"──Defeat me. That is the final trial I shall give you."
The old man's sharp gaze pierced straight through me. The air grew taut with skin-pricking bloodlust, making each breath feel heavy in my chest.
Having trained with him for ten years, I knew. He was undoubtedly a renowned swordsman in the past.
We both leveled our blades.
His posture was completely natural, devoid of any unnecessary tension. Yet there was not a single opening. One careless step forward, and I'd be cut down in an instant—his very presence commanded that certainty.
"──What's the matter, Leon? Lost your nerve?"
"Not a chance."
Letting out a short breath, I tightened my grip on the hilt.
Countless times before, I had crossed swords with the old man. But this was the first time he had ever directed such genuine, deadly intent toward me.
"Here I come, Old Man."
"Come!"
I pushed off the earth, closing the distance in a single breath.
My sword swung forward, clashing head-on with his blade.
A high-pitched ring tore through the forest's silence, scattering brilliant sparks. In that fleeting flash, a ferocious grin spread across the old man's face.
Unconsciously, my own lips curled upward.
He was strong. And above all—this was fun.
When I was young, I hadn't understood.
Now that I was older, I could see it clearly. The distance, the shifting weight, the mana coursing through the steel—his strength, once completely beyond my comprehension, was steadily coming into focus.
I forged my mana, channeling it from my core down into the blade. Kicking off the ground, our swords crashed together once more.
Over dozens of exchanges, steel shrieked and sparks showered around us. His strikes were heavy, his edge razor-sharp. Even so, his back was no longer impossibly out of reach.
"Haaaaah──!"
Pouring every ounce of surging mana into the blade, I drove forward with a full-powered swing. The blow knocked his sword wide, and I lunged directly into his broken guard.
The next instant, the tip of my blade was resting against his throat.
"Heh... I yield."
"Thank you very much."
I sheathed my sword and bowed deeply to him.
"That is more than enough. The way you are now, you will have no trouble earning a knight's credentials."
"Yeah."
"However, never let it go to your head. Even if you pass the knight examination──"
"My ears are practically calloused from hearing that. You've told me a thousand times, so I get it."
The old man pressed on regardless.
"Always remain humble. Just like me!"
"Haah... Bringing yourself up right there ruins the whole point."
"What are you saying?! You'll rarely find a swordsman as strong, wise, noble, and yet humble as I!"
"Go have the old lady teach you what humility actually means for once."
"Why, you──?!"
His indignant shout echoed through the woods.
Good grief. Every time he opened his mouth, he boasted about being the strongest swordsman in the world. I knew he was the real deal, but 'strongest in the world' was surely laying it on thick. Hearing him lecture about humility just made it impossible to take seriously.
"Hehe. Shall we move on to my trial next?"
"...Old Lady."
To be completely honest, I feared this gentle, mild-mannered old woman far more than the old man.
'──I am merely an ordinary mage, you see.'
That was her favorite thing to say.
You could never believe a word of it. Over the past decade, she had subjected me to countless brutal training regimens, all while wearing that same serene smile. The delighted grin she flashed whenever I failed was downright demonic.
Steeling my nerves, I raised my staff.
She swept her own staff through the air.
Instantly, more than ten fireballs materialized simultaneously. Every single one was perfectly identical in size and spaced at exact intervals. That meticulous mana control alone proved she was anything but ordinary.
"Here I come."
She aimed the tip of her staff at me, unleashing the barrage all at once.
"──Gh?!"
Swinging my staff upward, I erected a gale wall before me. Just before impact, however, the fireballs split to the left and right, homing in from different angles as if guided by their own will.
She adjusted the formula mid-flight...?!
Unbelievable!
"You're as nasty as ever...!"
"Hehe. I shall take that as a compliment."
I triggered another spell, raising a thick earthen barrier. The fireballs detonated against it in rapid succession, the fiery concussions shaking the forest.
"Hehe. Now, for the next──"
Beyond the dust screen, a pale blue glow flared.
An instant later, a volley of ice lances tore through the haze.
With a slight swirl of her staff, the old lady conjured a swirling vortex of flame. The ice lances vaporized on contact, blanketing the clearing in thick white steam. But cutting through the fog came an arc of purple lightning.
"Whoa?!"
I hastily thrust a stone pillar from the ground, deflecting the bolt. Fire, ice, and lightning—she commanded them all with nothing more than flickers of her wrist. The sheer versatility was terrifying.
Hesitate for a fraction of a second, and it would all be over.
In that case, I couldn't just keep reacting to her rhythm. Pointing my staff straight down, I poured my mana directly into the earth.
"Oh...?"
The ground heaved violently, launching shattered boulders into the air. Catching them with wind magic, I hurled the barrage at her from every direction. She raised her staff, deploying a translucent barrier to block the onslaught.
Of course, that was just a diversion.
"──Got you."
I triggered the mana I had snaked beneath her feet. Chains of dense soil erupted, wrapping tightly around the arm holding her staff. Closing the gap in a flash, I pressed the tip of my staff against her chest.
"Hehe, I surrender. Splendidly done. It seems I am truly no match for you anymore."
"Just how strong... were you in your prime, anyway?"
"My, I wonder. The past is so easily forgotten."
She simply offered her usual placid smile. To command such devastating magic at her age... The thought of what she was capable of in her glory days sent a chill down my spine.
Having cleared both trials, I was officially granted full mastery in both swordsmanship and magic. That evening, to celebrate the end of ten years of grueling training, a feast so lavish it spilled over the edges of the table was laid out.
"Leon-kun. Congratulations."
"Leon! Well done, my boy!"
"...Yeah. Thank you."
"Hm? What's this, tears in your eyes? Overcome with emotion, are we? Look at you, look at you!"
"Stop teasing."
Glaring half-heartedly at the old man, I let out a soft sigh.
"...I am emotional. But more than that, I'm just going to miss this place. I have to leave soon."
Having turned fifteen, orphanage rules dictated that I had to set out on my own and become self-sufficient. On top of that, the two of them were planning to leave the village shortly as well.
They intended to spend the rest of their years traveling the world together, visiting old acquaintances. That meant even if I came back here someday, neither of them would be around.
This wasn't just a celebration—it was our farewell. For ten years, they had poured everything they knew into me so I could survive on my own.
Truthfully, the training was so harsh I had wanted to run away more times than I could count. Yet I knew that every grueling lesson had been driven by their love.
"Thank you both... for everything. I'm truly grateful you took me in and taught me the sword and magic."
Swallowing the lump in my throat, I looked them straight in the eyes.
"I'll earn credentials for both a knight and a mage in the royal capital. I swear I won't let anything you taught me go to waste."
"Umu! For my disciple, nothing less is expected!"
"Hehe. You have grown into a fine young man, Leon-kun."
The old man laughed with his usual boisterous energy.
The old lady smiled warmly, though a faint sheen of tears glistened at the corners of her eyes.
The morning after our final night together over that grand meal, the time finally came to leave Rind Village, the remote backwater where I had grown up. With the sword from the old man strapped to my waist and the staff from the old lady in my hand, I set my sights on the distant royal capital.
"Hmph... It suits you well, after all."
The old man smiled with deep satisfaction as he looked over my traveling gear. Beside him, the old lady watched me with gentle eyes.
"──Wielding the staff, bearing the sword."
Her clear, graceful voice rang out.
"It looks wonderful on you, Leon-kun."
Hearing her say that made my face burn a little.
The staff and the sword.
To me, they had become an inseparable part of who I was.
"Of course it does. I'm your disciple, aren't I?"
When I replied, the two exchanged glances and smiled with quiet pride.
"Leon! Take care of yourself!"
"Leon-kun. May fortune favor you."
"You two better live a long life, too."
"Fool! I'll live for another hundred years at least!"
"Hehe. Until we meet again."
Waving broadly, I turned on my heel and began to walk.
If I lingered any longer, the tears I was holding back would surely spill over.
Old Man. Old Lady.
──I'll definitely qualify as both a knight and a mage.
I'll stand on my own two feet with the staff and sword you gave me, and one day, I'll come find you with my head held high. With that silent vow in my heart, I took my first steps down the road to the royal capital.
†
"Hey, Irena."
"What is it, Gard?"
The elderly pair only ever used each other's names when speaking from the heart.
"I didn't want to lose to you, so I trained him as hard as I could, but... isn't Leon getting a little out of hand? Isn't the lad already stronger than I was in my prime?"
"...Yes. To think he would reach our domain in both martial arts and magic, and while still in his teens. Even I find his talent terrifying."
Irena narrowed her eyes slightly.
"The sword and magic. It was precisely because he pursued those two distinct paths simultaneously that his gift blossomed. The sword refined his magic, and magic elevated his swordplay. Had he chosen only one, he never would have reached such heights."
"Hmph... How ironic."
"Indeed. In high society, where noble bloodlines dictate whether a child walks the path of the staff or the sword, a prodigy like him could never have existed."
Gard and Irena hadn't originally intended for Leon to walk both paths forever.
The blade or the spell.
The moment his aptitude tilted toward one side, they had planned to stop training him in the other. That was their agreement, and the accepted wisdom of this world.
Yet until the very end, Leon's talent never leaned toward either.
Learning swordsmanship honed his bodily control and spatial awareness, sharpening his spellcasting. Learning magic sharpened his mana sensing and delicate control, elevating his swordsmanship to greater heights.
The more he polished one, the sharper the other became.
Within Leon, the sword and magic were never in opposition. They were two whetstones grinding against one another, refining his edge.
Of course, it wasn't just raw talent.
Day in and day out, he swung his blade and cast his spells, dedicating equal effort to both disciplines. In a world where everyone picked a single side, Leon alone walked two paths at once.
And that was why an unprecedented genius had been born.
Or rather, unleashed upon the world.
"Did we end up creating a monster?"
"Are you only realizing that now?"
"...Is it really that bad?"
"Yes. Likely far worse than either of us imagines. But perhaps that is for the best."
Gazing off toward the horizon, Irena let out a quiet murmur.
"The world must change. The current era, where the staff and the sword reject one another and endlessly clash, will only invite ruin. If that boy can become the spark that breaks the cycle──"
"...Aye. You're right."
Her words carried the distinct weight of someone who had watched the long, bitter feud between staff and sword unfold across generations.
"Now then, we have our own tasks to attend to. Shall we go──'Sword Saint Gard'?"
"Umu. Indeed──'Sage Irena'."
The Sword Saint once hailed as the strongest in the world, and the Sage revered as the greatest of all. Having stood at the pinnacle of their respective arts, they understood better than anyone the depth of the chasm dividing staff from sword, and the countless sacrifices that conflict had demanded.
That was precisely why they held onto hope.
That Leon, who refused to be confined to just the staff or the sword, might one day bridge that impossible divide.
The staff and the sword shall never cross.
In a world ruled by that absolute truth, the 'two-winged genius' destined to overturn it was about to descend upon the royal capital.