“Who do you think you are, not sleeping just because you want to pick a fight at such a young age?” Sigh…
It seemed like the Sword Saint’s point of anger was directed at that.
I rubbed my head and looked back at the others following me.
Since I knew the way here anyway, there was no need to seek Jennifer’s help.
As soon as we arrived in Winterfield, we quickly fulfilled the allocation needed to maintain our grades and came straight to find the Sword Saint. Claire and I could both rewind time, and for now, we clearly remembered each other, so Claire rewinding time wouldn’t make me disappear into thin air.
So, we had plenty of time, but since there might be coordination needed with others, we decided to move with a bit of extra time.
And isn’t it better to resolve matters on the original schedule as quickly as possible?
I turned back, thinking about persuading the Sword Saint, but Claire and Alice were both looking down at me with their arms crossed.
“It’s wrong for you to say you’ll fight your opponent or that you’ll destroy me.”
Hearing the Sword Saint continue, I turned my head back to look at him.
Sword Saint Frederick spoke with a serious expression, arms crossed.
“You might swing your sword by cutting down your break time or stay up all night learning various things. But if it results in you destroying yourself, that’s not something to do.”
His voice carried a compelling weight, making me wonder if he might have experienced that himself before.
“…But the being I have to face is a Goddess.”
As I rubbed my still throbbing head, he snorted.
“Then all the more reason not to! To face someone, your own condition must naturally be better than the opponent’s. Isn’t that obvious?”
I mean, the opponent is a ‘Goddess.’
It’s not like she gives a hoot about health or anything.
So, wouldn’t it not matter how healthy I am?
“I’ve heard that one of your sisters seems to have acquired a portion of that Goddess’ power.”
The Sword Saint said, sitting down on a creaking old wooden chair, as if it had twisted somehow.
“Can’t you trust your sister’s abilities?”
“Of course, I believe in them.”
“Then why don’t you ask for help when it’s needed? Did the Goddess request a one-on-one duel with you?”
“….”
I couldn’t quite grasp what the Sword Saint was trying to say, so I stared at him in silence for a while before speaking.
“If my sister uses the Goddess’ power, I will temporarily disappear from this world.”
To be precise, logical gaps would arise as the parts hidden by false memories surfaced, but from the viewpoint of those within that logical gap, it was essentially the same.
“Then isn’t that something you can leave to your sister in that situation?”
“….”
With a look that genuinely couldn’t understand my position, the Sword Saint continued to watch me, making me fall silent again.
“Is your sister’s ability inferior to yours?”
“No, it’s not.”
Of course, both Claire and Alice are far more talented than I am. Alice could maintain top grades without twisting time like me, and while Claire wasn’t at the absolute top, she still maintained quite decent grades. Moreover, both of them weren’t particularly lazy.
They had talent and knew how to make the most of it. Yet, they recognized their shortcomings and constantly strived to improve.
Compared to me, who only made a living off the ability to rewind time, they were far superior.
“So, what’s the problem?”
“….”
“Are you worried they might get hurt or die?”
“….”
I couldn’t respond, but the Sword Saint seemed to grasp my thoughts and nodded his head.
“Right, that’s understandable. I felt the same way.”
The Sword Saint looked at me quietly as he spoke.
“In battle, I’ve seen comrades who are weaker than me, yet they are way better than I am, dying. I thought, if I could just stand out and protect everyone by myself, wouldn’t that work?”
He shrugged his shoulders.
“But it turns out that doesn’t go well. No matter how strong I become, others won’t just sit still. ‘I’ll protect everyone alone, even if I have to sacrifice myself’… Sounds extremely noble when you put it into words, but it solves nothing. The more you live, the heavier that burden becomes, until you eventually collapse under it.”
Perhaps it’s because he’s someone who has experienced everything; his voice held immense persuasiveness.
“Death on the battlefield is unavoidable. It’s not just in battle. People die from illnesses, unexpected accidents. You could even die struck by lightning on a clear day if luck’s really against you. Do you think you can shoulder all of that alone?”
I nodded.
That was something I couldn’t deny.
If I didn’t have the ability, I might have thought it was unavoidable.
But I now had the ability to rewind time.
I could save someone from a sword swinging at them.
Even if lightning fell from a clear sky, I could save that person ahead of time. It’s easy as just rewinding time.
Moreover, I’m not trying to save the world.
I believed that if I could just protect my friends around me, that would be enough.
“…Hmm.”
The Sword Saint gazed into my eyes quietly, then murmured, “That’s sincere.”
And then he laughed as if it were ridiculous.
“Well then.”
The Sword Saint clapped his knees and stood up.
“Are you going to give me some advice?”
“Sorry, but there are no such methods.”
The Sword Saint answered my question.
“There are always limits to the human body. If you train too much, it becomes poison, and if you avoid sleep too much, you eventually lose your sanity. In the worst case, you could die. So, what you can do is simply eat well, sleep well, and get up well while preparing adequately for the situation.”
“….”
I was left speechless by such a conventional response.
Well, if you could just keep doing what you want without sleeping, the Sword Saint himself would have already been utilizing it.
“But, I think I can give you a little help. That’s actually why I came here, isn’t it?”
That’s right.
I had come to ask the Sword Saint for help.
Previously, I summoned the Sword Saint only after meeting the Masked Girl, but since the situation had become more urgent than back then, I truly needed any assistance I could get.
Especially in the northern border region.
There would definitely be some kind of defense in the autonomous country. The Emperor didn’t blaze through the borders just to help the autonomous country; he must be looking for something within.
…Apart from the ‘wrong item’ I obtained from Fake Alice, the Emperor had another piece of the defense. Ultimately, it was something that had come together as one.
If that’s the case, it’s best for us to scour the places the Emperor is targeting, but… it feels like the border region is just too vast.
Maybe if I rewind time numerous times, I could find something. But even so, with just me, Alice, and Claire, that seems impossible.
So, I came to ask the Sword Saint, one of the most skilled individuals in the continent.
“I’d like to ask you one thing before I make my request.”
Before making such a greatly burdensome request, I decided first to ask the Sword Saint one thing.
“What is it?”
“…Can I ask why you want to help us?”
That’s right.
In the original story, and from my previous experiences, the Sword Saint had a strong tendency to live according to his own pleasure. Naturally, I thought he would refuse such a bothersome request in one swift motion.
After hearing my question, the Sword Saint scrutinized me for a while, looked at my sisters behind me once, then spoke.
“First of all, I gather it’s not a lie to say you brought two Crown Princesses with you.”
Then he looked back at me.
“And from my perspective, you don’t seem to have any talent. Just looking at how you couldn’t avoid my previous attack is proof of that.”
A small smile played on the Sword Saint’s lips.
“But still, you showed movements similar to my disciples. For someone talentless to have such movements, you must’ve practiced a considerable amount. So, I thought there was a high chance you could really be my disciple.”
Finally, the Sword Saint shrugged his shoulders as if it were no big deal.
“And also, at the end of this dull life, you’ve been given the chance to confront the Goddess. Who wouldn’t want to jump into that?”
….
It was indeed a typical Sword Saint remark, and I could only nod in agreement, having no choice but to be convinced.
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