale. There would be no meaning in my telling you.」

"Yes."

「But I will give you a few words of motivation.」

Liam grinned at me.

「Most who reach the level of sword runner gain an arcane power of their own. They become capable of wielding not merely superhuman strength, but something arcane akin to magic. Like the Gale you wielded just now.」

"..."

「And you, who have inherited the blood of steel, can devour not only the memories contained within a blade, but even the forgotten arcane power within it, simply by eating it.」

Hearing that, I finally understood something Liam had told me before.

「I told you, didn't I? The blood of steel flowing through our bodies only begins to reveal its true power once we sprout wings.」

Yes.

The greatness of 「Caravan」 was only beginning.

「I promise you. From the moment you sprout wings, you will possess a sword entirely different from anything you have known before.」

The 「Gale」 that had sent shivers through me...

Was merely the first ingredient.

「Well, you still have a long way to go.」

"..."

「First, you'll have to digest the Gale raging within your body.」

A sword that let me move so fast I briefly believed I had become a 「sword runner」, that dispelled an elf's arrow imbued with arcane spirits in a single swing, and that toppled and incapacitated an enemy without even touching them, merely by swinging through the air.

「I say it again: take care not to be swept away.」

First...

「No steel in this world is swept up and blown away by the wind.」

I had to make this sword completely my own.

Fortunately...

"Now it's truly a night without a single light."

"Wouldn't it be better to find somewhere safe and get at least a little sleep?"

"No. We can't sleep. Absolutely not."

There were still more than enough trials left to help me grow.

"The moment we fall asleep, the nobles of the night will come."

"By the nobles of the night, you mean..."

"Demonkin."