NBAA Vol. 7 Chapter 2 Part 4
Gilan Fall, Shizune’s father, was a famous general in the Kingdom of Baltros. His bravery was known far beyond the borders of the kingdom. He commanded large armies, repelled invasions from other lands, and defeated numerous demons that threatened the people. Like Shizune, he was a “Swordmaster” known for his extraordinary skills and immense popularity.
From a young age, Shizune admired her father, Gilan, and aspired to emulate him by dedicating herself to mastering the art of swordplay. Although her mother, a concubine, preferred that her daughter keep a low profile, Gilan enthusiastically taught her his skills.
This didn’t sit well with his regular wife and their sons, however, and led to Shizune being bullied for her unique hair color. Nevertheless, she persisted in her sword training. Remarkably talented, Shizune mastered the skill “Swordmaster” by the age of five, a feat even Reito didn’t achieve until he was eight. Due to her father’s frequent travels, she received little direct instruction, emphasizing her natural talent, which surpassed Reito’s.
Shizune’s dual occupation as a “Knight” and “Magician” reflected the talents she inherited from both her parents – martial prowess from her father and magical aptitude from her mother. Her gentle mother taught her water magic, while her father taught her the fundamentals of the Fall family’s swordsmanship.
Her life took a tragic turn ten years ago during the Kingdom Festival in the royal capital. During this annual event, the queen invited the famous adventurer Gorai, who was in town after successfully defeating a “Fire Dragon” at the request of a noble. Intrigued by the rumors, the queen proposed to the king:
“Dear King, it seems that a famous adventurer named Gorai is staying in our city. How about inviting him to the Kingdom Festival as an honored guest?”
Consequently, Gorai was invited to the castle for a grand welcome banquet. The king was thrilled to honor someone who could defeat a dragon, and planned to award Gorai for his bravery. However, the queen’s comment sparked controversy:
“But who is the greater between our great general, Gilan, and Gorai? Gorai-sama impressively defeated a dragon single-handedly, but Gilan-sama has also achieved much for the kingdom. I wonder who is the strongest swordsman in the kingdom.”
This remark caused a stir among the vassals in the castle. The king had not intended to make a comparison between Gilan and Gorai. When Gilan heard this, he was deeply offended, feeling his warrior’s pride wounded by the mere suggestion of being compared to Gorai, regardless of his accomplishments.
Driven by his pride, Gilan begged the king:
“Please, King! Grant me and Lord Gorai the opportunity for a duel! I want to show everyone here who truly is the better swordsman!”
“Gladly! I’ll gladly accept the challenge!” replied Gorai.
With no other choice, the king agreed and arranged for the duel to take place in the castle’s training grounds. An unprecedented “duel” between a general and an adventurer drew a massive crowd, setting the stage for a fateful encounter that would change Shizune’s life forever.
In the presence of the gathered crowd, the queen made a provocative suggestion.
“My King, shall we not offer the winner of this duel whatever he wishes?”
“Any wish…?”
“I believe this will lift the spirits of both men.”
The king, intrigued by the idea, asked, “Queen, what wish do you think they might have?”
Gilan was the first to answer:
“I am loyal to the kingdom, I have nothing to wish for!”
Then Gorai spoke up:
“I would like a sturdy weapon that will never break. Most weapons I use can be easily shattered with just a little effort. Hahahahahaha!”
Upon hearing this, the queen proposed:
“Then, if Gorai-sama wins, how about we gift him the ‘Holy Sword Durandal’ that the kingdom has lent to Gilan-sama?”
“What do you mean, my queen? How can you offer that…?”
Gilan tried to protest, but the king cut him off:
“All right, let’s do as the queen suggests. Gilan, you have nothing to fear if you do not lose.”
“Well, if that is the king’s will, I shall obey.”
The “Holy Sword Durandal,” loaned to Gilan by the kingdom, had lost its original power and no longer functioned as a holy sword. It was considered by the royal court to be merely a remarkably strong large sword. However, as a legendary blade forged by a hero who saved the world in the past, Durandal had immense symbolic value and was traditionally loaned to generals. Such an important item could not simply be handed over to an adventurer.
Thus began an extraordinary duel between a kingdom’s general and an adventurer. Gilan and Gorai faced each other with training swords in front of the king, queen and their advisors. Shizune did not witness the battle, but she heard that the contest was fiercely even. Gorai, who had defeated a dragon single-handedly, withstood Gilan’s powerful and direct attacks without yielding.
The duel went on for over an hour with no clear winner.
“This is the most powerful general in the world! I’m surprised you lasted this long!”
“And you! The rumors that you are the best adventurer are indeed true!”
As the duel continued, the admiration between Gilan and Gorai grew. They repeatedly broke each other’s weapons, necessitating several exchanges. It was an intense match between the kingdom’s strongest Swordmaster and the future “The Swordmaster of Destruction”.
However, during their tenth weapon exchange, something unusual happened.
“Huh? My weapon broke again? … Hey, I’m sorry, bring me a new one!”
“Hurry, get a replacement sword and some water for the general!”
At Gorai’s request, one of the generals watching the duel quickly ordered his men to bring a new weapon and water.
“No, I don’t need any…”
Gilan tried to refuse to drink water during the duel, but the king interrupted him.
“Take it easy, Gilan. You too, take a breath… Hey, get some water for Gorai, too.”
“I’m fine…”
“Here you go.”
The king, concerned for Gilan, who was beginning to show signs of fatigue, had water prepared for both of them.
Gorai refused to accept it, but Gilan took the water at the king’s command, and he gulped down the cup provided by the soldiers.
“Phew… Hmm? What… is this taste?”
“Hmm? Is something wrong?”
“No… it’s nothing.”
According to the testimony of many people who had seen them fight, Gilan’s color gradually deteriorated after he drank the water, and his movements became much slower and slower.
Most of the people assumed that Gilan was getting tired from the long duel, but even taking that into account, his complexion was a bit too bad.
“What’s wrong, Gilan? You’ve lost that infamous strength of yours, haven’t you?”
“D-, Don’t underesti-… ngh!?”
“GILAN!”
Gilan was about to vomit right in the middle of the duel. The king saw this and rushed in to stop the fight, but Gilan stopped him and raised his sword. His will as a general would not allow him to stop the duel. He was a nobleman, and he wanted to fight to the end.
However, Gilan’s will was opposed by his body, which was at its limit. He swung his sword with the weakness of an amateur.
Gorai’s sword struck him in the chest, sending a shock through his armor.
“Ngh!!”
“Gahhhhhh!”
“GILAN! That’s enough!! Heal Gilan at once!!”
The moment Gilan was blown away by Gorai, he fell to the ground, coughing up blood.
Gilan was badly injured; his chest was deeply hollowed out, and he lay unconscious, probably as a result of the traumatic impact.
Despite the Recovery Specialist’s desperate efforts to heal Gilan, it was too late. He had succumbed to his injuries, passing away from the final, fatal blow he received.
“Noo… What is this! How could this happen…”
“Your Majesty, don’t be sad… the duel ends here! Bring in the general who has fought so valiantly to the end!”
“Lord Gilan…”
The queen issued an order on behalf of the grieving king, and Gilan’s body was delivered to his family for burial at a later date.
The king mourned the death of the kingdom’s longtime supporter. He had Gilan’s son succeed his father as general, and a grand funeral ceremony was held throughout the entire country.
Meanwhile, Gorai received the Holy Sword Durandal as promised and left the capital early.
Initially, the king was reluctant to hand over the sword to the man responsible for the general’s death. However, the queen convinced him that reneging on his promise would damage his reputation among the populace. She argued that breaking his word could lead to a loss of popularity and potentially turn a powerful adversary against him, particularly an adventurer whose skills had proven to surpass those of Gilan’s.
The king reluctantly allowed Gorai to receive the holy sword.
Gilan’s death made the position of Shizune and her mother, a mermaid, “Mizune,” even worse. This was because “Moori,” his rightful wife, who had given birth to their first son, effectively took over the real power of the Fall family after Gilan’s death.
Soon after she seized power, Moori banished Mizune and Shizune.
Mizune, unjustly banished from the royal capital, tried to take the young Shizune with her to the mermaid nation, but there was a problem. The mermaids built cities under the sea, and Shizune, a human, could not live there. They could use magic to breathe, but when the magic ran out, Shizune would die.
Mizune stayed in the kingdom for the sake of her daughter and worked hard to raise her in another city. But mermaids need a lot of water. Working long hours with such a body was extremely difficult, and her financial problems were never solved.
Nevertheless, Mizune continued to work desperately, and despite her poverty, she continued to provide for Shizune well until she reached her tenth birthday. One day, however, she collapsed from severe dehydration while working. Mizune was brought home and Shizune worked hard to care for her, but she eventually died of a heart attack.
Since then, Shizune has been living on her own. By continuing to hone the swordsmanship her father had taught her, she had already acquired the ability to defeat demons even though she was only ten years old.
However, she did not become an adventurer like Gorai. She belonged to a “mercenary guild” that dealt with interpersonal conflicts.
As a mercenary, she defeated numerous villains and took down hundreds of people with bounties on their heads, and soon became known as a “bounty hunter.”
Five years had passed since she started earning her money as a mercenary when she heard a rumor about an arena in Adventure City and a Battle Festival to be held there. She also heard that Gorai would be participating the festival.
So she came to the city. Her goal was to defeat Gorai, the man who had killed her father, and she asked Reito to help her.
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