ALL NOVEL It was an early morning, with the sun yet to fully rise, and I found my eyes naturally opening—perhaps due to aging.
Honestly, I hadn’t thought much about my age until now.
“Ha…”
Feeling a bit grumpy for no reason, I splashed some water on my face and got out of bed.
I picked up the wooden sword I had left under my bed, and when I turned my head to look at the Nameless one, I was met with the sight of him glaring at the ceiling with wide, fierce eyes.
“Ugh! What are you doing up?!”
Usually, the Nameless one sleeps in later than I do, making his current state look like I stumbled upon a ghost.
He briefly turned his head to give me a blank stare before resuming his gaze at the ceiling.
“…I just can’t fall asleep.”
“Uh-huh…?”
His voice was weak, and the dark circles under his eyes were clear evidence, but for some reason, I felt awkward asking why, so I held back.
‘He’ll figure it out.’
The Nameless one is soon to be an adult; surely, he can manage his own condition.
Too much interference is not good.
Regardless of how bad the Nameless one feels, there’s no way I can postpone today’s plans.
I got up and stretched my body, twisting it this way and that.
“Uugh- cha.”
With a satisfying crack, a refreshing sensation coursed through my body, and I couldn’t help but smile.
In the midst of my stretching, I heard a sound behind me. Turning around, I noticed that the Nameless one also got out of bed, perhaps feeling a bit awkward lying there while I had gotten up.
“Nameless, it’s still early; you should get some more sleep.”
“Thank you for your concern, but I’m really fine.”
“Uh-huh, okay.”
I stopped sending him skeptical glances and grabbed my wooden sword.
Since I still had some time, and the Nameless one was awake, I decided to head to a nearby mountain for some training.
Noticing that I was gathering my wooden sword, the Nameless one picked up his as well and approached me.
“Do you know of any good mountains around here?”
“Yes, Master, I’ll guide you.”
I nodded in response.
By now, the sun had fully risen, and after finishing a somewhat routine training session, the Nameless one and I returned to the inn to pack up when we were unexpectedly put in a tricky situation by the innkeeper’s words.
The Nameless one narrowed his eyes at the innkeeper and said, “What do you mean by that?”
“It’s not my fault, my man! You look too intimidating—just calm down for a second.”
I recalled the innkeeper’s words while observing this not-so-funny scene with an emotionless face.
Currently, the knights stationed in this village are struggling due to some bizarre monster incidents.
These monster anomalies aren’t exclusive to this area either, leading to a state of emergency throughout the empire. That’s why it’s unreasonable to send help to this small village.
In a desperate attempt to at least raise the standard of the still-inexperienced apprentice knights in this village, a large order of training swords was placed, but apparently, they never arrived—perhaps interrupted by an ambush somewhere along the way.
‘So that’s why the guards mistook me for the supplier?’
One question was finally answered.
Anyway, when I asked the innkeeper, “What does it matter to us?” he explained that the guest list compiled during our stay is forwarded to the lord overseeing this village to verify any outsiders visiting.
On that list, there happened to be an unfamiliar noble surname.
Upon seeing that, the lord wanted to know who I was, someone with a surname he had never seen before, and since I appeared to be accompanied by a competent escort, he has requested our assistance.
‘Huh, technically speaking, I am the escort.’
It seemed I appeared different in others’ eyes.
My lips pouted in annoyance.
Anyway, after hearing the innkeeper’s story, I began to ponder.
‘Should I just run away?’
True, I possessed a family name, but I was merely using the name from my past life, so I was no noble, and being a citizen of the empire, I had no obligation to heed the lord’s call.
While the monster anomalies were a concern…
‘Why should I care?’
Whether the empire was at risk didn’t concern me at all.
After all, the hero and saint who had just appeared were supposed to handle this situation, and all I needed to think of was the safety of myself and the Nameless one.
I wasn’t sure how the Nameless one viewed this, but fundamentally, I wasn’t a good person.
My disciple, the Nameless one, was the exception; otherwise, I could be seen as a selfish person who only thought of myself.
‘Huh, I wonder what the Nameless one thinks?’
I turned to look at the Nameless one, who was still frowning and talking with the innkeeper, and stepped closer to him.
“Nameless, what do you want to do?”
He seemed to gaze into my eyes for a moment, possibly trying to grasp my intention, before finally speaking up.
“If I may offer my opinion, I don’t think we need to go out of our way to find him.”
The Nameless one’s unexpected response seemed to make the innkeeper break out in a cold sweat.
“No, my man, it’s the lord that’s calling! A noble is calling! If you don’t go, I’m going to be in trouble!”
Ignoring the innkeeper’s words, the Nameless one continued to focus solely on me.
‘He must be waiting for my response.’
I looked back at the innkeeper, still sweating buckets.
I felt a pang of guilt towards this guy, but—
“Do I have to go just because a noble called me?”
Confirming that the Nameless one was on the same page as me, I saw no need to hesitate.
I faced the innkeeper, who looked utterly defeated, mouth agape.
“Even if the emperor himself called for me, I wouldn’t follow him.”
Most importantly, the nobility of the empire had inflicted wounds on my one and only disciple.
No matter what the Nameless one did wrong back then, mere humans—nobles and commoners—couldn’t persuade me with arbitrary class distinctions.
Pointing a finger to the sky, I declared.
“No one has the right to give me orders.”
Leaving the innkeeper behind, who tried desperately to persuade me with various arguments, I took hold of the Nameless one’s hand and headed outside.
Hmm, the Nameless one’s hand is cold.
I looked up at him, noticing what seemed to be a forced, awkward smile on his face.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
I fiddled with the hand I held.
‘Hmm, for someone who’s fine, his hands are a bit cold.’
This situation had evidently triggered some memories from the past for him, given it involved nobility.
‘Poor thing.’
No matter how mature the Nameless one seems for his age, he’s still just 19—a mere child.
He must have been even younger back then, and those memories likely lingered in his eyes, haunting him.
As a teacher, it’s also my job to comfort my disciple.
I released the Nameless one’s hand and pulled him closer, wrapping him in my embrace.
“Nameless.”
“…Yes.”
I gently stroked his head so he would realize there was nothing to worry about.
“If you want, I can go find that noble who was cruel to you and your parents and deal with him.”
“…”
“Uh, that may have been a bit sudden… From now on, you should listen closely to what your master says.”
Letting go of the Nameless one and taking his face in my hands, I made him look into my eyes.
I slowly leaned forward and pressed my forehead against his.
His shifty, blood-red eyes filled my vision.
“I won’t spout nonsense about revenge begetting revenge…”
“…”
“But don’t get too caught up in the past; it’s like a filthy swamp that slowly drags you down to your doom.”
In a way, I was also stuck in such a swamp, yet I hoped the Nameless one wouldn’t follow that path.
I softly stroked the Nameless one’s cheeks.
“Do you understand?”
“…Yes, thank you.”
His flushed cheeks caught my attention.
Once he snapped back to reality, embarrassment seemed to dawn upon him, realizing he was trapped in his master’s embrace on a public street.
A chuckle escaped my lips.
‘Looks like he’s okay now.’
Releasing the Nameless one from my hold, I pinched his reddened cheeks.
“You’re still such a kid, aren’t you? When will you grow up, our Nameless?”
“…I’m an adult now.”
“Pfft! You’ve still got a whole year left, what are you going on about?”
Once I released his cheeks, the Nameless one, now touching his unusually reddened face, gave me a hardened stare.
“There’s only a year left!”
Is it really that important?
Just a moment ago, the warm atmosphere of a teacher comforting his disciple was shattered by the Nameless one’s mood-killing interruptions.
To tease him, I lifted one corner of my mouth.
“Still, compared to me, you’re far from being an adult, right?”
Apparently, this was the Nameless one’s least favorite comment about me.
With victorious posture, I puffed out my chest, making him smile as he hit my weak spot.
“…I’m taller than you, aren’t I?”
“Huh?”
I jumped up and landed a playful knock on his head.