I was being jostled by a carriage as I headed for the royal capital of Centria.
It was a long journey from the rural backwater of Rind Village, where I had been living, all the way to the capital, requiring several carriage transfers along the way. Even so, thanks to the map the old lady had given me, the trip had been smooth sailing so far.
"Hey, are you heading to take the knight exam by any chance?"
As I swayed with the carriage, the driver suddenly struck up a conversation.
"Yeah."
"...Looking at you, it seems you're from the countryside, but the knight exam isn't something to take lightly. Not only do people proud of their skill gather from all across the kingdom, but plenty of folks from prestigious knight families who've trained since childhood and graduates from the knight training academy come to take it too. Many challenge it every year, but less than ten percent pass."
"Is it really that hard?"
"Yeah. Failing once or twice is par for the course. It's not uncommon to see guys who've been trying for five or ten years. I hear the daughter of a Knight Ducal House is taking the exam this year, too. It's going to be a tough one."
"I see..."
Apparently, the knight exam was a far narrower gate than what the old man had told me. Come to think of it, I hadn't asked him about the specific details of the test.
"If you can beat me, that exam's an easy win!"
He had boasted like that, but it seemed I had better brace myself and take it seriously.
"Have you ever taken the knight exam yourself?"
"...Yeah. A few times when I was young. But back when I was working as an adventurer, I took an arrow to the knee, you see... I gave up the path of the sword, and now I'm just a humble carriage driver."
"I think it's a respectable job. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have made it to the capital."
"Heh... Nice. I don't dislike straightforward youngsters like you."
"Can I ask you one more thing?"
"Of course."
"What about the mage exam?"
"—What?"
The driver's voice dropped an octave.
"Why would someone trying to become a knight care about the mage exam?"
"Because I'm going to take that one, too."
"Wha—?!"
The driver whirled around in shock, pulling hard on the reins in the process.
"Hiiin!"
The horses reared up on their front legs.
Panicking, the driver worked the reins and somehow managed to soothe the horses.
"Whoa, whoa?! W-Wait! Calm down!"
Before long, the carriage began moving again as if nothing had happened, but the driver was still visibly shaken.
"B-Both, you say? You plan on taking the knight exam and the mage exam at the same time? I mean, schedule-wise it might be possible, but..."
"That's the plan."
"I've never heard of such a guy..."
"Is that so?"
"Maybe you don't know because you lived in the countryside, but listen. The feud between the staff and the sword runs far deeper than you think. Not just in high society, but even among adventurers, swordsmen and magic users are at each other's throats. In an environment like that, there's no way anyone would take both exams."
"Is that how things are...?"
No, wait, why didn't the old man or the old lady tell me something that important?!
I had simply thought the more qualifications, the better, but to think there was such deep-seated animosity between knights and mages...
Wait, though.
The old man used a sword, and the old lady used magic. Although they bickered a lot, they were a married couple who acknowledged each other's strength. If the rest of the world was at each other's throats, weren't those two pretty unusual?
Come to think of it, I feel like both of them were remarkably skilled. I don't have anyone to compare them to, so I can't say for sure, but...
Could it be that I was raised by two total eccentrics?
For these past ten years.
I had been so desperate just to keep up with the brutal training that I never had the leeway to think about it, but...
"Hahaha! Ignorance truly is a terrifying thing! To think someone in this day and age would try to obtain qualifications for both a knight and a mage!"
I thought he was making fun of me, but he quickly lowered his tone.
"Still, having that kind of spirit isn't bad. When you're young, you can become anything. You can fly as high as you want. Who knows, maybe a guy like you is exactly what this world needs."
"...Yeah. Thank you."
To encourage a complete stranger like me this much. He really was a good guy.
—Just as I was feeling touched by his words.
"Grrrrrr..."
A low growl echoed from the bushes beside the highway.
"Hm... Don't tell me, monsters?"
The driver brought the carriage to a halt. Immediately after, parting the brush and trees, several monsters showed themselves.
Reddish-black fur and sharp fangs. Bloodshot eyes locked onto us as prey. The horses took fright, and the carriage shook violently.
"I'll handle them."
"Are you sure? Those are red wolves. They're monsters that give average adventurers a hard time."
"Yeah. No problem."
If it was red wolves, I had fought them several times before.
Over these ten years, in addition to facing the old man and the old lady, I had also accumulated actual combat experience against monsters. According to the old man, "You need to get used to the movements of monsters, not just humans."
I stepped down from the carriage, holding a staff in my left hand and gripping a sword in my right.
"A staff and a sword at the same time...?"
Right after the driver let out a voice of astonishment, three red wolves kicked off the ground in unison.
Stepping forward, I slashed down the one lunging straight at me from the front. Without a moment's delay, another bared its fangs from behind, but there was no need to look back. Pointing my staff, I triggered a spell formula.
A sharp spear of rock thrust up from the ground, piercing straight through its belly.
"Ggyaaa!"
The last one opened its mouth wide and spewed flames. I blocked the fire with a barrier of water and dashed straight through the resulting white steam.
A single flash.
The moment I sheathed my sword, the final red wolf collapsed to the ground.
"Phew. That should do it."
My feel for both the sword and magic wasn't bad.
At this rate, I should be able to manage the exams.
"...Kid, what was that just now?"
"Using a sword and magic together. It's how I've always fought."
"Sword and magic... Haha, hahahaha! Man, the world really is a vast place! To think I'd meet someone like you in a place like this!"
Once the red wolves were dealt with, the carriage began rolling toward the capital once more. A short while later, massive ramparts appeared ahead on the highway.
The heart of the Kingdom of Alstella—the royal capital of Centria. When I got off the carriage in front of the castle gate, the driver called out to me.
"Come to think of it, I never got your name."
"It's Leon."
"I'm Kyle. If you ever need a carriage again, come look for me."
"Sure. Thanks for everything."
We exchanged a firm handshake.
"Maybe you really can get both qualifications, Leon."
"That's what I intend to do."
"I'm rooting for you! See ya!"
"Yeah."
I watched the carriage drive away for a while. A true once-in-a-lifetime encounter. That was a great meeting.
I took an inn in the capital that day and turned in early to prepare for tomorrow's knight exam.
And the following morning.
Wearing my sword at my waist, I left the inn. Following the map along the main thoroughfare, the number of youths heading in the same direction gradually increased. Every one of them carried a sword and possessed a well-trained physique.
"...They certainly look the part."
Apparently, all of them were examinees for the knight exam.
Following the wave of people, a massive stone building soon came into view.
A flag depicting two crossed swords hung over the gate.
"So this is the knight exam venue. It's huge..."
A large crowd of examinees had already gathered before the gate. Facing such a towering, immense building, coming from the rural countryside as I did, I stood dumbfounded right in the middle of the entrance.
"Is that..."
"Yeah. The daughter of the Knight Ducal House who graduated at the top of her class from the Royal Knight Training Academy—Leticia Clausen."
"This year's top passing score is practically decided already."
Whispers from the examinees reached my ears from behind.
"—Excuse me, you are blocking the way. Move aside."
At the clear, dignified voice, I turned around.
Long golden hair shining in the sunlight. Clear, azure eyes. A sword worn at her waist, exuding an air of elegance so refined it felt unapproachable.
"A country bumpkin, perhaps? Quite the sightseer, aren't you."
"Well, I did come from the countryside."
"I see. Taking it just for the memory, then. Well, do your best, at least."
Leaving those words behind, she walked into the venue.
I could tell just from her posture.
She was considerably strong. I understood that immediately.
The only swordsmanship I knew was the old man's. But in this venue, there were many people who wielded swords I knew nothing about.
These ten years of training had been grueling. Even so, the reason I had been able to continue was because somewhere along the way, I had come to genuinely love swinging a sword.
That was why my heart raced at the prospect of encountering swordsmanship I had yet to see.
Before I knew it, I had drawn the sword at my waist, letting the hilt slide smoothly as I spun it in my hand. Whenever I thought about swords, my hands moved unconsciously. It was a habit ingrained into me through ten years of training.
"Ah—this is going to be interesting."
I wanted to see it. I wanted to experience it.
I wanted to cross blades with them and learn everything about their swordsmanship.
Bringing the spinning blade's tip to a halt, a smile naturally formed on my lips.
It seemed that far more than I had thought,
I was starved for the "unknown."
Following after her, I stepped into the exam venue.
Without knowing in the slightest what kind of position my exam results would put me in—