At 16 years old, the Nameless guy had grown significantly compared to three years ago.
He was taller, of course, and his physique would definitely hold up against anyone else.
So far, I had only taught him how to mold his energy and some basic mana breathing techniques, but I thought it was about time to start teaching him swordsmanship.
As usual, he had climbed to the mountain peak early in the morning and was now turning around to wipe the sweat off his body, shirtless.
I squinted and stared intently at his back.
‘Given his physical condition right now…’
He could definitely follow the advanced techniques I use, even if it would be a bit clumsy.
Maybe I had stared too long because the Nameless guy seemed to notice my gaze, flinching, he turned to me and opened his mouth.
“Master? Why are you staring like that?”
He kept mumbling, and for some reason, his voice was unusually small.
“Hmm? Is there a problem?”
I felt unreasonably wronged.
‘Can’t a Master take a look at his disciple’s body?’
The Nameless guy really overreacts.
“…Ha, it’s nothing.”
His ears strangely seemed to turn red.
‘What’s wrong with him?’
I just couldn’t understand his thought process.
I tried to gather my thoughts again, interrupted by the Nameless guy’s voice.
The decision to teach him swordsmanship wasn’t only about his physical growth.
Sure, he was impressive on the outside, but I thought he had made considerable progress on the inside too.
Up until three years ago, he had participated in training as if he were being chased by something, his face twisted in anger, and I had made excuses to delay teaching him swordsmanship.
For some reason, back then, I felt inexplicably anxious about teaching him, especially since his mental state looked quite unstable even to an outsider like me.
Looking back now, it was definitely a good decision.
If he had learned swordsmanship in that mental state, he wouldn’t have learned anything properly and might have turned into a vengeful maniac given his backstory.
At one point, when we went to bed together, he would scream in his sleep, haunted by nightmares from his past, but through sincere care, I hadn’t seen him do that recently.
His mind seemed to have cleared up quite a bit.
‘Well, recently it seems like he’s been avoiding sleeping next to me for some reason.’
I wondered if he was hitting puberty; it was about time for him, and he probably needed some alone time.
Though I don’t want to give myself too much credit, I used to be a guy too, so I can understand.
Still, given we had always slept together, it felt a bit lonely now that he seemed uncomfortable around me.
‘Now that I think about it…’
Thinking about puberty reminded me that the adult age around here was 16.
Thanks to that, right before I fled to the mountains, the village chief attempted to marry his son to me.
I trembled, feeling a chill run down my spine.
Just thinking about that still gives me chills; if that incident hadn’t pushed me into the mountains, who knows what would have happened?
I consciously tried to shift my wandering thoughts.
‘Anyway, if I think about it, the Nameless guy who just turned 16 should be considered an adult now, right?’
To my knowledge, right before I entered the mountains, the academy was just being established, and the village was buzzing with excitement about it.
And I clearly remembered that anyone could take the entrance exam for the academy once they became an adult, regardless of their background.
If this story’s tags included the academy, doesn’t that mean the main story is about to begin?
‘Wait a second, am I messing everything up by keeping him here?’
A cold sweat began to pour as I realized I might have made a huge mistake.
Feeling restless, I called out to the still red-faced Nameless guy, who was getting dressed.
“Nameless.”
“Yes, Master.”
He turned to answer me quietly, stopping mid-tie of his clothes.
“You’ve now become an adult, don’t you want to go to the academy?”
“Huh? What do you mean by that?”
Is he so clueless about the academy because he’s from a rural village?
Even I know about it while holed up in these mountains, and the fact that I even knew more than him swelled my shoulders with a sense of superiority.
I grinned, leaning in closer to him.
“What, you don’t know what the academy is?”
“I know all about the academy, but…”
What? He does know?
My inflated pride fizzled, returning my shoulders to their original state.
‘Why is he making this so confusing?’
Annoyed, I pouted and asked,
“Then why the reaction?”
He looked at me with a vague expression before his face turned somewhat shocked.
“Master, do you know my age?”
“Yeah, you’re 16 now, right?”
“Yes… that’s correct…”
What the heck is his problem? Why is he acting like this?
It seemed like our conversation wasn’t syncing up, so I scowled and pushed him to answer.
“Don’t dither like that; just say it already.”
I wanted to express my frustration, so I clenched my fist and lightly thumped my unimpressive chest.
But what he replied was unexpected.
“Master, the age to enroll in the academy is 20.”
“What…?”
Twenty years old? Not 16? That can’t be right!
Countless questions swirled in my mind, but nothing would change just by thinking, so I urgently asked,
“So what do you do for those four years after becoming an adult?”
I thought maybe after some sort of noble marriage or other social experiences, they’d go to the academy, but it dawned on me that they went to learn about societal affairs.
My train of thought trailed off as I pondered various aspects, but then I heard a shocking statement.
“…Master, the current Empire sets the adult age at 20.”
“What…?”
How much time has passed that the standard for adulthood has changed?
‘Is he messing with me since I’ve only lived in the mountains?’
What nonsense…
‘Wait a minute.’
A terrifying realization flashed through my mind.
“Nameless, do you know how long it has been since the academy was established?”
“Yes, surely it will be 300 years when I turn 20, so now it’s probably been 296 years.”
What.
“What nonsense is that, disciple?”
The look on Nameless’ face was indescribably bizarre.
It was clear mine also looked ridiculous as my body shivered involuntarily.
“Sixteen as an adult? How old are you, Master?”
Nameless’s question hit me like a ton of bricks, and I felt my mind going blank.
‘Wait, wait, wait.’
Something felt off.
If everything he said was true, then I was sixteen when I entered the mountains…
‘Am I over 300 years old now…?’
I suddenly blacked out.
Before long, I sprang back up from where I had collapsed.
“Huuuuh-!”
I felt like I received a massive shock before losing consciousness; what just happened?
“Master, are you okay?”
Nameless asked nonchalantly as if nothing had happened.
“Uh… yeah, I think I had some sort of incredible nightmare.”
“Is that so?”
He seemed unbothered, taking his place beside me.
‘It seems like he’s not going to let it go that easily.’
I smiled a little and faced Nameless.
This guy truly seems kind-hearted compared to his usual demeanor…
“So, how old are you?”
Hell no, that pesky disciple asked without a hint of awareness again.
But judging by his serious expression, it seemed somewhat unfair to say he was clueless.
He asked, knowing I would rather not talk about it.
Though he’s pulled pranks on me from time to time, he usually stops when he sees I’m not keen on it, but not this time.
‘Is my age really that important to him?’
Honestly, I’d prefer he just drop it.
After all, who would be proud of being old?
The more money, the better; the less age, the better.
That’s an unchanging truth.
I contemplated how to handle the situation quickly and came to a swift conclusion.
‘I should run away.’
If I keep running away, he might give up, right?
‘There’s no way he can catch me if I’m really determined to escape.’
With that short thought wrapped up, I began to sneakily try to slip away, checking to see if Nameless was distracted.
But he obviously had no intentions of letting me go, placing his hand on top of mine laid flat on the ground and speaking.
However, what came from Nameless was something slightly different than what I expected.
“Master, it’s alright if you don’t want to talk about it.”
He wore a sorrowful expression, holding my hand tighter.
“It seems you have quite a lot you’re hiding, Master.”
Suddenly, he wiped away what might have been a tear, making me feel guilty.
“Surely, as your disciple, it must be because I’m not able to earn your trust.”
This little brat! If he’s going to speak like that, how can I possibly keep quiet?
After a moment of silence, I sighed deeply before finally speaking.
“Why do you have to go so far…”
It’s just my age, but I felt a little shy, and my face turned warm.
“…I think I’m just a bit over 300 now.”
I glanced at him to gauge a reaction; this kid was grinning ear to ear.
You little traitor!
“Ick! You scoundrel, Nameless!”
I felt a wave of betrayal wash over me as I immediately punched him in the gut.
“Gah-!”
Despite how old I was, being the oldest person I knew and surprising myself enough to faint, I felt a bit grateful for his unwavering gaze and teasing demeanor.
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