Liam had been right.

After those four unwelcome guests arrived, the vermin came swarming in without end. Many had their eyes on this domain, and especially on the manor.

Most of them were no match for me. There was no reason to expect any truly powerful fighters among the dregs who crawled into this deserted, ominous country estate in the first place.

At some point, disposing of unwelcome guests became part of my daily routine.

In truth, I had no time to spare them any attention. The new training I had begun was far too grueling.

* * *

「What do you think separates ordinary swordsmen from sword beginners?」

“Separates them, sir?”

「Let me be more specific. What is the minimum requirement for being called a sword beginner? What condition must you fulfill to become one?」

I wasn't sure. After thinking for a moment, I offered an answer.

“Must you complete a course at an academy recognized by the kingdom? Or obtain letters of recommendation from a certain number of knights?”

「Neither.」

Liam shook his head. I still had no idea what the answer might be.

After a brief silence, he spoke.

「Do you know what mana is?」

“I do.”

Mana.

The mysterious power that filled this vast continent, a grace bestowed by God. The source that allowed the world to exist, and something all seven races, humans included, needed to survive.

The power of those who wielded swords, those who wielded magic, and those who practiced other mysteries all came from mana. No one could live where there was no mana, while elves born and raised in mana-rich lands enjoyed lifespans approaching eternity.

Liam nodded at my answer.

「The power of those mighty beings called superhumans or heroes all comes from mana. Then what about a swordmaster's power?」

“It comes from mana.”

「Exactly. Even aura, which makes them invincible and allows them to reign as godlike beings, ultimately comes from mana. And every swordmaster was once a sword beginner.」

Liam raised a finger. Blue energy bloomed at its tip.

「Becoming a sword beginner means taking your first step along the path of the sword. Just as the name suggests. That is why the requirement is simple.」

The blue energy, as dense as the aura exclusive to swordmasters, gradually thinned as Liam continued speaking. Soon its pale light grew so faint that I could barely see it.

「Accumulate even a handful of mana within your body. The moment you take in even a little of the mystery filling this world, you will become a sword beginner.」

Liam made it sound so easy that I thought, 'Ah, I'll be a sword beginner soon, too.'

And exactly seven minutes after training began, a curse burst from my lips.

“Oh, fuck...”

The training was sh*tty. Beyond comparison with anything I had done so far.

* * *

A swordmaster shaped the mana accumulated within their body into swords. The moment they forged even one unique sword, the world called them a swordmaster. The more swords they forged, the greater they became.

Carlos was a great swordmaster who had forged no fewer than ten swords. He was the most powerful swordmaster alive, a superhuman with the most brilliant talent of any swordmaster to emerge in the past two hundred years. The continent hailed him as the 「Master of Ten Swords」.

A sword expert shaped the mana accumulated within their body into armor and clad themselves in it. The moment they succeeded in covering themselves with even a thin suit of armor, they became a sword expert. Sword experts who reached this state, known as Armor, reigned as gods of the battlefield, unscathed by most magic and free to ignore stray arrows.

A sword runner shaped the mana accumulated within their body into wings. Forging even a single pair earned them the name sword runner. Those who sprouted these 「wings」 could move at speeds far beyond common sense.

A sword walker extended the mana they had absorbed throughout their body like blood vessels. People described this as laying down a 「path」, and sword walkers who laid that path at last became superhuman.

Then what about the lowest rank, sword beginner?

“Whew. Hah.”

The requirement for becoming a sword beginner—for accumulating even a handful of mana in the body—was simple.

The heart circulated blood throughout the body, pumping to supply it. You had to create a second heart in addition to that one: an organ essential for drawing the mana in nature into your body. In other words, a 「mana heart」.

「Steady your breathing further. You must breathe regularly and sense mana. If you cannot sense it, you cannot absorb it, and if you cannot absorb it, you cannot create a mana heart.」

“D-don't talk to me, Master. Please.”

「Your true colors come out when things get hard, do they, boy? Ho ho.」

Liam let out a hearty laugh.

I bit my lip and spoke in all seriousness.

“Please. If I lose focus, I'll actually die.”

That wasn't a figure of speech about being worked to death.

I steadied my breathing and looked down. There was nowhere to plant my feet.

Because I was hanging from a dizzyingly high cliff, using my bare hands, without so much as a rope tied around my waist.

「Don't worry. If you're lucky, you won't die even if you fall. You might catch on a tree somewhere and survive.」

“... What if I'm not lucky?”

「Hmm. Then that would be sad. Your soul is still far too insignificant for me to gather it into the Land of Swords where I dwell.」

“So you're saying you can't take responsibility in the end. Then, please, be quiet...”

「Ho ho ho.」

Pebbles fell from above and struck me between the brows. I watched them bounce off and tumble into the depths far below. Goose bumps prickled along the back of my neck. My hands tightened of their own accord.

The moment my grip gave out, I would die. I couldn't let go of the jutting rock.

If the rock supporting my weight broke loose, I would die then, too. I couldn't kick off empty air, nor was I enough of a master at breaking falls to survive a drop from this tremendous height. Even the Free City's assassins probably couldn't land safely from a cliff like this...

I spoke through gritted teeth.

“This is, the first I've heard, of doing this kind of training, to become, a sword beginner...”

「Of course it is. I devised this training myself and taught it only to my descendants who inherited Caravan blood.」

“Who, in the first place, risks their life like this, just to become a sword beginner?”

Sword beginner wasn't some lofty rank.

Talented swordsmen sometimes achieved it within a week, and the rarest geniuses could reach it in less than a day. Even untalented dullards usually attained it before completing their first year if they diligently followed a swordsmanship academy's curriculum.

It was a rank even the daughters of doting noblemen could reach when taught swordsmanship for self-defense. Yet here I was, risking my life to become a sword beginner?

Anyone who saw me would have scoffed.

「That is certainly true.」

Liam readily acknowledged my objection. All playfulness vanished as he looked at me with serious eyes.

「You can become a sword beginner simply by drinking a mana potion made by alchemists. Elves who live in mana-rich lands need only breathe and hold a stick. It is certainly an insignificant rank, nothing grand. Unremarkable, common, and nothing special.」

“...”

「But you see.」

My face was reflected in Liam's eyes. There was a pitiful boy hanging from a cliff, sweating profusely and biting his lip.

「You are a Caravan, aren't you?」

“...”

「As I have always said, blood of steel runs through our bodies. And blood of steel holds mana like steel. A powerful heart is needed to make the Caravan family's steel-like mana beat. The heart of an ordinary person can never carry you to great heights. To be precise, a human heart cannot do it.」

Through Liam's translucent body, I could see the blue sky. Clouds hung overhead, and beneath them birds spread their wings and flew. Freely.

「A Caravan must have a heart of steel. One that will not suffer so much as a scratch, whatever it collides with.」

“...”

「I can promise you this much, young descendant.」

Liam grinned down at me.

「The sword beginner rank you attain will be distinctly different from that of others. We Caravans are unlike everyone else in every respect.」

* * *

Creating a second heart—a mana heart—was not difficult.

One widely known method involved a master's assistance. You received help from a mage with an exceptional ability to sense mana, or a sword walker or sword runner who had already accumulated sufficient mana within their body.

They pushed a small quantity of mana into the pupil's body and stimulated it, awakening the pupil's sense of mana. The body then reacted on its own and began sensing mana, and a mana heart naturally formed as the pupil breathed. This was the most orthodox method.

But Liam said that method did not suit a Caravan.

「That would certainly create a mana heart easily. But a mana heart formed with another's help is far too soft. Since it came into being thanks to someone else, someone else can easily break it, too. Always remember, young descendant: what is built easily falls apart easily.」

Instead of the orthodox method, Liam taught me another one.

One of the many ways a mana heart could form. Among them, it was considered an ancient method, one so dangerous that no one used it.

「You must make your body feel that it needs a mana heart. You must be driven into a situation where you have to sense mana and have no choice but to use it. A heart of steel is born in crisis. Just as I devoured a sword and opened my eyes on a battlefield long ago.」

Terror bordering on death.

Being thrust into an extreme situation, like a lion pushing its cub off a cliff.

「Have I ever been wrong? Trust me this time, too.」

I couldn't argue with Liam. His words had always been proven true. This time would be no different.

In my head, I understood perfectly.

“Hah, fuck...”

Well, understanding it in my heart was another matter, wasn't it?

“F*ck.”

「Stop at the 'f.'」

“Yes, sir.”

Training meant hanging from a cliff for over eight hours a day, drenched in sweat.

I couldn't help the curses that escaped without my realizing it. Yes, even Mother, who had spoken only gentle words all her life, would have sworn like a sailor if she had to do this training...

「Hmm. Perhaps this will give you some motivation.」

“What, do you, mean?”

「To take the revenge you desire, you must become a swordmaster. Which means you must eventually forge a sword.」

At Liam's words, my voice abruptly stopped. He continued with a smile.

「Among my many descendants, there were some who, like you, could not endure this training. They chose the easy road. They asked their fathers to serve as their masters, or invited mages or knights to help them take their first step and become sword beginners. And not a single one of them became a swordmaster.」

“...”

「Even among my descendants of old who inherited my blood, few endured this training and became sword beginners. One in ten, or one in twenty.」

At Liam's words, my hands clamped down hard on the jutting rock.

「Sadly, not everyone who barely endured this training became a swordmaster. That is how distant a height the rank of swordmaster is.」

“...”

「But you see.」

Liam's eyes flashed.

「Every one of those who ultimately became swordmasters had become sword beginners through this training. This is the minimum requirement for becoming a swordmaster, young descendant.」

“...”

「So endure it. If you want revenge.」

My heart pounded. More fiercely than when I looked into the depths below.

Had he heard my heartbeat?

Liam spoke.

「Well? Has that given you a little motivation?」

My old Master asked despite already knowing the answer. I replied through gritted teeth.

“... More than enough.”

I released one of the two hands supporting my body at the cliff's edge. Then I began holding on with my left hand alone.

Every day, without missing a single one.

Five days passed, then ten.

Just as ugly wounds formed on my palms and calluses grew over them, another guest came to my manor.