One day at noon.
Several knights returned to the city of Clausel, far removed from Ren's village, having completed their rotations in the surrounding settlements. They proceeded directly to the Baron’s manor and lined up before Weiss, who had come out to meet them.
"What is the matter? Report."
Weiss tilted his head slightly as he looked at his subordinates. They were all strangely tight-lipped.
"Why do you remain silent? Explain to me why you have returned."
"T-Then, I shall speak."
"Very well. ...Hm? You were among those sent to support the Ashton family."
"Sir!"
The man took a step forward, looking as if he were struggling to find the right words. He spoke while still trying to process the events himself.
"I—I am reporting that the slaying of the Thief Wolfen has been confirmed!"
"Oh! That is excellent news! Hm? Then why the hesitation? By my calculations, you would have had to slay it almost immediately upon arrival... No, wait. You said you 'confirmed' it just now?"
"————Yes, sir."
"Then, who slew it? Was it Master Roy?"
"N-No..."
"In that case, was it an adventurer who happened to be passing by?"
The subordinate shook his head again.
Weiss began to suspect the existence of a monster even stronger than the Thief Wolfen, but if that were the case, his subordinates wouldn't have been able to return at all. He grew increasingly perplexed.
"Surely not."
His next words weren't spoken with any real expectation. It was merely a confirmation, a way to rule out the impossible.
"You don't mean to tell me that boy was the one who killed it?"
The subordinate nodded.
Realizing that this was the cause of everyone's bewilderment, Weiss looked up at the sky and sighed.
"I will hear the details inside. But first, let me confirm: the others have remained in their respective assigned areas, correct?"
"Sir! We have returned one by one specifically to deliver the news!"
"I see. That is well, then."
The subordinates followed Weiss as he turned and walked toward the manor. Once inside, they headed straight for the Baron’s office to report the slaying. Baron Clausel, who had been working diligently at a desk positioned with its back to the window, lost his words for a moment, just as Weiss had.
"It is difficult to believe. Even if he is the boy you’ve been concerned about, Weiss."
"However, My Lord."
"I know. Considering the kill was confirmed and the boy was found collapsed nearby, it is obvious who defeated it. I have no intention of attributing the boy's achievement to the knights."
He was simply stunned by such an extraordinary feat. Every person in the room was feeling the same sense of disbelief.
"Regardless, I must hear the full report. ————Continue."
"————Sir!"
The knight gave a detailed account of everything that had happened since he arrived at Ren's side. The explanation lasted for over ten minutes. When it finally concluded, the Baron dismissed everyone except for Weiss.
"We must prepare a reward for the Ashton family."
"I believe exempting them from this year's taxes would be appropriate. It would also be wise for you to go and personally offer them encouragement when the time is right, My Lord."
"Then let that be the reward. ————Good grief. Even so, we must continue to investigate the other nobles. Doubts still remain."
"...Indeed. A monster like a Thief Wolfen would not normally appear in that region."
The Baron tapped his desk as he looked at Weiss, who had nodded in agreement.
"Hmph! It must be the work of either the Hero Faction or the Imperial Faction!"
The Baron stood up and roughly threw open the window to look down upon the town. The Hero Faction and the Imperial Faction—he didn't elaborate on the implications of those two names, and Weiss remained silent as well, his expression grim.
"...Weiss. I will have you go to the Ashton village once more in the near future."
"Sir! I should ask Master Roy and the others if they noticed any strange occurrences in the village, correct?"
"Yes. I wish to entrust this task to you, as I trust you more than anyone else."
"————Understood."
Weiss left the room shortly after. As he walked down the corridor, he felt a complex mix of surprise and apprehension regarding the conversation he had just had with the Baron.
"Oh?"
A short distance ahead, Weiss spotted Licia leaning against the wall. She stood there with an elegant bearing that lived up to her reputation as a Saint. She looked up at the approaching knight.
"Is it true?"
"And to what might you be referring, My Lady?"
"You know what I mean. The story about a child my age slaying a D-rank monster—a Thief Wolfen, no less."
Licia had likely heard the news from the men who had just left the office.
"It is a fact. He is such a talent that I found myself thinking it was possible simply because it was him."
"Then, is he really stronger than me?"
Weiss answered without a second thought. "Without a doubt."
"Then let me see him for myself."
Licia spoke just as instantly, taking a step forward.
"As the one who carries the title of 'White Saint,' I don't want to be surpassed by someone my own age."
"...Sigh. My Lady, I'm sure you realize you are asking for the impossible."
"Yes. I'm saying it knowing full well that it's impossible."
"If you are aware of that, then you already know my answer. It is out of the question. It takes a considerable amount of time to reach the Ashton manor, and we cannot afford to be careless given the situation with the Thief Wolfen."
"............"
"Of course, we could escort you, but I cannot take you along simply because you wish to satisfy a curiosity."
"Hmm... I see."
For a moment, Weiss thought Licia had given up. She looked down and clasped her hands together as if in prayer, exuding a fragile air. However, she looked up a second later. Her expression was one of lovely triumph, a faint smirk playing on her lips.
"In that case, all I need is a reason, right?"
"............My Lady?"
"————I'm talking about Father and you, Weiss. The reward for the Ashton family is tax exemption and Father's encouragement, right? But since Father is busy, don't you think it would be better if I went in his place?"
Weiss could not hide his surprise. To think she had seen through the details of the reward already... In that moment, he cursed his own choice of words. Remembering that Licia was a prodigy who possessed not only natural talent with the sword but also a brilliant, calculating mind, he placed a hand to his forehead and sighed.
"Hehe. I have to go see Father now."
Leaving the wall, Licia began walking away. Weiss followed after her.
"I beg of you, please do not try to out-argue His Lordship today."
"What a mean thing to say. I don't out-argue Father. I just... offer him my consultation."
Turning around with an elegant grace, she offered him a sweet, innocent smile.
A few more weeks passed.
Nearly two months had flown by since the incident with the Thief Wolfen, and the season had turned to autumn. Preparations for winter had begun throughout the Clausel Barony, and Ren's village was no exception.
In the midst of the bustle...
"————Oh."
Ren had made his way to Sword Rock for the first time in a while. He found several pieces of jewelry lying at the peak of the rock, and his face lit up with joy.
"They really were here————Rare Drops."
Defeating a Thief Wolfen in The Legend of the Seven Heroes always yielded rare items. These varied from high-value treasures to equipment that couldn't be found in any shop.
"Good. Now I can wear the bracelet without having to hide it."
For Ren, cash items were better than equipment. Money would benefit the village, and he could use the jewelry to explain away the bracelet that came with his Magic Sword Summoning.
Nodding at the satisfying result, Ren stood at the top of Sword Rock and stretched his back while basking in the morning sun. Then, he reached for a vine created by his Wooden Magic Sword to climb down. As he crossed the lake by walking over the tree roots, he heard the sound of hoofbeats in the distance.
"————Whoops."
Hearing the sound, Ren hurriedly dispelled his Wooden Magic Sword. Within a few minutes, a knight on horseback appeared.
"Master Ren! How many times must I tell you to let us know when you are entering the forest!?"
"Ahaha... I'm sorry. I thought it would be fine by now."
"Honestly... it hasn't even been two months since that night. Please, do not push yourself."
(Certainly, it hasn't even been two months...)
Ren had won the battle against the Thief Wolfen, but he had collapsed from severe wounds. Fortunately, the Baron’s reinforcements had arrived earlier than scheduled, saving his life. The gashes were deep, some even grazing his internal organs, and it had taken several weeks for him to reach this stage of recovery.
To be honest, even Ren didn't fully understand how he had recovered so quickly. He figured it was a combination of his body's natural vitality and the high-grade medicines the knights had provided. He had only been allowed back into the forest two days ago. After a bit of rehabilitation, he had confirmed he could fight as well as before, which was why he had ventured out this far today.
"And so, why did you come all the way to Sword Rock?"
The knights remained in the village because the Baron had decided to station troops in every settlement for a while following the incident.
"Actually, I was looking for something."
Ren showed the Rare Drops he had just found.
"O-Oh! Could that be————!"
"Exactly. They're treasures the Thief Wolfen was hiding. I'd like to sell these and use the money for the village, if that's okay? I mean... with taxes and everything."
"There should be no problem. Ownership of treasures obtained from a monster belongs to the slayer. Normally, you would have slain it as part of your duty to the Ashton family, which would make the loot taxable, but..."
In this case, the village had already been granted tax exemption for the year as a reward for the feat. In addition, gifts were already on their way.
"The same applies to the Thief Wolfen materials you asked to sell. His Lordship will be purchasing those personally, and I hear he intends to pay well above market price."
"Really? That sounds like it'll be a lot of money."
"Indeed. Thief Wolfen materials are unsuitable for equipment, but they are precious ingredients for medicine. You will likely have enough wealth to live comfortably for the next ten or twenty years."
"Oh, that's amazing!"
"Master Roy won't be able to move for a while yet, so I'm sure having such a cushion will give you peace of mind, Master Ren."
The tax exemption had been granted partly because of Roy's condition as well.
"He claims he can move already, but when I poked his chest earlier, he writhed in agony."
"M-My, you've been quite strict with him."
"It has to be this way. Otherwise, my father would start insisting he's completely cured and try to go back to work."
The knight laughed.
"The heir to the Ashton family is a reliable young man. Now then, let us return to the village. We have already handled the hunting for today, so you can rest easy."
"I'm sorry to keep relying on you————but thank you, I'll take you up on that."
Ren offered an apologetic smile and, at the knight's prompting, climbed onto the horse to head home.