Kensei 79.1
Chapter 79: The Resigned Man
TL : Cnine
ED/PF :
R1[1-3], R2[3.5-5], R3[5.5-7]
Part 1
The next morning.
When I woke up, I was relieved that Mía wasn’t beside me. She had probably gone to prepare breakfast.
I could enjoy a slow morning until she came to wake me, but for some reason, I didn’t feel like doing that.
I quickly got out of bed, changed my clothes, grabbed my sword, and stepped outside the house.
I exercised to forget my problems.
I realised it was escapism. Still, there was nothing I could do about it; it wasn’t something I could decide on my own.
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to respond to her feelings.
If it’s her, I’m sure she could replace Mom and Yukina—my lost pillars of support.
My only remaining family. Judging by his condition, my father might not have much time left either.
A cute girl who says she likes someone like me.
There’s no way that wouldn’t make me happy.
However, I couldn’t give her an answer—not yet.
「... Huff♡」
After counting to a hundred, I stopped swinging my sword.
Dammit, I really couldn’t forget about it.
「Dammit, it’s impossible after all.」
I muttered to myself, as though trying to convince myself.
I need more power.
And I need it immediately—I must gain strength in a very short time.
Naturally, strengthening the body was a basic necessity I couldn’t neglect.
However, right now, what must come first was ingenuity.
「Sheena.」
At present, I needed to review the cards I already held and familiarise myself with them—specifically, the powers granted by the Goddess: my unique skill and magic.
「Oi, Sheena!」
Yes, the Sword Saint.
From what I’d heard of her feats, the village girl had grown remarkably stronger in just one year.
And, much like the Sword Saint, I supposedly possessed a unique skill granted by the Goddess.
I’d also been blessed with the rare and exceptional talent of a spellcaster.
Compared to the Sword Saint, the power I’d been granted was lower. But considering the situation Yukina and I faced, and the roles we had been assigned, it was already extraordinary.
「Hey, are you deaf?」
That’s right. I wasn’t the Sword Saint.
Which meant I had no obligation to become humanity’s hero.
Therefore, whatever hardships came my way, the only one I truly needed to protect was Mia.
I should at least reach the point where I could allow myself that much selfishness.
「OI!」
「！」
Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder—along with the voice that followed.
My father’s hand rested gently on me.
「Dad? What’s the matter? Shouldn’t you be sleeping?」
「Yeah, I’m feeling quite well this morning. I felt like going outside for the first time in a while.」
Now that he mentioned it, his complexion indeed looked much better.
The cough that worried me every time I visited him was gone.
「You’re right. That’s good… at this rate, you should recover soon.」
「Naturally. I’m not going to kick the bucket that easily. You’ve been working hard since morning. I’ve been watching for a bit—can’t say it’s bad.」
「It’s the result of daily training.」
「Just what I’d expect from an active adventurer. But you really… You really remind me of her.」
「... Her? Are you referring to Mom?」
「Sheena.」
My question went unanswered.
Instead, Father—still in his night attire—placed his hand on the sword at his waist and drew it.
「Come to think of it, I’ve never properly sparred with you. Since this is a good opportunity, I’ll take you on.」
「Hah?」
What the hell was this old man talking about?
Certainly, I’d never been properly trained by my father.
The Dad I knew was always drunk.
I’d lost count of how many times I endured his “training,” which was indistinguishable from abuse.
「Whoa, what’s going on all of a sudden? And doing that on top of everything else…」
「Let me tell you beforehand.」
The weapon in my father’s hand was neither a practice blade nor a wooden sword.
It was the cheap, mass-produced sword issued by the militia.
Even if it was old and worn… it was still a real sword.
「Come at me like you want to kill me.」
「!?」
Suddenly, my father kicked off the ground with force as he spoke.
He lunged forward with a slash.
I was caught completely off guard and reacted far too late.
I barely dodged and blocked the blade, but I couldn’t withstand the force behind it.
Astounding speed. Even an amateur could tell his swordsmanship was precise and efficient.
Adventurers who fought beasts and monsters tended to develop overly large swings—even when fighting humans.
But his movements were nothing like that.
My father’s swordsmanship was genuine manslayer swordcraft.
「Guh...」
…Crap.
Caught by surprise, I blocked in an awkward position and couldn’t recover to counterattack.
Was this man seriously a bedridden drunkard?
He drank every day, and it had been years since he last wielded a sword seriously.
And yet… how was I being pushed back?
「… Hnggh!」
「Woah!」
Overwhelmed by his effortless swing, I staggered and lost my balance entirely.
For a moment, I saw my father’s face clearly—and understood.
His eyes, his expression—he was serious.
The one standing before me now was my father the swordsman, a side I had never seen.
It wasn’t the expression of a father facing his son.
He was truly trying to kill me.
Why? Why was he suddenly doing this?
…Regardless, I couldn’t afford to lose.
I clenched my teeth and held my ground.
「HAAAH!」
「Ooops!!」
He swung his sword with a yell.
I couldn’t block it with my sword, but I could deflect it.
Don’t hesitate. Don’t think about anything unnecessary.
If I don’t focus, I’ll be cut down.
I lifted my leg and caught the blade with my ankle.
My leather shoes were reinforced with iron plating—it should hold.
Good thing I’d changed into my adventurer gear.
「Guh!... ORAAA!」
I kicked the sword I’d trapped with my foot, sending it flying above my head.
「Urgh! Eh!?」
「Huff… Huff!」
Using the momentum from my kick, I flipped into a backward handstand and rotated to regain my stance.
As soon as my feet touched the ground and I pushed forward, my father—already in a defensive posture—clicked his tongue.
Without hesitation, I swung my sword towards the nape of his neck.
Still, he brushed it aside with ease.
I had expected him to block it.
「Damn…! Heh! So, it looks like running away from home wasn’t in vain after all. Honestly… Couldn’t you at least show a moment’s hesitation? I am your father, after all.」
「... You're one to talk.」
「Hm? …Heh-heh! Hah-hah…! Fair enough. I know you despise me… Hah!!」
Even though I struck first this time, I was overpowered again.
Driven back by the force, I kicked off the ground and widened the distance between us.
The gulf in our raw strength was undeniable—he knocked me aside with ease.
Best not to match him head-on.
「Sheena… I’ll say it myself. I’m nothing but a hopeless scoundrel. I couldn’t save the woman I loved, drowned myself in booze, drove away the son she left in my care… Always running away. And in the end, I ruined my body and spent my days waiting for death. Now, at last, it looks like I can finally bring it all to an end… And the twisted thing is, I’m glad for it.」
My father swung his sword through the air, his mouth twisting into a crooked grin.
「Unfortunately for you, Sheena, you're the son of a man like me. And thanks to that… Look at your lot. That girl you grew up with—born and raised together—because there was no one else around, you both mistook familiarity for love, convinced yourselves you were fated, even swore a future together. And then Yukina, the moment she realised her own talent and saw the wider world… She cast you aside without hesitation and went off to become another man’s woman.」
…What a childish provocation.
「Indeed.」
「Of course it is, isn’t it? On one side stands the goddess’s chosen—an unrivalled beauty and the mightiest swordsman, the Sword Saint. And then there’s you: a worthless father, a single parent who’s never known a world beyond this village. On top of that, the moment Yukina was gone, you shut yourself away for more than a year, too spineless to face anything. Isn’t it only natural that Yukina would choose the Hero, her equal, rather than a cowardly nobody like you?」
「Agreed..」
I gave a curt reply and tightened my grip on my sword.
Bringing up the past changes nothing now.
At this point, it stirs nothing in me.