Chapter 8
"However, learning just the form of swordsmanship is aningless. You must master the changes in power and the corresponding breathing, all of it. It won't feel much like a magic class. Will that be alright?"
Ethan said.
"That's good. I was tired of magic school classes anyway."
"Tell a bit about your childhood. I'm curious about the back alley stories."
Ethan thought that since Rebilton had decided to teach him swordsmanship, there was no need to particularly avoid telling his old stories. He couldn't tell everything about his family, but he thought it would be alright up to a reasonable point.
"They say I was in the mansion when I was very young, but I don't rember that. Until I was fourteen, I lived in the city outside the mansion. My mother wasn't well, so she couldn't work other jobs, and my father didn't support us. Using earning pocket money as an excuse, I ran errands for a gang of thieves with my alley friends I'd been close with since I was young. After my mother passed away when I was nine, I just lived in the alleys."
"Errands?"
Ethan cleared his throat.
"Charasen is a large port city. rchant ships have wealthy sightseers besides rchants, and while the ship is docked, they often relieve travel fatigue in a large city like Charasen. They tend to get distracted looking at the incomprehensible language, clothing, and buildings. Sotis, they don't properly look after their belongings."
"So you were a pickpocket?"
"...I swear on Era, they were all wealthy people. People who wouldn't face major trouble even if they lost the coin purse they brought out that day."
Ethan briefly checked Rebilton's expression. As far as Ethan knew, Rebilton wasn't from a prominent noble family, nor was he soone who just recited justice and morals he had only read in books.
As expected, although Rebilton shook his head, there was a smile on his lips.
"You were quite a troublemaker. Since coming to school?"
"I've quit."
"Didn't you enter Bien's room?"
"...Except for that."
Rebilton gave a warning.
"Be careful."
"Of course."
Rebilton adjusted his posture and crossed his arms, as if to clear the air.
"Anyway, why did the gang of thieves in Charasen make you run such errands? They could have done it themselves. Conversely, you could pickpocket even without those errands."
"Because people tend to be careless around children. And even if a pickpocket is caught, it doesn't escalate into a serious matter. They might get angry and slap or kick you, but they won't draw a dueling sword."
"Not everyone would be like that."
"That's when the gang of thieves stepped in. They made sure it didn't escalate into a serious matter. Of course, such protection wasn't simply for the sake of the children, but to take the goods the children pickpocketed. The children didn't know the value of the goods and couldn't et with a fence, so the gang would take the items and give them a small errand fee."
Rebilton said.
"But children don't stay children forever."
"That's right. Sooner or later, such unfortunate things happen."
Ethan said.
"They seed to see that I was growing taller and getting older. Instead of pickpocketing directly, I was tasked with watching the backs of the pickpocketing children and ran various errands. Since Charasen has three gangs of thieves, trivial fights between gangs were frequent. There were many occasions to use knives. I learned how to counter knives and movent techniques mostly at that ti."
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu was separate, but Ethan judged that even if he inserted it appropriately, Rebilton wouldn't know.
Rebilton said.
"Hmm. When people think of mages, they usually imagine those who spent their childhood stuck in a room reading books and ditating, barely able to walk, no. Many find even walking difficult. You are still a bit small, but looking at your hands and shoulders, you'll likely grow taller. You probably benefited from your experience roaming the back alleys."
"Perhaps."
"And having heard your story, I think I know a suitable training thod for you."
It was a training thod Ethan had not predicted at all.
∞
In the dormitory backyard, Ethan lifted a stone the size of his head, held it against his abdon, and walked. The shirt he wore on his upper body was already soaked with sweat, but for the sake of noble dignity, he couldn't expose his bare skin, so he couldn't take it off.
After walking about ten steps, Ethan put the stone down and said to Rebilton.
"Huff, huff.... Professor."
"Why is that?"
"Excuse , but what does this have to do with the story I told you?"
"Hmm?"
"Is it perhaps because I pickpocketed and need to be punished or sothing..."
Rebilton burst into laughter.
"Of course not! Hearing your story, you seem nimble enough to pickpocket and good at running to escape, but you didn't seem to have much need to use physical strength. Lifting heavy things is the best way to build a strong body."
Demi cut in.
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