The Academy’s Crude Pink-Haired Martial Artist

In this world, there have been various books published about the heroes, specifically about us, from 400 years ago.

Of course, Ronan is dead, and the remaining heroes have long hidden themselves from the world, but that doesn’t mean there’s absolutely no information.

How could that be?

There’s something said by the noblemen who had received our help and saved their lives back then.

They vowed that their stories would be passed down through generations, ensuring we wouldn’t be forgotten.

Yes, those nobles wrote down our tales in some kind of heirloom for future generations to read.

However, not all of those accounts are the same.

Perhaps it’s because perspectives and circumstances differ, but how we appeared to future generations was completely different.

In the first place… it seems our story couldn’t have been passed down in its original form.

Well, I understand.

After all, our personalities were all quite… chaotic when it comes to being called heroes.

Anyway, feeling like that, looking at these two siblings, I wonder if they’ve read something about me from the documents left by my ancestors.

Van Chaser. Van Chaser.

The Grand Duke of the North.

I do know one ancestor of the Van Chaser family.

Hilde van Chaser.

She was, in many ways, quite a deranged woman.

Her love for the Empire and her people was so profound that she thought nothing of sacrificing her own life.

But, it wasn’t a position where one could easily throw their life away. She was a Grand Duke, second only to the Emperor in the Empire.

If that Grand Duke fell in battle, morale in the imperial army would surely plummet.

Was she truly strong? Not really. To me, she would have seemed like utter garbage back in the day, though now I might view her as very strong.

So… I had no choice but to provide a little ‘education.’

It all started with a slap.

Every time she seemed like she was about to throw her life away, I’d smack her across the face.
Around ten times a day, give or take.

After about a week, having been slapped on the right cheek, she was offering her left and then even her backside and chest. So, I slapped her on the back of the neck to knock her out.

Just to be safe, I tied her arms to a pole at the outpost and left.
If she shouted for someone to smack her backside and chest in front of people… uh, some pretty impressive things would surely happen.

Since then, I never saw her again. We heard rumors about Luxrina directly appearing in the eastern region after departing from the outpost.

Later on, I occasionally received letters stamped with the Van Chaser seal, but of course, I never read them. I was too busy for that.

Unless they contained cigarettes, I tossed them all away.

If there were cigarettes? I’d remember the sender’s name, then throw the letter away, keeping only the cigarettes.

I still remember their names.

In any case… there’s no way that kind of woman left any good information about me.

But why are these guys acting like this?

Cautiously, I asked Ashtar, who was still blushing.

“…Why do you like Ronan?”

“It’s not like I like him; it’s love.”

“Y-Yeah… why do you… love… him?”

“He’s manly. Tough, cool… strong.”

Manly, tough, cool, and strong… was I the one who hit Hilde that hard?

Seems like I must have hit hard.
But I don’t know about the first three adjectives.

“Um… then why does that crazy chick, ahem, Hurd, respect Ronan?”

“Same. Hero Ronan was greater and braver than anyone. Leading the charge all alone and paving the way for other heroes is tough, and his strong sense of justice towards the strong and weakness towards the weak is admirable too. And then, in the end…”

“Ohh…”

Tears welled in Hurd’s eyes.
My eyes filled with emotion.
Hilde van Chaser.
I thought she was a crazy woman, but she still left some good things about me.
I might not get to meet such a person again, but I must remember her name.

I thought.

“In the end, how could I not respect a man who would throw his life away for his loved ones?”

Before I heard those words.

“…What the hell?”

This guy always does well but ends up screwing it up at least once.
The moment I relaxed my fist, it suddenly clenched with force.
My fist was gripped so tightly that my nails almost broke, and a gentle – flourish – cherry blossom-colored mana began to rise.

The form of mana was different from a month ago.
As I practiced according to the book left by Arisa…

No, that’s not important right now.
I need to smash that crazy ogre’s jaw!

Love? Love?? Love???

“Love?! You crazy bastard!”

“Y-Young Lady! Calm down!!”

As I raised my fist, Yurasia clutched my body with all her strength. Meanwhile, Ashtar standing before me widened her eyes and dropped her jaw.

“Eliarnes, you’re… really tough? I thought the rumors were just that… haha…”

She tried to hold me back and calm me down.
Her physical abilities might be much lower than Yurasia’s, but she had a skill to spill my energy that was quite remarkable.
I roughly pictured Ashtar’s fighting style.
No, regardless of all that, I just want to break that bastard’s jaw!!

“Erm… did I do something wrong? If so, I apologize. I never meant to anger you. However… I think being that way is important if you want to walk the path of Hero Ronan. Surely… to throw your life away for the one you love, you gotta have that kind of spark too.”

“This… you bastard!!”

Stupid Hurd is being sent somewhere else, and Yurasia and I are now in Ashtar’s personal training grounds.

Ashtar’s personal training ground felt different from my own.
The internal structure is the same, but perhaps it’s the different items arranged inside that causes the colder vibe.
Being from the North, that must be it.

In one corner of the training ground, I see some items I miss a lot. The Northern wooden sword that my mother bought for me as a birthday gift.

But that worthless wooden sword broke the very next day.
There are dozens of those placed around.
The scarecrows might not be made out of the best materials, but they seem to be made of metal one tier down.

…It would be nice to borrow one of those.
Thinking that, I sipped the ice chocolate that Ashtar handed me, slurp– It was sad that there was no mint, but it was quite tasty nonetheless.

“Sorry, Junior.”

“What do you have to apologize for, Ashtar?”

“I should apologize since it was my twin brother’s actions.”

With that, Ashtar chuckled bitterly and leaned back in her chair.

“So, you don’t like Ronan’s romance either? Though it seems your dislike is a bit… severe.”

“I don’t like it.”

“Right? I don’t like it either.”

Ashtar thinking that and me thinking that would be for completely different reasons, but still, I’m glad at least Ashtar is normal.

“By the way, did Hurd really put down his sword himself?”

“…Yeah.”

The answer was less satisfying.
It wasn’t disappointment or anger, but more a sense of sadness and… guilt?
Just like with Fabiana and Silina, there seem to be some tough circumstances these siblings have to deal with.

“Hurd is… strong. No, he was strong. Up until he picked up a sword… no one in his age could be compared to Hurd.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. At 15, Hurd had already reached the 6th Rank and was creating his ideation.”

Yurasia’s jaw dropped open.
“R-Really? At 15…?”

“Haha! Yeah, at 15. I’m not exaggerating just because he’s my brother; I’m just stating the facts. Hurd could emit sword aura since he picked up the sword. And at 13, he had strong magic, and by 15, he opened his merchant association.”

“Wow…”

Hearing Yurasia’s admiration reminded me of Duke Betias bragging on and on.
If that’s true… he couldn’t help but brag about it.
The talent to emit sword aura since he picked up a sword.
It’s a talent on par with Paulo, the only swordsman I recognize.
He too, when he stole a sword at 11, spewed forth a foggy aura, and later I learned that was sword aura.
That crazy bastard acted all flashy to hit me with it, and if I hadn’t dodged, I’d’ve been… shivers.

“Why did he put down such a sword, though?”

“That’s… something I can’t tell you. But I hope you understand that Hurd’s foolish acts and silly behavior are not his true intentions.”

“…You mean all of that is an act?”

“Uh… honestly, I’m not too sure. I want to believe it’s all an act, but lately, it does feel somewhat genuine…?”

Ashtar chuckled awkwardly, looking troubled.
“Nevertheless, he’s quite introspective and a decent person. As you saw earlier, he’s the heir of the Grand Duke’s house but humbly accepts mistakes, apologizes without hesitation, doesn’t get angry easily… and still strong.”

“I think Ashtar might be stronger than Hurd.”

“Of course, if you were just comparing physical power, that’s true. But what I mentioned earlier refers to a different kind of strength.”

I don’t know exactly what that other kind of strength is, but I nodded.
“I see.”
The atmosphere grew a bit heavy.
Yurasia looked solemn, and Ashtar’s face showed she was unused to such a mood.
But I’m not the type of guy who gets bothered by this kind of atmosphere.

“So ultimately, Hurd didn’t put down his sword because he genuinely respected Ronan, but rather because of some circumstances, wanted to put it down and aspire to be like Ronan?”

“Uh… that’s not exactly it.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. The reason I wield a sword is that, although he may be gone, I still want to wield it by Ronan’s side. Just like the founding figure of Eustetia, Arisa…”

“Uh… okay…?”

“And that’s the same for Hurd. But… due to certain events, instead of standing by Ronan’s side, he decided to follow in his footsteps… and that’s how it turned out.”

This weighty mindset overwhelmed me.
There’s someone else besides Flame Sovereign who truly admires me?
No, Flame Sovereign seems more like a fanboy admiration for a celebrity? Like those who are into a certain idol? This feels more genuine admiration.

Um… how come.
For some reason, my spine tingled.
“By the way, why out of all heroes do you especially like… that, Ronan?”

“Our family has many stories about Ronan. I grew up reading those, so it’s only natural that a sense of awe for Ronan grew within me. It’s even said that Ronan saved our ancestor, Hilde van Chaser, and took her heart.”

Took her heart? I? That woman’s heart?
All I did was slap her, sometimes punch her while pretending to slap her, and when she demanded to be tied up, I just plopped her at the outpost… nothing more.
Did I take her heart?

“Maybe you enjoy being hit…?”

“Oh? No? I’d say I prefer hitting more than being hit…”

“Hmm… Is that so?”

That was how Hilde was back then too.
But now she has changed.
The reason… well, I don’t think it’s me…

‘You’re such a trash bastard, Ronan.’

‘What’s with the sudden outburst?’

‘Is the guy who has a fiancée now touching a woman with lustful interests and just leaving her at an outpost?!’

‘Lustful…? Left? Me? What did I even do?’

‘Now you’re pulling the “I didn’t do anything” card, huh? Sure. You’ll continue living that way your whole life. Oh my, what’s with that fist? Why don’t you try hitting me? Go ahead, beast! Do you know? I, Luna Sacred Pranecia, who is a saint in the Pranecia Holy Kingdom and a member of the hero party, might fall into depravity by your hands?’

‘…Please stop with the nonsense.’

Luna… Paulo… and Kaloso. Even the ever-smiling Arisa called me a trash for a while.
So… just in case… I decided I should never engage in a duel with Ashtar.

*

“How should we set the duel rules, Junior?”

“Let the senior decide.”

“Oh, so confident?”

“Well, in any case, I have nothing to lose if I lose.”

“What? The intent behind your acceptance seems rather impure, doesn’t it?”

Even so, Ashtar continues to laugh, and I wrapped my hands in bandages.
Just one duel should be alright, right?

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