TBAGM Vol. 1 Chapter 2 Part 7

The next morning, Nero and I went to the Adventurer’s Association and formally registered him as a member of Veiled Moonrise.

Being an A-rank adventurer and a former member of Incarnation of the Sun, it took some convincing, but eventually Orgus acknowledged Nero’s determination.

Some time had passed since then.

After finishing lunch, we were now gathered at the guild’s training grounds.

It was time to set the training policies for Nero and Ellis.

“Let’s start with Nero’s plan.”

“Yes! What should I do?”

Facing me eagerly were Nero and Ellis, both brimming with motivation.

Nero especially seemed excited; perhaps because he hadn’t had direct instruction from me in a long while.

“Nero. From today, you’re going to focus on mastering one thing. But—there’s one obstacle you’ll have to overcome.”

“Obstacle…?”

I had spent a lot of time researching innate talents and hidden skills.

Not that there was anyone else to consult; I had only my own theories to go on.

“Nero, you’re going to seal all your skills.”

“…Huh?”

Even Nero, usually quick on the uptake, couldn’t hide his confusion.

His fighting style involved blending multiple skills together.

In essence, I was telling him to abandon everything he had built over the past two years.

“You’re going to seal everything you’ve accumulated up to now.”

Technically, his stats would remain unchanged, so in theory, he should still move at an A-rank level.

But Nero was a special case.

He had relied heavily on his skills to climb to where he was.

If those were sealed, he might drop to B-rank… or even C-rank.

Why go to such extremes?

Because his innate talent held too much potential to ignore.

“You have the potential to stand toe-to-toe with S-ranks. But to unlock that, you’ll need to seal all your other skills.”

Inherent Traits, I believed, were the key to breaking through one’s limits.

But great power always came with drawbacks.

When an Inherent Trait evolved into a hidden skill, it grew so dominant that other skills could no longer function alongside it.

In fact, Ellis’ 【Swordsmanship Basics】, which should be a passive skill, had yet to activate; almost as if it was being suppressed by 【Water Ball】.

After some hesitation, Nero asked what was most important to him.

“Mr. Lloyd… will I actually become stronger?”

That desire to grow stronger; that was what drove Nero more than anything.

I nodded firmly, trying to reassure him.

“Yes. No doubt about it. If you master this skill, you’ll gain power on par with an S-rank.”

“I’ll do it! I’ll throw away every other skill if I have to!”

Nero was the type who never hesitated when it came to getting stronger.

He was prepared to abandon everything he’d built up until now.

Still, there was one concern I had to bring up.

“But… I know I’m the one who suggested this, but are you sure? You might lose your A-rank license.”

B-rank and above adventurers were required to complete a set number of quests each month.

That didn’t apply to non-combat classes, but Nero was a combat adventurer.

He was about to devote all his time to training this new technique.

That meant he wouldn’t meet his quota, and in the end, he’d be demoted… possibly to C-rank.

A-rank adventurers were a rare breed; only a few dozen existed in the entire kingdom.

Losing such a prestigious status wasn’t something to take lightly… or so I thought.

“Rank doesn’t matter to me. As long as I can get stronger under you, Mr. Lloyd, I’m satisfied.”

Apparently, he didn’t think of it as a big deal.

That was very much like Nero, and explained how he became an A-rank at such a young age.

“Nero, I think I might be starting to like you.”

“Wha—?! O-of course, I respect you too, Mr. Lloyd! I-Is that what you mean by ‘like’…?”

It’s impossible to dislike someone who trusts you this deeply.

Just then, Ellis jumped in between us, both arms outstretched.

“Stooooop! That’s far enough!”

““…Huh?””

Her face flushed red, Ellis turned to Nero and shouted.

“Nero! Lord Lloyd is mine!”

Huh? Ellis? What are you talking about?

“Excuse me? Mr. Lloyd is mine!”

“…What?”

I couldn’t help but let out a dumb noise at that.

Ignoring me, the two of them ramped up their argument.

“I was the one getting trained by Mr. Lloyd in Incarnation of the Sun first, okay? Obviously, he’s mine!”

“Oh yeah? Well I got advice from him three years ago, so I’m even earlier!”

The two glared at each other from close range, neither willing to back down.

Part of me wanted to just keep watching… but no, training had to happen.

Just as I stepped in to mediate—

“Hey, both of you—”

““Please be quiet for a second!””

“…Ugh.”

Neither of them was willing to listen to a word I said.

And just like that, our training was delayed by over an hour.

†

“Phew, we can finally start training.”

I felt like they’d been arguing for over an hour. Honestly, I probably should have stepped in more forcefully, but the temptation to watch a little longer got the better of me.

I apologize for grinning like a fool while they were in the middle of a heated quarrel.

“S-Sorry about that. I got a bit too fired up.”

“I wasn’t exactly the most mature either.”

Ellis and Nero both looked sheepish as they spoke.

They were both a year younger than me, and the same age as each other. Neither of them had much opportunity to interact with peers, so this kind of exchange would be a good experience. I was certain they’d push each other to improve, as rivals should.

“Alright then, let’s start the training.”

“Yes!”

Their voices rang out with confidence and excitement.

They’d just exhausted themselves yelling at each other moments ago—where on earth were they drawing this energy from? Youth was enviable… not that I was more than a year older.

“Ellis, I want you to fire 【Water Ball】 at Nero—repeatedly. Let’s start with the basic version.”

“Understood!”

“So that means I’m dodging her spells to raise my Agility, right? I mean, my Endurance is already pretty high, so I can take mid-tier spells just fine if you want to go harder.”

Nero puffed out his chest with pride as he said that.

Come to think of it, I hadn’t explained Ellis’ circumstances to him yet.

“She can only use 【Water Ball】.”

“—Oh. Is that so? Guess you’ve had your fair share of struggles too.”

“Wait, did you just give me a pitying look? Don’t blame me if you regret that later.”

Ellis shot Nero a wicked grin in response to his glance.

Hopefully, Nero would survive the upcoming training.

“By the way, Nero. You’re not allowed to move a single step from where you’re standing.”

“…Huh?”

Only then did Nero furrow his brow. But almost immediately, a new idea seemed to pop into his head, and he nodded with enthusiasm.

“Oh, I see—so I’m working on my Endurance?”

Please don’t look that delighted. It makes me seem sadistic. It’s not like I’m trying to turn Nero into a masochist.

“No. You’re going to dodge her spells without moving.”

“Huh? Wha—what!?”

Nero blinked in pure confusion at my curt response.

Dodging without moving. The phrase itself was a paradox.

“You’re going to learn 【Magic Breaker】.”

“【Magic Breaker】?”

The unfamiliar term made Nero tilt his head in confusion.

“You’re going to learn how to slice through every single 【Water Ball】 Ellis launches at you—with perfect accuracy.”

“Is that even possible!?”

“No way! There’s no chance he can cut through my 【Water Ball】!”

They both shot me skeptical looks.

Understandably so. In this world, there wasn’t a single documented case of magic being sliced. Magic was essentially condensed mana; it could be blocked or dispersed with shields, but never cut.

But Nero’s inherent trait, 【Magic Breaker】, made the impossible possible.

“Ellis, can you make a 【Water Ball】 and hold it in place here?”

“That’s easy. Sure!”

With that, Ellis conjured a large sphere of water in front of us.

“—What?”

No chant, and she had modified the spell on the fly. Nero gaped, frozen in place.

This was his first time seeing Ellis’ 【Water Ball】. He was probably scrambling to figure out if this was reality or a dream.

“Oh right, I never mentioned this before—she’s got real talent with 【Water Ball】.”

“People keep acting like it’s a big deal… Am I really that abnormal?”

Well, asking people not to be surprised was unreasonable.

Even seasoned A-rank adventurers froze at the sight. I could already imagine people reacting like this every time she showed her spell.

I locked eyes with the still-dumbfounded Nero and tried to convey the message through sheer force of will.

“She’s totally normal. Right, Nero?”

“Y-Yeah… normal.”

“I guess my training hasn’t been intense enough! I’ll aim for ten volleys starting tomorrow!”

“……”

Nero and I could only respond with silence.

At this point, saying anything would just be conceding defeat… yeah.

To break the awkward atmosphere, Nero raised his voice.

“W-Well, I’ll give it a shot!”

Apparently, Nero had given up trying to make sense of Ellis’ 【Water Ball】.

He drew one of the two swords at his hip.

“Haaah!”

With a shout, he slashed at the massive orb of water.

The blade passed through as if it had been swallowed, slicing through nothing. The water sphere retained its perfect shape.

Ellis crossed her arms and declared smugly:

“Fufufu! Looks like I win!”

“Mr. Lloyd, are we really going to cut magic with physical attacks? I mean, I don’t even think I have a skill like that…”

Gone was the bravado; Nero’s voice had grown timid.

But I could see it clearly. Without a doubt, Nero possessed the power to sever magic.

“Nero. Are you going to let Ellis get the last word?”

“No, I just—”

“I’m telling you it’s possible. Even if you can’t believe in your talent right now, I want you to believe in me.”

“…Alright.”

With a reluctant nod, Nero lifted his sword again.

†

(Man… If Mr. Lloyd says so, I’ve got no choice but to do it. But seriously, is it even possible to cut through magic?)

Nero was silently grumbling to himself, careful not to let the other two notice.

He understood that the quickest path to becoming stronger was to follow Mr. Lloyd’s guidance.

That didn’t mean he accepted it without reservation.

(Still, letting Ellis walk all over me like this is getting on my nerves…)

Was it rivalry? Or sheer defiance? A storm of emotions swirled within him.

For someone who had always been unbeatable, losing to such a basic spell was nothing short of disgraceful.

No—even if it were some otherworldly magic, it wouldn’t matter. The mere fact of losing was something Nero could not tolerate.

(There’s got to be something—like a seam, a point of rupture, some kind of opening I can strike…)

He shifted his mindset, now intent on finding a breakthrough. Mr. Lloyd told him to trust in himself.

So he focused. With everything he had. He silenced the voice of reason. And then—

(—What is that?)

Nero saw something glowing inside the 【Water Ball】.

He squinted, narrowing his eyes in concentration.

That glimmer definitely hadn’t been there before.

The moment he laid eyes on it, his body moved on instinct—well before his brain had processed what he was seeing.

“Haaaaaaaah!”

With a fierce yell, Nero brought his sword down once more on the floating 【Water Ball】.

Something splashed to the ground.

It was unmistakably a part of the spell—something Nero had successfully cleaved off.

And by the time his mind caught up to what had just happened, he had already dropped the sword from his hands.

“—!”

His chest burned. His hands trembled. His vision blurred.

An unending surge of euphoria. A wave of fulfillment gradually soaking through him.

Nero let those feelings settle deep into his heart, savoring every second of the moment.

“Nero. You’ve grasped it, haven’t you?”

“Yes!”

He nodded to Mr. Lloyd with absolute conviction.

The 【Water Ball】 still hovered in front of him.

At a glance, it looked no different than before—but a tiny sliver of it was missing. A piece he had just sliced off. The proof of his power.

(Mr. Lloyd really is incredible. I’m so damn glad I get to learn from him!)

Nero was once again reminded of Mr. Lloyd’s greatness.

†

At that moment, I—Lloyd—found myself astonished once again by Nero’s rapid growth.

As a result of his training, just like Ellis, a hidden skill entry had appeared in his status—and it read:

.

【Magic Breaker】 E → D

.

It normally took three to six months to raise a single stat or skill.

Yet Nero had done it in a single day. His growth rate was, without question, extraordinary.

“Ellis, keep having Nero slice through your 【Water Ball】 until I say otherwise. If he manages to split one cleanly in half, let me know.”

“Are you going somewhere?”

“I’m thinking of scouting some new recruits.”

They were both capable enough now that I could leave them be.

They would continue to grow; of that, I was certain.

“Good luck, you two.”

““Yes!””

With that, I left the pair behind and headed off to recruit talent.