"Uoooooooooh!"
With a spirited shout, the soldier thrust his spear toward Rei.
It was a spear with its tip blunted for mock battles, but even so, if a trained soldier came charging in at full speed, that strike was naturally heavy. Heavy enough that it wouldn't be surprising for it to inflict a fatal injury on an ordinary person, even with a blunted tip.
But... that was only if the opponent were an ordinary person. When the opponent was Rei, it was a different story entirely.
"Too slow. If you're trying to exploit an opening, suppress your presence more."
Saying so, Rei pulled his right side back a step to evade the spear thrust, grabbed the shaft right near the blunted tip, and swung the spear around.
Normally, even if an opponent grabbed the spear and swung it, the wielder would simply lose their weapon. However, the soldier holding the spear tightened his grip on the shaft, trying to prevent Rei from taking it.
It was a split-second decision.
He was undoubtedly skilled as a soldier, but at the same time, he also had strong overconfidence in his own strength. He knew his opponent was Rei, but even so, he may have underestimated him based on his appearance.
That was why he didn't let go of the spear—and as a result, the man's own body was used as a weapon, slammed into another attacker who had been assaulting Rei from behind with a spear of his own.
"Hey, you idiot!"
The soldier who had his comrade's body slammed into him was clearly caught completely off guard. Unable to just abandon his comrade, he caught him while grumbling complaints... but such an action in front of Rei was nothing short of suicide.
In the next instant, Rei thrust the spear he had taken from the first soldier, and the match was decided.
"That's enough!"
That voice rang out, and disappointed murmurs spread through the surroundings.
It had been about an hour since the soldiers began their mock battles with Rei, but no one had managed to defeat him. No, not even that—they hadn't even been able to make him fight seriously.
They knew Rei held the alias of Crimson. They knew that, but... still, since they were employed as soldiers of Duke Kerebel's House, their honest feeling was that they could hold their own to some extent. Quite a number of them had watched the mock battles, and even so, they had thought they could manage something... but seeing two men known as the most skilled among the soldiers get beaten so effortlessly, such thoughts vanished in an instant.
"Listen, as you can see, when facing an extraordinary person like Lord Rei, don't even think about fighting him head-on. It didn't mean anything this time because Grain was an idiot, but attacking from behind isn't the wrong approach."
At those words, the man named Grain, who had been thrown because he refused to let go of his spear, quietly averted his gaze as he got up.
He probably understood himself that he had made a foolish mistake. Even though it was something he could recognize in a calm situation like this, when the moment came—when it was actually a battle—it was not uncommon to do something that would later leave one wondering why they had taken such an action. It was, so to speak, a semi-reflexive action, but precisely because it was reflexive, it tested one's combat sense. In that regard, the soldier Grain's instinct fell short of a passing grade as far as split-second judgment went.
Afterward, the man who had been explaining the good and bad points of today's mock battles turned his gaze to Rei at the end.
"Lord Rei, is there anything else? If so, please. The opportunity to have a mock battle with an Alias Holder is rare indeed."
Those words were true. Rei had been holding mock battles since coming to Anesis, but they were primarily with the members of Duke Kerebel's Knight Order. It wasn't that he never had mock battles with the soldiers, but the frequency was inevitably lower.
This wasn't because Rei was showing favoritism or anything of the sort; it was simply that mock battles with the Knight Order were more beneficial for Rei as well.
Even the members of the Knight Order couldn't win in a head-on fight against Rei. But the knights, whose individual abilities were superior to those of the soldiers, tried their best to respond to Rei's movements and act accordingly. In that regard alone, the knights were clearly above the soldiers.
And above all, the reason Rei held mock battles with the knights was the existence of Filma, the Knight Order's commander.
An opponent who could defeat even Rei if he carelessly underestimated them. Being able to have mock battles with such a person was a great benefit to Rei as well.
Ideally, he should have mock battles with Elena, but Elena was currently busy. With the New Year's party over, many of those who had finished their greetings with Liberte, who led the Noble's Faction, were returning to their own territories, and among them were many who wished to have an audience with Elena.
...What was fortunate for Elena was that by demonstrating her relationship with Rei at the party, the number of men approaching her had decreased compared to before. Though, even in such a situation, the fact that there were still people making advances was likely proof of just how much charm Elena possessed to draw men in.
The daughter of a ducal house that led the Noble's Faction, possessing beauty such that it would be no stretch to call her a Goddess of Beauty, and on top of that, an Alias Holder. For a noble man, there were not many prime prospects like this. It was only natural that there would be those who approached Elena, even if it meant risking being marked by someone like Rei.
Still, the fact that no one tried to court Elena in front of him was probably because, whatever else might be said, they found Rei frightening.
"Right. I think you're all well-trained overall. As soldiers of Duke Kerebel's House, there shouldn't be any problems."
At Rei's words, the soldiers wore expressions of surprise. They had, by any reckoning, been defeated one-sidedly without being able to fight properly. Given that, they had expected to be told what they did wrong, and that there was no reason to be praised.
But contrary to those expectations, what came from Rei's mouth were words of praise. It was precisely because it was different from what they expected that they were surprised now.
...However, that was strictly how the ordinary soldiers felt. The man who had been overseeing the mock battle—the commanding officer of these soldiers—was different. What came from Rei's mouth was undeniably something that could be called praise. That was a fact.
But the officer understood that it was implicitly saying this was only in the context of regular soldiers, and that it fell short of the proficiency expected of soldiers serving under Duke Kerebel's House.
(Huh.)
Looking at the commanding officer's face, Rei showed a hint of admiration. Judging by his frustrated expression, Rei determined that the man properly understood the hidden meaning behind his words.
(He serves Duke Kerebel's House, so he's no fool, I guess. ...Though when it comes to training his subordinates, he's average at best, nothing more.)
Having trained them to an average level of strength, the man was by no means incompetent. But even so, the fact remained that at this point the soldiers' strength was nothing remarkable, and it was also a fact that they would seem lacking when evaluated as soldiers of Duke Kerebel's House.
"Lord Rei, thank you for agreeing to the mock battles this time. We will definitely make use of this experience going forward."
Feeling frustrated yet still properly expressing his gratitude—that could be called admirable. Rei must have understood that as well. He smiled and spoke.
"Yeah, if the mock battles with me were useful, then that's fine. ...Just so you know, normally if you wanted to hire me as an adventurer, it would cost you a lot."
Rei said it jokingly, but it was also true.
An Alias Holder and B-Rank Adventurer. Though his rank was B, Rei the Alias-Bearer possessed enough skill to be called a High-Rank Adventurer—no, to be called a top-class adventurer. Naturally, hiring someone like Rei would come with a considerably high commission fee.
Even so, the reason Rei went along with the soldiers' mock battles, which didn't benefit him the way mock battles with the Knight Order did, was because he was conscious of being taken care of as a guest at Duke Kerebel's House.
...Or perhaps, the fact that it was Elena's family home also undoubtedly played a part. In that sense, these soldiers were without a doubt fortunate.
"Hahaha. You're right. Next time, we'll train so we can put up a better fight before challenging you."
"Go ahead. ...Well, who knows when that will be, though."
In truth, he had welcomed the New Year here at Elena's family home—the Duke Kerebel Mansion—but there was no telling when he would visit again. If so, there was no denying the possibility that this might be the last conversation with Rei in that commanding officer's lifetime.
Whether he realized that or not, the officer wore a slightly regretful expression. He himself hadn't been able to have a mock battle with Rei, but even so, the sight of his subordinates fighting mock battles against Rei had been stimulating enough. That being the case, no longer being able to see Rei's fighting was highly regrettable.
"Right, isn't it... It's regrettable, but that can't be helped."
"If you really need my help, come to Gilm and I might be able to take the request. Or, if it's truly urgent, there's also the option of contacting the Gilm Guild directly through the Guild here in Anesis."
Guilds were connected through a network formed by Magic Items called Paired Orbs. There had been several occasions in the past when the Gilm Guild received such communications, and Rei had accepted requests through them.
(Well, the Guild Master is Worker now instead of Marina, so negotiations would be pretty tough.)
This wasn't because Worker was more capable than Marina or anything like that. Since he had been entrusted with the role of Guild Master, there was no doubt that Worker was capable, but it likely came down to individual personal qualities. In that sense, it was certain that Marina was easier to make requests to.
Anyway, after a brief exchange of words with the soldiers, Rei headed for the library.
"Good work. ...I suppose I can say that, can't I?"
Miranda walked alongside Rei.
For Miranda, who had been assigned as Rei's attendant, the mock battles between Rei and the soldiers could only be seen as Rei winning one-sidedly. Also, perhaps because it was winter, he didn't appear to have broken a sweat. The Dragon Robe Rei wore had a Simplified air conditioner-like function, so even if it were summer right now, he wouldn't easily break a sweat.
"Yeah. I'm somewhat tired, so I suppose you can."
"Then, good work. The fact that you're walking this way means you're heading to the library next?"
"Yeah. I was thinking of returning the books I borrowed. And if there's another interesting book, I wouldn't mind borrowing it."
Maybe, if he was reading a book, Black Wolf would appear again. That was what he thought, and it was an undeniable fact, but even so, what to do the next time he encountered Black Wolf was something Rei had not yet been able to decide.
Black Wolf was an enemy, and it was certain that he was targeting him. But even so... perhaps because of the several encounters they'd had so far, he felt something almost like sentiment, and that was also a fact.
(What to do about this, huh.)
Rei looked up at the sky with a troubled expression. What spread above was a clear blue sky with the crisp air of winter.
When it came to winter for Rei, he couldn't help but recall his time in Japan. Skies covered in clouds all day long, snow falling endlessly, and the act of shoveling snow in front of the house.
...Though, it was precisely because his family were farmers that they had time off during winter. Depending on the crops being grown, there were those who would harvest inside Vinyl Greenhouses even during winter, but Rei's family didn't grow anything in Vinyl Greenhouses.
No, to be precise, they did grow a small amount of vegetables for their own consumption in a small Vinyl Greenhouse, but they didn't grow vegetables for shipping—that would be more accurate to say.
"Rei-san?"
"Hm? Ah, no. It's nothing. I was just thinking about what book to borrow next. If possible, something with monsters I don't know about, or books about Magic Items—something like that would be nice."
Deflecting the question, Rei headed toward the library together with Miranda.