Tale of the Fake Hero

Chapter 10 – The End of Childhood, Battle of Aristapo (1)

Sharon Alter Tas Alfo was said to have become a Fake Warrior at the same time as Kamila, and they had a deep relationship.

“Hehe, is it because I lived a good life, unlike others?” she said.

“You’re full of shit,” Kamila replied. “Anyway, what are you doing here? We’ve been working like dogs.”

“We’re leaving tomorrow. The stench of your dogs is so bad, hah.”

Was it an illusion or was electricity crackling between two women’s gazes?

“Oh, this is it. One of the most famous battles in the world of Fake Warriors—a war of nerves between the chief and deputy chief!” The playfulness suddenly disappeared from Sharon’s eyes, and she furrowed her brows. “Kamila, your hair is completely…”

“…”

“You idiot. How much longer do you have left?”

Only the two of them seemed to know what the question was about. Then, a third person suddenly intervened and shouted at Kamila.

“When are you going to teach me? We’ve already arrived in the city!” Kaisen commented.

“I said I would take a break and teach you. Do you understand human language?”

“You kept putting it off, saying you would teach me before we arrived, and now you have to go see the marshal?”

Kaisen, a boy covered in dust and sweat.

Sharon tilted her head when she saw the sword the boy was wearing on his back. “Kamila, is that modeled after Aradamantel?”

“Yeah.”

“And he has the Balkrush emblem on his cheek… such an exciting kid.”

“I’m not fun.”

“Hey, why don’t you play with your sister instead of someone like Kamila?”

“Don’t wanna.” That was Kaisen’s immediate reply.

Sharon whistled at the rudest response she had received in a long time.

Immediately after that, a third person intervened. “Such rudeness. Do you know who this person is to be speaking to her in such a way?”

The girl with brilliant blonde and curly hair and a pale face who had been standing next to Sharon from the start had a natural elegance radiating from her that reflected her aristocratic background.

She seemed to be around the same age as Kaisen.

“Okay, you idiot, you should learn some manners. Do you know who she and I are?” Kamila chimed in.

The girl clenched a fist in front of her heart. She couldn’t believe she had won points from the top Fake Warrior, Kamila!

“?” Kaisen looked at the girl. He seemed to think for about three seconds, then asked in a disinterested tone, “Who are you?”

“…?”

“Stop butting into things that don’t involve you, and get out of here.” Then he looked back at Kamila.

A shadow appeared in the girl’s eyes, and her fists trembled. “Not only did you insult my teacher, but you also ignored me…”

The girl pulled out a sword. Her incredible skills could be seen in just one movement—the point of her blade coldly rested against Kaisen’s neck.

“Blasphemous thing with the emblem of the uruks carved on your cheek! My name is Lia Riley, and I challenge you to a duel. You have tarnished the honor of the Riley family and the dignity of both Kamila and my master!”

Silence fell for a moment.

She thought she could only hear the sound of trash rolling by on the ground, but the mercenaries of the corps suddenly burst into laughter, holding their stomachs.

“Kaisen! Please accept the fight for the lady’s honor!”

“Sharon and Kamila have a long-standing rivalry, so help build up her pride!”

Sharon Alter Tas Alfo was ranked 2nd among the seven existing Fake Warriors.

Instead of trying to stop her student, Sharon clapped her hands as if it were fun and looked at Kamila. “Kamila, is this your student?”

“You think someone with balls can be my student?”

“Hehe, you say that, but it seems like you taught him really well. He looks pretty strong. Alright, Lia, show me the results of your training.”

Lia’s face brightened. Since her master also gave permission, that guy… She suddenly felt a chill running through her entire body.

“Ha.” Kaisen sighed. Beneath his black, matted hair, his red eyes contained a chilling edge. “Without caring for other people’s feelings… Hey, what are you going to bet?”

“What?”

“If I win, I’ll take one of your hands in exchange for your rudeness,” Kaisen stated.

Was that a provocation? No, it seemed like a threat that was close to certainty, but her teacher’s honor would be tarnished if she backed down.

“Such a smooth talker. Alright. I’ll give you my hand. In return, if I win, I’ll also take a hand. How about that?”

“If you go back on your words, I’ll cut out your tongue.”

Cheers erupted from the mercenaries as they were given a source of entertainment in their boring lives.

Kamila watched before moving to one side of the street with a, “Hmph”.

“Do you not have to watch?” Sharon softly asked.

“The result is obvious either way. Why should I watch? I don’t want to waste time. There’s something I need to report urgently.”

Kamila waved farewell without even looking back. “Tell your student that I am grateful. I was able to remove a leech thanks to her.”

An obvious result…? Sharon pondered Kamila’s confident words before turning back to Kaisen and Lia.

She gave them a meaningful smile. “Well, I suppose that’s true.”

* * *

Reaper Scans

Translator – Rainypup

Proofreader – ilafy

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* * *

“What are you doing?! There’s a fight going on in the square! Let’s go watch!”

“What? Who? With who?”

“Disciples of the Fake Warriors! Now is not the time to play poker!”

Soldiers, who had been hanging out in bars and inns throughout the city, poured out.

Haradrimann Plaza contained a fountain where the statue of Haradrimann, a light dragon who was said to have helped the gods destroy the abyss over the millennium, spouted water.

“Now, ladies and gentlemen…! You’ll have to pay an admission fee,” Rifle Jin slyly shouted.

Jeers erupted all around, but when Jin’s squad members brought out their guns, coins poured in.

“Let me introduce the contestants. The lady on the left is Lia Riley, the favorite student of Lady Sharon Alter Tas Alfo, whom everyone knows!”

Lia politely gave the duel salute, and the mercenaries of Sharon’s corps erupted in cheers mixed with support.

Among the onlookers were several mages and knights.

“Is Riley the ‘Prominent Sword’?”

“She’s from one of the three great swordsmen families.”

“Then that longsword should have been modeled after Holy Sword Tas Alfo.”

Before the excited cheers from the crowd subsided, Jin pointed to the right. “And the brat on the right is none other than Kaisen, the bastard raised by Kamila Alter Aradamantel herself!”

Kaisen sighed and scratched the back of his head. That time, the mercenaries of Kamila’s corps let out cheers. The beastmen roared so loudly that his eardrums threatened to burst.

The onlookers muttered in bewildered tones. “Wait a minute, isn’t that a guy?”

“Yeah, it has to be a guy. I heard that Kamila doesn’t take students.”

“A pet raised by a person like that? Are you saying that his skills are that outstanding?”

“Ah, do you think he can still be a match for Prominent Sword Riley?”

Prominent Sword Riley came from a family of knights who earned the title equivalent to a count with just their skills with the sword.

There were only three great swordsmen families in the empire, and they were even called such.

For your information, Kamila was the illegitimate daughter of the famous ### of Belchester.

“If you apologize right now, I will forgive you.” Lia pulled out her longsword and arrogantly smiled as she pointed its tip at Kaisen.

Kaisen did not answer. Instead, he unsheathed the sword… the next moment, all the onlookers were shocked. “Come at me if you have time to yap your mouth.”

Rather than lifting his weapon, Kaisen tossed the sword to the ground and pointed only his scabbard at Lia, his face blank.

“…” A vein throbbed on Lia’s forehead. Adrenaline was burning coldly inside her body. “I am Lia Alter Tas Alfo.”

She raised her longsword, covered half of her face with the flat of the blade, and quietly closed her eyes to pray. “I want to remove tears from this land.”

Kaisen reacted with a cynical smirk. “Why do women pose before fighting? Kamila does that too.”

“It looks like you really aren’t Kamila’s student. Seeing as you haven’t even learned the sword’s prayer.”

“I have no intention of becoming a woman.”

Their gazes met in a clash of momentum and the resonance of the heartbeat.

The spell of silence and the seemingly stopped world were broken as Lia leaped forward.

“Oooohhh!!”

“She reached him in an instant!”

“Hey, man! Don’t be so pretentious, just pick up the sword!”

Sharon Alter Tas Alfo thought about the sword style she’d taught her disciple. ‘The Extreme Spider Sword is an extreme sword style that focuses on stealing the enemy’s breath and targets their flesh.’

The foundation of the style was the footwork that was close to assassination techniques.

‘Now then, what will Kamila’s toy show?’

Kaisen’s breath would be completely stolen. All living things revealed gaps when they breathed, and when those gaps were used properly, they could be killed.

That was the method of attack pursued by the Extreme Spider Sword Style.

‘This gap, this distance…’ Lia was confident in her victory. Kaisen was already within range of her longsword. She had no intention of taking his hand away—she would just accept his apology.

Shiver—

A scabbard slammed into her abdomen, breaking her ribs. Blood burst out. As the creeping feeling of death engulfed her entire body…

“Lia!” Lia barely returned to her senses when she heard her teacher’s voice.

“!” She immediately got off the ground and retreated from Kaisen. She saw a phantom image of him holding the back of her head.

An illusion? Was it a hallucination? Did that mean he’d created a hallucination with just killing intent?

‘No, that can’t be…?’

The mercenaries, who had no idea what was going on, tilted their heads in confusion.

“Why did she just run away?”

“Did Kaisen play a trick?”

“Hehe, you pathetic people. This is the fight of nerves between experts.”

Kaisen, who had extended his scabbard into Lia’s, said, “Hmm,” and lowered his stance. “You… You’re stronger than you look.”

“…!”

“I wanted to end things with that move, but… since it’s a waste of time, I should get serious.” Kaisen picked up his sword, rested it on his shoulder, and held his scabbard horizontally in front of him as he gradually closed in.

“Cross Sword Style – 3rd Form: Crush.”

It was a posture used with heavy strikes in the Cross Sword Style where the transition between offense and defense was as smooth as water.

“Oooh! I guess that kid finally decided to get serious.”

“Kid? Hey, man! Who is the kid? He’s already got all his hair there, alright? It’s a complete jungle.”

“Heuk.”

“Shut up, Jin.”

‘What?’ Lia couldn’t see any openings. There were no gaps in his breathing. She didn’t know where to attack… Hermind went blank.

‘No, no. I am the orthodox successor to the Extreme Spider Swordsmanship.’

She was Sharon’s direct disciple. How could she lose to a guy like that?

‘Concentrate. Shorten the distance by about ten steps in one go. In a split second, snatch his breathing and plunge the sword into that gap.’

It would hurt him a little, but she still needed to make sure he knew.

一Tang!

At the last moment, Kaisen turned his scabbard and deflected her strike. The moment Lia lost her posture, Kaisen tripped her, sending her sprawling to the ground.

It was a counterattack that overturned the opponent’s attack and broke down the body’s balance.

“Oh, hey, that’s…!” The senior members of Kamila’s corps exchanged blank looks.

“Yes, it’s the technique Kamila used to defeat Kaisen four years ago!”

Shlink一!

The scabbard stopped before Lia’s eyes. At the same time, a blade flew towards Lia’s hand… She closed her eyes tightly to prepare for the pain that would come, but nothing happened.

“Next time, be more careful of who you’re up against,” Kaisen coldly said. The shadow of his scabbard before her eyes vanished, and he sheathed his sword.

Click—

When she opened her eyes at the sound, she saw Kaisen walking toward Kamila’s corps, hanging his scabbard on his sword belt.

“Ugh, shit! My money!”

“I told you to bet on our jungle brat, hehe.”

“Anyway, that kid looks really strong at only a glance. Who is he?”

The mercenaries who had made the bets were divided into the happy and sad ones, and the square became noisy again.

Lia Riley shouted at Kaisen as he walked away. “Why on earth didn’t you finish it? You won. You said you’d take my hand.”

“You didn’t intend to take my hand either.” Kaisen grew up in death. It could be said that he knew better than anyone else whether or not his opponent was wielding a weapon with intent to kill. “And I didn’t learn how to use a sword to kill people.”

Lia’s eyes widened.

A smile formed on Sharon’s lips as she closely watched the entire battle. ‘Just as Kamila said, it’s a complete defeat. Both in skill and spirit.’

Sharon went to Kaisen, who was having his head pounded in excitement (because he had won them more than 10 times the original amount) by a crowd of colleagues.

“Should I thank you?” she asked.

“?” Kaisen gave her a puzzled look.

“The moment your sword touched Lia’s arm, I could have killed you. At the very least, your arm could have been cut off.”

“I thought so,” Kaisen replied.

“If that happened, Kamila would have killed me.”

“Bullshit. She would have thanked you.”

Sharon spoke with a puzzled look in her eyes. “You don’t know anything about Kamila.”

“…?”

“She’s not honest. She doesn’t know how to treat someone she cares about. I don’t know what she learned from that great teacher of hers?”

Sharon suddenly and lightly kissed Kaisen’s forehead.

The mercenaries and Kaisen, who had retreated for a moment, were dumbfounded.

“What are you doing now?” the boy asked.

“It’s a thank you gift. To receive something like this from a beautiful woman like me… you can brag about it for the rest of your life, right?” Sharon smiled and turned around.

The mercenaries tried to harass Kaisen again, seemingly dying of envy, but when Kaisen rolled his eyes, they became quiet.

“Ha, you brat… You’re still not friendly at all.”

“Sir, our Kaisen won’t get excited unless it’s an uruk’s kiss.”

“Keuhahahahahaha!”

Kaisen shook off his comrades and stared blankly at Sharon’s back. ‘There are all kinds of people among the Fake Warriors.’

One of them was a pottymouth; the other was a woman who smiled unpleasantly. He never wanted to be like that. Not that it was possible.

Meanwhile, Sharon had a strange smile on her lips as she walked away. ‘You taught a boy the Cross Sword Style to that level… Interesting trick, Kamila.’

She couldn’t believe Kamila had taken on a student when she’d been so reluctant before, and a boy at that.

Was it because her death was getting closer?

‘Knowing that woman’s personality, I don’t think that’s the only thing going on. What could it be?’

____