Namgung Se-ga, the warrior, was reincarnated in Romance

In my past life, once I reached a certain level of mastery, I was always thirsty for knowledge.

The teachings and realizations passed down by masters of the same or previous generations were fragments shared only among them. The higher the level of mastery, the more aloof the masters became, and they rarely descended to the mortal realm. I had no way of approaching them.

I did not know how kind they were to their disciples in the same sect.

However, even the teachings from the previous head of the Namgung family seemed to have no surplus for someone like me, unless I were his son or grandson.

Therefore, when I encountered the martial artists of Huakyung, who carefully observed every gesture and step with such intensity as if they were nurturing a delicate child, I became desperate and clung to them.

The first few days might have been a bit awkward, but I persistently begged, saying that with the right push, I could break through the limits and make progress on my own, given the years and experiences I had accumulated.

In the training grounds, I came out with Myelo Sanson.

The atmosphere wasn’t entirely quiet. Some students were doing individual training during their free time, while others were sitting in the shade, chatting casually.

There were familiar faces and unfamiliar ones, indicating that students from different grades were mixed together. I was surprised to see a student crossing the training grounds diagonally, heading toward a building. It was a very free-spirited behavior.

Standing on one side of the training ground, Sanson demonstrated the sword techniques, and I followed his lead.

He showed five different sword forms. He explained where each form originated, its characteristics, and the key aspects of each technique, instructing us to focus on certain movements and principles.

After learning the form by observing it, I repeated the movements, and he made corrections regarding my posture, speed, and where to focus my gaze.

It took a full hour for him to show all five forms. If I hadn’t been a martial artist who had swung a sword for many years, it would have been difficult to follow, but Sanson seemed to think I was doing well.

“Alright, that’s enough for now. Thirty-minute break!”

“Eh?”

“You’ve been practicing for two hours without drinking any water. If you overdo it, you won’t grow taller.”

I was puzzled. Surely a martial artist from Huakyung wouldn’t get tired after just an hour of sword practice, but soon realized the issue was on my side and accepted the break, gratefully taking the water bottle he offered.

Sanson, who had been observing us from the side, walked toward a group of students who had been watching, creating a seat for himself. He patted the spot beside him and called me over.

Even though I hadn’t consumed any internal energy from just practicing the sword forms, I decided to sit quietly instead of starting to practice my breathing techniques. I wanted to chat with Sanson when I had the energy.

Two unfamiliar students were sitting beside Sanson. They seemed to be one grade above, and when I nodded my head in greeting, they smiled and returned the gesture, giggling.

As I considered speaking up, one of the girls sitting down tugged on Sanson’s sleeve.

“This is that friend, Little Kiadris.”

“Ah, yes. It’s Friday, and she’s been training here non-stop from 1 PM until now.”

“How long will she keep going?”

“Until 8 PM.”

“Wow!”

Curious, I leaned forward and curled up, hugging my knees.

Since I was sitting between the two girls, the only way I could talk to them without obstructing Sanson’s large frame was by doing this.

The girls saw my actions and giggled again, showing their kindness.

“What’s Little Kiadris?”

“Exactly 16 years ago, Wesley Kiadris graduated from this academy. He was famous for being a practice addict. They say he stayed in the training ground from 5 AM to midnight every day!”

“Yeah, the current rules about training ground hours are all because of him. We had a rough time when he first became a teacher. He used to follow us around like you, with eyes wide open and full of excitement.”

“Still, you like him, don’t you? You always brag about him.”

“Of course! He worked hard because he wanted to be like me. How could I not like that?”

“Lord Wesley was also incredibly competitive when it came to meals. They say he cleared three trays of food in one sitting. You should eat well too, so you don’t end up underfed. Eat well, and soon you’ll become a Sword Master, and then a Grand Sword Master.”

Her casual use of informal speech indicated she was an upperclassman, so I simply nodded and agreed with a short “yes.”

When I first sat beside Sanson, I had planned to ask about the sword forms we learned today, but with new company around, I suddenly felt it wasn’t the right topic to bring up.

After some thought, I decided to ask something else.

“Do you want me to reach a high level of mastery?”

“Uh… if possible, yeah.”

“Why?”

“Eh?”

The older girl seemed to think for a moment, then smiled playfully, shrugging her shoulders. There was no hint of jealousy in her attitude; rather, she appeared to enjoy the conversation.

“I don’t have a particular reason… I just cheer you on because you’re working hard. When I see someone working hard, it makes me think, ‘Hey, maybe I should work hard too.’ You’ve got a promising face, so I’d like to see you wearing the Empire’s Knight uniform one day…?”

“…Hmm.”

“It’s also because we’re from the same academy. If you do well, you might end up being a good connection for me someday. After graduation, I’m sure you’ll end up hanging out with other academy graduates.”

“Uh… why’s that?”

“This place has a lot of talented people, so it’s easy for geniuses to be common here. Naturally, you’d want to spend time with people who share similar interests, right?”

The answer to why everyone at this academy, including Sanson, freely demonstrated their sword forms and helped each other advance was becoming clear to me.

All my life, I had thought of swordsmanship as a solitary pursuit, something that people didn’t readily share. I had always been anxious, fearing that if I missed even the smallest opportunity, I would lose out on the chance to learn. It seemed almost ridiculous now.

This academy itself was like a sect, and the exchanges between its members were more natural. I, too, would have helped a junior from the Namgung family if they had asked for assistance with modifying a sword form.

Once I understood this, I grew more at ease, nodding in acknowledgment. Meanwhile, the older students and Sanson continued chatting and laughing amongst themselves, showing a familiar camaraderie. I spent the time peacefully, occasionally nodding or asking a question, enjoying the calm atmosphere.

After some time had passed and I finished my water, Sanson stood up, signaling that the next lesson was about to begin, and I followed him.

—

On weekends, I decided to catch up on studying after finishing my morning training. I was somewhat upset by the misunderstanding with Sheyden Rose. Ever since he had misinterpreted me crying just because I couldn’t memorize a name, he kept teasing me, asking if I needed a lullaby.

Still acting like a guardian, Sheyden had a meeting with some new friends and left instructions at breakfast to make sure I ate lunch and dinner, even if he wasn’t around. I sighed, wondering when I would be able to make him realize that I wasn’t a child anymore.

I chose to study in the library instead of my personal study. My room’s study was filled with swords, armor, and other martial gear, making it hard to focus. The moment I sat down, I felt an urge to grab my sword and run to the training ground, shouting, “I’m not a scholar, I’m a warrior!”

Like the other buildings at the Sieron Academy, the library was vast and organized into neat, separated sections. Bookshelves taller than a person lined the walls, and large tables were placed in front of them. In the distance, small and large meeting rooms were connected by partitioned walls.

I gathered a notebook, handouts, and a pencil with a graphite lead and settled at a table in the library. While it wouldn’t have been bad to use a quill pen dipped in ink instead of writing with pre-ground ink, since today’s task was simple memorization, I felt there was no need to go through the trouble of bringing ink with me.

I liked the sound of the graphite gently scraping across the paper as I wrote.

How much time had passed? In the library, there was no ticking of a clock to break my concentration, and without a clock, it was hard to tell. Outside the window, the sun was high in the sky.

As I stretched my body, which had become stiff from lack of focus, a figure pulled a chair up to sit in front of me. When our eyes met, the person gave a silent nod of greeting first. It was a familiar face.

“Hello, senior.”

“Yeah, hey.”

When I greeted him as I had been taught, the boy responded with a whisper, in a soft voice. That’s when I remembered that we needed to be quiet in the library, so I quickly closed my mouth.

He had black hair and black eyes.

It was him. The boy I had seen in the advanced swordsmanship class, Ruber Anti Sieron, the second prince of the Sieron Empire.

As I was aware of the person sitting in front of me, I wondered if it was okay to continue making the scratching noise with my pencil. I slowed down my hand, which had been filling the blank paper like a child practicing handwriting.

Every time I looked up, our eyes met.

At first, I tried to ignore it, but it was hard to avoid noticing that I was staring at what he was doing instead of focusing on my own book. Eventually, I set my pencil down.

“What’s up?”

“…Oh, just a little surprised. Do you know my name?”

“Yes.”

“Ah… I see.”

What a trivial question.

If Sheyden hadn’t told me in advance, I wouldn’t have even been able to write the first character of Ruber’s name, but now I felt confident. Seeing him looking at me like he wanted to show off his own name, I simply nodded in understanding and turned my gaze back to my handouts.

The boy stayed in his seat until lunchtime, but when I returned from eating, he was gone.